A step down from the previous film, but still a better watch than the actual series itself. The removal of pointless side characters and the focus on characters like Argo and Agil is a nice improvement. Unfortunately, it's heading in the direction of being as bad as the original series, with the focus solely on Kirito once again. Kirito remains the weakest aspect of the movie, and it genuinely feels like if he wasn't in the film, nothing would have changed. Furthermore, they're starting to write Asuna as another damsel in distress for Kirito, which is a significant step-down compared to the first film thatshowcased Asuna's personal growth as she faced Aincrad.