Review of Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale

In short, Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale was a satisfying movie to watch. It was satisfying because the story wasn’t too confusing to watch. It only drew from events that happened in the first season of SAO and doesn’t require you to watch the entire anime or require you to have read all the novels. It just introduces a new story with the characters we know and gives viewers a good time watching. This eases the minds of those who haven’t watched or read SAO (I’m currently one of those people). So, whether you’re a veteran anime watcher, casual otaku, or a non-anime watcher wantingto watch SAO, then this movie will probably be a satisfying watch.

Specifics about SAO Ordinal Scale:

Briefly, the story was straightforward as it followed the typical SAO (or any) plot progression. Prepare to dive into augmented reality as the virtual world collides with the real world. Of course, you’ll be asking yourself: what can go wrong this time? Join Kirito and his friends as they try to fight against the evil that the new AR headsets possesses and uncover the secret behind Ordinal Scale.

But, even with the straightforward story, the characters seem to be static. Almost none of the characters have notable changes throughout the movie's plot. As a result, the characters didn't really add any new spice to the movie. Well, this is a given because of the time period that the movie’s events take place (1 or 2 weeks). But, hey, at least we see Kirito actually pushing himself to be OP (turns out he was only good in VR).

Artistically speaking, the art wasn’t too bad because it easily depicted the characters, monsters, and their environment. But, compared to the TV anime, the movie’s animation lacked fluidity and consistency—especially in its action scenes. You could see this comparison when they flashback to summarize some of the events in the Aincrad arc. In other words, the animation is watchable, but it isn’t the kind of art that could blow you away.

The sound quality was okay. The voice acting was good as usual. But, the sound overall wasn’t too exciting, though. Honestly, they could have used the old OSTs because there weren’t many beautiful or epic music in this movie unlike what we’ve heard in the anime. They probably put too much effort into the songs that the idol character sang. But, either way, those expecting to hear some good pieces by Yuki Kajiura, don’t get your hopes too high.

But, overall, SAO: Ordinal Scale was enjoyable. I enjoyed it at least. My theater was really noisy because we were all cheering for Kirito and Asuna kicking ass. So, you should have a fun time watching.

Overall, this movie is balanced in its strengths and flaws. I wouldn’t really give it a 10 or 9 because it didn’t really blow me away like its original anime. On the other hand, this movie just delivers an entirely new story that follows a point A to point B path. So, this movie doesn’t spoil too much outside its main story other than the Aincrad arc. Thus, it’s a good starter for people who haven’t watched SAO but want to watch it.

But, it was nice to see anime on the big screen. It was nice to see that many new and old members of the otaku community-- and even the general public-- can get together to watch anime. Hopefully, there will be another movie like this because these things are rare.

Thanks for reading this review!