Review of Sword Art Online
*Disclaimer* I'm writing this review as the second time through and I'm a bit of a fan boy of the series so take my words with a grain of salt but i'll try and do my best to be fair. *Production* (7.5/10)- I'll start off on a good note by saying that SAO has slightly above average production values. By no means is this show the absolute highest standard of production but the artwork and animation are definitely slightly above average. SAO does a good job with creating distinctive character models (which should be expected considering its about a MMORPG) but characters are memorable dueto the artwork and the scenery is well done and adequately detailed. I often rate animation for these types of shows based on action/battle sequences. The important questions are can you follow the actions within the scene and did they portray the pace they intended to show. Good shows are able to portray these scenes in a way where you can follow the scene yet maintain that sense of speed. It can be really easy to mess this up but SAO does a decent job of portraying the main action scenes to meet this criteria. In this sense, SAO meets what we should expect but I rate it slightly higher probably because of deficiencies covered later.
*Music* (8.5/10) - Music can make a bad show tolerable and a good show great. The music is definitely one of the aspects of this show that elevates it above the average level. Personally, I think both OPs for the show are outstanding and the music that plays within the course of the show do a good job of portraying the overall tone of the scene. This is the one area where I feel like SAO exceeds what we should expect and was personally the most enjoyable part of the show for me.
Alright now we get into the quote unquote "questionable/debatable portions" of the show
*Characters* (6/10) - To be honest the show focuses so on the two main characters who are very similar in nature and the personality of the other characters either does not contribute to improve the story or do not get enough exposure to make a significant impact on the quality of the story. Asuna is a solid lead female. She is a typical attractive female that displays her strengths as a somewhat strong-willed, independent female who sometimes shows vulnerability by being an overly emotional and caring individual who needs the support in tough situations to stay strong. Plus she's a bit of a tsundere at the beginning of the show so brownie points all around. She displays the strengths and weakness expected from this type of character but it is well done so credit should be given where credit is due. The main lead Kirito, on the other hand, is far too similar in my taste to Asuna.They basically display the same characteristics in terms of how they act and personality wise. Kirito also suffers from falling into that stereotypical hero who can overcome anything type which seems to be more of a copout just to fit the story. My issue is at times he seems vulnerable and hurt which makes viewers get a sense of his mortality but everytime he seems to overcome these issues to the point where it makes him this god-like character. The side characters for the most part are somewhat forgettable except Klein really stands out to me. Klein has a likeable personality and you can really get behind his character. Unfortunately, he is relegated to a supporting role which diminishes his role within the story. This is the one character who I wish received more time in the spotlight because I feel like he is the one character that stands out from the series.
*Story* (5 to 4.5/10) - As much as I like this show, I can't ignore the obvious flaws within the story. Some people don't like the fact the show steered toward a love story. I don't find this a problem because it doesn't make for a bad storyline but the way the story goes about it leaves a sour taste in my mouth. The story has a great premise, the fight for your life/it's no longer a game concept was well established within the first 2 episodes. After that, the show went on these side stories that simply added girls to the harem and hurt the pacing of the story (The show kind of went through a year and half as quickly as possible only highlighting the love interests along the way). More of Kirito's character was revealed through these arcs but don't really contribute much to the story other than showing that these girls are a love interest. Yet, the Aincrad Arc develops a decent narrative between Asuna and Kirito. The ALO arc on the other hand is where things went wrong. The story was poorly done and the introduce some themes that I won't say for spoiler reasons but are questionable. The story feels like they want to have this epic/climatic ending but it falls flat due to poor writing and questionable situations. The ALO arc is where the show gets dragged down especially after some very strong episodes leading into the arc. As a final note, Kirito is OP and I don't know why but he is god I swear.
*Overall* (7/10) - I have this show rated higher on my list but to be fair it is an overall average show when considering its strengths and weakness. It has solid production values but the story falters at points especially considering the 1st episode set high expectations for the series. This is a good show for people who haven't watched much anime before hand due to its subject and appeal to general audiences. For those who have been watching anime for a while, I personally would suggest watching it for enjoyment but for the critical don't bother because the story will bother you.
Sorry for the long review but this is a show I really enjoy so I want to share my thoughts but I also understand that it's not for everyone and if you don't like it I can see why and to each his own.
TLDR: Good intro show if you are new; otherwise it has its flaws but meets the average expectations for a shonen and is a good watch if you like the concept behind it.