Review of Sword Art Online

**POSSIBLE SPOILERS** Ah Sword Art Online. One of the most argued over anime of recent years. Some say SAO is the messiah of anime, and any who oppose it should be exucuted publicly. Others say watching Butt Attack Punisher Girl Gautaman ten times would be more enjoyable than SAO. Though personally, I believe both sides are completely wrong. Now, why am I only now reviewing it? I don't know, mind your own buisness! *If you want a quick summary of how I feel overall, It's at the bottom. Story (First Arc) Plot: On November 6, 2022, the players log into SAO for the first time, and later discoverthat they are unable to log out. They are then informed by Akihiko Kayaba, SAO's creator, that if they wish to be free, they must reach the 100th floor of the game's tower and defeat the final boss. However, if their avatars die in-game, their bodies will also die in the real world. One of these players is Kazuto "Kirito" Kirigaya, who was chosen as one of the 1,000 beta testers in the closed beta. Since he had previous experience and knowledge of the game, he felt that he could beat the game easily. As a result, he set out to beat the game on his own.

My thoughts: When SAO was first released in 2012, I was absolutely hooked. I hadn't watched too many anime focused on MMORPG, so this was a fairly new and exciting experience to me. The plot, althought not completely original, is still very solid and entertaining. I never felt completely lost, or bored, and found myself on the edge of my seat many times. Though there are many plot holes here and there, most of them can be explained once thought out. There are very large time skips however, and I felt that with more focus on minor events and less time skipping, the anime would have scored much better.

Animation

With A-1 Pictures behind the scenes, I knew exactly what to expect in terms of visuals. The character motions were very fluid with little exceptions, and the color palette was similar to Oreimo, which I felt fitting. The fight scenes, possibly the most important aspect, were also nothing to mock. The swordsmanship was brutal and crude, which in my opinion is much more realistic. The visual effects seemed a bit off at times, but it rarely took away from the scene. All in all, the animation was fitting for the genre, and is what we've come to expect from A-1 Pictures.

Sound(First Arc)

Sword Art Online's first opening was my favorite of the series, and never disappointed me. LiSA has a reputation for great songs, and this one is no exception. The tone and build ups really matched the feel of the anime. The ending theme was also enjoyable, though not as memorable. It's nice to have a soft and slow anime theme every now and then, and I think SAO fit it in well. The voice actors fit perfectly for all the characters, except Silica. I almost never like high pitched lolis though, so don't let that affect your decision. With all this in mind, I'd say the sound was above average, though nothing stellar.

Characters(First Arc)

Now, I'm not going to get into GGO, so I'll be leaving Cinnamon Sinon out of the roster. None of the characters in SAO were really misplaced, though some should have gotten more screentime, as they feel like they were just filler characters.

Kirito: Our main protagonist, Kirito (or Kirishit as some prefer) is your average run of the mill protagonist. I will give credit where it's due though, he isn't a dense brick. He's mellow and a lady killer, but for about half the anime, he's a scene kid with depression issues. He always gets the job done with his OP power level, which I assume is over 9000, or by letting Asuna do his shit for him. Overall he's an aight nigga.

Asuna: Asuna-sama is the one true waifu for Kirito. Anyone who claims the annoying loli, the blacksmith with one episode, or that whore Sinon are better, they should be banished to the shadow realm. Now back to Asuna. She, like Kirito, is also pretty OP. Though we don't often see it, her sword skills are among the top players. She's sweet, a good cook, and was willing to fuck Kirito 5 seconds after they kissed. She is truly the best.

Silica: She's that loud loli that every anime has. She's pretty much useless, and probably should have been eaten by that rape plant thing.

Liz: Now I'll be real. If Asuna wasn't such a babe, Liz would probably be the next best, only because of how nice she is. She basically gave up on her new found love, Kirito, so that Asuna could have him all for herself and be happy. Meanwhile she cries under a bridge. Poor girl. We don't get much developement for her, but overall she's a lovable character.

Agil: He's basically the cool black Russian from Durarara!... He's my nigga.

Klein: Meh. He's aight. He doesn't change at all really, and is always just in the back watching usually.

Final Verdict

When it's all said and done, the first 14 episodes(Arc One) of SAO were very entertaining. Some characters were ignored, but the main characters were given good depth. Animation was A-1 A-OK(get it?), and the story gave enough to get by. Though, If I had my way I would have prefered that the second Arc was scrapped altogether. I feel that if they spent all 25 episodes on the SAO arc, it would have turned into something amazing. Minor characters would have been given depth, less time skips would be needed, and many plot holes would be filled. The ending of the first arc also bugged me. Although I will be flamed for this, I would have prefered a bittersweet ending. What I mean by this, is that Asuna and Kirito die together, in love, while the other 6000+ are saved thanks to them. This would have given no need for the fairy shit or COD shit. Overall though, I'd say this anime deserves more than it's getting from its haters, but definitely not the worship it gets from the lovers.

7/10
story
8/10
animation
7/10
sound
6/10
characters
7/10
overall