Ohayo!
So the first of my laundry list of anime series I have to watch is done!.
All Youmacon I kept seeing these cool black and silver trench coats, and after hearing Sword Art Online over and over I caved and watched it.
I liked it! It's not the best series I've ever seen but it was very well made. Let's get to the review shall we?
It's almost impossible to avoid some spoilers so i'll include them in here, just a heads up.
Concept:
I loved the concept. The idea of being forced into a Matrix like scenario has always been a concept that I have in my stories. and I really liked the idea of it being an MMO taken to the next level.
I never got into an MMO personally, but I know what it's like to get drawn into a game for huge chunks of time, Skyrim, Mass Effect, Bioshock, Dragon age, Oblivion, Fallout 3 and New Vegas. There have been times where I imagined what it would be like to be stuck in these worlds.
The first half of the series was brilliant, The idea of having to go up 100 levels and take out a boss was a brilliant Idea. I like the characters leveling up separately and how the Beta testers become on par with gods.
TimeLine:
I Loved the overall Idea of the first half of the show, but Honestly wish that it was the whole season. The halfway point felt out of place. you set up a series set in one world then just decide to throw that out and bring in a new world? It felt like the writers got bored of the SAO world. they had a 100 floor cap and forced the story ahead by months and years, then at about level 75 the big boss just gets bored and offers a final battle? that's just lazy writing.
the second half of the season should have been a second season. Asuna being in a come could have been the first half, with kirito and the other survivors trying to acclimate to the new world. With the ALfheim stuff being the second half. that would have given the show more time to establish the sister's love for kirito, and given a bit more time to develop how the other characters dealt with the shock of losing two years. I mean, what happened to the rest of the survivors? we eventually see them in the finale but we don't ever see any them since the SAO was disbanded.
Also, another issue with cramming the two season into one. The relation of Asuna and Kirito felt rushed. I know it was really 2 years in the game but the show wasn't very good at establishing time. it felt like they jumped from floor one to floor 45 in like a week. then took them 2 years to get to 50, then a few days to breach 75. it just jumped all over the place with only a single subtitle at the beginning to point to the changing times.
after SAO ended the rest of the season took place over like 5 days. yet he just goes, makes friends, stops a war, gets to the tree, defeats the guardians, saves the girl, gets the world seed. and wins. all in under a week.
Story:
I mentioned most of my issues but I have to say I didn't really like the way the Incest storyline played out. about half way through the randomly mentioned he was adopted. then in the same episode the sister/cousin developed a crush. It was like the writers thought it was cool and added it in last minute.
I really did like the idea of someone developing a way to control someone's brain. but it was ultimately underused in the full scheme of the show.
also, the final reintroduction off SAO's floating island feels like the writers got nostalgic and are setting up a second season set in the first half of the first season again. I wanted them to branch out a bit and bring in other MMO's into the world. like have a guy from a scifi game fighting along side a fairy who is healing a guy with a giant sword, beating up a mecha. that would be awesome.
Animation:
The animation was colorful and crisp. It's not the best animation I've seen but no question it's better than many anime's I've seen. I liked the flying and the sword battles.
Final Points:
I enjoyed the series. but ultimately the writing was just too ADHD for me. I wished the first half was one season and the second was a second season, giving the story more time to develop.
Final Verdict: 65
So, it started really strong and had good ideas but it ultimately was disappointing. I like the coat though.
So the first of my laundry list of anime series I have to watch is done!.
All Youmacon I kept seeing these cool black and silver trench coats, and after hearing Sword Art Online over and over I caved and watched it.
I liked it! It's not the best series I've ever seen but it was very well made. Let's get to the review shall we?
It's almost impossible to avoid some spoilers so i'll include them in here, just a heads up.
ANIME REVIEW: Sword Art Online
I loved the concept. The idea of being forced into a Matrix like scenario has always been a concept that I have in my stories. and I really liked the idea of it being an MMO taken to the next level.
I never got into an MMO personally, but I know what it's like to get drawn into a game for huge chunks of time, Skyrim, Mass Effect, Bioshock, Dragon age, Oblivion, Fallout 3 and New Vegas. There have been times where I imagined what it would be like to be stuck in these worlds.
The first half of the series was brilliant, The idea of having to go up 100 levels and take out a boss was a brilliant Idea. I like the characters leveling up separately and how the Beta testers become on par with gods.
TimeLine:
I Loved the overall Idea of the first half of the show, but Honestly wish that it was the whole season. The halfway point felt out of place. you set up a series set in one world then just decide to throw that out and bring in a new world? It felt like the writers got bored of the SAO world. they had a 100 floor cap and forced the story ahead by months and years, then at about level 75 the big boss just gets bored and offers a final battle? that's just lazy writing.
the second half of the season should have been a second season. Asuna being in a come could have been the first half, with kirito and the other survivors trying to acclimate to the new world. With the ALfheim stuff being the second half. that would have given the show more time to establish the sister's love for kirito, and given a bit more time to develop how the other characters dealt with the shock of losing two years. I mean, what happened to the rest of the survivors? we eventually see them in the finale but we don't ever see any them since the SAO was disbanded.
Also, another issue with cramming the two season into one. The relation of Asuna and Kirito felt rushed. I know it was really 2 years in the game but the show wasn't very good at establishing time. it felt like they jumped from floor one to floor 45 in like a week. then took them 2 years to get to 50, then a few days to breach 75. it just jumped all over the place with only a single subtitle at the beginning to point to the changing times.
after SAO ended the rest of the season took place over like 5 days. yet he just goes, makes friends, stops a war, gets to the tree, defeats the guardians, saves the girl, gets the world seed. and wins. all in under a week.
Story:
I mentioned most of my issues but I have to say I didn't really like the way the Incest storyline played out. about half way through the randomly mentioned he was adopted. then in the same episode the sister/cousin developed a crush. It was like the writers thought it was cool and added it in last minute.
I really did like the idea of someone developing a way to control someone's brain. but it was ultimately underused in the full scheme of the show.
also, the final reintroduction off SAO's floating island feels like the writers got nostalgic and are setting up a second season set in the first half of the first season again. I wanted them to branch out a bit and bring in other MMO's into the world. like have a guy from a scifi game fighting along side a fairy who is healing a guy with a giant sword, beating up a mecha. that would be awesome.
Animation:
The animation was colorful and crisp. It's not the best animation I've seen but no question it's better than many anime's I've seen. I liked the flying and the sword battles.
Final Points:
I enjoyed the series. but ultimately the writing was just too ADHD for me. I wished the first half was one season and the second was a second season, giving the story more time to develop.
Final Verdict: 65
So, it started really strong and had good ideas but it ultimately was disappointing. I like the coat though.
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