Jan 18, 2018
Sword Art Online was and is a flawed but entertaining watch.
Okay, so why? Well...I think that the hype the series was getting sort of raised expectations - and yes, I'll be coming back to this point later on - for what I was about to watch
Now, I won't be including a plot synopsis as I think almost everyone will have seen SAO by now and if you haven't well then so much the better because you can draw your own opinions by watching it. All that said, let's get to the actual meat of the review, shall we?
The story and Characters:
I liked the concept of
...
the series and it started out really strong with a great pilot episode that knew how to hook an audience. The first arc of the series had some pretty likable characters and a fairly good storyline. I'll admit I was happy with the end of the first arc of the series but I thought it could've been better. Then the second arc started and, oh boy, where do I start? It was just uncomfortable to watch. I can't really say much about the second arc without spoiling it but I'll try my best. The story for the second arc was, and I'm probably going to get totally roasted for this, I thought it was okay; but the lead female character was now a generic damsel in distress character and although she does get a few cool moments it's just not the same.
I don't think I've seen a series like SAO at all, that said I believe the concept of the show was done in another anime series - the name of which escapes me for the moment - so the idea isn't that unique but it's unique enough to stand on its own two feet.
The action scenes were really cool to watch and the comedy was mostly funny; there were times where I was left scratching my head in confusion but most of the time it was quite fun. An added bonus was the bare minimum of fan service (at least until the second arc of the series) which was a nice change.
The only real problem I had was with the pacing. It takes a few minutes to give some background info and then we're thrown into the world of SAO. From there it takes off at breakneck speed. Now, okay it did slow down; allowing for some decent character moments and development but the majority of the series felt very, very rushed and I feel it could've done with a bit more time to develop the relationships between characters - particularly the romance between the two leads.
Art and Sound
The series is beautifully animated and scored is just perfect throughout the entire series. There were times where the soundtrack brought me close to tears. This anime is just a feast for both the eyes and ears.
If there was any CGI in the series (which seems to be a common thing nowadays), I didn't notice/recognize it. The art style itself was very fluid and the background images were beautiful to see. The style and animation quality was consistent throughout the series.
I don't know much about voice acting but watching this series in English instead of in Japanese with English subtitles; it felt very natural - the performances didn't feel forced by any means.
The music was beautiful and as I said before I was close to tears a few times because of it. I have listened to the OST a few times and I love it.
Now for the big question: Did I enjoy the series? Yes, I did. Overall, I thought the series was pretty good and even with it's flaws there was and is a lot to be enjoyed here. Yes, the pacing does get a bit erratic and yes, the story felt a bit rushed but I think that this series as a whole was a good piece of solid entertainment.
That's my review, thanks for reading and I'll see you all again for the next one!
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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