*Note: This will end up being my first review for the site, so please bare with me as I'm starting to write these publicly.*
Ah, Sword Art Online, one of the most polarizing anime series ever made. You either love it or hate it with a burning passion. It's become a running joke among the anime community for many years now, and I myself have had a love/hate relationship for it during my time being an otaku. However, it holds a special place in my heart because of the time that I watched it, and how it promoted me to find many other animes to watch,
...
some of which I love to this very day, It has a lot of problems and inconsistencies in terms of the story, however, which I think holds it back from being truly great. Nonetheless, it's a series that I enjoy watching a lot from time to time, and, considering that Season 3 is finally upon us, my lazy butt finally got around to watching Sword Art Online's first motion picture, Ordinal Scale. Wait, did I not mention Extra Edition? Well, it wasn't really a film as it was pure recap, but we won't go there.
Story: The story of this film is anime original, taking place after the first two seasons of the series. I'd recommend you to start the series that way, just because there are very minor spoilers contained in the film about the series. The story is very basic and simplistic, and the best way that I can put it is that it's typical SAO fare. I did like the story, but there were many inconsistencies in it that did bother me. I won't go into it in case of spoilers, but this is no surprise considering the original series had this same problem. Thankfully, however, the film does avoid a decent chunk of the issues that held the series so far back in the past. It was far from a masterpiece, but I enjoyed what I watched for the most part. I wouldn't suggest going into this film for the story, though.
Characters: The characters in the film are the same characters that have been in the franchise since the beginning, so there's nothing new in terms of this category. Kirito is still the "Black Swordsman" or "Jesus-kun" of the series (unfortunately), Silica and Lizbeth are kinda useless still, and Klein's kinda there to be the punching bag (despite how much I kinda resonate with him, he's a pretty chill character in my opinion). Sinon (aka best girl) is also there, which is nice, although she doesn't do a helluva lot throughout the film, but I do like how much screen time and attention Asuna was given. After seeing her take the wheel in the Mother's Rosario arc of Season 2, I've grown to really appreciate her character that much more, and that trend still continues here. The antagonists of the film weren't necessarily compelling by any means, but the backstories of both Eiji and the head of the Toto Corporation were tragic, and I could kinda resonate with their emotional struggles. I do wish that we got more screen time for their development, but what I still got from them was satisfactory enough to give it a mention.
Art/Sound: The animation of the film, much like the series, is great. The fight sequences are very well animated and action-packed, and that I believe is one of the films biggest strengths. Some of the CGI look a little tacky, in my opinon, but the overall art of the film is nothing to scoff at. The music in the film is also a plus, much like the original series as well. The art/sound of SAO have been my two biggest praises for it, and it shows that A-1 does a good job with music production and art, despite them shelling out many stinkers, but that's a story for another day. There is an English dub for this film, however I haven't watched it as the dub for the original story I just felt was okay at best. Aniplex has given us good dubs in the past, but this is probably their weakest dub they've ever put out in my opinion. Still, it's passable.
Overall: SAO Ordinal Scale does have it's flaws, but I found it to be a surprisingly enjoyable and entertaining film on a whole. It reminds me of what I liked about SAO in the first place while also avoiding a decent chunk of the series's pitfalls along the way. Now come the ultimate question: Should you watch it? Well let me throw out another question for you: Did you like or enjoy anything about SAO? If the answer to that question is yes, then you'll find plenty to like here. Otherwise, it might not win many haters into the series. Still, I found it to be a pretty good film, and I'd recommend watching it after the first two seasons of the original show.
Rating: B (Mild Recommendation to Stream)
It is available to watch on Hulu in both sub and dub if you happen to have access to it. Have fun!
Oct 6, 2018
*Note: This will end up being my first review for the site, so please bare with me as I'm starting to write these publicly.*
Ah, Sword Art Online, one of the most polarizing anime series ever made. You either love it or hate it with a burning passion. It's become a running joke among the anime community for many years now, and I myself have had a love/hate relationship for it during my time being an otaku. However, it holds a special place in my heart because of the time that I watched it, and how it promoted me to find many other animes to watch, ... |
