Sword Art Online

Well I have to say, this has got to be the hardest anime to review and rate that I have come across so far. It is one hell of a mixture. But I did had a great time watching it, was very entertaining and that is what really matters.

On the plus side, I loved the setting/premise, a world where virtual reality has been perfected and MMORPG's truly come to life. The RPG gamer in me was really happy while watching this anime. DAMN I wanted to be in SAO so bad. The animation was great, especially that of the action sequences. I loved em. Coupled with amazing soundtrack, they really became epic. Protagonist was very likable and cool. The heroin was hot. :p

Now on the bad side, the anime felt really rushed in the beginning. It actually felt like I skipped an episode couple of times. Would have been better if they stretched out the first arc into 24 episodes or so, would have been much better. It got a little too much lovey dovey too later on, which was off putting. The side characters were good BUT they got very less screen time, way too less. It was like the anime forgot about them. And then there was the second arc. It didn't suck as bad as many said it would but still it was nowhere near as good as the first arc. IT just didn't had the same feeling as the first arc. The setting in it was cool, had a lot of Final fantasy vibe to it. But the love stuff was lame and pointless.

As for the rating, well I would give it like:

First arc (1-14 episodes) 8.8/10.

Second arc 6.5/10.

Overall, despite its flaws, I somehow still found it to be very enjoyable and was engaged in it a lot. 8.3/10.

Maybe I'm a sap but I love this show. I loved it when I watched it ten years ago and I'm loving it again watching it with my daughter this year. It reminds me of all the good times that I had playing WoW and raiding with my guild. It's smart, funny, exciting, and thoughtful, as long as you ignore the weird cousin-love thing that crops up for a few episodes

(Note that I've only watched the first two seasons...)

In the overall anime I think it's overhyped. But still I enjoyed it though.2&3 season was kinda gloomy to me but season 4 was a beast. Most of all what I like the most in this anime is kirito and asuna's love story. Everything is good but my main motivation is kirito x asuna. You should probably give it a watch.

With the help of a friend, as well as Sirlionhart's Let's Play of Hollow Fragment, Sword Art Online became the first Japanese Anime that I got into. Closest things to Anime prior that I watched were Avatar: The Last Airbender (Some don't really consider it anime as its American, but its based off it) and if you count movies, Spirited Away. But back on topic.

After my friend showed me game-play of Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment, I decided to check out the series on Netflix and I was instantly hooked. It was humorous at times, very deep and emotional, and really epic. The characters are likable, the story is amazing, the music, score and theme songs, awesome.

I understand that a lot of people don't like the show, and I see the reasons why. I was disappointed when the First Story Arc came to what seemed like a sudden and rather quick end (Which is the reasoning behind me not giving the show a perfect 10 score). I honestly wouldn't have had a problem with different Story Arcs if the first season had focused on just one (Much like ABC's Once Upon a Time, because I think the Story Arcs were rather good.

But overall, I am really glad that I got into the show. It may not be perfect, but I liked it and I really look forward to Sword Art Online 3 as well as the movie (that is, if they have officially been announced rather than rumored)when they come out.

After watching the final episode of SAO my reaction was of randomized and mixed feelings just like the show itself. This anime which was completely out of my territory found its way to become one of the best I've seen in a long time.

Pros: The story-line is very good, while randomized at times it stays on course on whatever story it tells and it builds up the suspense with battles, realizations, romance, and almost everything an action anime has to offered. A little bit of humor doesn't hurt either, for the show was serious most of the time but still offered a little bit of comic relief that was well needed but not overused like many anime today. The romance within the story was a nice touch as well as the thoughts concerning life and personal strength.

Cons: As said above the story is randomized at times, in fact during the first few episodes I was confused due to the many 'jumps' in the story. Like one moment the main characters here doing this, and the next doing that. Which was very different and I will admit confusing at first but as the story picked up it all began to make more sense despite my disappointment in the random jumps and what I like to call 'filler' episodes. However I CAN say that it was all worth it in the end.

All in all, it was a very good series and I really enjoyed watching it. It held many characteristics that make for a good adventure and story, it told good lessons within it, and best of all, it keeps you entertained despite the randomness starting in episode one. If you aren't a big fan of 'jumps' or filler episodes maybe this isn't for you, but I highly recommend that you give this series a shot and see for yourself what a wonderful piece of artwork this series has to offer.