Sword Art Online Review
By Alex M.
Review
at a Glance:
Rating: 3 out of 5
An interesting premise
in a not-oft used setting which is somewhat ruined by a mediocre cast and plot.
Highest point: The implications are astounding. What if MMO’s were
for realz? Barring a massive sociological experiment, Sword Art Online might
yet be our closest guess.
Lowest point: Spot-the-hentai subplots. Many of the subplots and
minor character archetypes appear to have been ripped directly from animated erotica
(especially in the second season), ruining the gravity SAO appears to be going
for.
Recommendation: SAO is intriguing but ultimately insubstantial. It
starts strong but ends poorly, watch the first season and skip the second.
Overview
Sword Art Online (ソードアート・オンライン) is
an Action Science-Fantasy anime produced by A-1 Pictures Inc. under the
direction of Tomohiko Ito, of Seikimatsu
okaruto gakuin (Occult Academy). It began airing in July of 2012 and is
based off of an incredibly popular series of light novels of the same name.
Sword Art Online was the top
selling light novel series in Japan for 2012 and was authored by Kawahara
Reki, the man behind the Dengeki Novel Prize-winning: Accel World.
