Sword Art Online

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: S.A.O, SAO
Japanese: ソードアート・オンライン
English: Sword Art Online
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Information

Type: TV
Episodes: 25
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Jul 8, 2012 to Dec 23, 2012
Premiered: Summer 2012
Broadcast: Sundays at 00:00 (JST)
Licensors: Aniplex of America
Studios: A-1 Pictures
Source: Light novel
Genres: ActionAction, AdventureAdventure, FantasyFantasy, RomanceRomance
Themes: Love PolygonLove Polygon, Video GameVideo Game
Duration: 23 min. per ep.
Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Statistics

Score: 7.211 (scored by 21444922,144,492 users)
1 indicates a weighted score.
Ranked: #32462
2 based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity: #5
Members: 3,066,686
Favorites: 68,578

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7.21
Ranked #3246Popularity #5Members 3,066,686
Add to My List
Episodes: /25

Synopsis

Ever since the release of the innovative NerveGear, gamers from all around the globe have been given the opportunity to experience a completely immersive virtual reality. Sword Art Online (SAO), one of the most recent games on the console, offers a gateway into the wondrous world of Aincrad, a vivid, medieval landscape where users can do anything within the limits of imagination. With the release of this worldwide sensation, gaming has never felt more lifelike.

However, the idyllic fantasy rapidly becomes a brutal nightmare when SAO's creator traps thousands of players inside the game. The "log-out" function has been removed, with the only method of escape involving beating all of Aincrad's one hundred increasingly difficult levels. Adding to the struggle, any in-game death becomes permanent, ending the player's life in the real world.

While Kazuto "Kirito" Kirigaya was fortunate enough to be a beta-tester for the game, he quickly finds that despite his advantages, he cannot overcome SAO's challenges alone. Teaming up with Asuna Yuuki and other talented players, Kirito makes an effort to face the seemingly insurmountable trials head-on. But with difficult bosses and threatening dark cults impeding his progress, Kirito finds that such tasks are much easier said than done.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Episode Videos


Related Anime


Characters & Voice Actors


Staff

Mori, Yasunori
Producer
Miki, Kazuma
Producer
Niwa, Masami
Assistant Producer
Itou, Tomohiko
Director, Episode Director, Storyboard


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Opening Theme

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1: "crossing field" by LiSA (eps 2-14)
2: "INNOCENCE" by Aoi Eir (eps 15-24)
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Ending Theme

1: "Yume Sekai (ユメセカイ)" by Haruka Tomatsu (eps 2-14)
2: "Overfly" by Luna Haruna (eps 15-24)
3: "crossing field" by LiSA (eps 25)




Reviews

Feb 26, 2013
I don't really want to go into too much depth, but I'd like to give an overview of the series and give my opinions it. If you haven't noticed yet there are many negative reviews out there for this anime, and while many of them bring up some pretty fair points, I think some people are being a bit too harsh on it. Let me explain.

Yes it's a popular anime, yes it has flaws, no it's not perfect, but at the very least in my opinion it is enjoyable. The pacing is off, the beginning particularly feels rushed, there were moments where I thought ...
Nov 26, 2013
Mixed Feelings
I've heard many things about SAO (Sword Art Online): There's either a lot of love or a lot of hate for it. Personally, I'm leaning a little towards the latter, but not fully on it. Before you start sending me hate mail or press the "Not Helpful" button, please hear me out.

As a gamer, and a fan of MMORPG's, I tried to keep my expectations not too high, because you know what they say: "The bigger they are, the harder they fall". Unfortunately, SAO fits this saying to a T, as it was one of the most disappointing anime that I've seen this year. Why? ...
Apr 6, 2014
--The review contains minor spoilers--

Since I've seen a plethora of scores of 10 for this show, I thought I'd write what I feel is a more realistic review for this show. Sword Art Online is more or less the equivalent of a fanfiction in it's writing and quality. Whether people want to overlook it or not is up to the individual, but I believe it fails at the fundamentals for writing a good story. This review will go into details as to my opinions on why I feel this way.

1) Story - This is first major problem is the show. Let's start from the ...

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Recent Forum Discussion

Dropping while it's still good ( 1 2 )
SIimyBread - Apr 15
59 repliesby SaveStyle »»
11 hours ago
Overall do you enjoy watching SAO? What do you like about it? :) ( 1 2 )
Rinrinka - Apr 15
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