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November 6, 2022.

Will try to avoid major spoilers.

Story: 5
The story is mediocre. Most of the movie is a summary of what happened during the Sword Art Online season. Many parts of the movie are simply taken from the seasons, so if you're looking for something completely new, this isn't really going to be your piece of the pie. The new underwater quest doesn't add to the storyline very much at all, but it is nice to have an episode that isn't so serious as the SAO series. Expect to watch at least an hour of recaps though.

Art: 9
Art is amazing as usual. Asuna gets ... a new character design in ALO, so that's a major plus. Nothing to complain about here.

Sound: 6
Although I personally loved the music and effects from both the movie and the series, one of the major complaints against the sound was that it is very repetitive. This does not change in the movie, and some of the music used in the series is used once again in this movie. For creativity, the sound is not very much different, except for when the movie nears the end.

Character: 7
I liked the idea that they dove into Suguha's character more. It wasn't much, but it was a nice cherry on top that made this episode more than just a complete recap. As mentioned before, Asuna's character was changed up a bit, but her visual still looks just as beautiful.

Enjoyment: 7
Three-quarters of the movie are a pain to watch if you've already seen the series and begging for new things. However, the last 20 minutes are quite nice, featuring new battle scenes. I rate this episode as a lead-in to the new season, and the last 20 minutes do a nice job of this. The first hour and a half of boredom must be taken into account though, and thus it deserves no more than a 7.

Overall, as a lead in to the next season, I think this movie did a good job. It's nothing fantastic, and the first hour and a half might be worth skipping, but the last 20 minutes of the movie is new, fresh, and underwater. Overall, about a 7.