I'll try my best to outline both the pros/cons of this anime based on the order of importance and also clear up all the controversy/bad attention Sword Art Online has been getting. I'd also like to give you a little bit of my feedback and perspective on this anime as well. It's going to be really difficult to explain without spoiling anything and it might get REALLY LONG so I hope you can take this time right now to sit back, relax, and read this anime with a calm state of mind. Forgive me if it gets a little complicated, I'm trying to explain as much as I can without spoiling anything:
Story - The story envelopes around a character named Kirito who gets stucked in an VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Massively-Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) because the creator of the game he is stuck in, Sword Art Online, for apparently no reason. With this synopsis itself, I already had two things in my mind during the first episode: 1. Whoever trapped them in the game, must be the main antagonist in the series. 2. This anime is most likely going to have a lot of characters (10,000 people trapped in SAO). However, after watching SAO, I just want to say that this anime is not very straightforward and tends to not pay attention to expectations.
One thing that people did not like about this anime is that 90% of the characters Kirito meet serve almost no purpose in the story. The reason for all the hate is because viewers like me tend to dislike getting attached to unimportant characters. It's a waste of time and it's ridiculing. I'm not going to lie, I really hated how the first character Kirito meets when he is first trapped will not be seen until 5 episodes later. Also, the way Kirito meets some of these characters can be a little confusing and random as well (SMALL SPOILER: Kirito meets Yui in a forest and there is no real explanation why she was there, but it just kind of happened to a point no one cared anymore).
Another thing and probably the most important element that people HATED was the fact that the anime shifted themes from survival/action into romantic/slice-of-life. This could just be because viewers are not used to sticking to more than multiple themes, but what I, personally, thought was the problem with this transition was how it made the anime feel really unpredictable and as if there is nothing developing at all. Kirito is introduced with an antagonist and a situation that he cannot handle. Yet, instead of showing Kirito training or plotting a way to get himself out of the game, the anime had viewers spend at least 4 episodes revolving around romantic themes. Although the famdoms have a point in that action animes with romantic themes are not wrong, you have to admit that most viewers may take this shift as an insult for wasting the viewer's time on what they expected to see.
The last thing people did not like about this anime is how the "Sword Art Online" piece of the 24-episode timeline takes up only 12-13 episodes. The rest of the episodes focuses on another game called Alfheim. The reason why people hated this new theme is because viewers were so used to how Sword Art Online's theme was that when it shifted to something totally different, it was frustrating to try and re-adapt again.
Now that I cleared up a big portion of controversy of this anime, I'll now talk about the pros about this anime in terms of story.
Sword Art Online does a good job at creating an antagonist. And what I mean by that is that this anime creates a character that you want Kirito to completely destroy in the most satisfying way possible. Not only was the first main antagonist, Kayaba Akihiko, ruthless, merciless, and intelligent, he was also mysterious. Especially when the story is mixed with a lot of tragedies and characters, it makes the viewers think Kabaya Akihiko is the only antagonist that deserve a ruthless death, or is he really the only one? who knows.
Another thing that I liked was how Kirito was a lonewolf. Unlike most survival-themed animes such as Shingeki no Kyojin, Deadman Wonderland, and Gantz, characters are usually banded together and fight towards a common goal, whereas Kirito fights for a goal of the masses. It's unconventional for main characters to deny the partnership (even Azuna at times) of other side characters, especially when it feels they can achieve a lot of things together. This not only shows how bad ass Kirito is, but also makes his goal much more personal.
Sword Art Online also made the gaming-theme very relatable to today. The whole mmorpg feel and nostalgic themes we still play today makes certain routes and opportunities this anime takes a lot more interesting. I won't say gamers would love this anime because it's about a game since it defeats the whole purpose of the story being important, but I will say that this anime not only takes into account gameplay, but also incorporates the programming, graphic design, and game-like themes into the story itself.
In all, Sword Art Online's story is treacherous, yet entertaining. The anime will make you believe things you want to believe, but the outcome will always be something different. However, the way Sword Art Online potrays the unexpected is done in an entertaining manner. Sure, the romance was super random and stupidly transitioned, yet it did play an important role in the story and made you love the characters more. And yes, you will wish that one character did not die, but you will not regret how the characters move forward from it either.
I gave the story a 7. Unexpected, sometimes ridiculing, yet very interestingly set-up. Expect the unexpected and try to bear with it.
Characters - The characters in Sword Art Online is where a lot more confusion comes in. There have been a lot of random characters that have done almost nothing yet still live on to Sword Art Online II, and there have also been a lot of characters that could've done much more to the story but just haven't. However, what is good about Sword Art Online is how they put most of the pressure on the main character, Kirito. Kirito is the character that is truly driving this anime. There are no side stories or filler episodes of random people, the focus is only Kirito.
Again, because of this, there is a lot of confusion. Because Kirito's actions drive most of this anime, whether it's choosing to meet another character or fighting bosses, etc., you don't expect anything much from the other characters to truly take a stand and push the story a different direction. Because there are just too many side characters to list, I will simply say that the side characters are going to be nothing but side characters. They will be shipped, loved, and remembered by viewers and famdoms alike, but they will never truly "take the wheel" and turn the focus to them.
One topic of controversy everyone has with the female characters is that they all seem to find an interest in Kirito (and I mean ALL of them). There has not been a female character that Kirito has not flattered or presented a likable appeal to. Many people consider this anime to be a harem in some way and I can only say that that claim is justified. It won't bother you too much, but because I, personally, find it unrealistic, it wasn't preferable.
Delving more into Kirito's character, Kirito takes on the persona of a bad ass, a fragile little child, and a victim. He is a character that you cannot truly idolize yet hate. He is simply a boy trying to survive the game with his past experiences with the game and avoid death at all costs. Even though this anime portrays Kirito in all emotional states and forms, you cannot truly say you can relate to him. Unlike animes like Naruto, Death Note, and Code Geass that explain to viewers what's going on in the main character's head, this anime does not make that similar approach for viewers to understand how Kirito's mind works because this anime is created in 3rd person. Viewers do not know what Kirito is thinking or what he is going to do next. Our reliance on this anime on what Kirito may do is if he says "I'm going to the hospital" or "I'm going to kill him!", etc.
In short, I can only say that this anime made me feel very distant to what's going on. Most of the things that were occurring before me were not personally shared with the audience or at least not from Kirito at most. The side characters are very interesting but not all of them play important roles in the story. Because Kirito is driving this anime, the side characters are nothing but supporters or simply characters that have some correspondence with him (yes, I even consider Azuna a side character, especially in Sword Art Online II). I still gave the characters an 8/10 only because each character is unique and do not represent themselves in bad light or cliches. Though they lack the importance of "taking the wheel", they are all well-designed characters and differentiate in unique ways that make them all so lovable and unforgettable even though it feels they should be.
Art - The art is really impressive. The characters are designed in such unique ways (especially the armor and weapons) that you can immediately tell which character is which by looking at them (for example, Silica and her pet dragon). What I find very interesting is how the artists/illustrators don't lose track of the differences between virtual reality and reality itself. Whenever Kirito is in the game, you can tell based on the fantasy-like themes and the bright vibrant colors only a game would exploit, contrasting to the boring reality Kirito is in when he takes off his NerveGear and flashes back to the real world.
One flaw to this art is the 3 dimensional CGI, it's not as impressive as the 2 dimensional approach, but it won't bother you as much.
Sound - I really liked the music in Sword Art Online. It's nostalgic, feelzy, bad ass, and well-paced. The music always matches the situation and I have little or no complaints with it at all. The style of most of the sword art online music, especially the OPs, move towards a beautiful, graceful, and melodic approach rather than something fast or action-y as reflected in its genre. Even though there is so much tragedy and death going on in the anime, the music always suggests beauty and happiness rather than regret and despair. I guess one can say it's relief to what goes on in the anime.
Overall Enjoyment - Like I mentioned before, Sword Art Online prioritizes entertainment over anything else. The action scenes were epic, the romance was sentimental and b'awww, the enemies were bad ass and crazy, and the side characters were lovely. There is nothing in this anime that was executed horribly. Every scene was well-done to its full and maximum potential. Although the foundation of the anime and the direction it was moving itself was horrid and confusing, the way they went about with it made up for it every time. I don't understand why this anime got so much hate, it was still an enjoyable anime. I zoomed by these 25 episodes so fast that I immediately went straight to Sword Art Online II and already caught up with that one as well. Every episode was interesting in its own way (yet not as satisfying - there's always some annoying cliff hanger or unnecessary scenes) and made me want to know what was happening next every time. No matter how annoying it was, it was indeed very bearable. I sincerely recommend watching this anime if you are not as critical or taking it way too seriously. This anime is meant to be something to enjoy - a definite sit-back-and-relax type of anime you would watch when you're bored on a saturday night doing nothing but typing anime reviews all day and rotting away the weekend. (ha...)
I hope this review not only helps you understand what Sword Art Online is like, but also clear up all the hate/controversy about this anime for you.
