SAO Review (Season 1):
With perpetual lateness comes my review of the first season of SAO.
Normally, I prefer reviewing both seasons but as they are divided into two on MAL, I shall write separate reviews.
Summary (or way too long, don’t want to read that wall of text):
Sword Art Online, an anime widely beloved AND revolted (though mostly revolted from what I have seen lately) is still igniting debates, discussions and the usual trolling from both sides, years after the first episode premiered. While it started out fairly strong with some decent emotional depth, it’s second half (last 10 episodes) start revealing more of the anime’s flaws and started suspending my disbelief much too heavily for my own liking. However, its animation, occasionally emotional scenes, generally enjoyable and underrated (in my opinion) soundtrack prevent this anime from being any worse. Overall: 6/10
Background:
Much like animes like AoT and Kill La Kill, the internet was fixated with SAO, with fans declaring it was refreshing and new for its time. Many got latched onto the premise alone, despite not being as original as some would claim (.hack franchise and even Spy Kids 3 have already done similar premises, despite the latter not being anime). Buzz quickly accumulated as the episodes aired, with more and more division between fans and critics of the series.
Plot/Story:
As said before, the fans of this series claimed that this was unique and that something like this has never been done before in anime (again, I argue that it has been ) and in some ways, they have a point. Despite there being other anime and entertainment franchises that have similar premises, SAO helped make VRMMO anime a thing (Log Horizon would soon follow SAO’s footsteps and other animes are starting to flood that genre). Being trapped inside a video game does lend for some interesting possibilities and some of the side plot elements are done with some wit (though I wish there could have been more of that rather than pointless harem set up). While the psychological ramifications were initially explored in the first few episodes, it sort have forgot about that after a while. It saddened me a little but still, it wasn’t a big hindrance to the show… for the most part. At the midpoint of the first season… I was pretty shocked at the plot developments… and not in a good way. Despite the first half had sort of built up some goodwill by showing the psychological consequences of losing people you care about… certain events make this seem entirely laughable and it seems incredibly contrived to force a particular ending. Things seemed to be going downhill from here…
I won’t delve into spoilers or anything… but that was just for the first half. The second half… yikes. Along with the characters, the twists in the plot and how it all plays out is something that gave me whiplash and bewilderment. The story became very dull and the whole thing turned into what would happen if there was a VRMMO of Super Mario Bros. Along with the second half of the first 13 episodes, the hollow characterization started to show itself more and more as characters stagnate in growth for a long time. Score: 6/10.
Characters:
This is likely the easiest and hardest aspect to talk about in the first season. Mostly because the characters, aside from a few exceptions, stayed one dimensional and fairly bland. First up is our main protagonist, Kirito. I can’t say much then most have already pointed out countless times, but his character is simply wish fulfilment for the viewer and in the second half, turned into an elvish cloud rip-off (big sword, OP as hell, kinda a loner).
Asuna, our female lead, starts off really strong. Like many have said before, her character initially seemed to hold lots of promise after a myriad of plain girls forced in to meet some sort of harem quota. Even after becoming more reliant (again, avoiding spoilers as much as possible) on a certain character, I still didn’t write her off completely as many have. Yes, she did seem to be more reliant on that person but she also still had scenes where she clearly could fend for herself. That… changed a lot in the second half as she feels like the typical damsel in distress (though I give her more credit for at least trying to not be that trope).
Everyone else is sadly forgettable and leaves little impression on the audience (aside from MAYBE Sacchi). This is a detriment to the show because I feel that I should have cared for these people more then I should. They clearly were just after putting the audience in the main characters shoes to feel empowered and amazed at Kirito’s abilities. Yet, it all rang hollow by the time the first season ended. Overall 5/10.
Sound:
This is an aspect where some would critique SAO, saying that Yuki Kajiura (much loved composer from animes like Madoka Magika and Garden of Sinners) is simply on autopilot. I actually disagree rather strongly with this claim, as many of the tracks (including In Your Past, Swordland, Gracefully and A Tender Feeling) are really well done. The compositions are rich, often utilizing warm string sections and are generally played in appropriate scenes, fitting the mood or whatever scenario is happening on screen. Often, it enhances and even overshadows what’s happening, which is sometimes good but also bad. It’s good when the music and story are both at the same emotional depth. However, it hurts the anime when the music is there and the story is dreadfully behind. While not all tracks are as good as others, I think this soundtrack is underrated by those who heavily criticized the anime (and in some cases, rightfully so) and I feel it’s one of the saving graces of this anime. Overall: 8/10.
Animation:
Another standout aspect of SAO is the animation, done by A-1 Pictures. The animation is often great and breathes life into scenes that could otherwise have been duller or more mundane. It stays at a steady pace and knows when to be flashier and when to not. The backgrounds are often beautiful, despite the story never really exploring many of these areas and can also set an appropriate mood. Not much to say about this aspect, but it’s generally aesthetically pleasing to look at and raises the enjoyment of the anime. Overall: 7/10.
Enjoyment:
Despite glaring issues I had with the plot and characters, I still found myself enjoying and engaged what was happening. Despite how generic many of the elements seem, the presentation still keeps this from being even more mundane and boring to watch. In some ways, it’s perfect popcorn entertainment. There is a hollow or shallowness with associating any piece of art with the term “popcorn entertainment”, but this anime actually operates fairly well at that level.
The only hindrance in this category is some of the fanservice… there is a reason why people jokingly call this: Sword Ass Online. Many female characters get uncomfortably shown off in sexual ways (despite scenes where that actually happens being oddly heartfelt), making the audience sometimes feel uncomfortable or gives them exasperation after watching the seventh butt shot. Still, this was relatively minor but still brought down the enjoyment a little. Overall: 7/10.
Overall:
It’s been a while since I first watched the first season of SAO, but as with AoT, this is how I remembered the first season.
Overall… it’s a mixed bag that leaves a slight sour aftertaste after watching it. Its beginning is far stronger than its conclusion. Even though some technical aspects and overall enjoyment keep this from being any worse than slightly above average, the anime’s flaws hurt it greatly and understandably make some anime fans/otaku rag on the show for it. I stand somewhere in the middle with this one… leaning ever so slightly to the fandom’s view. Its enjoyable popcorn material that occasionally becomes better at the start but disappoints as it reaches its unfulfilling conclusion. The character designs themselves are really nice but their development is hollow and too empty for my liking. The plot sometimes has clever twist but more often than not makes contrived decisions which force audiences to suspend disbelief too far or drive them away altogether. I would still prefer this over other mega-popular anime like AOT, but not by much. Overall: 6/10.
