Story:
if you are unfamiliar with SAO then you should really not start SAO with Alicization, if you are, well there is nothing to add to the synopsis without spoiling. It is a story in a fantasy virtual world which is what you would expect from SAO, this time it looks like Kirito has to risk his life again to protect the virtual world and its population.
Art:
It is not something unique, but it is gorgeous. thus the 9/10 and not a perfect 10.
Sound:
can't wait for the official release of SAO Alicization OST. great OST implemented perfectly, nothing to complain about here.
Character:
While Kirito did not change much compared to previous seasons, his companion, Eugeo, has gone through a lot of development, the other named characters are all unique and interesting. Some has just had a portion of their generic backstory shared to justify their actions which is better than nothing indeed but does not suffice.
characters are not outstanding as some other shows but good enough to not make the show enjoyable.
enjoyment:
a perfect 10, started the show when there were about 12 episodes aired and I caught up the next day, fight scenes are not long but smoothly animated to make you enjoy every second of it, the OST as I already said is great (including in battle scenes), the rest of the time is spent explaining important things, developing the characters and building up for later events/revelations.
overall:
9/10, I have only been praising SAO so far (and no I am not an SAO fanboy) but I understand why some people may not, if you enjoyed the previous seasons/movie then this one will not disappoint, if on the other hand, you hated all of SAO, you are better off skipping this one as well. Personally I never really loved SAO after the first arc of the first season, but I am enjoying Alicization even more.
