As of the moment of this review, the show runs up into Episode 20 out of 25, and I can say that, in my personal opinion, the show is definitely not shit.
I'd like to first address the many problems that seem to be the focus of the show's hateful attention, such as character development, story progression, and the fact that most of the SAO arc was explained in only the first two episodes.
To begin with, I'm going to take a wild throw at this and assume the producing company wasn't given a Naruto-sized budget for this project. What does this mean? The Animation may take a hit (Some people like to point out the choppy fighting), Story Progression will be slow/nonexistent, important facts will be left out entirely. Trying to fit such an extensive series into 25 episodes, whilst addressing every necessary detail would be rather impossible, and I'm sure that the first season (These 25 episodes) focus on both SAO and Alfheim to let the audience get a better idea of the setting. This isn't .Hack, the series does not focus on one set MMO. Spend as much time trying to explain SAO's mechanics as you'd like, once you reach the Alfheim arc, everything you spent all that time learning is practically tossed out the window.
The first 12 episodes felt very rushed, could it be possible that they're trying to introduce each character now so you're not left wondering who they are in the later episodes? Assuming there will be a second season, many of the characters that were shown only once, then dropped from existence will be returning, as they do in the light novel. The series has yet to finish, so final judgement based on half of the story should never be passed.
The main character tends to have an advantage in almost every scenario, which can be seen as a plus on his side. He's not the generic cliche perverted or super-dense protagonist, and his thought process is unorthodox, this makes him more mysterious and wise in an awkward way. The female protagonist is also far from the generic, as she is not completely useless and actually assists the main character in more ways than one, and is far from the "Damsel in Distress" trope, managing to get herself out of tight situations when the main character isn't around to save her. She doesn't lean on him to do everything for her, and even saves his life. I don't remember Bella Swan beat the ever living hell out of the Vulturi, almost sacrificing her social position to save Edward.
I'll also think about how the future of this story may go. Some may thing it's a minus because it doesn't follow the original story to the dot, but that doesn't necessarily make it bad. Full Metal Alchemist, for one example, went on its own merry way and became popular as a show separate from the original story. It became an even more massive hit when it did, though. What I'm saying is is that because a lot of shows that take their own path fail miserably, it doesn't mean that this one will too. Call me an Optimist if you will, it can get better if you give it a chance.
The art was rather nice, as the character outfits fit a broad range of Fantasy backgrounds. One character has Samurai armor, another one Crusader-like armor, some with demonic knight armor. It's not generalized and the artist delves into apparel with different geographic history. The backgrounds are well-made, and some of the monsters are pretty neat.
As for Sound, it had a soundtrack amongst the better anime (Yuki Kajiura FTW) but the openings and endings weren't the best picks. Some of the sound effects are definitely recycled, but it feels very much more like a video game with some of the player abilities.
All in all, it's a nice break from shoujo romances or psychological thrillers. It'd be better if they included most of the needed detail, but what they have is acceptable for what they're trying to pull. Hopes to a remake or an expanded OVA.
