It had an interesting twist, but I think it could have been presented a bit more tastefully.

I'm a sucker for these RPG type shows so I have a feeling I'm really going to enjoy this.

First episode was nice introduction but difficult to say anything yet. Art is good and setting interesting but it doesn't necessary mean it will be good.

The art really drew me to this show. It's very nice.

So cute.

Definitely my favorite of this season so far.

This anime sure has a lot of English terms in it.
Makes me wonder how long it'll be until japan converts to English all together, seems like it's only a matter of time.

Would this have really been so hard to say?

>>10398
>attacking another player in a PvE-only MMO

Of course there were a thousand better ways to go about diffusing that situation, but the situation itself made no fucking sense in the first place, with everybody blindly believing the heckler in the back and everybody falling into disarray and suspecting everybody else because of it.

>>10406
Okay, so maybe that last frame wasn't needed, but the guy could have defended himself... at least before he went into his power trip rant thing and left.

but you're right, it didn't make sense, it didn't make sense that the guy would turn down the HP thingy and just chose to die, or that the heckler said what he did there, after he clearly saw Kirito try to give their leader the hp thing.
unless that was all a act to try and become guild leader himself or something.

I got the impression he was attempting to draw all the negativity felt towards beta testers onto himself so that the other beta testers would be left alone, but I'm probably wrong. Maybe it's explained more in the LN.

>>10408

No, that's exactly it.

It's not so much that he wanted to draw all the negative attention to himself than just dissolving the negative attention toward the beta testers in general, and he was incapable of doing it in any other way than arguably the single worst and most out of character.

A lot of people seem to be upset about inconsistencies compared to the light novel, or just simply leaving things out...

I wonder what those people will have to say when the anime gets to this point of the story.

>>10447
Huh.

>>10449

In order to make enough show to fit an entire cour, sections of the side story novels were included into the story because 1 LN worth of adapting simply isn't enough material to work with.

Also, the morons who mistranslated the j-twitshit to /a/ said the side story novels were being adapted with the original, and then /a/ got mad when 70%+ of the side stuff that chronologically happened from the side story novels weren't adapted. Specifically the shower and changing scenes.

Anybody who expects more romance than was in the Tower of Druaga series is going to be sorely let down. I wouldn't expect even for a second that even an implied kiss will make it to the anime, let alone a sex scene.

>>10447

I lol'd hard.
Does that really happen?

"My back hurts from carrying all these noobs."

Ah... that was probably in bad taste.

It took them like a month just to find the boss of the first level and get past him, and now suddenly they're on level 24?

I'm wondering if they're gonna show whats going on in the real world any time soon since so much time is passing so quickly apparently.
like, what are the police doing? are they tracking down the guy behind this?
shouldn't there be people trying to figure out how to save them from the outside?

>>10455
http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Sword_Art_Online:Volume_1_Chapter_16.5

>>10494
I imagine everyone was shitting their pants over the whole death aspect in the first month which hindered progress.

>>10499
...and people just stopped caring?
it's not like the whole death aspect went away.

>>10500
Well people probably started developing more effective tactics/working out the metagame.

>>10406
> >attacking another player in a PvE-only MMO
you were saying?

I know some people just died there, but it's still true...

M-my heart!

This was a fun episode.

>>10598

God damn she is cute.

Oh boy.

Why you do this SAO?

>>10642
So people can screen cap it and post the image on image boards, which results in people taking a interest in the series who haven't seen it yet.

>>10643
I will watch it now!

Interesting show concept, but Kirito is a bit boring and bland character.

>>10661

I think he's "okay."
Not really interesting... but not completely boring either.

The bro is strong in him.

However, it is kind of getting boring seeing as he's so above everyone else in skill level.

I wouldn't mind seeing a few more characters that were around the same level as him (ally or enemy).

Would make the story a bit more interesting imo.

Surely there have to be others that can fight evenly with or against him in the entire world of SAO.

>>10494
and now they're on like, level 55 something or higher?
when Kirito was seen on level 47, people stated that there was no way he would be down that low.

Jesus, at this rate they'll be at level 100 by episode six.

>>10671

>>10672

He meant character level, not floor level.

>>10671
I think whole story starts in higher floors.

She says one short sentence and that literally brings the villain to his knees and makes him immediately regret everything he has done?
are you serious?

Post edited on 18th Aug 2012, 12:49pm

How did they fall all that way and land on one level, but he falls halfway up and makes such a big impact?

How did they survive from falling off the dragon?

How the hell do people travel between floors? Is there some kind of teleport or elevator or ladder or what

>>10932
from LN it said his hp took the brunt of it. also used sword to slow descent on the walls.
haven't seen ep though.
after each boss there is a stairway leading to next floor, and it opens up a teleport system. each town has a teleport gate, theres also teleport crystals.

I can't help but feel that our male and female protagonists are a bit too... "perfect."

Like, they have no flaws.
Human or beast... everything stands no chance against them and/or falls in love with them every episode.

I'm still watching it... it's just kinda funny I guess.

>>10959

I noticed this too...like nothing bad ever happens or at least that really affects them.

>>10959
>>10962

Mary Sues. all of them. If I remember right, that was the biggest complaint about the LN series.

Not that having a Mary Sue MC is a bad thing or anything, if the Fist of the North Star was about something other than Ken brutally murdering entire armies of opposition in some other way than a completely one-sided slaughter, it just wouldn't be the same Fist of the North Star that I loved.

>>10964
Yeah it's not like he got his ass kicked and left for dead, while his girlfriend was kidnapped and latter died just before he could save her.

>>10965

Considering all Ken is truly capable of, I'd more consider both the premise and motivation for Ken to be plot holes and only there for the existence of an overarching story that wouldn't otherwise be possible.

The characters in this anime don't seem any more Mary sue like than anyone else in any other anime

Post edited on 20th Aug 2012, 9:38pm

>>10968

I really don't think we should be slinging that term around.

Though, one must admit that they are treated rather well, compared to protagonists from other series.

It's almost as if whatever happens next week, I know it will be resolved with a simple speech or a dazzling display of power... in which the opposition has no chance.

If someone does get seriously injured or killed, it's not going to affect the protagonists hardly at all. It hasn't so far, and quite a few people have died.


It kind of makes the rest of the cast seem really insignificant... which kinda sucks considering it's an MMO type series.

I still watch it though, because there aren't many MMO-ish type series (at least that I know of).

I don't dislike characters not burdened by their flaws but I am getting bored of how easy everything gets resolved for Kirito and Asuna. There's very little tension or risk, in the first episodes thing seemed dangerous but now I just expect Kirito to faceroll his way through everything.

A lecture or one sword strike solve all problems.

Somewhat relevant.

>>11039

Isn't that a show targeted at little girls?
Seems pretty heavy considering... though I must agree.

>>11041
That it is.

I stopped watching sword art after the murder mystery ark, the resolution was way to infuriatingly stupid. it made me rather uninterested in continuing on with the show becuase I just know it's gonna be a long road full of stuff like that.

It seems like they get a new, convenient ability to solve the situation every single episode. This almost feels like something from DC Comics.

I mean, I knew Kirito would beat the guy... but in one hit and he broke his sword? Really?

>>11045

destroying the guy's best sword in what was meant to be a sporting duel was a real asshole thing to do, as well.

and then forcing the guy to surrender because kirito refused to actually end the duel on his own... I'd almost feel sorry for the bastard if he didn't deserve it so much.

>>11044

Same here...I dropped this.

I think one of the problems is that the hero doesn't have to really think about how he's going to win anymore. In the first episodes, it felt like there was a lot of strategy involved, and that things could take a turn for the worst at any given second. Even though him and Asuna did most of the fighting, things felt tense. Now he just beats everything in a couple hits, or tanks damage from like 20 people while explaining why he did it. It also doesn't help that no one else in the series, barring the female protagonist has come close to his level of skill. It was said in the beginning that there are other "beaters" just like him. However, we have yet to see any.

I think it would make the story more interesting if there were some stronger characters and things in general posed more of a challenge for the heroes. I mean resolving problesm fast and easy is fine a few times, but that starts to get old fast.

>>11045
>>11082

You guys did notice he hit this, right?

I don't know if it was bad subtitles or what, but I'm kinda getting confused about it now.
The sword breaking thing was a really dick move though, I agree.

Okay, another convenient skill out of nowhere.

I can live with that I guess.

However, it will be some real BS if he just easily wins next week's duel after that build up.

>>11145
I just couldn't stop laughing how he soloed whole boss alone.

>>11145

he solo'd a boss that he insisted would be impossible for a "small" (less than 25 by my guess) group of people.

I'm hoping the 'duel' will be more of a battle of wits and a shogi/go board, where MC-kun will have to do more than sneeze in the opponent's general direction to completely obliterate them. Of course, MC-kun is still going to win because his character/archtype/whatever of being MR-SOLO will be interupted if he did lose, hence it being completely impossible regardless of what the duel ends up being. And before you bring up ep 2, keep in mind that was a side story that was tacked on several years after the main story.

>>11175

>Of course, MC-kun is still going to win

Yeah, you keep thinking that.

>>11178

t'was a fluke. Though MC-kun going with the "I'm going to attack his shield until it breaks" strategy made me want to slam my face into a wall.

and lastly, I must say I didn't have high expectations for the writing, to say the least, and holy shit were my expectations of how bad the writing would be completely blown away. Even Dragon Crisis (aside from the last episode) wasn't that painful to watch. At least the 10,000% angst is gone, and the glopping that cured it with it, hopefully to never be mentioned or referenced ever again. You don't have to tell me how wrong I am.

This series continually becomes harder to watch.

I kinda wish the main cast was just a little larger. That or it could focus on some of the other characters a little more.

They have got to be the most boring leads in the history of anime.

Even Touma and Mikoto from the Index series are more interesting than them.

>>11327
Here you have people tossed into a life or death situation with people dying and fighting to escape all around them, and they act like they're on some kind of vacation.

>>11327
Feels like they transferred to RP server.

>>11328

It's one of the privileges of being an overpowered lead. They don't have to take things as seriously as everyone else... since they're never in any "real" danger.

I dropped this earlier, but picked it back up again. Everyone is still indestructible 12 episodes on and the MC is remains bland but its still worth watching. Kind of funny how close they keep getting to death sometimes, when their HP reaches next to nothing but they always make it out.

So not only are the MCs physically overpowered but their mental states are super too. Fuck me.

>>11402

Wow I thought you joking.
Then I looked at the pic.

umm... why didn't he use his sword?

and what ever happened to his hp regain? why does his hp keep hanging at almost 0? shouldn't it start regenerating after a few seconds?

I think he just randomly gets abilities to suit the situation.

I mean, we're like 13 episodes in and still don't know everything he is capable of... or his limits.

It's like they make up this show as they go along.

"Okay, how do we get him out of this situation?"
"Let's grant him the X ability."

>>11644
What if that is his ability? What if he's more than just a regular player (despite the fact that the anime is practically yelling this fact).

Anyway, even though I watched Accel World I never gave this much attention and don't ever plan on watching it.

>>11655

I suppose that makes sense.
Though... if that's the case it's kinda boring imo. That means there is literally nothing can really stop him and the writer can just come up with anything for him to pull through in tough times.

I still have to catch up with this series (just finished Oda Nabuna no Yabou) and I hope that's not the case.

>>11655
could be, they did say he got the dual wielding ability, which no one else has, out of nowhere, just poped up in his skill list one day

>>11659
He said Kirito got dual wield because he has exceptionally fast reaction time.

>>11660
ah, I didn't watch that far yet.
this show isn't really something I care enough about too keep up to date with.

>>11660

That's such a silly explanation, and makes him out to be some god character that gets preferential treatment "just because."

I'm not too fond of main characters like that.
At least make him work for it jeez.

>>11488

That's a good question. Based on their fight, that guy shouldn't have been able to even scratch Kirito. Maybe it was the poison. Though, if that was the case it could have at least been explained.

EX: "I know of your regeneration ability, which is why I bought this special poison."

Why he didn't simply use his sword to block the blow was just for dramatic effect I guess.

>>11724
'dramatic effect' seems kinda stupid when you're life is on the line, as well as someone you're trying to protect.
Besides, he also used his spare hand to attack him not just guard, wtf?
what if the guy cut off his other hand and killed his arrogant ass right there?

>>11725

But that wouldn't happen because Kirito-kun is different from everyone else and has the fastest reaction-time and a special mental state (whatever that means). He is the chosen one that gets to bend any rule he wants.

How are viewers supposed to tell the difference between NPCs and players?

>>11727

Easy, no NPCs appear in the show.

>>11724

You guys seem to be a little confused about the hp regeneration thing, it's not a special skill Kirito has, this is a very stats heavy based game, so if he outlevels people too much, the damage they do to him doesn't reach the amount necessary to hurt him, since they are being too slow reducing his hp.
Ever tried to fight a level 90 PK in an MMO while you are lvl 30? This is the same thing, you can barely scratch him.

>>11722

There are 10 unique skills in the game, one of them Kayaba Akihiko took for himself, though we never get to see the other 8 before the game ends.
Klein's "katana wielding", for example, is what people call a hidden skill, no one knows how it actually appears, but there's always some reasoning behind it.

>>11722

He actually works really hard, grinding all night and beating high level dungeons all by himself.
For some reason this stuff never made it to the anime, along with another arc called "The first day". They also took out inner monologues, which explain a lot of game mechanics and explain most of the reasoning behind the characters actions.
A-1 is doing a really shitty work adapting this.

Post edited on 8th Oct 2012, 8:07pm

>>11728
but they keep talking about npcs....

>>11730

They talk about them, but they never appear on-screen.
At least in the anime they don't.

>>11731
what about all the shop keepers?

>>11732

You mean Agil and Lisbeth? They are players.

The only way to distinguish a player from an NPC is the cursor over their heads, but that's not animated, guess it would be annoying to see all the time.

>>11733
>guess it would be annoying to see all the time.
The characters in the show see it all the time right? I think it would really help the immersion if the viewer saw everything the 'players' did. Stuff like your screen cap is why it should always be visible, to the characters she looked strange becuase she had no cursor thing, but to people watching the show, she looked like everyone else. Not having stuff like that makes it easy to forget this is supposed to be a mmo, among other things.
and no, not Agil and Lisbeth.

Post edited on 9th Oct 2012, 2:34am

  CRAAAAAAAAAWLING IN MY SKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII­IIIIIIIIIIIN

Prepare for ALO

>>11885

He doesn't seem anything like Guts.
I'm not sure I understand the comparison.

>>11885
I'm looking forward to lots of Suguha.

>>11888

You will once the next arc begins.

So do you think they'll finish this in one season or should we expect a second and possibly third season of this?
I'm about 12 ep in and really rather not keep going if it's going to be 50+ ep.

>>12192
This is only going to cover up to volume 4, and there's currently 10 books and counting.

>>12208
Thanks, guess I'll just drop it in that case..

This new arc isn't as bad as I'd been expecting it to be. Tiny Yui is adorable and I like his sister. Maybe it's just a relief to have a change of scenery and be over the cycle of introduce new character -> kill off new character.

>>12299

Tiny Yui is the greatest thing ever.

>>12300
>Yui is the greatest thing ever.

fix't

>>12299
This gif is great with the way Kirito looks like he has 5 o'clock shadow.

>>12303

Yeah.
He's a real dreamboat.

Kirito is a lot more likeable without the wife around.