In my review of Sword Art Online Volume 1 last month which featured the first half of the Aincrad arc, the series walked away with an A- grade which wasn’t too shabby. I was left eager to see how they would conclude this arc, but while they evidently had some interesting concepts they managed to get across in the second half it was done by sacrificing the overarching plotline regarding the 10,000 players trapped in Sword Art Online. This highlighted the need for the Aincrad arc to need more than fourteen episodes, as having two episodes for the big climax (With half of the first being dedicated to a fishing tournament) left the conclusion feeling unnoteworthy and anti-climactic. This was in comparison to the more episodic / casual episodes prior to it as Kirito and Asuna form a party and later a relationship together.
That being said, I am still hoping that they will surprise me with the Fairy Dance arc set to begin from the next collection, especially considering the production value is there with some high quality animation and decent Japanese and English dub options.
A detailed review of Part 1 including commentary on the storyline concepts, design, music and Voice Acting can be found HERE. Given the next volume takes place in a new virtual world, I will be doing a full review for the next release.
For those who are picking up the Australian Edition of Sword Art Online Volume 2, be warned that you would be better using the fast-forward functionality on your DVD / Blu-ray player rather than scene skip. Most of the time this will send you directly to the next episode rather than to the end of the opening sequence, half-way point in the episode etc.
