-
Welcome to Smogon! Take a moment to read the Introduction to Smogon for a run-down on everything Smogon, and make sure you take some time to read the global rules.
-
Congrats to the winners of the 2023 Smog Awards!
Anime and Manga: Beware of Spoilers!
- Thread starter kd24
- Start date
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure anime is amazingly badass and campy and manly and fantastic and might end up being my favorite show this year (which Fate/Zero was the shoo-in for otherwise, with Jinrui wa Suitai in a somewhat distant third I guess).
That's the way KEY rolls, unfortunately (ie with most of the bad side content being written by randoms and the more competent main writer doing only the important stuff). Funny how Nagisa was my least favorite main character but the portion of the show that focuses on her happens to be the best one. The Little Busters anime is looking to have the same problems except it's animated by JC Staff instead of Kyoani so it looks like garbage too.
anyone follow the just finished Sword Art Online? I feel like the real world => MMO stories are very hit and miss, but I enjoyed it. After Kirito beat SAO the series kind of went meh imo, dying wasn't really an issue anymore and he got to keep all his stats (not to mention his not-actually-sister-really-cousin jp please less incest even if it's legal, and almost tentacle rape of Asuna), but it was still amusing to watch and I guess it ended well, i just really think it should have ended when he beat SAO!!
Acklow
I am always tired. Don't bother me.
Whoa. This thread.
SAO was cool. I followed it all the way through and thought it was pretty well done.
Thoughts on other Anime:
Zetsuen no Tempest is pretty amazing. However, the past 4ish episodes have been pretty much the same scene which has annoyed me to no end. At least the latest episode kinda ended that loop.
Tonari no Kaibutsu Kun was good in the beginning. I was getting Toradora vibes from it. However, it soon fell off as the humor in it just became unfunny. The jokes were becoming too cliche and overused within the context of the anime itself... :(
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is okay so far. It has its funny parts, it is a bit of a harem but it manages to stay fresh with it's unusually cliche cast. I dunno if it's worth sticking to because I don't know what will happen next...
Robotics;notes follows its predecessor, Steins;gate in its footsteps by having a very slow start. Unlike Steins;gate, the characters are rather bland and none actually stick out. The main character doesn't even have any growth and stays extremely boring, so I don't know if he'll stop being boring. The plot on the other hand is intense and definitely the reason to watch this show. So far it's been really good at keeping me on my toes.
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! is surprisingly good. Contrary to the early "same old school story" vibes you get when watching the show, it slowly turns into one of the best series this season. It does a good job managing humor, romance (which happens later), and overall excitement of the show. I think it did a good job staying true to its nature from start to finish.
@ other posts:
SAO was cool. I followed it all the way through and thought it was pretty well done.
Thoughts on other Anime:
Zetsuen no Tempest is pretty amazing. However, the past 4ish episodes have been pretty much the same scene which has annoyed me to no end. At least the latest episode kinda ended that loop.
Tonari no Kaibutsu Kun was good in the beginning. I was getting Toradora vibes from it. However, it soon fell off as the humor in it just became unfunny. The jokes were becoming too cliche and overused within the context of the anime itself... :(
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is okay so far. It has its funny parts, it is a bit of a harem but it manages to stay fresh with it's unusually cliche cast. I dunno if it's worth sticking to because I don't know what will happen next...
Robotics;notes follows its predecessor, Steins;gate in its footsteps by having a very slow start. Unlike Steins;gate, the characters are rather bland and none actually stick out. The main character doesn't even have any growth and stays extremely boring, so I don't know if he'll stop being boring. The plot on the other hand is intense and definitely the reason to watch this show. So far it's been really good at keeping me on my toes.
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! is surprisingly good. Contrary to the early "same old school story" vibes you get when watching the show, it slowly turns into one of the best series this season. It does a good job managing humor, romance (which happens later), and overall excitement of the show. I think it did a good job staying true to its nature from start to finish.
Seconding these two as they're the only shows I bothered to watch this season. I'd like to add that anyone R;N gets unfairly compared to S;G a lot, and while it almost certainly won't be as good, S;G had the exact same problems at this point in its story. R;N really started to pick up in the last episode imo, and I was disappointed to hear that they're delaying the next one until jan 10th or so. Robotics notes also had to deal with the fact that the VN it was based on did pretty poorly in Japan, while the steins gate vn was arguably better than the anime adaptation.
I absolutely loved SAO for the first episode or two, enough to the point where I went ahead and read most of the translated novels, and then my opinion did a quick 180. The setting is really cool and I think that's a big part of why most people like it, but the story has some seriously gargantuan issues. More than half of the first arc is filler, both main arcs are resolved with huge asspulls, the second arc throws away about the only good thing (the setting) and makes the main character into an immortal god among a ton of other really stupid things.
Incidentally the third arc is a fairly large improvement in quality over the second so look forward to that in the eventual s2. Though I think it might turn off a couple people as the setting is (extremely minor spoilers) a futuristic western shooter game instead of something fantasy-related but whatever.
Yeah, i watched it. Honestly, the plot was just flat out bad. The only thing that kept me hooked (i was hooked, i finished it in 2 days), was the mmorpg element in it. Furthermore, i love the philosophy behind virtual reality.
But i can't really say i liked it because it felt more like a game with pawns over a story with characters
Bakuman is a great manga that I've just started reading. Really weird storyline where two buddies want to become manga co-artists.... and it's a manga. But the facial expressions are cleverly unique I found, and the characters are quite likeable.
Also, Bleach recently has gotten amazing. Kubo (writer of the manga) is just basically going his own way or the highway right now, and this last arc has been BRUTAL.
Also, Bleach recently has gotten amazing. Kubo (writer of the manga) is just basically going his own way or the highway right now, and this last arc has been BRUTAL.
My quick thoughts on each arc of SAO, it is absolutely amazing as a whole
Arc 1(SAO): Probably one of the better arcs out there. In the novels they cut a lot of filler stuff out as they displace them into side story volumes so it is more plot relevant. The anime had a decent adaptation of Arc 1 compared to most of the other low budget anime adaptations out there.
Arc 2(ALO): Fairly repetitive of arc 1 imo but Yui saved it for me. The whole thing with Sugu was pretty annoying because we all knew it was going to be Asuna who gets Kirito but it could be worse I guess.
Arc 3(GGO): The best arc out there atm. It is a change of pace which the series really needed after ALO but I thought the plotline had a way too convinient set up. However, I could overlook that due to how it played out. Playing a virtual gun game with a sword was pretty neat and the whole murder mystery sent chills down my spine as I read the end of volume 6. I do hate how Kirito looks more like a girl with his GGO character design.
Arc 4(Alicization): Wow, the author really put his world building writing skills too full use here. Although sometimes the descriptions and info dumps were really annoying, it was necessary in how the arc plays out in the end. I can't comment on this too much since Alicization is like 8 volumes long based on Chinese and Japanese translations of the web novels and right now only 2 volumes of it are translated into english. Based on what is released, it seems pretty lackluster, but I wouldnt give up hope on this arc yet since the web novels show this arc does pick up in terms of intensity. I also hate Eugeo a lot, but thankfully in the web novels they did something about that lol.
Also, I want to state that Accel World can go to hell. A piece of crap, that is all.
Arc 1(SAO): Probably one of the better arcs out there. In the novels they cut a lot of filler stuff out as they displace them into side story volumes so it is more plot relevant. The anime had a decent adaptation of Arc 1 compared to most of the other low budget anime adaptations out there.
Arc 2(ALO): Fairly repetitive of arc 1 imo but Yui saved it for me. The whole thing with Sugu was pretty annoying because we all knew it was going to be Asuna who gets Kirito but it could be worse I guess.
Arc 3(GGO): The best arc out there atm. It is a change of pace which the series really needed after ALO but I thought the plotline had a way too convinient set up. However, I could overlook that due to how it played out. Playing a virtual gun game with a sword was pretty neat and the whole murder mystery sent chills down my spine as I read the end of volume 6. I do hate how Kirito looks more like a girl with his GGO character design.
Arc 4(Alicization): Wow, the author really put his world building writing skills too full use here. Although sometimes the descriptions and info dumps were really annoying, it was necessary in how the arc plays out in the end. I can't comment on this too much since Alicization is like 8 volumes long based on Chinese and Japanese translations of the web novels and right now only 2 volumes of it are translated into english. Based on what is released, it seems pretty lackluster, but I wouldnt give up hope on this arc yet since the web novels show this arc does pick up in terms of intensity. I also hate Eugeo a lot, but thankfully in the web novels they did something about that lol.
Also, I want to state that Accel World can go to hell. A piece of crap, that is all.
I watched death note and coding grease for the first time this week, since apparently they're the ones to start with. I really liked code geass but I thought death note was disappointingly bad (no, I don't mean just the end, I mean the whole thing). Maybe it was a problem of attitude: I assumed I'd like deathnote before I started it, and I assumed I wouldn't like code geass. But I was extremely wrong on both cases.
Ive read/watched Liar game, zero (the gambler one), kaiji, and one outs. I thought they were all good except for zero, which was terrible. I think I must fixate on small details of each show, because by all accounts I shouldn't have such contrasting opinions about series that are supposedly so similar.
Ive read/watched Liar game, zero (the gambler one), kaiji, and one outs. I thought they were all good except for zero, which was terrible. I think I must fixate on small details of each show, because by all accounts I shouldn't have such contrasting opinions about series that are supposedly so similar.
my list is filled with mostly school life shows, thats just my taste
medaka box is an unconventional battle manga. i only read the manga but sometimes ill catch a few episodes of the anime. every chapter is amazing and i am never disappointed each week.
k-on is an oldie but goodie. one of my favourite series. i can watch episode after episode again and again and the jokes are never old to me. plus there is so many episodes and a movie.
haruhi suzumiya is also a series that i enjoyed. only watched the anime so had the endless eight and didnt go through the whole manga series.
my last two show that i really like kyoto animation. i generally try to watch shows that they come out with. watched hyouka and liked it, going to watch chunbiyou and tamako market when it comes out. clannad seems to sad for me :(
medaka box is an unconventional battle manga. i only read the manga but sometimes ill catch a few episodes of the anime. every chapter is amazing and i am never disappointed each week.
k-on is an oldie but goodie. one of my favourite series. i can watch episode after episode again and again and the jokes are never old to me. plus there is so many episodes and a movie.
haruhi suzumiya is also a series that i enjoyed. only watched the anime so had the endless eight and didnt go through the whole manga series.
my last two show that i really like kyoto animation. i generally try to watch shows that they come out with. watched hyouka and liked it, going to watch chunbiyou and tamako market when it comes out. clannad seems to sad for me :(
I really love both Sword Art Online and Accel World since I really love how the worlds were developed and didn't feel like you were overloaded with information. I think both of them wanted to build up material to do a proper season 2 instead of half-assing it with fillers.
Some anime from this current season (Fall 2012) people should probably give a try.
Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World): Don't let the first episode to divert you from a good watch, give it about episode 3-4 and see if you aren't interested at this point. It's a great sci-fi/fantasy character show.
BTOOOM!: Don't let the stupid name fool you. It's like Battle Royale but with bombs. And like Battle Royale, it has great characters. Only 12 episodes though but there might be a season 2 though.
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!: I think most of us had fantasy delusions but I don't think we acted them out like the characters in this show. It has a good mix of comedy, seriousness, and romance. It's also 12 episodes.
Psycho Pass: The show that comes before Robotics;Notes in Japan and no one really cares about it even though it's good. Imagine your psychological state could be analyze like taking your blood pressure and the world is setup based on it. It's mostly a police drama but it does talk about the issues with the society based on measuring your mental state and makes you think.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: If you're a man, you should be watching this show and enjoy the manliest OP of the season (first one not the second one because that one isn't manly at all).
Some anime from this current season (Fall 2012) people should probably give a try.
Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World): Don't let the first episode to divert you from a good watch, give it about episode 3-4 and see if you aren't interested at this point. It's a great sci-fi/fantasy character show.
BTOOOM!: Don't let the stupid name fool you. It's like Battle Royale but with bombs. And like Battle Royale, it has great characters. Only 12 episodes though but there might be a season 2 though.
Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!: I think most of us had fantasy delusions but I don't think we acted them out like the characters in this show. It has a good mix of comedy, seriousness, and romance. It's also 12 episodes.
Psycho Pass: The show that comes before Robotics;Notes in Japan and no one really cares about it even though it's good. Imagine your psychological state could be analyze like taking your blood pressure and the world is setup based on it. It's mostly a police drama but it does talk about the issues with the society based on measuring your mental state and makes you think.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: If you're a man, you should be watching this show and enjoy the manliest OP of the season (first one not the second one because that one isn't manly at all).
blitzlefan
shake it off!
standard manga/animes right now. up to date w/ Naruto, 200ish chapters in Bleach, 70ish into Death Note, started Dragonball, One Piece, etc. Oh, and finished Full Metal Alchemist. FMA was excellent, IMO.
Random mangas that I thought were pretty good: to-love-ru for some reason is pretty good (not done yet) and bitter virgin almost made me cry. So good! :)
Random mangas that I thought were pretty good: to-love-ru for some reason is pretty good (not done yet) and bitter virgin almost made me cry. So good! :)
Anyone who watches/has watched gintama and can answer a couple of questions for me?
1)I heard it's somewhat boring for the first 30 or so episodes and then it gets really interesting/funny. Is this true?
2)I heard the story's plot doesn't really build upon itself, and is pretty episodic, with a few arcs here and there. Can someone confirm this for me?
Besides this, I want to say that if you like action, don't mind fanservice and actually want a decent plot with a nonretarded protagonist and a awesome villian, I really recommend sekirei.
Seriosuly though, you can't deny how badass Karasuba is.
1)I heard it's somewhat boring for the first 30 or so episodes and then it gets really interesting/funny. Is this true?
2)I heard the story's plot doesn't really build upon itself, and is pretty episodic, with a few arcs here and there. Can someone confirm this for me?
Besides this, I want to say that if you like action, don't mind fanservice and actually want a decent plot with a nonretarded protagonist and a awesome villian, I really recommend sekirei.
Seriosuly though, you can't deny how badass Karasuba is.
From first impressions I liked SAO more but after finishing both anime series I have to say I liked Accel World a lot better. The animation and soundtrack are better than SAO's (I guess if you've never heard something with Kaijura composing before you could like SAO's more but her work on SAO is ridiculously derivative and AW's is really good regardless), the fights are more frequent and actually have some logic to them instead of being slugfests or one-way stomps, and the original concept is still relevant instead of being tossed out the window like SAO's was.
That said Accel World has its fair share of issues (the worst probably being the MC; I don't hate the concept but he looks really out of place and his character development doesn't really stick, though Kirito is just as bad in less obvious ways) and I still don't think that highly of it overall but as far as anime about video games go I'd definitely take it over SAO.
I liked it from the very beginning, but I don't think there's any significant jump up in quality at a specific point. The first episode is filler though and tries to introduce a ton of characters at once, while from the second episode onward the story follows the manga. Also I think most people agree episode 25 is one of the best.
And yes, most episodes don't have a real story to speak of besides maybe introducing new characters, but now and then there are more serious arcs that last for a couple episodes.
omg liar game i want to do cocaine off akiyama's dick pls
i think you've touched on something there, it's that it's clever, yeah, but it's just clever enough so that someone with average intellect can appreciate it - it's not treating us like we're geniuses, even though it may seem that way. only the characters are geniuses
i've said this before but the thing i enjoy most is sitting down for myself and trying to figure out the games before reading on, like what the winning strategy could be, what kind of gambits would be used...and it's super satisfying when i see a character execute some of the strategies i come up with. i remember reading through the smuggling game arc and just thinking to myself 'it doesn't matter at all who wins, what matters is how much money your team walks away with' and feeling like a boss when akiyama made the big announcement
as for anime i don't like to think too much when i'm watching it since watching tv is generally a lazy thing so i just watch cliched, girly shit like k-on. never ask me for advice on what to watch
sword art online is pretty bad and i won't be watching the second season unless someone can prove it's better than the first season. sao's shitty storyline and characters are a shame considering the very high production quality - i just feel all that money could have been spent on making a better anime. lisa's vocals on the opening themes are really great, and the animation quality is top notch
So I'm going to hazard a guess and say that I'm probably one the very few who did not like Sword Art Online for a variety of reasons.
The main draw of SAO was the MMORPG aspect of the anime for me; I wasn't drawn in by the internet hype machine spurning interest in a light novel unsubtly dressed as a MMORPG story while in reality it was every teenager's romance novel (heroic/loner guy finds amazing ability, gets it on with the hottest girl and then eventually saves the world), unsurprisingly written by a 16 year old author (the first one anyways). I thought it would have potential (without knowing actually what it was) seeing that it was a fairly high budget anime, that hopefully it would incorporate a lot of the MMORPG aspects that appeal to most gamers and because of Yuki Kajiura who's done some amazing soundtrack work for better anime.
Let's be completely honest: SAO's focus was on Kirito's and Asuna's one-dimensional relationship that's entirely focused on appealing to the fanbase rather than actually having actual substance in terms of expanding on the MMORPG aspect (which was one of the main draws) and having more of the anime focus on developing its character instead of throwing them out after having little side arcs (which were more interesting than the main story, though not by much; still don't know why Silica exists other than the obligatory "loli" + "tentacle" sideshow). We spent 2 episodes with Kirito and Asuna in that damn cottage that no one watching for actual development in terms of plot and character gives two shits about. Speaking about their relationship, this show focuses on the overplayed cliche'd concept of "love," through "sacrificing one self," "running so fasts that she saves her lover!" "going beyond the 'bounds of the game.'" Seeing as the source material was a LN written by a 16 year old, I suppose I can't fault the writers too much. Looking at Kirito, he goes from a stereotypical one-dimensional MMORPG loner in the beginning with clear issues to a one-dimensional MMORPG god while getting it on with the hottest girl in the MMOPRG world (see where I'm going with "appealing to their fanbase part?"). There's no ground-breaking material but a continual plot devised to attract as many watchers as possible with exploration into the harem genre once in a while (I see no purpose for the other girls other than this, I'm sorry.)
The pacing of the show was another focus of complaint; the continual switchings between the episodic and linear format was terrible, with arcs lasting one episode, then a couple of episodes, is not a good way of presenting a show to an audience. There's one excellent example of after a boss fight, Kirito is all upset and becomes a loner and then the next episode (which goes into a side story), has him joining a guild while being happy? Did anyone else not catch the discontinuity between the storylines?
In the end, SAO definitely fails to live up to what it was supposed to do. It's not a "bad" anime by comparisons to whatever else was aired this season. It has good animation, with a plot that's coherent and without gigantic plot holes but does uses deus ex machinas whenever it can and finally, has "appealing" characters. But the anime that I expected it to be and the one it is now, is a fairly large gap, which led me to drop SAO after the first half had finished (maybe ALO was vastly different from what it was originally I don't know? But based on the last episode and the shit flung at it I honestly doubt it).
As for stuff that aired fairly recently, Kokoro Connect had my interest during the body swapping arc; I thought it was a fairly unique way of exploring character interactions and relationships while settling conflicts within themselves, with a very good climax, but when they delved into the arc where they became younger, I felt that the show started losing focus and started losing what made it so attractive in the first place; other than the blonde's struggle with what love was, with his past childhood crush, there was really no conflict, no character building, nothing that set it apart from the quarterly sludge of anime pumped out of the pipe.
Looking forward to Nekomonogatari airing on the 29th, but if it's anything like the disappointment Nisemonogatari was, I'll probably pretend Bakemonogatari is a standalone series without acknowledging the rest of its inbred siblings.
The main draw of SAO was the MMORPG aspect of the anime for me; I wasn't drawn in by the internet hype machine spurning interest in a light novel unsubtly dressed as a MMORPG story while in reality it was every teenager's romance novel (heroic/loner guy finds amazing ability, gets it on with the hottest girl and then eventually saves the world), unsurprisingly written by a 16 year old author (the first one anyways). I thought it would have potential (without knowing actually what it was) seeing that it was a fairly high budget anime, that hopefully it would incorporate a lot of the MMORPG aspects that appeal to most gamers and because of Yuki Kajiura who's done some amazing soundtrack work for better anime.
Let's be completely honest: SAO's focus was on Kirito's and Asuna's one-dimensional relationship that's entirely focused on appealing to the fanbase rather than actually having actual substance in terms of expanding on the MMORPG aspect (which was one of the main draws) and having more of the anime focus on developing its character instead of throwing them out after having little side arcs (which were more interesting than the main story, though not by much; still don't know why Silica exists other than the obligatory "loli" + "tentacle" sideshow). We spent 2 episodes with Kirito and Asuna in that damn cottage that no one watching for actual development in terms of plot and character gives two shits about. Speaking about their relationship, this show focuses on the overplayed cliche'd concept of "love," through "sacrificing one self," "running so fasts that she saves her lover!" "going beyond the 'bounds of the game.'" Seeing as the source material was a LN written by a 16 year old, I suppose I can't fault the writers too much. Looking at Kirito, he goes from a stereotypical one-dimensional MMORPG loner in the beginning with clear issues to a one-dimensional MMORPG god while getting it on with the hottest girl in the MMOPRG world (see where I'm going with "appealing to their fanbase part?"). There's no ground-breaking material but a continual plot devised to attract as many watchers as possible with exploration into the harem genre once in a while (I see no purpose for the other girls other than this, I'm sorry.)
The pacing of the show was another focus of complaint; the continual switchings between the episodic and linear format was terrible, with arcs lasting one episode, then a couple of episodes, is not a good way of presenting a show to an audience. There's one excellent example of after a boss fight, Kirito is all upset and becomes a loner and then the next episode (which goes into a side story), has him joining a guild while being happy? Did anyone else not catch the discontinuity between the storylines?
In the end, SAO definitely fails to live up to what it was supposed to do. It's not a "bad" anime by comparisons to whatever else was aired this season. It has good animation, with a plot that's coherent and without gigantic plot holes but does uses deus ex machinas whenever it can and finally, has "appealing" characters. But the anime that I expected it to be and the one it is now, is a fairly large gap, which led me to drop SAO after the first half had finished (maybe ALO was vastly different from what it was originally I don't know? But based on the last episode and the shit flung at it I honestly doubt it).
As for stuff that aired fairly recently, Kokoro Connect had my interest during the body swapping arc; I thought it was a fairly unique way of exploring character interactions and relationships while settling conflicts within themselves, with a very good climax, but when they delved into the arc where they became younger, I felt that the show started losing focus and started losing what made it so attractive in the first place; other than the blonde's struggle with what love was, with his past childhood crush, there was really no conflict, no character building, nothing that set it apart from the quarterly sludge of anime pumped out of the pipe.
Looking forward to Nekomonogatari airing on the 29th, but if it's anything like the disappointment Nisemonogatari was, I'll probably pretend Bakemonogatari is a standalone series without acknowledging the rest of its inbred siblings.
Mechaish animes are not really my thing so I'm pretty biased from the start. However, what gets me the most is the MC, the loli, and the fact black lotus never reveals her name (maybe I missed something since it was a while ago but if not then wtf is the point of this). The fights are better in AW, but it irritates me how Haruyuki(I think that is the MC) has a slim body and some confidence as silver crow but irl he is.....well.....yeah....pretty pathetic. Couldn't really watch this series because of the MC since I feel like slapping him silly in every episode. There are minor things you could pick at for Kirito's development but nothing ever made me go as insane as watching Haruyuki.
Since I prefer reading the novels, music isn't that big of a factor when determining what makes a good series for me. As long as the OP/ED are pretty good I'm satisfied in terms of anything sound related and both AW and SAO are about equal in that regard (imo).
For now I prefer SAO more, I don't mind the one-dimensional aspect in terms of character focus. SAO was pretty driven towards Kirito's adventure from the start, heck in ARC 3 GGO and ARC 4 Alicization not even Asuna plays much of a role. It is just Kirito coping with the virtual world, everyone else is just a side show. The only annoying part about this is during every arc/volume they try to throw some new girls in to take a major role and then they just hang around after they should be irrelevant to the story line. More girls more cash, got to do what sells I guess.
I'm judging both series as a whole, not just the animes. Both felt lackluster after reading the books and then watching the anime and neither anime covered the best Arcs. I really feel like AW is just an inferior SAO but I guess if I just look at the animes I can see how AW could be better (assuming I don't want to strangle Haruyuki).
Edit: I know there is a lot of Haruyuki hate, but it cant be helped.
I think some of the hate that SAO gets is from the people who read the novels and got pissed off that it decided to put some side stories into the anime early on instead of focusing on the main plot. I feel it sort of makes sense to put the side stories in a chronological order instead of tacking it on later on in the show so I rather have that than what happened in Accel World where they took a two episode side story while leaving the main story on a cliffhanger. Sure the side story was important but the timing of it was terrible. Also I think it should be pointed out that SAO was actually the first novel that Reki Kawahara wrote even though it was published second. So his writing was't as good back then compared to Accel World.
As for Accel World, I like Haruyuki as a main character. He isn't your typical skinny, self-assured main character but rather obese and unsure of himself most of the time. I think he's pretty reliable to a lot of people. It's easy to be a badass in a game while not so much in real life. As for why Snow Black's name isn't known, I think it's partly due to her status as a rebel in Brain Burst. They did reveal her nickname in the final episode but not her full name. It could be also a huge joke which is fine with me as well.
I also like Kokoro Connect very much as well but I can understand people hating it past the body swapping arc. The second arc has a lot of angst going around but I think the third arc is pretty funny though. The final 4 episodes is supposed to air tomorrow in Japan and will catch those episodes.
As for Accel World, I like Haruyuki as a main character. He isn't your typical skinny, self-assured main character but rather obese and unsure of himself most of the time. I think he's pretty reliable to a lot of people. It's easy to be a badass in a game while not so much in real life. As for why Snow Black's name isn't known, I think it's partly due to her status as a rebel in Brain Burst. They did reveal her nickname in the final episode but not her full name. It could be also a huge joke which is fine with me as well.
I also like Kokoro Connect very much as well but I can understand people hating it past the body swapping arc. The second arc has a lot of angst going around but I think the third arc is pretty funny though. The final 4 episodes is supposed to air tomorrow in Japan and will catch those episodes.