After
2 years, people have gotten used to living in SAO. With a dwindling
front line, it might just be up to Kirito and Asuna to continue the
change. (Source:
Crunchyroll)
Spoiler
warning: Review
contains spoilers for the eighth episode of Sword Art Online.
There
have been two moments in Sword Art Online that have really hit me
where it counts when it comes to the impact of Aincrad's grip on its
players. The first moment came at the end of SAO's first episode,
when it is stated how many players have already died by the end of
the first month and yet no one has cleared the first level. The
second moment comes in this eighth episode, where it is declared in
the same matter of fact tone that players have been stuck in Aincard
for two whole years.
That's
real time, y'all. One can only imagine how many users have died in
two years. And yet, in the war to clear the game and defeat the final
boss (and in turn, rejoin the rest of the world outside SAO), it
seems that ennui threatens to take over the front lines and stop the
battle in its tracks.
Remember
that last episode made it clear that, for many users, Aincrad had
become as real as real life can get. People are making new lives in
SAO, getting married, starting businesses - and in the process,
getting used to being in a virtual reality (especially since users
can die in this world as easily as one can in 'true reality'). And as
long as the Japanese government keeps their physical bodies on life
support, the virtual reality illusion can continue on and on for
these people - two years, to be exact. This blase attitude has left
Kirito and Asuna holding the bag in regards to level clearing.
These
extreme circumstances, as well as a tasty rare item, forces Kirito
and Asuna into yet another partnership, much to the irritation of
Asuna's guild. Asuna's bodyguard, Kuradeel, gets into the mix and
ends up having his ass handed to him by the dynamic duo and their
swords. Asuna puts a stop to Kuradeel's literal white knighting and
lets Kirito get the win in their impromptu duel. Kirito and Asuna
work really well together, I wish her guild would butt the hell out.
Also
of note is the fact that another guild's leader was watching the
duel. Are they being scoped out? Or are they possibly a target for
some PK? Naturally, neither one of them mention this creepy guy who
vanishes as soon as the duel is over, even though he visually
radiates the aura of a suspicious character.
(I'm
not even going to waste too many words on the grope incident because
it was stupid and gross and come on, Kirito, don't act like
you don't know what boobs are. Such a stereotypical NEET gamer.
Invest in one of those damn 3D oppai mouse pads already – and if
you don't know what those are,
here's a clue: it's NSFW.)
Whether
exploring the 74th level labyrinth or eating a meal together, it is
clear that Asuna and Kirito's relationship has evolved beyond a
normal friendship. They have fought together and ate together and
relied on each other in this life threatening MMORPG, so it's no
wonder that they've grown so close. It even shows in their fighting
style, knowing when the right time to cut in for the other person so
they can collectively take down their foe. It's kinda obvious how
hard this series is gunning for Kirito/Asuna endgame.
The
episode ends on a cliffhanger as Asuna and Kirito prepare to face the
74th level's boss, an awful scary looking monster named The Gleam
Eyes. Considering it is just them versus this guy, it's gonna take a
lot more fight than usual to take TGE down. Unless Asuna has back-up
hiding in the wings – which is a big no – they'll have to put
their everything into this one battle if they want to clear the
floor. It's obvious that Asuna and Kirito are skilled, but do they
have the skills to take The Gleam Eyes on by themselves?
Sword
Art Online looks like it's ready to tackle some of the meatier issues
of being trapped inside a game, such as people not wanting to leave
and the fact that level clearing is a matter of life or death. I can
only wonder how long it will actually take for Kirito and his allies
to reach the top floor – and who will be waiting there to fight
them.
The
next episode of Sword Art Online airs tomorrow night on Cartoon
Network's Toonami block.
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