Impression
What a bittersweet ending…
I’m sure we all saw it coming. There were death flags everywhere, and AIDS is the same terminal illness Yuuki’s mother and sister both succumbed to – her own death was sadly inevitable. I suppose Kawahara could have left it up in the air with regards to Mother’s Rosario itself, and ended the arc somehow without deciding to time-skip through the happier, peaceful days Yuuki shared with Asuna and their friends, but that would make for a pretty flimsy ending. Also, a slice-of-life stint with nothing really happening isn’t really SAO’s style – and it would only have intensified the eventual feels anyway. And I think they were already intensified enough. The best moment, by far was when hundreds of players all gathered to say a final farewell to Zekken – regarded as one of, if not the, strongest swordsmen in ALO. For the record, that was when I started crying… I mean, that was when dust got into my eyes. And it was worst when her voice started faltering. At one point I was actually thinking to myself: “Yuuki… no… stop talking like you’re dying or something, you’re… oh. Oh ;_;” That image of seeing her on Asuna’s lap and surrounded by flowers was so beautiful and yet so sad. I don’t think this was a particular surprise for anyone though, whether you’ve read the light novel or not – the arc certainly laid all its cards out a couple of episodes ago, and those who were more astute may even have figured it out from the ‘Sleeping Knights’ name and all the tacit secrecy.
This finale episode took lots of time winding down – the entire second half, in fact. We never really got to know the other members of the Sleeping Knights that well, but at the very least it’s nice to know that not all of them will be following in Yuuki’s footsteps for the time being, least of all Shiune. Ultimately, Mother’s Rosario is a single-novel side story arc, and there’s not much else they can do other than insert a small scene at the end indicating that everything’s okay and that the adventures have ended. For now.
Overall Thoughts
Sword Art Online II was always one of those things that was going to happen. It took two years, during which a lot of my hype and excitement for the initial season died off, but regardless I found myself enjoying this a lot – it was never going to be the same high-stakes death game, but it found other things to branch off into. Much like how the first season covered Aincrad and Fairy Dance, this season covered the ‘main’ story that is Phantom Bullet and two side stories, Caliber and Mother’s Rosario.
Phantom Bullet was great for the most part. The return of SAO generated a good deal of hype, and there was a lot of excitement for it alongside the image of a ‘fresh’ virtual world and a new threat. And Sinon, for whom there were immediate grounds to like based solely on the virtue of being voiced by Sawashiro Miyuki. For a good chunk (i.e. over half) of the arc, I was generally satisfied by what was produced – there were fast-paced, intense action scenes, lots of based Sinon and Kirito being Kirito. It was when the cave setting began to seem endless that things began to wear thin – lengthy periods of conversation with little movement is markedly different in anime than in a light novel, which is… well, a huge wall of text to begin with. And the overly graphic, unnecessarily thirsty attempted rape scene left my jimmies very rustled in a way that they weren’t at the end of the novels. It’s worth noting that Sinon is one of the better girls – though I suppose they all have their high points for a while, then recede into the background. At least for Sinon it wasn’t for a grand total of one episode. Sorry, Lizbeth and Silica.
Caliber was what it was – a short, quick romp through a quest in ALO, where everyone had fun and the game was ultimately still a game, albeit one that was a bit unusual. It was fun while it lasted, though I would have liked it if they’d animated the bit where Klein manages to get that NPC’s number after realizing that his waifu was a trap.
Mother’s Rosario delivered. I don’t think I found myself losing the hype at all during this arc – it was paced well, and it provided a different perspective in Asuna and an adorable character in Yuuki. This essentially had the franchise tread different ground – normally it’s about adventure, high risks and flashy heroism, but that wasn’t the focus here, and it’s emphasised by how Kirito has very minimal screen time. Perhaps oddly, the first word that comes to mind when thinking about Mother’s Rosario as an arc is friendship. And it’s odd because I don’t think it’s a word I’d associate with any of the other arcs we’ve had thus far, even though it’s an overwhelming theme throughout anime in general. SAO hasn’t really been big on the whole friendship thing, has it? Kirito, the protagonist chooses the path of a solo player. Where he does form relationships, it’s either romance or unrequited romance. We’ve only really seen him friends with Klein and Agil, and neither of them played almost any part in ‘saving the day’. Mother’s Rosario was full of it though – it featured a close-knit guild, teamwork in fighting floor bosses and the primary friendship between Asuna and Yuuki. Perhaps even the development between Asuna and Kyouko counts. Ultimately, it was a different experience, helpfully injected with lots of feels – that’s probably why I enjoyed it so much.
Yuuki/10, would blog again!
Looking Ahead – Sword Art Online III
The next arc is Alicization, and it’s huge. I don’t have much doubt at all that it’ll be animated eventually – it might take another couple of years or so, but it will happen. It’s a very popular series, and the scale of the development in that mega-arc has all the stuff from GGO pale in comparison. I don’t think it’s even finished, actually – I’ve only read Volume 9, and the arc’s on something like Volume 15 or so. To put the rest into perspective, the first season covered Volumes 1-4, while the second did Volumes 5-8. From what I’ve read, Alicization is good. If I had to liken it to one of the other arcs in a feeble attempt to say something yet avoid spoilers, I’d say it’s like Aincrad. But yeah, sales and popularity are a big deal when sequels are concerned, and SAO easily fulfils them both – I’m honestly not worried about a further adaptation in the future. Whether I’ll still be around to blog it is another question entirely, of course!
And so, at last, the ED is what it is: Asuna, after Yuuki’s death, playing a clipshow of pictures taken from the times she’s spent with Yuuki. Every time I’ve watched it in this arc it has brought tears to my eyes, and now, with the entirety of the event in the episode along with it, it most certainly did so.
In a way, one of the things that makes this arc so powerful is the fact that Yuuki doesn’t live through it, yet I cannot help but be upset at a story that brings death to an innocent who is so full of life. She deserved better than this, and whether the story would have had such a powerful ending or not, I wish Yuuki could have been saved.
…Yuuki… ;_;
The first time I watched it, the true setting of the ED only hit about halfway in, and was confirmed when it ended with Asuna looking over the tree where Yuuki died. The very fact that she was so cheerful and upbeat in life is exactly why every scene showing her frail, bedridden condition in real life was painful to watch ;_;
I already knew what was going to happen but that didn’t stop me from getting my eyes all wet. Everything in this episode was impactful, from the opening sequence with everyone spending their peaceful and happy days with Yuuki to the scene with Yuuki in Asuna’s arms. Yuuki’s speech was beautiful but depressing as we knew what was going to happen to Yuuki next. We got to see Yuuki’s OSS, once against Kirito in the tournament( was it that skill she used?) and once again when she made the item for Asuna probably using big part of her last strenght ;;
The meaning behind her OSS was really beautiful, and really fitting Asuna’s promise to give it to another player if she ever ends up leaving the world of ALO, so Yuuki’s memory will continue on living.She also left quite a legacy behind, which will help others and serve as a lesson to many others.
I REALLY liked how they portrayed Asuna and Yuuki and their development in this arc( Asuna’s relationship with her mother, what she wanted to do, etc… and Yuuki’s well, everything about her story). It was kind of a bittersweet ending in this season, contrary to the all happy ending we got from last season( with the Fairy Dance Arc ending).
As I expected, I ended up liking Caliber and Moter’s Rosario way more than GGO, I guess Yuuki’s arc( and herself) is too good. Although I would have greatly prefered Yuuki to live, her last moments were quite memorable. In her own words she was able to “end her journey with hundreds(or thousands) of people around her and in the arms of the one she loved”, a fitting end for the strongest swordsman in ALO and(at least for me) the best character in this series.For me this arc was the one with the most “feels” by far in SAO. The best arc with the best character for me.
Bye Yuuki… ;;
Ps: Hope you’re still around to blog SAO III, great job covering this season as well.