Accel World (2012–2023) User Reviews

Starts interesting but messes things up later

[emodit · 7/10 · 30 December 2018]

It's a good shonen anime in the sense that it contains fights, fun and excitement, but from about the middle of the show things seem to get out of hand. The world, the characters and some conflicts are set up, and it looks like we will get a story arc about what Accel World is, what's its purpose, how it will end, etc. But then suddenly new characters are introduced, the main plot is sidelined for a much weaker subplot, much of the runtime is spent on various characters whining ad nauseam, and the "grand finale" of the show is a smallish fight with one of these new characters that solves nothing and wouldn't move the main plot forward even if it continued at all. A huge letdown to be honest. There were also problems with how new rules and ideas were introduced to the show even in the last episodes, which is never a good sign. After a certain point it inevitably feels like the creators just keep pulling things out of thin air, which kinda' ruins their previous efforts at worldbuilding. It's a lot easier to believe in a fantasy or sci-fi world if the rules governing it are coherent and unbreakable.

I still give the anime 7 stars because it had its moments, some of the concepts were interesting and some fights were enjoyable. It could have been much better though.

Actually stole my attention!

[agauguligiaga · 8/10 · 11 October 2012]

Accel World themes may not original nor phenomenal. But, its setting which will differ from many futuristic cyber-punk anime genre. The story about kid who got superpowers maybe already crossed your mind, typical. But often it doesn't emphasizing about main character weaknesses. Arita Haruyuki, the main character whose always bullied at school, portrays a lot of emotional struggle like a very low self-esteem, self hatred, inability to cope with reality, which he become extremely depressed and lose himself in the so-called virtual reality. His confidence about "one thing he could do better than anyone" may remember us about ourself. About how fragile life is.

The story mostly tell about how someone don't "instantly" becoming great, even if he is trusted with great powers. Given Haruyuki speed and "very special avatar" at AW, he doesn't necessarily become the greatest, like we always see at another shonen anime. Its really ironic that the deeper the mental wounds at burst linker, will grant more power at the avatar. It is like a "dichotomy" or something that this series maker want to tell us that even you suck at life, you will triumph in another.

The animation sequence and action is the thing that make this anime worth watching. Another thing is a really lovable heroine like Kuroyukihime (yes i am one of her fans), not mentioning really good music (and i love the second ending which Kuroyukihime's seiyuu- Sachika Misawa sang herself). So if you like sci-fi anime with teen life setting, with marvelous action sequence and ready to jelly over ultra lucky fatass. Accel World is a must-watch

Super funny, well done, but disappointingly short..

[spiritingshadow · 7/10 · 9 October 2019]

It's a fantastic show for anybody that wants a new SAO, except for the story writing is far different in how the characters act and their goals and reasonings (different shows, go figure.) my biggest complaint is that I feel like it could have told a much bigger story if it wanted to do so, but it kind of kept itself grounded (which could be taken as a positive.). If you want a somewhat comical show, with decent action scenes, and a pretty alright plot, it's a good watch!

Goes from an entertaining show to an absolute mess in the second half.

[infctdnnm · 3/10 · 15 November 2021]

The first half is enjoyable and had me really hooked. Was thinking it was an easy 8 out of 10. Then the complete disaster of a second half comes into play. They completely create a new sub plot and fabricate a villain out of thin air for the sole purpose of making the viewer hate him. There was so many questionable decisions in the second half I had a hard time even finishing it. It's no wonder it never got another season. Absolute trash.