Opening Songs
OP 1 - Chase The World (May'n)
OP 2 - Burst The Gravity (Altima)
Ending Songs
ED 1 - Unfinished (Kotoko)
ED 2 - Unite (Sachika Misawa)
Genre: Action, Drama, Romance, Science Fiction
Episodes: 24
I wasn't really all that determined to watch "Accel World" until midway through this year, which is quite a detriment, really. I really didn't like how the main character was just another snobby fat kid, and that fact alone drove me away from the anime for a very long time, even though I've heard countless rumors from my friends that it was really good. After dragging my ass out of the denial bin, I finally got to it, and I must say, I've been missing out. "Accel World" may not be as amazing or emotional as SAO on a whole, but by itself, its strong enough to convince me that both franchises were written by the same person. "Accel World" is a tale full of emotion, character development, cool ass avatars and action packed fight scenes. As long as you can get past the really annoying main character, there's a whole new world of hype for you to experience!
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| What did I tell you? Cool ass avatars! |
The songs in the anime are pretty awesome, something that I kind of expected considering how hyped "Accel World" was meant to be. "Chase The World" by May'n is an amazing song, probably her best one up to date. Its full of hype, her vocals are really strong here, and the song has full of epic moments. The opening animations are also one of the best of any anime I've seen in quite awhile. "Burst The Gravity" by Altima is the second opening, and while the song by itself is better than "Chase The World" IMO, the opening animations aren't. Its just like any other Altima song, which has lots of anison feels in it...something I really enjoy.
Even the ending themes are good. The first ending theme is "Unfinished" by Kotoko, and while its not her best song yet, its pretty good, even by her standards. It could have easily been opening material, but I guess not this time. The 2nd ending theme is "Unite" by Sachika Misawa, the seiyuu of Kuroyukihime. While its the weaker of the 2 ending themes, its still pretty good and fits quite well. Nothing to dislike here, an awesome set of songs.
Rating: 8.0/10
It would have been better if Haruyuki wasn't such a bitch of a main character. Almost the entirety of the world of "Accel World" IS fantastic! The setting is great, the concept of "Brain Burst" is pretty freaking awesome. The characters grow really well (points for Taku), there are a ton of awesome fights, and the duel avatar designs are really creative. Let's not forget that there's a lot of drama going on here, and some of the "romantic" scenarios could actually work out. However, Haruyuki has to ruin it all. He's a wimp, he's whiny, he cries like a baby almost every episode, and he claims to become a better person, but by the end of the entire first season, it feels like he's only changed oh-so-slightly. There are also some slight pacing issues here and there, but those only hurt the show slightly. Its only the way that Haruyuki is portrayed as a main character that really makes me dislike him.
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| Apparently Kuroyukihime gets impressed easily. |
Our protagonist is Haruyuki Arita. A fat, chubby young man leading a miserable life. Because of his appearance, he is constantly bullied in school, especially by a delinquent by the name of Araya. He gets beat up everyday, has to buy lunch for others, and can only nod his head in response because of his weak social standing. All he has is his two best friends, Chiyu and Taku, but even they can't do much to help him, and spending time with them both after school is all he cares about. Also, he constantly dives into the net, a new trend at that present age period to live off his real world life. One day, he is noticed by the most popular girl in the school, Kuroyukihime, and she calls him to the senior's cafeteria in real life. There, she introduces to him "Brain Burst", a program that gives him an opportunity to use "Burst Link", an ability to accelerate oneself in real life. They both work with each other to get rid of Araya, as well as exposing Haruyuki to a new kind of world that he would never expect...
"Accel World" has a lot of potential. A season two would truly make me one happy man, but unfortunately, there's no word of such a thing yet. Maybe in the near future we'll hear some news about it, but until then, let's hope Haruyuki mans up a little bit, because if he was a better main character, "Accel World" could easily top the likes of its competition: "Sword Art Online".
Peace.
