WebVideo As of Episode 5- Pretty Good
I'm not going to lie; even if you dislike SAO, you'll probably like this.
SAO Abridged pokes fun at a series that (sometimes) likes to take itself a little too seriously. Instead of the dark and hopeless atmosphere which at times takes a hold of the original, SAO Abridged takes the in-game antics of real MM Os and adds them to this universe.
The plot of each episode remains the same as it was in the original with some artistic license as to finer points added for comedic affect.
The story still centres around Kirito, a young Japanese computer prodigy;however, it takes several liberties with his character. Namely his personality.
Gone is the original's ever-serious loner. In its place is Kirito, a cynical and sarcastic sociopath who cares more about himself than he does about clearing the game. Unlike in the original, Kirito does not have a strong drive to do anything (or much of moral compass for that matter).While each character has their own quirks, they can all agree on one thing. Kirito is an "unbearable asshole".
Exaggeration is definitely a friend to the creators. Many of the characters' personalities and traits have been emphasized to the point of humour. Others, most notably minor characters such as the Moonlit Black Cats, have had their personalities completely overwritten(It should be noted that occasionally the series will keep the trend of exaggeration but throw in the odd character trait.)
Despite their use of exaggeration, there are some examples of realism which are used as excellent sources of humour (i.e. in-game ads and MMO battle strategy).
Occasionally new content will be edited into the show, which the major or minor characters will interact with.
At this time, there has been several references to past episodes (as seen at the beginning of episode 5);however, it is still too early on to see if the series will begin to rely on continuity.
Updates occur every few months with the only exception being the infamous episode 4-5 hiatus. This was due to creative differences among the creators, causing two to leave and have their characters' voice actors to be recast.
The series has a large, varied cast of voice actors and notable guest actors including Octopimp (50% Off) and Takahata101 (Team Four Star).
Overall this is a funny satire of a serious anime which (if consistent) can be enjoyed for years to come.
WebVideo The New Type of Abridging
SAO Abridged is better than SAO. Yet that’s not the insult to SAO nor the surprise it should be. Because SAO is not a normal abridged series, it’s something different and completely brilliant. It can be watched by veterans and newcomers alike, I loved it before I without having watched SAO, it's what made me watch the series in the first place.
Up until now abridged series have either created their own unique stories, or they’ve focused extracting as much comedy as possible from the story of the original.
SAO Abridged sets out to tell the story of SAO as well as it can. It want to hit the same emotional beats that SAO hits. It uses the strengths of SAO as its base and foundation to drive on. But with hindsight, wisdom and craftsmanship it wants to improve on them, shoring up the weaknesses and doubling down on the strengths. In SAO Asuna could have an edge that could make soldiers retreat in fear even though they were invulnerable. SAO Abridged removes the parts where that aspect of her character is undercut and shows the strength scariness underneath that.
It’s wonderful to see the skill with which they remove some of the women issues that SAO had, the way they establish extra points of motivation and sure up little plot holes and yet still stay mostly faithful to the original.
Which is not to say they never depart. They do, normally for the better, sometimes for the worse. Kirito is a different character. They’ve kept his loner problems and his difficulty with integrating, but removed his bland generic niceness and replaced it by an asshole whose kindness gradually appears through experience and compassion. On the other hand the villain loses something of his grandness and the fascination of his motivation. They do an amazing thing with a running gag though!
And SAO Abridged is very funny. So whilst it’s a new type of Abridged series, it hasn’t lost its roots. It’s still pokes fun and makes you laugh, and you’ll laugh a lot.
Long live SAO and long live this type of abridged series! I will say though, this should only be done in love. It’s not for when you want to kick something into the gutter, it’s when you have found a story that you want to bring out and polish to its best.