English Dub Review: Sword Art Online: Alicization – War of Underworld “In the Far North”
OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)
Months after the events of the previous episode, Kirito has been reduced to a catatonic state because of the damage to his Fluctlight, now being cared for by Alice Synthesis Thirty in a remote cottage. The direct aftermath of their battle with Quinella has forced Bercouli to take leadership of the remaining Integrity Knights again (including Fanatio who somehow escaped Cardinal’s lair?) with the intention of building up their forces before the Dark Territory learns of Quinella’s death. But there was still a growing sense of resentment against Kirito for his actions, so Alice took him and her dragon away to protect him. Her old home of Rulid Village won’t take her back, so she ended in that cottage with her sister Selka as her only friend. They’ve made due with taking tree chopping jobs for money, but they’re still barely getting by. Things seem peaceful until Eldrie Synthesis Thirty One visits, offering Alice a chance to rejoin their ranks, which she refuses. But that night, Rulid Village is attacked.
OUR TAKE
Sword Art Online Alicization returns to kick off its second half…or rather third quarter, as the anime is currently on another break until April in Japan, meaning that the dub should catch up with the sub just in time for the remaining episodes to begin their run. Kinda weird that the series is taking this approach in releasing is episodes but probably not a huge deal in the grand scheme. Plus, after the last episode, I wasn’t exactly dripping with anticipation to get back to this series any time soon. Thankfully, while things left off on a pretty messy note, I’m relieved that this section has opted to start on a more thoughtful and somber note.
A sort of upside to SAO is that whenever Kirito doesn’t happen to be the center of attention, the show gets exponentially more interesting. This was definitely the case with that Asuna centric arc at the end of the second season and it is the case now with Alice taking the reins for at least the next few episodes. I’m not exactly buying the reasons she couldn’t return to her old village (for one, she’s an Integrity Knight, so I imagine that kind of status has some benefits, and even if she IS still a criminal like her dad says, I hardly doubt anyone still in power really cares other than him), not to mention it just reminds me of stupid bits from last episode like Eugeo taking her memories to death with him because of some assumed rivalry between him and Kirito over versions of Alice that Kirito wanted no part in but…here we are.
It’s plenty interesting to see the Integrity Knights now reforming as good guys, especially as they start moving away from Quinella’s methods (and frankly the more they move away from anything she was involved in the better in my book). We get to see this society start to learn and grow from its mistakes, which is important when we’re seeing it through the perspective of someone who was born here who ALSO was misled about how her power should be used. In just this latest episode, I’m seeing so much more explored than in terms of character growth and potential than most of the last two dozen episodes because everything with Kirito is about how he can prove he’s the biggest badass around. And it’s a crying shame that we’re likely going to have to say goodbye to this as soon as he wakes up. But until then, I’m going to savor every moment.
