u/enzer_pyro

'Twas fairly decent I suppose, more a continuation of last week's build-up.

Higa! No!!!

Things were going pretty badly with Sinon. Other than that weird bat disc thing, I now completely understand Gabe's abilities. I do wish that the whole Hécate II scene would have been as extravagant as the novel illustration though. But still: guns!

Things are going south now for the ALO players, can't beat overwhelming numbers and prejudice. While it isn't obvious that Siune's speaking Korean (there was a really big explanation about this in the novel, right?), the scene as a whole was done well. I feel that I really liked this moment in the novel, at least as a brief respite.

The cavalry is here! Again! Terraria gets her screentime.

So that's the whole deal with 871, didn't remember that all too well. And it's rather funny that anyone infatuated with Quinella is a real weirdo on some level.

Klein looks real handsome with his hair down like that. And Renri had something of a moment here, too. It's sad to see that they've been pushed back against a wall, and such a frightened Lisbeth. And it's all the fault of PoH. Can't help but like his jazzy theme, I do still miss his HF voice though.

Volume 17 is almost done. Kirito...

Next week: Prince of Hell.

22 minutes worth of gratuitous build-up.

The shot of Oji-sama disappearing made me tear up a little.

Ah. Some rather heavy action here, the SFX, the visuals, never thought Iskahn had been damaged to this extent. The breaking of Scheta's curse was rather beautiful. Scheta and Iskahn are rather cute together, speaking of the future like that. I imagined Scheta being a little more playful in tone compared to her whole neutral tone as portrayed here.

PoH... the nightmare's finally here. Never thought I'd see Klein look so afraid. The Chinese and Korean players were speaking a bit in their own language, that's something of a nice touch. Didn't forget that there was the POV of Moonphase, that caught me off-guard, all the more welcome though. The red knights looked pretty goofy with their movements.

Eh-kun looked real amazing with all the screen time he was given.

Subtilizer... that track is really something, really fitting of that whole unholy ritual of his return. Didn't know that he force choked Sinon.

Betrayal is Betrayal. Can't recall how I saw this shaft(?), thought it to be smaller considering the case of Higa's size. Can't wait to see what happens next though.

Next time: Code 871

Oji-sama...

Unless its how I was feeling lately, the episode did feel somewhat slow/uneventful. Nothing really beats the shared happiness and hopefulness of seeing the Human Realm Army's chances of survival improving, seeing all those familiar faces. Asuna looked very happy. It was nice to see that person meet Frenica too.

As for the Ocean Turtle, the only thing of real note was that new BGM. On some level I'm reminded of 'fight!' from season one. Though I don't have much to say, I'm once again looking forward to the struggles of Kiku-san and friends.

Niemon's looking real cool.

The thicker lines, the change in artsytle was amazing. While I was hoping for some more intense action, it wasn't all that bad. At least I've now gotten a clearer idea as to what it was that Bercouli was attempting during the fight, even though my imagining of the pay-off was vastly different from this. Hoshigami's a real champ, too. It's a bit of a shame that Alice is being left behind like this.

The ED was quite literally built for this talk/moment between Quinella and Oji-sama. Really befitting of a departure. His child with Fanatio will grow up to be someone that could live up to his father's legacy, certainly.

Here comes Subtiliser, though.

Next time: Instigation

Rest in Peace, Commander of the Human Realm Army, Integrity Knight Bercouli Synthesis One.

Can't believe I got it right, Hollow Fragment has yet to fail me.

It was amazing.

The moment between Sinononon and Kirito (though even while reading the novel, the kiss was a little uncalled for), Rirupurin and Leafa (poor Leafa) and I never expected to have gotten part of Bercouli's battle here.

Never thought they'd have gone that far with D.I.L's Life absorbing, been too long since I read the novel so I barely remember the contents, but I guess it was animated as faithfully as possible anyways. Of the three, Leafa really got the short end of the stick but she triumphed in the end.

Glad to hear Bercouli's theme again. The 《Time-Splitting Sword》's Release Recollection was a sight to behold, couldn't stop smiling through it all. The prelude to the main fight was truly amazing, Berc-ojii's planning and a visualisation of Vector's ability to influence Incarnation. Though it was difficult to follow in the novel, I'm looking forward to be wowed by it all. Even if...

Asuna's pissed for sure, the animation for all her thrusting and slashing was superb. But don't worry, the cavalry is here now, and Klein's gotten his time to shine. Dunno if the Sword Skill Klein used would be 《Tsujikaze》 or 《Tsumujiguruma》.

Engrish.

ANIMA's set the mood for this being the final stretch, I do feel the last part of the opening, though really amazing, is something of a spoiler for anime-onlies. Ah well, the shot of Kirito in the classroom had me grinning at least. Can't wait to hear it in full though.

A-1 really want to chase that music video dream of theirs with "I Will..." or show off their 3D skills. Not as sombre and heavy as "unlasting" but the visuals really make up for the main part of the song.

The end is near, huh. I thought Part 2 may as well have worked as a movie but then I wouldn't have been able to watch the OP and ED 11 or 12 times over the course of the coming weeks. 8 years in the making.

Next: End to Eternity.

At least I can still go through with replaying Hollow Realization. It really does suck though, can't tell whether the album for ANIMA and Scar/let will be delayed too.

Maybe I should have stuck around to read the comments... Just make sure it's the Complete Edition you get, if you need any assistance with some systems or encounter problems you could ask around in the Fatal Bullet subreddit. It still is decently active.

They're indeed popular but I do hope BUBUN'd draw a little more than just Kirito and Eugeo in the future.

I always do, I would never forget.

Protag-kun's EX Rank Luck, huh? On the cover he has the very image of a Bishounen/Otome Hero.

I really enjoyed it though, a full chapter of Protag-kun saying things was well worth the wait I didn't know I was waiting for. Baka-Sys is awfully chatty but that's to be expected of her.

Thank you for taking the time to translate this.

Honestly, (it is Google Translate) I'm pickin' up more of that feeling from Kawahara's tweet than Futami's. And I guess it conflicts a little with some minor wishes like wanting to celebrate more anniversaries for the game series, as well as the overhaul of the ßeater's Cafe site seeming like a great deal of nothing.

Alicization did finish with the WN but the games would still have a lot more going for 'em. Lycoris kinda being a culmination of these 7 years since Infinity Moment, and it could only begin to get better going forwards. Some of the game worlds could be expanded on in Alternative-style stories or follow Protag-kun and co. on their own adventures.

Sorry for the essay, I suppose.

You have to complete the Abyss Dungeon in its entirety.

At least there's someone acknowledging this.

«GigasCedar» is paired with «NightSky» purely for their names.You should be able to recall Gigas' true name if you finished «Alicization Uniting».

Protag-kun and not facing the camera.

It's not everyday that it happens but I sure do love getting launched into the air like that.

It's finally been two years since release (in Japan at least). I can at least thank the team for the effort they put towards supporting the game over all this time, even with all the ups and downs. My enjoyment of the game could match that of Hollow Fragment's at this point.

At least I can assume that it is now time to look forward to more of Protag-kun's story. Glad he's also appeared in this artwork too.

That's the only real assumption I could make, it being The Fairy King's Throne because of ALO and the Norse design it appears to have, Sothis' is a little less detailed and the art originates from 2017.

Though looking at the tags on the source, there isn't a mention of Three Houses at all. Sothis' and this throne don't even look the same, this may be the Throne of the Fairy King. It's just ALO Asuna with her SAO colour scheme.

Now that's an even bigger surprise. Itsuki finally lucked out in the end.

Everyone's getting married... congratulations though.

Ì feel I may be blame. Thought it'd release around early December or that we would have gotten a release date during the end of/beginning of November/December event, or any consecutive DengekiPS Live.

I made the post with the BRS/NSS screenshot.

Get a feeling so complicated, but we ended off right at the end of the decade so no complaints here.

The 'murican players really are ruthless, them and their cheesy lines. So this is a zerg rush.

It's fascinating seeing all the present Integrity Knights in action (go Renri!). And Iskahn's moment was truly amazing (as is everything about him), didn't remember it well but Dampe's throw was really something else. Meanwhile A-chan's really having it rough, glad to have had Iskahn make it in time.

I feel like I remembered the mix-up differently, granted the anime's doing a great job at visualising it. Alice's anger was really sweet, all up until she was plucked by Vector. Old man Berc's on the rescue though.

And so descended the «Sun Goddess - Solus», overpowering the enemy with her «Rays of Light», reuniting with her good friend.

It did feel a little weak though. 'twas a heartwarming cliffhanger, better end than last season's. With how consistent the art and animation has been, and the artwork of the April 2020 key visual, I am sufficiently excited for «Lasting».

To think we're now close to the end of the WN-LN content, it's been an amazing seven years. Happy New Year's.

Next: The Great Underworld War.

The «Beginning» of the «End». Merry Christmas too, I suppose.

So begins my not-so-favourite part of this arc: the oncoming battle between the American players and Japanese players and it’s escalation. But the anime made things feel a little better than it did when reading, so that’s a plus. It’s next four but I’m really looking forward to the RL parts animated.

There’s Ojii-san’s death flag, the most epic of them all. Though seeing Quinella like this brings up an entirely different feeling, really.

Poor Iskahn having to see all the time he’s spent training his Units go to waste over an unreliable plan. As bad as it all is, it does have its benefits in bringing out the «Seal of the Right Eye».

This is hilarious in its own way, the American players.

The speeches between Lisbeth and Yui were touching. Lisbeth has it rough but it was amazing seeing her pull through with all her heart. «unlasting», as per usual, was the cherry on top.

And so comes forth «The Hero». Likely would have been you-know-who, but this sudden appearance made me happy.

Others seem to believe it’s Eh-kun, which is even more exciting. Glad to have him back. Next: Ray of Light.

The Goddess descends!

I say that I didn’t particularly enjoy this string of events while reading the novel but it didn’t stop it from being rather funny to read through.

The reunion made me smile, it’s wonderful to see these two finally meet after what has kind of been so long. Matsu, and with the assistance of the animation staff, had gone beyond my expectations for this moment of the book. I was hoping for a new track though.

The catfight! Asuna always gets the well-animated duels, but it was hilarious all-in-all. Didn’t expect to see Alice rush in with her «Enhance Armament» like that. And the sound effects for the clashing swords took me out for a bit. Good thing Bercouli-jii was there to interfere at least. Loving all the time he is having on-screen.

Nothing much to say about the truth of the Underworldians’ current situation, what I was most captivated by was the lighting. It was perfect.

And then the slumber party. I just so happen to not mind this sudden silliness amidst what has happened in the past episodes. It’s nice seeing the girls, get together and talk about Kiritard in animated form, a little different (I think) but heartwarming all the same. But now that it’s over we’re going to dive into the even harder parts of this arc.

Pouting Alice is cute.

Now that I see it, that’s a fearsome power, A-chan. Next: Heartless Choice.