Sword Art Online's a fun series and all, but by no means is it one of the best anime ever. The characters are pretty shallow, the plot isn't really that strong, and if anything it's carried by its action more than anything else. And episode 14 would have to be one of the worst episodes I've ever seen in anime period, there was practically nothing redeeming about that episode. Some people criticize SAO for continuing on with ALO because of its inferiority, but truth be told ALO is the only thing that saved SAO from having what was easily the worst conclusion I have ever seen in an anime.
Is it enjoyable? Sure. It's emotional at times and the fights are cool. But it's not a top tier by any means. Accel World, written by the same author and with a similar style, is LEAGUES better than Sword Art. Much better character development, more plot direction, much more variety, I could go on. Accel World is such an underrated series in comparison.
I guess it could be considered better than Bleach or DBZ, but that's cause Bleach's plot is just awful and DBZ is a pretty average series to begin with. But even Naruto has better development than SAO. One Piece and Death Note are both leagues superior to SAO as well with their amazing developments. One Piece's main plot may not be that godly, but its backstories are amazing and far overshadow anything SAO has or ever will come up with. Death Note's story is also much stronger and more suspenseful than Sword Art's. Not to mention the themes it presents, the morality question is much deeper than SAO's "The power of love conquers all" Shounen deal.
:NO:
