(L) Sword Art Online - Light Novel Discussion

[Flere821]

Originally Posted by Netto Azure

Damn, now if ONLY there was an official English release

I dunno, I'd probably prefer more translators joining BakaTsuki than a official translation. Imagine SAO on BT being taken down and the official English versions never get up to date with the Japanese version until the series ends >.> Didn't that happen with Shakugan no Shana or Haruhi LNs?

[Netto Azure]

Originally Posted by Flere821

I dunno, I'd probably prefer more translators joining BakaTsuki than a official translation. Imagine SAO on BT being taken down and the official English versions never get up to date with the Japanese version until the series ends >.> Didn't that happen with Shakugan no Shana or Haruhi LNs?

Well, we can go that route too heh. Although printing costs would be through the roof.

Still thank goodness for Tablets. :x

[Sixth]

Kirito was trapped in Fluctlight for 8 years. He understands that time in real life has only passed 18 hours but honestly... it didn't feel like he miss Asuna and the others much. It wasn't quite mentioned in Volume 10. What WAS mentioned however, was that he was starting to get very used to the new world with his new friends and is no longer sure whether he wants to go back... while actually promising halfheartedly that he would not leave even after they've accomplished their objective...

Well, hope that it will not turn out like Tron Legacy where Clu went berserk because his creator abandoned him.

[sky black swordman]

Originally Posted by Flere821

I dunno, I'd probably prefer more translators joining BakaTsuki than a official translation. Imagine SAO on BT being taken down and the official English versions never get up to date with the Japanese version until the series ends >.> Didn't that happen with Shakugan no Shana or Haruhi LNs?

Agreed and from what I heard from someone on another tread said some Official English version LN's dont turn out so well. According to him Spice and Wolf was one.

Originally Posted by noobita

Well, hope that it will not turn out like Tron Legacy where Clu went berserk because his creator abandoned him.

I dont think it will go down that route. At least I hope not.

[TJP1600]

Originally Posted by Netto Azure

Damn, now if ONLY there was an official English release

Also, BT=No cost! Although I really like the LN books, they just have that collectible feel to them.

[willx]

Originally Posted by TJP1600

Also, BT=No cost! Although I really like the LN books, they just have that collectible feel to them.

Part of me (as a business-y guy and finance major) feels like if we could get a cheap creative-commons style license you could publish the BT translations and put it into a pool to purchase materials and stuff (like RAWs and pay for servers).

I know it's a pipe dream though! That being said, getting back onto topic of the story itself -- I am so excited to learn about Kirito's YEARS in UW .. seriously, he has to have mentally changed so much and become so much more mature (he was mature already) .. wonder if it'll affect his personal relationships much?

[Atrum023]

Originally Posted by willx

Part of me (as a business-y guy and finance major) feels like if we could get a cheap creative-commons style license you could publish the BT translations and put it into a pool to purchase materials and stuff (like RAWs and pay for servers).

I know it's a pipe dream though! That being said, getting back onto topic of the story itself -- I am so excited to learn about Kirito's YEARS in UW .. seriously, he has to have mentally changed so much and become so much more mature (he was mature already) .. wonder if it'll affect his personal relationships much?

As far as I've read in Volume 9, wouldn't most, if not all of the mental development during his time in UW be null and void the moment he goes back to reality? Unless, of course, I'm missing something...

[kyp275]

Originally Posted by Atrum023

As far as I've read in Volume 9, wouldn't most, if not all of the mental development during his time in UW be null and void the moment he goes back to reality? Unless, of course, I'm missing something...

Only if they erase his memory upon exiting.

[tyme]

Ok I just read volumes 1-4 after seeing the anime three days ago and although it became addicting at first, I felt disappointed by the end of volume 4.

Spoiler for :

Why start Fairy Dance/Phantom Bullet/etc so soon? I would've been satisfied if the entire SAO storyline had been about reaching the 100th floor and getting freed from the game. The first volume (Aincrad) had a lot of elements that hooked me:

1. The life and death matter. If you died in-game, you died in real life.
2. The difficulty level of each floor which presented the necessity to always grow stronger.
3. Player killing guilds, Cradeel and Laughing Coffin. Why wasn't there more expansion on this? I saw player killering as a potential sub-plot.
4. Heathcliff's real identity. Come on this could've at least waited until the 95th floor!
5. The character development of Cline and Egil. I watched the anime first before reading the LN and I thought Cline would have more of a bigger role in this story besides the "oh I'm sorry for abandoning you Cline"...but he barely gets any dialogue. Seriously?! We're talking about the first friend Kirito made on SAO. Well, it looked more emotional in the first episode of the anime.

#3-5 would've helped prolong my interest in SAO more than the idea of jumping from one virtual setting to the next (ALfheim Online). Really, I can't believe how Aincrad ended so abruptly. I didn't even want to read Fairy Dance, but I did so because the end of volume 1 felt incomplete. In my opinion, Fairy Dance seemed weak and lacked the suspense Aincrad carried. I only enjoyed the last bit of volume 4 where I gained new info about Kayaba Akihiko and the conclusion I was searching for -- Asuna logging off.

Fairy Dance would make a great sequel to Aincrad, no doubt, but it just feels like a rushed story. Aincrad covers a timespan of 2 years, while Fairy Dance gets 2 volumes to cover what...like 3 days?

I think I'll take a break before I decide to continue reading the next volumes. It's feeling too Dragonball,Z,GT-like for me.

[kyp275]

SAO was originally written as a short, self-contained story intended for a light novel competition with a page limit of 120 , it was not written as an epic scale adventure story like you're suggesting. This is why the author has constantly added side stories to the Aincrad arc to fill out the story (with mixed-result IMO. But then that's why he's starting the SAO: Progressive novel series, which would be a rewrite of the entire Aincrad arc).

Fairy Dance is really the conclusion to the Kirito and Asuna's story that began in Aincrad. Also, the SAO series's story has never really been about any specific virtual world, but rather about exploring the characters and their interaction with various different virtual worlds. That being said, the world of SAO is one of the strongest/most interesting one, rivaled IMO only by Underworld.

Also, obligatory FACE-SMASH for comparing SAO to DBZ

[Clarste]

I agree that Aincrad is the best setting, but I don't think it's a bad thing to let it end quickly rather than dragging it on forever. With a hundred floors and probably another year after the 74th floor it does seem like it'd go on forever with no conclusion in sight. Probably not the best pacing.

For what it's worth, I think Phantom Bullet is a better stand-alone story than Fairy Dance. And it's not completely disconnected from Aincrad either.

[novalysis]

Phantom Bullet is a very different story from SAO. If Fairy Dance is the Aincrad's Arc Epilogue and Denouement, then Phantom Bullet is a sequel with a different genre focus.

IMO though, Mother's Rosario, Volume 7 is the best SAO story.

[Clarste]

Mother's Rosario is really stand-alone though. If Phantom Bullet is the sequel, then Mother's Rosario is the completely unrelated story with a similar theme that got turned into a sequel by the marketing department for name recognition. Actually, given Alicization (or at least volume 9), I have to wonder if the author was getting a bit bored of his old characters and settings and wanted to start something fresh.

[kyp275]

Originally Posted by Clarste

Mother's Rosario is really stand-alone though. If Phantom Bullet is the sequel, then Mother's Rosario is the completely unrelated story with a similar theme that got turned into a sequel by the marketing department for name recognition. Actually, given Alicization (or at least volume 9), I have to wonder if the author was getting a bit bored of his old characters and settings and wanted to start something fresh.

Eh? MR may have been shorter than the other arcs, but it's still very much an integral part of SAO. The SAO series has always been episodic in nature with a story that is tied together by a common theme - exploring the dynamics between its characters and virtual realities.

MR explored VR technology and its potential medical applications (which leads into Alicization very well I might add), not to mention it contained by far the largest chunk of character development for Asuna, as she is the main character this time around. I just can't see MR as something cooked up by the marketing department, especially when you consider the whole thing was already written before SAO was ever picked up to be published

[Shadow1999]

Hey, guys
im right in the middle of reading the 9th Volume and i'm a little bit confused about some elements. Dont mind spoiling some of the story which i am about to read since im too curious ^^

Spoiler for questions:

1. I take it that the diving into Underworld where he was 11 years old was before he met Shino and Asuna at the cafe?
2. How did Kirito end up in Underworld again with his memories until the point Johnny Black appeared?
3. Eugeo and anything in this world is AI right?
4. Why doesnt Eugeo have any "memories" of Kirito when he arrives at this place?

Thanks and greetings

[novalysis]

Originally Posted by Clarste

Mother's Rosario is really stand-alone though. If Phantom Bullet is the sequel, then Mother's Rosario is the completely unrelated story with a similar theme that got turned into a sequel by the marketing department for name recognition. Actually, given Alicization (or at least volume 9), I have to wonder if the author was getting a bit bored of his old characters and settings and wanted to start something fresh.

Mother's Rosario is still part of SAO. Same characters, evolving circumstances, different developments and premise. But still SAO, even if it's the shortest SAO Arc. It's still connected to Aincrad, in many ways, it's the closest to capturing the spirit of Aincrad, since mortality is still a theme in there, a very strong theme.

Now, Alicization reads as a different story. But still, without Kirito's previous development, it'd be hard to swallow Alicization. Nevertheless, it is an interesting story, in my view.

Originally Posted by Clarste

I agree that Aincrad is the best setting, but I don't think it's a bad thing to let it end quickly rather than dragging it on forever. With a hundred floors and probably another year after the 74th floor it does seem like it'd go on forever with no conclusion in sight. Probably not the best pacing.

For what it's worth, I think Phantom Bullet is a better stand-alone story than Fairy Dance. And it's not completely disconnected from Aincrad either.

Eagerly awaiting for Progressive, mind you.

[Dann of Thursday]

For the record, Alicization is the final SAO story, correct? General conclusion to everything? Or are there still things left over to tackle?

[Ray]

Originally Posted by Dann of Thursday

For the record, Alicization is the final SAO story, correct? General conclusion to everything? Or are there still things left over to tackle?

Yep. As far as we know, anyway.

[ZIK5ZIK]

Originally Posted by Dann of Thursday

For the record, Alicization is the final SAO story, correct? General conclusion to everything? Or are there still things left over to tackle?

YES, web-novel

[Dann of Thursday]

Originally Posted by Aphrah

Yep. As far as we know, anyway.

Originally Posted by ZIK5ZIK

YES, web-novel

Thank you. Curious as to what else he might expand, though I haven't gotten to Alicization yet myself. If it's set to go for around volume 15 or so I've heard, wouldn't that make this the longest arc in the series?