Why SAO Abridged Is the Best Parody Ever

(WARNING: This video features heavy spoilers for SAO Abridged. If the title wasn't enough of an indicator, I highly recommend that you give it a watch if you're interested, but worried about spoilers)
Something Witty Entertainment has crafted an incredible Sword Art Online parody that completely outclasses the source material. Here is why, conceptually, I think that makes it the best parody ever.
One of my goals for this channel was to analyze an abridged series. This is me doing that.
Twitter: / mathwiz97x
My "main" channel (I make wrestling/gaming videos and whatnot): / mathwiz97x

[@MathWizHQ]

So I started doing these pinned comments to clarify my stance on these older videos like...a year ago, but I kept putting this one off because I knew it'd be time-consuming and I wasn't looking forward to it. This was the video that really launched my channel in its early days, and I remember being passionate about the subject at the time, so I do have some nostalgia for it, but ultimately, I think it's bogged down by a lot of meandering points, faulty logic - honestly, it's just not a framework I can see myself replicating today. I do think Something Witty did a great job with SAO Abridged, and it's kind of hard to talk about the parody's appeal without drawing comparisons to the original SAO, but in hindsight, I think other creators on the platform like Explanation Point and Ember Reviews have done a better job of capturing that appeal in more insightful ways. I guess I don't have much disdain for specific things I said, but rather it's the more general concept behind this video that I've since grown displeased with. First off, the whole "SAO is bad" narrative is something I had absolutely bought into around the time I made this, but that's not really true to how I feel now (and there was probably a degree of performativity to it back then also). I'm no SAO defender, but I don't think it's the worst thing to exist either. Truth be told, it doesn't interest me, which is why I pretty much never talk about it. I'd rather use my channel to talk about things that DO interest me, things that I AM passionate about. I'm generally not a fan of making content purely out of spite or disinterest, because I think that results in my worst work. Some people can make something constructive out of that, but I don't think I'm that kind of person. In this particular video, I feel like I could've made more of an effort to understand what the source material might've been going for, but instead I just played up the lack of understanding as bad writing. Maybe there's some truth to that, but I feel like a lot of these more negative "hot take" pieces tend to exaggerate a bit. So...yeah, I don't really vibe with the premise of this video anymore, but that's mostly because I think I can do better, which makes sense since I was still figuring this whole thing out back in 2017. I won't be deleting the video or anything (after all, if this video spread any misinformation, I kinda missed my chance to damage control that lol), but it doesn't sit right that this is one of my most popular videos and I have yet to post some sort of addendum to it on the page itself, so here's my piece. If you took the time to read this, even if you disagree with my criticisms of the video, I appreciate it. Anyway, here's the part where I point out specific nitpicks: 0:08 - "I'm not here to bash SAO" (proceeds to bash SAO) 1:04 - I guess there's some self-awareness here, I at least understood that I didn't have much to say about the original SAO, but dwelling on that for so long kinda undercuts the point. 10:15 - OH BOY, HERE WE GO. So a decent chunk of the comments here bring up DBZA and/or Hellsing Ultimate Abridged as the "true" best abridged series, and while it ultimately comes down to personal preference, the title of this video doesn't even reflect my own. I have a much more personal connection to DBZA, but I go on to say that SAO Abridged is a better parody because it improves upon the source material where DBZA doesn't, which...uh...that's not how that works?? Whether a parody "improves" upon its source is subjective, for one thing, but more importantly, I don't think that's necessarily what an internet abridged series should strive to be. You can't replace the original no matter how well-written your parody is, so just have fun telling whatever story you want to tell. This whole point was just me thinking I was slick in justifying a clickbait title, but looking back, it's not clever at all and there's actually a lot of holes in this reasoning, so much so that I'd have to completely deconstruct all the messy assumptions it makes, but I don't have the patience for that. 11:28 - Randomly throwing 2 shows under the bus with no explanation! THAT'LL ENHANCE MY POINT!! DO I SOUND SMART YET?? 12:13 - I don't think I've ever used "diegesis" in a script outside of this video. I'm in pain.

[@vexile12]

So what are your thoughts when he accidentally ripped out that item?

[@metalministershow]

To be fair, I know this video is old, but I was planning in tearing into it pretty hard, as it came across as yet another pretentious "sao iz werst show eva!!!!1!!!1!!!" I'm glad I chose to read your pinned comment first. Yeah, there is a ton of nuance that runs deeper in the original SAO that most people just don't expect and don't pick up on. I certainly didn't the first two times I watched it through. Don't get me wrong, SAOA is absolutely hysterical, and is by far the best parody series I've watched, bar none. It has it's own flaws (like how did the glitch not affect the beta testers since the only place a glitch like that should be able to occur is in the framework that would've been necessary to even run a beta. Unless they're claiming Kyoba(sp) started over from scratch after the beta.)but over all it's a fantastic parody and I can't wait for the next one to be released. So, TL;DR Good on ya for this pinned comment my dude.

[@angel_1]

Have you tried "a slap on titan" or "hellsing ultimate abridged TFS"?

[@bensupersaiyangodbrony71]

Second half of season 1 the alfheim arc was the worst part in my opinion the the first half and second half of season 2 we're good and so is season 3 Sao alicization and war of underworld are brilliant

[@grantshearer5615]

You gotta watch the last season. Just view it with a mindset of "what is SWE going to do with this gold?"

[@dexioptical5995]

Klein?who dafuq is klein?.............OHHHHH u mean BallsDeep69

[@MathWizHQ]

AH SHIT! I can't believe that I made that many typos! D:

[@mysterioustrainer4525]

Mathwiz97 lol its all good it's still a good video

[@rougecrown]

MY NAME IS KLEIN.

[@unrielistic]

Vu Viet Anh hi*

[@ebadhussaini7095]

+Vu Viet Anh Sure it is Ballsy

[@madmen677]

"Kirito,you look...young." "And you look less hairy,balls." "My name is Klein." "Heh heh. . .no,it's not."

[@karatexperience]

It gets better in SWE-MHAA where Klein is the one bullying Kirito.

[@aspecttnd]

@@karatexperience what even is swemhaa. It looks like “soo-wee-Mama abridged” lol WAIT IS IT Something witty entertainment My hero academia abridged I thought of that entirely on my own and I’m pumped 😂

[@karatexperience]

@@aspecttnd it is indeed.

[@rjoe3309]

"And that's why SAOA is the best parody ever." "Are you done? " "Yes. But the legacy of the pebble lives on."

[@delluminatis]

I get a feeling you get beat up a lot irl

[@immac8371]

Right..... Anyway, I've got a pizza coming, so... thanks for the quick tutorial on pigslaying, and the not-so-quick tutorial on.... rocks.

[@mrncode7957]

Hey, no problem. I had fun taunting you... BallsDeep69.

[@genderenigma8276]

@William Drushel Yea, yea. No, I gettit. So, your Pizza?

[@lunaria7067]

@@genderenigma8276 Hey total noob question but... How do I log out?

[@66Kusmu]

Klein? Who is Klein? I only know BallsDeep69.

[@thebritishbean.]

I hope if they do season 2 abridged kirito greats klein irl as balldeep69

[@LightningAsh]

The legend of *BallsDeep69*

[@odst1998ah]

The legendary FUCK...

[@NovaHorizon]

I was actually a little sad that when Kirito finally said "Klein" in the last episode, we didn't hear "HE KNOWS MY NAME!!"

[@26robertpiggott]

But that cause we already knew he did from the christmas episode though klein whispering "He said my name!" would have been priceless

[@frankieyuen9363]

'We need to save my family' 'the bandits are coming'

[@t.v.rockwell4504]

"Some of them even have fam... Gary."

[@namsuzaija8240]

so, who here has seen tron?

[@Midnight-Starfish]

*plays Scanners clips*

[@3oct1111]

"Winners don't do drugs, except steroids"

[@DarkFabled14731]

"Winners don't use drugs! Except Steroids, in which case, use lots of drugs!"

[@cortex5271]

Kirito: Do you think we got married too quickly? Asuna: Yeah, obviously Kirito: Yeahhh me too. Do you wanna stay together anyway? Asuna: Yeah, obviously Kirito: Yeah me too, was that the entire conversation? Asuna: I think it was! Kirito: THAT WAS SO EASY! Asuna: WE ARE SO STUPID! Kirito: Jeez, lets hope we dont have to sacrifice a small child every time we need to have a talk like this. Otherwise buying that orphanage may not have been a terrible investment.

[@Yuni-is-Schrodingers-Fox]

The best moment from the series. Hands down.

[@matilozano96]

What I love about the Sachi episode is that sets up jokes that have a punchline way later in the series The best one’s in Kayaba’s rant in the end of the season, when he says “Everyone’s dying left and right and your tutorial NPC is nowhere to be found”. He’s talking about one of the NPCs in Kirito’s guild; that guy’s incompetence in the game was indirectly responsible for hundreds of deaths. It’s hilarious.

[@Valnotersc]

It's a feature that is frustratingly missing from SOA (and many other anime): characters that have an impact way down the line.

[@mr.cup6yearsago211]

Exactly. I love how they establish Fluffles in episode 2, and WAAAAY later on we figure out he’s the leader of the mob who attacked Kirito in like, episode 3, as well as a commander of the Blood Oath knights. I also love how in the murder mystery episode, we have that laughing coffin member doing the whole “killing for Jesus” shtick, but after several rewatches, I realized this is actually the same guy that was in episode 2, who saw a hallucination of Jesus that asked him to kill everyone. My personally favorite is Rosalia telling Kirito that him cutting her throat is the deepest he’ll ever be in a woman, which is then called back too when Kirito says “SUCK IT ROSALIA!” While banging Asuna, which promptly gets his shit kicked in, because Asuna’s a yandere bitch.

[@RNJ142]

Also litereally any time fault is mentoined

[@zenbozic6184]

"i sure as hell ain't gonna die on you like that dumb bitch sally" "s-sachi" "shhh, it doesn't matter, she's dead now"

[@snivyfrpresident509]

You mean Versachi

[@levilion4267]

See, I don't want SAO to die out. Not because I like it, but because I want the abridged series to continue

[@MikeDoesRandomThings]

Fortunately , they are continuing to season 2

[@Supersoup42]

Isnt this arc just half of season one? SAO is weird.

[@GamaerDaPie]

Supersoup42 SWE called the first 11 episodes as the 1st season for SAOA. But for the actual series this is half a season

[@AHass-kf4oq]

the SAO crew are now helping a channel named *BlazingAzureCrow* making Bleach (S) Abridged and Digimon abridged and Fate Stay Night Unlimitade Blade Work abridged series, and i gotta say, it's fucking hilarious, check them out.

[@darthutah6649]

don't worry, it all falls apart after season 1

[@narikouzumaki3983]

*Kirito :* But, I got good news! You see there's no need to wonder where your god is! Cause he's right here! *and he's fresh out of mercy* *Random man : cries* I LITERALLY HAD THIS AS MY RINGTONE 😂😂😂😂

[@JustinStrife]

Everytime I see that clip I still crack up. Is there anyway you'd share the ringtone?

[@manuelernesto7713]

Shikamaru, is that you?

[@Fishybpp]

i need that as my ringtone

[@narikouzumaki3983]

@@JustinStrife totally late but there's an app called Zedge and it has a lot of ring tones and wallpapers. Just look up SAO

[@xShadowNinjaEX]

One of the best lines I've heard.😂

[@kuninosenso8241]

I'd have to say that my favorite part of SAO abridged was the whole marriage arc between Kirito and Asuna. It was comedy gold to see into their minds during those scenes and show their over-the-top decisions to show up the other and get them to break facade first, including buying an *entire orphanage*

[@Fishybpp]

Kirito: if we have to sacrifice a small child every time we need to have a conversation then maybe buying the orphanage wasn't such a bad investment

[@ghostlydude6478]

Asuna : *Giggle* Jesus Christ kirito that’s horrible!

[@mariogonzalez233]

“We would like to buy one child please.”

[@AshdorCrush9000]

@@mariogonzalez233 "Ma'am, we would like to buy your orphanage!?"

[@deadline6149]

"Irony, noun: A state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result. Example: Your leader is named Thinker, yet he appears to be something of a dullard" *Drops mic*

[@hungerbunger5985]

First episode: "How many of you have seen Tron? Wait no one? Really?" Last episode: "So you have seen Tron!" My favorite part of the whole abridged is when they quiz each other as movie buffs haha

[@nevergivingup3434]

The movie quotes thing is probably smarter than anything in the actual show.

[@lolbuster01]

It's the exact kind of dick measuring contest that you'd expect from internet neets

[@levievil9220]

@@nevergivingup3434yep even if some people don’t want spoilers for the games they’re gonna play some will obviously look up a play through or watch one to see if it’s worth getting a game or you want to see if your favorite creator is playing the game

[@Skallva]

You forgot one thing. The fact many characters get a lot more screen time in general. Remember the guy in the episode 2 who could hear Jesus' voice? He became the leader of Laughing Coffin. Also, remember the army commander who had spanish guitar string accompanying his voice? Remember his strategy of "hit it 'till it dies?" Sounds familliar? Not to mention the cat player who is basically a running gag in the series. SAOA does so much more with its side characters, and thanks to this it makes the world feel so much more alive.

[@shaelynmartin1996]

YEAH! Didn't he end up being the leader of Laughing Coffin? XD I'm like 99% certain that was legit, considering the references they make to it despite never out-right stating so.

[@Skallva]

+BlazeBNFire The question mark there was a typo, lel.

[@shaelynmartin1996]

KZbin glitched out on me so I couldn't hit the "Show More" button. I thought your comment ended on "Remember the guy in episode 2 who could hear Jesus' voice." XD But yeah. Someone else also mentioned the guy in the second episode (The "I want to hear more about this Final Solution" guy) ended up being Grimlocke. If I'm not mistaken actually, every single person who speaks in that second episode at some point or another end up having a role later in the series.

[@Skallva]

And that's great. Who doesn't love more continuity?

[@MonkeysxMoo]

Lisbeth even got more than a single sentence during her appearance in episode nine. She literally said one thing then that was all we saw of her until the end of the arc when Kirito's blue shards are floating over the sky and everyone looks up.

[@Mattdew]

"I CAN BUILD A ROBOT SO WE COULD DO FAMILY THINGS LIKE WALKING IN THE PARK." i almost cried

[@FallenPasha]

I really love the ending when Kirito said "I love you" and Asuna replied with "I know". It was beautiful, absolutely beautiful!

[@benjamericana1088]

It's awesome that Asuna is the Han Solo in that scene @@FallenPasha

[@isabellagust6305]

"AS IF YOU COULD BUILD A ROBOT"

[@moonlight.z6543]

I _did_ cry

[@simonenoli4418]

@@moonlight.z6543 i was bawling my eyes out worse than Kirito that scene. and even after rewatching it many times it still kills me.

[@asora6790]

I want SAO to continue so SAO abridged has more material to work with

[@candlelighter1588]

Don’t worry there’s still the rest of Alicization to adapt into anime

[@MsWinxmusa]

Hahahahaha

[@ilikeoranges8784]

Austen Lochrie and war of underworld

[@18Hongo]

The abridged version is releasing an episode per year right now. Even if SAO never makes another episode, SWE has plenty of material to work with.

[@Adonteon21]

Yeah, they are about 4 seasons behind. It could die now and we would have 10 years of slow work.

[@dechskaison2497]

My favorite thing about SWE's version is the foreshadowing they do with Kayaba's character. SWE gives you a chance to figure out that Heathcliff is Kayaba because of the movie quotes.

[@Anti-HyperLink]

Dechs Kaison I don't think that's foreshadowing. As soon as he said "So now you've seen Tron", I knew the twist was coming. I suppose that's foreshadowing, just light.

[@curtistyrrell6589]

Anti-HyperLink well he had a few movie references before that one. While its not the best foreshadowing considering what they had to work with it is impressive.

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!"

[@MisterA744]

*Hands award for analyzing an abridged series You did good, you deserve this

[@fluffyrat4440]

Couldnt have been difficult since it was so good

[@Jamie-dq8fu]

*in jack dapper voice* Congratulations Mathwiz97 You get a cookie

[@lordblueballs7293]

You get a star sticker for your abridged series

[@lukewood7341]

"You see, the problem with that is... It's an excellent idea and I wish I had thought of it 2 years ago."

[@shadowstorm2.099]

This video was sponsored by the Kirito is Always Right Foundation

[@lolz8bit]

The grand reopening

[@funnyfox204]

XD

[@bretsheeley4034]

*humf* I was more a fan of the Foundation BEFORE they reopened.

[@DeusExMarina]

@@bretsheeley4034 Oh let me guess. You prefer their early work.

[@warrynfullagar745]

Christophe Giroux So what if I do?

[@CalamitasDeus]

So you're aware, SWE noticed you and said this video was "flattering" on their Facebook.

[@MathWizHQ]

Thanks for pointing that out! I probably wouldn't have realized that otherwise.

[@jeckjeck3119]

Hellsing abridged rivals SAO abridged and vice versa. Agreed?

[@silviogrijalva8801]

CalamitasDeus they are so cool

[@TheEverydayGamer1000]

My favorite part had to have been when Kurito's and Asuna's voices in their heads were arguing with each other when they started talking about getting married, not only did those voices fit their personalities and was realistic due to everyone having their voice inside their head that you can make argue or yell or whatever but it was downright hilarious. I cant wait to see more.

[@thomasallen9974]

That 1 minute start was such comedic gold, I had to pause to laugh often and even replay it.

[@sparkydoodle696]

mike sixx I DONT KNOW

[@Alphadog2064]

I know I'm late but if you turn on subtitles at that point, they're labeled with right and left brain

[@Oxygen1004]

@@Alphadog2064 also if you are wearing headphones you can hear what side is talking

[@louisduarte8763]

"It's like what Mom always said, 'It doesn't matter if you're wrong, dig in your heels and don't give an inch of ground!'" "Is that why Mom and Dad are getting divorced?" "No time to unpack all that now!"

[@thedeerking7220]

My favorite thing about SAO abridged is how they made a deeply flawed relationship built on what is basically hatred and somehow made it both endearing and cringe worthy at the same time. Like seriously, after they get married try to watch anytime they call each other Honey and try to go "Awwwwwwww" while also retreating into your own face.

[@trequor]

Most realistic dramatization of teen romance ever of all time

[@bibbobella]

@@trequor Yeah their little petty power fights and not wanting to admit they made a mistake is fucking amazing. The fact they slowly learn how to actually communicate and open up to eachother.. It isn't just realistic teen romance it is realistic romance period. Doesn't matter how old you get..newly in love people are fucking awful yet also adorable to see.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Hatred? Or pure manipulation?

[@squatchhammer7215]

"My wife punches me while we are having sex! "

[@pauljk-123]

A quantum supercomputer, calculating for a *thousand* years could not even *approach* the amount fucks I do not give

[@likogail8803]

Lelouch Yagami Oh god I loved that

[@shylemon2882]

BMC?

[@leaderofcommunistchina1427]

i actually laughed at that thankyou

[@calebbritannia6283]

Still more successful then your rebellion LuLu

[@leaderofcommunistchina1427]

?

[@I_like_pi_]

Most important trees in the show: Season 1 has the Fabled Word Tree of Gamagorath. Season 2 has the math tree.

[@CeaerCeaer]

Dear god I love the math tree

[@KnightMinson]

Oh my God.... 4!

[@darkgachamaker573]

The math tree is the support the official release dude in 13 or 14

[@ShallBePurified]

I never watched SAO, but SAO Abridged was really good. I have no intentions of ever watching SAO, but now everything I know about SAO will be from the abridged series so...

[@HappyPotat]

It's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be, it's just not as amazing as everyone else makes it out to be. I give it a 5/10 for being entertaining if not a littler too stale. I'd recommend it only if you have nothing better to watch or if you're recovering from a feels heavy show and need a cold shower.

[@KnightGamer724]

Agreed. It blew my mind when I first watched, but then I watched FMA:B and Fate/Zero, and now I can judge SAO a little more balanced. I would actually recommend the books, mostly for the inner monologue makes everything better.

[@peelslowly28]

TheHappy_P0tat0 Eh the movie was decent and there is some promising potential in the 3rd season so idk, maybe everyone will change their minds, maybe but probably not

[@557deadpool]

Yami the movie sucked

[@557deadpool]

TheHappy_P0tat0 how's it feel to lie through your teeth

[@anhilliator1]

3:18 Klein/BallsDeep69: "I get the feeling you get beat up a lot in real life." Kirito: "SHADDUP! HERE I HAVE POWER!"

[@ReigoVassal]

Kirito: He call me an asshole *while running away and crying

[@newspaper1868]

My favourite scene is from ep 10 Yui: but that all changed when I found you two K&A:aww Yui: the most broken sociopathic players I had ever laid my eyes on. Less people and more a lose combination of character defects Kirito: that kinda went in a different direction

[@emblemblade9245]

"I never got the idea that dumb character choices to advance the plot are a bad thing." I want to hug you for saying that. And yeah, one thing that really set SAOA apart for me was all the great meta-jokes in regards to gamers, MMOs, and the culture around them. Right at the very start, Kirito sees a bunch of ads and is given the choice to purchase a stupidly expensive ad block, and that just sets the tone for the great jokes that follow.

[@Corsharkgaming]

Holy shit they turned Suguha into a pretty damn good character.

[@bahrinadrian5072]

Kirito's sister is Kirito's Kirito

[@anothergamer112]

The best part is how they completely removed the incest bullshit by having Suguha learn who Kirito is right away and immediately has a tantrum over it because "Jesus fuck, I said my brother has a sweet patootie!"

[@floricel_112]

I disagree. They turned her into an utter btch....more please

[@OG_Kurosaki]

@@anothergamer112 EXACTLY somebody gets it

[@Gaius453]

4 years later and you're right.

[@anothergamer112]

"The first thing I realized was 'why would a ghost need a teleport crystal?' The second thing I realized was 'Oh shit, window." -Kirito, episode 7 Seriously though, the assassin group leader and the one who killed his wife who didn't die in the original but were killed her made things all the more satisfying. As horrific as it my be for me to say this, I truly believe some people don't deserve to live. Seeing Kirito slice the assassins throat or hearing the misogynist getting pummeled to death offscreen made me go "THANK YOU!" because letting them walk away would mean they would kill more people!

[@jayhill8892]

Sword Art Online is one of the few Abridged series that actually works. The voice acting is good, the writing significantly improves on the source material and the changes that are made make it an absolutely fantastic show in its own right. Something Witty Entertainment definitely deserves their kudos for making possibly the best Abridged series in its own right. TFS is still the king of Abridged though, with DBZ Abridged, Hellsing Ultimate Abridged etc.

[@tsuki7845]

Jordan Hiller LittleKuriboh is the king of Abridged, though. I would call TFS the prince.

[@jayhill8892]

I started watching it but got distracted. I'll have to give it a try since TFS can't do their Attack on Titan parody. Not sure how Slap on Titan managed to get around that.

[@86Fallowcp]

Jordan Hiller They fucked up everything, then tried to re-unite the fucked up things in a mediocre way and Slap on Titan was created. God, Armin is so fucked up.

[@silviogrijalva8801]

Jordan Hiller attack on titian abridged is awsome

[@dank_smirk9971]

Jordan Hiller and the amount of editing, SWEET SATAN the ENORMOUS amount of editing!

[@Pit_Icarus]

All in favor of claiming SAO Abridged being the canon series say "I".

[@hughg.rection1421]

I

[@god3569]

"D" Sorry failed kindergarten 6 times.... Idk the alphabet yet....

[@spam_1224]

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

[@krazydemon7526]

Eye!

[@Pit_Icarus]

It's was kind of the point.

[@Kyrious]

I loved the reviving dragon part. Instead of it being one flower it’s 50 of them and it’s much more tedious which is so much more like a mmo.

[@quiksilver259]

and the fact that the dragon ended up not being revived cuz time ran out was amazing

[@simonenoli4418]

@@quiksilver259 i loved also that the lil loli went on a rampage in the afterscene

[@levievil9220]

@@simonenoli4418I to would be pissed especially in an mmo especially if taming dragons are rare as hell or hard as vibranium

[@SyphistPrime]

SWE did an outstanding job. I loved how they kept bringing back core points of previous plots rather than focusing what was in front of you 2 minutes ago like the original. Watching all 11 episodes of the first arc satisfied my desire of a better story in the SAO universe, which had so much potential.

[@insomniac6079]

Syphist Prime.

[@DeltaPhoenix180]

As a premise, SAO was pure gold... what actually happened was just soooo much wasted potential. One reason I think this abridged series worked so well is that the premise behind the story is so strong, it was just implemented waaaaaaaay better.

[@bibbobella]

Hell I still remember that "STAY SACHI!" Yell when he is fighting the dragon and then his "Okay we will just pretend that didn't happen..okay? okay!" and ofcourse his reaction to listening to the story about her dead guild despite it being for mostly laughs. It was amazing and actually had me suprised by how deep that was compared to the real show. It was actually a bit sad to see and I fucking loved it

[@idkwhatishouldwritehere.]

episode 12 is out ^^

[@SasukeUchiha723]

It was the mermaid mafia all along

[@CesarRodriguez-ht4oq]

Holey shit i knew it

[@jamesboyd437]

No they had a feud going with the unicorns so it cant be them

[@Swingset25]

@Casswury no the mermaid mafia was merely paid in leprechaun gold. The puppet master is unknown, however the unicorns are exonerated due to the fact they have had a fewd with the mermaids for years.

[@Darth_Revan770]

Wait what if it was The Pegasus Clan all along

[@aj-eu5ly]

They were bribed with leprechaun coins!

[@genesisfunes7551]

Dont forget that with the addition of the second season, even if it's only like 3 episodes, it adds even more depth to kiritos character since we see that the reason hes like this is because of his relationship with suguha, seeing her bully him with same kind of humor and attitude that he had in the first few episodes make u realize that's why hes an asshole. In fact with the new release of the 14th episode we get a scene where as leafa she goes to explain about the game to kirito and begins with "for you see a long time ago" (smth along those lines), a parallel to the infamous story he tells balls in the first episode. We see hes a bully because he takes what she does to him and uses it in the game to feel power

[@blackspiral7708]

Actually you're wrong about Something Witty being fans of SAO, Something Witty actually hates SAO and they made this abridged series with the intention of making a better version (they succeeded).

[@XanderVJ]

Aaaah... No. When they started out they liked the Aincrad arc. I don't know if they changed their opinion later on, but that's not what they set themselves out to do. Plus, the kind of humor the Abridged series has doesn't feel like it comes from hatred. If that would be the case, it would be far more mean spirited.

[@MathWizHQ]

Even if they aren't fans of SAO itself, they at least have an appreciation for what SAO was trying to do or could have done. People usually don't try to make something better if they don't care about it.

[@Wildcard-Jack-47]

Mathwiz97 what if they care about the fans not the anime huh

[@FBI_Metal_Slime]

actually, one of the two main writers for SAO abridged and voice of the abridges kirito, YamatoSFX (of which, might i add, isnt a fake voice he does. The voice YamatoSFX uses for kirito is YamatoSFX's actual natural voice) revealed in a video where he was guest starring for TFS gaming that before and in the beginning phases of planning for SAO abridged, he actually did like SAO. However, after looking more in depth at the plot, character interactions, and overall script for the abridge planning, he soon found just how much of a piece of shit the series is. This is also why you'll find in later episodes of the abridged series they begin to shit on all the plot holes and stupidity of the original series, while initial episodes more so just supplied funny jokes to go along with concepts. However, im glad to see they are sticking with the abridged series, despite their new found hate for the original, as i understand (such as the case for tfs) a lot of the drive for making an abridged series is a general love for the original. Something Witty Entertainment has done wonderful work so far and i am very excited to see what they do with the next few arcs and how they plan to fix those dumpster fires.

[@escotanner]

Black Spiral I um...ninth this(?)

[@AtenaHena]

The story had a central theme and message around it as well, although a bit absurd at first the abridged series focuses on the stuipidity of humanity and how Kirto looms in like a god. Throughout the story he constantly shits on humanity but as the story progresses he slowly comes to endear to them

[@aceotaku]

it helps he sees some good people who aren't shitheads...thouh arguably asuna's actuall as bad as kirito

[@thewerdna]

Which is why their relationship is more believable here than in the real thing: they are the two single most sociopathic players in the game after all.

[@nalthanzo4648]

Very true. To be honest, I actually like SAO a lot, but that's mostly because I'm a huge video game stat nerd. The only reason I ever picked up the anime in the first place was because I heard just how good the Abridged version was, and I wanted to know the original to have a comparison. SWE turned this anime into a GOLD MINE OF HILARITY, putting the original to shame, but I do give credit to Reki Kawahara for creating the anime in the first place. I can't wait till SWE gets to GGO and especially the Yuuki Arc. So much needs to be improved.

[@AtenaHena]

huh, i thought gamers would be especially frustrated with the show cuz of its broken game mechanics and how sao (the game) is a nonsensical mess.

[@nalthanzo4648]

I will admit that Kirito's OP status throughout the entire series was a bit annoying, but I kinda liked him being that overpowered when he moved to Alfheim. There were a lot of missed opportunities and confusing plot points, but overall, it made an excellent canvas for SWE.

[@pheonixshaman]

The characters in SAO abridged are leagues better than the characters is SAO.

[@thomasallen9974]

Im interested in how the GGO Abridged plays out since it isnt burning trash, and actually is something decent. LLENN, an amusing relatable character who isnt flat as paper, would be hysterical if some traits got cranked up to 11 (girl got a brutal streak), Pito's not abridged stat is as psycho as Abridged Asuna... probably more crazy honestly, and M hmmm be fun to see what gets done about the usually stoic badass.

[@nathanmorgan3457]

I go by many names. Mountain slayer, thunder lion, chocolate axe, but you can call me.... Tiffany

[@KuroKitsune101]

What I really liked was how in SWE Asuna actually showed being jealous. Something I never understood was how Asuna could just sit there while all these girls hit on her husband/ love interest. She just.... never seems to be bothered by it??? Heck I remember in the Gun-gale arc Kirito introduces her as a "friend" to Sinon and just something about that rubbed me the wrong way. As far as I was able to get into it Asuna and Kirito never actually showed Sinon any sign that they were together. Heck after Sinon was obviously hitting on Kirito one of em could have atleast stepped up and said "uhm... yeah me and Asuna/Kirito are married". I'm convinced that Sinon doesn't even know about them. I guess I could be wrong? maybe I missed a scene or something... anyway /rant.

[@merrittanimation7721]

Just A Penguin Nothing To See Here I love the part when she burns down Lisbeth's shop. It's so over the top.

[@ernesik4636]

And still it fits her character *so well* ...

[@BlazingInferno00]

Yeah in the actual show the harem has absolutely zero point whatsoever. The usual purpose of a harem is to make the viewer question who he's gonna end up with but he's never even slightly tempted by anybody else. So no point

[@DCDragoCraft]

ill admit happily, i do loooooove the original show as well, and the abridged is also a favorite in its own right. that being said the whole her being super jealous is really nice, i however also think the whole her not being jealous makes sense to. i dont prefer the whole yeah him never mentioning them being together however her not being jealous is in my opinion due to her trust in kirito being absolute and being a hopeless romantic, i appreciate that.

[@Midsomnyx]

Kitamura yea but jealousy isn't a rational emotion. No one ever thinks "I trust him/her so I won't get jealous", they think "I'm jealous, but I trust him/her so I won't act on it." Also, this statement would make sense if, in Excalibur/Mother's Rosario, Asuna didn't immediately get jealous over Sinon blatantly flirting with him after giving him the sword, or when she finds out Zekken was a girl.

[@Mytorturedsenses]

Here's why kirito beat SAO Actual kirito: to save my friends SWE kirito: they need to praise me

[@lukedeakin7124]

Actually in both it is to save his friends the difference being that ib the abridged there is a whole level of growth from the beginning to that point that isn't in the original

[@Mytorturedsenses]

R/woooosh

[@guywithglasses5309]

@@Mytorturedsenses r/foundthemobileuser

[@rajab2347]

@@guywithglasses5309 Noice

[@SasukeUchiha723]

Also, the relation of Kirito and Asuna are well displayed and written too. I actually "felt" something between them in the abridged series

[@shuhratkessikbayev8886]

"Oh look at me, I'm Kayaba Akihiko, I have like an invincible shield that can block any attack and also like a super sweet sword that deals infinity +2 damage and can cut through anything, even like Wolverine claws and shit, because I am awesome and cOooOl." ... "Truly, you are the voice of a generation."

[@Teeh608]

"Hey GARY! Long time no see!" "We must save my- AHH!" "Yeah! Bet you didn't expect to see ME again, did ya' punk?!" "WE MUST SAVE MY FAMILY!" "You left us to die you Bastard!" "WE MUST SAVE MY FAMILY!" "THIS IS FOR SACHI! Choke on it! Choke on my vengeance! How does it taste?!" "We must- ARGH- save my... family-" 'Kirito laughing psychotically while repeatedly stabbing Gary' Ahh, one of my favorite scenes.

[@thomaskilmer]

"The act of staying awake for three weeks at a time might not be relatable" HahahahahahahAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Oh dear. You've never done a thesis have you? That was very, very relatable.

[@Dracon350]

Amusing, but really staying awake for 21 consecutive days is quite honestly beyond human physicality. It's been a while since I last saw it, but I remember watching a video over a man who stayed up for 11 days in a row. He was asked to begin counting to 100, reach 17, stopped, and when asked why he stopped he said he had forgotten what he was doing. Staying awake for 3 days in a row is a struggle in and of itself, let alone 21. Your body and mind literally can't cope with the stress and lack of energy with that much missed sleep. Your mind would bow first, but the body wouldn't be far behind it.

[@r.henryjr.1533]

@@Dracon350 In the context of "in-universe", he was probably exaggerating.

[@garrettcarter2959]

It's less of a parody and more of a rewrite. Roger Rabbit the movie is better than Roger Rabbit the book. Why can't other adaptations be superior to the original?

[@Comfy_Luna]

There was a book for Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

[@ariesdemiurge]

Yip, "Who Censored Roger Rabbit," it was called... your childhood will never be the same after you read that book...

[@Comfy_Luna]

Interesting.....I'll have to look for it next time I go to the library.

[@bridgettelair370]

The author even likes the movie so much better than his origonal book that he wrote another that follows the movie's plot.

[@Dumbledoresarmy13]

Ah. Same with 'How to Train Your Dragon'. The movie is 1000x better than the book all 'round.

[@stevensmith699]

"I love you so much I don't know your real name"

[@EmjiAmsdaughter]

During the part at the end of the final episode where Kirito cries and wails about wanting to be a real family and such, I legitimately teared up.

[@USAFreewayROTF]

Dude 1: "Hey, you're not a girl!" Dude 2: "And you're not 17!" Dude 1: "I'm ok with this!" Dude 2: "Me too!" Some dude in crowd: "LOVE KNOWS NO GENDER!" ------------ BallsDeep69: "You look so... young." Kirito: "And you look less hairy, Balls." BallsDeep69: "My name is Klein." Kirito: "Aha, no it's not."

[@jakell4711]

I had never heard of you or seen SAO abridged, but when this video showed up in my recommended videos, I saw the title and thought "Oh? The best parody ever, huh? That's quite a claim, better check that out." I added this video to watch later and watched SAO abridged. It is soooo much beer than the real show. Now, I don't hate the show, I just think it completely failed to live up to its potential. Well, anyways I guess what I'm saying is SAO abridged may in fact be the best parody ever. Great video too, by the way.

[@trequor]

I did the same thing, but after watching half of Mother Basement's video on it

[@zacharybreen8891]

Dark Lord Crunch Its soooo much beer?

[@monkekun3033]

Hellsing abridged is still the best one out there with sao coming in a close second

[@MustacheDLuffy]

Dark lord, I think that was the point of SAOA. It was meant to show that SAO has or had potential to be a good series. They might be fans but because they made this they can hopefully get other people to make better content about the show and prove that a video game virtual reality idea is something that can work

[@ugregoard2024]

Dbza is also seriously remarkable later on imo

[@nik12100]

"Hear me out before you assault me in the comments." What are you taking about, you're absolutely right.

[@levievil9220]

Probably doesn’t know how many sao fans are fans of the abridged more than the legitimate anime

[@DevilsDeal]

But if SAO dies, so does the parody. You're stuck in a paradox. ;-)

[@ArkDragneel]

Not really as when SAO dies we would still have years of abridged to come up.

[@Dr._Atom]

That's where you wrong kiddo, whether SAO dies or not, the abridged series is so remarkable, so much better, that it becomes immortal

[@MustacheDLuffy]

SAO abridged will take 50 years to get to catching up. SAO dying wouldn’t caus ethe abridge to die unless it’s in terms of relevancy

[@RetroSavvie]

"Kirito, why do you avoid guilds?" "I don't wanna talk about it."

[@Reydriel]

I love that he's actually traumatised roflmao

[@Lord_Pyyr]

“Get to a high enough level and you’re basically untouchable. My wounds heal faster than you can make them; we could do this all day and you would not be any closer to beating me, not that it wouldn’t be fun. But I’ve got good news. There’s no need to wonder where your god is… because he’s right here… *and he’s fresh out of mercy*” was the hardest scene from any media I had ever seen for my formative years 😂

[@eddthehead123]

Blazingazurecrow and Grimmjack69 do great abridge work. And neither of them have dropped out half-way through a series.

[@ProjectMouthwash]

Sounds fake.

[@eddthehead123]

So, do you just stalk all mentions of your name, or something?

[@ProjectMouthwash]

I'm not actually sure how I would go about doing that. Your comment was the most recent comment on this when I watched it.

[@eddthehead123]

You know, I'm used to archieve crawls, so I didn;t even realise this was a new video. Carry on. I shall diligently await more episodes like a Screaming Fan Girl With a Knife!

[@92Roar]

Yuno Gasai There's no way he would have the support. He's non-union

[@Unclaimed_Username]

Man let me tell you about this fucking abridges series. During the last episode of the first season, there's a part where Kirito is crying his eyes out and says "I haven't said this out loud, but I love you Asuna!", and to that Asuna replies "I know". The thing about that is that it was said without the shrill, snarky tone Asuna's maintained for nearly the entire series. It was actually calm, and clear, and spoken from a place of peaceful happiness of someone maybe ready to face their end. In that final moment, with someone she loved, she finally dropped her act and was just *honest* and you know what? From a parody series that's a pretty fucking powerful move to pull on someone. Then the series goes out on one final joke, and the credits roll. They slowly pan out to an arcade-style countdown, and when the screen fades to black on 1, you hear a coin being put in. That was some GOOD FUCKING SHIT THERE and I have to capitalize to emphasize how nice that little bit was after coming right off of the ending scene. Not to keep sucking this series' dick but it was GOOD. Better than it had any right to be and I hope that SWE continues to make the second season as great, if not better and that they have a grand time doing it.

[@jacabo136]

And "I know" is a movie reference to Star Wars. It adds another layer that shows how much Asuna understands Kirito at that point. It's so good.

[@NexisCatzus]

ADORABLE LITTLE TROGLODYTE

[@anhilliator1]

"Adorable?"

[@angeldude101]

@@anhilliator1 SHUTUPSHUTUP!!!

[@moonlight.z6543]

@@angeldude101 oh jeez you guys said it sooner XDDDDD

[@shanehoover7895]

i've said it before and i will continue to say it. SAO is a good anime to get you into anime, it has great starter plot and good enough animation that me and many other people continued watching anime because of it. Once you have seen enough anime, you can realize its flaws in plot and character development, but if it's one of your first then it will definitely be entertaining and enjoyable.

[@decoy9854]

It can be enjoyable even if you have seen 2000 animes. Just don't think too much about it.

[@shanehoover7895]

exactly, if you go into an anime thinking "okay, let see if i can find some things wrong" or whatever, then overall whats the point of watching, but if you do it for SAO you're not gonna like the show

[@Bruh-sp2bj]

BlackGhost true, sao got me into anime

[@decoy9854]

Angus yeah, SAO is that kinda anime. Like Naruto, Bleach, Fairy Tail, Tokyo Ghoul, etc. People don't usually get into anime with Bakemonogatari, Monster, or something like that.

[@humanbean4037]

Studio Ghibli got me into anime. If I had seen sao first I probably would avoid anime. But I guess you do you.

[@patrikcath1025]

I just realised. We never found out what happened to Fluffles

[@quentinmcwimberton6797]

Well the King of Ashes has found Kirito on Twitter, and since Fluffles was last seen as his right hand...

[@madhouse2594]

@@quentinmcwimberton6797 Meow meow meow! - Don Fluffles

[@rwxstudio7173]

Ah, Don Fluffles. Somehow he got his paws into every major power play.

[@theaveragegamer7221]

6:28 /Kyaba: As we speak the servers are being shut down and players logged out. /Kyrito: Not in that order right? *looks at falling castle* /Kyaba: You're going to need to get back to me on that one.

[@Joenah5]

Best parody ever? It's one of my favorite anime ever. SWE's SAO is a masterpiece. Honestly, instead of bashing on SOA, the anime community should only recognize the abridged series.

[@tank2543]

Fuckin' Bethesda

[@tank2543]

He kept that head explosion tabbed for 2 yrs.

[@onespiker]

Isitpossible ??? But it was such a good seen. Both the start one and the ending one.

[@ZingFreelancer]

You did not mention how portrayal of SWE Asuna is so much better than original one! Incomplete analysis :)

[@lenny3735]

oh hey past me

[@vessdl8525]

episode 5. enough said

[@mrhoapro1]

"that's your job " -Kirito 2017

[@lenny3735]

that's your job NOW HONEY pls use compete phrases

[@KvS1x3]

Zing Freelancer look up exclamation point fot a more in depth look at asuna

[@FallenPasha]

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid really was a great show. It's funny, heartwarming, emotional, and simply put, a good comedy.

[@bahrinadrian5072]

I know about way more bad anime than good anime

[@forsakenfish]

@@bahrinadrian5072 also the p l o t

[@JohnSmith-op3qj]

SAO Abridged is the quintessential example of "There's no rule saying that the fake can't overcome the original"

[@pyr0t3c_]

God damn Bethesda....

[@ShiningDarknes]

Actually reason one it is the best parody ever: If you were to show this to someone who had not watched the source material they would legitimately wonder why so many people say SAO is garbage.

[@hanro50]

Shining Darkness True...

[@calsheridan8961]

DBZA, in the hands of Team Four Star, is a straight up dub. It eliminates A LOT of filler, but it also just retells the story. Which is amazing, because who doesn't love the story of DBZ?! Kai (which literally means "Abridged", so HA!) does this too! And now we have a great dub for people who enjoy the more humorous aspects of DBZ. SAOA is a complete reimagining of the series. Adding complexities and other things the original never had to begin with! It's really a manner of how they abridge things.

[@Sentariana]

Cal Sheridan "Who doesn't love DBZ?" Me. I hate DBZ. It's the art style. It hurts my eyes to look at. It's awful.

[@PSqqp]

No, an abridge is when something is shortened. While that’s what Kai is, that’s not what the name describes. It really means more of a new form of DBZ or a fixed DBZ.

[@mckenzie.latham91]

"SAOA is a complete reimagining of the series. Adding complexities and other things the original never had to begin with! It's really a manner of how they abridge things." Actually the difference is, DBZA as you said, it makes a less filler based, more humerus re-telling of the series... and it does so becasue the teamfouestar group are fans of the original show SAOA while clearly liking the premise and the idea of SAO obviously can't stand the series itself and basically re-wrote it into something actually worth while. the difference is not in the abridged styles but in how well the original series were... DBZA didn't need to re-write the show becasue the show worked, they just made it more funny and less heavy/filler based, while still making fun of some of the issues or plot holes... such as Krillin never using his most powerful techniques when they'd be most useful, how characters just let enemies transform and or gain more power without attempting to stop them, how characters don't gang up on or just stand to the side for one on one death matches with the fate of the world or universe in the balance, etc. SAO was bad enough that SAOA felt the need to basically reboot the entire series in their parody.

[@ShadowWolfRising]

I honestly dislike Kai, alot of DBZ's filler was actually entertaining (Them learning to drive.) not to mention The American Soundtrack is leagues better than the original's, which was removed in Kai.

[@Sukaiba69]

*W E M U S T S A V E M Y F A M I L Y*

[@jimmyvalmer7983]

Mogek0n the bandits are coming

[@pitchingwedge7546]

Remember, to jump: jump

[@morganfitch8325]

Remember, winners don't use drugs. Except steroids. In which case, use lots of drugs.

[@alexanderlawrence7991]

You've been playing for 4608 hours, maybe you should take a break!

[@theunforgiven9641]

Gary!

[@yesofcourse8520]

IMO, DBZA and SAOA are the two best parodies... ever. Here's why: DBZ Abridged took a great series and, not only turned it into a genius comedy-series, but also expanded on characters that originally were lacking in DBZ, while also taking full advantage of the already great characters, such as Cell, Vegeta and Frieza. I NEVER thought I'd get into characters such as the Ginyu Force, Nappa, or even Android 16, the latter of whom they've given a touching backstory. They've made every episode of the parody so-far enjoyable, and TFS havr done what they needed to in order to make a show worth watching, with great story, comedy, and even emotional moments. SAO Abridged is EASILY comparable comparable to DBZA. It worked with what, in my opinion, is a lesser-quality story, albeit still somewhat enjoyable, and gave us phenomenal characters, great story and comedy, emotinal moments, and an overall great experience. I don't find SAOA or DBZA to be superior to one-another. They're both phenomenal, and at some points, have one-upped their originals, especially SAOA.

[@johnhawes2262]

I'd add Hellsing Abridged to the list. I rewatch that show all the time and it never gets old to me.

[@calebdavis5607]

*someone "hey whats your favorite abridged moment?" "when cell comes out of the shadows singing mister sandman"

[@Lrbearclaw]

Abridgito's rant about humanity is mine. Followed VERY closely with the "Fuck the Fear Turkey" letter.

[@Halinspark]

Lrbearclaw As an MMO player, I love Kayaba's rant about how the players are all morons who couldn't keep themselves alive even if they were wrapped in bubblewrap.

[@Arkayjiya]

My favourite Abridged moment is the final time Vegeta talking about super saiyan to Freeza. I love comedic works but I don't laugh that often, but the first time I heard Freeza fricking out at Vegeta once again invoking the super sajan name I couldn't stop it. As a more serious moments, Cell singing (both super creepily as its original version and later as Perfect Cell) are definitely some of my favourite moments. As is Episode 10 of SAO: Abridged. The family episode was the best single episode of any abridged series I ever watched.

[@DemonMage]

morning morality - shnoze - aka nose.

[@Midsomnyx]

Namekian: We've come to stop the senseless slaughter of our people Frieza: 92 Namkian: We're here, and now your reign of terror has come to an end Freiza: 355 Namekian: ..wha- Frieza: No no, keep going, don't let me interrupt Namekian: ... and we're the one's who are going to stop you Frieza: Oh wow, 419 Namekian: That's it! What the heck are you doing? Frieza: Oh it's a little hobby of mine. I hear these heroic speeches so drearily often I started making a mental list of how many times I've heard certain lines. Namekian: You insane bastard! Frieza: 190 I've never laughed so hard in my entire life.

[@randoanon4785]

A key rule to good parody that so many (The damn Scary Movie dumbasses) forget: the parody must be a good work in and of itself. Remember Looney Toons? Almost every short was a parody, almost none of the originals are something a modern watcher has seen. Does that lessen the enjoyment or quality for a modern viewer? Hell no! Because it's parody done RIGHT.

[@megamage911]

EXACTLY! This is the exact thing I've been saying for years! If you want to make a good parody, it must be good on it's own merits. Sure, it'll obviously be referencing the original material for comedic effect, but it still has to stand on its own. Half the shit that goes on in the Scary Movie movies wouldn't be funny if you didn't know the source materiel (and sometimes not even then sadly) But something like SAOA, DBZA or Hellsing Ultimate Abridged are all funny on their own, even if you've never watched the originals. Hell, I even made this point once for Dethklok. They are clearly a parody of Death Metal, but as a fan of the genre, I can tell you that they still make legit good death metal, just with a bit of a comedic edge to it in how over-the-top it is. So TL;DR, a reference is not funny just because it's a reference, you need to actually do something with it that'll make it funny in it's own right. Sorry that this got a bit long, but I'm very passionate about my comedy entertainment xD

[@trequor]

I would add to this by saying the best parodies STAY TRUE to the genre/works they are parodying. One Punch Man is still a good superhero story, Men in Tights is still a good Robin Hood story, etc. Scary Movie 1 is an alright horror movie, but pretty much every other project from the creators fails this test

[@PanPanni]

SAO Abridged is better than SAO original. Why? _Because it doesn't have that freakin' Alfheim Arc_

[@2mo383]

K-Ty yet

[@aceotaku]

hopefully they either make the main villain far better than the original, or go to complete opposite direction and make him as pathetic and losery as possible, compelte with literally no-one being threated by him or taking him seriously.

[@Shadowwarrior996]

they're doing alfheim. but its just gonna end up being better then the original again anyways

[@goldencyclone4984]

*Laughs evilly* You poor, naive, sweet summer child... Seriously though, can't wait to see how they handle Sugou. And who they get to voice such a piece of shit.

[@disterben]

who is a piece of shit?

[@spoomples990]

I love the Abridged series more than the actual show

[@Noctua8]

Not enough people talk about how Klein was LITERALLY a fucking Saint. He not only stuck by kirito but encouraged him to be better no matter how much of an asshole he was to him every step along the way

[@kiko8804]

Kayaba's reason is logical (The critics is harder when some death is an accident then intentionaly killing)

[@GothicFairyGirl13]

SAO abridged is a god damn treasure to this planet

[@rotciv1492]

You forgot the point number 4: THE TUTORIAL NPC. xD no need to explain, people will understand.

[@thallan]

"we have to save my family!" "see, some of them even have family! wait, gary? is that you?"

[@mr.cup6yearsago211]

“Bet you didn’t expect to see me again, did ya?” *Horrible screaming* “WE HAVE TO SAVE MY- AAAAGH!” “THIS IS FOR YOU, SACHI! EAT MY SWEET VENGEANCE, HOW DOES IT TASTE?!” It wasn’t the tutorial bot, but Greg was the best NPC companion.

[@liquidgarfield8523]

"2000 people died cause the tutorial npc is nowhere to be found" -Kaiyaba

[@Nobody-jd4fn]

To jump JUMP

[@SadPawn]

Actually, i saw the abridged series before i watched the anime. I really liked it, so i decided to watch the anime and... i was hugely disappointed. I knew it'd be different, but i didn't suspect it'd seem so... bland in comparison to the abridged series. I was never able to watch more than one and a half episode of it.

[@scp--297]

Ryma2001 Like wise.

[@goblin7189]

Good. It’s better that way.

[@eroszakos9042]

I watched the first two episodes of the anime quite a bit after I watched the Abridged series and proceeded to violently vomit after witnessing the completely irrational behavior of the characters in the second episode.

[@jgkitarel]

I watched the Abridge and then watched the anime as well. As a long time anime veteran (cut my teeth on it with Robotech, Thundercats and Voltron back when I was a kid in the 80s and only got really interested in anime when I watched Akira (the original Sunrise dub) for the first time.... well, I saw that SAO had potential, but was clearly a gateway anime. Enjoyed the premise, was meh on the storytelling, and simply watched it for some mindless entertainment. I liked the original series, but then again, I liked it because I was entertained. I've seen far worse anime out there after all. And trust me, there is some seriously shit anime out there that makes this seem like a big budget Disney film in comparison. Watch the original Ghost Stories. The subtitled version. The dub is so good and hilarious because even _ADV_ recognized just how much of a piece of shit it was, so they decided to do a gag dub. It was still bad, but it was hilariously so.

[@sceptile6375]

Ryma2001 want to know something funny Those were the good ones

[@louisduarte8763]

14:14 "We must save my family!" "Winners don't use drugs! Unless they're steroids. The use lots of drugs!"

[@ImTheScottMann]

Sao as an anime was a good idea but when it dropped the death aspect and became sims for half of the death game arc. It became trash. I hope sword art online alternate gun gale online is decent. I'm not saying bring back the death but at least have a little of psychological breaking have some comedy a few badass scenes and they could bring it back.

[@jgkitarel]

The Gun Gale Alternate arc is pretty decent, mostly because the main protagonist went into online games because of her own personal issues. She's a six foot tall japanese woman and has a neurosis about it, which makes some sense. So she went into a game that made her an adorable loli and found out that she was good at it. But Gun Gale Alternate is more an exploration of characters and why they got into gaming.

[@jgkitarel]

And yes, it has quite a bit of comedy in it.

[@thomasallen9974]

@@jgkitarel dare I say its actually how SAO should be done in the first place. We get to explore characters and how they grow off each other and their problems, and honestly I care about even several side characters (whom Im sure get more time in the later volumes based of the little screen time they get, yet was impactful). Pito is scary but I understand her to a point, LLENN is an adorable lovable badass whom I would get nervous around with that brutality streak in PKing, M maybe be typically silent but he has his own charm. LLENN's irl bff is a hoot, and the Amazons are bizzare delight I hold a high gamer grade respect for (that is how you squad play kiddos). And to make it clear how I was engaged by this story, hearing Pito was using a Nerve Gear actually was kinda unnerving.

[@jgkitarel]

@@thomasallen9974 Gun Gale Alternate wasn't written by Kawahara, though he was the one who oversaw the final product and signed off on it. SAO suffers from the fact that it is Kawahara's _first_ work, and it shows. Even though it didn't get published until after Accel World was, which was the first work of his published, he wrote SAO, pretty much in its entirety, in a Web Novel format before then. The published version is almost certainly a better work than the web novel, but it still has the rough edges. It was where he found his voice, and it took him a bit. That's not to say that the original was perfect. God, it isn't. I liked SAO even with its flaws because I was still entertained by it. I alos like SAOA because I was entertained by it. And as a parody, it is a work of love for the original.

[@lpssoul6901]

Scott Mann "I WOULD LIKE TO BUY ONE CHILD PLEASE

[@Nicktrito]

I actually really enjoyed sword art, and I cant wait for season 3. That being said, I gave it the 5/10 it deserved for being a flawed series. Remember guys, you can still really enjoy an anime even if you know its a bad series. Theres nothing wrong with that. The abridged series was absolutely genius though. Can't for them to do season 2.

[@brandonr3072]

Nicktrito there's gonna be a season 3? why? about what?!?!?!

[@129das]

It is brain dead enjoyment in no way deep. But so are many other popular Anime. But reki kawahara Accel World is still very flawed show is not brain dead like SAO. Villains have reason and propose reason for what they do in the show and so do the heroes. Not just surviving a death game. Freeing a traps player Surviving a death game. Saving a Game??

[@decoy9854]

129das so wht if it is ¨braindead¨, as you put it? Is it bad? Not everything has to be deep or meaningful, you can have fun just seeing something funny, like SAO, Fairy Tail (wich is my favorite anime, even if I know is crap), etc.

[@Sentariana]

Nicktrito Yeah, I love SAO but I think they could have made it far better than they did. The first couple episodes are perfection, the others not so much.

[@drakeware655]

Another reason why SAOA is an amazing parody; it feels like it was written by actual gamers

[@nip3004]

nah the beast parody in this genre is ghost stories English dub

[@megamage911]

Well played good sir :P

[@toridetherisingwind4135]

Watching that show sent me too the hospital with a collapsed lung.

[@trequor]

SHOTS FIRED

[@thesandwich5321]

Not really the same genre, but I agree it IS the best official parody ever.

[@jgkitarel]

Hah! Oh God that was hilarious. It says something when even the localization team recognizes something is shit and decides to have fun with it rather than to just do a standard dub. And given that it was ADV who did it back in the 90s, that says something. If anything, it is probably what inspired abridging in the first place.

[@Nardaprada]

um...littlekuriboh?!

[@TheJoethud22]

Clown Love the grand daddy of abridging. What disrespect he shows to our lord and savior.

[@bleachbleachBLEACHER]

Littlekuriboh was the spark that turned Abridging into what it is today, but that doesn't inherently make his work the best. I recently went through his around 70 Yu-Gi-Oh abridged episodes because I understood he was the start of it all, but the overall quality was... meh. He started a trend, and for that there is cause to celebrate him and his work, but it's also *because* he came first that those that came after were able to improve on the genre as much as they have.

[@enyalim1535]

Clown Love Yes, expecially the resent episodes, it makes Yami's breakdown when he lost Yugi more heartbreaking

[@TheJoethud22]

bleachbleachBLEACHER his work is a masterpiece And back in 2005-2008 u try having a good microphone with windows media editing. Glory be to little kuriboh

[@bigounce2651]

um...Antfish?

[@Notaforumguy007]

The abridged series was definitely better then a OG anime as the overall development of characters and relationships between them aren't fleshed out and kind of leave you with a wtf as for why they are together. The abridged gives them a hate/spiteful relationships at the start with them often at odds but its that chemistry that gives cause for their endearment to each other, rather then a ambiguously amicable relationship that magically becomes love of the original. Klien's bit at the end was touching since he was that normal guy just trying to be friendly to this ass hole character in hopes of making a change and he does in fact make a difference.

[@MrChris]

So SAO is the Roman Reigns of Anime? The Internet to SAO ---> "I'M NOT FINISHED WITH YOU"

[@reyvoices695]

Mr Chris OPM is Braun strowman

[@ItsDrayTV14689]

And today, it's Attack on Titan.

[@robertcremin3291]

There's also a 4 fucking year long joke that happens in the abridged

[@Draeckon]

"So glad I kept that tabbed." Was that the one?

[@tanith117]

They set up a lot in the Early few episodes. Like Jesus Telling the guy to kill everyone and The Cat Mafia.

[@AnymousScreams]

The hat.

[@johnracy2871]

The humor is very deadpool like. Absolutely dark and sarcastic, but with a heartfelt message and story underneath. It's been aprox. a year since episode 14, but I really hope that it keeps up.

[@spencerbrus6343]

"SAO is the Roman Reigns of the anime community." aaaaand subscribed...

[@usernamedeww983]

"But I was da one talkin' to ya T-Dog! You got cotton in yo ears OH MY GOD I AM SO SORRY"

[@Thalarion]

"A world of abridging darkness" oh my god. I remember when there were abridged series of stuff that wasn't even finished.

[@knowvoid9958]

Did you ever think that the reason SAO is so popular is that it grabs extra views by being completely available on Netflix while looking like something of quality?

[@TonySilvey13]

I HATE sao, but love the abridged version :3

[@Christicjo]

Tony Mochizuki same

[@finalfantasylover5297]

Tony Mochizuki anyone who knows how to write agrees with you.

[@agravain9006]

abridged Kirito is one of the most relatable and interesting characters I have ever seen.

[@Lrbearclaw]

I agree.... but then everyone who knows me that has seen SAOA says that Abridgito is me in anime form.

[@agravain9006]

as well as me...he's relatable for reason

[@RokuroCarisu]

I don't think he's relatable. He's like that "I'm too good to be nice" antagonist you see in a lot of shows, except we're supposed to root for him.

[@Ticketman99]

He's Dante. Full stop.

[@gary4014]

WE MUST SAVE MY FAMILY!

[@tizianopitzalis7537]

THE BANDITS ARE COMING

[@sarahouillette1357]

GARY!!!!

[@Xylos144]

Here's the ONE problem. Half of the jokes don't hit nearly as hard unless you've seen SAO to start with. That's where half the humor of an abridged series comes from. So to enjoy the masterpiece SWE made, you have to watch SAO. I know some people watch and enjoy it without ever seeing the original - and that makes sense because there's plenty to laugh about by just following this story. But the contrast to what actually was happening in the series easily doubles the humor, and for better or worse, I think it's a disservice to yourself to not enjoy a piece of work as much as you can enjoy it. The closest example I can find is Mass Effect, and the mind-boggling number of people I've met that say they started with Mass Effect 2. It's a story-driven RPG, and they start in the middle of a story. Mass Effect 1 mechanically is not as good a game as ME2. And ME2 spoils the whole ME1 story. So you really can't go back and enjoy ME1 to it's full potential - nor are you as connected to the characters that make up your crew in ME2. While you might have considered ME1 a masterpiece, and ME2 a continuation and improvement of that if played in chronological order, neither game experience is as good if played out of order. Hell ME1 might even feel too tedious and unrewarding to ever play through second. I realize the metaphor might be breaking down at this point because ME1 on its own is great, while SAO isn't. But Granny Dapper didn't raise no quitter!

[@MathWizHQ]

I love you for that reference. xD

[@sethbudrik8906]

Xylos144 Actually, my Sister watched SAO Abridged and she was fine. She enjoyed it a lot.

[@Xylos144]

I didn't say you couldn't enjoy it. I actually said you would likely still enjoy it a lot. The jokes work stand-alone. But there are a lot of layers to the humor you can't appreciate without knowing how things are 'supposed to be happening'. There's extra enjoyment left on the table.

[@scotthadden9816]

Yeah, I can disprove what you just said, not only have I never seen a single episode of SAO, but I've never played ME1 either, I started with ME2 and still knew Garrus was my bro. SAO Abridged was my intro to the series, and I can probably remember every single line said in all 11 episodes.

[@Xylos144]

You two don't really seem to be understanding what I'm talking about. Enjoying SAO abridged or Mass Effect 2 without seeing or playing the respective originals doesn't prove or disprove anything towards the point I'm making.

[@pronounced-like-the-drink]

I love SAO. It's one of my favorite animes of all time, plus it was the second anime I ever watched. *But*, I'll agree with every single one of these points. I admire the abridged series, and I would not hesitate to call it a _much better_ version of SAO. I still like the normal anime, but the abridged series was so much more fulfilling than the original. If I was Reki Kawahara, I would take all of these points into account, analyze what I did wrong, where I could improve, then make something better with it. SAO left a lot of holes. Lots of mystery, lots of unanswered questions, lots of really crappy plot, game, and character design. SAO is like swiss cheese. So many holes. However, when there's a hole, there's someone to fix it. SAO Abridged didn't just make a better abridged series than most of the other ones I watched. It constructed bridges over all the holes left behind by the source anime. And I respect that.

[@Geck0GC]

this is a good video I'll clap with my teeth

[@childhoodtraumakid4063]

*chomp chomp chomp chomp chomp-*

[@dolardo-sama]

they made a completly original backstory for a character of course it's better than the original

[@arthuredington6171]

you mean Liz?