fujishig

Ok, watched episode 17

chrisc31

Sigh, and the wait for next episode starts NOW!

dugan

The bathtub/shower in episode 18 looks like it would be really difficult to use getting water all over the floor.

TheBigDave

And the wait begins again....

I hate watching shows like this one week at a time. I just want to plow through them all at once.

chrisc31

Only an hour an a half untill the wait for a new episode begins again. I can't stand it.

Episode 20 was good but for the past few episodes it doesn't seem like much progress is being done.

chrisc31

Wait until you see episode 22!

dugan

Uhm, is "Titania's" room literally a gilded cage?

fujishig

I'm only on episode 21, but suggested tentacle rape? Ugh.

TheBigDave

Good finale. I'm a sucker for happy endings. And that was pretty much exactly what I was hoping for.

There's another couple arcs in the light novels. So I hope we'll get a 2nd season.

RayChuang

I've read that they are planning a second season--but it won't be here until 2014....

fujishig

Finally finished this. That Deus Ex Machina was what I expected given how things were going, but man anime loves it's unresolved love triangles (or squares or pentagons or whatever).

chrisc31

Via ANN

Now we will have to wait to see how much it will cost.

TheBigDave

Unfortunately, they'll probably release it in six volumes at $50 each.

PhantomStranger

I finally got around to watching this series after all the buzz. The buzz was justified, it's a great show with a complete story from beginning to end. The first 14 episodes were pitch-perfect in tone and characterization, though I honestly felt there was enough story to expand it over more episodes.

Considering I've never played an MMORPG in my life, SAO snuck in enough explanatory background without seeming like a tutorial or bogging down the story. The back end of the story wasn't as entertaining to me, mostly because it separates the two lead characters for so much of it.

chrisc31

Bryce Papenbrook as Kirito
Cherami Leigh as Asuna

I like the fact that Aniplex and Bang Zoom will also use Funimation's VA's

Did anyone see the premiering of the dub at Sakura-Con last weekend?

TheBigDave

I wasn't crazy about her Lucy (Fairy Tail). But the two characters are very different. So I'll keep an open mind.

If anyone's interested, here's Cherami and Monica Rial from the Women In Anime panel at Tora-Con 2013.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/eir0yTZpGCU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

chrisc31

For what I own on dvd/Blu-ray Cherami Leigh was good as Shana in "Shakugan no Shana", Ayano Kannagi in "Kaze no Stigma" and Cecily Campbell in "The Sacred Blacksmith"

PhantomStranger

I would say it's a decent casting. From the characters I've heard her handle, they tend to be full of spunk and energy, which is not something I automatically associate with Asuna. But her voice does sound like a teenage girl's voice, which is the correct call.

chrisc31

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C8Jl_-b7ju0?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


The trailer reveals additional dub cast:

Bryce Papenbrook as Kirito
Cherami Leigh as Asuna
Cassandra Lee as Leafa/Suguha Kirigaya
Christine Marie Cabanos as Silica
Sarah Williams as Lisbeth
Patrick Seitz as Agil

chrisc31

Cassandra Lee as Leafa/Suguha Kirigaya interview.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SjtJSLiEq_M?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

PhantomStranger

Just based off that limited sample, the voices all seem fine except Kirito in comparison to the Japanese voices. Which is a problem, as he is the main character and does almost all of the speaking.

chrisc31

I just got home from Anime Boston, they had a screening of the first two episodes english dubbed.

TheBigDave

What did you think of the dubs?

chrisc31

It was good other then sitting next to someone that giggled at every little thing and they had the sound up a bit high, their was a sound crickets in the anime it drove me nuts.

TheBigDave

I really like the covers for the Japanese blu-rays:

(spoilered for size)