Kari’s Anime Corner: First Impressions of ‘Accel World’

Hi! My name is Kari Lane, and I’ve been an anime lover since I was a little girl. Those good old days when classics like Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z, Card Captor Sakura, Digimon and Monster Rancher were on the most basic of cable.

Over the years, I have expanded my anime repertoire and have attended numerous anime conventions. I’m currently a host on Neo-Cinema, a web-based anime and Japanese live-action movie review show. Recently, I’ve been watching the first few episodes of various anime series’, and thought it an excellent idea to write reviews based on my “first impressions”. Of course, you’ll have many unanswered questions after viewing just 4, 5, or 6 episodes, but you can get a feel for the show and decide if you want to continue watching! I hope my reviews will help introduce you to some awesome anime, or help you avoid the more mediocre junk that’s out there!

I heard about Accel World at Anime Expo 2013 and was reminded about it with the recent press release announcing season 1 was available for purchase. It looked like a cool show and it did not disappoint. This was a show where I blazed through season 1 in one day (12 episodes). The episode structure flows from one to the next and you just want to know what happens next.

Accel World is set in the near future where everyone has a neuro-link to manage anything and everything in their daily lives; it is networking and Google Glass to an extreme. The main character, Haruyuki “Haru” Arita, is a short fat boy who is constantly bullied and finds his only escape from the harshness of reality in virtual reality games. In the virtual world, he feels he can be the best he can be and not be tormented for being a little different. It is funny though because he chose a cute little pig as his avatar. While in the Sims-like virtual world, Haru is approached by the beautiful and super popular student counsel Vice-President, Kuroyukihime, who asks him to meet her in the real world! They directly link into each other (a thing only couples do!!!) and Kuroyukihime invites him to try Brain Burst and enter an accelerated world.

The virtual reality environment of Accel World is primarily a fighting game but what makes it addictive is in the real world you can essentially “freeze time”. Time does not stop but rather you are able to process the situation faster and are able to step out of your body to fully understand your surroundings. Kuroyukihime explains that people use this to their advantage for fame, power, money, whatever you can think of. How many times you can “brain burst” is determined by how many points you have and the only way to gain points is to battle in Accel World. Time in Accel World is accelerated such that you could be in the game for a year and only a day will pass in the real world.

The concept and art style are similar to Sword Art Online (another really good show), but the shows are also very different. Accel World has a good amount of humor, some of which arises from Haru’s awkward interactions with girls. Though there is a lot of cool battles/fight scenes, at its heart Accel World is about relationships (friends, family, mentor-protégé, boyfriend-girlfriend, and more). Through the course of the season, the relationships between characters are explored and go through their ups and downs. Also, the show is about getting past your own insecurities and not letting anything hold you back.

Why did Kuroyukihime recruit Haru? Will Haru be able to stay friends with his childhood companions? Who is the real enemy in Accel World? If want a cool action/sci-fi type of show you should check this one out! I look forward to season 2 to see where our hero and friends go next!

For more information on Accel World please visit www.VIZAnime.com/accelworld.