Oh man, look at that heartbreak. It’s like he just realized nobody ever pays him in gum…

——

This episode was really forgettable. I don’t say that to be mean - I say it because it’s true. I completely forgot that Accel World came back from it’s week hiatus and came out with an episode 10. I still don’t know what Chrome Disaster and the Yellow Radio have to do with each other at all. There’s a sense of mystery involved with this supposed connection, but it’s more of a “what-the-hell’s-going-on” type of curiosity than anything exciting. 

This show never seems to be done with its world building. Each new episode brings something specific to the table. This week’s exposition on the Child/Parent relationship and the details on installing Brain Burst on new players. I won’t lie and say that it’s not interesting; one of the better things about this show is its willingness to elaborate on even the minute details of the show. I can’t say that it doesn’t raise somer interesting questions about Snow Black either, but since Accel World doesn’t seem to want to even give us her name, I find it hard to believe that we’ll learn much about her past. There was also the whole thing about Enemies and traveling within Accel World. It’s things like this unlimited time in the Accel World that make the world not just believable, but desirable. I mean if this was an actual game, I’d play the crap out of it. I do agree that the whole Enemy hunting deal is lame. I wouldn’t want to spend all that extra time grinding.

I’m digging Niko’s character development. Straightforward as it is, it’s really cool listening to her opinions and ideas about Brain Burst and everything else that’s going on. Her inconsistency is the driving factor of her character and is what makes her such a compelling character to watch. But even with all that, it just really boils down to I like her. She’s got spunk and that’s always fun to watch. Her dynamic with Black Snow is slowly becoming an old hat, but still enjoyable enough. But beyond that, nothing really happened. Story is moving at a glacial pace, and there’s only so much bouncing around between characters before it feels stale. I’m really hoping for a serious brawl in the coming episode because it really needs something to balance out the dialogue and exposition in this one. 

GO Rating: 4/5