The Sword Art Online: Extra Edition, which will air on the 31st of December, is getting it’s much-needed attention. A 15-second commercial for the television anime special has come out, the video features the theme song “Niji no Oto” (The Sounds of the Rainbow) by Eir Aoi. The episode will preview on Tokyo MX TV, BS11 and Niconico in Japan on the 31st of December at 10:00 pm. Carry on reading to watch the commercial.
Aniplex describes the story to be:
Kirito and the others decide to go on an underwater quest within the world of ALO to grant Yui her wish to see a whale. As they all prepare for the quest, they face a shocking revelation… Leafa, or Suguha is afraid of water. So, Asuna and the other female members decide to teach Suguha how to swim at a pool in the real world. Meanwhile, Kirito was meeting somebody…
The team from the television anime are coming back to cast the characters, Reki Kawahara also took part in the two-hour special, the illustrator also gave the characters a full makeover. Here are some screen grabs from the 15-second ad preview provided by Dengeki.
Source: ANN
Daily Anime Art 
Cool. More Sword Art Online is always welcome.
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Happy New Year!
I find the prospect of a “secret” Leafa/Kirito VR romance and quiet Asuna/Leafa rivalry refreshingly intriguing and would set SAO apart from the herd. Variety is the spice of life and I think this potential taboo but sinless VR pairing will be largely responsible for carrying on interest in the show since SAO imitations are doubtlessly in the wings. Though I’ve read of fans who believe the two would’ve recognized each other off the bat, my own real-life experience finds it quite credible as there’re tons of real life examples from plastic surgery cases to insurance disguise deceptions that attest to that.
Though a secret Kirito x Leafa VR romance has been publicly blown in the “Extra Edition” episode (where I like Leafa’s gesture of hope and tacit determination at the very end to get her man!…), if we dismiss that EE as omake, the close of Episode 25 opens that sly romantic possibility for a season two. Their moving mid-air lover’s waltz at the end of 25 was a blatant teaser that something is going to bloom between these two because most brothers just wouldn’t be so seduced into that poignant scene even for a jest.
Ah yes, Suguha is a sly one…
Additionally the EE gives us a peek that Kirito is uncomfortable just how to treat Leafa in public — being just brotherly doesn’t seem to cut the quiet tension. Everything hinges on his acknowledging his split skittish heart and Leafa finding a way to bridge it by pressing him that there’s technically no incest going on and they otherwise have a great real-world relationship. We get flashes that they think of another, and that Kazuto envisions Leafa in Suguha — a “safe” excuse to deny any siblinghood. (Then one can wildly imagine what we’d had had SAO replaced Asuna with Leafa from the get-go with no breaks back into the real world! Maybe a parallel universe version?…)
At first blush it seems Asuna holds the cards in Kirito’s heart but just how secure is this? In VR they mostly pressed together to escape the gloom and depression of captivity and death and never going home again. Would’ve anything sparked between them had they first met in the real world? They might’ve been “married” in VR, but by the EE you wouldn’t known it. Maybe VR desperate ardor has cooled to mere close friendship in reality — and an opening for Suguha. Even Liz whiffs this in the EE. There seem to be hints that Asuna smells something going on between the two with how she reaches out to Leafa at 25’s close and her visuals in the teasers. Maybe a head’s-up spoiler here, but I think Suguha is sly enough to have her cake and eat it too by coaxing Kazuto to keep a platonic sibling relationship in the real world but a full-blown romance in VR. She has an incredible advantage; she knows what buttons to push and many fans say she’s lovelier and cuter than Asuna.
Anyway this is a well above series with mucho potential if the producers are daring enough!
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Leafa and Kirito relationship is totally messed up, it was from the start and It was known by everyone that when she finds out she’s going to be mad. Yes Kirito is the heroic type and all, and since Leafa doesn’t get any reaction from him in the real world, he seems to become this super hero in the game.
And the blatant fact that she likes him is also something that doesn’t feel quite right. Either the author is trying to explore some kind of other emotion here. I like how Kirito and Leafa are close brother and sister but Leafa liking him in such as way is definitely off.
I like Asuna much better but the new character she adopted in Alfheim is totally crap to me, I liked her with her hair colour. I dislike a few things the author and animators are doing. Nevertheless I’d much rather want Asuna to be with Kirito more. Yeah I agree that there is a lot of potential, much more to be explored within the Gun Gale Online arc which will begin showing up during Spring/April time.
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