What do you think?
Sword Art Online: Progressive Manga #3
Sword Art Online Progressive Manga, Vol. 3
After reaching the second floor of Aincrad, Asuna decided to have a player controlled blacksmith upgrade her beloved sword, a rare Wind Fleuret--but when the unimaginable happened and the sword was shattered in the attempt, Kirito suspected foul play. Did the blacksmith really just happen to destroy an incredibly valuable item? And if not, is there any way to get it back? And--if there really is a conspiracy of thieves--how can they be stopped before they spread too much mistrust? The game of death is bad enough already!
180 pages, Paperback
First published December 10, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
April 25, 2017
*Asuna's underpants rain down from the sky*
July 23, 2018
This volume of SAO was the first to really branch away from the main TV plot. The in-depth detail enhances the story I already know, especially with side characters less introduced in the show. What would you do if you were trapped in a virtual world where dying in the game means dying for real? As seen before, this progressive series might have a couple awkwardly phrased panels likely due to translation complications. Rarely, there will be an action panel difficult to visualize. Maybe I would have less difficulty if it were in color, but this is still quality.
July 20, 2022
This is supposedly showing the point of view of Asuna of the story of Aincrad, so I dont understand why the mangaka shows her in embarrassing situations showing her butt and underwear constantly, I find this manga offensive to a lot of women (not only feminists). The light novel is far better than this.
February 18, 2018
I can't tell if this is meant to be shoujo or shonen...
It's funny, fast-paced, and a really fun read; breaks a fair amount of rules of either genre, until it swerves suddenly back into placid-predictable panty-showing fanservice...
Still good though.
It's funny, fast-paced, and a really fun read; breaks a fair amount of rules of either genre, until it swerves suddenly back into placid-predictable panty-showing fanservice...
Still good though.
March 27, 2018
the fan service is starting to get obnoxious
April 2, 2018
The Asuna we knew and the really well paced romance plot are no more. They've been replaced with lesser versions.
I won't be reading any more of the series. Ciao, SAO.
I won't be reading any more of the series. Ciao, SAO.
September 25, 2019
Alright, I'll say it: I'm obsessed.
December 8, 2020
J’aime vraiment cet univers et l’évolution des relations qui se fait.
January 1, 2022
Damn it with fan service
March 7, 2024
This weapon scam subplot is way better than the murder one in the anime
March 31, 2024
Great book so far
December 30, 2025
Review to come!
February 22, 2026
Alright, her sword didn't break!!
Poor guy, I hope he gets to go back with his party. And that he and Asuna both make it to the boss battle
Poor guy, I hope he gets to go back with his party. And that he and Asuna both make it to the boss battle
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2020
Differs from the light novel at some points, making it funnier and adding more character devolpment. From all the SAO stuff that I have read, this one is probably the funniest of them all.
January 20, 2016
In Summary
Progressive ratchets up the fanservice in Volume 003. Fortunately, the increase of panty shots doesn’t signal the end of good writing. Asuna’s shattered sword leads to an intriguing mystery followed by the introduction of a devastating hardware-related predicament that wasn’t included in the Aincrad arc. In addition, Kirito/Asuna fans will be gratified to see the pair together more often than not despite Kirito’s decision to go solo.
The Review
Progressive’s sister series Fairy Dance lays on the fanservice pretty thick, but with Asuna as the main character in Progressive I thought the mangaka would be more high-minded in those matters. Well, Volume 3 proved me wrong. Two tense scenes turn into panty-revealing moments for Asuna, and when Kirito has her materialize all her items, it’s practically a rain of lingerie. The series might as well be called Underwear Art Online. On top of that, the Rat spends as much time making lewd insinuations about Kirito’s intentions toward Asuna as she does providing game-relevant information. Perhaps this is to raise Asuna’s moe level for males, but as a female reader, I find it irritating to have those elements diminish Asuna’s dignity.
Moving on to the plot, both the SAO anime and the Aincrad manga painted Kirito as a lone wolf who, after the defeat of the Level 1 Boss, doesn’t really interact with Asuna until many levels later. However, the Progressive storyline depicts them as a kind of dynamic duo. They’re still only in Level 2, but they are widely perceived by the SAO community as an item. After Asuna’s Wind Fleuret shatters, they investigate the incident together, and they also continue teaming up in the dungeons.
Asuna is not your typical gamer, and thanks to flashbacks of her upbringing, we understand why she thinks and acts the way she does. At times, those differences give her an edge over Kirito, but for most of Volume 003, she’s the weaker partner. Kirito’s constantly helping and bailing her out and often winds up slapped for his efforts.
Volume 003 also brings recent cast addition Nezha to the forefront. When he first appeared in the middle of Volume 002, I considered him an insignificant extra. However, the mangaka very cleverly puts the blacksmith at the center of a mystery, and immediately thereafter involves him in an NPC quest with Asuna. Progressive takes a much closer look at the early trials of SAO than the other versions, and Nezha demonstrates the difficulties of a player handicapped by hardware issues, which is a compelling twist on the game of death.
Extras include the title page and table of contents in color and bonus illustration.
For more manga and book reviews, drop by my blog Keeping It In Canon!
Progressive ratchets up the fanservice in Volume 003. Fortunately, the increase of panty shots doesn’t signal the end of good writing. Asuna’s shattered sword leads to an intriguing mystery followed by the introduction of a devastating hardware-related predicament that wasn’t included in the Aincrad arc. In addition, Kirito/Asuna fans will be gratified to see the pair together more often than not despite Kirito’s decision to go solo.
The Review
Progressive’s sister series Fairy Dance lays on the fanservice pretty thick, but with Asuna as the main character in Progressive I thought the mangaka would be more high-minded in those matters. Well, Volume 3 proved me wrong. Two tense scenes turn into panty-revealing moments for Asuna, and when Kirito has her materialize all her items, it’s practically a rain of lingerie. The series might as well be called Underwear Art Online. On top of that, the Rat spends as much time making lewd insinuations about Kirito’s intentions toward Asuna as she does providing game-relevant information. Perhaps this is to raise Asuna’s moe level for males, but as a female reader, I find it irritating to have those elements diminish Asuna’s dignity.
Moving on to the plot, both the SAO anime and the Aincrad manga painted Kirito as a lone wolf who, after the defeat of the Level 1 Boss, doesn’t really interact with Asuna until many levels later. However, the Progressive storyline depicts them as a kind of dynamic duo. They’re still only in Level 2, but they are widely perceived by the SAO community as an item. After Asuna’s Wind Fleuret shatters, they investigate the incident together, and they also continue teaming up in the dungeons.
Asuna is not your typical gamer, and thanks to flashbacks of her upbringing, we understand why she thinks and acts the way she does. At times, those differences give her an edge over Kirito, but for most of Volume 003, she’s the weaker partner. Kirito’s constantly helping and bailing her out and often winds up slapped for his efforts.
Volume 003 also brings recent cast addition Nezha to the forefront. When he first appeared in the middle of Volume 002, I considered him an insignificant extra. However, the mangaka very cleverly puts the blacksmith at the center of a mystery, and immediately thereafter involves him in an NPC quest with Asuna. Progressive takes a much closer look at the early trials of SAO than the other versions, and Nezha demonstrates the difficulties of a player handicapped by hardware issues, which is a compelling twist on the game of death.
Extras include the title page and table of contents in color and bonus illustration.
For more manga and book reviews, drop by my blog Keeping It In Canon!
September 24, 2016
so remember how the promise of "Progressive" was to showcase Asuna's growth from n00b to The Flash
yeaaaah, that's not what's happening. Instead Kirito is retconned to be spending way more time with her as full-on party member AND the fanservice is turning it up to max
We got panty flashes from her increasingly shorter-drawn skirt, there's a scene with a cream-filled bun exploding all over her face .... and even a scene where Kirito in an attempt to catch her instead gets face-full of her butt
and there's some extremely awkwardly placed flashbacks involving Asuna's mother. A clumsy attempt of LN's "mother's rosario" continuity on family problems?
Wish the blacksmith new-chara had more screen time instead. A player with a defective [?] NervGear connection screwing up his in-game depth perception sounds fascinating!
yeaaaah, that's not what's happening. Instead Kirito is retconned to be spending way more time with her as full-on party member AND the fanservice is turning it up to max
We got panty flashes from her increasingly shorter-drawn skirt, there's a scene with a cream-filled bun exploding all over her face .... and even a scene where Kirito in an attempt to catch her instead gets face-full of her butt
and there's some extremely awkwardly placed flashbacks involving Asuna's mother. A clumsy attempt of LN's "mother's rosario" continuity on family problems?
Wish the blacksmith new-chara had more screen time instead. A player with a defective [?] NervGear connection screwing up his in-game depth perception sounds fascinating!
February 15, 2017
Turns out they can make "Asuna eating a cream-filled bun" even more fanservicey than "Asuna taking a bath." :P
Still, I really like this series! The characters are fun, and the fantasy game world and storyline are both interesting. I really like that, even though the characters are trapped in game and can't escape unless they beat all the bosses, this series is about much more than boss battles. All the little side quests and stuff are fun to read about!
My full review of the first four volumes appears on No Flying No Tights.
Still, I really like this series! The characters are fun, and the fantasy game world and storyline are both interesting. I really like that, even though the characters are trapped in game and can't escape unless they beat all the bosses, this series is about much more than boss battles. All the little side quests and stuff are fun to read about!
My full review of the first four volumes appears on No Flying No Tights.
January 2, 2016
What I originally wanted out of SAO
I want a novel but this scratches the same itch of seeing SAO explored floor by floor with the mysteries and challenges of the world really l fleshed out with a focus on the best character Asuna. If I had one gripe, it is that Kiribati is still treated with too much reverence.
I want a novel but this scratches the same itch of seeing SAO explored floor by floor with the mysteries and challenges of the world really l fleshed out with a focus on the best character Asuna. If I had one gripe, it is that Kiribati is still treated with too much reverence.
February 11, 2016
Wow, really enjoyed this volume of the SAO light novels! Very interesting & funny side stories! Love SAO & Kirito & Asuna together! : ) if you want to get into the series, I definitely recommend starting with Aincrad volumes first & watching the anime, its on Hulu, crunchyroll, & Netflix : ) Can't wait to read volume 4! : )
May 8, 2016
Asuna's sword get's destroyed by a blacksmith who seems to break a lot of special items. Hmm... Kirito and Asuna hang out a lot, and I suppose this is what they were up to inside the game. They are cute together, but not as amazing as they seemed to be in the anime. I will keep reading!
September 8, 2015
...Again...there's some totally unnecessary (and pretty ridiculous) fanservice...but the actual storyline behind all that is interesting enough that I'll put up with it to see how it all ends.
October 1, 2015
not a fan of nerfing Asuna
October 15, 2015
This illustrator style is very expressive and I like the way the story has been tweaked to provide fun as well as insight on characters to the reader.
May 31, 2016
Asuna And Kritio are so different from the Anime but I think it is a cool twist
November 17, 2016
Good volume. Love this series.
December 12, 2016
Another awesome story in the tradition of SAO. We get to see more of Asuna and Kirito working together as well as the beginning of a new challenge just for Asuna.
June 20, 2023
Progresivamente aburrido
April 2, 2017
With this one it was rather intriguing to see how these players live and die by their weapons and how the loss of one can make all the difference in the world.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews