Director Reveals How Long 'Sword Art Online's Anime Will Go On

This year, Sword Art Online will make its long-awaited anime comeback. Not only will the franchise [...]

This year, Sword Art Online will make its long-awaited anime comeback. Not only will the franchise release its first spin-off series, but the show's third season will debut this fall. With so many fans awaiting its return, Sword Art Online is gearing up to take over the shonen fandom once more, and it seems Aniplex plans on riding the franchise for as long as possible.

After all, the director of season three did tell fans the company plans to adapt the entirety of Sword Art Online.

Recently, Manabu One sat down for an interview where he opened up about Sword Art Online's new season. It was there the director revealed the plans he heard about regarding the anime's future.

"Around the time the movie was being test-screened. I'd already heard from the Aniplex staff that they were planning to adapt the entire Sword Art Online series," Ono revealed.

Of course, fans will know that Sword Art Online has already adapted plenty of its light novels. Season one delved into the 'Aincrad' and 'Fairy Dance' arcs before season two followed up with the 'Phantom Bullet' storyline. When season three goes live, it will begin adapting the 'Alicization' arc for an untold number of episodes. So, if Ono is right, then Aniplex plans to roll out as many episodes as it takes to complete the series.

Right now, the 'Alicization' arc is the last one of Sword Art Online, but there is more to come. Creator Reki Kawahara has said he plans on doing at least one more arc before the light novel ends. The franchise also has a unique manga-only arc via its 'Progressive' spin-off. The aside story retells Kirito and Asuna's adventure in Aincrad by going through each of its floors in-depth. So, there is always a chance the reboot could be adapted into an anime if the demand is made.

For those unfamiliar with Sword Art Online, the series was originally created by Reki Kawahara with illustrations provided by abec. The series follows a boy named Kirito after he and thousands of gamers get trapped in a virtual reality video game known as Sword Art Online. The gamers must band together to defeat the game's final level to escape, but Kirito and his guild learn there is more behind their prison than they were originally told.

Are you ready for more Sword Art Online projects? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!

0comments