Thread:Islandboss/@comment-112.198.103.36-20160321182625

Yuuki vs. Kirito: Full break-down SWORD ART ONLINE SERIES· MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 Greetings SAO fans,This is a more detailed run down in addition to our FAQ to show one specific example for the point why Kirito is not the strongest character. For this, I will explain why Yuuki was in fact superior to Kirito in a fair 1v1 fight, as I have done many times over the years. First of all, the easiest explanation: Author Reki Kawahara said so. And not only once. That includes the character Q&A where he had Kirito call beating Yuuki “close to impossible”. However, this note will also explain to you why that is logically the case. Also let me say right away that I will only go off the source material, the novels. The anime is just too deluded by changed scenes that do not portray the content accurately.To begin, let me list some of the most basic things that make Kirito one of the most skilled players in the SAO universe, and are commonly used by Kirito advocates in arguments: - Long VRMMO in-game time - Great reaction speed, reflexes, and intuition - Quick learnerGreat, but now let us look at Yuuki: - Even longer VRMMO in-game time than former SAO players due to her permanent dive in the medicuboid - Significantly greater reactions, reflexes, and intuition. This was cited from Kirito himself, saying if she was in SAO she would have gotten Dual Blades instead of him (which had the criterium to be the player with the fastest reactions), and Asuna, when Yuuki parried her highest speed attack, which was said that Kirito was never be able to parry even once. - Even quicker learner. After only a few days in ALO she was already so good at flying (which is said to be really hard to adapt for starters) to beat Leafa in aerial combat, who is considered one of the very top players in ALO when it comes to flying.Now, let me address some of the major arguments people bring up all the time:1. “Kirito was not playing serious”. This one usually comes in two versions, because a) Yuuki is a girl, or b) it wasnt a life or death situation. Both are wrong. The first one is simply incorrect because it was stated multiple times that he absolutely did not hold back because she was a girl (and never did at any other point in the series when fighting a girl for that matter). The second is simply not applicable. Saying Kirito only fights full potential when in danger of dying is fine, however, same can be said for Yuuki. It was not a life or death situation for her either, and her full potential in a situation like that was actually never even shown. Despite that, there were multiple points where other characters said the same. Leafa said she believed that he did not hold back a bit when looking at their duel, and Asuna realized that he didnt hold back after fighting Yuuki herself.2. “Kirito didnt dual wield / use Excaliber” Those two are connected so I will explain them at the same time. First you have to realize, that in new ALO unlike SAO, dual wielding doesnt give a great advantage anymore. The unique skills from SAO, including Kiritos Dual Blades, do not exist in ALO, meaning that he does not have access to its full power. Especially in case of this duel, where speed matters more than anything else, dual wielding wouldve actually been an obstacle for him, because it would give Yuuki easy opportunites to exploit the gaps in his attacks. Speed also applies to the Excaliber part. Excaliber is a really powerful weapon, but it is extremely heavy for a one handed sword, even heavier than his Elucidator was in SAO. While Kirito prefers heavier weapons, this would diminish his speed by a lot, and he was already slower than Yuuki by using his light normal sword. On top of that, as I already said earlier, we are looking at a “fair” fight here, meaning equal ground. The Excaliber argument does not work, because we are looking at who has more skill in a 1v1, not who has the better weapon.Now at the end I want to make something clear. This is not to bash on Kirito at all, or diminish his accomplishments. Kirito is still one of the very best players, just not THE best. He gave Yuuki a very decent challenge (as their second duel went on for over 10 minutes), but it is important to understand that he is not invincible, and that is absolutely fine. If you have any additional points that you think are important, I will possibly address and add them later. Regards,<<>> 