Warning: The following contains spoilers for The New Gate episode #8!!

An alarming number of Crunchyroll subscribers have been saying in the comments section of The New Gate that this new isekai anime series is the true successor to Sword Art Online, and even though the main premise is based on SAO’s Aincrad arc, The New Gate just delivered an incredible story that follows more closely with another series called In The Land of Leadale.

Viewers of The New Gate who are familiar with In The Land of Leadale have been following all the stories involving the virtual characters that the gamer Shin created in the VMMORPG. Like him, In The Land of Leadale‘s gamer protagonist created her own supporting characters who were then forced to live without her once she “disappeared” for hundreds of years. So, by the time both of these characters come back as overpowered heroes, how their creations have lived during this time becomes a compelling part of each respective anime.

In The New Gate episode #8, Shin finally sees the second of his creations named Girart, and the story that transpires therein couldn’t have been more tragically bittersweet.

The New Gate’s Inspired Story Line Exacerbates The Tragic Goodbyes To Come

Produced by Cloud Hearts & Yokohama Animation Laboratory; based on the light novel by Shinogi Kazanami

Although an arguably less important character than Shin’s beloved Schnee, Girart’s tale is touching because the moment they see each other for the first time in The New Gate, their reunion essentially acts as one long final goodbye that had no other conclusion than Shin having to do an unthinkable task – ending Girart’s life. What makes this whole tragic situation bittersweet, and more effective story-wise, is that it was made at Girart’s own request, because it would grant him the only wish he had left after his unnaturally prolonged life. The fact that the series also alluded to the fact that Girart lived as long as he did out of a desire for that wish to be met put even more importance on Shin granting this tragic wish for his friend, despite the obvious toll it would later take on Shin.

This whole dynamic wouldn’t have been as effective if Shin never had this former relationship with Girart, and it’s one that completely borrows from In The Land of Leadale. Even worse, the series also foreshadows an even more tragic version of these events with Schnee, a character who clearly loves him and who Shin cares deeply about.

The fact that she is the first of these virtual characters viewers learn about and the first Shin reconnects with in the anime only worsens the overall anticipation, especially since viewers will be aware of what will come for a longer period of time. Unlike Girart who was already dying, Schnee is an elf who already lives longer than most species, and Shin is making the conscientious choice to leave her when she’s still alive.

The New Gate Gives A Sadder Spin to Kirito and Asuna’s Relationship

The popular isekai dynamic is being revisted and reinvented through The New Gate

Ironically, this relationship is the only other tie to Sword Art Online besides the obvious correlation in the premise. Most fans initially connected The New Gate to SAO because Shin was trapped in a game, and could only leave once a certain boss was defeated. However, the actual events of the anime diverge from SAO completely, since the story takes place after every player was able to log out except for him.

The story finally returned to its SAO inspirations through this aforementioned realization, since it’s the first time that Shin talks about returning home. The tragic twist, however, is that, in SAO, Kirito could still meet Asuna after leaving Aincrad since Asuna was also a human player. In The New Gate, Schnee is a product of the game, and will be left behind once Shin returns home.

While Kirito had to wrestle with the fact that Asuna the avatar and Asuna the human might be two different people, The New Gate‘s spin on these events is much different. More importantly, it’s more directly correlated to the entire unique situation from In The Land of Leadale, The New Gate‘s true predecessor.