With Sword Art Online: Progressive – Scherzo of Deep Night, the sequel to Aria of a Starless Night, being given a Japanese release date of October 2022, the wait for Crunchyroll or Netflix to release either movie has kept the Sword Art Online community excited with anticipation for these new installments of the franchise.
Throughout its multiple anime, light novel, and manga installments, Sword Art Online has introduced a large cast of memorable and beloved characters which will be ranked by their fan likability to determine the most popular characters of the entire franchise.
Lisbeth – Shinozaki Rika
Lisbeth is a master blacksmith introduced when Kirito is in search of someone to craft him an extremely strong sword. Lisbeth eventually goes on a short adventure with Kirito to collect the rare materials only she can gather. She is a kind, caring person who struggles with her feelings of love for Kirito, not wanting to back-stab her friend and rival Asuna.
As a master blacksmith, Lisbeth, unlike many female characters in Sword Art Online, is not portrayed as another girl for Kirito to save and is shown to be fully capable of taking care of herself. She gained much popularity for her frank attitude, and refusal to be coddled by Kirito when he underestimates her.
Klein – Tsuboi Ryotaro
Klein is the first person Kirito has any interaction with when he takes time to explain the basics and mechanics of the full-dive system to Klein. While they did split ways, Klein is always shown to worry about and make sure Kirito is doing well whenever they happen to run into each other, even personally asking Asuna to watch out for Kirito when he can’t.
Klein offers a friendship that Kirito doesn’t deserve to have. Kirito essentially abandoned Klein at the very beginning when he didn’t want to help Klein and his friends. However, Klein never once blamed him. Klein goes out of his way to often invite Kirito to join him throughout their time in Aincrad regardless of how many times Kirito rejects the offer. Regardless of some of his unsavory characteristics, Klein has always been shown to be a loyal friend to Kirito.
Leafa – Suguha Kirigaya
Suguha, or Leafa while in game, is the younger cousin of Kirito who grew up thinking that the two were brother and sister. She was the key factor in Kirito making the journey to the world tree in the Alfheim Arc of Sword Art Online where he hoped to find and rescue Asuna who had been held hostage by Sugo.
While many do not like the dynamic that Suguha is in love with Kirito who she knew as her brother for the majority of her life, Suguha’s popularity comes from her refusal to abandon a friend and devoting a significant amount of time and effort for someone who was no more than a stranger to her. With her frequent admonishment of Kirito when he deserves it, Suguha is a constant presence of comedic banter whenever she takes the screen.
Yui
Yui is the manifestation of Sword Art Online’s Cardinal system which was intended to monitor and aid the mental parameters of the players of Sword Art Online. Unable to do her job, she eventually manifests in the game with amnesia and after encountering Kirito and Asuna becomes their “child” and part of their found family.
While Yui’s role as a plot-relevant character ends after Kirito rescues Asuna from the world tree, she is a recurring character in the series and core group member. Her frequent comedic interactions with other cast members is a big factor in the coziness of many scenes where the friends are simply relaxing with one another.
Yuuki – Yuuki Konno
Yuuki, also known as Zekken, was the main focus of the Mother’s Rosario arc that took place at the end of season 2. She made her introduction when the main characters talk of an extremely strong player who is offering an exceptionally strong skill if they manage to beat her. Yuuki is one of few characters stronger than Kirito, seen when he challenged her and lost horrendously.
Yuuki’s arc is an exceptionally emotional one and potentially one of, if not the best written arc in SAO. Her bubbly upbeat attitude, used to cover up the deep sadness and angst she feels from being medically bedridden, makes Yuuki the most sympathetic characters in the series. With her heart-wrenching death being used to end season 2, Yuuki has been cemented as one of the most memorable characters in SAO.
Eugeo
Eugeo is the secondary protagonist in Sword Art Online: Alicization and the childhood friend of Kirito and Alice Zuberg. After completing his “calling,” Eugeo joins Kirito on his quest to become an integrity knight and hopefully recover the memories Kirito can’t remember due to the debilitating injury he received before being put into Project: Alice.
Eugeo learns the “Aincrad Style” from Kirito to develop and learn sword skills before they go to enroll in the knight academy. Eugeo’s self-sacrificing attitude, along with his willingness to rebel against the laws of his universe to save two girls who are being assaulted by despicable noble brats, show he is loyal and willing to do what is right, regardless of the cost.
Alice Zuberg
Alice is the childhood friend of Kirito and Eugeo. Her being the village chief’s daughter lead her to be trained in magical arts from a younger age than most others. After unfortunately breaking the “Taboo Index,” the law of their universe, she was treated cruelly by the leader of the church and had her memory erased and was turned into an integrity knight.
Alice is the main focal point of SAO: Alicization, with Eugeo and Kirito seeking the strength and ability to free her once they learned she had been brainwashed into becoming an integrity knight. She also proves her deep loyalty and love for her friends when she acts as caretaker and protector of Kirito after he sustains a critical injury.
Sinon – Shino Asada
Sinon is the secondary protagonist alongside Kirito in Gun Gale Online’s introduction is SAO II when Kirito is tasked by the Japanese government to investigate mysterious deaths associated with the murderer “Death Gun.” As a top-ranked player, Sinon assists Kirito in his investigation after she herself becomes a target.
Sinon, similar to Kirito, is tormented by her scariest moment in the SAO anime when she committed when she killed a man in self-defense just as Kirito killed villainous enemy players. Sinon not being portrayed as someone who needed to be saved but instead as someone who was doing everything she could to help herself endeared her to fans for not being another damsel-in-distress character and becoming more real because of it.
Asuna – Asuna Yuuki
Asuna is the female protagonist in SAO who often teams up with Kirito on missions and boss fights, as well as being one of the strongest players in SAO. With the events of the Mother’s Rosario Arc, Asuna is debatably the single strongest character in the entire series with her defeat of Yuuki who even Kirito could not defeat.
Asuna is potentially one of, if not the most well-known character in the entire anime community with SAO being mainstream and debated more than a decade after it’s debut. Asuna is an independent character who is given more than a few arcs where she is away from Kirito and allowed to shine on her own and demonstrate why she is so beloved.
Kirito – Kazuto Kirigaya
Kirito is the main protagonist of the SAO series who often teams up with a myriad of side and supporting characters on his various adventures both in and outside of the game. Kirito, alongside his romantic interest Asuna, is a name most if not all anime fans know whether or not they have actually seen any of the many SAO installments or enjoyed them.
Kirito’s popularity is an interesting one as no matter how many fans he has accumulated, he has an equal amount of haters and is often called a Mary Sue. If anything, the anime community’s varying opinions have kept him relevant and a topic of interest seen in the fact debates about Kirito persist 10 years after his introduction along with the many anime and manga installments he has sparked.
