When comparing Sword Art Online vs Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, the Slant community recommends Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann for most people. In the question“What are the best animes to watch?” Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is ranked 18th while Sword Art Online is ranked 33rd. The most important reason people chose Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is:
A story that grows into a simultaneously introspective and inspirational master piece. Every thing about the story and characters starts simple and clear, over the 24 episodes without you even realizing it your mind will be blown at what will come next and you will feel more invested in the characters than you thought possible.
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Pros
Pro Slow burn, great arcs
A story that grows into a simultaneously introspective and inspirational master piece. Every thing about the story and characters starts simple and clear, over the 24 episodes without you even realizing it your mind will be blown at what will come next and you will feel more invested in the characters than you thought possible.
Pro Short and sweet
This show gets to the point without feeling rushed. You won't find characters spending three episodes charging an attack for three episodes, unlike other more drawn out shows.
Pro Not adapted from manga
Unlike most popular anime, this one is an original work, meaning it can avoid certain practices common with adaptations, such as filler and deviations from the expected plot.
Cons
Con Cliche
It's just another anime where one guy gets all the girls and there are many fanservice scenes. Overall, there are many animes like that, but here, they could have gone a different route with this "game". The plot is very weak and predictable, so that's why it is "cliche", as there are thousands of anime series similar to this.
If you want fanservice, go for High School DxD or To Love Ru. If you want a gaming-related plot, go for Log Horizon, Overlord, Quanzhi Gaoshou or even KonoSuba. SAO should've finished in 14th episode of the first season. The rest is just waste of time.