Children can and do appreciate good anime though. For this review I'll consider the Japanese version.
The lowest score, 8, has to go to art. As a grown-up I've seen top notch quality and you do not expect SK to demonstrate excellence in terms of art. People, spirits, places and backgrounds are moderately well designed. There are a lot of moments with great visual impact. Considering their immense number, action sequences are animated okay.
The dialogues and the story-line are well done until the very end of the anime and the ending may leave a lot of people unsatisfied, therefore I couldn't rate the story 10. I thoroughly enjoyed how it all moved forward, how conflicts were resolved and how the single one threat of Hao loomed closer and closer to build it all up. Characters were introduced, developed and interacted with one another beautifully. The tournament became a means to explore underlying themes of friendship, hatred, forgiveness, hard work, hope and destiny. Comedic aspects were well balanced with drama and the epic action.
The effort poured into the voice acting and soundtrack of this series is certainly not widely acknowledged, but the series include two bombs like Romi Paku and Megumi Hayashibara who are very talented, along with many other skillful actors that brought characters to life. I even fell in love with Ren Tao - seriously I made dozens of drawings, I even dreamt about him. Anyway, the music is very varied and was used purposefully, blending with various scenes in harmony. I can still recite the two openings and a few other songs from memory. 10.
Characters! Who can forget Yoh's goofy smile, Ren's fits of anger, Ryu's gigantic thumb and pompadour, Horohoro's cute spirit Kororo, Anna's scary eyes, Manta's brave soul? Nah, they and the rest are unforgettable. Each has their own unique personalities, dreams and lessons to teach us. I grew up with them as they grew up with each other. 10. 11. 12.
I remember rushing home everyday from school, telling everyone to shut up and turning on the TV to watch Shaman King. The series would glue my eyes to the screen. I remember feeling miserable when Yoh lost to his opponents. I remember falling of my seat laughing when Chocolove pissed off Ren. Enjoyable all the way. 10.
I acknowledge that this series has its own shortcomings. I know it is not perfect. Maybe the sweetness of my childhood is interfering with my judgement.
When I have a child, though, he or she is watching this.
9/10.
