I gotta tell you, I don't really like shoujo manga and animes. I tried, but I found them too clichéd (gah, hate clichés) and mushy and I usually hate the main female characters with such a passion I can't continue with the story. What is up with the annoying love triangles too? Not to mention the art style tends to be so... cheesy or just... weird. Hope this doesn't offend anyone, they're just not to my taste.
Anyway, I started reading this because my sister recommended it. I was skeptical, cuz of the reasons I listed above. But once I started, boy I fell in love with this.
What makes KH so amazing is that it keeps all the GOOD elements of a typical shoujo manga but doesn't overdo them, and also has other amazing things added to it. I don't get why this is so underrated: this is obviously a masterpiece.
Story (10/10):
None of the many synopsis I read for this do justice. At the beginning, I thought this was just a light hearted story consisting of several funny and heart warming arcs. And I loved this for that. Even though there were some unoriginal plot elements, the mangaka just added this unique something to them that kept me from being bothered by that.
As the story developed I realized that in fact, most arcs and just simple revelations within them all were put there foreshadowing so many things for the bigger plot/arc that is shown later on in the manga. It becomes slightly more serious, but just very slightly. It's just amazing how the mangaka wove all those little plot elements together.
The romance is slow, but not frustrating in a bad way or dragging. There's always a chemistry between the two MCs and the romance of other characters are well developed and cute as well.
All of the subplots are fun to read and heart warming as well, I was never bored reading any of them.
Art (10/10):
I don't know for others, but I personally really love this art style. It doesn't have characters drawn so unrealistically beautiful, but they definitely don't look ugly. I'm not sure what you call them exactly, but the art when showing a very funny situation is very well drawn too. I laugh every time at them. Last but not least, the character designs are really well done.
Additionally, the art is always consistent throughout the chapters, if not improved subtly but greatly.
Characters (9/10):
I agree that on the surface the characters seem pretty bland, but I promise they're not. Yup, there is a cheery high school girl who stumbles upon a fantasy world and gains powers, she meets a yokai boy, everybody comes to like her, etc. The yokai boy isn't very friendly, is powerful. But seriously, they're not the usual type of characters in any manga. I actually like Nanami a lot (she's the female MC), which is a miracle for me really.
Nanami IS weak, she's just a high school girl after all. But she knows this and tries hard at all times to be independent, and though she doesn't always succeed, readers can come to like her for how down to earth, strong, caring and brave she is. Also, she's not very intelligent, no, but she's not ignorant. She's not a little kid.
All the characters in KH are all lovable, and even the are antagonists. There's only a very thin line between good and evil, which I love. Everyone's feelings seem real, and they're very well developed.
Enjoyment (10/10):
Full points, of course. This is one of my favorite mangas or possibly my favorite out of all, and I re-read this many times. It has a slice of life feeling (which I usually find boring... I know, I know, I'm just a very picky reader) but it's not boring or anything thanks to the fantasy elements and quirky characters.
So, I give an overall score of 10/10. What is there not to like of KH? None, really.
