This anime has some of the best anime magic I've seen, second only to the magic used in Rental Magica, as well as having the best "powers" in any anime ever which is more developed in the spin off A Certain Scientific Railgun.
This show has so much going on that you never know what to expect, and I don't mean this in a bad way, like you are going to be overwhelmed. What I mean is this anime isn't afraid to take chances and do things you wouldn't have otherwise expected. The world itself is also a bit unique mixing both the technological and the mystical to great effect.
As for the main heroine, while at times I do feel like she's a bit bland, or rather more a bit stereotypical, but more often than not she's quite an interesting character to watch. As the story progresses relatively early on, the story takes a plot twist that I was honestly not expecting. I'm not going to spoil anything of course, but the anime does a great job of breaking your expectations and putting on spectacular fight scenes that are rivaled by few.
Its a great anime in my book one that I'd recommend any day, and I'm proud to have it as one of my top ten.
