It might have been 'meh' to some people, but to me, it was the anime that I have been searching ever since GaoGaiGar (without the irritating and repeating fusion scenes). It has reminded me of the old times where drills were in the heart of every men.
The story by itself might seem plain and straightforward, and predictable at times, but Gainax has done a great job to make the eventual entertaining and exciting. There were moments where you'd want to scream; moments where you want to laugh, and moments where you'd shed your tears. But with the story alone, it ain't perfect yet because there are improvments to be made.
The charaters are really the ones who has pushed this serie to be top notch. Every main character and several minor individual was unique and had their own development. They all had a 'soul', unlike now-a-days animes where the main selling point lies within the 'moe factor'.
And the music... its just epic...
Overall, a masterpiece that you definitely want to watch. At least up till episode 8...
