In the area of music, NHK is indisputably endowed. The score for this show is unified yet fluid enough to change with the tone of the plot. Such functionality from a soundtrack is usually something you'd expect from a motion picture rather than a whole series, but that's exactly what you have here.
The animation, on the other hand, is rather 'love it or leave it'. The character designs being standard as they are (though some may find them refreshingly realistic over the myriad of shiny, big-eyed creations floating about the anime aether), the animation varies between fully functional and arguably artistic. Personally, I'll take a moving pile of mush over a stiff oil-painting any day, but for those who prefer more sensible animation, there are moments in NHK, if not entire episodes, where you might want to look away. Regardless, the show's artistic appeal gets much better whenever the perspective of the leading man shifts into fantasy mode. These forays occur with such frequency at times that they lend an even greater emotional weight to the moments when they are completely gone, particularly those scenes involving key character interactions.
As for the characters themselves, they all seem fully developed and realized, yet underutilized. Various characters whom the story suggests could be vitally important end up appearing in only a hand-full of episodes; all the while, the series puts to much pressure on other supporting character that ultimately just aren't all that compelling. The two main characters, Sato and Misaki, hold up their ends just fine, but the overall cast could have been spread about much more effectively.
As for the story, it's best to make a break for it in one or two goes, rather than try to digest it over an extended period. Should you ever find yourself in Sato's position, resigned to never leaving the space around your tv or computer, NHK makes for a great time, with a story that's packed with pathos and a climax that bears genuine emotional weight. Don't come to this show expecting answers, because the moral (not that it would ever claim to have one) is that such concepts can rarely ever be pinned down, and even then usually aren't full-proof. Still, for what it's worth, the end result does seem to say something without watering it down or compromising. As uneven as it is at times, Welcome to the NHK is certainly not lacking in integrity.
