- If you tolerate SOL anime that are not pretentious or edgy, that may seem "boring" or "simple", and feature normal people, then you may like this anime.
TL;DR: Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san falls in the category of what I like to call "serene", and is similar in atmosphere to Non Non Biyori. Characters are almost perfect. Solidly good show.
Story: 9
To be honest there's very little to the story, however, we must assess it in slice-of-life genre that it belongs to. The story is simple, boy meets girl, girl teases boy, cue the romantic undertones.
Art: 7
It's alright I guess. Nothing stunning but nothing bad either. The animation is quite nice.
Sound: 7
A nice, simple, mostly piano and flute based soundtrack.
Characters: 9
Initially wanted to give it a 10 but got progressively annoyed by Nishikata's reactions. They're too extreme and should've been handled better. Instead of reacting outwardly with screams like he so often does, instead he should have had internal conflicts. An alternative is to use metaphorical devices such as in Nichijou, where an exaggerated reaction is obviously not part of their reality but goes to show the state of mind of the characters.
In Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san, this is absolutely vital. The female MC seemed to be a little too stiff at times. She is almost always smiling and in a good mood. I'd love to see some more emotions from her. Even with her stiff emotional role, when other emotions do come though, it leaves a huge impact.
The show thrives on its characters and really needs to nail this aspect to be considered good.
Enjoyment: 10
Regardless of the flaw in characterization, I still thoroughly enjoyed the show. It was not boring. I care about these characters... even about the other characters that are involved. They're all likable and their personalities are distinct. They're not over-the-top moe or unrealistic.
What the... I'm talking about characters again?
Overall: 8
Anyway, it's a solidly good show and deserves a strong 8 in my opinion. If it fixed up the character flaws I might've given it a 10 even with the OK art and sound.
