Story (10): The story itself is amazing. Like I mentioned before, the main storyline does move kind of slowly, but it has picked up speed a little around volume 73, where more of the cases start to relate to the main storyline. Aoyama is a master of leaving clues about future plotlines and making you wait in suspense for answers to cliffhangers. However, with the slow story, there is a lot of filler material that has nothing to do with the main storyline, but that's why I said that this manga isn't for everybody. All of the individual cases are pretty short, and you can go through them rather quickly. Because of that and the fact that the cases mostly follow a structured format, some of the characters, cases, and motives can seem repetitive. However, each case is unique and has to be solved in a different way.
Art (9): The art, especially the characters, is fairly unique. The style does change early in the series, but it's stayed consistent for a while now. Everything is well drawn, and it's easy to understand what's happening in a given panel.
Character (8): I didn't mention this when talking about the story, but the characters are fixed in time. Time does pass (changing of seasons, holidays, etc.), but the characters never age. This has the unfortunate effect of limiting character development. There is some through the main storyline, but for the most part, the characters don't evolve much. Other than the very slow main plot, the biggest way there is character development is usually in the form of cases that occurred before the start of the series. That’s often where you get to learn more about each character. Maybe the only other way is in terms of romantic relationships. Those contribute to the characters, although everything romantic also happens very slowly.
Enjoyment (10): I did say in the beginning that this has been my favorite manga to read. I've read the entire series three times so far and loved it every time. There is a lot of well-done humor that will make you laugh out loud. There hasn’t been as much comedy recently, but I appreciate that because it means Aoyama isn’t trying to force in repetitive humor. Each case is fun and engaging to read. The main storyline is one of the best I've ever read, and as the series goes on, it keeps getting better. If you don't mind the somewhat repetitive nature of the side characters, this is one that I definitely recommend reading.
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