From the whole royal court setting, I expected way more intricacy and political drama with the way the characters keep bringing up class distinctions and court etiquette, but every issue that arises is resolved pretty much instantly.
I also expected the main characters to have flaws or issues they have to work through (since you know, that is usually what happens in stories :)), but there is really... none? In my view, this show has a pretty black-and-white view of good and bad: the bad guys are caricature-like, while the good guys are completely selfless, and somehow always manage to do the right thing.
I am especially bothered about Shirayuki, because I love to see complex female characters represented in the media, but she is just the most textbook Mary Sue that could ever be. People act like she is incredibly special when there is nothing groundbreaking about her, and honestly, that would be fine by itself, because it can be really interesting to see a pretty normal character struggle and work hard towards their goals like a real-life person would, but Shirayuki just has everything working out for her.
The main couple has been advertised to me as a 'healthy couple' so I was quite excited to see that because it can be a rarity in the world of anime... And I mean sure, they are healthy, Zen is really respectful of her, which is cool but... They have no spice. No spice at all. They are both extremely bland, one-dimensional characters on their own, but putting them together it's almost worse. During their 'romantic' scenes, I didn't feel anything, as there was no build-up, progression, or chemistry of any kind, or at least it didn't reach me.
I don't think I can recommend this to either romance or fantasy fans, because the show does not excel in either, and it isn't funny enough to be a comedy, so I'd just resist the hype if I were you. I wish I did that as well.
