Shugo Chara was one of those anime that I REALLY was hesitant to watch. I read some of the manga and was, quite frankly, very disappointed with it. I didn't know why so many people were hyped up about it. After finally pushing myself to get over the absolute girlyness of it, I finally got an appreciation for the anime. This is coming from someone who would rather watch Black Lagoon or Mirai Nikki, by the way.
Story:
Okay, so it's a pretty average "Monster of the Week" kind of plot. Basically, everyone has an "egg" in their heart and if you awaken that egg, you get your own Guardian Character and can transform with them to get a Character Transformation. However, your egg can also become an X character if you're going through a lot of stress. The main characters fight the X characters and save the day. There ya go. There is a real plot that goes on, but 90% of the anime is just that.
Art: I have to say, I normally hate Peach Pit (the manga duo who also created DearS and Rozen Maiden) but I found the art and animation of Shugo Chara very appealing. It was bright and colorful with very detailed lineart. The animation was well done (nothing amazing, but definitely not terrible) so it was nice to admire. The transformation scenes are especially cute and well executed. It was actually the transformations I saw on YouTube that got me wanting to watch Shugo Chara.
Sound: Nothing amazing. Catchy J-Pop songs for openings and endings that are easy to sing to, but nothing spectacular. I don't even remember the BGM so it never stood out to me.
Character: A VERY large cast of characters. Many of the characters start off as anime stereotypes but do become more developed as the story goes on (at an EXTREMELY slow pace though). The main character, Amu Hinamori, is a young girl who people think is "cool and spicy" when she really is shy and girly. You will most probably find her as a very annoying character. I most certainly did. She does develop as a character, but I could care less about her. There are the school Guardians who are enjoyable too (my favorites being Kairi, Kukai, and Rima). There's also Ikuto who is the classic bad boy that all the fangirls fawn over (I personally never cared for him) and Utau Hoshina (who I wish was the main character, quite frankly). And there are also all of the Guardian Characters that you'll meet. Overall, it's a very wide cast and there is bound to be at least one character that you'll come to love. They all get developed pretty well and each of their stories are interesting to watch (except Yaya...).
Enjoyment: If you can put up with the absolutely girliness and some really annoying characters, Shugo Chara is an incredibly enjoyable anime. Each time I watched a new episode, I felt happier and ready to do anything. Shugo Chara makes a bad day much better with the different morals that each episode teaches (no matter how cheesy some might be). Many of the situations the characters go through are relatable so it's makes the viewer more connected with the story.
Overall: Not an amazing or incredibly unique anime, but very fun and light-hearted. You should definitely watch this if you're having a bad day and need something bright and happy to cheer your up. I give this a 7/10 because although it's nothing very unique, it's has several redeeming qualities that will make you stick through all 51 episodes and even through to the 2nd season (but don't bother watching the 3rd season...).
