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I am currently at about the halfway point of the series and I am here to tell you if it’s worth all of the effort to watch this series.

In short: Yes, if you’re willing to commit to it.

The story starts off a bit slow and begins to pick up over time. The one problem I have is the amount of irrelevant fillers that make an appearance in episodes. I don't mind a gap between arcs because you can always skip those episodes. In recent episodes, I have had a problem with filler dialogue that doesn't really contribute to the overall story at all. Like there ... could be a whole episode that has half of the time dedicated to minor characters and it disrupts the flow the story.

Another thing, some of the arcs feel like they are dragged on forever. It just doesn't reach a conclusion in a reasonable fashion, which is irritating.

However, the longevity of the series can also be a positive in developing the plot. Luffy and his crew run into a lot of interesting people which allows them to make connections that later can become relevant to the plot.

For now, I have to give this series a 7/10. I don't plan on dropping this series anytime soon but if you're debating on starting this series or not, be aware that there are a lot of bumps along the road.

The Berserk manga deserves a better adaptation than this.

I think that most people can agree, whether they are a die hard fan of Berserk or not that within the first 5 minutes that the CGI animation is an abomination. I understand the argument that Miura’s art style is so detailed that it is a challenge to animate it. If that is the case, then the manga shouldn’t be animated at all. The CGI just goes to prove how little the production team cares about the anime. The poor CGI just reminds me of the animation you’d see at bowling alleys when you’d get a ... strike. It also just might be me, but I feel like Guts’ face seems to be a bit elongated.

There are random scenes of the anime that don’t include CGI which throws me off completely because its actually pretty good but they only last for a few seconds. Because of this random changes from CGI to decent animation, it is a bit distracting. Berserk 2016 also contains random dramatic shots of scenes which don’t require it. It doesn’t add anymore intensity to the scene or anything like that. The bright colors of Lady Farnese and Serpico’s clothes are again very distracting and not realistic. They look like they haven’t fought a day in their lives. Most of the colors worn would be more of a muted shade instead of flashy bright colors.

I think that one of the best parts of having this great story in an animated form is to see great action scenes paired with exhilarating music, which is something that I felt Berserk 2016 did well. Hearing heavy guitar riffs while seeing Guts swing a giant piece of steel is a perfect combination. However, Berserk 2016 lacks memorable soundtracks like the Kenpuu Denki Berserk had.
There were also multiple counts of mispronunciation of names throughout the anime, which shows how little care the production team put into this anime.

This is just an example for how a great story cannot make up for poor animation. 4/10

Warning: May Contain Spoilers!

Comradery! That’s the one word I can use to summarize Haikyuu!!. I went into this show not knowing anything about volleyball. My friends played club volleyball but I’ve never seen them play before. I felt that the inclusion of Ittetsu’s character was vital for most viewers who have never watched a game of volleyball in their life. Rather than having an origin story of the main character develop an understanding of the game and us following along to absorb a lot of information in one sitting, the writers weaved the rules into the narrative. It has made the story enjoyable for all ... viewers, considering the volleyball is a very technical game and isn’t as widely known.

As for the storyline, I felt that the rivalry between two characters on opposing sides was getting old for an anime storyline, but to have them on the same team was a fresh and new approach to this type of storyline. Seeing two rivals, one who fell from victory and one with no experience but high ambition, come together to develop and improve themselves was interesting as well. Kageyama started to slip back into his old power-hungry habits but was stopped short and reassured by his coach and teammates.

This anime has been almost nostalgic for me when I used to play sports in high school. I wasn’t the best and I didn’t belong to a team that was that great either, but the moments after a hard practice on a bus ride to a meet/game was what I missed the most about it. The pain and struggle that we all faced in and out of practice was what allowed us to bond together. I was a first year in high school on the swim team and to have lots of upper classmen treat me as an equal or to even acknowledge me was a good feeling. That is what this show reminded me about.

For that, I felt Haikyuu!! deserved an 8/10 for its exceptional character development and story.