Review of Bakemonogatari

Get ready for the bash, because I will have the unpopular opinion of disliking Bakemonogateri. Let me break it down to you: *Characters: while they had some kind of depth, it wasn't enough to convince me they were more than archetypes with a pile of quirks. It also pissed me off that the creators couldn't make up their minds regarding the main protag: Is he dumb or is he smart? It is one thing to have different areas of strengths and weaknesses, but when you switch between full retard and sherlock holmes in the same area of strength, then you aren't doing your character right, which isbad considering he's the lead...

*Plot: While I've heard it has an interesting plot, I never got to experience that myself. Either you watch the show without stopping and miss alot of important backstory from the pop-ups or you are the guy trying to read 'em all. In any case, it is not easily accessible. I was the guy who read all the pop-ups and I still ask myself if the info was enough justification for causing me so much frustration. The pop-up system might be innovative for its time, but it is a stupid one.
Other than that, it is a regular "monster of the week" anime that really doesn't stand out at all to me.

*Music: Was pretty good. It set the mood correctly, but other than that I really didn't think much about it. It was definitely above average though.

*Artstyle: Probably the strongest point of the show: It had a unique and really iconic artstyle that still holds up today. Credit should be given where credit is due.

*Overall thoughts and enjoyment: The reason why I grade the show this low is because I really didn't feel much at all for the duration of the show. I didn't sense enough depth in the characters worth involving myself with, and the story and the way it was presented was like an overpretentious slap to the face screaming "DO YOU UNDERSTAND ART DAMMIT?!".

As a piece of entertainment, it was shit, but as a show it had several good qualities
Unfortunately for the show, I value entertainment above all other aspects, and I had none while watching the show. The only thing pushing this rating so high was the artstyle, and even then I was generous.
This show was not for me, but I can still recomend it for artsy people