I won't lie: I got super bored way too often watching Tokyo Ravens. Not because there wasn't action or emotional intensity--actually, Tokyo Ravens was chalk full of action--but because a lot of the episodes felt really busy. Battles followed by exposition followed by plot twists and so on. Now, had this been the first Shounen I ever watched, I might have been taken with the complexity of it all, but Tokyo Ravens felt both like a fully built-out world and an overly complicated one. That feeling changed depending on where I was in the story (sometimes I thought the world building was great and other times I thought it was too much). It was enough to make me feel like the episodes were blending into one another and like they were more difficult to get through than they should've been.
That being said, I actually really enjoyed the story being told through all of the fluctuations. Another comment I've seen about Tokyo Ravens is that it balances its genres well, and for the most part, I agree. Granted, some of the more comedic moments often felt slightly shoe-horned in, but generally, the romance balanced well against the action and drama and humor. I won't get too into where these characters end up at the end of the anime (especially because this is only the tip of their overall story from the LN), but the last few episodes really solidified my impression that I quite like the plot as well as the characters themselves. There are a few characters that I didn't feel needed to be there for the story to end up where it did, but nonetheless, Tokyo Ravens convinced me to enjoy and root for these characters, and not only that, but to be invested in their relationships with one another.
Did Tokyo Ravens perfect any of the elements I just talked about? No. But it really is enjoyable enough to watch (at least it is when the main characters get screen time because those were moments I really enjoyed). It didn't fail to be an entertaining anime, it's just not as polished as other Shounen. Not for lack of trying, though, because it's got lore galore and a pretty rich world that surrounds these interesting characters. The bottom line is: the execution was sloppy, but the elements were great.
