Blade of the Immortal Anime First Impressions

Being a long time reader of  Hiroaki Samur  's Various works, especially Blade of the Immortal (though I still maintain the Inhabitant of Infinity has the better ring to it), the anime adaptation was a highly recommended work that are a lot of fans would like  It is a far from perfect but the anime is fun to watch, but in Various respects I can not help but think it falls short of even my modest expectations. I left with some unexpectedly grave misgivings. I did not really expect a masterpiece, but unfortunately my expectations of a merely average anime has yet not be met.
One of the most immediately notable things about the style of illustration developed by Hiroaki Samura is how it is accomplished artistically, as well as stylistically. Unfortunately, none of this has been carried over into the anime; characters look extremely plain as a result, and I can not help but think more ambitious art direction would have resulted in something quite special. but still it's a must watch anime!