I wasn't expecting much of Girls Band Cry, but it blew me away. At first, I was mostly surprised by how good the animation felt. I haven't seen any 3D show since Land of the Lustrous (that I can remember) and it felt like it peaked back then. It's been 7 years since then and things evolve over time, but since this show doesn't have any official English subtitles I was expecting a more niche show - one that relies more in appealing to a core audience rather than with raw skill. That was not the case.
It's always moving. My guess it's easier to achieve this with 3D animation, but watching 2D animation shifted my expectations. It made me wish I had put more effort into learning Japanese so I didn't have to be constantly going back scenes to properly enjoy them.
I'd say it has a nice blend of anime style expressions with a mix of stuff I'd only expect from life action. Some of these shots are not possible with a standard 3D model, so either there's some interesting shader work at play or they have several models for some characters.
On the other hand, sometimes characters express themselves in a way that is more nuanced than you get in anime. Some times it feels like they would explode trying to contain their emotions, other times it's so smooth it makes you feel lucky if you notice it.
As I watched the show, either I got more used to these or they toned them down a bit, but it never felt they ran out of time to put their heart in the animation.
Voice acting was great too. They all have quite unique voices which is unusual. After watching so many shows you get to listen to some of the same voices (or at least in the same style). As far as I can tell (haven't done not much research) the VAs all form a band IRL so it makes sense they differ from traditional voice acting. The main character might have the most anime-like voice, which might make sense since she's the singer and knows better how to use her voice.
Story-wise, it was within my expectation. It's a teen show and the drama scale us turned up to eleven. I still loved it to bits. Some part of me thought I'd be too old for it, but I'm never too old for heart-felt stories of people wanting to make art out of their experiences. And, even if I'm old, I still have a lot of room to grow, so some of the scenes hit close to home.
If anything, I wish this show was longer. The show focused a lot on the main character which lead to great scenes, but as I got to know each character a bit more, I wish they had put her a bit in the background sometimes to let them shine. But that's a sign that I enjoyed it a lot.