Tokyo Ghoul has always been about the twists and the turns the story takes you, and the characters you meet along the way. Re: takes that experience a step further, through conspiracies, betrayal, and mystery. At times, it can seem like Ishida is whipping the story along at random, and at other times, it can seem like it was all planned out from the beginning. I think the truth is somewhere in between. It has pacing problems, but I think a lot of them are because the scope of the story got out of hand. If you want to resolve the storylines of the 20-character cast, there is going to be a lot happening, and not much time to breathe.
Characters are the main draw of the series. They grow, fall apart, and grow again- in Ishida's own words, every character is the protagonist of their own tragedy. It's a tragedy, then, that he often seems to throw a lot of that development away in pursuit of plot convenience, or insert character development too little, too late.
The art is stellar. Stylistically emotive, and at times charmingly sinister, Ishida's artistic talent is second to none. His paneling, while generally unimaginative, hosts art that never seems rushed. Characters have character and are well designed, monsters are monstrous, and landscapes are detailed without seeming traced. Ishida struggles at times with making fight choreography clear, but it's never ruined a scene.
At the end of the day, Tokyo Ghoul Re: is a battle seinen, just as Tokyo Ghoul before it. The work is imperfect, as most are, but it's a clear cut above the rest. If you read Tokyo Ghoul, read Re:. It's a sequel more than a spiritual successor, and the story is just incomplete otherwise. If you haven't read Tokyo Ghoul, consider reading it if you are comfortable with a grimdark battle seinen with something to prove.
Story:. . . . . 5/10
World: . . . . 9/10
Characters: 8/10
Art: . . . . . .10/10
Overall: . . . 8/10