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I'm halfway through the series, but I feel safe in giving this series a 7: good, enjoyable, but not great quality.
Flaws, of course, have been listed to great extent: uneven character (though that comes from character-arc format), seeming inconsistencies in logic, even pacing in-episode, and most annoyingly of all, the script. That wordy, unwieldy script.
However, there are some great points that shine through as well. The battles tended to be interesting/amusing, there were a number of interesting plot ideas (figuring out the truth about Index's memory wiping, Deep Blood (in concept), the Misaka Arc). But most of all, the characters.
With a wide spread of characters, it's only natural that some would be hit or miss. In this story, that goes double. Some of the co-heroines (Index, Deep Blood girl), I simply have no real interest in. They are boring. Other characters, though, shine through: Biribiri is refreshing for being strong in her own right (the things she does need help for, like Accelerator, are completely reasonable), and the fact that she turns over the panty-shot fanservice makes me like her more. While Index bores me, those associated with her (the Magicians, the Alchemist) have a lot more interest. Even Accelerator shines through after a point: at first I thought of him as just another over-powered natural genius etc. etc., but meeting Last Order (and her talk about how he tried to communicate with the Misakas) really gave him another angle of character.
Overall, I think a large part of why I consider this a 7 (good) and not a 6 (fair) comes from the fact that most of the flaws could be corrected with better script writing, or minor re-characterization. Script-wise, a lot of junk could be simplified and the points made clearer, bringing out the heart of the great points. Talks like the one between Touma and Biribiri on the bridge (you won't kill me because you ARE a good person), the Last Order - Accelerator discussion, they could even be made better.
Others, like the discussion of Angel Fall, or others, could be made far more bearable with better simplification. Some characters could also be made better with minor rewriting: the Alchemist, for example. Why couldn't they have played up his attachment to Index more, instead of making him psycho for little reason? He should be glad she's better.
Overall, I feel Index is enjoyable, and decent in its own right. But it could stand a re-editing for the purpose of tweaking it. As it is, it's a good base, but not a polished product.
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