The movie is definitely the highlight for me, it takes the series and just explodes it in terms of character and plot development and breathes a whole new life into the story before it continues on in the manga. It was so great, I actually sat back in my chair after I finished it, and spent the whole rest of the day (week, maybe?) thinking about it.

That's not to say the series isn't good though, I agree it's a bit hard to keep up with and fully understand what's going on, but it has a great story in itself with fun characters and episodes all-around. I do feel the series is a set-up for the movie, but it did a great job at it; and for that, this will remain my favorite series for the forseeable future.