I just started this one and watched the first five eps in a row (when I should have been doing homework....bah, anime is going to make me fail school) and I had no problems with the pacing. I can see how the episodes would be frustrating one at a time, but watched all together it feels like an appropriate speed. It feels more real. They've done a pretty good job of character development so far, giving us some info not only about everyone's past, but their families and community as well.
My favourite part so far was when they were being purified by the shrine priest, and the Tokyo kid tries to run away from having his hair cut, and the big eyed girl looks at him and says, "Take it like a man." She's quite the feisty one.
The crazy grandmother just scares me. I wouldn't be surprised if they were to meet her in the Unseen World somewhere.
The reiteration of the Black Giant in the woods is interesting. It could be the spirit of the kidnapper left behind after he was killed. I'm curious too about what they meant by saying that the abandoned village is a boundary between the seen and Unseen worlds. Could this hypothetically mean that there might be travel in both directions? Looking forward to the next episode.