I really love the 1st and 7th episode of SMC III (directed by Akira Takahashi). All of frame were drawn carefully and looked acceptable and the animation was very smooth (and the animators of this episode knew how to draw a skirt). However, the inconsistency with SMC1 - 2 and the effort to distance it from SMC1 - 2 (the eyecatch pictures, the logos...) made it a jarring experience for me. As a whole, I think it was a loss.
BTW, anyone noticed the feather in the logo of SMC4, after the katakana text? They decided to return to the same old Moon symbol.