OK, I just looked through the scanlated chapters of the Realist manga.
The "balloon boob syndrome" is there, yeah (HOLY HELL EXCEL). But aside from that, the art is pretty well done IMO. I really like Tomoe and Liscia's designs and the crowd shots really made the world feel alive to me.
And I'm so glad I can finally distinguish between Souma and Hal without a struggle.
In the novel illustrations the only difference I can spot is Hal's slightly longer bangs and red-ish hair (when he appears in color...).