Black Sigil is the next in line of bland, uninspired, but still ultimately playable JRPGs for the DS.
The good:
* Decent, although cliche, character development, and some good NPCs to meet along the way, and the chance to play as several different characters
* Colorful, well animated visuals
* Nice, "old school" soundtrack
The bad:
* Turn-based combat and frequent random encounters mean that you spend a lot of time absentmindedly smacking the A button just to get through easier battles.
* Related to the above, there's a LOT of combat, so it has a heavy "grinding" feel to it.
* Slow pace -- the story develops slowly, with lots of tedious and repetitive combat along the way.
* Somewhat dated visuals -- again, this could have just as easily been a GBA title with no noticeable changes.
If you're looking for a solid but very straightforward JRPG, this is an OK choice. If you're looking for something a little more interesting and fresh, I'd recommend Knights in The Nightmare. If you really do want an old-school adventure, there are better recent choices like Valkyrie Profile, Chrono Trigger, or Suikoden Tierkries.