Huh. I ski them, ski them well, and love them. They are not, however, the soft ski/boot setup that I'm referring to in any of my posts.
I will say, they are often mis-recommended to people. There was a firesale of them a few years ago among the Divas.
OK, so before I start in on the Kendo/Kenja thing, let me post my usual disclaimer. I am on my 4th pair of Kendo since they start making them in 2011. So you can say I like them. They have been my daily driver every season since 2011 with the exception of one. Also ran quite a few other pairs of skis in the same class concurrently through the years. Skis like MX88, Motive 85, Stockli VXL and Mantra come to mind.
My brother-in-law also likes the Kendo. The two of us usually spent anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks at Taos every season. We elicit lots of comments about the Kendo twins and the skis. Our standard reply is "Demo a pair and you'll know."
All that said, if I get a dollar every time I get yelled at by someone whom I recommended the Kendo to. I could have a pretty nice dinner at Red Lobster. To the extend If it is possible to have a nice dinner at Red Lobster.
Most skiers I know just down right dislike or hates the ski. Most reviewers on this forum generally fall under this category - ain't got anything good to say, don't say anything. The silence is deafening. Not that I mind and/or care.
OTOH, I also ran into lots of skiers who loves their Kendo/Kenja. Some are good technical skiers and some are not. It is the "not" group that worries me.
Couple years back. Ran into a group of skiers while skiing Inferno at Taos. Three ladies and one guy. I knew them in passing because they were regulars at Taos. All four
were on Kendo/Kenja. I was on a pair of 2013 Kendo at that time. They were overjoyed to see another pair of Kendo. Told me how they loved the skis. How fantastic the skis were. We chatted for a while, then I hung back and watched them ski off. What I saw was a series of what I considered as beautifully executed link recoveries. OTOH, They must be experienced something completely different. They were hooping and hollering all the way down. Having a great time. I thought, "Hey, what they don't know won't hurt them. They are having a good time after all."
I was wrong. Two week later, I heard through the grapevine two out of the four in that group blew their ACL.
Not a good thing.
Another thought. Don't really think it's a weight thing. My niece is a really good skier. A strong high advanced level skier by most people's book. Don't really know what that means, but whatever. She is about the same size as I am. 5'/6", 155+ lb. She demoed a pair of 163 cm Kenja because she wanted to know what my ski feels like. Didn't like it. As she said, won't turn for her. She like her Cham 87W much better. She will be on a pair of Total Joy for the coming season. I think she will be much happier.
BTW, Mamie demoed the Kenja back in 2013 on my recommendation. Was miserable all day. Yelled at me for the whole day. I guess that is her way to share the misery. She is much happier on her Cham 87W and Stockli Motion 85W.
The technical skiers like the Kendo/Kenja because they are capable and versatile.
Some dislike it because they can't get it to do what they wanted.
Others like it for the thrill ride it provides. For those in for the thrilling ride, I think there are much more suitable skis available out there.