If you want a good quality cheap rod, the Ethos rods are good. Underpowerd tho, so get a strength above what you want. That said, I've never spend more than $50 or so on a store brand rod. If you're getting up around the $100 plus price range, there are MUCH better rods for the money out there. Like Omen Blacks or Falcons.

All my rods are either Allstar or Ethos. I love them and they have always done me right. 90% of my reels are Mettle reels and they are fantastic. They will wear out in about 5 years but for 25 bucks (always get them on sale) who cares. Just throw them away and get another one. I also heard that if you break one of the rods you can bring it back and they will give you another one free, no questions ask. I've never done that personally but I've been told that by a couple people.

The rods are pretty good for the price. The blue ones seem a little brittle as I have broke 3 but you can swap them at the store.

H20 express make awesome lures. They really work well, sharp hooks. The reels are ok, the rids are spectacular, the braid is sorta cheap, the mono is fine, and the prices are right on

If u wear out one of their reels take it back and tell them they will exchange it or give u store credit no questions asked

The good:
As mentioned, their hard baits, spinnerbaits, and frogs are good to great. In particular, I like their square bills, suspending and diving jerkbaits, topwaters, spinner baits and frogs. I don't much care for their deep diving crankbaits.

I liked the old Academy All Star rods and still use some. Their technique specific rods are good too--I have one of their Medium Poppin/Spinnin rods that I use for light top waters, jerkbaits, and sometimes drop shot--Really like it.

The decent: Their hooks work fine, but dull quickly. Their jigs are OK and can be purchased for under $1. Be sure to secure the skirt with a small zip tie.

The bad: I bought a very cheap Academy Lava spinning combo--it's the only rod I've ever broken (broke at the tip); but the cheap Lava spinning reel still works.

I've never tried their fishing line

Caught a lot of fish on the square bills and the popper... I actually like the popper better than some of the 15-25$ baits everyone else loves so much. The ethos rods are decent... they don't make lefty reels so I've never tried them.. had one bad experience with the flipping hooks so I go owner and gammy only at this point... Not the best across the line but some of it is great value for a lower price...

That's BS. Grammy hooks are Japanese made, H2O china.

I haven't tried their rods mainly because I have enough rods as it is. I do have three of the Mettle reels I got when they were on sale for like $30. This was almost 2 years ago and they still do great. Most cheap ($50) reels I've bought worked fine for about a week and then they go downhill quick.

As far as their lures, I like the jerkbaits, frogs, and crankbaits pretty well

I like the mettle

I bought an H2O reel last year based on the recommendations here. Then I got a $100+ reel as a gift. I like the Mettle better.

Good stuff. I have a spook that I love made by Sammy, H2O uses the same body for their spook. Also have one of their poppers works great as well. The cranks are good. They have some that only dive like 12 inches or less that are great for ponds and shallow water. And their lures have a great paint job as well. Can't say enough about Academy's stuff its been good to me.....especially when you can't afford the name brand stuff.

Be careful with the hooks. I skimped with a couple 4/0 and 5/0 worm hooks and have found a few that had a big gap on the hook eye. Big enough for 17lb mono to slip through. I suspect their brand has minor defects that they can sell on the cheap and get away with a few flaws. For the price I am OK with discarding a few of the defected hooks.

I have a few of the deep crank baits and have not had a lot of success with them but if I took that approach I would fish with minnows!!

Just Fish

Mettle Reels are very good...great warranty. Ethos rods are good for the price, but the rods can be very inconsistent. Bought two of the same model...felt like totally different rods. Their hard plastic lures are OK....the hooks leave a little room for improvement. The bodies of the baits are just a little bigger than most in the same class...not sure that matters?? I've gotten a few that just would not run true...all replaced at no charge. For the price Academy stuff is a good buy.

Mettle Reels was good.
Hard baits are good/great especially when those go on sale.
I've broken a few of their rods.
Jigheads aren't great but good enough for crappie and sandbass.
Rain gear is good.
The H20 mono is terrible.