This is a loaded question, and for the sake of your attention, I will divide it up into multiple sections. I want to preface this by saying that my perspective is coming from a highly subjective point of view. I absolutely love Japan and Japanese culture (and my wife is Japanese!), and I am well aware of how that biases my opinions.
Until my wife bought me my first Japanese style knife, I had only been using Chinese style cleavers, and western style knives (think Martha Steward knife block set from TJ Maxx). One of the things I noticed immediately was the weight difference in the Japanese knife I was using. It was so light and nimble and glided through the food I was prepping. So that brings us to point #1 about why I prefer Japanese knives: they usually are on the thinner side.
I won’t bore you with the physics behind it all, you can find much better resources with a quick google search. But for me, the cutting feel is so much smoother and “cleaner”. There is a term that is often used to gauge the cutting performance called “wedging,” and basically what this means is: is the knife actually CUTTING the object (ex: a carrot), or is the knife splitting it like how an axe splits a log. There are many factors that determine whether or not a knife will wedge, but I have anecdotally felt that wedging is much less of a factor with the average Japanese knife vs the average western style knife.
After using both styles, I find myself gravitating toward Japanese (Wa) style handles over the western style handles. I prefer how it looks aesthetically with the octagonal shape. It also feels a little more natural in my hand for various types of cutting jobs. One of my all time favorite knife handles is made by a master craftsman named Momose Juntetsu-san. He produces these beautifully lacquered urushi ho wood handles that are befitting of the top tier of Japanese knives. The lacquer provides protection on top of looks so that the handle will last much longer than unfinished wood handles. I have no doubt that the knives with these handles will last beyond my lifetime if cared for properly.
Below, I will be linking to a Shapton Glass #1000 grit whetstone. This stone is a great general purpose stone for touching up and resharpening blades. It cuts fast and it looks pretty nice with the glass backing. They are also pretty compact, so it’s easy to store. The stone is pretty consistent and I’ve had no issues using it for most of my knife spa days. One caveat is that the glass stones will cut fast, but also “dish” fast, meaning they will wear down faster and create uneven surfaces depending on your sharpening angles. So make sure to get a flattening or truing stone as well to prevent any accidents!