The genuine Kick does indeed offer some protection, regulates voltage (wattage to be exact), and essentially turns your mechanical mod into a variable wattage device.
However, if you're going to go that route, why not just get the regulated VV/VW mod? You asked about the durability of the circuit boards on the SVD. Well, what do you think the Kick is? It is a drop-in regulation circuit board, and a very fragile one at that. Better ask how long a Kick holds up before requiring replacement.
At the risk of getting slapped down by one of the forum's master vapers, I see the advantage of a mech + kick as:
1) modularity - you can swap in a future kick upgrade without having to replace your favorite mod, or you can remove the kick and vape subohm heaven (if that's your thing).
2) graceful degradation - if something happens to the PCB (e.g., juice erosion), you can swap the kick out without ditching the tube. If the board goes on a regulated mod, it's pretty much got to be binned.