The World God Only Knows is an arc-based romance that bridges the line between anime and dating simulator. The cunning comedy it presents about dating simulators, anime and real life combine marvelously with its cute portrayal of high school romance and personal growth. The show uses a standard approach to rom-com but adds its own charm with exaggerated metaphors, crazy imagery and romance that (usually) feels cute and natural. I’m going to go through all 4 arcs and talk about the good and bad, plus some other stuff.

SPOILER ALERT

Quick Summary:

The story of TWGOK revolves around Katsuragi, the God of Conquest (of dating sim games). One day, Katsuragi is bound by contract to a clueless demon named Elsie and given the task to capture loose souls from Hell that are occupying… high school girls? Together, the unlikely pair must work together to find and fill the hole in each girl’s heart to capture the loose souls.

Arc 1: Takahara

The first arc of this show, brief as it may be, really sets the stage for how over-the-top and cute this show was going to be. Takahara, a young and passionate member of the track team, needs her self-doubt and self-limitations removed to regain her confidence and recover from injury. Of course, Katsuragi complies and helps remove the evil soul from her heart. There’s not much to say here outside of how enjoyable this first episode is, even though the girl in question gets the least development of any for the rest of the season. Nice job.

Arc 2: Aoyama

The second arc of the show follows Aoyama, a former rich girl who tries to maintain her high-class lifestyle to keep her dad’s memory alive. The first time I watched this show, I really didn’t like this arc, as I thought Aoyama was annoying and unlikeable. During my rewatch, I found myself enjoying the antics with Katsuragi as the chauffeur for Aoyama to keep up her image. The ending felt a bit forced and anticlimactic for me, but I still found myself enjoying it more the first time than the second. Her backstory is really easy to connect with for anyone who has lost a close family member and the resolution feels satisfying. This is also the first time we get to see a character with a serious flaw actually correct her issues and become a better person.

Arc 3: Kanon

The Kanon arc is easily the strongest arc in the first season. Kanon is the most interesting and complex girl of the four met in the first season of the show and we get time to fully see how her problem hurts her and the ways that she needs to change in order to heal. Kanon, a rising idol who is quickly growing to stardom, suffers with the fear that she will never be good enough for people, so she relies on the praise of others to keep herself motivated. When that support goes away, Kanon literally fades out of existence. Before the climax of the arc, we get to see one way that Kanon tries to keep herself from fading: by relying on Katsuragi to keep her positive and motivated. Finally, before Kanon’s biggest concert of her career, she fades out and tries to avoid her responsibility until Katsuragi helps her to realize that she doesn’t need the support of others to be herself.

Not only is this arc strong from a character perspective, it also is the first to play on the more supernatural elements of this show. Until this point, human characters faced purely human problems, and the “demon catching loose souls” part of the plot was just a device to force romantic encounters. Kanon is the first of many girls in the show who adopt supernatural “abilities” as a result of being occupied by loose souls, and it really helps to keep the show unique while leaving room for more complex situations and problems with future love interests.

Overall, this is one of the best arcs not only in the first season, but in the entire show. The show uses this arc as a model for future girls in S2.

Arc 4: Shiomiya

Unfortunately, this show ends on a low note with the final arc focusing on Shiomiya, a quiet bookworm who has trouble talking to others and deals with incredible social anxiety. She finds it difficult to relate to anyone because the only things she loves are the library and the thousands of books inside its walls. She is the only girl in the first season that is nearly impossible to like, despite filling a popular trope from dating games with the quiet librarian. Eventually, the arc ends with Shiomiya barricading herself into the library to save the books from being removed and she learns to stand up for what she believes in and to talk to others. The romance in here is eventually pretty cute once they both end up in the library, but the overall arc and the character of Shiomiya are pretty weak in comparison to the other parts of this show.

Filler Episodes

Despite being only 12 episodes long, The World God Only Knows contains three hilarious filler episodes that are definitely worth the watch. Episodes 4, 8 and 12 had me cracking up the entire time. There are no loose souls being hunted down in these and no real romance is happening, but definitely don’t skip out on them. The comedy and critiques of dating sims and culture in these episodes are incredible.

Katsuragi and Elsie

The main characters of the show provide most of the plot movement and an overwhelming amount of the comedy in this show, but never really get development in any meaningful way. That isn’t to say that I disliked the characters by any means. They’re actually perfect for filling the role that the show needs them to. Just don’t expect too much in the realm of development or serious character-building moments from the protagonists.

TL;DR

Watch this show. It’s cute, hilarious and easy to binge or watch casually. I find it impossible to not have fun and laugh out loud when watching this show. I prefer the Japanese, but the English dub is fine as well. The comedy in this show is truly special, and while the romance does not reach those same heights, it consistently is top-notch. Go have a blast.