Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai

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"Gotta catch em all!" This famous pokemon phrase might be fitting with this series in such a weird way. Instead, we get 'I can see the ending'.

Shonen Sunday has been getting quite bad financially. After the long running of a few hit series such as Conan, Kenichi, Hayate, Inuyasha, and bunch of others, they were not getting notable works. As all those long running series are encountering mannerism, it is pretty obvious they are getting less and less viewers due to lack of importing of fresh new series with good idea. This manga, Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai, is also meeting the point where ... manga gets over the cut-line to be called "long-term-serialisation" and encounter mannerism.

Well, guess what? Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai, is actually getting even more interesting. This review will not only include why this series is successful, and also reason why it is different from any other series that is on the same magazine.

The original concept of Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai is solely concentrated on single most strongest character of the series, Katsuragi Keima, who is created by amalgamating past hikikomori/neet/otaku-self of author, Wakaki Tamiki, and character of Lelouch (Keima's pose when calling 'I can see the ending' is a parody of Lelouch's geass pose). The simple, but most unique idea of this manga was bringing this crazy otaku to 'GOD' of Girl games and apply this knowledge to actual reality; 'capturing' girls in 3D world. Author brings concept of hell and heaven to explain proper logics for a reason why Keima has to capture these girls all the time; old devils will try to regain their power by staying in the empty spaces of girl's heart, thus new devils has to send groups to capture them again by feeling their heart.

Now, this unique concept worked so well. Keima's force is just so strong, he just shadows all the moe-figures of all those cute girls he met. We see how each capturing applies overused cliche in much refreshing way. Even though their are many moe stereotypes that many western people might get turned off, they are not even noticed due to the fact that major focus of the series is none other than Katsuragi Keima himself. Despite being harem series, this manga managed to twist the cliche of harem series by overseeing various cliche in 'different perspective', which is a key point to this manga's success.

However, no matter how interesting concept that any manga has, if it is 'repeated', it will become 'old' at some point. That's what many other series in Shonen Sunday failed. At some point, they had to switch this repeated concept to actually build plot and give possibility to 'end' the series. This promise of 'ending' is so important, as it gives readers actual motivation to read through and understand the development it had to reach the conclusion. We see that promise, in Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai.

First of all, we have 'mission'. Keima's 'mission' is to capture 'all wondering spirits'. The problem is how to reach that. Surprisingly, we can see that author already had on his mind how to end this series, even in the first chapter. When I can say it aloud due to spoiler, he already had clear structure and idea on the setting of 'heaven and hell', and explanation of this relationship is brilliant.

Second, character of Elsie is very significant. One of the important ability for writer is 'not wasting characters'. Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai, never wastes any characters, almost. All heroines who got conquered had their own moe archetype, charm and theme. In case of Elsie, she is the reason why author could have flexible changes in plot to be more solid during the serialisation. Elsie is cute, but dojikko. It is very important that we CANNOT believe her entirely due to her purity and stupidity in some parts. She makes up the parts that Keima lacks - since our capturing god seems to be so perfect in many way, he needs side kick who can balance that perfection out. That existence, is Elsie. Due to her, the development of Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai could enter entirely new phase where plot actually moves on and able to see the ending of series itself.

Plot is extremely delicate. There are a lot of devices that are critical to plot and overall development but people don't really notice it at first. Why? Because author intentionally lowers the tension whenever important stuff comes out. But at the same time, still marks it onto our mind saying it is important, indirectly. Those devices piled up more and more, finally reaching current development which I can simply describe as - amazing.

Discussing about art, there is once when author, Wakaki said, "Mangakas cannot survive if they cannot draw bishojo or bishonen. If you can draw bishoujo or bishonen, you can at least live and earn money as 3rd-grade mangaka like me". When he is criticising manga industry, he is also criticising himself; his drawing changed hugely since the start of Kami Nomi. Characters are now more closer to bishoujo and bishonen, especially Keima and Chihiro. However, the strength of Wakaki in drawing is direction as a whole. Cut division, use of Chibi, cartoon devices and appropriate parody and gag scenes. Those features are integrated without awkward.

Enjoyment of this series not just come from Keima Katsuragi and twists of genre. It has everything that good shonen manga must have; tension, 'serious humour', complex plot, delicate and solid foundation for the structure of open setting, attention grabbing events, and more. I can easily say how well made this series is and how clever the author of this manga is. My satisfaction for deciding to follow this series to the end is already 100 percent full.

The major theme of this series is 'ideal and reality'. I really want to see how author will manage to deliver this message from heart of his experience, yet keeping charm and enjoyment that this amazing series has.

There comes that one manga you find at the corner of your eye to where you can enjoy it whether you like the genre it consists of or not, all in the essence of parody and satire. It can be a challenging comedic flavor to pull off correctly. Writers have to analyze the aspects of the things they are trying to parody in the first place, but they have to make all of the things that make good comedy work. These things include great comedic timing, sharp jokes that don't feel forced, and excellent pacing in-between comedy segments. It can be quite a difficult task ... for a manga focused on comedy, but luckily with manga, you can go buck wild with the stroke of your drawing utensil and think of what works best. It takes a man like Tamiki Wakaki to make it seem like an absolute cakewalk to envision a perfect parody with The World God Only Knows.

The two things that best describe how the parody works in The World God Only Knows come down to the writing and the actual artwork that Tamiki has within his talent. The jokes all span out, dealing with familiar otaku tropes that are funny and sometimes insightful. They pick apart. Other times it pokes fun at it, almost mocking it without being too clever with its jokes, and they all add great humor. The artwork comes into play with the dialogue's comedy because Tamiki's drawing style has a very wacky ascetic to his character designs that look magnificent. Similar to how you see chibi-style formats in something like Aria whenever a comedic moment happens, The World God Only Knows plays with the same formula and never loses its steam throughout the manga.

Although the manga is generally a comedy, it does have its vast share of drama mixed in. That is not to say it still pulls in satirical themes into those segments, at least in the first arc of the story. In the beginning, we follow Keima and his partner in crime, Elsie, as they try to collect "Loose Souls" from within their psyche. It is very straightforward and generally formulaic at face value. Still, it is just how tongue-in-cheek the character interactions are and the dialogue involving how Keima plans his tactics based on his gaming otaku logic. Even when it is being dramatic in the arc, it still doesn't lose focus of what it originally intended to be: a parody of dating sims where you get to the confession scenes in those games. It is a rare instance where good drama and wacky humor feel close to a home together in one great package.

As the story goes on to the 2nd arc, where Keima has to awaken the five goddesses, we are quickly put into a scenario with a minimal formulaic structure than beforehand. Like I said before, the comedy is still hilarious throughout the entire manga, with memorable scenes that all go down into straight-up hilarity. The story is still active and even emotional in some places, introducing a heartwarming romance between Chihiro and Keima and great chemistry between Haqua and Keima when they both become buddies for the time being. But then, after that plot arc was done and we got to the last two arcs, it all went a slight downhill in terms of pacing and comprehension. I have the feeling that Tamiki didn't know where he wanted the story to go, so he pulls up random plot conveniences that don't add up once you sit back and think about it for a second. Though the later plot arcs were not terrible, the new characters were still funny, and they do not follow up as anything other than weak.

For a story that wants to be self-absurd with an atmosphere that wants to be fun and energetic in its humor, characters should be the one characteristic that should reign most important. The World God Only Knows us a wide range of characters that exceed way above 20+ of the main cast. They give everyone the significant development and personality to make them equally memorable. Usually, a story that attempts to bring a sizeable main form has a habit of not having an equal amount of focus for some characters, making them forgettable in the long run. While someone could make the case that the manga does that in the later arcs, where we're mainly following the other central girls in Keima's conquest, that shouldn't be a negative in the sense that we've already had enough development for those characters from the very beginning where the writer introduced them.

Here's why The World God Only Knows sets its greatness to new heights is lovable but also hated in a few cases, the protagonist, Keima Katsuragi. With great clarity and logical precision in how Keima was written, he is one of the best harem protagonists due to his role's sheer value of heart. Even when there are moments where Keima might act irrationally against what many would consider typical attitudes toward how romance is like, we still want him to succeed in his conquest. One main reason this is so is that Tamiki writes his dialogue in ridiculous ways that make him so full of charm and wit in how he grows as a character, both in a comedic and general one.

As for Keima's main sidekick, Elsie, she has excellent chemistry with Keima with her cutesy personality that manages to stay consistent and not overbearing to the point where she becomes a nuisance after several chapters. The other soul-capturing buddy is the hilarious tsundere devil, Haqua. Almost as equally lovable as Elsie, but with a different twist: She's more intelligent on the level of Keima's intellect. For that reason, Keima and Haqua prove to have a little better chemistry with one another than Elsie because Haqua still becomes the bumbling sidekick despite her intellectual stature compared to Elsie's.

This manga is one of those instances where even if you are not a fan of the harem genre in general or if you love it to death, there are still many elements to The World God Only Knows that can be looked at by anyone with great enthusiasm on either side. Its wonderful characters leave an excellent joy ride into hilarity thanks to the fact that they all have their unique characteristics to enhance their significant presence in the story. Plus, its satirical nature adds so much depth to the layer of comedy that can be conceived in this manga, even though the plot never reaches that same level of greatness as one could've hoped for with the first arc building up so much potential. Nevertheless, there is still plenty of wonderful humor in The World God Only Knows, all in the name of the God of Conquest.

Grade: A-

Before reading any of my reviews, please keep in mind that I am a VERY harsh critic. I do not hand out 10's easily and anything I rate 7 or higher I consider recommendation worthy.

Story: 9/10
Humor level is VERY high for anyone who (like me) is familiar with the visual novel genre. I've often joked around saying stuff like "Real girls are overrated, the only girl I'd ever want is an animé/manga/visual novel girl!" because I get attached to them rather easily (<3 Akane from ONE ~to the radiant season~, Mahoro from Mahoromatic and Hisui from Tsukihime). So after reading a couple chapters the only ... thing I was thinking was; "Why has nobody thought of doing this before?" and "Wow. This guy is me, only TO THE EXTREME!" I never thought that a series parodying the entire visual novel genre could rip off just about EVERYTHING I've ever watched and read and still prove to be a very unique and refreshing reading experience. I really like how Keima takes a complete visual novel approach to winning the girls (and everything really). When he continuously throws in visual novel terms like "route", "event", "encounter", etc. it really makes me chuckle. And his "I can already see the ending!" is classic. The fact that the girls all forget afterwards is a little convenient, but it's not really any different from starting a new route in a visual novel now is it? So it's acceptable simply because it hammers home the visual novel feel it's trying to give off. Just like how calling the chapters "flags" also helps. The only real problem I have with the story is that in trying to compress an entire visual novel route in 1-3 chapters a lot of stuff naturally has to be left out relation development wise. We get to see all of the event encounters, but are missing most of the backstory and character development scenes. Leaving the reader to fill in the blanks by themselves which may be a little difficult for those not familiar with the visual novel clichés and stereotypes. Overall though I have to give the story a 9/10 for originality and potential. I'm hoping it only gets better from here.

Art: 7/10
Okay. I admit it. Erushi is cute. DAMN cute. But other than that the art is pretty good but really isn't anything to special. The switching between simplicity and complexity stands out at times, but for the most part is rather pleasing to the eye (especially Erushi!) and doesn't take away from the story. The character design is rather cute, which is a really good thing (for me anyway) and their expressions are pretty good (especially Erushi!). Passing grade, 7/10.

Character: 8/10
8/10 is as high as I can possibly go on this. . . Erushi and Keima are a 10/10 and 11/10 respectively, but everyone else so far are waaaaaay too flat. Like I said, compressing a visual novel route into 1-3 chapters removes most of the character development. Also, I find Kanon to be rather annoying. Love the stun guns (yes gunS, plural), but she's easily the worst character I've seen so far. 12 chapters in and I'm hoping they soon add another recurring character. This story is great, but they're going to need more than Erushi and Keima if they want to keep this story going for any length of time.

Enjoyment: 9/10
Enjoyment level is high simply because Erushi is extremely cute, Keima is absolutely hilarious and the story is unique, funny and has a lot of potential. I am a huge fan of romance series and the visual novel genre and I can kind of relate to Keima (which is kind of scary o.o;) and that really helps me to enjoy this series. Certain things (characters like Kanon. . . and the holes in character development) take away from the enjoyment of the series and prevents full marks. But overall this series is worth reading and I am anxiously awaiting the next translation release. 9/10 and hoping they keep up the good work!

Overall: 8/10
As much as I'd LIKE to give this a 9, the nearly non-existent support cast, combined with the holes in character development is forcing me to rate it an 8/10 overall. I wish there were decimals here, because I feel it's an 8.5 honestly. I highly recommend this series to anyone who is familiar with the visual novel genre. Anyone can read this series and enjoy it, but to those who are familiar with the genre it would probably be all the more enjoyable. I know this series has a long way to go. I'm only 12 "flags" in and it's still possible that the series may end badly. But I'll keep reading every "flag" hoping that Keima keeps building up Erushi's "event flags" and unlocks her "good end". Sans the H-scene of course. :)

Before reading this reviews, please keep in mind that I have an erratic way of scoring. SO THIS PROBABLY GONNA BE ME FANGASMING.

Story: 10/10
Just kidding, the humor is great especially if you like visual novels.The story is an epic tale of an otaku king conquering all the chicks with all the generic quirks while battling for the fate of world itself(this actually happens)

Art: 10/10
The girls look ok but what makes the manga is the art of the setting. It becomes a little no game no life at the end with strategy and shit. The transitional in art style reminds me of how erratically monogatari ... changes scenes
Character: 10/10
Keima all the way. He's probably one of the most likable protags (besides soma).His wit and pure craziness is what drives the story forward. I'm sure everyone has their best girl(mine's chihiro) but they all pale in comparison to the one true god,KEIMA KATSURAGI.

Enjoyment: 10/10
I could watch keima in almost any kind of series whether it be in fighting devils, time travel or reviving goddesses. Oh wait that kinda already happens in the manga spoilersss...

Overall: 10/10
Read it now...

It's hard to find a series where you feel really invested. The kind that even after finishing an arc, there's a little moment of reflection. The World God Only Knows is no exception.

The setup of the story has a very solid foundation because it tackles one of the subjects fans can relate the most ─gaming. BUT, some people will have a problem in terms of relation because the genre of choice is not that popular ─galge (a contraction to gal gaming).

For those who don't know, visual novels (another name for galges) is a type of game where it's mostly story. The "game" part is where ... you, the player, decides how the story will go through the choices you've made. As Arkada would put it, it is like an interactive book and that's it. The story of these galges are usually about love and romance ranging from sweet and innocent to HOLY CRAP-disturbing.

Going back, the story of an otaku getting an intervention about his ideals by having encounters to "3D girls" sounds like an interesting manga. The series is hysterical in some scenes while also having some scenes of drama. The best of both worlds.

Though, I have some little complaints about the story. In some long arcs, the story moves as slow as molasses. "But Cludensyo, that's the meaning of 'long' in long arcs". NO. I got into the latest chapter when this series was still ongoing. And when reality struck me that I "finished" it, I looked back and said "Wow. That arc took that much chapters? There could have been less". There's also some plot holes that are not resolved at the end of the story and foreshadowings that confused me (I'm looking at you, Elsie). And let's not forget, there are some questionable moments on how Keima got into this whole mess which I won't discuss any further.

The universe in this manga feels alive thanks to the creative mind of the author giving it details. Also, the girls, which serve as representatives of standard "maidens" in galge, have character profiles written in the chapters which really makes it feel like you're playing a visual novel.

Speaking of characters, the one that's developed the most is the main character, Keima Katsuragi. I like his ability to be zen in tough situations. I like how he's quiet and serious most of the time but transforms into a firework when in comes to games. Preaching they have superiority against reality.

I felt depressed when this series ended. Sure, it's not perfect. Sure, it gives a bad first impression on the first chapter. But if you get past that, you are then introduced to one of the best manga this time around. A dead serious recommendation.

What happens when you unwittingly sign a contract to help someone claiming that they are a demon from the underworld?

Do you collect spirits? Yes, of course! But, the originally is the way you do it...by stealing a girl's heart!

Story (9/10)
- "The World Only God Knows" is quite original, as stated above. The plot is basic and dull sounding at first, but then you question what the heck is going on when you continue reading this manga. Why was a CLEANING demon sent after a 17 year old boy that can only woo girls in video games? Why is the demon calling him "God"? The storyline ... is great and very humorous because of this, but since some parts are repetitive, I can't give full credit.

Art (8/10)
- The art is simple, but that's what makes it beautiful. Many of the characters are very cutely drawn, bringing out their personality. I've seen in some manga that the hair is drawn with multiple lines/layers. To me, this style is better. The colors are richer and makes reading more enjoyable. The hair, outfits, etc. are very clear and the faces are well drawn. The only problem is when the characters are supposed to be serious, the "cute" effect hinders the "serious" effect. Also, the characters are supposed to be in their late teens, but the look like young 12-13 year old kids.

Character (8/10)
- When you think of demons, you don't except cute young girls that are skilled in the arts of...cleaning and cooking. And when you think of video game otakus, you don't except them to be "god-like" creatures that can make any woman fall in love with them. These two, Elsee and Keima, are the main characters of this story, and make one heck of a team. The other characters, sadly, are stereotypical and mostly girls. Not much background information is given about the characters, either.

Enjoyment (9/10)
- When you're bored or have nothing you want to do, this manga is a great read for lots of laughs. Though at times you feel like something is missing, another chapter or two will make up for it. But, beware, the first couple of chapters repeat events. Later on, the story gets better.


Overall, I averaged the ratings and gave this manga a 8/10 because I know it's a manga I won't drop anytime soon, and maybe re-read a couple of times for laughs.

Synopsis: Katsuragi Keima is known as the "conquering god". He is an infamous gamer who is known to have conqured 10000 heroines in games and is a heavy influence to gamers world wide, also to game companies. Keima despises reality and he hates anything that's not a game, even girls! However one day he is approached by Elsie, a demon of what they call "New Hell", and she requests the aid of Keima, who is known as the conquering god to help capture the "run-away spirits". These spirits formal demons of "old hell". To restore their formal power, the run-away spirits will reside inside a ... young female's soul, and be reincarnated when these young females get pregnant. By making the host (the girls) fall in love, their hearts are contended and the run-away spirit leaves the contended soul and can then be captured by the new demons. Keima's daily life of gaming soon turns upside down as he struggles to conqure these girls for his life's sake.

Review: As the synopsis goes, Keima Katsuragi is entitled the "conquering god" in this story's universe, he is able to conquer almost any game, mostly galge games (dating sims and such). It is even stated that he can complete 10 galge games under 24 hours. Yes, the main protagonist of this series is a hardcore gamer, who holds heavy influence in both the gaming industry and gamers.

At first glance, "The World God Only Knows" seems to be your typical generic harem series. For some of you might already know if you are subscribed to "otaku pages", most of their post related to this series are mostly a guy with holding a PSP, kissing young highschool girls, hence the impression of a playboy or harem series. I once thought "The world god only knows" was just, another typical harem series. However that wasn't the case, these illustrations only portrayed the intensive stage of each arc and only covers a fraction of the entire context, what lies before these intensive events are highly structured, well developed plot lines that intrigues readers and viewers.

Yes, this isn't just your typical harem series where another random guy becomes just another harem king, this series contains much more than just kisses and conquering, let me explain it in further detail...

As the synopsis goes, Keima is a professional gamer ---> meets demon from "New hell" ---> Demon requests help from keima, who has absolutely no interest in reality to help capture runaway spirits (demons of old hell), however he is forced in a life or death situation the moment he signed the contract with the demons.

Now why is there an "Old", and a "New" hell? This is another intriguing part of this series that is gradually build up as the story progresses, this series tells you thoroughly about why there's an old and new hell. To make things more intense, these heroines which Keima has to conquer has much more deeper meaning to them other than just being capturing targets. Among these "targets", lies a 6 gods from heaven, makes sense right? if there are demons, there will also be gods, however any further explanation will ruin your enjoyment so i'll just skip this.

Now for the critiques of this manga itself. The artwork of this manga is rather simple and the less serious type of art, mainly doodle-type artwork similar to Nisekoi. Despite just being doodle art for the less serious moments (mainly 60% of the entire manga), this manga has many variations of it's doodles and they're rather... cute if I must say. They match the scenario exactly and these doodle arts, compared to actual shounen facial gestures actually do serve a purpose despite being simple and expressive, it exaggerates the emotion that's being played in that particular scenario and it gives multiple impression on viewers. However the main drawback of this manga series is, the author has a tendency to overuse doodle art, and some parts of the manga can become very vague and slacky.

The plot line itself is rather unique, while being the harem type of pot line, there is a major twist to this. That is the fact that the harem king himself, Keima, of this series hates real girls! This may create a negative impression on you audiences but don't be fooled! Despite the people around the protagonist knowing of him being a genius creep, who plays his PFP (PSP) in class, they still fall for him! The level of stupidity in this is just so massive, that it just gives many viewers of this manga mindf**ks when things get intensive. The ammount of skill keima attains from games is just massive, he even applies theories before conquering a target by doing a detailed layout of his targets before conquering them.

Other than the harem side of the story, the plot also heavily involves the 3 realms: Heaven, Earth and Hell. As these three sides colide after the outbreak of the run away spirits, many series of events are revolved around Keima and even the concept of time is used in this manga. Yes TIME, anything about TIME is surely to guarantee a thrill!

The characters, other than the protagonist are finely crafted. Although characterization in this series was basic and had a slow development at first, the later half of the series will just snipe you down. Indeed this series has one of the most finely developed characters and they each have very different and well defined individualities, this also applies for the side characters despite them having only about 6 chapters of focus on them. This also makes the characters of this series very catchy and lovable.

Overall, this manga has made quiet an impression on me because of it's catchy characters and simple yet elagant character designs. The protagonist is very entertaining and he has a variation of hidden personalites as the story progresses. The plot and story is also very enjoyable and easy to catch on to, the pacing is rather smooth and is always congruent with the characters. However the major drawback for now, is the utterly long 168 hour wait for a chapter update....

http://on.fb.me/105WD8m

Alright, I know, the warning bells are going off; perfect 10-score. But hear me out.

At the time i'm writing this, there are only four chapters of this manga translated in English right now. So I'm basing my perspectives on these chapters, and hopefully what's to come.

A 10 equals "outstanding" in this ratings system; for all four categories, I must say, after a significant amount of thought, A World Only God Knows definitely falls into those precedents.

When I look for a good story, there's one undeniable element it must exhibit; originality. If it's the same thing you've seen before, you'll probably find yourself ... bored very quickly. There has to be something that seperates itself from the rest of the pack. While the boy meets girl aspect is nothing new to romantic comedy fans, this manga puts a devious spin on the formula. Integrating dating sims, the Japaense otaku staple of virtual fantasy courting, into the story of a boy roped into supernatrual circumstances where he must get specific girls to confess to him to release the evil in their souls fufills my standards of an original story. Plus, it has an incredible amount of potential for future installments.

The artwork might be a matter of taste, but if it is, it's definitely my taste. It's fairly simple, but I have yet to see a situation where it can't work. All the characters are well-drawn and expressed, especially Erushi, the protagonist's demonic sidekick.

Character development is present and vital to the plot; Keima, the otaku so adept at dating sims he's considered a "capturing god" to his kind, must employ his "skills" in the real world to make a host of different girls fall for him so he can release the evil spirits haunting them. Even if you're not versed in the world of dating sims, you'll still be suitably entertained watching Keima discover the real world is less and more like his games than he thought.

This is one of the few manga I find the need to read each chapter at least three times over. Everything blends into a truely entertaining exprience; currently, The World Only God Knows is my favorite up-and-coming series. I don't know whether it will gain popularity, but even if it doesn't, people just won't know what they're missing. I'd recommend this to basically anyone; it's still starting, so you won't waste too much time if you don't like it. And if you do... join the club and enjoy.

TL;DR: Started off great but unwrapped plot points and rushed ending ruined the experience for me.

First and foremost, this is the first-ever review that I have made that does not recommend the piece of media. With that said, this review is going to be split into two parts, one part a spoiler-free review of the series as a whole, the other being a rant on the myriad of plot holes shown in the series which will most definitely spoil everything. Read it at your own risk.

The world god only knows is truly a world that only god knows about, this is because, the massive amounts ... of plot holes and storylines that are left incomplete, leaving a very sour taste in my mouth.

It truly pains me to do this as the first half of this series was so enjoyable to read. Watching Katsuragi conquer the girls with his extensive knowledge of dating sims was such a unique premise that it kept me hooked. Additionally, the fresh humor and strange comedic circumstances provided a truly enjoyable experience in tandem with the unique story. Throughout the first half of the series, character development was at an all-time high, providing an interesting backstory and context to why the characters acted in a certain way, giving reason to their strange mannerisms, while simultaneously trying to fix the characters’ biggest flaws and help them overcome whatever obstacles that they were currently facing. It would be great if the review stopped there, considering only the first half of things, I would’ve rated this series a solid 7/10, maybe even an 8/10.

However, this is where the fun ends. Starting with the latter half of the series, roughly when the Jupiter sisters arc begins, all reason is thrown out of the window, a confusing conglomeration of chapter after chapter throws at the reader a bunch of different concepts and ideas with no justification whatsoever as to why things are the way they are. This problem became increasingly obvious as I progressed in the story, with each chapter feeling increasingly rushed, culminating with the final volume being a complete and utter mess of an ending that failed to wrap up some important plot points. Additionally, it felt as if the author had no grand vision of the direction he wanted his story to go in, introducing major plot points without any foreshadowing preceding it. It truly felt as if the author just wrote what he felt like writing on a day-to-day basis, changing the entire story on a whim without any previous build-up.

Overall, if one were to read this series, I would stick to reading only the first half, maybe even to the point where vintage is defeated but no more than that.

Spoilers:
This is the point where I’ll be going on a little rant trying to point out the myriad of plot holes and unjustified actions, read at your own risk. I’ll also additionally be pointing out which girl “won” so please don’t continue reading if you don’t want to be spoiled.

- You pretty much never hear from the other girls that Katsuragi conquered that weren’t the hosts of the Jupiter sisters. Giving a maximum of a panel or one line to justify where they are.

- Akari is one of the characters with the most plot holes in them. It is never revealed why the spirit sensor detected a presence inside of her when she didn’t harbor one. Her quest in order to create the “perfect being” is never justified and never comes to fruition (I was thinking that she would create a kick-ass robot). It is later revealed that she was actually the sister figure (not the actual sister, I know) of Elucia and was working in collaboration with the homeroom teacher (who we’ll talk more about later), which begs the question, why didn’t Elucia recognize the sister that she idolized so much, or at least had some minor foreshadowing ex: hmmm that person looks strangely familiar. Rimyuel (Akari was Rimyuel’s alter ego) then 10 years in the past literally bashes her sister (Elucia) as she was flying through the sky without any previous explanation whatsoever Elucia just brushes it off as if it was nothing and it didn’t occur. Like what?

- In the latter half of the story, Katsuragi literally teleports to the past, and no reason as to how this happened or why it happened immediately after the group defeated Vintage.

- There is an event when Katsuragi teleports to the past and tries to go into his school and it just so happens that the school has a “magical gate” preventing the people not from the school to enter it. Due to this, Dokuro’s clone (?) (Who also happens to be Katsuragi’s homeroom teacher) isn’t able to enter the school premises. But then, as that arc is finishing up, Dokuro just sees Katsuragi, rips apart the “magical gate” and enters the school. Like what in the actual fuck? The best part is that the only explanation that she gives is that she “didn’t want to interfere with Katsuragi” and he just accepts that without batting an eye. I’m sorry what? How does that make any sense?

- It is revealed that Tenri knew about the events of the future but it was never foreshadowed beforehand

- Where the hell did Urara go? The author shows that Yui and Mio used to be her friends in kindergarten but when her grandfather appears (because Katsuragi changed the past yadda yadda yadda, don’t try to understand) there is literally zero mention of the girl.

- The parts where the group defeats the MAIN ANTAGONISTS both Vintage and Satyr conclude their battles in two pages. I’m sorry you just don’t have that sort of build-up while also having one of the most anticlimactic endings possible.

- Haqua is shown to harbor romantic feelings towards Katsuragi but that never gets resolved.

- In the end the homeroom teacher, Also happens to be Dokuro, is hinted to have romantic feelings towards Katsuragi, this is also completely out of the blue and left hanging

- You never get to see what happens to Fiore after she is captured inside the bottle.

- Hell is shown to be in the midst of an energy crisis but that never gets resolved.

- At the end of the series, it is hinted that Nora and Haqua, have to rebuild hell from the ground up. While this is technically not really a plot hole I would’ve at least liked to see hell fixed.

- Heaven feels like it’s only comprised of the Jupiter sisters as they are the only heavenly beings that we see in the series, even though we know that other heavenly beings exist. We never get to see any other angelic figures or even what heaven looks like.

- It is revealed in the end that Katsuragi likes Chihiro, this confession comes out of the blue, with the author only giving one line explaining why he chose her instead of The six Jupiter sisters which, by the way, are deep in love with the guy. Like seriously, you chose the one person who he said was the literal definition of normal and boring instead of the six Jupiter sisters who are so unique. A guy with such high standards relegates himself to 2nd place. This action was completely out of character, which such little justification that it made me die inside.

- Around the first quarter of the series you see hints that Elucia might harbor romantic feelings for Katsuragi, however, later on, nothing is ever shown.

- There is no explanation as to why the Jupiter sisters chose to inhabit inside of the hosts that they chose. It is an inference that Katsuragi based it upon a whim with no real reason behind it. Katsuragi says that the Jupiter sisters must have chosen a conquest target that was near to Katsuragi (meaning that they were in the near vicinity to him, for some reason they couldn’t have chosen someone older or younger than him or someone far away from him.

- Now where do I even start with Elucia? Her character has more plot holes than Swiss cheese. To begin with, why has she been chosen as the buddy to Katsuragi? It is shown time and time again that she is completely incompetent only really being useful because of her magical cloak and her cleaning abilities, something that I’m sure that other people in the spirit squad could’ve been of much greater help to Katsuragi. Additionally, it is showing that she just happens to be the big bad boss at the end of the story, and the reason why she didn’t go on killing everybody was because she had been reborn multiple times under Dokoro who trained her to become a kind-hearted spirit and whatnot, which again is shown in one line. This isn’t even the worst part upon returning to the present Katsuragi finds out that Elucia just so happens to become his actual sister and somehow erases the memories of both Haqua and Nora.

I think that this list is just about every single plot hole that is shown in the series, and my god is it extensive.

PS: Best girl Yui Goidou

if you're wondering why this manga deserved straight 10's then please, read it first (even the first 3 chapters would do) then read my explanation.

one thing that makes this manga unique is that it breaches the boundary of real world and online gaming. who would've thought that an approach in the game world can be made possible even in the real world?

in order to spare his head, keima must use his mastery of visual novels and sway the hearts of spirit-possessed girls to his side. aided by elshee, the spirit capturer from hell, he embarks on one wacky, romance-filled adventure.

one thing that makes this manga ... unique is the visual novel theme applied in real life. while it is true that some approach is dire impossible, the mere thought that it can be done in reality has been visualized by keima. making this manga catchy and fresh in its own taste. the art matches the slapstick comedy very well along with how it creates a feel of cute (MOE) characters and the snob protagonist.

story-wise, there isnt seem to be a major plot going on except for the fact that keima has to deal with his real world problems using his game world solutions. there are different characteristics of women per manga arc and keima uses a different approach each time as based on his game world experience.

despite having the ability to stay happily in the real world due to his game application, keima would still prefer to live within his own world of games, a denial of what he is capable of doing.

on elshee's part, aside from acting as comedic relief, she influences keima to open u with the world around him. story-wise, keima refused interaction with the real world not until elshee showed up. with their first encounter and how keima interacts with elshee, elshee slowly helps keima in becoming true to himself. if not, at least less ignorant of the real world around him despite the fact that keima still prefers to his own world.

as there are different personalities/characteristics involved in this manga, i believe that this displays a lot of causality and effect. with little change, what would happen? with every situation that keima encounters with a different girl, what would he do? how would it affect the outcome of him reeling her in? does a little change really matter?

if life is a game then i suppose that The World God Only Knows is one guide that would help us go through with it. it tells you how funny live could be, how romantic it is, how fun the adventure will be and how our thoughts, imaginations, can make things possible.

Not going to lie, I picked this manga up while I was waiting for the next chapter of Bakuman was out. Even though I decided I was going to read it, when I saw it had an anime I figured that would be a faster way to decide whether the series would be worthwile.

It's worthwhile. It's also possibly one of the most unique plots for a fantasy romance I have read in a while.

The plot itself starts off as being a romantic comedy about a guy who is known as the "God of Conquest," (since there is no video game girl he can't ... conquer), teaming up with a cute little demon to recapture lost souls which reside within girls.

The point from where he meets the girl until he conquers them is always a funny read, aided only by a predominantly female cast.

Even though I feared the manga would get boring rather quickly because of the plot being inflexible when it comes to change, it surprised me when the plot changed and became completely different.

This manga is Shonen Sunday's hidden gem, and a well kept secret from the anglophone world. I'd go as far as to say it's one of my top 10 favourite manga currently running.

Before I begin this review, I will start off by saying that I am not the most serious critic. I don't shove false facts down peoples faults, and I don't try to force people to watch it. With that, let's begin.

I read Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai a while ago, after watching all of the anime series. I really wanted to see what happened after that, and why so many content was skipped, so I decided to go and read the manga. Since I did not have much time to read per day, it took me around two months to finish the manga, and boy, ... was it amazing. I've never seen such a good harem series, well, in this case "read" such a good series, but... it's absolutely amazing.

Story: 8/10

The story is pretty simple, but it entertains you until the end. I'm not going to sit here explaining the synopsis of the series, because it's right here, on freaking MAL. So, screw it, but I'll explain it a bit. Keima Katsuragi is a 17-year old teenager who does nothing but play video games all day, including when he is in class. I'd do that, but, yeah, too dangerous. Plus, don't have a portable console. Anyway, he plays video games and pretty much has no friends. One day, he receives and email, and then some random demon woman comes outta nowhere and tells him to capture runaway spirits. Runaway Spirits hide within the gap of people's hearts, by people, we mean really "odd" girls. To fill that gap within the heart, Keima uses "love" but it is revealed that any method can be used to draw out the spirit.

Art: 8/10

The art style for this manga is decent, actually, it's pretty good. Well, it's what to be expected, since this manga was made around 2008, so, yeah, the art is bound to be somewhat good.

Character: 10/10

Every character in the show, including the capture targets; Ayumi, Chihiro, Tsukiyo, a lot more people... I love every character in the show, so, yes, I like Chihiro, gunna bitch to me about it? Reason for me saying that, is, that a lot of people do not like Chihiro, and I have no idea why. So, that's my reason for saying the above, but I love every character in the series.

Overall: 10/10

I love this series, it's great for a harem series, harem being my 5th favorite genre. I'm not going to explain genres in-depth what I like, but, harem is one of my favorite genres and I love this series for a harem/romance. It's absolutely amazing, and I recommend anyone to read it, possibly before watching the anime. They missed around 7 arcs in the anime series, and those arcs are really good.

Aaaaaaa this is soooo good. It was unexpected that this manga could make me dumbfounded when I saw the end. The peak of the problem is also very interesting. That is the part where the chapter doesn't get the anime version. The final chapters were really interesting and kept me reading endlessly. Many parts that make me mumble "Hoooo" and "Ahhhh" are unexpected parts. Even I who can usually guess the storyline was shocked.

I read this manga initially because I wanted to know the cut parts in the anime version. That was around the second season in the anime. I read this manga from the ... beginning because I haven't watched this anime for a long time either. That was several years ago. Arriving at part 3 of the manga, I didn't expect there would be a continuation. And that parts are the essence of this anime and are the main thoughts of this manga / anime title.

Ahh how nice it was to finish this manga from start to finish. It's a little sad when I finished I had to find a new manga again.

if your rating of this manga is below 9, your just a hater. should you read this yes. will you enjoy this yes. is the romance in this manga great,Fuck yeah. is the MC is good he's decent and has good quality(actually he grows alot and becomes a awesome mc) are the characteres unique YEAH dumbass. are there jokes that has a depiction of certain salute that is banned in germany? Yes. is there gundam referemce??? yeah. OVERALL ITS GREAT and AMAZING if you rate this manga below 9 then your stupid if you rated it higher than 8 then you no jizz of the ... story.

Despite how the idea that a guy has to wander around and make random girls fall in love with him may sound at first, The World God Only Knows has a great story and even greater characters.

Story (10/10): The plot progresses at a moderately slow pace as each arc generally focuses on a single character and her problems as the main character, Keima, helps them overcome obstacles and such. Bits and pieces of new elements are added to the storyline every few arcs. It is best that you keep your eyes open for clues as that could be important for later chapters.
It made me ... laugh, made me cry, it made me feel and display the entirety of my emotional spectrum with the turn of a page. The fact that Keima could lose his head adds a serious undertone when necessary but the general atmosphere is that of a comedy from the sheer absurdity of half the stuff Keima and his partner, Elsea, do. The ending of just about every arc is, however, worthy of being called a crowning moment heartwarming that was enough to inspire this male critic to tilt his head and go "awwww."

Art (9/10): The art is not too fancy although there are incredibly detailed instances where Keima might strike a dramatic pose or say his favorite tagline. There are images of comedic horror thanks to Elsea but nothing bad enough to rob someone of sleep...hopefully.
The heroines are drawn unique enough that you should be able to tell them apart which is impressive considering the ever-expanding cast. Overall, the art is a matter of preference but there is one particular teacher figure that is drawn so disproportionately that it has been called nightmare fuel by some although the nature of figure was intended to be comedic.

Characters (10/10): This is my personal favorite part of the whole series. A vast majority of the characters possess a back-story so that even the supporting characters have enough depth to put the main heroines of a typical harem to shame. Sadly, because of the way the storyline progresses, you will rarely see a heroine once her arc is over although they do tend to become recurring characters that you might see many chapters later so it is recommended to not develop too strong of an attachment.
Keima's calm and professional personality works well with Elsea's general...incompetence and they fill each other's gaps. I could not help but hate Keima for some of the stuff he does but then he shows a surprisingly noble side that make him equally likeable. There is a lot of character development, you can see almost immediate results from the heroines themselves while Keima and Elsea remain relatively the same although you can look back and see how much they have changed in the later arcs.

Enjoyment (10/10) It is incredibly funny a majority of the time and has an excellent capacity to be reread so that you can go back and notice things you did not see before. It has a few imaginary action sequences and lots of references to videogames in general. Hilarity ensues the moment anyone lets Elsea near a kitchen or a particular vehicle passes by.
As I said earlier, the endings of most arcs are very touching. Anyone with a romantic nature should enjoy that. If not, beware or it may awaken the romantic in you...or your inner videogame fanatic.

The World God Only Knows started with a number of episodic stories, for the reason of wanting to achieve a perfect ending but as the manga gains more popularity, the author was able to thoroughly manipulate the stories and made it into something bigger and twisted.

Story (10/10)

The story originally began as a parody of dating sims and romance genre but afterwards, became more than just a simple parody of dating sims and the romance genre but as well as Greek Mythology and other anime. Additionally, the more chapters you unfold, the more philosophical and psychological it becomes as well while still maintains its elements ... of comedy. One more good thing about this manga is its fillers. The fillers does not seem like fillers. It is so good that you won’t even notice that what you are reading are fillers.

To sum it all up, a good phrase to describe this manga is, “I didn’t expect that!” Even though it may seem that the idea of romance, harem, otaku, shinigami, gods or goddesses, time travel, collecting, saving the world and other things are not new to us or even repetitive or overused, the way the characters, especially Keima Katsuragi, presented and move the story, it became something more that will make you keep on reading.

Art (8/10)

A bit generic but it still has its own special touches to it; being a parody, the way the girls are drawn highly resembles that of the girls in dating sims. Despite that, it was able to bring out the romance, the excitement, the laughter, and the moments of sadness.

Characters (10/10)

Keima Katsuragi, the most powerful and godly character in this series is a smart manipulative stoic pessimistic otaku. To balance his godly ways is his not so trusted demonic partner named Elsie who is exactly the opposite of the protagonist (being extremely stupid and optimistic.)

The girls were somehow pretty generic (again, it’s originally a parody of dating sims and the romance genre), especially in the first few chapters but they’ve slowly became more complicated.

Story 10
Art 8
Characters 10
Enjoyment 10

Personal thoughts (Enjoyment 9/10)
i used to find romance are boring, especially shoujo romance with just love as the main concept of it. but then years later i figured its not romance manga that i hate, but a plain manga with no original concept and no spicing touch of uniqueness is boring. Then i started taking pills of romance manga and this manga is one of those romance manga that fit into my soul even tho i never a fan of romance furthermore 'harem'. These is why i love this manga and why YOU should atleast give this manga a chance.

Synopsis,
Protagonist a gamer nerd that a ... very obsessed with his PSP since he was a child. then somehow he was tricked to make a contract with a devil to help the devil capture a runaway spirits that are trapped in human heart. runaway spirits tends to choose a vessel of human that have a gap in the heart (sadness and such), so one of the way the protag used to catch these runaway spirits are filling the gap of their heart with love, which he called it as conquer.

The story gets godly better through chapters. (Story 8/10)
yes the first 30 chapters really make you kinda lost like "what these reviewers on MAL saying this sh*t should 8.50" or something just because its kinda cliche, but then after a few more read, you will found out yourself in a deep love of how the protagonist actually have twisted plan to 'conquer' girls. furthermore whats the most important part of the story is the arcs, yes the arc is progressing relatively well and you will be very surprised how the author masterfully connecting arcs between arcs. EVERY arcs will gave you an emotionally impact and is very memorable just so that it erased the fact that this manga is actually a harem, it make your ship bon voyage everytime.

Its hard to decide which is the best girls. (Character 9/10)
this is the best part of this manga, every character background and how its grow towards you is just enormous and illegal. I say the harem in this series contain almost perfectly pictured of every type of girls in an anime, and their background are just unique. one of my most favourite parts of this dating concept is how the runaway spirits like to hide in a girls that have depression and sadness. yes, depression in the characters is the main cause of the plot in this manga and how it was potrayed are very scary.

You can't hardly notice the art getting improved. because its already good since the beginning. (Art 8/10)
i say the author is a very talented mangaka even at the start of the story, he is not amatuer and knows where to draw panel perfectly fit the writing of the story. sometime how the characters turning chibi from time to time doesnt bother me at all thus it really fit the comedy tag.

I would love to read it again if i had time. (Overall 9/10)
give it a read and leave me comments about your thoughts!

Sup guys ill make this quick The World God only Knows TWGOK for short is A beautiful manga and you can see that right from the start the artist really make this come to life and the expressions that the characters make when either shocked surprised or anything else is quite the seen they tend to use the same expressions alot which is my only gripe but that has to happen for them to focus on more important aspects of the art. You will really enjoy this manga every girl has something different about themselves which makes every chapter unique so you will want to ... keep reading until your eyes fall out! But if you think this manga will only be about capturing girls through the whole thing your wrong i wont spoil anything but lets just say there's a surprising twist that happens during the middle of the manga and you will love it Throughout the manga keima finds that hes starting to hate 3D girls as he calls them less and less and maybe just maybe he might of fallen in love with some of the girls hes captured without even noticing it! All and all read this manga at least give it a shot I promise you it will get you hooked from the moment you start reading. Thank you for reading my review on The World God Only Knows enjoy!!

FIRST OF ALL,i would think i would not write a review,just understand the manga and pick few details and it will be not a long review....so smile up=)

The World God Only Knows is 100% opposite of its title,i ask few of my classmate about"u think what genre of The World God Only Knowws would be?" and right,action and all shonen stuff so i just laugh ^_^

Story=100% different from it's name,the author give you a fasinating,mis-adventure of Katsuragi Keima...your super genius,otaku-megane character that u will follow across the story...Keima who has a fond of playing dating sims and also like commenting about the real world and ... his otaku world,commenting of each every dating sims game that he has completed suddenly become a partner of Erushi to catch spirits with a unique different way,Love...

Character=As we followed the life and mis-adventure of Keima...We'll see a lot of Psychological issue that make us laugh and even feel symphathy of some girl,such as a person who like being popular and a girl who is tough inside but soft outside and many more....many of the girl Keima meet is unique and just like a normal 'us' who have a serious problem and un wanted things on life...
As i think that Keima behaviour,personalities and intelligence might not real in the this world....

About Keima commenting about 3D world and 2D world might be loved by some readers,the phrases that the author use may describe more clearly that Keima's otaku world is better than 3D world
Some dialogue made us laugh and some telling Keima's opinion of each girl problem with a simple,direct unique ways that you would think more of some good qualities of understanding Keima characteristic

BTW,it ends...if yu think it's too long for a opinion of mine..gomen

little adding.....around the making of the anime TWGOK...The story become a not exciting,i understand the author that he was very busy those days but im glad it become interesting again =)

Sugarsync Note's:
If u would choice to read the manga or the anime first?i recommend that watch the anime first then completed 2/4 of the anime you like to complete then go back and refresh your memory via manga

Remember when you were a child you used to read fairy tales where the handsome prince got the princess in the end? Remember how no-one even LOOKED at nerds at school? Remember how 80% of romance manga have a weak protagonist?

Dump all that stuff into a bin and send it straight to hell.

Welcome to Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai (aka The World God Only Knows).

It's a whole new different ball game.

It's also the most awesome & hilarious harem/romance manga (+anime) EVER.

... Like EVER.

Story (10/10): Two words: incredible genius.

Throw in a guy who hates girls (but loves game ones).

Throw in several dozen girls who hate this guy (but will eventually love him).

Throw in DEMON girls who like this guy.

Throw in GODDESSES and a hell/heaven/earth-changing conspiracy.

There you have it. A nice platform for all kinds of comedy, parody and mind-blowing fun. The mangaka is incredibly skilled at alternating between humour and serious plot; something that is quite rare nowadays. If you've only watched the anime, you've only seen the surface...

Art (9/10): To put it out there, I'm not much of a fan of chibi character designs. But here, WOW...just WOW. Just the right dose and the effects can be AMAZING. Not to mention the mangaka does some experimenting with 4-koma, which is pretty good.

I've heard people remark that the girls could've been more well drawn. To an extent, I agree.

I would seriously have given this section a 10 if at least one of the girls was drawn like Tsukasa or Aya in Ichigo 100%. But I guess you can't have everything.

However, the art really does complement the girls' personalities and realism is always a big plus and a rare find.

Character (10/10): Hehe. Where's the option for 11 and 12/10?

Meet Keima Katsuragi. The world's BIGGEST nerd, geek and jerk all rolled into one. Now you must be asking, is this reviewer crazy? How does someone like him get ALL the girls?

You're forgetting one important fact: that nerds can be geniuses.

And this Katsuragi-san (aka Kami-ni-sama) is exactly what he claims to be: GOD.

He takes the Lelouch-type character to a WHOLE NEW level. Nothing is lost here.

A gaming rebel who scores 100s in tests? Check.

One of the few people in the world who couldn't give more of a damn about heaven and hell? Check.

A misogynist who scores with chicks EVERY SINGLE time? Check.

A guy who can be a THREE-timer, FOUR-timer or even a FIVE-timer with girls? Check.

You have to see it to believe it, my friend.

Enjoyment (10/10): Do I even need to explain after all this?

You're given a parody of every single type of girl who has EVER EXISTED in dating sims and romance manga. From the tsundere to the imouto to the librarian girl to the fighting/samurai girl to the crossdresser to the TEACHER.

(Yeah, the teacher...what a player, huh?)

And then you're given a line-by-line parody of Lelouch Lamperouge.

'Nuff said.

Overall (10/10): A refreshing, unique take on the harem/romance genre. This work deserves its own CLASS in the hierarchy of anime and manga.

You simply must read it, folks.

Although it takes a while (like 3 or 4 volumes) to get into the main story, it's well worth the time. Just trust me on this.

PS If anyone asks, my favourite 'girl' is definitely 100% HAQUA!!!!

A hot demon girl like no other.