And you thought there is never a girl online?

Episode 6

Although Never a girl online is ostensibly a comedy, that aspect of the series has not commonly been its strong point. With some recent heavier concerns out of the way though, episode 6 takes a more purely comedic turn. Its humor hits the mark much more often than not, making this easily the funniest episode so far. This still isn't KONOSUBA-level fare, but it makes for a fun episode nonetheless.

The impetus for the humor comes from the gang giving up on shifting Ako out of a gamer mindset and instead just interpreting real life in game terms for her. This results in some amusing but accurate comparisons, such as Akane explaining a teen girls' fashion magazine to Ako (who pooh-poohs it for being elitist) as a real-life strategy guide for girls. (“The blind play period ended a long time ago! Right now, in the offline world, all that's left are 100% completion parties who are only recruiting players with regular work experience.”) The wit of the series is at its sharpest in moments like this, though it also angles for other comedy jabs, such as one sequence showing the trouble Sette (aka Nanako) causes the group because she hasn't understood the strategy guide she was given. (She can't get over how differently Akane acts in the game vs. real life.) There's also an opening sequence about one of Hideki's in-game buddies and his lengthy travails with in-game marriages; I have to think an allusion to people who go through that in real life was intended.

Some humor also filters into the purely academic side of things, as most of the gang suddenly realizes that finals are coming up, and Ako in particular is standing on shaky ground. Some of the resulting content contains similarities to the last arc of Sword Art Online II, where the merits of studying virtually with friends also comes up. Still, there's a more serious topic in the midst of this plot: despite some recent improvements, Ako's school attendance is still shaky and she's plenty ready to go back to her skipping ways when the incentive to attend lags. Sadly, Ako's mindset on school is not even a slight exaggeration – not even the part about playing off school as unimportant because she just intends to be a housewife! – as equivalent situations play out in the real world (and definitely not just in Japan) all of the time. Stuff like that can give a series the grounding it needs to be taken even slightly seriously.

Of course, the other big event is Hideki's desire to formally confess to Ako. He gets a little help from the other two girls on that, even though they're much more masters of rejection than actual dating. The result of his effort is a great reminder of one important adage of communication: when possible, always consider the mindset of the person you're speaking to. Given Ako's train of thought over the course of the series, he really should have realized on his own that Ako would interpret being “merely” a girlfriend to be a downgrade in relationship status. Still, the head-banging that followed was funny stuff.

I also feel I have to say something about the series' use of music. The way it builds up fake drama and then suddenly drops off is delightfully dead-on for supporting the comedy. The series wouldn't be as effective without the great job that music director Maiko Iuchi (the person behind the scores for the Index/Railgun franchise) turns in.

Rating: B

And you thought there is never a girl online? is currently streaming on Funimation.