The World God Only Knows Season 2 - Episode 3

With Kasuga's Loose Soul captured and our previous target now petting kittens by the dozen, it's time for Keima and Elsie to turn their attentions to a much bigger task, although not before running into a fellow demon and former classmate of Elsie's called Haqua.

Compared to Keima's bungling partner in crime, Haqua seems to be a model member of the Loose Souls team, already promoted to section chief and boasting the capture of ten souls already to back up her braggadocio and superiority complex.  At least, she claims to have captured ten Loose Souls, but as Elsie is put on high alert due to a major demon on the loose Keima is quick to pick up on the fact that the truth about Haqua's abilities and record so far is anything but spectacular.

In the hope of "completing the game" as quickly as possibly, Keima chooses to join forces with a reluctant Haqua in an attempt to capture this latest demon in short order, in the process learning some of the tricks of the trade that Elsie is yet to master as well as picking up the missing segments of the story of why these demons and Loose Souls crop up in the first place - she might not be much good in the field, but academically Haqua knows her stuff.  Come the end of the episode, our hero (and heroines of course) are face to face with this grown-up, fully matured demon threat - but what to do with it?

Between Haqua's appearance and the change in focus from capturing a girl to catching a "blobby thing" (no, I don't mean a character from K-ON) this episode actually gives the series the break and breath of temporary fresh air that it perhaps needs - I wouldn't want the show to follow this kind of plot every time, but at least it's a step back from all of the stereotypical female conquests of the series so far.  This still doesn't make for a series that raises the bar of any genre it purports to slot itself into, but it's fun enough to watch so it gets no real complaints from me right now.