According to Theron Martin, the OVA series "School Rumble: Extra Class" was made mostly for devoted fans; claiming that familiarity with the series is almost a necessity before watching it, although he later came to the view that it may also be useful as a sampler of the series. Chris Beveridge gives the OVA series an overall negative review. He did not highlight a single specific reason, instead observing that although all elements that "make the TV series enjoyable are certainly present here, they just feel weaker". However, it did make him want to watch more of the television series, thus serving its intended purpose in keeping interest in the series alive. Katherine Luther endorsed the view that viewers need to be familiar with the story, but reviewed the OVA positively. While she noted lulls in the action, she believes fans will be able to overlook this. Unlike Martin, Luther did not believe the OVA is a good introduction to "School Rumble", due to its short sequences and seemingly random nature.