I call it delayed post ping pong lol. I wrote about the same thing many years ago when trying to figure out the best posting time and like you came to the conclusion that there is no best time.
My view for a long time now has been to treat comments like pen pals
I don't know if you are familiar with the genre but it works fine for me and my community.
We just pick up the thread wherever and whenever we are.
#oldtimers lol