Ouran Koukou Host Club

And from the bottom of our hearts, we prayed for nothing more."

- from the most tear-jerking pages of Ouran

Anyways, onto the actual review.

Story (8/10)

Ouran High School Host Club is about a normal girl, Fujioka Haruhi, who is admitted to an elite school on a special scholarship for being an excellent student. While searching for a quiet place to study, she accidentally stumbles upon the Host Club—a group of six attractive boys catering to girls with too much free time. Due to her plain appearance, she is mistaken for a boy. After breaking an expensive vase belonging to the club, Haruhi is forced to work there to repay her debt.

In typical shoujo romantic comedies, the protagonist usually falls in love with one of the male leads and they live happily ever after. However, Ouran takes a different path since Haruhi isn't seeking romance; she aims to become a lawyer. Surrounded by various guys but indifferent to them, she just wishes they'd leave her alone so she can focus on her studies. Thus begins Haruhi’s unique life at Ouran.

The Host Club operates by using each member’s unique traits to attract different types of girls. There's Tamaki, the princely type; Kyouya, the cool type; Hikaru and Kaoru, the mischievous twins; Honey, the cute type; Mori, the silent type; and now Haruhi, the natural.

While the manga has quite a bit of filler content initially, especially during character introductions, it becomes clear that the main characters are anything but ordinary. Their personalities are exaggeratedly quirky and unrealistic. The brilliance of this manga lies in unraveling why these characters behave the way they do.

Art (8/10)

Bisco Hatori’s art style isn’t particularly unique or outstanding. However, it does improve significantly throughout the series, making it somewhat noteworthy by the end. Overall, though, the art isn't the manga’s strongest selling point.

Character (10/10)

If possible, I’d give this section a 13/10. The characters are incredibly likable and brilliantly portrayed. There’s a wide range of personalities, ensuring every reader will find someone to relate to. But the standout feature is undoubtedly their backstories. What appears superficial at first reveals deeper layers as you delve into their pasts. Characters like Tamaki Suoh, charming yet seemingly shallow, and Kyouya Ootori, cold and calculating, hide their vulnerabilities behind masks. The Hitachiin twins, playful pranksters, and Honey, the sweets-loving karate master, along with his stoic companion Mori, all have compelling stories that will evoke strong emotions.

Enjoyment (10/10)

If you're concerned about getting through the filler content to enjoy the main story, don't worry. Tamaki, with his narcissistic antics, provides plenty of comic relief. His ridiculous comments and actions are hilarious, yet he also serves as a source of emotional depth. If Tamaki isn't your cup of tea, the diverse interactions within the Host Club guarantee something interesting is always happening. Haruhi’s constant misunderstandings about rich people’s customs add another layer of humor. Overall, the manga is highly enjoyable.

Overall (10/10)

This is a wonderful piece of work. Though the ending might seem ridiculous, it fits perfectly with the Host Club members' eccentric natures.

Bisco Hatori truly showcases her talents as an exceptional manga creator.
The narrative she crafts, diverging significantly from the anime and enhancing the storyline, envelops you in its drama, leaving you eager for more.
Whether through simple moments or intense dramatic scenes, Ouran High School Host Club draws you into a world that feels distant yet strangely comforting.

While my review may sound critical at points, I genuinely adore this manga and wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone :D

It's a 10/10 for this series from me.

It's one of the most wonderful series I've ever read. Yes, it's long, but that doesn't really matter. Once you get hooked on reading, you'll always be asking for more. The best part of this series is that the humor doesn't rely on anything vulgar; it's purely derived from the characters and their interactions and reactions. While browsing the internet for the best shoujo anime, I came across this title many times but was hesitant to pick it up due to the "Host Club" in the title. But I'm so glad I finally gave it a try. It is now one of the top anime in my must-have collection. Since the anime is so hilarious, I wanted to give the manga a try as well. And once I started, I couldn't put the book down.

Story [10/10]: The concept of a host club in a high school might seem risky, but the mangaka has handled the subject extremely cleverly to avoid any vulgarity. The story is not shallow, despite being a comedy genre. In the first 7-8 volumes, you read about the host club's daily activities and the heavy interaction between the club members and their "customers" and friends, which are just too hilarious. You're also gradually introduced to each club member's family background. In the later volumes, you start seeing changes in the relationship between Haruhi and the other club members. This transition is slow and smooth, with nothing feeling forced. All situations seem inevitable, and while maintaining a goofy atmosphere, the story provides thoughtful insights into friendship and family.

Art [10/10]: While the art of this series may not compare to Arina Tanemura's or CLAMP's, where the characters are gorgeously drawn, all characters here are perfectly lovable. The character reactions and sound effects add nicely to the humor. Ouran High School, being an elite institution, is richly depicted in most scenes. Even outdoor locations seem thoroughly researched before drawing. You can learn about how most locations or sceneries were drawn from the side panels where the mangaka provides all the details.

Characters [10/10]: The strongest point of this series. Each character is whimsical yet extremely likeable. There are the troublemaker twins, the airhead Tamaki, the quiet but still very attached Mori, the childish Hunny, the extremely calculative Kyoya, and the apathetic Haruhi. Their personalities are so strongly developed that the humor from their interactions comes naturally. People with such diverse personalities wouldn't typically be together, but their combination creates all the goofball situations and jokes.

Enjoyment and Overall [10/10]: I thoroughly enjoyed reading every single volume of the manga. I loved the story and the characters. I loved all the scenarios depicted and especially how brilliantly they were executed by the mangaka. I even enjoyed reading the side panels and extra pages by the mangaka, giving all the small details that went into making this series. Overall, it's a hilarious show packed into 18 volumes. Totally recommended and a must-have manga for your collection.

This is THE shoujo manga, the one and only perfect and original shoujo manga EVER. I might be biased, but trust me, it's really good.

The story was excellent, though the timing felt a bit off. In this manga, you'll see the characters go through two, possibly three, summers.

The art is amazing, especially how they drew the costumes. OMG!

The characters are fantastic, particularly the twin trope. These twins fight, argue, and help each other. I wish all twins in the world were like Hikaru and Kaoru.

I thoroughly enjoyed it. The chapters were long, and there were many of them.

Overall, you need to read it ASAP.

Story: 6

As many have noted, the story progresses slowly. Personally, I prefer manga over anime, but with Ouran, it's the opposite. The anime moves more swiftly to the point compared to the manga.

Art: 6

The art wasn't what I expected after watching the anime. It has a different style, and at first glance, you wouldn't think it's Ouran.

Character: 7

While many appreciate the characters, I don't share that sentiment entirely. Haruhi is the only character I truly liked because she seems the most grounded. The others come off as somewhat... unusual.

Enjoyment: 4

I didn't find much enjoyment in this series. I dislike narratives that beat around the bush. The comedy was decent, but for me, that's where the appeal ends—it felt pointless beyond that.

Overall: 6

At least.

If you're interested in trying Ouran, I recommend watching the anime. The manga isn't recommended unless you're really bored and can't find anything better to read.

Our heroine, Haruhi (henceforth referred to as “commoner”), was accepted into Ouran—a high school for the wealthiest kids in Japan—on a scholarship. The poor commoner enters Ouran wearing her dad's old uniform and sporting a short boyish haircut, quickly getting lost on the ridiculously vast Ouran campus. A chance encounter with six of the most affluent and handsome boys at Ouran leads her to join the Host Club and work in entertaining the rich, bored girls of the school. This was made possible because everyone mistook the commoner for a boy.

The commoner's adventures in the Host Club and the antics of the six boys are hilarious and entertaining—for a while. After the first quarter of chapters, several problems start to emerge. The mangaka creates a beautiful setting with intriguing characters but fails to develop any aspect of it. Half of the boys receive little to no development, and everything involving the other three and the commoner feels rushed and pointless. The initially captivating side-characters also remain underdeveloped.

This lack of development results in a lot of unnecessary content in the story. The mangaka takes far-fetched ideas about character traits and stretches them so much that they lose their initial charm. After the 20th time Tamaki says he is the commoner’s father and wonders about his non-fatherly feelings, it becomes impossible to take seriously the subsequent story arc where he "deals" with it. Unfortunately, there are more examples like this, leading to a disappointing build-up to a predictable and weak ending.

The best support for my aforementioned opinions is how good the anime adaptation is. The recipe was simple: They removed the unnecessary parts and allowed the supporting characters to have more spotlight. So, if you enjoyed the anime, there is nothing new here for you. If you like shoujo romcoms, watch the anime—it's my favorite in the genre. If you are a die-hard shoujo manga reader, well, I guess you could do worse than this. I give it a 6/10 because the first quarter of chapters is excellent.

I don't think I've ever loved an anime or manga as much as I love Ouran High School Host Club (OHSHC). It will always hold a special place in my heart.

The manga is truly exceptional with a well-crafted plot and characters that have immense depth and amazing character growth. As someone who didn't read the chapters adapted into the anime, it was surprising to see how much more romance there was compared to the anime, which focused mainly on comedy.

My favorite part of the manga has to be the characters. One thing I really appreciated is how distinct and well-established their personalities are; they never feel like copies or clichés.

Many other reviews also highlight how much they loved the characters, providing countless reasons why they are just so good. I won't go into too much detail, but I want to add that I particularly liked how the mangaka wrote the female characters, especially the one from Kobe.

I also want to talk about the Hitachiin twins. Their characters were given so much growth, especially from chapter 50 onwards. For characters who are quite complex in the anime, I'm glad the manga allowed us to understand them and their dynamic much better.

I didn't intend to write a long review, so I'll wrap it up by saying that OHSHC is funny, cute, and I absolutely love it!!1!1