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Anime Review: Ouran High School Host Club Part 1
- By Gretchen Lee
- Published 12/5/2008
- Anime and Manga
- Unrated
Gretchen Lee
Gretchen is an anime junkie who spends far too much time reading manga and searching for that elusive new favorite series. She lives with her cat, and raises tomato trees.
View all articles by Gretchen Lee
Kicking down the door to the rich boy's club, Ouran High School Host Club isn't deep, and it's so slick you'll have to grasp it with both hands, but the outrageous, self-mocking fun is awfully hard to resist. The series sets a breakneck pace, with very little downtime, pulling out all the jokes and proceeding with a nudge and a wink. It's high energy, full of eye-candy, and an entertaining way to waste some time in front of the TV.
Haruhi Fujioka is a first-year scholarship student at the prestigious Ouran High School, where only the wealthiest families of the highest social standing send their children. Needless to say, as a regular girl who can't afford the uniform and whose only concern is good grades, Haruhi doesn't exactly fit in. While searching for a quiet place to study, she stumbles across the school's Host Club. Led by Suou Tamaki, the club is made up of the school's wealthiest, most attractive boys, who are dedicated to entertaining the school's wealthiest, most attractive girls. An unfortunate accident leads to a very expensive broken vase, and Haruhi, who has been mistaken for a boy, must work for the club to pay off the debt.
Given the subject matter, a girl pretending to be a boy who makes other girls feel special, Ouran High School Host Club would have made an engaging drama. As a girl, Haruhi knows what girls like. Small wonder her Host Club mates declare her a natural! Then there's the tiny detail that Haruhi is lying to the entire school, and the confusion that's bound to come from pretending to be what one is not. However, the series keeps things light, never delving too deep, except to show that it might not be so easy to keep her secret, and that things might get sticky if she captures the attention of one (or all, since this is a male harem) of her fellow hosts. Some of the points the series touches on might have benefitted from a little more attention, but that's not what the series is about. For the most part, the series so far is all about the silliness and the ridiculousness that can come from a situation that juxtaposes boys and girls and rich and poor.
Ouran Host Club cleverly and purposely distills its characters into types. There's the cool one, the boy Lolita, the stoic one, the mischievous twins, the prince, and the smart straight man...or woman, as the case may be.
Sure, we've seen these types before in all manner of series, but it's amusing to see the characters blithely claim these types for themselves, and then let the jokes ensue. It is self-mocking aspects such as this that make this series so fun.
The jokes work well, and the characters are fun to watch, but at times the self-awareness that fuels the series can get to be a bit much. It's all about the fourth wall, and taking that wall down can make a great connection with the audience, and is an excellent opportunity for some well-played jokes. However, when we know that they know that we know that what's happening on the screen is funny, and the knowledge is almost always there, that's when it becomes too much of a good thing. There are times when the audience doesn't need to be nudged and winked at that much. The humor in the series is still a great deal of fun, especially when it comes to the characters' personalities and they way they play off of each other, and a good chunk of what's funny doesn't have that self-awareness. The series works best when that slickness and the contrivance are accepted for what they are, and set aside, kind of like suspending one's disbelief.
Even the artwork is slick. Everyone is beautiful, and frilly little signs pop up to explain the action. Roses are popular in shojo series, and this one makes it a point to include dew-covered roses to the point of ridiculousness--which is most likely exactly the point. The artwork plays into the wink-nudge attitude of the series. The characters are aware of the signs, and accept them as an everyday occurrence. Movement is exaggerated to emphasize a point, and one character in particular is always surrounded by little pink flowers. What happens on the screen visually and the plot itself compliment each other, and both are so very...slick.
Perhaps some of the questions raised in this first half of Ouran High School Host Club could have been explored in a more serious shojo series, but this just isn't that kind of series. It's best to leave the deep thoughts outside the door, and just enjoy the insanity and randomness. Since this is just the first half, I'm not sure if it's a series worth owning, but it's definitely worth renting and watching. It'll be interesting to see what the second half brings and how our heroes will deal with life, love, and the pursuit of commoner's coffee.
Details: Runtime 300 minutes, contains episodes 1-13. Extras include actor commentaries, manga pages, outtakes, textless songs, and trailers. The dvd cases feature reversible covers; the cover with the twins is particularly amusing.
Haruhi Fujioka is a first-year scholarship student at the prestigious Ouran High School, where only the wealthiest families of the highest social standing send their children. Needless to say, as a regular girl who can't afford the uniform and whose only concern is good grades, Haruhi doesn't exactly fit in. While searching for a quiet place to study, she stumbles across the school's Host Club. Led by Suou Tamaki, the club is made up of the school's wealthiest, most attractive boys, who are dedicated to entertaining the school's wealthiest, most attractive girls. An unfortunate accident leads to a very expensive broken vase, and Haruhi, who has been mistaken for a boy, must work for the club to pay off the debt.
Given the subject matter, a girl pretending to be a boy who makes other girls feel special, Ouran High School Host Club would have made an engaging drama. As a girl, Haruhi knows what girls like. Small wonder her Host Club mates declare her a natural! Then there's the tiny detail that Haruhi is lying to the entire school, and the confusion that's bound to come from pretending to be what one is not. However, the series keeps things light, never delving too deep, except to show that it might not be so easy to keep her secret, and that things might get sticky if she captures the attention of one (or all, since this is a male harem) of her fellow hosts. Some of the points the series touches on might have benefitted from a little more attention, but that's not what the series is about. For the most part, the series so far is all about the silliness and the ridiculousness that can come from a situation that juxtaposes boys and girls and rich and poor.
Ouran Host Club cleverly and purposely distills its characters into types. There's the cool one, the boy Lolita, the stoic one, the mischievous twins, the prince, and the smart straight man...or woman, as the case may be.
The jokes work well, and the characters are fun to watch, but at times the self-awareness that fuels the series can get to be a bit much. It's all about the fourth wall, and taking that wall down can make a great connection with the audience, and is an excellent opportunity for some well-played jokes. However, when we know that they know that we know that what's happening on the screen is funny, and the knowledge is almost always there, that's when it becomes too much of a good thing. There are times when the audience doesn't need to be nudged and winked at that much. The humor in the series is still a great deal of fun, especially when it comes to the characters' personalities and they way they play off of each other, and a good chunk of what's funny doesn't have that self-awareness. The series works best when that slickness and the contrivance are accepted for what they are, and set aside, kind of like suspending one's disbelief.
Even the artwork is slick. Everyone is beautiful, and frilly little signs pop up to explain the action. Roses are popular in shojo series, and this one makes it a point to include dew-covered roses to the point of ridiculousness--which is most likely exactly the point. The artwork plays into the wink-nudge attitude of the series. The characters are aware of the signs, and accept them as an everyday occurrence. Movement is exaggerated to emphasize a point, and one character in particular is always surrounded by little pink flowers. What happens on the screen visually and the plot itself compliment each other, and both are so very...slick.
Perhaps some of the questions raised in this first half of Ouran High School Host Club could have been explored in a more serious shojo series, but this just isn't that kind of series. It's best to leave the deep thoughts outside the door, and just enjoy the insanity and randomness. Since this is just the first half, I'm not sure if it's a series worth owning, but it's definitely worth renting and watching. It'll be interesting to see what the second half brings and how our heroes will deal with life, love, and the pursuit of commoner's coffee.
Details: Runtime 300 minutes, contains episodes 1-13. Extras include actor commentaries, manga pages, outtakes, textless songs, and trailers. The dvd cases feature reversible covers; the cover with the twins is particularly amusing.