Ouran High School Host Club Blu-ray

Studio: Funimation

Jul 10, 2010 Web Exclusive By Adrian Chandler

In Ouran High School Host Club, Haruhi Fujioka is an awkward female scholarship student who stumbles on the flamboyant rich-boys-only Host Club when looking for a quiet place to read. When she promptly shatters an expensive vase belonging to the club, she must pay for it with her body-no, pervert, not like that; she is made to dress like a boy and must learn to be a "host"-which consists of running a business that entertains the girls of the high school. This plot, while being as original as high-school giggling girl anime plots can be, is really secondary to the friendship of the motley crew of oddball hosts who surround the charming Haruhi. Each character is thoroughly developed with a captivatingly complicated background story and a subplot that is fully resolved by the end of the show's single season. This is nice, as fulfilling conclusions are always satisfying-we all hate unfinished anime plot lines that forever leave us asking the question, "AND!?!" (I'm looking at you, Berserk.)

These characters wonderfully come to life through the veteran cast, three members of which you may recognize from the main cast of Full Metal Alchemist. The dubbing works well for the most part, in that I was not constantly wondering why lips were smacking about with no accompanying sound. The erratic animation is not awe-inspiring, but it does work well with the silly slapstick style of comedy. Some of the otaku humor will be lost on your average anime fan, but you won't be overwhelmed with geektastic inside jokes. Overall, this is a cute high-school romp of an anime. If that is your kind of show, it is definitely worth at the very least a rental. I give this show 7 giggling-high-school-girls-with-blue-hair blips out of 10.

Author rating: 7/10

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Average reader rating: 7/10