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ローゼンメイデン 
This is another entertaining episode for the Host Club. Just like the first episode, however, there is nothing particularly serious as far as the plot goes. If anything, the focus on this week's episode is actually not on the Host Club member but rather on the guest characters of the week. Despite this, the main characters still get to deliver the majority of the jokes, especially Tamaki who's gone as over the top as usual, especially when it comes to Haruhi. Animation-wise, I think this episode is a lot more attractive than the first one simply because there are more colours being used and the animators seem to know how to mix them well. After seeing this episode for some reason I have a craving for fruit loops. Could this be some kind of a new subliminal advertising?
Haruhi is shocked when she enters the Host Club room and finds a tropical paradise within it. So the usual customer-baiting scenes happen inside the club except that this time around everyone dress up looking as if they are in tropical island. Haruhi asks Kyoya if this is his idea but Kyoya claims that it was Tamaki who decided on it. Having said that, he did leave a tropical island magazine on Tamaki's desk. Tamaki claims that he actually has a costume reserved for Haruhi but she promptly rejects it outright much to his disappointment. While Haruhi is in the middle of entertaining some of her clients, a girl called Kasugazaki Kanako comes and tells her that she's her next client. Kazuki seems to be pretty enamoured with Haruhi and decides that she wants to take Haruhi to the upcoming dance party. Tamaki is unhappy about this to the point that he consumes a lot of instant ramen. The other guys believe it's because Kanako switches favourite from Tamaki to Haruhi.
Tamaki, however, denies this and suddenly orders Haruhi to start dressing up like a girl. He then digs his private treasure box and shows an enlarged painting of Haruhi's ID and tells her that he wants her to look like the photograph. Upon looking at Haruhi's beautiful 'before' painting, they wonder how someone like her can turn into her 'after' male persona. Because of this Haruhi explains that the reason is because a neighbour's kid stuck a gum on her hair. She finds it annoying so she decides to chop off that part of her hair. Besides, she doesn't really care being mistaken for a guy. While saying this, Haruhi decides to use Ore to refer to herself. Tamaki is shocked to hear this and tells her that a girl should not use Ore to refer herself to others and cries to Kyoya that Haruhi has used a bad word. Tamaki, however, gets to have his revenge when the club tells Haruhi that she needs to learn how to dance.
Much to Tamaki's disappointment, however, Haruhi doesn't get to practice the dance with him but with Kanako instead. Later on, while having some tea at the host club, Kanako manages to point out the name of the tea cup that is used by the host club. Strangely, when Haruhi points out that Kanako seems to like tea sets, Kanako claims outright that she doesn't have any interest in them. Kanako's behaviour turns stranger when a young man called Suzushima Tooru comes to the club and notices her presence there. When Haruhi asks Kanako if she knew Tooru, however, she denies it again. Later on, Haruhi finds out from the other guys that Tooru is actually Kanako's fiancee. The two are childhood friends who were betrothed to each other by their parents. There is, however, one problem and that is the fact that Tooru is going to study abroad next year so Kanako is not willing to stick around in an uncertain relationship. Upon finding out about this, Tamaki decides to set things right for the couple.
In the second half of the episode, the dance party begins and Kyoya announces that later on that night one girl will be crowned as Queen and gets to receive a hot kiss from none other than the King himself, Tamaki. A few girls immediately pass out from the excitement. Haruhi doesn't seem to enjoy the party so Kyoya tells her that she may as well enjoy the foods while at it. Haruhi suddenly perks up and asks the others if there is a giant tuna on the menu. Upon hearing this all of the guys rush in to fulfill her order much to Haruhi's embarassment. Later on, Kanako appears at the party and asks Haruhi to dance with her much to the disappointment of two other girls who want to ask Haruhi to dance with them. Before Haruhi can even do one move, however, she's been snatched by other Host Club members, leaving Kanako alone with Tamaki. She is then forced to dress like a girl so that they can execute the plan to reunite Kanako and Tooru.
The plan is to turn Haru into a random girl who supposedly has a crush on Tooru. Because of this, the host club sends her to a room where Tooru is currently located. Upon entering the room, however, Tooru makes a remark that Haruhi looks different from the way she presents herself in her letter. Haruhi is confused about this but she quickly finds out that Tooru is in the room because someone has sent him a love confession letter. Upon reading the letter, Haruhi can't help but being embarassed. The letter claims that ever since she saw Tooru, the girl's heart has been in complete and utter love with him. She claims that her love feels like an eternal tropical cyclone. Because of this she wants to ride on Noah's Ark together with Tooru. ^_^;; Haruhi wonders who could possibly write such letter and narrows down her list to Kyoya or the twins. Upon looking at Haruhi, however, Tooru feels as if she has seen her before so Haruhi lies and tells him that this is the first time they see each other.
Tooru immediately tells Haruhi that unfortunately he can't return her feelings because there is someone else that he likes. The girl, hwoever, is not his girlfriend and besides he thinks she needs a man who is confident with himself. At the same time, Tamaki is in the middle of telling Kanako that he thinks that she looks happy when she looks into the teacup a few days ago. Cut to a flash back where chibi Kanako and Tooru are seen admiring teasets on a cupboard together as kids. Kanako, however, decided to give up her feelings for Tooru because he's going abroad soon. At the same time, Tooru tells Haru that the reason he's going overseas with the intention of becoming a more confident person. Haruhi, however, thinks that Tooru is being selfish. She thinks that if Tooru doesn't tell Kanako about his feeling then obviously she would not understand. Unfortunately while Haru is in the middle of giving advice to Tooru, Kanako walks in on the two of them.
Kanako becomes jealous upon seeing the two and runs away from the room. Of course, Tooru ends up chasing after her while Tamaki tries to stop Haruhi from following the two. Outside the club, Tooru manages to catch Kanako but all of a sudden, they find themselves in a spotlight. The host club then comes out and announces that Tooru and Kanako will have th last dance together so all of the guests come out and watch. Tooru uses this opportunity to confess to Kanako so in the end two end up together. After the dance ends, the twin announce to the guests that the crowned Queen is Kanako but in order to spice things up, they decide that the one who's going to give a kiss is not Tamaki but Haruhi. Even though she doesn't want to do it at first, Haruhi immediately agrees after Kyoya promises to cut down 1/3 of her debt. Tamaki, of course, tries to put a stop to this but unfortunately, he steps on a banana skin and ends up pushing Haruhi towards Kanako instead. Despite this, Haruhi seems quite happy with the entire incident.
Impression:
I think the main problem that I have with this story is that the resolution feels a bit unsatisfying. I know that this series is not about serious plot but at the end of the episode, I'm still not sure if Tooru and Kanako actually reach an agreement in regards to their relationship. Everything was so brief and flashy that I find it hard to believe that they will just make up right away. Having said that, I realise that their story is mostly just a vehicle so that the Host club gets to do their regular comedy routine. And thankfully the comedy is as funny as usual. I was amused with the way the two girls at the dance party look after Kanako asked Haruhi to dance with her. Tamaki, however, outdoes everyone as usual with his tropical costume, Haruhi's oversized painting, and his attempt to stop the kiss. The best thing about the episode, however, is the love letter, which sounds like a stereotypical letter from a teenage girl. The letter even comes with the usual "Tee hee" that some teenage girls often use in some message boards.
Great episode.
the acidental kiss was great!
I really enjoyed reading this story in the manga. It seems that everything is flowing nicely
LOL, Tamaki is sucha goofball!! I love his face when he realises that Haruhi has just kissed another girl.
XD Haruhi-female -> Haruhi man.
They look so different. I find it hard to believe that they are the same character.
Is there anyone subbing this show? Looks good!
Pepz, Ouran's first episode has been subbed by Lunar Anime:
http://www.animesuki.com/series.php/791.html
They, however, need to sub this fast. I can't wait to see this. The colours look so vibrant and I love the way the anime sprinkles all of those flowers in almost every scene.
Yeah, Lunar is subbing it. And yeah, it's fantastic indeed! *indeed indeed*
Gosh, ep. 2 is out already! *leech leech*
btw Garten, I'm missing your alt comments... T_T
I promise I'll add in the alt comments after I finished writing the rest of the review. I know I've been a bit lazy to do this lately but I did put alt comments on my Shinigami no Ballad and Suzumiya Haruhi reviews. :D
Haruhi looks so pretty as a girl that I can't help but wonder why she decided to butch herself up. Surely she can just cut her hair a little bit.
I really love the shot where the boys are worshipping Haruhi's photo. But is it some kind of a requirement that Haruhi always has to fall on some female? Is this a consistent theme in the manga?
Haruhi falling on top of girls is more of a BONEs touch, though burning the Christmas tree and putting cherry blossoms was a BONE's call (thus if hack O'reily watched this he'd whine about a war on Christmas again).
I really wonder what the actaul translation of the the love letter is, but at least the Haruhi arrows of doom made an appearance. I wonder if the Haruhi fan girls will make more appearances. It seems that they're going to hold off Renge-san' intro which is a bit disappointing.
Perhaps it is a wonderful coincidence that two Haruhis' are ushering in the most buzz for the spring season. A most auspicious sign I'd say.
really wonder what the actaul translation of the the love letter is
Crusader, check the summary above. But I think the letter is funnier when you understand the way the letter has been written, complete with "Tee hee", 'kokoro' (hearts) written with the O replaced by hearts, the emphasis on RABU RABU, the pink/red marker used to write the letter, etc. In other words, the letter makes fun of the way some teenage girls often write their love confession.
And yes, so far the two Haruhi series have been pleasant to watch.
I understood the Rabu Rabu and the over use of hearts, but the Viz Manga translation had "Deep Impact" and "Twister" in the translation, and in my mind destroying any credibilty. Thanks for the translation though Garten, my mind is too stuffed from weapons knowledge and am a bit too late in trying to learn to read Japanese.
Giant tuna hah, I loved how they made Kyoya's pencil implode.
I've fallen for this anime so fast! I can't get enough of it.. It's funny and I just love it! :)
By the episode titles, Renge should appear in ep 4
@Garten, yeah! Thx. ^____^
Actually animationwise, I didn't really like this episode, but I hope this is the worst it can get to (since it's the second episode, yeah that's what peole call the second-episode-phenomenon XD) I don't really mind.
But it was real funny. I love it when Haruhi says "Kane mochi dono me~~" I just LOVE it!
And the "host-club-family-relations" have been revealed!! xDD
And the love letter was just ridiculous. XD
Its a pity that they left out the ramen lesson. (It actually answered one of the questions that I have been poundering about)
Oh, and Kyoya as the "kage king" is just great! What would the host club be w/o him!
Can't wait for Renge! lol
Ah, this is the part where they completely bastardize the culture of Bali (lol what national flower? and the colours +_+). Still, can't wait to see this episode! I'm liking the anime more than the manga.
This show has some of the most detailed background design. It amazes me what the animators put into the series. As an aspiring animator, I get tired just thinking about the time that it takes to draw one ceiling.
I'm probably one of the few who haven't read the manga so I am just following the anime and so far I have no complaint. But I have a few questions about the manga:
1. Is the manga as good as the anime? Better? Or worse?
2. Who is this Renge that everyone is talking about?
3. Which guy wins Haruhi's heart?
1. Is the manga as good as the anime? Better? Or worse?
Anime is better, though I miss some of the jokes that the anime cut. Such as the ramen part...
2. Who is this Renge that everyone is talking about?
Renge is an insane fangirl.. I won't spoil the rest about her.
3. Which guy wins Haruhi's heart?
Unknown. That's not what the series is really about.
@Amethyst Lily
I am no authority but based off the volumes released in the US so far..
1. The manga and anime comedy wise are about on par thought the Manga has a bit more jokes. the character designs have carried over quite well though I am more in favor of BONES since I like color. Though the twins are a notable exception.
2. Renge is a uber fangirl and has many Tamaki-like qualities.
3. The issue is still unresolved though Tamaki and the twins really try to impress her. Kyoya and Mori seem to watch though Haruhi notices Mori a bit more since his actual feats are fewer. Hunny is not even considered a contender. Though Haruhi also has her own fangirls.
Hope this helps.
Musuoka, Crusader, thx for answering my questions. I think I will buy the first manga just to compare the story with the anime. Still, it's surprising to see an anime that actually looks as good or better than the manga since usually it's the other way around.
Spoiler about the pairing:
The author claimed that her favourite pairing is Mori/Haruhi and there is one chapter which explores their dynamic. Unfortunately I haven't read more than the first 2 volumes so I have no idea if this continues in future volumes.
I am not normally into this kind of series but I have to admit that I've been pleasantly surprised by this one. I just hope it doesn't get any more suggestive than it currently is at the moment.
To tell the truth, I still like the manga more than the anime. I mean, I love the anime, and I think I couldn't be more happy with it the way it is, but I guess I simply prefer the artworks by the mangaka Hatori Bisco. I like the fragile touch of the manga drawings which is hard to adapt to an anime (well, there is no need to do that, since it's great as it is now). So, I personally prefer the manga. ^_^
Are there any other animes kinda like this one?
Mmh.. dunno, I like them both... ^__^ (anime & manga)
It's true, the anime is a lot more colourful, flashy and it has good music (gotta love the op, ed and the BGM when Tamaki starts yelling at Haruhi for not dressing as a girl)... but it's only the second ep and they have already skiped some good stuff of the manga... like the peasants ramen scene, Tamaki's nick: "The Kissing machine" (XD), the "Oshin" reference (which tells us a bit of Tamaki's love for japanese culture, even if he is half-french) and the twins game "which one of us is Hikaru?" (Important to understand why the twins start to like Haruhi that much)
Yet, I love to see one of my favs mangas being animated... so, that makes me like the anime as much as the manga
I already wanna see Renge (they moved her to the 4th ep??? O_o), Nekozawa and Bergenef (his cat doll)
Oh, to the person who asked who is Renge... well, she is... a game otaku ^^a (she loves dating sims for girls...)
Aaand, about the pairing... Hatori (the creator) said clearly that Haruhi/Mori is her favourite pairing, but I'm sure that Tamaki is the main guy (he gets the most time at the op XD) so, probably she will fall for Tamaki
However, I like all the guys in the manga, so whoever ends with her, it will be fine for me ^_^a
Even in the manga there's not much Haruhi/Mori.
Tamaki gets on average one semi-romantic scene with Haruhi every volume. I am NOT saying Haruhi is in love with Tamaki in the manga but it surely does look like Tamaki likes the girl more than he should.
Since the twincest interaction with our intrepid heroine has been blunted it seems Tamaki is being set up to be the lucky bastard. When you meet Haruhi's dad if Tamaki wants to win he's in for a long war. Kyoya so far in the manga has been the boldest while Mori seems to hold Haruhi's curiosity. In volume four infant Mori has thus far the closest contact.
Still if Tamaki becomes the ONE I guess some people are just born bloody close to perfect.
I'm a bit dissapointed at the pacing and what things they show and what things they don't -- they gave the couple too much time at the end.
@Middy: Because she doesn't care. That's part of the charm of Haruhi.
@Gerid: I know! I was dissapointed they left out the "kissing machine" bit -- I really like that every time Haruhi grows a fonder opinion of Tamaki, something comes along to change it.
They also NEED to show the Hikaru/Kaoru game (it's a shame they didn't already because if they do it suddenly their relationship with Haruhi will feel more forced).
As for who Haruhi will fall for... I really don't even want to see that happen. I quite like Haruhi not really caring about that sort of thing.
Yeah, I really wanted Haruhi to give Tamaki the eyes of Death at the end of the episode. I'm assuming she'll be cold to him at the beginning of the next episode, though, because their very weird, antagonistic-loving relationship is strong through definitely the first several vols. Of course, I love her relationship with the twins; when Tamaki realizes that the twins get to spend all day with her while he gets one hour... oh. :P
after reading this episode and your sudden craving for fruit loops, now i have one....weird...
I laughed so hard when the love note was being read aloud along with so many other scenes like the shadow king commentary made by Haruhi...along with Tamaki's reaction when he saw Haruhi in girl garb with long hair...the ending..well that was just the icing of the whole episode for me..especially the "King's" reaction..his mouth couldn't drop any lower from the shock. teehee :)
i haven't watched the anime yet but i have 5 volumes of the manga. is the anime in the US yet? well i guess i have still read the manga.
anyone know what the name of the waltz song they used in this episode?
Wanna know if episode 8 of Manga in Japan is End of series. If not, had they stop the manga for very long already??
Is it just me, but Kanako reminds me a little of Kana from Fruits Basket. Especially in the scene where she walks in on Haruhi and Tooru and puts her head down, beginning to tear up. Also when hani says "Tooru", it reminds me of Momiji calling Tohru in Furuba (well of course seiyuu being the same, right). Maybe it's coincidental that there's slight similarities to certain things in Furuba
@dora ... It just started airing in Japan.
@Nrt The manga is still running.
I'm hooked to this ^^ So cute!
ooh.. i remember this episode!!! i just finished watching the whole episode of ouran high school host club on youtube! i hope they have a sequel though...
cool episode
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