happy 20 years, ouran high school host club

This month marks the 20 year anniversary of a problematic favourite anime of mine: Ouran High School Host Club. It’s messy, it’s corny, it has what is pretty much universally regarded as the worst beach episode of all time (The Sun, The Sea and The Host Club you are my worst enemy), and it means so very much to me. Since OHSHC is a special show to me, I felt like I had to write something about it to celebrate.

I first watched OHSHC when I was about 11 years old. Not all too long ago, all things considered (it may be 7 years ago, but let me be delusional), but it’s something I’d still consider a childhood classic for me. When I started actually getting into anime, most of the shows I started with were shoujo and slice-of-life, like Love Live! School Idol Project, Fruits Basket, Kiss Him, Not Me!, etc. I ended up doing a lot of googling to figure out where I was supposed to go next and, one that showed up repeatedly without fail was OHSHC. I fell in love with the vibrant pink, rose-filled 2000s aesthetic it showcased, and ended up devouring the show within the week.

Looking back, it’s so problematic; with the homophobia, transphobia, sexism, shotacon, and the incest-baiting being some of the stuff that comes to mind instantly. All of its poorly-aged negatives really turn people who aren’t already fans off of it, which is totally valid. Like with all anime from that era, sometimes the cons can outweigh the pros; that’s why I wasn’t able to get myself to enjoy some other animes such as Vampire Knight. With Ouran, I think it’s one of those shows that you can acknowledge the flaws of but still enjoy. There are a lot of really compelling plot points in there that get overshadowed by the parts that were in poor taste. It doesn’t make you a bad person to enjoy a flawed show as long as you understand the flaws and take them as you come. As I like to say: “Sir, that’s my emotional support problematic 2000s anime”. It’s just something you need to accept if you’re watching older shows.

Since I’m yapping about a favourite show of mine, I need to take an aside to talk about my favourite character in it. When I was younger, my main draw to the show was Kyoya. There was just something about an anime boy in glasses that captivated me - or maybe it was the fact he had money. But, as I grew earlier, my favourite ended up becoming my beautiful perfect unproblematic king Takashi Morinozuka. All he does is take care of people and be a sweetheart, yet he’s the most underrepresented character in the whole show. And, no matter how much I love this show, the sheer lack of development and attention he gets really drives me insane. Since he’s the quiet type he hardly gets any attention on him. As one of the main members of the cast, he definitely deserves more than to be pushed to the side. Seriously, Kasanoda - the side character who appeared for like two episodes - got more focus than him. And even in the episodes Mori was the focus, it was always around Honey. I love Honey, he’s a sweetheart, but god does it disappoint me that my beloved never had the chance to shine on his own. He deserved far better. The pool episode is one of my favourites to this day, because it’s one of the few episodes he actually got the focus in. (And my least favourite episode is that goddamn beach episode. Fuck you, The Sun, The Sea and The Host Club you are public enemy #1.)

Part of me is still holding onto the thought that we’ll one day get that rumored other season. I know that I’m 100% being delusional. It’s been teased and discussed for years but we’ve managed to get nowhere. Even if it does get greenlit, I can’t help but feel like it’ll get the Ice Adolescence treatment (RIP to YURI!!! on ICE the movie: Ice Adolescence, 2017 - 2024. I’m still mad about it). Still, though, I’m going to keep waiting for the host club doors to open again. In the meantime, I’ll keep scouring second-hand bookstores to try and complete my collection of the manga. Happy 20 years, Ouran High School Host Club!