Ouran High School Host Club

Ouran High School Host Club (桜蘭高校ホスト部, Ōran Kōkō Hosuto Kurabu) is a manga series by Bisco Hatori, serialized in Hakusensha's LaLa magazine since August 5, 2003. The series follows Haruhi Fujioka, a scholarship student at Ouran ^, and the other members of the popular host club. The romantic comedy focuses on the relationships within and without the Club and satirizes the cliches and stereotypes that endure in series aimed at girls. There are also occasional moments where the characters "break the fourth wall". The manga has been adapted into a series of audio dramas, an animated television series directed by Takuya Igarashi and produced by Bones, and a visual novel by Idea Factory.

Plot[edit | edit source]

Haruhi Fujioka is a scholarship student at the prestigious Ouran Academy, a fictional high school located in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Looking for a quiet place to study, Haruhi stumbles upon the Third Music Room, a place where the Ouran Academy Host Club, a group of six extremely attractive male students, gathers to entertain both males and females "clients" (one male client entertained so far). During their first meeting, Haruhi accidentally knocks over and breaks an antique vase valued at ¥8,000,000 (US$80,000 in English manga)^[1] and is told to repay the cost in service to the club. Haruhi's short hair, slouching attire and gender-ambiguous look causes her to be mistaken by the hosts for a male student (at first). The hosts all agree that Haruhi would be a good host, thus making her join the host club. Ultimately she agrees to join the Club as a host herself (dressed as a male) in order to pay off her debt.^[2] She agrees to join since she does not mind hosting as long as she can pay the debt off faster. The Ouran Private Academy encompasses kindergarten to twelfth grade. Most students come from wealthy families, but in special cases, merit scholarships are granted to exceptional students from a lower income bracket. The school's unofficial motto is "Lineage counts first, wealth a close second," meaning students with stellar family backgrounds are given top priority over those from rich families but low social status.