Hatori Bisco - Ouran High School Host Club, vol. 04-10 (Eng. trans.)
I had read volumes 1-3 about a year or so ago and decided not to continue because the paneling was too busy and the manga lost a lot of humor without the sound effect of the anime.
But then, I saw volumes 2-10 at the library and decided to read them just for the heck of it. It also helped that rilina had been telling me that the manga got much better, especially once it got past the territory covered by the anime. So far, it covers most of the anime, with a few unanimated chapters in volumes 8-10.
Thankfully, either I got used to Hatori's paneling, or she got better at it; it no longer confuses the heck out of me, and I'm fairly certain that her layouts have gotten less busy. Some bits are still funnier in the anime-Tamaki's "Mon ami!" in particular-but Hatori's art is pleasant. I also love that she includes sketches of her characters by other mangaka in the extra bits, particularly the one Matsuri Hino did.
Storywise, there's not much difference so far. I am having an easier time telling the twins apart in terms of personality, though I vaguely remember being able to do that in the latter half of the anime as well. I do like that the non-animated bits have more women in them, although usually it's a girl and how the host club heals her or whatnot in some way. On the other hand, volume 10 introduces a non-Haruhi female character who could stick around for a while.
Spoilers
I love Mei! I hope she sticks around for a long time! It's so nice for Haruhi to have someone non-insane to talk to, and I really love how Mei provides another POV on the host club's view of money and wealth. I also love that she looks like a stereotypical character (the kogyaru thing), but she ends up with her own very distinct personality. And while the series is very specifically pandering to and commenting on female moe projected on men, it's still nice to get two girls talking to each other.
I am somewhat divided on the series' treatment of cross-dressing. Despite the use of "tranny," I'm not entirely sure where Misuzu and Ranka fall in the spectrum of gender identification. It seems like Ranka identifies herself as female, although she does seem to call herself "Daddy," and I can't remember enough about Misuzu to be sure. I wish the portrayal of Misuzu weren't so comedic, though I'm glad Ranka's appearance isn't meant to be funny. On the other hand, they're both very comic characters.
Still, I'm glad that the manga doesn't show their gender preferences as messing up Haruhi or Mei, and I especially like that the manga specifically identifies Ranka as bisexual (having it shown in the manga would be nice, but oh well).
In terms of plot development, I'm a little surprised it's taken so long for romance to show up, and I have to say, I like the host club as a unit so much that I'm not particularly looking forward to shipping wars. Still, Hatori does a good job of showing why so many boys are crushing on Haruhi, as opposed to many YA and shoujo series, where people just seem to be randomly bowled over by the heroine. I'm not sure if I totally buy that Hikaru and Haruhi and Tamaki are all unaware of their feelings, but then, Tamaki and Hikaru are so dense at times that it could be. And I will handwave and say Haruhi is deliberately trying to not notice.
I'm rather disturbed by the translation's use of "tranny;" does anyone know if it corresponds to a similarly derogatory Japanese term, or if it's supposed to just be informal?
Still, fun manga, especially now that it's going beyond the territory of the anime. Also, I root for more character development for Kyoya and Mori, my favorite host club guys.
But then, I saw volumes 2-10 at the library and decided to read them just for the heck of it. It also helped that rilina had been telling me that the manga got much better, especially once it got past the territory covered by the anime. So far, it covers most of the anime, with a few unanimated chapters in volumes 8-10.
Thankfully, either I got used to Hatori's paneling, or she got better at it; it no longer confuses the heck out of me, and I'm fairly certain that her layouts have gotten less busy. Some bits are still funnier in the anime-Tamaki's "Mon ami!" in particular-but Hatori's art is pleasant. I also love that she includes sketches of her characters by other mangaka in the extra bits, particularly the one Matsuri Hino did.
Storywise, there's not much difference so far. I am having an easier time telling the twins apart in terms of personality, though I vaguely remember being able to do that in the latter half of the anime as well. I do like that the non-animated bits have more women in them, although usually it's a girl and how the host club heals her or whatnot in some way. On the other hand, volume 10 introduces a non-Haruhi female character who could stick around for a while.
Spoilers
I love Mei! I hope she sticks around for a long time! It's so nice for Haruhi to have someone non-insane to talk to, and I really love how Mei provides another POV on the host club's view of money and wealth. I also love that she looks like a stereotypical character (the kogyaru thing), but she ends up with her own very distinct personality. And while the series is very specifically pandering to and commenting on female moe projected on men, it's still nice to get two girls talking to each other.
I am somewhat divided on the series' treatment of cross-dressing. Despite the use of "tranny," I'm not entirely sure where Misuzu and Ranka fall in the spectrum of gender identification. It seems like Ranka identifies herself as female, although she does seem to call herself "Daddy," and I can't remember enough about Misuzu to be sure. I wish the portrayal of Misuzu weren't so comedic, though I'm glad Ranka's appearance isn't meant to be funny. On the other hand, they're both very comic characters.
Still, I'm glad that the manga doesn't show their gender preferences as messing up Haruhi or Mei, and I especially like that the manga specifically identifies Ranka as bisexual (having it shown in the manga would be nice, but oh well).
In terms of plot development, I'm a little surprised it's taken so long for romance to show up, and I have to say, I like the host club as a unit so much that I'm not particularly looking forward to shipping wars. Still, Hatori does a good job of showing why so many boys are crushing on Haruhi, as opposed to many YA and shoujo series, where people just seem to be randomly bowled over by the heroine. I'm not sure if I totally buy that Hikaru and Haruhi and Tamaki are all unaware of their feelings, but then, Tamaki and Hikaru are so dense at times that it could be. And I will handwave and say Haruhi is deliberately trying to not notice.
I'm rather disturbed by the translation's use of "tranny;" does anyone know if it corresponds to a similarly derogatory Japanese term, or if it's supposed to just be informal?
Still, fun manga, especially now that it's going beyond the territory of the anime. Also, I root for more character development for Kyoya and Mori, my favorite host club guys.