First Season of Ouran Review

I purchased the first season of Ouran High School Host Club (henceforth known by OHSHC or simply Ouran) on Sunday. I was pleased as punch over the price ($42.00) for thirteen episodes on two discs. The box art is adorable, as are the individual thin pack dvd cases. I had to spend a good fifteen minutes staring at all the art because it was just too cute.

As I've noted before, the animation and sound quality are top knotch. The colors are bright, and fit very well with the tone of the series. The character designs are less awkward in the anime than the manga, and Bones works very well in employing their action shots or slow pans with flowers. The satire is subtle in both the art direction as well as the actual story/characters/plot. Beautifully done.

Here's the real shocker: the dub is actually decent. I know, take a second to get those socks that just blew off. I'll wait. Seriously though, it's not bad. I still love the japanese better, but if I were forced to listen to the dub it would still be enjoyable. Haruhi actually sounds indistinct enough to possibly be a male, but still comes across as female when she needs to be. Caitlin Glass really nails her well. Honey is played by a girl (just like in the sub) and it still fits. Mori's dubbed voice is actually the sexiest--too bad he has almost no lines. Tamaki is the only one I have issue with--Vic Mignogna just can't pull of the sexiness needed for the pick up lines Tamaki spews so sincerely. He can do the upset/crazy/silly Tamaki, but not the sexy one.

For the extras...I haven't listened to episode commentary (haven't had time as of yet) but I did listen to the outtakes by the dub actors and they are hilarious. Fifteen minutes of non-stop fun. Especially for someone like me who's interested in breaking into that field. No good running gags like the Berserk ones, I'm afraid (and no one breaks out into song, either), but still fun/cute all the same.

These DVDs are a steal, and the series is one that everyone will enjoy (seriously, if Tony can enjoy it than only the truly depraved will hate it). Jill gives her gold inked rubber-stamp of approval on this one. ^_^