(no subject)

[shadowkat]

After a lot of bored tooling about, tried Reveri (Hulu), Jessica Jones (got bored - Netflix), A Series of Unfortunate Events, and Mama Mia...I found this really odd anime entitled Ouran High School Host Club on Netflix. (Was hunting Black Butler S1, but it's not available and I'm not buying it.)

Ouran High School Host Club is about a club of boys who act as a sort of male form of Geishas or Gigolos to wealthy high school girls. Their goal to make every girl happy and to host them. They are from elite families. A commoner female student who is attending on scholarship. posing as a boy, goes hunting for a private room to study. And stumbles upon the elite host club. S/he breaks an 8 million dollar vase and is conscripted into the club. The head of the club, Tomiki, is highly attracted to h/ir and then, discovers s/he is really girl. And he is a goner. He's also a bit vain and insecure.

The boys in the club appear to be bisexual. And they are really satirizing gender and class differences. It's Japanese anime and dubbed in English, with English subtitles here and there.

Also, like most anime -- the leads look more like English White Caucasians. White. Blond. Big Eyed. And Blue Eyed or Brown eyes. With supporting players who look Japanese. Also the boys like very feminine.

I like anime because it is insanely subversive and really satirizes socio-economic views.

Anime's fascinating because much like Magna it's not just action oriented, there's also romance, sci-fi, and other genres within it. The Japanese don't view animation and comic books in the same way the West does, they view it as another art form or medium. Most Western literary critics can't wrap their heads around it.

It's also fascinating in how Western Media and Influences have affected Japan. How they view other cultures and themselves in relation to those cultures. Also how they deliberately challenge and subvert racial stereotyping.

Comments

[trepkos]

Sounds fascinating!

[shadowkat]

It's hilarious in places. But also annoying in others...because a lot of hyperbole.

[elisi]

This is very amusing to me. I have teenage daughters, so know of Ouran (and many many other animes...). Have only seen snippets, but yeah, it's a thing. :)

[shadowkat]

You should watch it. It's very adult in places -- it makes fun of romance tropes and the heterosexual female fetish for gay male slash (particularly male incestuous taboo slash -- Really makes fun of that.)

It's sort of like Spongebob and Buffy, a satire, where I'm thinking most of the humor is above the audience's head. LOL.

One episode goes on about twin brothers who are into each other (or are they) and playing it up to turn on the teen girls they are hosting. LOL!

Sample line:

"Choose a swim suit, how about this one? It would look great?"

"It's only a couple of strings. I don't think so."

LOL!

I swear the cartoons directed towards teens and kids are VERY adult. When I was a teen it was not quite this...LOL!

[elisi]

My (middle) daughter says 'GOOD CHOICE' and when you have finished S1 go find the manga of the rest. :)

[shadowkat]

It's highly feminist and satirical about gender bias. Really makes fun of it. There's only one season though -- 26 episodes in all. Then there's a live-action television series and a live-action film. Plus a sound-track. I'm thinking it is VERY popular in Japan.

Honestly some of the best stuff is directed towards the teen set.

[yourlibrarian]

So that's what it's about. I remember hearing about the fandom but who can keep up with everything these days?

[shadowkat]

I found it by accident. Didn't know there was a fandom. It's rather amusing. It makes fun of all our gender stereotypes and romantic stereotypes -- is rather clever in places.

"Why don't you dress like a girl?"
"Because I don't want to. And really why does it even matter?"

LOL!