Where should I even start? I watched the Ouran anime long before I read the manga. Like long long before. In fact, it was one of my very first introductions to anime as it was one of the easier shows to access back in the day (thanks youtube). Anyway, fast forward a couple more years (the great anime boom of 2020) and I rewatched it, and it was during this rewatch that I learned that it wasn't the full story, and lots of things were missing. I didn't have much expectations when going into the manga, and I pretty much thought that I knew what to expect going in. Boy was I wrong, and I'm so greatful for that!

𖦹𖦹𖦹 SPOILERS BELOW! BEWARE! 𖦹𖦹𖦹
𖦹𖦹𖦹 SPOILERS BELOW! BEWARE! 𖦹𖦹𖦹
𖦹𖦹𖦹 SPOILERS BELOW! BEWARE! 𖦹𖦹𖦹
𖦹𖦹𖦹 SPOILERS BELOW! BEWARE! 𖦹𖦹𖦹

The manga is entirely a different story than I feel the anime tells. Not to completely knock the anime, it keeps the essence of the romantic comedy and maintains many heartfelt moments that highlight that there is more to the characters than meets the eye. But my god, the character depth and relationships just don't hit as much as they do in the manga. There are so many nuances that are left out and completely remove the subtle narrative that's occuring underneath the rom-com. For example, the attention to Harhui's apathetic and nonchalant nature, Kyoya's (lack of) desires, Tamaki's loneliness and trauma, Kaoru and Hikaru's contradicting thoughts around their relationship and relationship to others, and Hunny and Mori's relationship. All of these things have so much more weight to them than the anime gives to them. I honestly would've never thought that I would've ever cried over Kyoya as a character and want to root for his success as much as I did while reading. And even on my reread this past winter, I felt so much more for him than before. For example, the sports arc (which is comepletely cut from the anime) is where we see Kyoya finally strive for something for his own benefit than for his family even if that means overshadowing Tamaki and maintaining the status quo as the third son. Ahhhhhh just thinking about it makes me want to read it all over again!

Now, the two stars of the show, my gender non-conforming bisexual monarch and my internalized homophobic bisexual king, Haruhi and Tamaki! I loved them both since I watched the anime but the manga really inflated my love for them, especially this time round. I caught so much overlap and complexities of their characters and their relationships in this reread, mostly Haruhi. I wrote this in my book review of the manga,

"Haruhi's development is one I overlooked in my previous reads. Mostly because of how subtle it starts and builds and even intertwines with Tamaki's. Her apathy and indifference, while a being a running gag in the first half, reveals itself to be part of a shield, a coping mechanism. Of course not entirely, but half of it is. It's so similar to Tamaki's flaw where he utilizes his obliviousness and denial as a shield. I didn't pick up on their parallels until this reread, and it made everything so much more deeper and gave more depth to their relationship than it already has. These two are more alike than many give them credit for. Despite being polar opposites personality-wise, these two are the most alike than anyone else in the story. Also, it never fails to hurt me when I read the part of Haruhi pushing Tamaki to see his mom before she leaves, especially when he has the chance to speak to her as she is alive. That was the first major time that we see her so openly express her sadness about not being able to talk to her mother."

I just have so much love for manga Haruhi and I need more people to know about her. Same with Tamaki. Because more general audiences have seen the anime, they aren't entirely aware of Tamaki's entire character. Because of that, many write off the significance of his character and his influence to the main cast, especially Haruhi. He is a deeply feeling character, and he internalizes so much, but it only fuels his determination to care for others over himself. I noted that he reminded me much of Tohru Honda in this way, one of my favorite female protags. His arc, never fails to make me cry every time I read it. Also, Kyoya doing his best to find Tamaki's mom and tell her about how he's doing and doing the same for Tamaki. Their friendship is too underrated for how amazing it is.

I like going back through the manga and noticing bits about the twins' personalities. It makes for how they progress later on so much more impactful. We learn that Hikaru is more possessive and reactive towards the people he really cares for and sees anyone as a threat to that as an outsider. So when he starts to fall for Haruhi and finds that he has to go on this journery of growth and heartbreak, you observe how he overcomes that and despite his sadness and heartbreak chooses to help Tamaki and Haruhi find their way to each other. Kaoru. Man, Kaoru. I didn't really recgnize just how important he was in my first read. He's the one to break the pair out of their shells, to call out their codependence and thier hypocrisies. They want to be understood, but they also don't. They want to be told apart, but they also don't. When he told Hikaru that they should have separte rooms I wanted to rip my hair out, or when we would see the little twin plant seed slowly detangle themselves from each other.