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Even though Ouran is definitely in my top 10 favorite manga, I'm going to be as honest as I can here. When I'm reading it, I notice a few mistakes or at least some things that could be improved but I still find it an enjoyable manga nontheless. There is a slight spoiler alert. Hopefully, you'll forget before you start the manga. Anyway, let's begin!

Overall Grade: 9/10 (actual: 8.5/10)

Story: 7/10

In the...let's say at least first 9 volumes of the series there's basically no substantial plot other than "a commoner girl attends a school for rich people and breaks a very expensive vase that belonged to ... group of handsome and rich young men; so she has to work off her debt by becoming a host and goes through tons of silly adventures with said group of handsome and rich young men." It's pretty much an episodic-type manga. It's not neccesarily a bad thing as many people enjoy manga like that, but judging from Bisco Hatori's comments she makes on the side, I get the feeling that she got too carried away with the arcs and forgot that this is a romance story here.

Also she attempted to write each chapter and volume to correspond with the seasons she was scheduled to release them in, thus making the characters not age or graduate several times. Sure, this is a popular thing to do in the States (I swear, I've seen at least a dozen South Park Christmas specials and they were like 8 years old each time) but it seemed like it was more of a cop-out than a literary tactic, if you ask me. Hate to spoil, but nearing the last several volumes, she actually started to focus on her intended story.

Art: 8/10

As I was reading each volume, I noticed a significant improvement in the character design. I mean, it was pretty obvious that she was an amateur in the beginning. The artwork didn't really cut it for me as I watched the anime before I read the manga. It looked very sloppy. However, at about mid-series, I think she reached the peak of her improvement and even then started to climb as a better artist. I really started to enjoy the artwork and even the male cast became more handsome and resemble the anime a bit more.

Character: 9/10

The characterization is what I love most about this series. With Ouran, you get your common shoujo male and female archetypes: the clueless female lead, her friend who helps her in the ways of romance, the prince, the megane, the shota, the stoic, the twins, and even the bad boy. BUT what makes them different is that they have this comedic and almost ironic twist about them. The clueless female lead doesn't have this "I'M GONNA DO MY BEST!!!1" attitude (it's more like "do I have to...?") and didn't come to high school in the hopes she'll get a boyfriend by the end of the year, instead she actually wants to study to become a lawyer. The prince isn't so princely in that he's pretty much a hapless idiot and the token funny character of the series. The megane, even though putting off the regular megane aura, might even have a sense of compassion and consideration for others. The shota is actually the oldest character in the series and the stoic.... well the only thing I could think of is that he barely talks ^^; The twins give off the incestually gay vibe (and turning on fangirls everywhere). The bad boy isn't even bad at all! He's actually super nice.

Another thing that's good about the characterization that I love is that we really get to learn and even delve into the pasts of each character. You can totally see why they act the way they do.

Enjoyment: 9/10

Even though the story is sub-par and the art lacks in the beginning, I can't deny that I love the series.I literally lol at some parts and cry at others. I've gotten fairly attatched to the characters that I hate to see them hurt and I enjoy following their stories.

SPECIAL NOTE:

If you just finished the anime and decided to read the manga from where it left off, DON'T. The anime ends at the first chapter of volume 9, BUT the anime mixes up chapters, skips other chapters, leaves out characters, and has a made-up ending. In other words, read from the beginning of the manga series. I don't care that you're lazy. Just do it.

Questions, comments? Feel free to drop by :D

The beginning of this series is very.....unoriginal, so to speak. Girl's mom dies, girl goes somewhere cool, girl meets a stoic guy, stoic guy falls for girl. Can you name a few that start off like that?..No? Well, I can name tons!

BUT, the thing that makes this manga great is how its executed and I think the author does that very well.

Story: 8/10
I docked 1 point off for being unoriginal and another for all the fillers. However, I love the story very much so. All the other 8 points go to how much I love this story. I think the major twist in the plot ... is that the "somewhere cool" that girl goes to is her grandfather's home, which just so happens to be a yakuza (Japanese equivalant to the mafia) household. I like how Sachie trys really hard to adapt with the boys, along with her handsome caretaker.

I like how the two love interests have not admitted their feelings towards each other to each other, have not had a mutual kiss, nor have ever gotten together--as in bf/gf--in any point during the story thus far (I'm on volume 8 out of 10 volumes at the time of this review) because of their master/servant circumstances. This kind of extenstion makes the climax of the story truly epic and heartwarming. It makes you feel like "I want them to be together so much!" and when they finally do, you have this relief in your heart cuz you followed them through God knows how many problems and issues, and it feels great that they finally resolved it.

Art: 9/10
Kiyo Fujiwara is a very good artist. Sachie is drawn as a big, round-eyed girl and I feel you can see her entire sweet character just by looking at her. Rakuto and the other hot teen boys are drawn very handsomely, albeit a bit different to what I am used to. They're gorgeous! Also, she draws old people beautifully as well. You can see that Sachie's grandpa was probably quite the looker in his younger years. However, I dislike how she draws chibis and in fact, I wish she'd be able to draw them less often.

Character: 8/10
Allthough, Sachie seems like a strong female lead (which she is at some points) she has to be saved many times throughout the story. I dislike that very much--always being saved, that is. Sometimes, it seems like only in shounen manga will the female lead be strong and independant...but anyway, she has good sense of justice which ironically leaves her in all sorts of trouble.

Rakuto, the main love interest, has a very complex character yet I've seen him before in many different shoujo anime and manga. He's very devilish on the outside but soft and kind on the inside. I do like how he has a fear of the future, which is a very relatable characteristic if you as me, and an undying love for Sachie. Every girl wants to be loved :D However, I wish he would not have as much girls following around him everywhere he goes.

Azuma, the other love interest (in this case, the guy who's gonna get dumped like last thursday's trash) is there for mostly comical purposes and to tick Rakuto off--also he's quite the eye candy. He, unlike Rakuto, can have a normal relationship with Sachie. He's not in the "family business," he can call her by just her name instead of using the very formal "-sama" like Rakuto does, and he also has a career path in mind unlike some very handsome bishounen we know...

Enjoyment: 9/10
As I've said before, I really love this series. Its a real page turner and you always want to see if Sachie and Rakuto took a step closer in their relationship. I admit that I did start tearing up and some parts.

Overall: 9/10
I bet if the ending goes well, this just might receive a 10/10! :D I would recommend this series to anybody looking for a good shoujo romance