MY OPINION ON OURAN HSHC IN A NUTSHELL

I'll be honest it took me really long to start the series. I saw the cover and thought it was another boring, stereotypical, shoujo anime with cliche boys. Yeah sure, there were cliche boys.. but when some friends told me how good it is, and when I saw the ratings, I finally started it.

If I'm being really honest, I like it a lot, even though there were questionable scenes here and there, it's still not enough to straight out say it's a "shit" series. I would say this is one of the best OG shoujo animes of all time. I liked the idea that the main character or girl doesn't always have to be this cute, clumsy, and pretty girl. Haruhi, the main character, had chemistry with a lot of characters too. I would say that the start and the part towards the end were the most intriguing. Unfortunately, the episodes in the middle, I thought, weren't so interesting as it focused more on Haruhi developing her relationships. However, I did make time for it and watched after I was done with some work.

I find that I'm not very fond of many main characters in anime, especially under the category of romance. You could say I'm picky, wanting this specific characteristic for that specific situation, and I wish in all honesty that I could get rid of that mentality.

Though, with Haruhi, I feel that the animators put good thought into writing her character. Like mentioned, she had great chemistry with almost everyone, and none of the relationships ever felt rushed or forced. I didn't even have a lot of complaints like I normally would have when I approach the ending of a particular franchise.

I won't try to sound like I live under a rock, but the anime was surprisingly open. Haruhi cross-dressing, Haruhi's father doing drag, and how those women from Lobelia Academy showed a fair amount of queerness. I like how they incorporated that idea into the anime.

Towards the end, it got more emotional which had me on chokehold (I'm serious). I'm a person that appreciates scenes that are emotional. Something that really gets you in the feels, and just enough to give you a warm feeling of happiness, love, sadness or nostalgia. The way Haruhi says at the start that she dreads being in the host club and by the end of the last episode, doesn't feel that way at all anymore feels almost satisfying.

In conclusion, this IS a good watch no matter how 'bad' you think the plot or animation is. There's a good tinge to it that makes you want more. So yeah, I still have hope for a season two.

The anime then solidly lays on a 8.5-9 star rating. Would watch it again on a good summer day.