Ouran High School Host Club Episode 6 Recap

So here’s the dealio on Ouran High School Host Club – I’m so massively second lead shipping that I’m almost zoning out on everything else, which is not good since I’m supposed to be recapping rather than spazzing. I’ll try to stay focused, but smack me if you guys think I’m flailing too much. Like all good ensemble dramas, this episode delves into the backstory of yet another member of the host club, this time the spotlight is on the Hitachiin Twins Kaoru and Hikaru.

I think it’s safe to say the dorama is deviating from the manga/anime by making guy2 Kyoya rather than Hikaru, as this episode further cements the twins as a pair of characters with equal the screen time. My guess for the prominence of Kyoya in the drama is mainly because Daito Shunsuke has so much charisma and is the second biggest star after Yamamoto Yusuke. It’s clear he was cast because he’s perfect as Kyoya AND he has this ridiculous bromance going on with Yusuke since they’ve starred in 5 dramas together already.

Episode 6 recap:

Back in the junior high days, one twin walks to meet with a girl who wrote him a love letter. He pretends to be the other twin and suggests that she left the letter on the wrong desk, but then tells her that he likes her, and asks if he can’t be the one she likes. The girl says that’s fine, which is when the other twin emerges from hiding and tells the girl that the twin in front of her was the right twin all the along. But she couldn’t tell the difference, and didn’t care which twin she dated. They ridicule and dismiss her, leaving her sobbing on the steps. We see a hidden person watching this scene unfold.

It’s yet another day in the life of the member of the Ouran High School host club. The twins are doing their double double routine where they ask their guests to pick which one is Hikaru and which one is Kaoru. The guests pick and the twins say the pick was correct. But Haruhi walks up and matter-of-factly says the picks were incorrect and she correctly identifies each twin.

The twins share a look with each other and then take off to surround Haruhi. They ask when they can go visit her house because they have a lot of free time lately. She says never, if they go they will just make fun of her (poor home). But that was their exact plan, they say. She asks how they see people around them? The twins see everyone as their toys.

Nekozawa senpai pops up and says if they want toys, the Black Magic Club just acquired a very dangerous voodoo doll toy that can curse the person whose name is carved on it. The twins scare Nekozawa senpai away by shining a flashlight directly into his face.

The girls wonder how Haruhi can tell the twins apart. She says she can just tell, but if they want her to be more specific, Hikaru’s actions and words are just a bit more dastardly than Kaoru.

The twins halt and Kaoru starts sniggering. Hikaru clarifies that he doesn’t want to conceal his true nature, so that makes Kaoru the real bastard. Kaoru stops sniggering and says he’s always just going along with Hikaru’s plans. To which Hikaru says Kaoru can always say no. So the twins start bickering right in the middle of the host club, and everyone stops and watches this fight get more and more out of control.

Tamaki tries to stop them but get tossed aside for his effort. The twins decide to sever their relationship forevermore. Everyone stares in horror.

Kyoya puts down his iPad and walks over to Haruhi. He puts his arm around her shoulder and nonchalantly drops the obvious pointer that it was her throwaway remark that lit the fire under the twins spat. He gives her a glare and walks away, leaving Haruhi looking massively worried. Oh Haruhi, please piss off Kyoya more. You can make him snap, I know you can!

Haruhi walks into the lobby of the school and sees newly blond Hikaru. He wants to be easy to differentiate from Kaoru, who walks out and makes fun of Hikaru. They start bickering and end up firing automatic weapons at each other. Poor Haruhi is stuck in the middle of the gun fire, wondering what she did to deserve this abuse.

The twins drag Haruhi to the posh dining room. They immediately order the exact same meal as each other, and each time they switch their order, they switch to the exact same order again. This gets them more pissed at each other.

The rest of the host club walk in and see the twins already fighting. The school chancellor walks in and tells Tamaki that he is looking forward to dining in peace. Tamaki turns and sees Haruhi sitting between the warring twins and immediately prances over.

He’s so excited she’s come to the dining room to have lunch and wonder if she’s here to see him. She says she was dragged here by the twins, and she had her own lunch. Tamaki immediately fantasizes about pretty wife Haruhi making him a bento box for lunch. He turns pink and rushes back to “mommy” Kyoya, asking what he shall do.

Haruhi made him a bento complete with heart shapes. Even if its embarassing he’ll eat it. Kyoya asks if Tamaki’s fantasies can’t have a little bit more logic to it.

The girls coo over Haruhi’s handmade bento containing items they have never seen before. Hikaru offers to trade his expensive lunch with her bento. Haruhi takes a bite and is in food heaven. The other hosts watch her happily eating their expensive food. Tamaki rushes over and offers to switch his food with Hikaru for the bento. Hikaru refuses, but Kaoru gets up and takes the bento away.

The twins start fighting over the bento and Haruhi asks them to stop. They sudden turn to Haruhi and asks: can we visit your house, if we can visit, we’ll stop. Haruhi doesn’t think the two issues are related. The twins resume fighting. Tamaki tries to stop them. Renge suddenly shows up and does her shoujo fantasy of three men fighting over Haruhi.

The twins battle with forks and knives ends up with a fork flying off Tamaki’s head and landing in the school chancellor’s plate of soup. The soup splashes on the poor man. He goes to berate Kaoru, but calls him Hikaru. He orders the host club to clean the bathroom as their punishment.

Kaoru is pissed that he got mistaken for Hikaru yet again. The twins run away pissed at each other. The host club, exhausted from cleaning the bathroom, walk back to Music Room #3. Tamaki thinks the twins used the fight to take off and avoid cleaning duty.

Kyoya sits down with his abacus (OMFG a modern man who knows how to use an abacus! Oh Kyoya, you perfect nerdy bad boy, you!) and calculates what to do if the twins won’t make up. They will need to devise a different routine, which will undoubtedly cause the twins popularity to plummet. He says all of this while shooting very knowing looks at Haruhi.

He gets up and tells Haruhi that she shouldn’t feel bad AT ALL about what she said. Haruhi looks at him and grimaces because she can see the aura of controlled black rage emanating from Kyoya.

Honey notes that the twins have never ever fought. Tamaki met the twins in junior high, and back then the twins never let anyone get between them. Turns out Tamaki was the person who witnessed the twins ridiculing that girl. We see the twins move to tear up that girl’s love letter.

Kyoya notes that the twins are afraid of being hurt (by people who can’t differentiate between them) which is why they have adopted a routine of doing the same thing so people can’t tell them apart. It’s good that they are fighting, because this means their world is expanding. Haruhi thinks that because this is the first time they have fought, they won’t know how to make up.

Mori hands everyone a bloody duel letter that he found on the floor, written from one twin to another. The twins are outside in the courtyard getting reading to battle to the death. The host club races out to stop them.

The twins use guns and fists as they tussle. Tamaki rushes forward to stop them, but he keeps stepping on the landmines the twins have placed everywhere, which activates bombs, arrows, and other weapons, all of which Tamaki has to contort his body to avoid.

Kaoru asks if Hikaru likes Haruhi? Tamaki gives a gasp and Kyoya shoots the twins a look. Hikaru wonders how Kaoru can be so off base. Hikaru would never like a little raccoon like Haruhi. Tamaki is upset they called his Haruhi a little raccoon, but gets a fist to the face for his trouble.

The twins keep fighting and end up saying they hate each other. Kaoru holds up the voodoo doll from Nekozawa senpai who warns that the curse is real and very dangerous. Kaoru says he wrote Hikaru’s name on the doll and will now plunge a fork into it.

Before he can stab the doll, Haruhi walks up and smacks both of them on the head. She tells them that it’s okay to fight, but they can’t do it in a way to worry others. And if they go through with this voodoo doll, they can never make up in the future. And they are the only brothers each has in the world.

She orders them to make up, because if they don’t make up, she will never invite them to her house. The twins stand up and ask Haruhi that if they make up, does it mean she invites them to her house? They hold up the voodoo doll without the correct name written on it, and a script for this entire charade.

 

Haruhi can’t believe she was tricked. Kyoya says they can’t allow the twins to be idle. Mori follows up saying idle twins are the most evil force in the universe. Tamaki moans about being dragged into their game.

As everyone walks back to the host club, the twins walk behind everyone, and remember back to the guy who first suggested playing a game. Turns out Tamaki stopped them from tearing up the love letter. He returned it to the girl, and told her he was going to form a host club and she can be his first guest. Tamaki tells the twins to join the host club with him. Even though he can’t tell them apart right now, it’s because they look identical. That is quite a skill to have, so they can be the identical twins who bring happiness to people rather than use tests to hurt others.

They can play a game, which involves making others happy, which will make themselves happy. Kyoya confesses that he realized it was a trick when he saw the bloody duel letter, but didn’t tell anyone because it was amusing to let to happen. Everyone is excited about going to Haruhi’s house. Tamaki wants to know what her dad likes as a present. Haruhi pushes Tamaki away and says that he’s not invited.

The twins note that if it wasn’t for Tamaki, who knows where they’d be today. Tamaki whines to Haruhi’s mom (Kyoya) that their daughter is so disobedient.

The twins continue their guessing game with the guests, but once again it’s only Haruhi who correctly tells them apart. The twins are shocked and realized that for the first time in their lives, another person has intruded into their private world.

The wonder what will happen. They both like the same type, so shall they split Haruhi? Haruhi can’t be split, and can’t be given to one of them only. They decide to make her their adoptive daughter as well. Though the look they shoot her is one of tenderness and affection. And Kyoya notices this exchange, while Tamaki is oblivious as usual.

Thoughts of Mine:

As I get more involved with the story behind all the wacky characters of Ouran High School Host Club, my reactions to the drama are less snarky fun and more grounded introspection. It’s clear now that Tamaki is the glue that holds the host club together (and the person responsible for bringing them all together in the first place), while Haruhi is the catalyst for the boys to take the next step forward in their maturation.

The twins story wasn’t all that interesting for me, but their pranks as a way to release their hidden anger at a world that can’t acknowledge their individuality does make a lot of sense. I’m glad Tamaki challenged them to channel their frustration into ways to make people happy, thereby bringing them more joy. I’ve heard that Hikaru in the manga/anime is the only other host club guy who openly pursues Haruhi, but I’m pretty sure this drama just put an end to that possibility at the end of this episode. Which makes sense, because the two twins playing Hikaru and Kaoru don’t really have the individual charisma (or chemistry with Haruhi) to be a viable contender for her heart.

I totally understand lovers of Ouran who think the drama really isn’t their cup of tea, with a Tamaki that isn’t handsome enough and the story potentially deviating from the canon. I’m like that with manga characters I’m deathly protective of (for example, there is no way Japan can make a dorama of Atatsuki no Aria because there is not a single J-actor that is as perfect as Natsuo in the manga). But since I’ve got no such reservations with Ouran, I’m totally loving the drama’s take on this story.

It’s starting to mix equal parts serious and slapstick, and the end result is that I’m going to get my heart broken really soon. But it’s okay, because Shunsuke and Haruna have a date with me a few years down the road when she’s older and they do a reverse Tatta Hitotsu no Koi (rich boy, poor girl) and melt my brain by being a truly romantic OTP at long last. Until then, Tamaki is such a sweet puppy I haven’t the heart to tear Haruhi from his death grip. Plus I’m looking forward to learning the reasons behind the strange but oddly endearing bromance relationship between Tamaki and Kyoya.