History Manga / OuranHighschoolHostClub

** In [[Recap/OuranHighSchoolHostClubE20TheDoorTheTwinsOpened episode 20]], Kyouya is shown reading ''Literature/NoLongerHuman'' when Tamaki comes in to ask him for help in getting the Hitachiin twins to join the Host Club.

* AnimationBump: In Episode 13, Haruhi goes to [[Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland Wonderland]], and there are moments where the animation, which was hardly ever [[OffModel poor quality]], suddenly became ''gorgeous''.

* ShonenHair: The twins. They're probably trying to [[{{invoked}} invoke]] this trope on purpose. In the manga their hair looks much more natural and isn't quite as poofed out, although it's obvious they style it with hair gel most of the time.

** Of ''Anime/RahXephon'', of all things. Renge cosplays as Quon Kisaragi in episode 7, who is known for saying "Lala"... which is the magazine ''Ouran'' is published in. Could possibly be a shoutout to Haruhi's seiyuu, too, as one of Creator/MaayaSakamoto's earlier seiyuu roles was in ''[=RahXephon=]''. The fact that Creator/StudioBONES animated both series is also a factor.

** Also, Renge has a [[Manga/DeathNote "Moe Note"]].

** In Episode 4, the film crew that Renge hires is explained by Kyoya to have been the same who filmed "the vampire movie 'Millenium Snow' last year". ''Manga/MillenniumSnow'' is Hatori Bisco's previous work [[OrphanedSeries that she left unfinished]] before starting Ouran.
** Renge makes several references to a "[=LaLa=] Magazine" in Episode 7. [=LaLa=] was the magazine Ouran was published in.
** The twin's cheshire cat outfit in the Alice In Wonderland episode looks similar to the cheshire cat in [[WesternAnimation/AliceInWonderland Disney's 1951 version]].

** In [[Recap/OuranHighSchoolHostClubE20TheDoorTheTwinsOpened episode 20]] of ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub'', Kyouya is shown reading ''Literature/NoLongerHuman'' when Tamaki comes in to ask him for help in getting the Hitachiin twins to join the Host Club.

* MegaTwintails: Hikaru and Kaoru wear their hair this way when they crossdress for one of Tamaki's schemes. Also shown that their mother dressed them with these when they were five to show off one of her girls' clothing lines.

** Tamaki shares a lot of the attributes of a dog (he also ''is'' a dog lover). It's especially funny when after [[spoiler:his and Haruhi's kiss in Chapter 83, he's so happy that he proceeds to subtly ''lick her forehead'', (just like a happy dog does?)]]

** As far as the ladies go, Haruhi has a couple of brief scenes in a frilly bikini, although these are only {{Imagine Spot}}s by the guys as she wouldn't be caught dead in such garb. One of Renge's cosplay outfits is a bikini, and in episode 13, when Kirimi eats the mushroom and [[PlotRelevantAgeUp ages into a teenager]], she becomes quite buxom and her shirt [[BareYourMidriff bares her belly]].

** Of ''Anime/RahXephon'', of all things. One of the main characters from that series saying Lala... which is the magazine Ouran is published in. Could possibly be a shoutout to Haruhi's seiyuu, too, as one of Creator/MaayaSakamoto's earlier seiyuu roles was in ''[=RahXephon=]''. The fact that Creator/StudioBONES animated both series is also a factor.

** Outside the Club, the boys get a handful of {{Shirtless Scene}}s, with Mori doing physical labor as one of the most blatantly for eye candy. ** As far as the ladies go, Haruhi has a couple of brief scenes in a frilly bikini, although these are only {{Imagine Spot}}s by the guys as she wouldn't be caught dead in such garb. One of Renge's cosplay outfits is a bikini, and in episode 13, when Kirimi eats the mushroom and [[PlotRelevantAgeUp ages into a teenager]], she becomes quite buxom and her shirt [[BareYourMidriff bares her belly]].

** Outside the Club, the boys get a handful of {{Shirtless Scene}}s, with Mori doing physical labor as one of the most blatantly for eye candy. Haruhi has a couple of brief scenes in a frilly bikini, although these are only {{Imagine Spot}}s by the guys as she wouldn’t be caught dead in such garb.

* FearOfThunder: Haruhi. Her phobia is so severe it's utterly debilitating and it is one of the few things that is never played for laughs.

** In Episode 8, when trying to see if Haruhi is afraid of the dark, Honey has both of them locked inside the Ootori's private police's truck. This results in Honey screaming "'' Kurai yo semai yo kowai yo''" ("It's dark, it's cramped, I'm scared!"), Shutaro Mendo's trademark phrase when in dark, claustrophobic situations in ''Manga//UruseiYatsura''.

** The DatingSim Renge's obsessed with is a ShoutOut to ''VisualNovel/TokimekiMemorial''.

* PoisonousFriend: Kyoya, to Tamaki, in Episode 14. [[spoiler:Whereas Tamaki wants to help the failing club, Kyoya puts a hard stop to their antics.]]

* HexagonalSpeechBalloon: The image provider. This comes up several times when the Club is talking all at once.

%%** Also, bananas and strawberries.

** A lot of this in the series, though a big one is probably how Tamaki spends a good lot of the show fantasizing about a girly Haruhi and doing his best to transform her into such, and continuously failing, all for randomness and comedic purposes to the viewers/readers. However, as the story progresses and Haruhi finds herself [[spoiler:in love with him (while he remains completely clueless to this)]], she gradually turns more into a woman, all of her own. Benibara from the Zuka club points this out in Chapter 82, shortly after Haruhi [[spoiler:and Tamaki have become a couple]], that she now "totally and utterly looks like a girl". So in the end, Tamaki ''did'' succeed in making Haruhi more feminine, it just happened when he wasn't trying to.

* EpicFail: Towards the end of Episode 19, Haruhi is trapped at a tall pedestal while being chased by Benibara, and notices Tamaki at the ground telling her to jump to his arms. She jumps off, with Tamaki standing arms-stretched-out and with sparkly eyes as he clearly awaits the romantic moment of him catching her - only for the height of which Haruhi jumps from naturally making her very heavy and crushing him as she comes down.

** All of the host club could tell long before they did that Tamaki and Haruhi had fallen in love practically at first sight.

* {{Meganekko}}: Haruhi, though she's only seen wearing glasses for the first half of Chapter 1, and even then she looked uncannily like a boy.

* MoralDissonance:
** Kyoya pretends to [[spoiler:sexually harass Haruhi]] after the thugs at the beach incident to make her realize [[spoiler:how vulnerable she is to boys]] and convince her it's good to apply some common sense every now and then. It's generally good advice, but it's rather nasty to [[spoiler:threaten sexual assault]] just to make a point.
*** Gets worse depending on how you interpret the scene. There's an ongoing competition to figure out what, if anything, scares Haruhi, and no one has as of yet been successful. Apparently, she's not scared of ''that'' either, at least not from Kyoya, but the idea that Kyoya's actually ''trying'' to genuinely frighten her is shockingly dark compared to the rest of the manga.
** During [[spoiler:Haruhi and Tamaki's date]] in the penultimate chapter, Honey at one point gushes over how cute [[spoiler:Haruhi]] is and says he wishes he could [[spoiler:date her too]]. This is when he's supposedly [[spoiler:in a relationship with Reiko]]. Then again, it's Honey, who gushes over everything cute.

* OneGenderSchool: Lobelia has the Lobelia Club and its fangirls.

* BerserkButton:
** Don't even think about trying to harm Haruhi, Mori, or Honey's Usa-chan, or Honey will tear you a new one. Guaranteed.
** It's one thing to [[SheCleansUpNicely dress Haruhi up cutely]], but hit on her when an overprotective Tamaki's watching, and God have mercy on your soul.
** If Tamaki thinks that you might have hurt Haruhi in any way, you'd best hope there's a camera crew watching or else you'll end up a not-so-tasteful stain in the concrete. Violence isn't good publicity for a host club.
** When you come right down to it, ''don't touch Haruhi''. Those boys love her, in their own weird way, and will team up to send you into next week. "Beware the Physical Exam!" is possibly the best illustration of this; when they mistakenly think she's being assaulted, they leave her would-be attacker pleading for his life.
** Haruhi hates when people tear her away from anyone, if the outburst toward the main antagonist is any indication.
** Also, don't use or take any of Haruhi's belongings (from photos to pencils) without her permission.
** Kyoya cares so much about his friends he's not above bitching out Tamaki's father for using Tamaki's desire to see his mother again.
** As shown in the bonus chapter taking place in Spain, it's not a good idea to ask Kyoya if he and Tamaki are a gay couple.
** Kyoya and Honey share a button. Do ''not'' wake them up when they're trying to sleep. Kyoya drops all pretenses of pleasantries and becomes a demon in human form if he doesn't get enough sleep. Honey can apparently create a FantasticNuke if he's still sleepy.

* ButNotTooForeign: Tamaki is half-Japanese and half-French; Perhaps to [[HairColors make this more obvious]], the anime changes his hair from dirty blond to blond.

* ElevatorSchool: Despite the series' title, Ouran Academy isn't just a high school; it's actually a huge institution that contains grades from kindergarten to high school.

** Messed with in Chapter 71 by [[spoiler:Honey, Mori and Nekozawa all lament their impending graduation in their own way]], to the shock of the GenreSavvy Haruhi. Kyoya even mentions he wasn't sure they were ''allowed'' to graduate. Notably, the cessation of the manga's ComicBookTime coincides with its CerebusSyndrome reaching full onset.

* SchoolgirlLesbians: Everyone in the Zuka Club, the rivals to the Ouran Host Club, are lesbians.

* RealityEnsues:
** Towards the end of Episode 19, Haruhi is trapped at a tall pedestal while being chased by Benibara, and notices Tamaki at the ground telling her to jump to his arms. She jumps off, with Tamaki standing arms-stretched-out and with sparkly eyes as he clearly awaits the romantic moment of him catching her - only for the height of which Haruhi jumps from naturally making her very heavy and crushing him as she comes down.
** The penultimate episode of the anime has Kyouya point out to Tamaki that all their club's themes' outfits and accessories cost a ''lot'' of money to buy and transport from other countries. Curiously, this is never brought up in the manga, or if it is, the answer there is simply that they can afford it anyhow, while it is brought up in the anime to [[RuleOfDRama serve as one of the smaller dilemmas]] before the finale.

* PerpetualPoverty: The rest of the Host Club thinks Haruhi lives like this, but while money is indeed tight in the Fujioka household, they're hardly starving or destitute.