He and the other male members of the club strive to keep Haruhi’s real gender a secret from their clients and the rest of the school for fear she will not be allowed to stay if it is found out she is really a girl, which drives a large portion of the series' comedy and occasionally drama.
Although initially appearing to be shallow, it is gradually revealed that there is more to him than meets the eye, particularly his status as an illegitimate hāfu and the issues it causes him and the rest of his family.
Critical response to Tamaki has been mostly positive, especially in regards to his genuinely charismatic charming and sympathetic personality and over-top dramatic behavior, befitting not only the series' comedy but its satire of shōjo clichés in general.
Tamaki shares a strong resemblance with the character Satsuki from Bisco Hatori's other work, Millennium Snow, both in appearance and personality.
[8] He refers to the club as his "family", with himself as the father figure; Kyoya, the mother; Haruhi, the daughter; Hikaru and Kaoru, the brothers; and Mori and Honey, the uncles.
He is naïve for his age, viewing himself as an obsessive father figure to Haruhi when he is really in love with her despite his flirtatious ways with the female students who visit the club.
A running gag is Haruhi teasing him, breaking his fragile self-esteem and causing him to sit in a fetal position in a secluded corner or grow mushrooms in a dark closet.
Despite his naivete and his ability to miss the most obvious things, Tamaki is able to see through difficult people like Kyoya and the Hitachiin twins, whom he managed to convince to join his club despite their disparate personalities.
He correctly identifies Kyoya's insecurities, the twins' loneliness, and Honey's discontent, and offers his club as a way for them to escape or rail against their respective troubles.
Tamaki and the rest of the host club mistake new scholarship student Haruhi Fujioka as a male customer when she enters the room they use though she was just looking for a quiet place to study.
Examples of the former include getting a host-hopping customer and her fiancé back together,[17] a grade school boy who comes to the club asking for advice on how to woo girls,[18] and teaching Black Magic Club president Umehito Nekozawa how to be a princely type brother to his little sister Kirimi, who is terrified of occult-related things like the dark and cats but which Nekozawa cannot live without.
[29] Bonus manga chapters show Tamaki contemplating marriage with Haruhi eight months after their move to Boston, realized two years later.
He is also confirmed as the heir of the Suoh family, which requires him to travel abroad frequently as stated when Haruhi mentions in passing during her conversation with Mei at Ouran University that she has not seen Tamaki for several weeks.
The Host Club is threatened with being shut down due to it being deemed frivolous by Kyoya's father and Tamaki is being blackmailed into marrying a spoiled French girl, Éclair Tonnerre, in exchange for seeing his mother again.
[35] Various types of merchandise have been released based on Tamaki such as a Nendoroid figure,[36] plushies,[37] keychains,[38] lamps,[39] wall scrolls,[40] and stickers.
[41] The anime's portrayal of Tamaki has been praised for perfectly exaggerating his "snappy" movements and how his lanky arms, broad shoulders, flowing hair, and towering legs "are prone to monopolizing the entire screen.".
[49] Chelsea Steele of CBR called him the most lovable of the hosts and noted his ability to win the audience over with "his over-the-top dramatics and eccentricity.".
[50] Melissa Ojeda ranked him eighth on her list of ten most compassionate anime husbandos, noting that while he is a bit idiotic and can come off as rude and condescending, he actually "cares a lot about people's happiness, which is why he starts the Host Club" and how ultimately "a person's status in life doesn't mean much to him.