Shizue Suoh (須王 静江, Suō Shizue) is the Suoh family matriarch, the mother of Yuzuru Suoh and the grandmother of Tamaki Suoh who is a powerful individual that rules her family and its financially successful businesses with an iron hand. Though her backstory is only marginally explored, it may be speculated that one reason for her hardened nature is the fact that she was widowed at a relatively young age and either chose or was forced into becoming a tough businesswoman. Her cold attitude warms up considerably after spending time with her charismatic grandson, who manages to capture her affections and bring some happiness (and a kinder nature) back into her life.
Appearance
Shizue is considered to be quite beautiful for an older woman and she is of average height with dark grey hair and brown eyes. Whenever she enters a room, she has a commanding presence, albeit a negative one.
Shizue is usually seen in kimonos and other traditional Japanese attire, whether at work or at home.
Personality
The Suoh matriarch is said to be 70 years old, but remains sharp and on task when it comes to business matters. On a personal level, Shizue appears to be rigid, cold-hearted and dismissive towards most people, but especially towards her grandson, who she calls "filthy child" because he is Yuzuru Suoh's illegitimate son with Anne-Sophie de Grantaine. It is only after Tamaki makes a concerted effort to be kind to her and to demonstrate his generous nature, that she comes to acknowledge and to love him, eventually naming him as the Suoh future heir.
Story
Introduced in the series as an antagonist, Shizue is the one who brings Tamaki to Japan and forbids him all future contact with his mother, who remains in France. For much of the story, she is spiteful and controlling and, interestingly, one of the only people Mitsukuni "Honey" Haninozuka admits hating. Widowed at an early age, business-related matters became her principal interest and the only thing of real importance in her life. Even her reason for bringing Tamaki to Japan is business-related, as she needs the Suoh family to have an heir, though she diminishes the boy's presence in her life by insisting that he live at the second Suoh mansion instead of the main mansion where she lives with Yuzuru. In later manga chapters, thanks to the efforts of the Suoh family's lawyer (Yuko Kosaka), Shizue finally allows Tamaki to enter the main residence, though she still does not acknowledge him. Once there, she blames him for messing up Haruhi Fujioka's life by making her hide her gender and deceive the entire school. At that point, she also forbids him from participating in the Ouran Host Club activities, an order which Tamaki obeys.
Over time, Shizue is slowly charmed by Tamaki's flamboyant, yet kind self. Eventually, Yuzuru orders her retirement after Ootori Medical and Suoh enterprises' combined forces discover a medicine for Tamaki's mother and bring Anne-Sophie to Japan for treatments. This drives Shizue into seclusion inside her bedroom. Falling into depression, it is Tamaki who helps her regain her spirits by playing the piano for her and sharing fun times together discussing movies and television series they both enjoy. After witnessing how far the Host Club will go to enable Tamaki see his mother before she leaves Japan, Shizue allows him to go, as long as he promises to return to play the piano for her. In time, she allows him to return to the Host Club and even accepts Tamaki's relationship with Haruhi, who she finds to be an very interesting girl.
Relationships
Tamaki Suoh
Shizue is very bitter about Tamaki and often calls him "filthy child" because he's the illegitimate son of Yuzuru with Anne-Sophie. Over time and because of Tamaki's sweet nature, Shizue finally acknowledges and accepts him. Shizue loves how Tamaki plays the piano and often asks him to play songs for her after they spend some time together in the main Suoh mansion. Shizue eventually tells Tamaki that she didn't mean to be so harsh, but only wanted to protect the Suoh family business as it was her final promise to her husband before he died. Tamaki understands this and respects his grandmother greatly, as is demonstrated when he refuses to see his mother (despite her presence in Japan) until Shizue approves of it. Tamaki's dream of dining "under a kotatsu" with his beloved family (Yuzuru, Anne Sophie and Shizue) becomes a reality in one of the omake of the manga.
Yuzuru Suoh
Yuzuru is Shizue's only child. When Yuzuru's father died, Yuzuru was only in high school; yet Shizue selected a girl for him to marry and set him up as the Suoh patriarch. Later, when Yuzuru goes to Paris on a business trip, he falls in love with Anne-Sophie de Grantaine, who bears him a son - René Tamaki Richard de Grantaine Suoh. Shizue is angry about what she perceives to be a betrayal and forbids him to bring mother and son back to Japan with him, insisting that there be no further contact. Yuzuru, however, disobeys his mother and divorces his unfaithful wife while continuing to visit Tamaki and Anne-Sophie in France. As Shizue ages, she becomes concerned about the lack of a Suoh family heir and offers Anne-Sophie a deal: in exchange for financial security, Tamaki must live with her in Japan and never see his mother again. Yuzuru accepts this arrangement in the hopes that he will be able to reconcile all parties at some point, which eventually does occur.
In the anime, it's revealed that Shizue is the person who arranges engagement between Éclair Tonnerre and Tamaki, promising Tamaki that he can see Anne-Sophie if he marries the French heiress. This greatly disturbs Yuzuru, but Shizue's response is that Tamaki must make amends for Yuzuru's youthful mistakes. Yuzuru is, thus, relieved when the engagement is called off and becomes even more determined to secure Tamaki's future as the Suoh heir as a way to reunite his family.
Etymology
- The name Shizue means "quiet blessing".
- Shizue's surname Suoh means "dragon".
Gallery
- Main article: Shizue Suoh/Image Gallery