Busu ni Hanataba wo.April Showers Bring May Flowers Edit What would you like to edit? SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links   477014

I am actually really impressed with this manga. It more-or-less is a pretty generic love story between an ugly girl and a Riajuu. More than likely you've seen it before in dozens of hundreds of other similar Shoujo-type love stories. However, Busu ni Hanataba wo does it with enough of a strong pace and enjoyable atmosphere that it gets away with being a little bit generic.

The part that probably works best is the main girl Tabata. So many of these types of manga have the girl be at least somewhat conventionally attractive. When they aren't, that typically only applies in universe. In reality the ... ugly girl is either really cute with a deceiving sense of a style to mask it, or they just wear glasses and are a bit socially awkward. Here, Tabata is not conventionally attractive and sticks with it. She has small eyes, a rounded nose, and a chubby face. This isn't pushed to an unnecessary extreme though, she has a sort of cute charm to her, but it always feels realistic in her simplicity. This way she is depicted makes her actions feel all them ore believable or understandable. I'm not going to claim she is the most well written female protagonist of all time, but she does work surprisingly well to the relatively cliche narrative.

In of artwork and characters, Busu ni Hanataba wo is pretty much just ok. It doesn't do anything amazing, but it gets the job done. While generic, I really enjoyed a lot of what this manga was doing. It makes for a fun and short underrated read.

Bouquet for an ugly girl, or Busu ni Hanataba wo, is such an approachable and wholesome story that makes you want to constantly click the “next chapter” button to see what is going to happen.
The plot revolves around Tabata Hana, a girl who is not your typical beauty and has low self-esteem, which makes her constantly think that she is being a burden for everyone surrounding her. For our heroine, being seen changing the flowers from the classroom vase is enough to trigger intrusive thoughts of being a waste of space.

The story can easily fall into the cliché of the ugly girl falling in love ... with the nice, popular, and handsome guy who falls for her inner beauty. But, somehow this manga swapped that pattern by making the male lead, Ueno Yousuke, the one falling in love first as he is touched by the small and caring actions of Tabata.

Personally, this manga has hit close to home since I also have struggled against self-image and low self-esteem issues in the past. Problems that make me constantly doubt the relationships I formed throughout my life, and issue that I really think everyone has faced at some point.

Bouquet for an ugly girl can be an eye-opener for a lot of people, since our teenage protagonist fights against her inner demons in order to be able to love herself, not in a way that makes fun of anyone, but rather in the sense that respects the mentality of introvert people who want to improve what they are. Also, it follows that journey on realizing that instead of wanting to change for someone else, you have to change because you want to be better for yourself.

To sum up, this story can hit close to home for several people, as I mentioned earlier. So, no way giving this mange a chance is going to be a mistake.

I'd hate to say this, but as a huge fan of Kimi ni Todoke (From Me to You), Busu ni Hanataba Wo suffered for being a "copycat."

I have read up to volume 6 and the resemblance of Busu ni Hanataba Wo to Kimi no Todoke is so distracting. A lot of events and situations are very reminiscing of Kimi ni Todoke, which is very hard to overlook. I wanted to like the series I really do, but it's Kimi ni Todoke all over again with just different character designs. I would understand if the plot is the only thing that is the same, but it's ... not. Even the characters' personality and traits and their drive/action to do what's needed were the same.

Ueno = Kazehaya (Although at first Ueno is oblivious of his feelings, he's Kazehaya through and through, but he's blonde/brownish hair version)
Tabata = Sawako (Instead of being associated with Sadako, Tabata is a self-proclaimed otaku. Both loners, outcast in the beginning, who snagged the attention of the popular guy in class. Aside from Tabata, who is a bit chunky, she doesn't have much of a difference with Sawako)
Shinbashi = Pin (Although Pin is a subtitute teacher him and Shinbashi are the comedic relief characters.)
Gotanda = Ryu (omg Gotanda is Ryu indisguised, personality and apperance wise but with hair. Gotanda is reliving Ryu's plot. His only saving grace is his relationship with Uguisudani, who share resemblance to Chizu's circumstances in kimi ni todoke after being rejected.)
Ootsuka = Chizu (Ootsuka is the childhood friend of the main guy who shares the same outgoing and loud personality who gets along with everyone personality like Chizu.)
Uguisudani = Kurumi (Ugui is literally Umi-chan. she's the pretty rival with a terrible personality hiding underneath her exterior. Her drive and her backstory are the same as Umi.)

Overall, Busu ni Hanataba wo is not just a cliche story, but it's literally an "alternate retelling" of Kimi ni Todoke. It's a shame, I'm a sucker for this kind of romance troupe where the main character starts to open up to other people, getting along with them and being a part of a group but most of the situations presented in this is like a rehashed version.

Busu is labeled as seinen, and Kimi ni Todoke is Shoujo, but the latter is the original one. And so far, after reading half of the series there's really nothing new to make this series worth checking out except if you're new to manga/anime. Because of that Busu ni Hanataba Wo is very hard to recommend but would urge readers to just check out Kimi ni Todoke instead.