It's such a long time since I've read a wonderful manga like this. Not easy for one that looking for something funny and energetic. It's somehow dark but very realistic and mysterious. No real murder, no real monster but you can find it inside characters' souls. I'm so in love with Saeky, what a poor girl. I'm still hoping she will soon come back to Kasuga and they live happily till the end of life (though it would never get real because Nakamura is the real female potagonist). Mangas like these make me really love being a human more and more!

... Last updated on April 27th, 2013, 7:25pm

Even with a weak whiny main character, although I liked the literature geek side of him and thank god his not entirely a pervert. The story events are unexpectedly interesting. And after read chapter 13, it got even better. for me this series is much better than his other work yuutai nova. I wish he sticks with this one.

... Last updated on March 27th, 2011, 5:28pm

These past few years, this manga was among the top that I kept up-to-date with.

This is a unique story and many times I didn't know where it was going to be heading but it made a lot of sense in hindsight. All the MCs in the manga are lonely but each in their own separate way. Although some feelings may be exaggerated, I think there are elements of vulnerability to these MCs that everyone can relate to at some level.

The art is simple but clean and expressive. There are multiple dialogue-free sequences that are so great at setting the tone/atmosphere of the scene. Oshimi is a master at conveying the emotions of the characters purely through their body language and facial expressions.

All in all, this is not a manga for someone looking for fluff but people want to be more introspective, this will be a treat! (As a side note, when the MCs talk about being perverts, they are usually not referring to it in the sexual sense. Moreso that their way of thinking is twisted and "weird".)

I've read bits and pieces of Baudelaire's referenced work but now that I'm done this, I'm eager to read the entire source material.

Plot: 7/10

For a high school drama, Aku no Hana opens with a crazy setting and pervert characters. It explores the theme of troubled youth and lost in society. The first part was briliantly written. It excited you and has you turned the pages. Then comes the second part and the downhill. I suppose the author wants the latter part as the redemption and maturation for the main characters. However, he executed poorly. We readers are led to believe the Tokiwa girl help our hero turn to the right path: become a responsible adult. It is not convincingly at all. I see the protagonist changed Tokiwa but not the way around. She wrote some stories but it was thanks to him that she dares to be herself. And then we met crazy girl Sawa again. But this time she is blank and unemotional. And then some weird shit happened and suddenly they all forget the dark past and move on😕 I guess the author tries to be ambiguous for reader's interpretation.

TLDR; This manga has an interesting theme and really tries to convey that theme. But the execution is not that good.

Art: 7.5/10

It's easy to dismiss the art, but Aku no Hana isn't your typical cute high school art. While it's far from complicated and detailed artstyle, the mangaka captures the sense of suspense and characters' dark mind really well through bleak background and focus shot on characters. Another high point is how the art is quite consistent throughout the series and how it shows characters change and mature.

Characters: 7/10

The cast is small and centered around Kasuga, Sawa and Saeki in part 1 and we have Tokiwa in part 2. But Tokiwa is pretty bland in comparison so I'll leave her out of discussion. Sawa started as the problematic and outcast girl. The way she acted bluntly and violently made you forget her vulnerability. I felt the most for her throughout and wish someone can really reach her. Kasuga tried but he only made her worse. In the end, she just magically got better? Saeki appeared to be annoying for the first few chapters due to her just like a typical star students. As we learned about her, we feel her pain and how she wish to change. In the end, it seems she accepts her society expectation. Her ending is probably the saddest. Now Kasuga is the only one who really changes for the better. He accepts himself as a 'perverted' person while tries to maintain his social expectation and become a responsible individual.

Enjoyment: 7.5/10

Love it or hate it, Aku no Hana is still an exciting read. I have conflcted feeling for it. But I appreciate how thought provoking it is among other 999 other high school dramas.

Overall: 7.2/10

So I read it for like 3 days and at the beginning I really hated the main dude 'cause he's a wimp and a pervert.Then I kinda like how he saw through that new girl but kinda hate how it all happen.
The ending(chap 56) on the other hand is amazing and I really like it,if your here for ROMANCE then there is actual romance that actually progress.The last chapter is more like a extra chapter for me.
I enjoyed it really it can stir up feelings but don't be discouraged cause it's good.
About the ending

Its a good manga. Its refreshing due to the dark nature that you rarely see, but not too dark where it pisses you off and makes you want to smack something. I like how the story progresses and how the characters develop.

I don't know who disgusts me more, Nakamura and her cynical view of Kasuga and humanity, or Kasuga, who is such a pathetic (insert curse word here). In any case, this story is intriguing. But I prefer Sundome.

... Last updated on August 28th, 2011, 3:49pm

A lot of reviews of this manga, to me at least, missed the point. this story is not a case of masochism or the mmc being a wimp. He acted on impulse as a kid going through puberty (which i feel a lot of people missed) the stuff that goes through your head during that time makes you constantly question your actions especially those considered "impure". With that being said he was caught doing something most would look down on but the fmc gave him a chance and a way out. Admit who you truly are and escape this boring town with me. Even the fmc at the end of the day was still a girl herself going through puberty and that mixed with her relationship or lack there of with her parents probably turned her the way she was. But to the whole even she is still a girl too thing. When the mmc and the muse had sex the muse said the fmc was shaking when she hugged the muse. Meaning the fmc probably also had real feelings for the mmc even though on the surface it is supposed to look like they are just both perverts escaping a boring town. you have the fmc who saw her mom up and leave and more than likely her father held some resentment to her for that as he saw his ex wife in his daughter somewhat and that was her catalyst. the mmc was getting caught acting on impulse in smelling his crushes clothes. More than likely had he not heard a noise like someone coming in the room he would have put the clothes back but he ended up in a bad situation and almost worse outcome. a lot of people also didnt like the time skip but i thought it was more important to the story than people realize. what would be the point in picking up right where it leaves off when he moves. it reflects more on the story that some time has actually passed and he is still struggling with what happened not only him but his parents who are the cusp of divorce because of it. then he meets the new li. shes his breakthrough back to "normality" and had there not been a time skip but he still met her it would have been worse for the story imo as it would make no sense for him to move on that quick. time heals all wounds and that was the point of the time skip for some of them they moved on quicker for others they hadnt yet like for instance the muses friend she broke down at the restaurant with the mmc and in the epilogue when she finally runs into the muse at what seems to be a decent time going by it looks as though she can finally move on. does it suck the mmc and fmc dont end up together? yes and no i like tokiwa as she somewhat mirrored the real mmc in that she felt like she had to be fake to fit in and didnt want to share her love of books because her friends and bf might look down on her for it, yes i know that trope is dumb asf but still,. i think if the mmc and fmc ended up together it would do more harm then good as they might have been happy but everyone around them would still hurt. he needed to move on from her and let her heal in her own way as he did also accomplish his mission in saving her from that town for some they may not have noticed it but the fmc moms said since she moved in with her the fmc had calmed down to me meaning she was healing and moving on from the town she was from. she even eventually was able to what looked like make up with her dad. its a bit bitter sweet if you wanted the fmc and mmc to get together but life isnt like that sometimes even if they are of the opposite sex you just need someone special to save you from certain circumstances and nothing more and thats what this story was. and on a final note again this was not some story of a wimp mc who couldnt stand up for himself like really ask yourself this youre 13-14 going through puberty and some random girl catches you stealing a girls used gym clothes and smelling them then blackmails you what are you going to do, and if you say you know a way out of that other than admitting to what you did or violence youre wrong. 13-14 year olds dont have resources like that. so open your mind up and maybe reread this story from a new perspective not the on of the 20 something year old you are now,

Other than psychological, this is not my go to genre, so it is not appealing to me due to it's genre. This series was addicting, fun, anguishing, and heart wrenching at times. It has mentally unstable characters and is realistic to how children, people with disorders, and parents would act. It really got me emotionally involved. For that, I would recommend it to anyone who loves psychological drama.

First of all take note that this is a coming of age genre, so it's about the protagonist growth. Personally what happens here is all because a boy starts to read a too much advanced book(Aku no Hana) for his age, it's a somewhat realistically portrait, so if you are young and easily impressionable you should stay away from this manga just like the protagonist should from his book...
It's a good addictive read that is for sure, you won't ever guess where this all going until you reach the last volumes and you won't even notice how fast you will read this. Still I already read a similar manga way better than this, like "Onani Master Kurosawa".
The art is so-so, I think it could be better drawn, people really like the art but that is not even what is important here, I think the anime screwed with their heads regarding that...
Keep in mind that almost the entire story is subjective, so you will reach your own conclusions.
You won't have your typical shounen protagonist, but instead a real wimp one that is really "lost". Just like many people that don't know what their places in society are, this MC doesn't know either and the book he reads mixed with the fateful encounter with his female counter-part catalysts a meltdown in all the characters relationships leading to catastrophic events.
This manga explores the "demons within" the black flower is the metaphor for that, just like in real life everybody has them, some fight against them, some live with them and others are controlled by them.
If this review somehow sparked your curiosity, then that means you'll probably like this manga a lot so you should take a shot.
Just stay away from the anime, it's eye cancer and it doesn't adapted all of the story, waste of time watching bad anime that leads to a cliffhanger that is certain.

... Last updated on December 20th, 2014, 2:43pm