Minako Yamano

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Anime

Japan

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Thailand

Minako Yamano
Japanese	山野 美奈子
Romanized	Yamano Minako
Characteristics
Gender	Female
Personal information
Residence	Tokyo, Japan
Education	Eitoku Academy
Affiliation	Lilies

Erika: "We deserve someone with both looks and status."

Minako: "There's no one but the F4. No matter which one of them you get, you'll be a president's wife."

— The Lilies aim to catch the F4

Minako Yamano (山野 美奈子 (やまの みなこ) , Yamano Minako) was a student at Eitoku Academy. She and her best friends, Yuriko Asai and Erika Ayuhara, formed the group informally known as the Lilies. They often bullied Tsukushi Makino during their high school years. After graduation, Minako and her friends transferred to Eitoku's university.

Biography

High school

Minako enrolled at Eitoku Academy, possibly during high school or earlier. She was in the same class as her best friends, Yuriko Asai and Erika Ayuhara. Tsukushi Makino was also in her class though they never interacted with her.

Bullying Tsukushi

Minako and her friends spy on Tsukushi and Rui

Lilies: "Everyone over here! They're hiding here! The "red slip couple!""

Yuriko: "What's the problem? Hurry and run away."

Minako: "We're going to enjoy watching the chase."

— Lilies reveal Tsukushi and Kazuya's position to the bullies

Minako and her friends became jealous of Tsukushi after she started receiving attention from the F4. They wrote a rumor about her on their classroom's blackboard. The girls later wiped away the words, pretending to be sympathetic towards Tsukushi. They then invited her to a party, where they made fun of her clothes and treated her rudely, revealing that they wrote the rumor. The girl's attention was taken away by a man. Later, they had assumed that Tsukushi had left. However, she had stayed and got her revenge by embarrassing Yuriko. She then called them all "parasites" before leaving. The next day, the girls spied on her talking to Rui Hanazawa. Afterwards, they told her about Shizuka Todo and began making fun of her. Tsukasa Domyoji suddenly showed up and yelled at them to leave her alone.

A few days later, the whole school began bullying Tsukushi again after her friend Kazuya Aoike had received a red card. The girls found their hiding place and shouted their location to the others. Minako then said "We're going to enjoy watching the chase." A couple weeks later during summer break, they went with the F4 to Atami on Tsukasa's yacht. The girls were irritated when they arrived on the beach and saw Tsukushi, and even more so when Shizuka invited her to that night's party. Shizuka called them "rude" when they spoke out. The next morning, they learned that Tsukushi had kissed Tsukasa during the party. The girls were disgusted by this and heavily criticized her. That night, Minako and her friends were among the students invited by Tsukasa to his cuttlefish cookout.

Once the fall term began, Minako and the others bragged to their class about their vacation. The three blatantly lied about the details, making it seem like the F4 paid them special attention. After overhearing Tsukasa saying Tsukushi liked him, Yuriko decided to show him the video of Tsukushi and Rui which they took during the Atami trip. He broke the camera out of anger. Yuriko spouted off more lies about Tsukushi to Tsukasa, before putting her hand on his arm. He then slapped her, causing her to fall to the ground. Minako and Erika quickly went to her side, calling her name. Several days later, it was believed that Tsukushi and Tsukasa had begun dating. Minako and her friends pretended to be happy for her, much like their other classmates. The three actually could barely hide the look of irritation on their faces.

Fall term

Lilies cheer for Tsukasa during the basketball game

Minako: "Thanks for saving us earlier. And if you believe I mean that, you're a twit!"

Erika: "You played that perfectly, didn't you? You got to be alone with Tsukasa!"

Yuriko: "Too bad you didn't die."

— Minako and her friends to Tsukushi after she survives the blizzard

Several weeks later, Tsubaki Domyoji walked into the school. Minako and her friends were disgusted with Tsukushi for not being familiar with her. They were surprised to find that Tsukushi actually knew Tsubaki personally. Later, a basketball match was decided to determine Tsukushi and Rui's expulsion. Minako, her friends, and Sakurako Sanjo acted as cheerleaders for Tsukasa's side. Nothing came of the match, since Tsukasa called it off at the last second. Several weeks later, the three girls were annoyed to learn that Tsukushi was representing Eitoku's second-year class at Teen of Japan. Instead of retaliating, she greeted their insults with "Good morning, ladies." Minako commented "I hear Tsubaki's been training her." She and Erika then had to restrain Yuriko from going after Tsukushi.

On Christmas Eve, the three girls went to watch Teen of Japan together. They were still annoyed by Tsukushi being a contestant, predicting that she would not last long. She passed the first round, which provoked Yuriko. Minako calmed her down by assuring her that Tsukushi could not pass the knowledge category. She added "I can't wait to see how she flames out in that one." The three then cheered during the second round, when Tsukushi appeared to be losing. However, she ended up being a finalist. The day after Christmas, the girls were at a café where they overheard Tsukushi speaking to her friend. She talked about borrowing a million yen from Tsukasa as well as a trip to Canada with the F4. Minako looked to Yuriko and said "Did you heart what they said?" They later booked a flight to Canada.

They landed in Vancouver, where Sojiro Nishikado yelled at them to stop following them. He allowed them to come when they claimed that Tsukushi had invited them. The next day, they went to slopes where they saw Tsukasa helping Tsukushi snowboard. Minako said "Take a look at that" to an annoyed Yuriko. That night during a blizzard, Yuriko lied to Tsukushi about seeing her friend go outside. Rui later confronted them, saying " If she's lost her way, she'll die!" After Tsukasa had left to find Tsukushi, they started to cry. Sojiro yelled "Crying won't help anything!" When Tsukushi and Tsukasa returned in the morning, they begged for forgiveness. Tsukasa and Sakurako wanted to punish them, but Tsukushi said "Forget it." They later revealed to her that they were not sorry. Minako even called her a "twit."

Continued animosity

Minako at prom with Yuriko and Erika

Minako: "And they say that fools don't catch colds!"

Erika: "Obviously just another old wives' tale."

Yuriko: "Do you know why poor people catch colds? Because they can't afford a heater!"

— The three girls make fun of Tsukushi

In January, Tsukushi appeared on the cover of Treasures with the popular model, Jun. Minako and all of her classmates were angry about it and loudly complained about it to one another. When she entered the classroom seconds later, they all glared at her coldly but did not say anything. Several days later, the girls heard Tsukushi sneeze. Minako said "And they say that fools don't catch colds!" Yuriko then made a joke about poor people that they all laughed at. The girls were surprised when Tsukushi did not say anything back. Yuriko then made a comment about her being "quiet lately," leading Minako to say that she "probably finally learned her lesson." Some days later, the girls learned about Tsukushi living at Tsukasa's house as a live-in maid. They were all angry about the news and called her "shameless."

The next day, the entire school heard about Tsukushi dating Tsukasa. It was confirmed when he came to their classroom to pick her up for lunch. Everyone was shocked and screamed once they left. Several days later, Minako and the friends watched Tsukushi walk by with a guy who looked extremely similar to Tsukasa. Just a few days after, Tsukasa made a surprise visit to their classroom while looking for Tsukushi, who was absent that day. Several days later, the girls saw Tsukushi on television catching a baseball. They attempted to act sweetly to her the next day, but were ignored and left by themselves when Sojiro and Akira dragged Tsukushi away. Later that month, Minako attended Eitoku's prom with Yuriko and Erika. Minako was talking about dancing just as Tsukushi arrived in casual attire.

College

Minako graduated from high school a year later, along with Yuriko and Erika. On their first day at Eitoku University, the trio were shocked to see Tsukushi there. Minako stated that she "[must have] used dirty tricks" and that Tsukushi would "ruin [their] four years [there]."

Physical appearance

Physical characteristics
Hair color	Brown
Eye color	Brown

Minako resembled Yuriko in that they had similar facial features, height, and body shape. She was slightly taller than Yuriko. Much like her friends, she put a lot of effort into her appearance. Her hair was usually styled in ringlet type curls, along with a thick headband. She only occasionally wore it up. Minako's favorite brand of clothing was Chanel as she often styled herself head-to-toe in the brand.

Personality and traits

Like her friends, Minako was greedy who pursued men only for their money. Her goal was to marry a rich man, particularly aiming to get one of the F4. She desired their status since she would be a president's wife no matter which she married. Minako looked down on others of a lower financial status, including Tsukushi. She and her friends bullied Tsukushi out of jealousy since she was close to the F4. The girls occasionally had to be nice to her, though they tried to ignore her for the most part.

Behind the scenes

Character notes

• A minor antagonist, Minako first appears in chapter five of Boys Over Flowers.

Portrayals

See also: Category:Minako Yamano portrayals

Norika Fujiwara as Minako (yellow)

• She is portrayed by Norika Fujiwara in the film, Hana Yori Dango (1995). A then unknown, Fujiwara would go on to have a successful career as a model and actress. In the film, Minako's role is the same as her manga counterpart. She and her friends, Yuriko and Sakurako, first pretend to befriend Tsukushi and then bully her. Later on, Minako joins the excitement when the Eitoku students think Tsukushi and Tsukasa are dating.

Minako (left) in the anime

• Nami Sato voices Minako in the Boys Over Flowers anime (1996) and the short film released in 1997. Minako appears regularly throughout the anime and almost always with Yuriko and Erika. They are mostly used as antagonists to Tsukushi for the first half of the series. Eventually, the girls leave her alone for the most part though their hatred for Tsukushi remains strong. Near the end of the series, they attempt to bully her for the final time but are stopped by Shigeru. In the finale, the girls are apparently disinterested in Tsukushi and have moved on to bully someone else.

Emiko Matsuoka as Minako (blue)

• Emiko Matsuoka plays Minako in Hana Yori Dango (2005). Minako with Yuriko and Erika bully Tsukushi after she receives a red card. They are jealous of the attention she receives from the F4. In the sequel Hana Yori Dango Returns (2007), they still dislike Tsukushi, but they treat her more civilly. The girls even congratulate her about her engagement to Tsukasa in the finale. In Hana Yori Dango Final (2008), Minako and Erika attend Tsukushi's and Tsukasa's wedding.
• In Hana Yori Dango: Koi Seyo Otome! (2008), she is voiced by Chieko Higuchi who also voiced Shigeru Okawahara and Sara Hinata.
• A version of Minako, renamed Lee Mi-sook, is portrayed by Min Young-won in Boys Over Flowers (2009).

Akiko Kimura (left) as Minako

• Akiko Kimura plays Minako in Hana Yori Dango: The Musical (2016). In the South Korean version, she is portrayed by Kim Bo-bae. As an ensemble member, Kimura performs in several songs, though her main numbers as "Cut Down Tsukushi" and "Chance." In the musical, the Lilies are often shown arguing over which F4 members they like the most.
• Minako is played by Natsuki Suzumina in the musical, Hana Yori Dango (2019). Her role is a minor role. She is usually shown bullying Tsukushi or standing in the background.
• Thai actress Waruschaya Ophassirirath portrays Minako, renamed Bow, in F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers (2021).

Appearances

Boys Over Flowers
Volume 1 1 2 3 4 5 (Debut)
Volume 2 6 7 8 9 10 11
Volume 3 12 13 14 15 16 17
Volume 4 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Volume 5
Volume 6
Volume 7
Volume 8 45 46 47 48 49 50 51
Volume 9
Volume 10
Volume 11 66 67 68 69 70 71
Volume 12 72 73 74 75 76 77
Volume 13 78 79 80 81 82 83
Volume 14 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 (Picture(s) only) (Mentioned)
Volume 15
Volume 16 98 99 100 101 102 103 104
Volume 17 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 (Flashback only)
Volume 18
Volume 19 119 120 121 122 123 124 125
Volume 20
Volume 21
Volume 22
Volume 23
Volume 24 154 155 156 157 158 159 160
Volume 25 161 162 163 164 165 166 167
Volume 26 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 (Mentioned)
Volume 27
Volume 28
Volume 29 187 188 189 190 191 192 193
Volume 30
Volume 31
Volume 32
Volume 33
Volume 34
Volume 35
Volume 36 236 237 238 239 240 241 "Night of the Crescent Moon"
Jewelry Box Chapter 242 "Shall I Talk About Myself? Part 1" "Shall I Talk About Myself? Part 2"
Other