"Ugly" is subjective.
Some who hated this car ended up liking it:
Here's the basic model:
The long nose is primarily because of extensive tunnels, to reduce noise.
It's not just about speed, Japan has some of the strictest noise pollution rules in the world.
They also tend to have a 25% margin in operational speed, so they can be guaranteed to always run on time.
Japanese are also more open to new things and change.
It's kind of interesting that some of the newer TGV models look similar to some of the older Shinkansen ones.
TGV
Newest AGV
And Japan's Tsubame:
TGV Old and New (new one's more "Japanized" and curvy)
Interestingly, I've never heard a dolphin called ugly.
Some may prefer this, though... as it looks more "powerful"
If you see these trains in real life, you likely won't have the same opinion.