Six months went by in a flash, and it’s already time for J.GARDEN 55! Regular readers of the BLog likely already know, but we attended J.GARDEN 54 as a business trip of sorts. This time I’ll be attending by myself just as a regular BL fan, so I won’t be writing another attendance report, but I figured I could still update everyone on who’ll be there, and which artists and books I’m personally super excited for.
Because the pamphlets sold out within a week last fall, I was careful to leave for Akihabara at 8AM on February 18th—I was going to be there at store open on the morning of the pamphlet being released, and I was going to get the damn thing. I went to Akihabara because it’s less popular with fujoshi than my usual haunt of Ikebukuro (land of the infamous Otome Road), and last year Akiba took way longer to sell out, so I wanted to go to Shosen Book Tower, an incredibly popular (and old) bookstore in Akihabara. However… the pamphlet wasn’t there lol. Ope. So I asked the staff, and they confirmed they WERE supposed to get a shipment in, but something went wrong and it was delayed.
Which was fine. Because you could also buy the pamphlet at Animate, and Animate Akihabara was only a few blocks away. (And I could look at Genshin goods while I was there…)
Tip that I actually didn’t know at the time (I spent a good ten minutes combing each floor with no sign of the pamphlet before asking the staff): pamphlets like this are actually generally kept behind the counter of the main floor. So if you’re ever in Japan and looking to purchase an event pamphlet, ask the staff first before wasting a bunch of time looking for it! (They’re very nice and helpful, and if you don’t speak Japanese just show the image on your phone and they’ll understand!)
Anyway, pamphlet obtained! Onto the actual content for the upcoming J.GARDEN 55!
You can check all the artists and circles who’ll be there by looking at the circle list, and the hashtag for people posting previews and updates is “#J庭55“! For this next part, I’ll just be showcasing the artists who we have available on Renta!, and after that I’ll discuss some of my personal favs who aren’t available on Renta! (or localized at all, and in some cases not even commercially published) who I’m most looking forward to!
It’s no surprise Nikke Taino will be there, considering they did the artwork for the announcement and promotional posters!
As readers of this blog may know, I love Nikke Taino and tend to recommend their work whenever I get the chance. (Please read my review on their Kingdom Series…) This time around, they’re reprinting their full-color mini booklet for The Black Cat & The Vampire, as well as releasing a new book for My Personal Weatherman (available on MangaPlaza).
You can read the sample here! It looks very cute, so I’m super excited to read it!
I haven’t gotten a chance to talk much about Yuumi Imai on the blog, but I’ve been following their work since their debut, and their art is just amazing and their bottoms are very My Type. We have four of their books on the site, His Alpha Test Subject Helping Him Through His Heat being my personal favorite. (My friend is partial to Our Adorable Asahi.) The boy in this new book in particular is so absurdly pretty, I can’t wait to get my hands on it. Luckily, it seems to be related to their new serialization over in LOVE xxx BOYS.
They’ll also be releasing goods of this very cute and good boy, which I will probably cave and buy like the simp that I am.
Reo Ohno isn’t new to Renta!, with Reward Me With Your Body, Sir having been on the site for around a year now, but I was finally introduced to them via their new series Private Live Streaming, which just hits all the right notes for me—so I’m pretty much obsessed with Reo Ohno at this point.
Lucky for me, their book for J.GARDEN is a continuation of Private Live Streaming, so I get even more of Jun and Sota’s sexy shenanigans. Unfortunately, it appears they’ve only shared the poster so far, so still no sample. Regardless, this is an absolute must-buy on my end.
With my luck, I’m sure their sample will go live as soon as I’ve published this post. But oh well, be sure to click through to their Twitter (and follow them) just in case.
Since Ikuyasu specializes buff dudes, which is the opposite of my usual preferences, I asked Sou, a certified follower of the Church of Ikuyasu, to speak the gospel and they said: “Their manga is both hilarious and heartwarming, with a Large helping of MAN as well.” This is very true—and there’s no shortage of grade-A BEEF in their J.GARDEN samples, either.
Even though I’m not a pectoral purveyor myself, I have to say I absolutely love the mini tiddie mousepad strap. Truly the biggest of big-brain goods. I can’t get over how small and cute and squishy the tids look.
We have seven different Ikuyasu titles and are happy to keep providing the THICC content you all desire—their work is incredibly popular, so make sure to check it out! I personally quite liked Boys, Love, and Plants! 
Unfortunately, Noda Nonda has already announced they might not make it, and can’t confirm whether they’ll be able to participate until the Saturday before. Which makes sense, since they’ve been busy promoting their cute new book Takuhai Oniisan to Dekiru kana (you can see a sample here) that just came out at the end of last month.
If they’re able to go, it seems they’ll be releasing a rough sketch story that’s a continuation of Takuhai Oniisan, as well as a ridiculously cute acrylic stand of the characters. If they have to skip, they’ll be releasing the acrylic stand via mail order.
Shimaji is an artist we only have one book for—Naughty Cats Hide Their Claws—but they’re quite OG in the BL space. Their new book is actually a continuation of the one we have on he site (which we’re still working on getting the second volume up for), and it’s supposedly the seventh volume in their doujin series. The cover is absurdly cute, so I recommend checking it out!
We have two of Kaoru Watanabe’s books on Renta!—I Might Be Your Fan, but I’ll Never Fall for You! and Lovingly Cruel Services—and I did the quality checks for both of them which may make me biased, but it also means I’m intimately acquainted with their work. I absolutely love how unique and glossy their art feels, and their stories and sense of eroticism is 
Highly recommend, if you haven’t checked them out yet.
Their book is going to be a continuation of Lovingly Cruel Services, which I am incredibly ready for since Subaru is adorable—especially when he’s allowing himself to accept his masochistic tendencies. 
You can read the sample up above, and there’s also a longer sample on Pixiv where the dirty scenes are allowed to be posted. Highly recommend. Also, if you haven’t read their stuff yet, please give it a chance—it’s really good!
I became obsessed with Sattsu Kida when I read their book Boku ha Kimi to Koi ga Shitai a little over a year ago. I subsequently read all their other work, and I just really love the way they handle emotions and conflict. (Their ero scenes are also really great… ) First Night With My Beloved, which can be read on Renta!, is one of my favorites by them and an absolute must-read if you’re a fan of size difference kink.
For J.GARDEN, they’re releasing a new book based off their most recent release, which is admittedly a bit more “sadistic boyfriend” vibes than I’m usually into, but I highly recommend it if you’re interested in that!
They’re also releasing an acrylic stands of my babies and they both look so cute. 
Wacoco Waco is essentially the god of cute/femme top and boyish/masc bottom. As they say in theit Twitter profile, “Cute Tops Love.” Princess Top is our most popular title by them, which is saying a lot because all of Wacoco Waco’s titles are highly-reviewed on Renta! If you’re into the dynamic of the more feminine character topping the more masculine character, I can’t recommend their works enough.
Because they are massively true to their niche, their new J.Garden book doesn’t disappoint.
The is the prettiest top I’ve ever seen. Live your truth, Wacoco Waco. I am behind you every step of the way.
Also, FYI, they have a Vtuber account where their avatar is a big booby lion lady. I love it.
Admittedly the only manga I’ve read by Sabamiso is their well-known book My Dashing Delivery Driver, which is usually a tad bit outside my wheelhouse, but the while the uke character is quite buff he’s still plenty charming to me. That being said, what really got my attention in their J.GARDEN announcement is that 1. this book is a continuation of My Dashing Delivery Driver and 2. it’s… a reversible book.
It’s pretty rare for an artist who is not already explicitly into reversible dynamics to take a book that is not already explicitly reversible, and to create a reversible version of it, so I’m super stoked. While I didn’t necessarily have a burning desire to see Isshin bottom or anything while I was reading the original, I’ve still very much looking forward to this.
Bottom supremacy. 
I only recently became a fan of Jiro Kawaii when doing the final checks for their story We’ll Get Our Happy Ending, and I just loved how much their emotions and drama draw me in. So I’ve been keeping an eye on their work ever since (though, sadly, I’ve been too busy at work to read any more of their stuff since). But I wanted to share their J.GARDEN release since it’s related to We’ll Get Our Happy Ending.
If you haven’t read We’ll Get Our Happy Ending yet I super recommend it! It feels very personal and human, so if you’re in the mood to read something kind of bittersweet that deals heavily with sexuality and learning to trust and communicate with your partner, A+.
Some other great artists who’ll be there whose work is available on Renta!:
Fumi Yoshinaga (Twitter)
Fumi Furukawa (Twitter)
Fuyu Saikawa (Twitter)
Gyu Domko (Twitter)
Hakata (Twitter)
Hare Takizawa (Twitter)
Hataoka (Twitter)
Ikuya Fuyuno (Twitter)
Maria (Twitter)
Nanako Haida (Twitter)
niyataro (Twitter)
Oiko Komaru (Twitter)
Rose Shiomi (Twitter)
Sagamishika (Twitter)
Sanba Maekawa (Twitter)
sawaco (Twitter)
Taro Torimaru (Twitter)
Yuzu Marita (Twitter)
AS FOR THE ARTISTS WHO’RE NOT ON RENTA!… 
Okiya Yuuho
I love Okiya Yuuho with my entire being. Her uke characters are just god-tier, and the slow-burn eroticism in her manga is just This time she has a continuation of her story Senpai, Naka Misete and my body is ready. It could not be more ready, in fact. I love her and I love that manga.
Last time she also had a bunch of self-published long-form books, and I’m really hoping she brings those back because I loved the one I bought, which was a praise kink book about a streamer whose cleaner babies and spoils him and he loves every second of it. She also previously released a bizarre doujinshi about hamsters fucking and I need it. For science.
I will buy literally anything she puts on her table, and this new book is no exception.
Amamiya
I fell in love with Amamiya after they released Muchuu ni Naru yo, and while their J.GARDEN book is going to be based off one of their older releases, I’m still planning on bringing them a letter and doing aisatsu. The way they draw hands is so beautiful. I sincerely hope a localization company brings Muchuu ni Naru yo to the English-speaking world someday because everyone needs to read it.
Danpee
As far as I know, Danpee has never released any commercial BL, but I first saw her work last J.GARDEN and I’m absolutely in love with the fluffy, sweet characters and the absolutely stunning watercolors she uses to create her work. She also does this thing where she has a postcard where she prints and colors one page of the manga, and she slips it into that page so you’re just surprised by it, and I just… ugh. BL artists and their big brains.
While there’s nothing I can recommend you buy, I still suggest checking out her Twitter because it’s just a treat for the eyes.
Morino Kumichi
Morino Kumichi is another artist who I believe ?? isn’t commercially published yet, but I bought her books last J.GARDEN and they were, hands down, my favorites books I bought at random. I’ve read them countless times. The eroticism is so good and the art is so clean??? And the characters are so charming?? I’m absolutely stoked she’ll be back this time!
Special shout-out to Waga and Haruya Umaco—both of whom’s work I’m not super familiar with, but their previews for their J.GARDEN books still have me in their clutches. 
Also Ame and Yoshida Yuuko, who will be there but haven’t really posted anything about their offerings yet. It’s okay; I live for the thrill.
As always, I’m pretty sure most of these books will be available for online orders or, in the future, might be released digitally! Usually the artist will make it clear, but it also doesn’t hurt to ask if they intend on offering their stuff for overseas readers!
If you want an explainer on doujinshi sites in the future, I’d also be happy to oblige. 
rentaBLog 
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