Renta! Busts Onto The Con Scene: Citrus Con 2024

This past weekend, for the first time ever Renta! was able to take part in a convention: Citrus Con 2024. In previous years we’ve been able to attend conventions as either industry or as sponsors, but never as actual panelists or participants. It’s admittedly a bit hard for us to stay on top of the convention game from all the way in Japan and with a relatively small English-speaking staff, so opportunities often come up only once they’re too late to jump on. But this year, we wanted to participate, and since the Citrus Con staff was so on top of everything and gave us plenty of time to get our ducks in a row, we were able to pull it off!

What is Citrus Con, you ask? Well, Sou already wrote a wonderful report on last year’s convention, if you want something more in-depth. For the tl;dr version, I’ll let Citrus Con’s about page speak for itself:

Citrus Con is a virtual 18+ convention dedicated to BL/queer media, shipping, fan works, and honoring how fan culture has grown in the past two decades.

Citrus Con is one of the few English anime/fandom conventions where BL a is not only welcome, but is actually the main focal point. Another wonderful selling point of Citrus Con is that it’s highly inclusive—fans of all types of ships, fandoms, and content are welcome and celebrated. Plus, since it’s online (and free!) you don’t have to break the bank traveling across the world to attend!

In this Citrus Con 2024 con report, we want to discuss the process of preparing for Citrus Con, all the activities that were available for the weekend of the convention, some of the panels we attended, and our final thoughts about attending as participants and panelists. If any of that interests you, read on!

Creating a Panel

When we decided we wanted to participate in Citrus Con, the first question was: how? While we knew wanted to do a panel, many on the BL team are pretty shy and reclusive. Did we want to actually speak? And, if we do speak, what kind of presentation would we even want to do? Did we want to show our faces? Did we want to host a guest mangaka instead, which might be more fun for fans of BL? Or did we want to take this opportunity to interact with our users, and offer them a chance to get to know us as a company? In the end, we opted to do two separate panels so we’d have something to offer for both: a drawing process video for those who aren’t particularly interested in Renta! as a company but might appreciate the opportunity to be connected to a mangaka they love, and an industry panel for those who want to have a stronger understanding of Renta! as a BL localizer and manga platform.

First was the process of finding a mangaka who’d be interested in participating. As many may know, mangaka are often pretty reclusive—it frequently comes with the territory of being an otaku. They don’t often show their faces outside of very special occasions, such as book signings or events like Chill Chill Festival. Not only that, but opening themselves up to fans of different countries with different cultures can also be pretty anxiety-inducing, since they don’t understand the norms or how their work will be received outside Japan. Nonetheless, the wonderful Tsutako Tsurusawa-sensei stepped up to the plate and we were able to set up a process drawing and Q&A. Our wonderful coworker in sales and licensing edited the whole video herself. (This might shock those who attended the panel, but this was her first time ever editing a video—pretty amazing, right?)

After much discussion on if our panel should be 100% fun (maybe some kind of BL board game?) or 100% informative, we mostly ended up going with the latter (I’d say a 20/80 split). Since our BLog posts about localization and working with BL professionally have proven to be pretty popular, we figured BL fans might be interested in hearing more about our licensing and localization process. So, in the end, that’s what we landed on.

Sou did the vast majority of putting together the presentation and scripting what we wanted to say, while I handled editing and fine details. Originally, I wasn’t planning on participating in the panel itself, since I’m hella reclusive, but in the end I opted to participate in the Q&A portion as an assist.

Coordinating everything between the different teams in our department, who all have their own day job tasks to consider as well, was quite the feat. So special shout-out to everyone from the Renta! team who helped with coordinating, planning, licensing, etc. We couldn’t have done this without everyone’s help, to which we’re very grateful.

Anyway, let’s move on to Sou’s explanation of what Citrus Con actually entailed.

Find Your People!

Like last year, Citrus Con 2024 was mainly held on Discord — an app that’s very versatile and convenient once you figure out how to navigate it. I was personally really looking forward to all the different topic-centered chat channels where you could connect with other fans and discuss various aspects of BL and fandom life, since they were absolutely poppin’ at last year’s CC. And Citrus Con ’24 did not disappoint. Aside from all the interesting topics available last year (BL by media type, #BL-discussions, #monsterfucking, etc.) there were some new ones this year, and the exciting addition of a discussion board section — which functioned as even more specific chats than the ones already available — with topics personally requested by con-goers. It was so fun scrolling through the different chats that related to our own personal interests, and getting a feel for what’s big in BL fandom these days. (A couple of these topics stood out as having extremely active chats throughout the con, thanks to fans getting excited to share their love for them… If you know, you know )

Even if you can’t set aside an entire weekend to attend panels, or you’re an introvert who’s most comfortable talking leisurely in a text-based chat (or even just lurking to see what other people have to say!), I’d say it’s worth registering for Citrus Con just to have access to the Discord server. You can glance at the chats you’re interested in whenever you have the chance, and have an archive of all the spicy memes and BL recommendations that were shared over the weekend to enjoy year-round!

Support Amazing Artists!

This year’s Artist Alley was hosted in a designated Discord channel, and was set up in a nice way where you could scroll through all the shops and get a little preview of each artist’s style along with the link to their website. Ames and I had perhaps a little too much fun clicking through different artists’ shops and admiring the unique items they had on sale — many of which we were eager to add to our personal collections! The content ranged from fanworks to original characters and series, to handmade crafts and fun LGBTQ+ pride merch. If you’re an aspiring artist of anything BL-related but the idea of tabling at an IRL con is just a bit too daunting for you, I’d recommend applying as an Artist to Citrus Con to share your online shop with fellow BL enthusiasts and test out the con waters in a safe, encouraging environment.

Play, Create, and Be Merry!

Aside from the intriguing panels and buzzing chat channels, there were plenty of interactive events going on as well for fans to enjoy together in real-time.

Some of these activities included a cosplay contest, a “Build-a-BL” workshop, “BL Against Humanity,” an “Ultimate” BL quiz, BL crafting, and even a dick tree paint-along with “Yaoi Bob Ross.”

We sadly didn’t participate in these actively, since we would’ve felt awkward showing up to the BL Games as a Corporate Entity — and we were still on the clock, and had to prioritize gathering info we could share in this report over dicking around for our own entertainment. But judging by the funny posts in the Discord chats related to them and on Twitter afterward, the participants had a great time. We highly recommend joining in a few of these during the con if you have the chance and want to interact with others in the BL fandom in whatever way you’re comfortable with!

Engaging Panels Galore!

Unfortunately, when it came to panels, time zones were a massive constraint to which ones we could attend. Usually, when attending a convention, you’ll gladly stay up until ass-o-clock to catch all the panels and events you’re interested in. However, since we were attending for work, we had to take the following into consideration:

1. Anything we were going to report on for work (as in, in any office presentations or in this report) had to be done on the clock. Get paid for your work, kids! Being properly compensated for everything we do on the BLog is my number one rule. (And, thankfully, Renta! is generally more than happy to oblige!)

2. We were working what would usually be our weekend, which means 12 days of work in a row. While we work a job we love and find incredibly enjoyable, we’re still humans, and still need sleep and at least a little alone time to rest and play Genshin Impact. This meant no crazy overtime just to attend as much of the con as humanly possible. (And no skipping lunch!)

Because of that, we worked from 8AM to around 7PM JST both days (Friday evening and Saturday evening US time), and were able to attend stuff during that time. Sadly, we missed quite a few panels we were really interested in, but the ones we did get to see were all amazing. We also massively appreciated all the people who rebroadcast their panels during other time zones, because that was super helpful.

As always, while we’re being careful to not misconstrue anything in this con report, please be sure to check out the actual content and research from each of the panelists if you’re interested in what they discussed!

On the Interwoven Histories of the Feminist Movement, the Lesbian Communities, and Boys Love in Japan
James Welker

Since I’ve loved everything from James Welker I’ve seen so far (please also check out our report on the LGBTQ Issues and the Globalization of ‘BL’ academic conference), I knew I needed to go to this panel—especially as someone who’s really passionate about turning the belief that BL fandom isn’t a queer space on its head. In the panel, Welker gave a breakdown of his newly published book, Transfiguring Women in Late Twentieth-century Japan: Feminists, Lesbians, and Girls Comics Artists and Fans, which connects the dots on the rise of “queer shojo manga” (including what’s now generally considered the beginnings of the BL genre), the women’s liberation movement, and the lesbian movement in Japan. Using the history of these three movements, and interviewing individuals who took parts in them, Welker discusses the importance of understanding the history that led to female-centric fandoms of today. I don’t want to say too much more, aside from the fact that I’ll definitely be picking up the full book when I can.

‘I wish my life was a bit like this’: Queer Identity Work in BL Fandom
Caitlin Joyce

I really really really loved this panel. It started by showcasing a tweet that went semi-viral forever ago, claiming BL was made to boost the post-WW2 Japanese economy for the benefit of straight women. Joyce discusses how her research was essentially to break down this tweet: was BL (yaoi/shonen ai) “created” after WW2 to boost the Japanese economy? (Short answer: no.) Is it made wholly by and for straight women? Are no queer men interested in BL and does BL truly disregard them entirely? Her previous research focused more on women, but the research she presented in this panel was actually focused on queer men and their experiences with reading BL and taking part in BL spaces. What she found is fascinating—she posits that consuming and discussing BL is a form of “identity work,” that BL is often regarded with such hostility from the mainstream because it destabilizes heterosexism, and that it can offer gay men a different version of sexuality and gender. In comparison to much of of western media where the basis of queer identity is frequently regarded as a shared trauma and adversity, BL and slash offers a space to escape into fantasy of a softer and kinder world where a man can simply fall for his best friend and it might work out and be wonderful without the extra social baggage of heteronormativity and homophobia.

There was also discussion of porn studies that I found fascinating—the fact that, as many in these spaces already know from personal experience, what you find titillating and exciting in the media you consume rarely has any baring on what appeals to you in real life. There was a wonderful back-and-forth between Joyce and the discussion in the chat about how this is why many asexuals actually get a lot of enjoyment and fulfillment out of genres like BL, as they offer a safe space to explore sexuality and intimacy without the reader having to force themselves to physically take part in the act.

BL: taboo, culturally relevant, and HOT!
AMF/Alex (moderated by Peachie)

While the previous two panels I went to were highly academic, this one was all vibes and I loved it. It started off with a discussion on the perceived difference between the words “BL,” “yaoi,” and “shonen-ai” in Western circles. This instantly caught my attention, since this is something we’ve discussed with the JP staff many times—the fact that in various circles “shonen-ai” is seen as chaste while “yaoi” is seen as overtly sexual, even though in Japan they’re just seen as words that were used during different “eras” of BL. They moved on to discuss that the term “yaoi” has a lot of baggage in the West based off older BL titles that used to be more violent, more dark, more tragic, and often more homophobic, and how “yaoi” is considered outdated and often used only ironically in fandom now, i.e. “It’s Friday; pass the yaoi!”

There were lots of different topics discussed, from lighter topics like “does BL actually need accurate anatomy?” to heavier topics like “does BL actually fetishize gay men?” and it was a wild and fun ride from start to finish. I really enjoyed watching everyone just openly talk about the stuff they love, and the importance of having safe spaces like this to just let your freak flag fly. If this one is posted on YouTube, I highly recommend checking it out. This panel also made me realize in a big way that I’m way too married to the Japanese BL market, because I didn’t recognize a single one of the manhwa titles recommended. (Granted, I usually don’t read darker stuff, but…)

Dicking Around with Dead Dove Themes
Tay

We missed a bit of this one due to it overlapping with the previous panel, but what we did catch was a crash course on the various different series, ships, and fandoms that contain “problematic” or “dead dove” themes. For those not in the know, the phrase “dead dove” is based off the meme where a man (Michael Bluth from Arrested Development) opens a bag with “DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT” written across it, sees the dead dove inside, and closes it while muttering “I don’t know what I expected.” “Dead dove” is usually treated as a “read at your own discretion” tag in fandom, used to warn that dark or uncomfortable content is likely attached: abuse, gore, incest, etc. So, in this panel, Tay showcased a multitude of “dead dove” recommendations.

Two Renta! titles actually made the cut, which was exciting: Asahi’s Wooed by a Monster and a Snake Spirit and Satomochi’s Sacrificed to the Shark Clan—both for concepts of monster fucking, and the former for a splash of dub-con and hurt/comfort. The one that made me most excited, though, was the mention of by beloved Haruyosi Hiro‘s Naisho no Stalker-san—a manga about a man whose mysterious stalker shows up every night to clean his house, cook him dinner, run the bath, and satisfy his sexual needs as well. I’ve talked about this manga a few times on the BLog. but it’s one of my absolute favorites in recent years, so it made me happy to see it get some recognition. Looking forward to a day when it’s finally licensed.

The Root of Anti-BL & Anti-fujoshi
Sam Aburime

For this panel, we missed the first twenty minutes since we were at lunch, and that’s absolutely life-ruining to me since it means we missed a majority of the actual presentation and really only made it back in time for the credits, sources, and Q&A. But while I missed most of the presentation, the discussion afterward was still really interesting, so I’m still glad we caught the last half. (I’ll be looking forward to the YouTube video… please…) So everything I’m reporting here is the Q&A—for the full context, please be sure to check out Sam’s research!

Sam is the creator of fujoshi.info, and is one of the biggest voices fighting anti-fujoshi, anti-BL, and anti-ship sentiment. Because of this, much of the discussion was centered on the rise (and more recent fall, though to a lesser degree) of the “anti” movements online, how to push back against anti sentiment, and what can be done to uphold safe spaces to talk about this BL and its related content.

One discussion that really stood out to me, personally, was in response to the question “do you think antis are ageist and are policing what women are allowed to like past a certain age?” I believe I mentioned this on the BLog before, but I remember being shocked when I entered Japanese fandom spaces and many of the participants were in their 30s to 60s. Online sentiment in Western fandom has always been strangely disparaging of people continuing to enjoy their interests past a certain age, so it was a breath of fresh air to see that doesn’t have to be the case. It makes me happy that Western fandoms are slowly becoming more accepting of older people openly participating (though they’ve been there from the start).

So- Where are we at? an ADR Director & VA Roundtable discussing LGBTQ+ Representation in English ADR & Voice Acting
David Wald, James Cheek, and Steve, Sean, Shane, & Danny from Ascendant Animation (moderated by Peachie & Kira)

I (Sou) was super excited to listen in on this panel, mainly because I’m a huge fan of BL anime and the top-tier quality BL dubs the English side of fandom has been blessed with in recent years. But a lot of what was discussed in this Q&A-style roundtable resonated with me as someone who works in localization of BL content, and made me reflect on my day-to-day choices in my own career as well. The guests included some of the Greats of BL dubbing today, such as the legendary David Wald who’s served as an ADR director for beloved series such as GIVEN, Love Stage!!, Stranger By The Shore, and Bloom Into You; the talented voice actor, director, and dub scriptwriter James Cheek, who you can hear as San Luang/Hua Cheng in Heaven Official’s Blessing, and is behind the English adaptation of this season’s Twilight Out of Focus, among others; and the lovely team behind Ascendant Animation, the dubbing studio that’s brought us amazing English dubs of series such as Titan’s Bride, Everything for Demon King Evelogia, and more recently The Perfect Prince Loves Me, the Side Character?!, and is committed to showcasing diversity in their work.

A lot of interesting stuff was discussed among the star-studded panel, so I highly recommend checking out the full video once it’s available on YouTube — but the biggest takeaway for me personally was that it’s really no coincidence that the incredible quality of BL dubs in the last decade or so have coincided with more people who deeply care about both the source material and LGBTQ+ representation getting directly involved in the process. Since we work only on manga here at Renta!, our challenges are quite a bit different to that of ADR — our ADR counterparts have to deal with lip flaps and acting on top of scriptwriting, whereas we have to worry about bubble size and fonts, etc. etc. — but I felt our overall goal is the same: adapting a work in a way that’s respectful to both the source material and the intended audience. It really brought home the fact that our unique position as a BL manga localizer might have more influence than I originally thought, and that our passion is a powerful tool in creating a meaningful adaptation of the BL stories we aim to share with the world.

As for panels we would have loved to see but sadly missed:
・Rebuilding Community on the (fujo)Web
・The Reality and Challenges of the LGBT Community in Japan
・Marriage in BL
・Scanlation in Numbers: Crunching BL Manga Trends using MangaUpdates Data, 2004-2023
・The Rise of Queer Manga
・You’re my one and only — the concept of mates in omegaverse

I’ll be incredibly happy if a single one of these panels was on the recorded list. お願いします.

Our Final Thots

SOU

After weeks of double-and triple-checking all the details surrounding the con and our panel’s content, rehearsing my “performance” over and over to varying degrees of success with my coworkers as an audience stand-in (and being absolutely ROASTED by [read: receiving helpful constructive feedback from] Ames and Takochan in the process), and imagining all the things that could go wrong, the weekend of the con finally came… and welcomed us with open arms.

I really think our panels, including the live one I hosted, went as well as they possibly could have, thanks to the wonderful audience and con staff there to support us. There were certainly moments when nerves or tech issues got the best of me momentarily — that little laser pointer flub will surely taint my legacy forever, and all because I INSISTED on being able to point out a hunky beastman’s bodacious tits to the audience — but I have no regrets. And the outpouring of love we received both during and following the panels made it all worth it.

Of course the REALLY fun part came after our panels were done with, and we could relax, sit back, and watch the rest of the weekend’s yaoi shenanigans unfold. We were still on official “business” in documenting the atmosphere of the con for the purposes of this BLog post, but at the same time we were having a blast as fans of BL being in a space made for us. We laughed, we sighed, we nodded our heads enthusiastically whenever a presenter said something that patricularly resonated with us, and we made a note of all the series recommendations thrown at us that we wanted to check out later — for scientific purposes, of course. Ames talked earlier about the importance of separating work from pleasure, and I agree wholeheartedly. But when I couldn’t sleep Saturday night after all the excitement of the day, I ended up turning to none other than the Boku No Sexual Harassment watch party being held on the Citrus Con Discord (through my personal account, that is) to giggle with other fans and let a timeless yaoi love story involving “buttered” lull me to sleep. I get the feeling that even outside of my work life, the Citrus Con community is one I’d like to be a part of for a long time to come.

AMES

Overall, while the lead up to it was extremely stressful (for Sou much more so than for me), Citrus Con ended up being an incredible experience. The staff was unbelievably kind and helpful no matter what question we had, and while 99% of the time we barely had a clue what we were doing, the con staff were super professional and always had an answer. The fact that this was our first ever panel, and it was an online panel (aka lots of tech), but we were still able to pull it off (mostly) without a hitch is astonishing.

Everyone who took part in the con was also just amazing and friendly and so incredibly supportive, including the volunteers and the general participants. We were admittedly pretty nervous, since this was our first convention, so we weren’t sure what the reception would be to us participating. In particular, I’d like to shout out Vii, who assisted us with the panel day-of and did such an amazing job starting up the conversation in the chat and getting everyone hyped up. At one point Sou was having issues with their pointer, and the Citrus Con admin told everyone to “meow in chat” so Sou didn’t have to get anxious over everyone watching and waiting for the technical difficulties to be cleared up. Everyone was so kind.

I was watching the chat while Sou presented, and it just made me so happy to see the reactions in real time to discussing our brand, our job, and our love for BL manga. No matter what panel we attended or what part of the discord we lurked, every space had this vibe—everyone was engaged, interested, and incredibly supportive. It was such a blessing to be associated with such a wonderful group of people, was truly a reminder of how great fandom spaces can be.

Sincerely, thank you to the fellow Renta! team members who helped make this possible, thank you to the Citrus Con staff and volunteers who handheld us through the process of participating as a panelist, and most of all thank you to all the fans of BL as both a genre and a subculture.