It’s that time of the year again where we’re barraged by cat goods and nekomimi artwork and photos of people’s cats! Cat Day (2/22 aka にゃにゃにゃの日) was this last Saturday, so happy Cat Day from the resident uke specialist and cat lover on the BLog staff. Last year, I wrote a BLog post about the various different kinds of uke characters (and why uke are associated with cats), but this year we’re going to go for a more casual BLog post about my current top five bottoms as of February 2025, why I love them, and also a couple bonuses for those who read until the end!
So let’s get right into it! Which uke characters have been catching my attention this year?
Hiroto
Lick Me, Bite Me, Kiss Me
by Fumizuki Kumi
Hiroto is the first ever cake to grace Renta!, and not my usual type when it comes to uke characters. He’s not particularly feminine, nor demure, nor particularly tsun. But Hiroto is truly wonderful: the plot revolves around him having quit his dream job to try and save the family business, through which he comes in contact with top-ranking businessman and fork Izuru. While Hiroto is in the “prey” position… he’s incredibly strong. Yeah, he’s weak to the pleasure he gets from being “feasted on” by Izuru, but that doesn’t make him any less willing to stand up for himself and even get physical if he needs to. Fumizuki Kumi did a wonderful job writing an adorable, selfless, hardworking, sincere bottom who’s just so easy to root for. I feel like I’m not doing him justice here, but he’s just so good and so human, I recommend checking out the full manga to see for yourself! (For the record, Izuru is also great!)
Leo
The Maneater Falls In Love
by Kutsukawa
Usually I can’t stand stories about cheating and cheaters, especially when the cheater in question is the main character. However, Kutsukawa does a really good job looking into the psychology of cheating: how the shame and low self-esteem manifest into a desperation to be desired above anyone else. Maneater Leo entertains himself and boosts his ego by stealing other people’s men. When his friend Shige gets a new boyfriend, Leo reassures Shige he’d never try to steal Shige’s boyfriend, since Shige’s been there for him at his lowest points. But, as he’s drawn in more and more, Leo starts to lose confidence in whether or not he can keep that promise. Leo has a lot of the traits I love in an uke (blond mid-length hair, trauma, complete ho with a pure heart) but overall the thing that stands out most to me in this manga is watching him accept his faults, work through his trauma, and grow as a person. Well. And that Leo’s beautiful. That, too.
Akira
On The Verge Of Love!
by Sammataro
I’ve recommended this manga a few times recently, but I’m still gonna recommend it again! Akira is absolutely great. I love the fact that he has zero shame about sleeping around and not being interested in forming deeper bonds with his partners—to the point where it’s shocking and uncomfortable for him when he does actually catch feelings for once. It’s cute watching his pure side be triggered as he slowly falls into a routine with the guy he originally wanted to aim for a one night stand with. He’s definitely a new take on my favorite trope—he’s not necessarily pure in the usual sense, just incredibly inexperienced with romance and relationships and unsure how to handle any feelings outside the bedroom. I like his whole uwu schtick and his ridiculous manipulation tactics—this series is a great laugh as well as a sweet love story, and Akira’s ridiculousness just makes it.
Byaku
One-Eyed Wolf in the Sahara
by Emu Soutome
This is the continuation of Black Eagle in the Sahara, so I recommend reading that one first (hopefully someday Sou will do a review for the full series), but I’m skipping that one because this volume of the series revolves around Byaku. Byaku is literally perfect. I cannot even convey to you how perfect everything about Byaku is for my tastes. The little light-haired bob mullet? Check. The little ho-ass thigh-high toeless stockings? Check. The absolute right level of tsundere where he’s super snotty and cheeky and bratty but deep down he’s has a pure and sincere love for Ingle and yearns desperately for that love to be returned? Double-check. Mix that with Emu Soutome’s absolutely astounding sense of form and sensuality, and I shit you not I’ve “read” this manga so many times but every damn time I just get distracted by how beautiful and wonderful and adorable Byaku is. As evidenced by the fact that I didn’t say anything about the plot in this summary because I once again got distracted by Byaku fml. But if you’re a fan of the junjou bitch trope, oh boy is Byaku for you. (The manga is also very good. Just don’t let Byaku distract you like he distracts me.)
Kazari
Love Song For The Defective
by Akota
Kazari is one of two of my “goth girlfriends” I annoy the rest of the team spamming about in work chat. He has incredibly kuudere vibes, but with 60% kuu, 20% tsun, and a very rare dere side he only starts showing later into the manga. Having been deeply in one-sided love with his step brother Kei for much of his life, he’s pretty much given up on romance when an incredibly pushy man, Kotaro, joins their band. Kotaro fell in love with Kazari at first sight (I mean, same…) and isn’t about to give up on him just because Kazari won’t stop pining for a man he can’t have. Still, can he thaw the ice that’s formed around Kazari heart after years of desperation? Kazari is absolutely beautiful, and I can’t get enough of his personality—the snotty, cold aloofness an obvious cover for how tender and unsure his heart is deep down. While he wants to love Kotaro, he’s spent so long yearning for his straight brother that he’s lost the ability to see himself as desirable. One good thing is that these two are such a slowburn and don’t get together until near the end of the manga, but a continuation was announced for this coming fall! Something to look forward to!
Those are my current five fave bottoms for Cat Day 2025, but as I promised… I also have a bonus round! “Bonus round?” you may be asking. “Why not just say you were recommending your favorite six, then?” But actually… my final fave isn’t a bottom. Nor a top. He’s a side character. And that’s…
Nanahisa Aya
The Monster & The Ghost
by Himemiko
The Monster & The Ghost is an absolutely wonderful story about delinquent Tsubaki who’s mistaken for a scary, mean, dangerous guy just because of his appearance. In reality, Tsubaki has a pure and kind heart, and the first one to realize that is the ghost who lives with him, Kabu. As Tsubaki and Kabu grow closer and unravel the mystery around Kabu’s death, Kabu helps Tsubaki show the world he is a good guy, and Tsubaki eventually has a large cast of friends and admirers. One of whom is… Nanahisa Aya. I feel like this pick is a bit contentious, because Nanahisa is initially introduced as an antagonist who uh… tries to kill Tsubaki. But, I love Nanahisa. He’s definitely a bit fucked in the head at first, but after he sees he doesn’t have to choose a life of violence he decides to repent and… slowly… falls in love with Tsubaki. My heart hurts so much for Nana every time he gets his hopes up when Tsubaki is around. Chapter 7 in particular just broke my heart—it was such a great chapter for Tsubaki and Kabu’s relationship, but knowing they were using Nanahisa’s body… even though I got lots of Nanahisa content from the chapter…! 😭 For those who’ve kept up with the localization but not the Japanese, there’s another upcoming chapter with lots of Nanahisa that destroyed me. It’s cute watching Kabu get jealous over the fact that Nanahisa clearly likes Tsubaki (and has more of a chance with him since he’s… y’know… alive), but as a Nanahisa oshi I can’t help but want to cheer for his happiness as well. Maybe someday…! 😭😭 Along with Kazari, he’s my second goth girlfriend. PLEASE tell me at least one other person out there loves Nanahisa!
For my last bonus, I have something for the actual cat lovers out there… our Renta! staff cats!
The first is my beloved daughter Tougarashi 🌶️ aka Tonchan, who is around five years old. She screams at me when I get home from working too much overtime, and annoyingly sits on my chest when I’m trying to play Genshin in bed. (Don’t worry, the weird kinky tail is natural in Japanese cats!) The other two are Kuzco and Bora, fellow translation team member Cacao’s two babies, who’re two-year-old siblings. We have many emoji in our Teams chat of Kuzco’s extremely emotive face.
Whether it’s real cats, beast cats, or just uke “cats,” I hope everyone had an amazing cat day! If you have any cats in your life, treat them to something tasty or some extra cuddle or playtime. And let me know who YOUR favorite bottoms are.
rentaBLog 
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