Hot For Teacher: BL Recs for the Back to School Season

It’s back to school season! While most people reading this might not be in school anymore (and I hope the one who are still in school are in college… /stares), we can all still enjoy this wonderful time of change and growth and new experiences (and the back to school section at the store, which always smells nostalgically like pencil shavings and freshly-cut paper…) in the form of… BL recs about teachers! We’ve picked seven great titles that run the spectrum of sweet, soft, sad, and spicy, so there should be a little something for everyone!

The Teacher Is Not Your **** Hole.
by Hon Toku

This early Hon Toku masterpiece sums up what makes Hon Toku great: stunning, sensual art, incredibly dirty sex scenes, and incredibly light on the plot. The himbo gym teacher Mr. Yamano can’t keep his eyes off the super sexy math teacher Mr. Kiyono, so when Mr. Kiyono comes on to him after a couple drinks during night duty, how the hell is he supposed to resist? There are some small side plots, like a love rival and Mr. Kiyono’s supposed husband. But I know why you’re here, you pervert. You can’t lie to me. We’re both ass men, here, you and I—and from one ass man to another, you really need to read this manga. Hey, if he was my teacher (in Minecraft), I’d probably be a weird pervert about him, too.

My Cute Teacher
by Jiro Kawaii

Math teacher Mr. Miyata hates jocks, so when he meets gym teacher and kendo coach Mr. Samehara, he makes a bunch of snap decisions about him—that he’s arrogant, strict, and likes to boss people around. However, the more he gets to know Mr. Samehara, the more intrigued he becomes—Mr. Samehara is easy to get along with and to be around, but it always seems like he’s hiding his true self behind a wall. Not one to back down from a challenge, Mr. Miyata makes it his goal to break that wall down. But while this is all in good fun for Mr. Miyata, he’s threatening to unravel an entire lifetime of Mr. Samehara’s decision to remain eternally closeted and avoid his sexuality, something he feels a remarkable amount of shame over. This one’s more bittersweet and plot-heavy, which is in line with Jiro Kawaii’s other work, so I highly recommend reading this if you’d like to have your heartstrings tugged. Just in the first two chapters I found myself feeling an intense protective instinct toward Mr. Samehara, and I’m sure you will, too!

Mr. Sakashita’s Tough Love
by Rock Yamada

If you’re on the lookout for something a little more dark, a little more sadistic, this one might be right up your alley. High schooler Leo hates homemade food—he’s weird about germs, and doesn’t like not knowing how sanitary the giver’s kitchen is, or if they washed their hands. He’s spent much of his adolescence distancing himself from other people, because he’s ashamed to be tossing people’s good will in the trash. Sick of him lashing out, Leo’s new school counselor Mr. Sakashita uses Leo’s secret against him to have his way with Leo’s body. Mr. Sakashita has his tender moments, however, so Leo finds himself slowly trusting him more and more. This one leans a bit into Dead Dove territory because of the imbalanced relationship between Mr. Sakashita and Leo, but it caught my interest since usually teacher/student BL has the student topping, so I still wanted to rec it to those who might be interested!

WON’T YOU KEEP ME FOREVER?
by Konamikan

High school teacher Toma has been dating his highly capable businessman boyfriend Rei since they met back in college. As both their careers ramp up, they need to find new ways to make time to love and support each other. This one is pure fluff, and shows the difficulties both men face: Toma struggles to connect to his students and find his place as a teacher, and Rei overworks himself and forces himself to shoulder things alone due to past trauma. But, whenever they’re together, Toma and Rei are able to talk through their problems and find comfort with each other—and they fully intend on being there for each other for the rest of their lives. This story is just pure comfort—Toma and Rei love each other tremendously, and it just so nice watching two adults talk things through and be there for each other when they’re having a hard time. It’s rather short and simple, but a wonderful manga for those who just want something light and gentle after a hard day.

Teacher’s Pet
by Sorato

Get ready, class, ’cause we’re goin’ on a feels trip with this one パーティの翌朝. Hiyori’s a cheerful high schooler who’s a people pleaser to a fault — desperate to make those around him happy even if he gets burned in the process. When this leads to him getting dumped in the most mortifying way, he’s understandably upset and seeks solace in a dog cafe. There he meets the kind and encouraging Makoto, who offers him some much-needed words of comfort, giving him the strength to move on from his heartbreak. Their chance encounter doesn’t end there, though… the very next day, Hiyori’s shocked to find out that his new student teacher is none other than Makoto! And he’s got his heart set on making the gentle and hardworking man his. This series is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster from start to finish, and really develops Hiyori and Makoto’s relationship in a way that’s heartwarming and touching — emphasizing just how much they care for one another. Plus, it has some valuable life lessons sprinkled in along the way, so you might get even more than an adorable love story from it too! Who said BL couldn’t be educational? ウィンク

Can a Demonic Teacher Be This Lewd?
by Tamuko Kuwata

The answer is yes. Yes, he can 赤面. The titular demonic teacher, Tsuzuru Toujou, has earned a reputation among his students as being incredibly strict and merciless. Little do they know, however, that the relentless hardass Mr. Toujou likes to get dicked down at a gay brothel in his free time! Tsuzuru’s looking forward to a night of fun with a new cute guy when he’s taken aback at the discovery that his top for hire is Miyamoto, a former student of his! Upon hearing that his now college-aged student has taken up the job in order to earn some extra money, Tsuzuru’s inner teacher can’t help but want to watch out for his former student — so he decides to do so by ordering his services as much as he can! But as they spend more time together, some feelings beyond those of client and worker start to bloom… The series does a good job showing how Tsuzuru’s hard exterior is a result of his genuine concern for others, and doesn’t paint Miyamoto’s choice to do sex work as an inherently foolish or despicable thing, which is refreshing. Plus, there’s plenty of smut featuring a skilled younger top and a cute, nerdy bottom 秀才桃 — so if that sounds like fun to you, check it out for yourself!

Love Me with Your Butt, Mr. Pecs!
by Maki Uda

We opened this list with a pick for all the Ass Men (of all genders, ofc) out there, so I think it’s only fair we close it out with one for all the wonderful Titty Folks reading. This one’s a little unique in that it features a beefy, buxom guy on the bottom, and to great effect. In this story right out of a hormonal teenager’s wet dream, Riichi is known as a troublemaker at school, but his new teacher Mr. Oshima is determined to set him on the right path. After being mamboo(b)zled by Mr. Oshima’s attempts to give him some extra attention at school, Riichi comes across a gay porn video starring a buff bottom who looks eerily familiar… Confrontation leads to some good old-fashioned blackmail, with Riichi promising not to spill his teacher’s “secret” if Mr. Oshima will let him enjoy that naughty body of his a bit 悪魔. Spicy scenes of a bodacious himbo getting railed by his extremely enthusiastic student aside, this series is silly and surprisingly sweet at times, which makes it a pretty fun read. Plus, it features the elusive and highly sought-after (by people…. it’s me, I am people) BL titty fuck ほ乳瓶なすほ乳瓶. So there’s that too.

Turning tropes on their heads with Kaibashira’s “The Doggy And The Fairy Prince”

Read on Renta!:
The Doggy And The Fairy Prince by Kaibashira

Japanese:
おくりワンちゃん
Okuri Wanchan

Links:
Kaibashira Twitter
PriaL Twitter (publisher)

I think from my presence on the BLog so far, I’ve made it pretty clear that I love BL, tropes and all. I know a lot of people hate that BL as a genre is so trope-laden—smol uke characters with long lashes, massive seme character with pointy chins, private school boys who scream from the rooftops that they’re “totally not gay bro” while simultaneously lusting after their male childhood friend from puberty and sleeping with their dorm roommate, etc. For me, though, I like those tropes—maybe because they cater pretty heavily to my personal tastes, granted. All this to say, I’m not necessarily a BL reader who desires to read BL that are anti-trope. I love the smol pretty uke boys. Give me all of the smol pretty uke boys.

So, when I first saw the cover for The Doggy And The Fairy Prince, I originally thought that was what I would get: cute twink-y bowlcut boy on the cover with his big dudebro boyfriend. Great. Cute. “Can’t wait to see this boy get railed!” I thought to myself. However, I then realized the little bowlcut twink (hereon referred to by his name, Sho) actually tops the massive dumb dudebro (Kuniaki), to which I was originally pretty disappointed. I ended up having to spend a long time with this manga during the final editing process, however, and while I was originally disappointed I didn’t get what I thought I wanted, what I did get was actually even better: an absolute comedic masterpiece.

Continue reading “Turning tropes on their heads with Kaibashira’s “The Doggy And The Fairy Prince””

Quickie: Sae Momoki’s “The Host with a Little Boy and His Dangerous Neighbor”

Read on Renta!:
The Host with a Little Boy and His Dangerous Neighbor by Sae Momoki

Japanese:
子持ちホストの危険な隣人
Komochi Host no Kiken na Rinjin

Links:
Sae Momoki Twitter
Hanaoto Twitter (Publisher)

Sadly, I don’t have time to write a super long, full review right now, but we recently released the third volume and I want to recommend it while it’s still fresh in my mind: Sae Momoki’s “The Host with a Little Boy and His Dangerous Neighbor” series! This wonderful series has been running since 2019, and the fifth volume was released in Japan a little over a month ago.

The story is centered around the incredibly beautiful and popular host, Seiya. While most hosts have a reputation for being players and spending their lives out all night and sleeping all day, Seiya is different—because he’s a single father to his beloved son Tenma. Tenma is the light of his life and the center of his world, and he does his best to support Tenma while also being present as often as possible. When he runs into his kinda weird and massively sleep-deprived neighbor, Ibuki, he originally thinks the riffraff has moved into his nice high-rise apartment. But when he offers the man some food and a couch to nap on, he’s essentially changed the course of his life forever.

While Seiya has never had much of a sex drive nor an interest in romance, Ibuki is hellbent on getting close to him. After multiple bad first impressions, Ibuki is somehow able to weasel his way into Seiya and Tenma’s family after it’s found out that he’s the writer of Tenma’s favorite children’s book series, Booh Bear. Since Seiya’s been dealing with issues at work, and since it’s convenient that there’s someone who can look after Tenma who both has an open schedule (as a professional writer) and lives next door, he can barely refuse.

As Seiya learns that he can actually rely on Ibuki rather than always shouldering everything alone, they slowly get closer and closer until Ibuki becomes an indispensable part of Seiya’s world—and with it, a slow-building desire to be intimate with Ibuki that Seiya’s never felt before!

This book is a really obvious recommendation to those who really love BL where the couple raises a child together. Ibuki and Seiya run into a whole host (pun intended) of issues trying to build their life together, including people not understanding why Ibuki is part of Tenma’s life if they’re not blood-related, people doubting Seiya’s parenting because of his career path, and Tenma’s father wanting back into the picture. Through it all, though, there are wonderful themes of found family, and how the best parent for a child is often the person who truly loves and understand them.

Plus, it’s really sexy watching the slow build of Seiya and Ibuki’s intimate relationship as Seiya moves from someone who’s never really felt romantic or sexual desire, to someone who finds a lot of enjoyment in their bedroom romps. Overall, this is great BL for people who like lots of story with plenty of sweet and wholesome content, and juuust the right amount of sexy scenes and drama!

This Manga is the Cat’s Pajamas (Happy Cat Day!! ≽^•⩊•^≼)

Catboy lovers and BL readers looking for something both heartwarming and a little frisky, have I got the purrfect pick for you! (=^・ω・^=)

Yes, we’re very proud of that pun we worked into the title Smile cat

Read on Renta!:
Choose Me And Avoid Cat-Astrophe [Plus Renta!-Only Bonus] by modu9

Japanese Title:
崖っぷち猫は指名がほしい
Gakeppuchineko ha Shimei ga Hoshii

Links:
(Author) modu9’s Twitter

If the title of this post is giving you a little déjà vu, it might be because we’ve already made a “Cat Day” post this year — on 2/22, specifically, as that’s the day it’s celebrated in Japan. But, as it turns out, August 8th is International Cat Day. And hey, you can never have enough cats, or opportunities to appreciate them, right? Plus, it just so happens that one of our latest Renta! releases, featuring a cat-human hybrid young man (who is very cute) recently caught my eye and didn’t let go till the very end. So, the timing was perfect to write a review for this BL that’s paws-itively remarkable!

What we’ve got here today is a story about a very dumb (but lovable) catboy overcoming the challenges of discrimination and a demanding job, and finding love in an unexpected way…

Continue reading “This Manga is the Cat’s Pajamas (Happy Cat Day!! ≽^•⩊•^≼)”

The Dongs Are Free – Uncensored BL Now on Renta!

Well, RentaBLog readers, on this Yaoi Day of the year 2024, have I got an announcement for you.

Via Platinum Blood by Mor Ichigaya

Last year, I made a post about censorship in BL manga, breaking down the legal restrictions and cultural precedents that have led to scribbled out assholes and light saber dicks galore in Japanese BL.

I also briefly touched upon the fact that, unfortunately for fans hoping to peep a fully rendered peeper in their BL, at the time of the post we had no uncensored manga available on Renta! due to, let’s say, ample caution (we are located in Japan, after all). However, it’s been a continuing discussion, as we’re always striving to provide BL fans with the Content they Want — and a sizeable portion of the fandom has spoken loud and clear: “Free Those Dongs.”

It’s been a long, hard battle, but internal discussions finally reached a climax, and a decision was reached that we think many of you will be pleased with: Renta! will now offer uncensored BL series!!!! Alongside the “censored” BL we’ve been dishing up since our early days, we now have a selection for the fans who’ve been wanting a little something “more” — a special treat just for overseas fans, because it’s too spicy to even sell in Japan!

And, what better day to unleash the hogs onto the Renta! sales floor than the day fans all around the world celebrate “yaoi” and all the gifts it’s given us?? I think it’s poetic, reallyRelieved

Jump to Dong

Uncensored BL tag on Renta!

How to Access The Dongs

First, let’s go over the simple steps to viewing our Uncensored selection, so that you don’t find yourselves forever asking, “Where’s the Dong??”

Continue reading “The Dongs Are Free – Uncensored BL Now on Renta!”

Jerking off for the sake of humanity: Yuki Matsushita’s “Director! It’s Time To Collect A Sample”

Read on Renta!:
Director! It’s Time To Collect A Sample by Yuki Matsushita

Japanese Title:
Shitsucho! Sampling no Ojikan Desu!
室長!体液採取のお時間です!

Links:
Yuki Matsushita Twitter
Publisher Twitter
Publisher Homepage

Here at Renta! HQ, we’ve gotten pretty used to seeing bizarre stuff. We’ve had full in-office debates about outrageous bedroom acts that would make most people on the street blush. (Apologies to the teams that sit near us…) So it’s pretty hard to be fazed by any of the content after 4+ years of working here. However, when the checker for this series was like “they need his jizz to create the panacea” it made me stop in my tracks, turn to him, and go “huh?”

Yuki Matsushita’s Director! It’s Time To Collect A Sample is a wild ride from start to finish. Reclusive lab worker Toya has been transferred to the most prestigious lab in Kamishiro Pharmaceuticals, where they’re working on the panacea to cure all disease. Toya’s been desperate to help his sick grandma, so he’ll do anything he can to assist. When he meets the head of the lab, Saku Kamishiro himself, it turns out the main ingredient for the cure-all drug is coming from an unexpected source: Saku’s jizz.

Continue reading “Jerking off for the sake of humanity: Yuki Matsushita’s “Director! It’s Time To Collect A Sample””

Artist Spotlight: The Brilliant Eccentricity of Jake Akahoshi

So adorbs I LOVE THIS STORY. It’s about a guy who grows apples in his ass りんご
青リンゴ

One of our favorite topics to talk (write?) about on this BLog is the discovery of series and artists that we first come into contact with through our job — whether it’s in the process of quality checking, advertisement creation, hearing our coworkers rave about something they’re working on, or sometimes just clicking around on our site and servers.

One such artist that’s made a big impact on me since I discovered their manga is none other than Jake Akahoshi.

Akahoshi-sensei’s been in the BL game for over a decade, and in that time they’ve earned quite the reputation for their outlandish plots, beautiful depictions of the male body, and moving romance writing.

For the uninitiated, I’ve picked out a handful of their manga currently available in English on Renta! that I believe encompass the spirit of Jake Akahoshi’s unique approach to BL manga, which I personally find utterly delightful.

I’ll also be assigning them ratings 1 thru 5 on each level of the “Jake Scale” — a system I made specifically for this article, since I really believe Jake Akahoshi is on a level of their own when it comes to these three aspects:

Spiciness: 唐辛子How much sexy action can we expect?唐辛子

Unhingedness: パーティの翌朝How “out there” is the setting/plot?パーティの翌朝

“Aww”-worthiness: 涙をこらえた顔Likeliness to hit you right in the feels?涙をこらえた顔

Hopefully this will help you find a title (or titles) most likely to match your personal tastes, so you too can start your journey into Jake Akahoshi’s whacky BL world. Now, without further ado, let’s get right into it!

Continue reading “Artist Spotlight: The Brilliant Eccentricity of Jake Akahoshi”

Roji’s “All About My Two Dads” (Happy Father’s Day!)

Father’s Day has rolled around once again, and as we shared last year, we at RentaBLog love some daddies around here パーティの翌朝

I figured Father’s Day (which also falls during Pride month! 虹) would be the perfect occasion to introduce this series that recently hit the English market, centered around a pair of loving fathers and their adorable son.

Read on Renta!:
All About My Two Dads by Roji

Japanese Title:
ぼくのパパとパパの話
Boku no Papa to Papa no Hanashi

Links:
(Author) Roji’s Twitter
(Eng publisher) Animate International’s Twitter
(JP publisher) Libre’s Twitter

As you can probably guess from the title and cover alone, this is an extremely wholesome story about a perfectly normal family which just happens to consist of two dads and their son. It’s still a BL, though, so expect plenty of romantic scenes between two pretty boys in love to make your heart flutter — with a healthy serving of baby antics and “kids say the darnedest things” moments to brighten your day!

Continue reading “Roji’s “All About My Two Dads” (Happy Father’s Day!)”

A Safe Space to Heal: Sakana Tojo’s “Sweet Apartment in Paradise”

Read on Renta!:
Sweet Apartment in Paradise by Sakana Tojo

Japanese title:
楽園性スウィートルーム
Rakuensei Sweet Room

Links:
Sakana Tojo Twitter
Junet (Publisher) Twitter

As I’ve probably made very clear from past blog posts, I’m a massive fan of Sakana Tojo. I’ve already written an artist introduction for her, and also review her works whenever I’m given the chance. There’s something about her manga that slots so perfectly into my preferences—whether it’s the art or character designs or their personalities and relationships, or just the VIBE of her stories. To me, they’re the perfect after-work (or, in this case, during work…) comfort of something simple, sweet, sexy, and cute.

This story is actually a slight step away from many of Sakana Tojo’s previous works, but I’d argue it still holds onto her characteristic sensuality and softness. Sweet Apartment in Paradise follows the story of Sui, a beautiful young man sold off to an “owner” at a young age, and the “Demon” who saves him. The “Demon”—later given the name “Angel” by Sui—is an assassin who hunts evil, bad men. In this world, the human trade is allowed and accepted so long as those who’re bought are treated with dignity and respect. However, there are many horrible people—often very powerful and wealthy men—who exploit this system and treat those they buy as objects for their own satisfaction. Sui’s previous owner, who he called “father,” was one such man. He bought Sui to be used for sex, dressing him up in strange costumes, drugging him to stunt his body’s development, training him to only respond to sexual advances, convincing him his only worth is in how well he can provide pleasure, and hiding him away from the world.

When Angel saves Sui, he’s surprised by just how traumatized the boy is. He’s used to seeing the horrifying results of human trafficking, but something about Sui touches him enough that he offers to home Sui to see him through his recovery. He teaches Sui how to do things on his own and creates a comfortable space for Sui to grow and heal—marking every “safe” thing in the apartment with little bunny doodles (Sui’s favorite animal) to make sure Sui’s trauma doesn’t get severely triggered. He replaces Sui’s shackles with cute accessories, and offers Sui the warmth of his body to show human affection doesn’t always need to be sexual or transactional.

Continue reading “A Safe Space to Heal: Sakana Tojo’s “Sweet Apartment in Paradise””

Sweeter Than Expected: “Kabukicho Cat Honey”

Read on Renta!:
Kabukicho Cat Honey by Nekojita Udon & Toriumemaru

Japanese Title:
歌舞伎町キャットハニー

Links:
Nekojita Udon Twitter
Toriumemaru Twitter
B.Pilz Twitter
Brite Publishing

Part of me wonders if I even have to post a review for this series, as it already seems incredibly popular. It really doesn’t need an extra push from me—the cover and description already seem to be doing the trick. However, there’s no rule on the blog that says we can’t talk about things we love that are already extremely popular, so I’m still gonna go for it anyway.

Kabukicho Cat Honey is a BL manga by writer/artist duo Nekojita Udon and Toriumemaru. This is actually their second book together, their first being My Private Love Actor (プライベート・ラブマイアクター) which is also released by B.Pilz and localized in-house. While it’s hard to say going off just two releases, it would appear the two mostly work together on BL projects, though Toriumemaru has also done some illustrations for a couple BL novel series and is currently working on a horror josei manga.

The story of Kabukicho Cat Honey follows a young man named Haru. Haru works in Shinjuku’s gay district as an escort, and is popular as a specialized top since he’s quite tall. He’s not just popular with the men, though—the hostesses who also frequent the bar his escort service runs out of love him as well, and so one night they invite him along to a host club with them. Haru doesn’t understand host clubs—he doesn’t get the appeal of being lied to with sweet nothings—but is forced to go by his boss since he was invited by paying customers.

There he meets Shinya, the number two host. His first impression of Shinya is that he seems arrogant and far too friendly, but they quickly bond when they realize they have the same phone case of an indie band they both love. Just as Haru lets his guard down, though, Shinya starts asking him about his work as a prostitute—and why he specializes in topping when he’s so obviously the perfect bottom. Lean build, slender hips, slim neck, beautiful face, soft hair—Shinya makes it clear he would gladly ravage Haru and make him squirm.

Continue reading “Sweeter Than Expected: “Kabukicho Cat Honey””