Naughty and Nice: BL Recs for the Christmas Season

The Renta! BL team wanted to do a Christmas special again this year, and we were racking our brains on what we could possibly post. Last year’s Christmas BL rec post was actually shockingly time-intensive (two whole 10+ hour work days on top of my regular workload…), so I didn’t have it in me to do it this year. And a manga like A Gift From Santa Claus only comes once a lifetime, and I obviously wasn’t going to review it twice. We spent about an hour in the BL meeting just going in circles—BL recs based on Christmas songs? How about based on popular holiday foods?

But then the glorious Sou was like “well… how about which BL characters will get coal in their stocking?” And thus the “Naughty x Nice” Christmas BL Special was born! For this, the Renta! BL team got together and thought of three recommendations for the following four categories:

・Nice Seme x Nice Uke
・Nice Seme x Naughty Uke
・Naughty Seme x Nice Uke
・Naughty Seme x Naughty Uke

Some boys will be getting a lump of coal and a spanking (😘) this Christmas season, so to see who’s on Santa’s shit-list and who’ll be getting exactly what they asked for, read on!

Continue reading “Naughty and Nice: BL Recs for the Christmas Season”

[♡RECS♡] 11/22: Happy Good Husbands Day!

Here at RentaBLog, we sure do love our special calendar dates — so far, we’ve covered Good Meat Day, Cat Day, Cat Day Part 2, and even Twink(ie) Day. Last week on 11/11, BL fans and shippers around the world celebrated Pocky Day across social media, which was pretty exciting to see (so much great fanart!). But there’s one more day this month I’ve been looking forward to in particular. No, it’s not Thanksgiving — but I am very thankful for the cornucopia of BL I associate with it.

That day — today, November 22nd — is none other than いい夫婦の日 (Ii Fuufu no Hi), meaning “Good (Married) Couple’s Day” or “Good Spouses Day.” It’s a day for couples to show appreciation for one another, and to celebrate the special bond they share.

While the Japanese word for “married couple,” 夫婦 (fuufu), uses the kanji for “husband” and “wife,” the term can be used to refer to same-sex couples as well. Still, some on social media have taken to the M/M-specific term, いい夫夫の日 — here “fuufu” is pronounced the same, but uses the kanji for “husband” twice, to make it “Good Husbands Day”! I always enjoy scrolling my feed on this day, as it’s bound to be full of adorable BL and ship art tagged “#いい夫夫の日”.

Since I have a soft spot for sweet, married-couple vibes BL, I just had to take this opportunity to introduce some series on Renta! that you can read to enjoy “good husbands” all year round! 🥰

Without further ado, here are five BL series centered around married (or basically married) couples that will soothe your heart. From domestic newlywed bliss to the trials and tribulations of a long-term relationship, these manga have it all! 👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨

Continue reading “[♡RECS♡] 11/22: Happy Good Husbands Day!”

Event Report: Chishanomi’s “Maybe We’re Newlyweds” Manga Exhibition

Available on Renta!:
Maybe We’re Newlyweds 1-2 [Plus Digital-Only Bonus]

Just Been Married! [Plus Digital-Only Bonus]

The Island Of Dragons In Love

Social Media:
@hidaka0104 (Author)
@Qpa_BLinfo (Publisher)

Event poster with a special autograph and Yukari doodle by Chishanomi-sensei

As a BL fan, it always delights me to see my favorite creators get some much-deserved recognition in public spaces — be it a collab cafe, a book signing, or a special art gallery. I love to visit these spaces when I can to show my support for the hardworking and passionate artists and their works which I admire so much (and get some cute exclusive merch while I’m at it)!

We at Renta!BLog are lucky enough to live in Japan and work in Tokyo, where BL gets its fair share of special events — so we thought, why not share this fun piece of fan culture with the world?

One artist who’s making waves in the BL community right now is Chishanomi, with the release of volume 4 of their hit series Maybe We’re Newlyweds (Japanese title Oretachi ha Shinkon san kamo shirenai). To celebrate its release, along with the 10-year anniversary of Chishanomi’s debut as a mangaka, a special event, including a manga art exhibition and pop-up store, dedicated to the series is being held at Manga10 in Shibuya’s Magnet department store. (It’s also being held in Taiwan, which just goes to show how much international renown Chishanomi-sensei has gained over their 10-year career!)

Ames and I recently had the opportunity to hit the bustling streets of Shibuya and check out this limited-time exhibition. Read on for our otaku heart-pounding experience!

Continue reading “Event Report: Chishanomi’s “Maybe We’re Newlyweds” Manga Exhibition”