is a Japanese
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
series written and illustrated by
Reiji Miyajima
is a Japanese manga artist. He is known for his series '' AKB49: Ren'ai Kinshi Jōrei'' and ''Rent-A-Girlfriend''.
Career
In October 2005, Reiji Miyajima received the Magazine Grand Prix Encouragement Award for his work . In the same year, he ...
. It has been serialized in
Kodansha
is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...
's ''
Weekly Shōnen Magazine
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a significant portion of its readership falling under the male high ...
'' since July 2017, and has been compiled into twenty-nine volumes as of December 2022. The series is licensed in North America by
Kodansha USA, which released the first volume in English in June 2020.
An
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
television series adaptation produced by
TMS Entertainment
, formerly known as the , also known as or , is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946.
TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as ''Lupin the Third'', ...
, aired from July to September 2020 on
MBS
MBS may refer for:
People
* Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia
* Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepalese politician
Places
* MBS International Airport (IATA code: MBS), Freeland, Michigan, US
* Mari ...
's
Super Animeism block. A second season aired from July to September 2022. A third season has been announced. A
live-action television drama adaptation also aired from July to September 2022.
Plot
Kazuya Kinoshita is dumped by his girlfriend Mami Nanami after dating for a month. He decides to use an
online dating app
An online dating application is an online dating service presented through a mobile phone application (app), often taking advantage of a smartphone's GPS location capabilities, always on-hand presence, easy access to digital photo galleries and ...
to rent a girlfriend named Chizuru Mizuhara, a beautiful girl. However, because he thinks she was inauthentic, he gives her a low rating. When Chizuru berates him for that during their next meeting, he realizes she is meaner than he expected. Just then, Kazuya learns that his grandmother has been hospitalized following a collapse. Chizuru comes along and his grandmother is smitten with how great she is. Kazuya continues renting Chizuru in order to keep up appearances with his family and friends, but things get complicated when they discover they are next-door apartment neighbors and attend the same college. Later, other girls from the rental girlfriend business also join in.
Characters
Main
;
:
:
:A 20-year-old college student who lives in Tokyo. Following a painful breakup with his girlfriend, Mami Nanami, he decides to rent a girlfriend named Chizuru Mizuhara. He soon finds himself in situations where he has to continue renting Chizuru to keep up appearances with his family and friends, and he eventually falls in love with her. Later on, he begins working part-time at a
karaoke
Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music is ...
bar to pay for his dates and other expenses.
;
:
:
:A college student who moonlights as a rental girlfriend for the Diamond company. On campus, she goes under her real name , and utilizes a nerdy appearance with large dark-framed glasses and braided pigtails. It is later revealed that Chizuru and Kazuya are next-door neighbors in their apartment complex. She continues to let Kazuya rent her services in order to help his grandmother Nagomi, and to help him get over his breakup with Mami.
;
:
:
:Kazuya's former girlfriend. She has short blonde hair. She appears to be friendly on the outside but harbors jealous and possessive feelings that scare her friends sometimes. She is shocked and suspicious that Kazuya has found another girlfriend immediately after she dumped him.
;
:
:
:A girl who is introduced as Shun Kuribayashi's girlfriend. In actuality, she is also working as a rental girlfriend for another company. She wants to date Kazuya for real after seeing how kindly and passionately he treats Chizuru and her. She has a health condition where she has a low
heart rate that she monitors, and Kazuya is the first guy who elevated it. Later on in the series, she quits her rental girlfriend job and starts working at the same karaoke bar as Kazuya.
;
:
:
:A girl with pink hair who also works as a rental girlfriend with Chizuru's company. She is in her first year at college and is a newcomer to the industry. She has a shy personality and through Chizuru's urging, goes on dates with Kazuya in order to improve her skills as a rental girlfriend, later developing feelings for him. In her spin-off manga, ''Rent-A-(Really Shy!)-Girlfriend'', it is revealed she decided to become a rental girlfriend due to a desire to pursue a career as an idol.
Supporting
;
:
:
:Kazuya's paternal grandmother. She is thrilled to find out that Kazuya and Chizuru are a couple. She operates a family-owned liquor store with Kazuya's parents and is friends with Chizuru's grandmother.
;
:
:
:Kazuya's father. He operates a family-owned liquor store with his mother and wife.
;
:
:
:Kazuya's mother. She operates a family-owned liquor store with her husband and mother-in-law.
;
:
:
:Kazuya's childhood friend and college schoolmate. He occasionally gives Kazuya advice about how to deal with his relationships. He also personally knows Kazuya's grandmother Nagomi, working part-time to help with her business.
;
:
:
:Kazuya's friend and college schoolmate. He has short light hair and wears glasses. He often goes by "Kuri".
;
:
:
:Chizuru's grandmother. In her heyday, Sayuri was an actress, inspiring Chizuru to become one herself. Sayuri and her late husband Katsuhito raised their granddaughter together after Chizuru's single mother died.
;
:
:
:Chizuru's friend and classmate in acting school. Kazuya mistakenly believes Umi is Chizuru's real boyfriend at first.
;
:A girl who is a neighbor to both Kazuya and Chizuru. She is a
social media influencer and into
cosplay
Cosplay, a portmanteau of "costume play", is an activity and performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character. Cosplayers often interact to create a subculture, ...
, and provides insight on
crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...
to Kazuya when he and Chizuru decide to make an
independent film
An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...
together. She also encourages him to truly pursue Chizuru.
Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by
Reiji Miyajima
is a Japanese manga artist. He is known for his series '' AKB49: Ren'ai Kinshi Jōrei'' and ''Rent-A-Girlfriend''.
Career
In October 2005, Reiji Miyajima received the Magazine Grand Prix Encouragement Award for his work . In the same year, he ...
, the series began serialization in
Kodansha
is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...
's ''
Weekly Shōnen Magazine
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a significant portion of its readership falling under the male high ...
'' on July 12, 2017. It has been compiled into twenty-nine volumes as of December 2022.
The series is licensed in North America by
Kodansha USA, which released the first volume in English on June 2, 2020.
Kodansha published an anthology of the series on August 17, 2020.
A spin-off manga series, titled , also written and illustrated by Miyajima, has been serialized in Kodansha's ''Magazine Pocket'' app since June 21, 2020. The series focuses on the character Sumi Sakurasawa. It has been compiled into three volumes as of May 2022. The series is also published in North America by Kodansha USA.
Anime
An
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
television series adaptation was announced on December 15, 2019.
The series was animated by
TMS Entertainment
, formerly known as the , also known as or , is a Japanese animation studio established on October 22, 1946.
TMS is one of the oldest and most famous anime studios in Japan, best known for numerous anime franchises such as ''Lupin the Third'', ...
and directed by Kazuomi Koga, with Mitsutaka Hirota handling series composition, Kanna Hirayama designing the characters, and
Hyadain
, also known as , is a Japanese composer, lyricist, and musician. His primary work is composing anime theme songs and for J-pop musicians. He contracts through Supalove, a Japanese record label. He has released a number of anime and video game mu ...
composing the music.
The Peggies performed the opening theme .
Halca
HALCA (Highly Advanced Laboratory for Communications and Astronomy), also known for its project name VSOP (VLBI Space Observatory Programme), the code name MUSES-B (for the second of the Mu Space Engineering Spacecraft series), or just Haruka ( ...
performed the first ending theme starting from Episodes 2–6 and 8–11, while Halca also performed the second ending theme "First Drop" for Episode 7, and
Sora Amamiya performed the third ending theme for Episode 12. It aired from July 11 to September 26, 2020 on the
Super Animeism programming block on
MBS
MBS may refer for:
People
* Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia
* Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepalese politician
Places
* MBS International Airport (IATA code: MBS), Freeland, Michigan, US
* Mari ...
and other networks.
Season 1 ran for 12 episodes.
The series is licensed by
Crunchyroll
Crunchyroll is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Sony through a joint venture between Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment Japan's Aniplex. The service primarily distributes films and tel ...
outside of Asia. On August 11, 2020, Crunchyroll announced that the series would receive an English dub,
which premiered on August 28. In Southeast Asia and South Asia, the series is licensed by
Muse Communication and released on the streaming service
iQIYI in Southeast Asia.
Animax later began airing the series.
On September 25, 2020, shortly before the first season's finale was streamed internationally, it was announced that a second season had been greenlit for production. The main cast and staff reprised their roles, with
Studio Comet
is an animation studio with its headquarters in Toyotamanaka, Nerima, Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Fo ...
cooperating in the production. The second season aired from July 2 to September 17, 2022. The opening theme is by CHiCO with
HoneyWorks
is a Japanese VOCALOID musical group. The group started uploading their original VOCALOID songs online to NicoNico in 2010 and began to collaborate with singer CHiCO in May 2014 (CHiCO with HoneyWorks), which they maintain to this day. They made ...
, while the ending theme is by MIMiNARI featuring asmi.
On May 18, 2021, it was announced
Sentai Filmworks picked up the home video rights.
After the final episode of the second season, a third season was announced.
Video game
A
crossover
Crossover may refer to:
Entertainment
Albums and songs
* ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album)
* ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987
* ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album)
* ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album)
* ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...
smartphone game titled ''Kanojo, Okarishimasu Heroine All-Stars'' was developed by Enish. It featured Chizuru, Mami, Ruka, and Sumi along with female characters from other ''
Weekly Shōnen Magazine
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published on Wednesdays in Japan by Kodansha, first published on March 17, 1959. The magazine is mainly read by an older audience, with a significant portion of its readership falling under the male high ...
'' manga series like ''
Fairy Tail'', ''
The Seven Deadly Sins'', ''
Domestic Girlfriend'', ''
Girlfriend, Girlfriend
is a Japanese romantic comedy manga series written and illustrated by Hiroyuki. It began serialization in Kodansha's ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' in March 2020, and has been compiled into thirteen ''tankōbon'' volumes as of November 2022. A ...
'', ''
Fire Force
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Atsushi Ohkubo. It was serialized in Kodansha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from September 2015 to February 2022, with its chapters collected in thirty-four '' ...
'', ''
Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches'', and ''
Negima! Magister Negi Magi
''Negima! Magister Negi Magi'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Ken Akamatsu. It was serialized in Kodansha's ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from February 2003 to March 2012, with its chapters co ...
''. It was released in September 2021. The game's service ended on January 25, 2023.
Drama
A
live-action television drama adaptation aired on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
and
TV Asahi
JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...
from July 3 to September 25, 2022.
It stars Ryūsei Ōnishi and
Hiyori Sakurada
is a Japanese actress.
Filmography Film
Television
References
External links
*
*
*
Hiyori Sakurada Official Blog*
*
2002 births
Living people
Japanese film actresses
Japanese television actresses
Japanese child actresse ...
as Kazuya and Chizuru, respectively.
Reception
The series received a mixed to positive reception. Joe Ballard of
Comic Book Resources
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
(CBR) described the anime adaptation as a "hot mess" with sluggish pacing but also an "intriguing, action-packed rom-com and a semi-developing love story." Meanwhile, Ethan Wescoatt of CBR praised the story, which he called "mature" for a
harem anime, in addition to the male and female leads, noting that Chizuru is an intriguing character due to hiding her true, multidimensional personality behind her perfect girlfriend façade and that Kazuya's struggles are relatable to the audience.
As of December 2021, the manga had over 10 million copies in circulation.
Notes
References
Works cited
* "Ch." is shortened form for chapter and refers to a chapter number of the ''Rent-A-Girlfriend'' manga as published by Kodansha USA.
* "Ep." is shortened form for episode and refers to an episode number of the ''Rent-A-Girlfriend'' anime as produced by TMS Entertainment.
Web sources
External links
*
*
*
{{TMS Entertainment
2020s college television series
Anime series based on manga
Animeism
Crunchyroll anime
Fiction about social media
Harem anime and manga
Japanese webcomics
Kodansha manga
Muse Communication
Romantic comedy anime and manga
Sentai Filmworks
Shōnen manga
TMS Entertainment
Upcoming anime television series
Webcomics in print