Friends, it is time. After a three year hiatus, I present to you:
Renji Fashion Round-up, Part 4a
What, you say? You don’t remember the original Renji Fashion Round-Up posts? They are here: (Part 1: Canon) (Part 2: Filler) (3: OPs and EDs)
This edition will cover Colorspreads and Promotional Materials, and it’s so long that I am spreading it out over two posts. (Yes, I realize I could have further filtered it into Colorspreads AND Promotional Materials, but I found a big folder of these on Reddit and it’s too much work to further sort them. Also, I think it makes more sense to do it this way). I’m going from worst to best, so this post will be covering #20-#10. You may see a few outfits from previous editions, because the openings and endings sometimes used some of these looks, but they didn’t always do them justice, so they are getting a re-rating. I have also grouped outfits that I felt went together thematically, to keep this from getting even longer than it already is. I also left out a handful of ones that just weren’t that interesting/I didn’t have much to say about.
Additionally, I just want to say that I didn’t even know these existed when I made the original posts, and I have since learned that Kubo actually hated the outfits that the anime put Renji in, because he felt like Renji was a great dresser. So even though these is the bottom half of the list, this whole section is a tier above the other ones, and there’s some real gold here.
Anyway, let’s get into it!!!
20. Vampires!
I’m just not into vampires generally, and you can barely even see his outfit. Also he definitely looks like he’s only pretending to drink that...blood alcohol, whatever it’s supposed to be, but, like, the cap is actually still on. (There’s also a fake ad for Pigeon Ruby in Color+ Bleach? Stop trying to make Pigeon Blood happen, Kubo!!)
19. Big Pimpin’
I will admit that he’s got major drip and is very slutty overall, which I normally love, but this is just not my preferred aesthetic. If you love this one, I support you, but I just do not care for it. Also, the fit itself is just not that interesting. I do like his lil braid, tho.
18. Mummy, again
I rated it low in the Filler Round-up and I am rating it low here. I do like the way he’s smoldering at the viewer, and as sexy mummy costumes go, he’s really working it, even without showing skin. That being said: it’s bandages.
17. Cravats, I guess
These two outfits seem sort of fundamentally similarly to me-- low-saturation palate, bit of a slouchy, grungy texture, cravats. I don’t love it, friends. The second one is definitely far superior to the first (the fedora! why??), especially because I loooooove that hairstyle for him and the scarf is tied a little more like a scarf, but he can do better than this.
16. Vampires, again.
I initially rated this one very low, but the more I stare at it, the more I am charmed by it. I mean, this outfit is legit awful. The fedora. The shorts (ft leg stubble). The one pulled-up sock. Ichigo has gone for a more classy all-white vampire look and he can’t even bear to get out of his coffin to be seen with this man. The boots are good, actually and I know I have criticized Renji for wearing white shoes after Labor Day in the past, but it’s working for him here.
15. Oversized sweats
Kubo sure loves to put some dudes in matching sweats!! I have to admit, it’s not my favorite, but maybe I just prefer a more put-together look. I mean, that third one, in particular, is iconic, but it’s because he’s manspreading and his abs and tits are out, but it’s not because of the outfit. The red-and-white tracksuits are notably a step up from the plain gray hoodies, although that scorpion brooch is, uh, something.
14. Military uniforms
So, to be fair, Renji looks really good in a uniform! Even in an anime about career soldiers, the guy is a career soldier to the bone. I think the problem I have with these is that he looks so natural in this sort of thing that it’s just not all that remarkable, in the way that, say, Rukia in a military uniform is just...phew!! Anyway, the fact that this is #15 says more about this list than it says about this look.
13. Workout-gear
See, I like this sort of form-fitting workout gear much more than I like the sweats from earlier. This gets a lot of bonus points for being sleeveless: Renji’s arms are incredible and it shows off the tatts. He should just be sleeveless a lot more often, imo!! Anyway, I wish we could see this better and also, is he wearing gloves? I do really like this bandana, although I am distinctly not sure how I feel about the braids.
12. Men in Black
This is a classic look, and I love whenever how whenever Kubo draws Renji in a group of people with very similar outfits, he always manages to look the best (it’s because he’s tall). Anyway, he’s working it, but unfortunately this look is irrevocably linked to Reservoir Dogs to me, and I am done with Tarantino, so this only makes #12.
11. Beach breeze
Speaking of movies from my formative years, he’s got big Pierce Brosnan-as-James Bond-when-he-has-to-go-to-a-tropical-island energy to me. I wish we could see this from the front. I feel in my heart that he looks very handsome in it, but to me, the vibes are wrong. Renji is just not a man who puts on linen to go to the beach. It’s good, but just slightly off to me. I like his WIlliams-Sonoma $300 watermelon carrier, though.
10. Lamp Society, but make it classy
This outfit appeared, briefly and out-of-context during the very end of OP4: Tonight, Tonight, Tonight. I liked it then and I like it now! It’s tight, even though it probably shouldn’t be and it’s got sort of a modest tit-window. I’d probably rate it higher if we could see more of it. It looks like he’s wearing black pants, which doesn’t seem very practical for the desert. It’s worth noting that everyone looks 1000x times better than when the anime recycled these outfits for the Lamp Society episode.
That’s part a! Read part b here!
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