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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
#deweys #readathon
There are some comics which start out with a tiny thread of idea and grow to be something bigger and spectacular. They may lose their way in the middle, sway a little but manage to stick to the path they set out on and end up being good or even great. Sex Criminals definitely has an interesting premise, a great start and a likeable main character.
Midway, it was jumble of lot of things. Maybe it will all make sense in next volume. Maybe this is how its been planned. Sex police came out of nowhere and I was honestly baffled at some of the dialogue exchange between them and the main leads.
That being said, its quite impressive for first volume. However I won't be continuing with this series.
There are some comics which start out with a tiny thread of idea and grow to be something bigger and spectacular. They may lose their way in the middle, sway a little but manage to stick to the path they set out on and end up being good or even great. Sex Criminals definitely has an interesting premise, a great start and a likeable main character.
Midway, it was jumble of lot of things. Maybe it will all make sense in next volume. Maybe this is how its been planned. Sex police came out of nowhere and I was honestly baffled at some of the dialogue exchange between them and the main leads.
That being said, its quite impressive for first volume. However I won't be continuing with this series.
See full review here, warning, it's RAUNCHY! http://ilayreading.com/2016/02/01/sex-criminals/
Beyond the sex, there is a love story about a couple of normal weirdos who find their own brand of weird mirrored in each other. They haven’t been able to find compatibility anywhere, there suddenly, there it is. The story is goofy and sweet, then add in the rest of it and it just becomes completely hilarious.
Beyond the sex, there is a love story about a couple of normal weirdos who find their own brand of weird mirrored in each other. They haven’t been able to find compatibility anywhere, there suddenly, there it is. The story is goofy and sweet, then add in the rest of it and it just becomes completely hilarious.
Matt Fraction dedicates this series to anyone who’s ever rubbed one out for the first time and the first issue opens with a couple having sex in the washroom, with the narrator, Suzanne, offering to explain and asking you not to judge. By way of explanation, she starts with her past and the death of her father, a seemingly random victim of a gun toting rampage. Her mother sinks into a life of tears and drink and Suzanne finds the only escape is underwater in the bathtub. One day, during her moments of seclusion, she makes an accidental discovery that involves touching herself—you know—down there. The result is not merely the incredible feeling of euphoria, but time actually stands still for her. She comes (lol) to call this phenomenon “The Quiet,” and tries to learn more about it. But there is little information available, and worse, no one seems to want to talk about it and asking the wrong people results in shame.
This might be a common experience for many. My birds and bees discussion was less discussion and more “here read this book,” wherein, This Book, had a blue cover, nice '70s attired young teens smiling sweetly, and a big chapter on why masturbation is evil. In my aged wisdom and experience, I will not be working from this book when it comes time to get more in depth about sex chats with my kids, however, we still live in a surprisingly prudish society. We love sex, but we’re still too ashamed to admit it. If that’s how you feel about the down and dirty, then this book actually *is* for you. Because you’re not alone in your interest in sex and, while your orgasms might not stop time (or do they?), I love the way Fraction calls us out on our shame and politely and humorously asks why we gotta feel this way.
I’m most familiar with Fraction’s work on the Hawkeye solo series where he takes the Avenger out of his role as a superhero and introduces us to an every day, self-deprecating guy with a penchant for doing nice things for people who could use a break, and getting himself in trouble for the right reasons. That same casual, personable feel exists in Sex Criminals, with characters that you can really empathize with.
So the “criminals” part. Right. That comes in when Suzanne discovers that her ability isn’t as unique as she thought. She meets Jon, whom she actually has a lot in common with and falls for even before she discovers that he can enter The Quiet too, (though he has another name for it). He gets to tell of his discovery of his ability, which a lot of guys can probably identify with. Jon has been using his time stopping abilities to cause a bit more trouble than Suzanne has ever imagined, and he convinces her to try it out for the sake of saving her beloved library. Unfortunately, they discover that they really, really aren’t unique in their abilities, as their antics are halted by the sex police.
Fraction’s sense of humour is light and fun. It’s impossible not to laugh at yourself through the course of the book, as much as you’re laughing at the characters and their situations. I’ve also learned the importance of reading *everything* in comics these days, but most especially comics that Fraction works on. His cheekiness spills into all the pages, cover to cover, and it’s great to see that Zdarsky shares that sense of humour, making for a great team.
Technically speaking, the story telling process is a bit troublesome. It begins with young Suzanne going through her motions, with older Suzanne fourth wall narrating over her shoulder. In present day, Suzanne occasionally breaks the fourth wall as well, looking at the ‘camera’ to deliver some lines. It takes a moment to grasp that, since narrative word boxes are also used to speak to the reader. This is not a deal breaking concern for me, though.
This is yet another winner from Image Comics, which continues to produce great, off the wall comics that push the boundaries of both the medium, and our sensibilities. Sex Criminals even earned itself an Apple ban, which means Fraction and Zdarsky are definitely doing something right.
With thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.
See more reviews at The BiblioSanctum.
This might be a common experience for many. My birds and bees discussion was less discussion and more “here read this book,” wherein, This Book, had a blue cover, nice '70s attired young teens smiling sweetly, and a big chapter on why masturbation is evil. In my aged wisdom and experience, I will not be working from this book when it comes time to get more in depth about sex chats with my kids, however, we still live in a surprisingly prudish society. We love sex, but we’re still too ashamed to admit it. If that’s how you feel about the down and dirty, then this book actually *is* for you. Because you’re not alone in your interest in sex and, while your orgasms might not stop time (or do they?), I love the way Fraction calls us out on our shame and politely and humorously asks why we gotta feel this way.
I’m most familiar with Fraction’s work on the Hawkeye solo series where he takes the Avenger out of his role as a superhero and introduces us to an every day, self-deprecating guy with a penchant for doing nice things for people who could use a break, and getting himself in trouble for the right reasons. That same casual, personable feel exists in Sex Criminals, with characters that you can really empathize with.
So the “criminals” part. Right. That comes in when Suzanne discovers that her ability isn’t as unique as she thought. She meets Jon, whom she actually has a lot in common with and falls for even before she discovers that he can enter The Quiet too, (though he has another name for it). He gets to tell of his discovery of his ability, which a lot of guys can probably identify with. Jon has been using his time stopping abilities to cause a bit more trouble than Suzanne has ever imagined, and he convinces her to try it out for the sake of saving her beloved library. Unfortunately, they discover that they really, really aren’t unique in their abilities, as their antics are halted by the sex police.
Fraction’s sense of humour is light and fun. It’s impossible not to laugh at yourself through the course of the book, as much as you’re laughing at the characters and their situations. I’ve also learned the importance of reading *everything* in comics these days, but most especially comics that Fraction works on. His cheekiness spills into all the pages, cover to cover, and it’s great to see that Zdarsky shares that sense of humour, making for a great team.
Technically speaking, the story telling process is a bit troublesome. It begins with young Suzanne going through her motions, with older Suzanne fourth wall narrating over her shoulder. In present day, Suzanne occasionally breaks the fourth wall as well, looking at the ‘camera’ to deliver some lines. It takes a moment to grasp that, since narrative word boxes are also used to speak to the reader. This is not a deal breaking concern for me, though.
This is yet another winner from Image Comics, which continues to produce great, off the wall comics that push the boundaries of both the medium, and our sensibilities. Sex Criminals even earned itself an Apple ban, which means Fraction and Zdarsky are definitely doing something right.
With thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review.
See more reviews at The BiblioSanctum.
Popsugar challenge:
A book by an author from a country you've never visited
A book by an author from a country you've never visited
Ha sido fantástico. Desternillante, muy original, bien escrito y bien dibujado, rápido de leer, protagonistas adorables y únicos, un cierto puntito dramático... Por no hablar de todas las palabritas que he ido aprendiendo por el camino (jeje). En fin, muy recomendable.
So if you haven’t guessed this is not your normal run of the mill graphic novel…it’s weird and it stands out. It also has a high focus on sex, which I’ll be honest was interesting at first and then became kind of boring after a while. Sex Criminals has a lot of potential but I think in the end it’s just not for me.
Our story follows Suzie, a woman who can stop time when she has an orgasm. After discovering this on accident she has searched her entire life to find someone who understood what was happening to her, and she finally finds that in Jon. I liked Suzie for the most part, she’s sort of geeky and isn’t the best at socializing. However once Jon is introduce I think her personality when out the window in place of crazy places and sex. Jon has done much of the same as Suzie, including the experimentation and soul searching…but one thing that differs is his desire to do highly inappropriate things during the time freeze. It’s sort of funny at first, and totally understandable…but then it sort of becomes stupid as you realize he’s still doing this petty stuff as an adult. I really loved the idea of time freezing and them robbing banks, and we do get some of that mixed in with how their relationship develops as they plan things out. I’ll just be honest and say that I became extremely bored with it, and some of the things I found funny previously just didn’t pan out for me again.
I also wasn’t fond of the art style and felt the faces changed shape/features. I’m sort of picky when it comes to comic book art, which is a flaw of mine, so this one just didn’t meet my standards of appealing artwork.
Overall it’s a unique concept that might be better read in single issues instead of full volumes. I personally will not be continuing this series, but if you enjoy reading graphic novels that are way outside of the box then go for it!
Our story follows Suzie, a woman who can stop time when she has an orgasm. After discovering this on accident she has searched her entire life to find someone who understood what was happening to her, and she finally finds that in Jon. I liked Suzie for the most part, she’s sort of geeky and isn’t the best at socializing. However once Jon is introduce I think her personality when out the window in place of crazy places and sex. Jon has done much of the same as Suzie, including the experimentation and soul searching…but one thing that differs is his desire to do highly inappropriate things during the time freeze. It’s sort of funny at first, and totally understandable…but then it sort of becomes stupid as you realize he’s still doing this petty stuff as an adult. I really loved the idea of time freezing and them robbing banks, and we do get some of that mixed in with how their relationship develops as they plan things out. I’ll just be honest and say that I became extremely bored with it, and some of the things I found funny previously just didn’t pan out for me again.
I also wasn’t fond of the art style and felt the faces changed shape/features. I’m sort of picky when it comes to comic book art, which is a flaw of mine, so this one just didn’t meet my standards of appealing artwork.
Overall it’s a unique concept that might be better read in single issues instead of full volumes. I personally will not be continuing this series, but if you enjoy reading graphic novels that are way outside of the box then go for it!
I figured with a premise like this one, I could only either love it or hate it. And what do you know, I kinda love this!
I'm mad at the whole universe for not telling me that one of the main characters is a librarian. Is everyone just shy about reading sexy comics? Look, I know it's my fault for waiting so long to read it, but I'm not sure why someone hasn't just sent me a copy. You're all fired.
It's The Fermata with robbing banks, shitting in potted plants, and sex police. What's not to like?