Released in the US by Icarus Publishing
Slugline: A porn that acknowledges emotions and relationship problems? I could cry.
I was feeling pretty annoyed at myself earlier this week, feeling like that I was asking too much from a porn title and feeling a touch guilty for unloading my ennui onto Icarus Publishing. So when I got my review copies yesterday, I saw that Icarus had sent me another one and I felt that the fates were mocking me. But after Monday's review, I thought I would at least flip through it and see if there was anything positive in it. And lo, the skies opened up, the light came down and my faith in porn was restored.
Skip past the cross-dressing fetishes and the art style that makes everyone look prepubescent, to the emotional consequences of the character's actions that actually mattered! As I read it (and I actually read it) I stopped seeing those annoying fetishes and watched the characters deal with the fallout of their actions. Including the fact that incest is an inherently emotionally dangerous rather than seductive! Bad decisions are not ignored but explored! Doomed relationships are acknowledge as doomed! The climax (of the story arc!) of the title story of the volume is emotional rather than sexual. A character realizes that pressuring another into sex is wrong! Exclamation points were finally on sale!
I almost, almost gave this a four star rating, but one of the one-shot stories that filled out the volume were weak enough to drag it down.
This has turned into a really porn heavy week, I'll try to review something rated All Ages on Friday.
A Wish of my Sister is available from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga.
-Ferdinand
