This column normally takes a look at obscure comics. For every every sixth month, instead of taking a look at a comic that nobody talks about, this special edition will take a look at a comic I feel not enough people talk about.
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I Roved Out in Search of Truth and Love by Alexis Flower 2014 - Present
Contains Mild Spoilers and discussion of extremely Not Safe For Work subject matter.
John Carmack once said "Story in a game is like a story in a porn movie. It's expected to be there, but it's not that important," and while this column is neither about video games nor porn movies, I think it's still a pertinent quote to start this discussion with. Today I'll be talking about Alexis Flower's pornographic comic, I Roved Out in Search of Truth and Love.
Yes, you heard me. Pornographic. I'm not going to mince words here. We're not talking about a cheeky romance or tastefully erotic adventure. This isn't Sex Criminals or Sunstone. The sex depicted in Roved is about as graphic as you can get. Pretending the comic is just mildly saucy would be ultimately dishonest.
So let's go back to that John Carmack quote. Is the storyline of Roved merely there to serve as a delivery system for vulgar titillation? No, it is not. However, that isn't a rare thing in and of itself. There is famously a Star Trek The Next Generation porn parody out there that works as a genuinely good TNG episode if you just excise the sex entirely. Well written stories sandwiched between sexual content is not unheard of in the world of adult storytelling, but Roved doesn't fall into that category either.
Alexis Flower has created a rare thing. A first rate story with fantastic characters, dense world building and shocking twists and turns, where the sex drives the plot, not the other way around. While it's world and characters are taken seriously within their own context, the sex is often the cause of, or solution to, various plot complications and obstacles.
And the art is fantastic of course. By god the art is fantastic.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Roved tells the story of Cinder and Maeryll, two reluctant adventurers who just want an easy life. Despite their best efforts, they nonetheless end up drawn into a sprawling quest involving multiple factions fighting over a fallen piece of god. Along the way they end up getting lost, make a lot of enemies, run into figures from their past, and have sex with a lot of people, including each other.
Flower puts a metric tonne of raw charisma into these characters. Cinder and Maeryll are utterly complete personalities, with their own foibles and flaws. They are equal parts funny and tragic, and even when they aren't have having sex with someone, or some-thing, they are still magnetically fun to be around. Watching them bumble their way though an upper class party or try and helplessly survive in the wilderness is just as fun as watching them getting it on.
And get it on they do. This goes back to what I was saying earlier. Unlike many other stories that are intended to titillate, Roved does not rely on slim excuses or 'porn logic' to get the characters naked. A great deal of the plot is often driven by a character's decision to bang another character. Early in the story, Cinder has sex with a magical forest lord, accidentally triggering an ancient ritual that turns him into a frog, and leaves her with a not insignificant problem. Likewise, a great deal of the story involves investigating Maeryll's mysterious curse, that causes bad misfortune whenever she climaxes. Working around, and overcoming these problems, becomes a large part of what moves the story, and removing the sex would scupper it entirely.
What's great about the comic is that even if some of the sexual content is stuff you're not into (and there's big chunks that I'm not into,) there's still a lot of fun and humour to the sex that makes it enjoyable to watch even if you're not titillated by it. This is partly due to the fact that Flower understands that sex is a fundamentally ridiculous concept, which in real life is often clumsy and silly looking. This is depicted in a lot of the sex on show, where characters bash into each other, fall over, get blinded by airborne fluids and fall prey to other such minor misfortunes. There's legitimate raw comedy on display whenever characters choose to bone down.
It's this silliness that puts Roved a cut above a lot of it's contemporaries. There's a warmth and good natured attitude towards the sex that neither sensationalises nor eroticises. Shame and guilt are not words that apply here, at least not as far as the sex is concerned. There's a human quality to the whole thing that just makes it a pleasure to read (and not in that kind of way but also yes in that kind of way.)
Our two adventurers are only part of a wider story however. The world is also filled with a wealth of other characters, both heroic, villainous and in-between. Their stories all intersect in interesting ways, with some seeming to play the long game, a major plot point only blossoming slowly as time goes on. These intersections allow the comic to inject itself with a great deal of opposing tones, from forlorn, blossoming romances, to the ritual and ceremony around dark, horrific and unknowable gods. If you thought the comic was just a shallow parody of fantasy tropes, be prepared to be surprised at how deep this rabbit hole goes.
And ultimately, putting aside all talk of sex and titration, the story is still great in it's own right. This world of warring factions, long forgotten magics, gods unknowable, forces cosmic, conflict costly, riches desired, friendships forged and broken, secrets concealed and mysteries revealed is just fantastic to get lost in. I genuinely want to know what's going to happen next, independent of any of the smutty stuff that happens in the adjacent.
And the art is fantastic too of course. By god the art is fantastic too. Flower's painterly tone is firing on all cylinders at all times. Whether it is a sunrise over a beautiful scenic vista, regiments of tightly formed marching soldiers, grotesque dungeon dwelling monsters, or two characters pounding each other's brains out, every panel is a work of art in it's own right. Flower brings both their characters and fantasy world to life with the same charisma and depth that the writing has, and even if the story wasn't a perfect marriage between great storytelling and graphic smut, it'd be worth recommending just for the art alone anyway.
The comic has nearly completed it's third volume, with no sign of slowing down, nor running out of crazy, wonderful, surprising ideas. It'd be easy to dismiss Flowers work as vulgar, low art, but I disagree. John Carmack was wrong when he said that story wasn't important. We've long had evidence against that in the world of video games. I think Roved is proof that we can reject that notion when it comes to pornography too.
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Jack Harvey 2023. I Roved Out in Search of Truth and Love is (c) Alexis Flower. Images used under Fair Use.
