Lively, charming and diverse, with an art style that makes me think of Jaime Hernandez crossed with the classic newspaper cartoon strips. But just to be clear on the key detail: when the cover describes it as 'girly porno', it isn't kidding. I saw Netgalley had this and figured, she co-wrote an Adventure Time comic, it's from Oni, how hardcore can it be? Surely that's just a wry title for something which, at most, will be risque along the lines of Sunstone or similar. Well, no. It's absolute filth. Probably contains fewer pages with the protagonists fully dressed than Lost Girls. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, it's just not the sort of thing I'd necessarily review as a rule, if I didn't owe Netgalley some feedback. Because while any review is by definition subjective, some are more subjective than others, and if there's one thing more subjective than whether comedy is funny or not, it's whether porn is hot or not. So: if you like polymorphously* perverse girl-girl(/-girl(/-girl)) action, with no pretence at a message beyond 'Sex is fun, so why not, eh?', which dodges any risk of male gaze through coming from a female writer-artist, you'll probably like this. If not, it really isn't for you.

*Assuming that term is still appropriate if someone is changing size rather than shape. Close enough, I think.

While I am not a prude and I understand this is erotica and I can enjoy that at times, this was too graphic for me. I want some sort of reasonable story even with my erotica but there was none of that in this graphic novel.

Same review as part 1:

This is an erotic graphic a novel and it's completely adorable. The premise is a bit odd: the main character, as punishment by her conscious for her constant masturbation, gets shackled with a physical manifestation of her conscious, Nibbil, who turns out to be just as--if not more--sex-crazed than Annie.

I love seeing a sex-positive title where all the all-female cast are okay sex--joyful about it, in fact. And despite all the very explicit scenes, it still ends up being a adorable thanks to Nibbil's happy-go-lucky nature. And it's fairly obvious that despite the sexual focus of the book, the characters all genuinely like or love one another. It's fairly light on plot but heavy on charm. I would have liked some more story though.

I was disappointed that this review copy did not contain the introduction from Kelly Sue DeConnick, though.

Thanks to netgalley.com, Colleen Coover, Diamond Book Distributor and One Press/Limerence Press for the advance PDF file copy, for my honest review.

" Small Favors, the critically-acclaimed girly porno comic by Eisner award winning cartoonist Colleen Coover , is back in print in a deluxe hardcover edition! Join Annie and her tiny taskmaster Nibbil in fun, erotic adventures sure to make you blush".

Back in 2002, I heard about Small Favors Vol. 2 at work. So when I saw this as a Read Now selection, figured why not see what it was about, and being a cartoon made it an easy pick.

basically it's a lesbian comic porn, that's funny adorable even, and just an overload of sex by Annie and Nibbil. The drawings/graphics by Coover are amazing, they basically tell the story without words and definitely will check out some of her other work.

Smart, sexy fun. It's nice to see Small Favors back in a hardcover edition.

Celebrating the Polymorphous Perverse, in Girly Porn Style

Gosh, I haven't had occasion to use the phrase "polymorphous perverse" since my 70's sociology days, and here it is in all of its splendor. The "perverse" part isn't judgmental; it just means beyond the usual social norms. To quote a Wiki summary, "Freud theorized that some are born with unfocused sexual libidinal drives, deriving sexual pleasure from any part of the body. The objects and modes of sexual satisfaction are multifarious, directed at every object that might provide pleasure...Lacking knowledge that certain modes of gratification are forbidden, the polymorphously perverse child seeks sexual gratification wherever it occurs."

Well, that's a little heavy, (actually way, way too heavy, but I really wanted to use "polymorphous perverse" in a sentence), but it gets across the idea. These stories simply celebrate the unbridled pleasures of sex, and are presented with joy, good humor, and cheerful abandon. Every article or blurb about Coover starts with a phrase along the lines of "lesbian-themed". Well, I guess so, but that's way too limiting. Our heroine is free, open and polymorphous, and since she's a woman and the characters in the stories are all women, I guess this is "lesbian-themed".

But the basic message and point here is joy, honesty and pleasure. Annie has been saddled with a miniature "guardian" because of her uninhibited ways. Fortunately for both of them, it turns out that Annie's guardian, Nibbil, is as sexually adventuresome and enthusiastic as is Annie. The two of them have a
riotously good time exploring each other's capacity for pleasure and satisfaction. As the story continues we pick up shy Sage and next door neighbor Yuriko, and then uptight Janus, which just serves to multiply the opportunities for coupling and play, (and for Annie and Nibbil to develop a more complex relationship).

This is remarkably explicit and yet totally innocent. The encounters are enthusiastic and one hundred percent consensual. Because it is drawn in an "Archie & Veronica comics" style, the explicit content seems cheerfully and wildly out of place, sort of as if Veronica and Betty had pulled out dildos at the malt shop.

"Small Favors" has been around as about seven comics, an individual color one-shot, and two volume collections. This Omnibus collects everything, so you get the full story arc from the two volumes that were collected, as well as the full color stand alone story, as well as a variety of bonus items, (prelim drawings and the like).

If you've ever wondered how explicit material can be "cute", "funny", "lovable", "sweet", "safe", "naughty", "filthy", "charming", "perky", and "sexy", (as various fans have described it), well, here's your chance to find out. This was a cheerful treat, which is saying a lot.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)