Review: Good Sports

Artist(s): Alessio Slonimsky, Dale Lazarov.

Good Sports is both a continuation and a change of pace for erotic writer Dale Lazarov. It is as wordless as his previous books (Nightlife, Manly, Sticky), but this time, we get one long story instead of an anthology format.

This story1, drawn by Alessio Slonimsky, follows the life and fucks of two field hockey players who’ve found each other while playing the field (pun intended). Maybe field hockey was chosen—and not, say, football or handball—because the guys obviously know how to swing big sticks.

Lazarov’s had some fun with the narration this time, with flashbacks between fucks showing the men falling on each other during a match and for each other after a big win. This of course adds the much appreciated ingredient Lazarov porn stories are well-known for: feelings and tenderness. Not to say that cum doesn’t fly all over the pages, but we are shown how well-integrated the two men are among team players and friends, making them more than just sex puppets for the reader.

Clean, hot fun

A quiet, romantic moment

Slonimsky’s art is of the clean line style. His layouts are very solid, as is the line art. I must admit I find his faces and body language a bit less convincing, but this is, as far as I know, his first book and he clearly has got a lot of potential. He’s especially good at drawing clothes, something that might not seem important in a book where the characters are mostly naked, but is for me part of the illusion his style tries to create: for now, he seems to be going for photo-realism, but from what I’ve seen on his website, he can also do more stylised art. I guess it’s just my tastes speaking when I say I’d like to see him combine more stylised characters with realistic settings.
One thing is sure: he doesn’t shy away from giving the reader what he might expect in such a book, with large-sized (but not humougous) cocks, fine physiques and, as I already mentioned, lots of cum from both parties.

There are also rewards for readers who like to read a book more than once, little things one notices the second or third time (“Come for the fucks, stay for the details” should be the motto of Lazarov’s collaborations), such as Ganesha‘s picture on a wall. If I believe what Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell did in From Hell, that means that the guys are undertaking a long and serious journey together and need an opener of the ways. You don’t need me to make another joke here, but it can also be seen as another romantic element, a subtle way of giving the characters a future together.

One last remark I’ll never tire of making: as is often the case in Lazarov’s stories, there’s no fixed sexual role played by the characters. They twist and turn in each other’s arms, making things non repetitive for the reader and probably for the artist.

Good Sports might not be my favorite among Dale Lazarov’s growing library of erotic works, but it’s still an entertaining entry, especially if you like the sports settings.




Notes:
  1. This 64-page book is published by Bruno Gmünder. It can be found online at Amazon.

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