Sex Criminals, Vol. 4: Fourgy!

I've liked all the volumes of Sex Criminals that I've read, but this and #3 kind of lack the spark of the first two. Still funny and enjoyable, this volume feels like filler at times. Hopefully things will improve from here on.

Ooooof. Serious stuff going on, and yet it's probably the volume that made me laugh the hardest. For horrible, not right reasons. And I'm sorry, but Suzy might need to dump Jon.

Bah, still off the rails, and I am bummed. I feel like they've lost the plot! Man. :( Like:
- What's up with the pervy homunculi? And the homunculus master? This is a HUGE plot thread and it seems to be (a) going nowhere and (b) not very interesting to begin with?
- Why did we meet Alix the asexual and her kinda creepy monster-man friend? Apart from them having the “magical power”, why are they in the story?
- Why did monster-man get intro'ed as a sorta villain, but now he hangs out with Alix?
- Why, exactly, ARE the sex police villains? Why did “Kegelface” break into the psych's office and steal Jon's papers? What's the point?

This series started with a very simple, and fun, premise: people who stop time when they orgasm, and use that magical power to rob banks, cuz they're mad about the financial crisis and income inequality. THAT MAKES SENSE. And that is hilarious. I also loved Vol. 2's sensitive and funny portrayal of mental health stuff and sexual diversity.

But now... Now the meta/fourth-wall-breaking feels indulgent and not very funny (e.g. most panels have puns, which kinda ruins the worldbuilding and makes everything feel fake). The characters' motivations feel contrived and spread thin. The plot feels like spaghetti. And the “good values” of writing a sex positive story about diverse sexual experiences have been frittered away in a loooot of kinda crass juvenile jokes. Like, the fact that Jon called his “stopped time” place “Cumworld” was funny in Vol. 1, because it was the name of his favorite “adult” shop when he was a teenage horndog. It made sense. It was believable, and funny.

Sigh. It's a bummer. The one (and only) thing I did like was the sweet portrayals of the psych-prof/porn star first date (the therapist is a pretty lovable character overall), and the relationship between the OB/GYN and the roommate.

I REALLY hope this gets better, because it started so strong. Mannn.