Oglaf
| Oglaf | |
|---|---|
 The warning page which appears to first-time readers, who must state they are over 18 to proceed. | |
| Author(s) | Trudy Cooper and Doug Bayne |
| Website | www |
| Launch date | 2008[1] |
Oglaf is a sexually explicit comedy webcomic produced by Australians Trudy Cooper and Doug Bayne.
Authors and publication
[edit]Oglaf is produced by Trudy Cooper and Doug Bayne,[2][3][4][5] though this is not stated anywhere on the comic's website; reviewer Shaenon Garrity said in 2012 that the comic was "technically anonymous but instantly recognizable" as Cooper and Bayne.[6] A 2013 Sequential Tart article said that "the site... doesn't tell who creates it",[7] while a 2016 Paste Magazine article credited the comic to "Bodil Bodilson".[8] The Patreon page for Oglaf states that the comic is made by "Trudy & Doug"[5] and the printed books are credited to them.[9]
Cooper and Bayne had previously worked together on Platinum Grit[2] and had also animated a music video together for Violent Soho.[10]
According to the website, the comic "started out as an attempt to make pornography [and] degenerated into sex comedy pretty much immediately."[11] A new comic is released online each Sunday.[2] The first two collections have been published in book form by TopatoCo,[2][3] and a third book was crowdfunded on Kickstarter in July and August 2020.[12] A fourth book was crowdfunded in September 2023.[13]
Setting and style
[edit]The comic takes place in a medieval fantasy realm; a reviewer for ComicsAlliance described it as "a world created by shoving every existing fantasy world into a blender and setting it on puree."[2] Oglaf has no overarching story, though does have many recurring characters and storylines.[2] It features many explicit sex scenes;[14] reviewers have called it "really REALLY pornographic"[11] and "extremely, extraordinarily NSFW."[15] The initial story is about a man named Ivan who is apprenticed to a sadistic sorceress who forbids him to masturbate, or else his ejaculations come to life and report him.[15][16] Comics have included shapeshifters, interspecies romance, fountains of youth, enchanted body parts, magical sex toys, and "bedroom injuries with a literal ice queen".[15] The archive notes which comics are less explicit.[2]
Reception
[edit]Inverse praised Oglaf for its depictions of gender and sexuality[17] and The Escapist noted its inclusion of people of colour and LGBTQ+ characters.[4] Oglaf won a Silver Ledger from 2016 Ledger Awards, which acknowledge excellence in Australian comic art and publishing.[18] In 2013, it was called the Best X-Rated Strip by NJ.com.[19] It was rated #1 in the Romance and Erotica category by ComicsAlliance for 2016.[20][21] Oglaf.com was named one of the top porn sites for women by Cosmopolitan in 2017.[22]
A reviewer for ComicsAlliance called Oglaf "some of the funniest smut on the web" and said, "imagine the funniest geek you know tried really hard to write magical porn, but they couldn't stop it from being laugh out loud funny. That's Oglaf...as dirty as it is, [it] somehow manages to be one of the lightest and most upbeat comics filled with sex that you're ever likely to find."[2] A reviewer for io9 said, "It's the webcomic that unleashes the full, perverted potential of the high fantasy genre – the perfect comic for anyone who likes their dick jokes with a side of swords and sexually frustrating sorcery"[15] and also said it deserved to be nominated for an Eisner Award.[23] Paste Magazine included it in an article on "40 of the Best Webcomics" in 2016, saying "If only all porn was as funny as Oglaf, the comic that made you laugh until you cried".[8] Writing on Comic Book Resources, author Tim Seeley said that Oglaf "seems just as content making weird political jokes as it is making dick jokes. In addition to being smartly written, it's beautifully illustrated, and portrays a variety of sexualities and kinks, which ought to please any kind of pervert."[24]
References
[edit]- ^ "Oglaf site map". Internet Archive Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2022-05-23.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Marie, Tara (October 27, 2016). "Sexual Fantasy: Should You Be Reading 'Oglaf'?". ComicsAlliance. Townsquare Media Inc.
- ^ a b Howard, Tini (December 2, 2015). "10 Sexy Comics You Won't Hide Under Your Bed". Paste Magazine. Paste Media Group.
- ^ a b Kahn, Phil (March 18, 2016). "Five Webcomics I'm Reading That You Should Too". The Escapist. Enthusiast Gaming LLC.
- ^ a b "Trudy & Doug are creating comics". Patreon. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ Garrity, Shaenon (March 26, 2012). "VERT! and the Single Girl". Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ Moondaughter, Wolfen (2013-02-18). "Not Safe for Work (So Check Them Out at Home!): Risqué Webcomics on Sexuality and Gender Identity". www.sequentialtart.com. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ a b "Required Reading: 40 of the Best Webcomics". Paste Magazine. 2016-11-11. Archived from the original on 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ ThriftBooks. "Oglaf Book One book by Doug Bayne". ThriftBooks. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
- ^ Violent Soho - Canada (Official Video), retrieved 2021-04-05
- ^ a b Sneddon, Laura (2013-05-25). "Syndicated Comics". The Beat. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ "Oglaf Book 3 by Make That Thing". Kickstarter. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
- ^ "Oglaf Book 4 PRE-ORDER Complete! Shipping Late October and Available f". TopatoGO. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ Colter, Aaron (January 29, 2012). "Best Webcomics Ever (This Week) 1.29.12". ComicsAlliance. Townsquare Media Inc.
- ^ a b c d Davis, Lauren (April 23, 2011). "Raunchy webcomic "Oglaf" blends low humor and high fantasy". Gizmodo. G/O Media.
- ^ Davis, Lauren (December 26, 2011). "'Oglaf': The Best Sexy Fantasy Comic You Can't Read at Unsexy Work". ComicsAlliance. Townsquare Media Inc.
- ^ Gaudette, Emily (April 14, 2016). "9 Dope Comics About Sex, From 'Sex Criminals' to 'Oglaf'". Inverse. BDG Media Inc.
- ^ Chaloner, Gary (April 16, 2016). "2016 Ledger Award winners announced!". The Australian Comics Journal. Archived from the original on July 24, 2018.
- ^ McCall, Tris (March 29, 2019). "The best webcomics of 2013". NJ.com. Advance Local Media LLC.
- ^ CA Staff (December 21, 2016). "ComicsAlliance's Best Of 2016: Best Romance/Erotica Comic". ComicsAlliance. Townsquare Media Inc.
- ^ CA Staff (December 30, 2016). "ComicsAlliance's Best of 2016: All The Winners". ComicsAlliance. Townsquare Media Inc.
- ^ Hamilton, Jill (April 26, 2018). "The 19 Best Porn Sites for Women". Cosmopolitan. Hearst Magazine Media.
- ^ Davis, Lauren (2014-04-16). "51 Awesome Webcomics The Eisners Have Completely Failed To Recognize". io9. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
- ^ "What Are You Reading? with Tim Seeley". CBR. 2012-04-29. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
