The Good: Good concept, Good quality of book
The Bad: Erratic artwork quality, Disturbing
The Basics: What starts as a clever reimagining of three beloved stories as erotic fiction becomes a gutwrenching volume of comic book pornography when Alan Moore presents Lost Girls.
There are several things that I like to be clear about in my life: I make distinctions between lovemaking and sex, I make distinctions between erotica and pornography. These distinctions are important to me. For the former, I don't want to waste my time with just the physical act of sex without the emotional connection of love. As for the latter, while erotica has its moments of enjoyable titillation, pornography has never been of interest to me. Since I was first aware of the two, I followed the traditional Feminist definition that "erotica" might have artistic value and in "pornography" there is an inherent lack of consent. It was only after I read Lost Girls that I discovered interviews by the writers where they openly referred to the book as pornography and their desire to raise the caliber of writing in that genre.
So, what first drove me to Lost Girls? It's simple; this is a lush, bound graphic novel from Alan Moore. Moore wrote Watchmen (reviewed here!) and V For Vendetta and so he has a lot of credibility with me as being a compelling and interesting writer. The back of this mammoth graphic novel promised a fascinating story; an erotic tale wherein Alice (from Alice In Wonderland), Dorothy Gale (from The Wizard Of Oz) and Wendy (Peter Pan) trade stories of their sexual awakenings. Reading the back of the book, I was appropriately titillated and my partner and I discussed it because it sounded fun. As well, we approached the book with the idea that if anyone could smartly and erotically write such a story, Alan Moore was the man. With my love of Watchmen, I figured the book would be psychologically complicated and well-developed. Unfortunately, after getting my hands on the book and reading it (my partner gave up long before I did), Lost Girls ultimately disappointed me. It was cleverly-conceived, but it was ultimately creepy in large chunks of the book and it undermined any sense of genuine eroticism with disturbing encounters that cross every border.
And before I continue, I ought to make clear the following two things. First, I am not a prude. Despite having a love of lovemaking and a desire not to have sex or watch/read/participate in pornography, I love quality erotica and I love artwork which is sexually charged and genuinely erotic. Second, if you're a prude, Lost Girls and this review are certainly not for you. This is intended to be an erotic - or pornographic - graphic novel and despite my problems with the book, it is certainly that. It is absolutely impossible to discuss this work without discussing or describing things that those with a prudish mentality would find offensive. That said . . . Lost Girls . . .
In 1913 in a hotel in Austria, there is a mythical mirror in a room. Reflected in that mirror, Alice - the Lady Fairchild - sees her aged face and is somewhat horrified to discover she has gotten old. She is surprised the next day when Dorothy Gale checks in accompanied by an officer who is escorting her. After Dorothy and the officer have sex outside, Dorothy is disposing of her cum-covered silver slippers when she meets Alice and the two begin a torrid affair. In the room adjacent to theirs, Wendy Potter is not having sex with her husband. So, she draws a bath, and listens to Dorothy and Alice getting it on in the next room and she masturbates to the sound of them having their first orgasm together. The next day, Alice and Dorothy are outside having sex when they catch Wendy watching them and the three return to Alice's room and they begin telling one another stories in between having sex with one another.
As all three tell the stories of their sexual awakenings, the classic stories they are from are reimagined as erotic tales. Dorothy has her first orgasm while masturbating as a cyclone hits. While she goes on to have sex with farmhands, Alice describes being taken advantage of by one of her father's friends before becoming quite active at the all-girl's school she is sent to. And Wendy describes the summer she ran away with her brothers with a homeless boy named Peter and his sister and had orgies. As they turn one another on with their stories, they begin having sex with one another, inviting others in the hotel to join them and watching as the world around them changes.
I suppose I ought to start with the positives. First, Lost Girls does what it promises in that it provides a true reimagining of the stories of the protagonists from The Wizard Of Oz, Alice In Wonderland, and Peter Pan. And some of the stories are genuinely erotic, not pornographic. In fact, the scenes between the women as women are hotter and loving than most anything else in American literature. As well, co-writer and artist Melinda Gebbie draws the elder Alice, Dorothy and Wendy well, with realistic proportions. Finally, there are moments in this expensive volume where the reimaginings are clever or interesting enough to work, like when Dorothy seduces a timid farmhand (the Cowardly Lion). She works him up until he gets his sexual confidence enough and that has its charms.
But Lost Girls is more frequently problematic or outright creepy. For example, Alice is seduced for the first time as a minor and most of her experiences happen well below any country's age of consent. Even worse is that Wendy's story begins with her and Peter having sex while her brothers look on and jerk one another off. This is both a strength and obvious, disturbing weakness of Lost Girls. Alan Moore and Gebbie set out to create a work of unbridled sexuality without any borders or mores. What starts as a creative exercise that has moments of excitement for the reader soon becomes entirely disgusting. I have no problem with the genderbending, partner swapping or same-sex relations, but when Dorothy starts jerking off a horse, the book takes a turn into outright disgusting. Similarly the fact that Dorothy later takes on her own father sexually is just gross - without any sense of puritanical judgment to it!
Lost Girls also failed to grab me for the artwork. While Gebbie and Moore are clever about arrangements (windows in the panels are made out to be period-appropriate for each character) the characters are often drawn in a sloppy fashion. Indeed, much of the book has the look and stylization of old Chinese erotic etchings and this does not fit the modern feel of the rest of the book. On the character front the only real growth is that Wendy becomes empowered enough to leave her husband. The rest of the book is fairly monolithic and repetitive listings of sexual encounters.
Moreover, Lost Girls is ridiculously expensive. While the book is a true graphic novel presented in a lush hardcover (most bookstores carry it wrapped in cellophane, when they carry it all) it bears a stifling cover price of $50. Because so much of the artwork is comparable to that of The Joys Of Sex or lesser works, those expecting a truly lush, adult work will be left entirely disappointed.
But the real disappointment is how the writers take pushing the envelope so far beyond good taste that they create something that fails to work. The concept is solid and the fundamentals of the execution are good, but the work steers itself into territory for those uncomfortable with anything but pornography. And while minors having sex with one another might be borderline (if that), minors having sex with parents and animals is pretty indisputably vile. Fortunately for most potential readers (at least those who read this review), one need not get sucked into the book from the tantalizing, genuinely erotic sections only to end up disturbed. Instead, pass this one by; it's a good idea with an execution that will tighten every part of your body as opposed to excite you.
For other works dealing with sex or love, please check out my reviews of:
The Complete Idiot's Guide To The Kama Sutra
The Story Of O
The Justice League Of Porn Star Heroes
4.5/10
For other book reviews, please check out my Book Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2013, 2009 W.L. Swarts. My not be reprinted without permission.
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