Advance Review: ‘Sainted Love’ #1
In full transparency, I backed the special edition of Sainted Love on Kickstarter back in June. At that point, I hadn’t yet read any of the issues but was intrigued by the concept and wanted to support a queer comic book story by queer creators. I also had the privilege of interviewing writer Steve Orlando about the project ahead of it’s debut. After reading the first issue of the periodical, the project doesn’t disappoint and leaves me intrigued to see what was left on the cutting room floor for the special edition.
PUBLISHER’S PITCH
New York City. 1907. Malcolm Irina is the greatest inventor the world's never heard of, and his lover, John Wolf, is the toughest bare-knuckle boxer in the city. Irina's crowning invention, the Chronocorridor, is nearly complete. He dreams of whisking himself and Wolf away to a time when they can live and love freely. But when crazed Detective Felt raids Irina's lab, the couple dive into the freshly powered up portal to escape capture.
Steve Orlando (Eisner+GLAAD Nominated writer of Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man 2099, Wonder Woman) and Giopota (artist+creator of beloved webcomic Mothersea) hurl you across time with Irina and Wolf, as they encounter famous queer people throughout history and fight back against all who would see their names and love erased!
REVIEW
Orlando and Giopota succeed in building an unabashedly queer world. The duo has created a celebration of gay subculture across multiple eras without creating a sense of inaccurate historical acceptance. Even in the US in the year 2023, with an increasing number of hateful laws aimed at us, queer communities are forced to gather in the shadows, away from the general public, for fear of bigotry and violence. Sainted Love #1 takes places long before 2023 and the situation remains the same, yet we see that queer people exist and thrive in the face of whatever limits those in power try to put on it.
I also loved that the main characters go against the traditional visual norms of how mainstream media would depict gay men in order to appease a fan case. While there are no ages given, Mac and Wolf appear to be in their 30s. They’ve got ample body hair, no six packs, and would be defined more as “gay fat” compared to the often-dangerously skinny physique of today’s stereotypical gay man. Shocker — gay men come in all shapes and sizes and we should all be allowed to be comfortable and happy in our own bodies. As someone who continues to fight body-image issues to try and keep up with what I think are today’s gay beauty standards, this hit hard and left me reflecting on why I can’t be happy no matter how I look.
While I loved everything about what this book stands for, Orlando’s script felt forced with plot development being sacrificed for quippy dialogue at times. It’s not something new to Orlando’s work, with similar shortcomings occurring in his recent Marauders run and his current run on Astonishing Iceman. It never manifests as bad writing, but when it happens, it feels as though Orlando has a very specific line of dialogue he wants to include and the story bends over backwards to ensure it can be included. In between Mac and Wolf’s relationship, we’re given breadcrumbs about a mysterious and evil time-traveling organization (think the TVA from Loki) trying to root out queer communities. It’s an equally interesting plot that took a backseat to the celebration of queerness. When he leans in, Orlando is an amazing sci-fi comic writer and I hope to see this flex in future issues.
Giopota’s art is not going to be for the overly prude at heart and I’m so here for it. There are NSFW scenes presented without verging into vulgar territory, at least in my opinion, but still depict two (or more!) men engaged in sexual activity. I thought it was done with care and respect for the characters involved and there are some fun details used to express emotion and motion that I absolutely adored. Giopota’s colors are equally vibrant and expressive that capture the essence of the book wonderfully. This was truly a visual delight of a book that requires the readers to be ok with seeing gay men being themselves. It doesn’t ask you to be, and it doesn’t need to. Major kudos to Giopota!
FINAL VERDICT
Sainted Love #1 is an extremely fun debut issue. It’s a celebration of queer love and a beacon of hope for what we wish to see accepted by society one day, though it won’t stop us if it’s not. This immediately feels like an important entry into queer literary culture. Beyond that, there is a fascinating time-travel chase waiting to be explored if Orlando is able to balance it with the queer love story he’s also telling. Giopota’s art will likely make this a must-read on it’s own. Also, major kudos to Vault Comics for giving this story a platform!
Rating: 8/10
