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Afrodisiac
The crew behind Street Angel hits the ghetto with the Afrodisiac - in SuperColor! There's cats, gats, spats, and feathered hats... action as big as a Georgia ham and wool so fine it'll blow your mind! Lock up your daughters, come hell or high water, cause here comes the king of the concrete jungle!
96 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
3 people are currently reading
187 people want to read
About the author
Jim Rugg
81 books104 followersJim Rugg is an Eisner and Ignatz Award-winning cartoonist based in Pittsburgh. His books include STREET ANGEL, The PLAIN Janes, The Guild, Afrodisiac, and Notebook Drawings. Awards and recognition from the Society of Illustrators, AIGA, Communication Arts, Print magazine, American Illustration, SPX, and Creative Quarterly adorn his mantle.
His studio is pencils, paper, ballpoint pens, ink, Photoshop, cats, and comics.
His studio is pencils, paper, ballpoint pens, ink, Photoshop, cats, and comics.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
May 23, 2023
A really fun concept. It's a scrapbook style collection of old comics starring Afrodisiac. The comics are all drawn in various styles from the Romance comics of the 40s, the Marvel Silver Age etc. Rugg does a very convincing job on the art. Especially the age of the paper. It really does look like he scanned ratty issues of quarter-bin comics.
The stories are all goofy and in the vein of each era.
The stories are all goofy and in the vein of each era.
June 27, 2017
I really enjoy the idea of viewing the genre of superhero comics through the lens of Blacksploitation. And, artistically, Afrodisiac LOOKS amazing. Brian Maruca's art is flawless from cover to cover.
BUT
at the end of the day, this is two straight White dudes writing blacksploitation superhero stories. And it doesn't work.
I probably would have found it incredibly funny if I'd read it in the 90s, but reading it in 2017 was cringe-inducing. The jokes about converting lesbians and writing the dialog in dialect just doesn't sit well on the page.
If you removed all the words and had it as an art book, it would be five stars. But even though I didn't know Jim Rugg or Muraca's race when I started reading it, it didn't take even a full page to think "There's no way this was written by someone who isn't White."
BUT
at the end of the day, this is two straight White dudes writing blacksploitation superhero stories. And it doesn't work.
I probably would have found it incredibly funny if I'd read it in the 90s, but reading it in 2017 was cringe-inducing. The jokes about converting lesbians and writing the dialog in dialect just doesn't sit well on the page.
If you removed all the words and had it as an art book, it would be five stars. But even though I didn't know Jim Rugg or Muraca's race when I started reading it, it didn't take even a full page to think "There's no way this was written by someone who isn't White."
January 25, 2024
What if there were Blaxploitation comics that had been around for decades? How would the characters evolve with the times? This book is a fascinating look at how society can project images of race through a self-referential 'kaleidoscope' of conformity. This book seems to me to have (in a way) anticipated some of the more interesting Afrocentric GN we see today.
April 14, 2022
An arty blacksploitation graphic satire imagining a 70s series based on a character known as "Afrodisiac" — a mysterious, "unbeatable, irresistible, smooth dark chocolate brother." This character embodies every cliche and stereotype about Black men: besides being irresistible to white women (there are no Black women here), he is a pimp who gets his power "from the street."
There is little in the way of story. Sometimes just the cover image for an idea, sometimes a page or two. Richard Nixon is a feature, as well as voluptuous Venusians. The result feels like a scrap book of ideas and sketches, a parody of a genre that is frequently already a parody.
There is a juvenile level of sexual humour and innuendo, which to be fair, is typical of the genre. For example, a snake headed Medusa exclaims: "Impossible! Who don't you turn to stone?" Smirking Afrodisiac replies, "I'm already rock hard, baby!"
I admit to being mildly amused at times, but the characterization is ultimately one-dimensional.
There is little in the way of story. Sometimes just the cover image for an idea, sometimes a page or two. Richard Nixon is a feature, as well as voluptuous Venusians. The result feels like a scrap book of ideas and sketches, a parody of a genre that is frequently already a parody.
There is a juvenile level of sexual humour and innuendo, which to be fair, is typical of the genre. For example, a snake headed Medusa exclaims: "Impossible! Who don't you turn to stone?" Smirking Afrodisiac replies, "I'm already rock hard, baby!"
I admit to being mildly amused at times, but the characterization is ultimately one-dimensional.
March 10, 2010
http://www.ifanboy.com/content/botm/B...
Not long ago, I was talking to a friend of mine, a comics professional, who asked if I’d heard of Jim Rugg’s Afrodisiac. I told him I hadn’t heard of it, and asked if that’s the same guy who drew that Minx book, The Plain Janes, a while back. He said yes, and proceeded to gush about this book in a way I’d never heard from him. I tend to balk at that sort of hyperbole, but he did pique my interest. With a stack of unread books on the shelf, I thought I’d get to it eventually, but didn’t make much of an effort. A week or so later, a package arrived, unrequested, with a copy of Afrodisiac for my perusal. Granted, this is also how most of my other unread books arrived, but it was short, and I threw it on top of the heap.
Good lord, am I glad I did.
With Afrodisiac, you’ve got something that only exists in comics, which are always my favorites. By blending the different historical eras of comics, and their specific graphic looks, with blaxploitation films, and superhero tropes, we’re left with something new, an explosion of comic fun and silliness. The whole book is a packaged experience that delighted and surprised me in new ways, and delivered a whole lot of not-sure-if-I-should-be-laughing-at-this laughs. The whole thing works together as one package, and at 96 pages, it’s damn near perfect.
Afrodisiac, tall, muscled, afro sporting, and smooth as hell, is part pimp/part superhero/part daytime janitor Alan Diesler. But at night, when the streets call, he’s the unbeatable Afrodisiac. Evil can’t defeat him, and women can’t resist him. The book is a selection of stories from the long run of non-existent Afrodisiac comics from the past. Each is a short glimpse into a simple Afrodisiac story, done in the style of specific comics from the past. The coloring, and production are all done to mimic comics from different eras, and if they were somehow able to pump in that old comic smell, you’d almost believe they were that old. Like comics from the past, the themes and genres tend to jump around a lot. There are monster stories, romance stories, science adventures, cosmic mystery, gritty street comics, kung fu fighting comics, giant monsters, and more. There’s even a convincing manga cover. I’m not normally a fan of a series of disconnected stories in a book like this, but every page I turned generated another smile. It was always sharp, always clever, and always fun. Plus he fights both Nixon and God.
Written by Brian Maruca, with whom Rugg had previously collaborated on Street Angel, I really didn’t know what to expect when I started reading this. It’s part superhero parody, a style that is so often done badly, and Maruca nailed the perfect tone for this piece, never taking itself at all seriously, but never easing up on the jokes, wordplay and fun. It felt tight and well thought out, but also especially whimsical with a healthy dose of edginess. This book isn’t for kids, and the language might surprise you, because it fools you into thinking you’re reading comics from the 70’s, which were as sterile as baby bottles. Then you get hit with some straight up blaxploitation speak, and you remember that these aren’t actual old comics. This should almost come off as hokey and forced, but it just never does. Instead, it’s just plain entertaining.
As much fun as the words in the book are, and they are a whole lot of fun, the artwork is really where this book comes alive. Jim Rugg’s style bobs and weaves to suit each chapter. The pencils are subtly different from story to story, but the actual color and production changes wildly. The pages look like old comic book pages, as if you’d just dug these issues out from a soggy bag in your grandparent’s attic. The colors are bright and vibrant in some chapters, faded and washed out in others, and in some the dot pitch color slip charmingly outside their boundaries, which is very familiar to all of us who’ve been reading comics for a long time. They key here is the total package approach Rugg took, and man does it show. Afrodisiac kept delighting me the more I read it.
My favorite thing about the book was the collection of covers interspersed in the chapters. Spanning even more genres and production tricks than the stories themselves, the covers were, every one, magic. The titles never failed to elicit a laugh in their not-so-subtle sexual references, and over the top, bombastic cover styles, evoking many forgotten eras in comic book cover creation. They border right on the edge of juvenile, with headlines like, Will the Afrodisiac survive “The Bush”? and The True Story of a Woman Driven Crazy by Too Much Chocolate! The list goes on.
Afrodisiac is mad comic book fun from start to finish. Don’t expect a deep treatise on philosophy, or a politically correct story of right and wrong. Do expect some of the funniest and well done indie comics, push the boundaries of satire and genre on every page. Like every woman who comes into contact with Afrodisiac, you’ll be hard pressed not to fall for his dark manly charms.
Not long ago, I was talking to a friend of mine, a comics professional, who asked if I’d heard of Jim Rugg’s Afrodisiac. I told him I hadn’t heard of it, and asked if that’s the same guy who drew that Minx book, The Plain Janes, a while back. He said yes, and proceeded to gush about this book in a way I’d never heard from him. I tend to balk at that sort of hyperbole, but he did pique my interest. With a stack of unread books on the shelf, I thought I’d get to it eventually, but didn’t make much of an effort. A week or so later, a package arrived, unrequested, with a copy of Afrodisiac for my perusal. Granted, this is also how most of my other unread books arrived, but it was short, and I threw it on top of the heap.
Good lord, am I glad I did.
With Afrodisiac, you’ve got something that only exists in comics, which are always my favorites. By blending the different historical eras of comics, and their specific graphic looks, with blaxploitation films, and superhero tropes, we’re left with something new, an explosion of comic fun and silliness. The whole book is a packaged experience that delighted and surprised me in new ways, and delivered a whole lot of not-sure-if-I-should-be-laughing-at-this laughs. The whole thing works together as one package, and at 96 pages, it’s damn near perfect.
Afrodisiac, tall, muscled, afro sporting, and smooth as hell, is part pimp/part superhero/part daytime janitor Alan Diesler. But at night, when the streets call, he’s the unbeatable Afrodisiac. Evil can’t defeat him, and women can’t resist him. The book is a selection of stories from the long run of non-existent Afrodisiac comics from the past. Each is a short glimpse into a simple Afrodisiac story, done in the style of specific comics from the past. The coloring, and production are all done to mimic comics from different eras, and if they were somehow able to pump in that old comic smell, you’d almost believe they were that old. Like comics from the past, the themes and genres tend to jump around a lot. There are monster stories, romance stories, science adventures, cosmic mystery, gritty street comics, kung fu fighting comics, giant monsters, and more. There’s even a convincing manga cover. I’m not normally a fan of a series of disconnected stories in a book like this, but every page I turned generated another smile. It was always sharp, always clever, and always fun. Plus he fights both Nixon and God.
Written by Brian Maruca, with whom Rugg had previously collaborated on Street Angel, I really didn’t know what to expect when I started reading this. It’s part superhero parody, a style that is so often done badly, and Maruca nailed the perfect tone for this piece, never taking itself at all seriously, but never easing up on the jokes, wordplay and fun. It felt tight and well thought out, but also especially whimsical with a healthy dose of edginess. This book isn’t for kids, and the language might surprise you, because it fools you into thinking you’re reading comics from the 70’s, which were as sterile as baby bottles. Then you get hit with some straight up blaxploitation speak, and you remember that these aren’t actual old comics. This should almost come off as hokey and forced, but it just never does. Instead, it’s just plain entertaining.
As much fun as the words in the book are, and they are a whole lot of fun, the artwork is really where this book comes alive. Jim Rugg’s style bobs and weaves to suit each chapter. The pencils are subtly different from story to story, but the actual color and production changes wildly. The pages look like old comic book pages, as if you’d just dug these issues out from a soggy bag in your grandparent’s attic. The colors are bright and vibrant in some chapters, faded and washed out in others, and in some the dot pitch color slip charmingly outside their boundaries, which is very familiar to all of us who’ve been reading comics for a long time. They key here is the total package approach Rugg took, and man does it show. Afrodisiac kept delighting me the more I read it.
My favorite thing about the book was the collection of covers interspersed in the chapters. Spanning even more genres and production tricks than the stories themselves, the covers were, every one, magic. The titles never failed to elicit a laugh in their not-so-subtle sexual references, and over the top, bombastic cover styles, evoking many forgotten eras in comic book cover creation. They border right on the edge of juvenile, with headlines like, Will the Afrodisiac survive “The Bush”? and The True Story of a Woman Driven Crazy by Too Much Chocolate! The list goes on.
Afrodisiac is mad comic book fun from start to finish. Don’t expect a deep treatise on philosophy, or a politically correct story of right and wrong. Do expect some of the funniest and well done indie comics, push the boundaries of satire and genre on every page. Like every woman who comes into contact with Afrodisiac, you’ll be hard pressed not to fall for his dark manly charms.
September 20, 2012
Eat this up, mother-rapers! This book has everything. Space aliens, blaxploitation references, long-legged white women, Tricky Dick, and even Dracula! Each story in this collection is self-contained (more or less) and each starts with some insane premise on the title page or cover, a la 50s comics. Some in jokes are self-referential, which could come off snarky, but never does. Beautiful art here, too, and has to be, as sometimes D's stories are only a title page in length! Trust me, you won't mind. Everything is so varied here, while never letting you forget its 70s-style appeal, dialogue and all. You'll laugh real hard and wonder why it had to end so soon. Super glad I got a signed hardcover copy! Can't wait to pick up more Rugg material.
February 10, 2015
Ok. Points awarded for cool, retro art, but the whole blaxploitation-in-your-face-stereotypes thing got old by the second installment. Afrodisiac is the kind of idea that someone might think funny if the concept was left to the imagination. Once it hits the page though it's got no where to go, but straight to redundancy. Afrodisiac fights Nixon, Afrodisiac wins over a super hot alien, Afrodisiac does battle in the ghetto with white women - never black women (and yes, I get the joke there too...) - climbing all over him. The bottom line is: this is a graphic novel that needed to get made, but it also needed to get made well. The art is the only takeaway, the stories are forgettable. Pass.
May 27, 2012
It's no surprise this book got an Eisner award nomination. These are the adventures of Alan Diesler who's become Afrodisiac as a result of a government experiment on a white person, a deal with Satan, a robot program, etcetera. Each story is an unique facet of the overall whole that is Afrodisiac, each unrelated to the other, apart from the fact that he's a black pimp sporting a humongous afro and an irresistible mojo.
Chock full of sexual innuendo and impossible situations these stories are pulpy chucklefests that find our hero escaping with sheer pimpiness and the power of his afro. There's actually a free copy of the first printing of this book over here..
Chock full of sexual innuendo and impossible situations these stories are pulpy chucklefests that find our hero escaping with sheer pimpiness and the power of his afro. There's actually a free copy of the first printing of this book over here..
February 21, 2011
This book is truly a design work of art, with what appears to be a collection of pulpy comics from the 70's. A tribute to the Blaxploitation genre that is funny and sometimes downright inappropriate.
If you grew up in the 70's watching (and loving) Blaxploitation shows/movies like Shaft and Foxy Brown, then this book is definitely something you are sure to appreciate
How can you not laugh out loud at panes like Afrodisiac beating G-d at checkers & tennis, Wreslting with Richard Nixon or Getting "Death" pregnant
You can't read Afrodisiac without thinking about Shaft.....
You see this cat "Afrodisiac" is a bad mother--
(Shut your mouth)
But I'm talkin' about "Afrodisiac"
(Then we can dig it)
If you grew up in the 70's watching (and loving) Blaxploitation shows/movies like Shaft and Foxy Brown, then this book is definitely something you are sure to appreciate
How can you not laugh out loud at panes like Afrodisiac beating G-d at checkers & tennis, Wreslting with Richard Nixon or Getting "Death" pregnant
You can't read Afrodisiac without thinking about Shaft.....
You see this cat "Afrodisiac" is a bad mother--
(Shut your mouth)
But I'm talkin' about "Afrodisiac"
(Then we can dig it)
April 14, 2010
Seriously loved every little thing about it from the Marvel Comic Origin parodies in the masthead to the time warp sequence that initially made me think my copy had a printing issue to the way every single woman in the book falls in love with Afrodisiac and starts calling him "Daddy". I just wish there was more.
May 6, 2010
READ THIS BOOK. Part 70's blacksploitation part old school marvel, 100% awesome. Jim Rugg's art in this book is nothing short of amazing. Worth it for that alone. The presentation is amazing the stories are funny you really just can't go wrong with this book.
June 6, 2010
An absolutely perfect book. The art, the pinups, the covers, the language and art all create a perfect tone. Blacksploitation at it's finest. Everything you ever wanted is in these pages.
February 2, 2021
I liked this idea of different comic forms through the years with one fake character and there is a lot cool ideas, but the stories are a kind of cringey. I know the writers are white and they are wallowing with stereotypes of african americans. I enjoyed it, but i don't know if I should.
November 27, 2021
Blaxploitation comic about a pimp whose superpower to get any woman to fall for him is unmatched. Funky, over-the-top and occasionally funny. Entertaining enough. I enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek parodies of the 70s and the superhero genre. Wouldn't recommend reading more than once.
August 24, 2011
This graphic novel has as many moments of brilliance as it does irreverence. Afrodisiac is a pimp/inner city hero who who takes on enemies ranging from Richard Nixon to evil supercomputers, overcoming them by the sheer power of his machismo. It is blaxploitation taken to unabashed extremes. The book, while I called it a graphic novel, is really just a collection of the original Afrodisiac shorts, one of which I have in a stapled, copied edition given to me by friend. It's great to see that story in full color, finely printed glory. Breaking up the short chapters of the Afrodisiac story are covers drawn in different styles and pages of stand-alone artwork, and I think a lot of the pleasure of the book comes from this patchwork feel. The book itself is a truly beautiful edition, and I think Afrodisiac is deserving of such a respectful treatment. It's a pleasure, possibly guilty, to be sure.
April 3, 2010
Rugg and Maruca survey the decades long existence of the baddest, black hero of them all, Afrodisiac. By using a variety of art styles and storytelling methods, the duo provide a fascinating chronicle of the changing superhero and the black identity in comics. The gorgeous volume includes covers (with coffee stains, creases, and random pen markings), toy advertisements, and even a promo for the animated series. Some of the stories are complete, some not. Through frequent origin changes -- Alan Deashler gets his powers from a deal with the devil, nuclear waste, an old beat up stick (his "pimp stick"), and a top secret government program (he was a skinny white kid before the experiments) -- and a wide of range of genres from adventure to super hero to horror to romance, Rugg and Maruca manage to craft a cohesive story in this extraordinary graphic novel.
August 17, 2016
A very short, yet highly diverting tribute to the blaxploitation era, with some 50's sci-fi and superhero tropes thrown in. Absolutely nails the tone, the slang and the jokes associated with the genre. The dynamic, hugely creative art and the intentional ageing of the pages makes it feel even more like a comic made in the seventies. Tough trick to pull off.
Overall, Afrodisiac is a feat of indie comics production. I only wished it was longer and a bit more coherent perhaps, it sped by like a black motherfucker in a heavily tuned, super fly pimp mobile. Then again, that might just have been the exact aim of its creators. Charming little time capsule.
Overall, Afrodisiac is a feat of indie comics production. I only wished it was longer and a bit more coherent perhaps, it sped by like a black motherfucker in a heavily tuned, super fly pimp mobile. Then again, that might just have been the exact aim of its creators. Charming little time capsule.
April 18, 2016
This is possibly one of the funniest/greatest comic books I've ever read. Everything about this is ridiculous. Afrodisiac is a the world's greatest pimp with an origin that changes every issue. He tangles with an alien princess, Hercules, Tricky Dick Nixon and even Death and somehow overcomes all of them. He is possibly the greatest character nobody knows about.What's also great is that each story has a different style. It brings in a breath of fresh air every issue. Another awesome feature are the various covers, which are styled after the 1970's marvel comic books, and they're amazing.
I highly recommend this just for the laughs alone. Definitively a must read
I highly recommend this just for the laughs alone. Definitively a must read
January 7, 2012
This book is awesome as an object alone - the overall physical package is really beautifully done, and just looks great. The stories read genuinely both as classic comics and street culture literature, neither aspect seems forced. You know the gag going in, but that doesn't make it any less effective or funny. A super entertaining read.
May 17, 2010
If you told me my brother had done a blaxploitation comic, this is precisely what I imagine it would look like. The art rocks and the homage to 1970-1980s Marvel Comics is awesome and ridonkulous.
October 18, 2010
Hilarious blaxploitation comic that has the beat-up and retro look of a comic from the 70's! Clever and with blatant satire, I was cracking up, and loving the art-work too!
November 3, 2010
Ah, how great is Jim Rugg? You cannot read this and not be in love with how much fun graphic novels can be. If you love you some Shaft or Dolemite, you gotta get in on this.
June 28, 2011
A perfect work of knowingly reverent pop-culture nostalgia. Jim Rugg has produced excellent work in the past, but this clearly marks his transition from craftsman to master.
January 16, 2020
Holy balls this is a funny book. Styled like a retro 70's pulp, Afrodisiac imagines a comic that should have been. Each story is unimaginably hilarious, and – eh, just buy it. Now.
April 22, 2014
Hilarious. Wish there was more to read. This is a gem with the most outrageous storylines that just leave you laughing and shaking your head in disbelief. Loved it.
May 29, 2015
No thank you.
February 2, 2016
A fun, if very quick read. Loved the retro art, and little details like how they changed his origin story for each issue. Mackjolnir, the magic pimp stick, had me rolling!
October 18, 2016
If you like or have a passing inttest in 70s era G'N's or blaxplotation flix then this is a no brainer.Get it,love it & laugh your ass off all the way through!!
January 7, 2025
Afrodisiac is a riff on '70s Blaxploitation filtered through the lens of '40s romance comics and '60s-'70s Marvel Silver Age comics. The stories as written are quite goofy and mindlessly entertaining, even if at times they don't quite read the way classic comics were written - though I forgive Rugg and Maruca from avoiding being too wordy. It is a bit odd to have two white men writing for the genre, but overall it's easy enough to forget since the lampooning of the film tropes are mild at best. What really works here though is Rugg's artwork which capably attempts to ape the house style of classic romance and superhero comics really well. The faux cover art for the individual issues of Afrodisiac were also brilliant, showing just how well versed in comic tropes Rugg is.
December 23, 2024
2009 collection aiming for forty years back... Retro to a fault, though it appears to be a heart-felt fault.
For me, the book succeeded less in the stories concocted than in the little one-off fake covers.
Semi non sequitur but I might recommend to you "They Cloned Tyrone" as an alternative to this? It had the verve, swerve and strut that I think Rugg is aiming for here, the story in that movie is surely crazy, but finds it way through both craziness and seriousness, with style to boot.
For me, the book succeeded less in the stories concocted than in the little one-off fake covers.
Semi non sequitur but I might recommend to you "They Cloned Tyrone" as an alternative to this? It had the verve, swerve and strut that I think Rugg is aiming for here, the story in that movie is surely crazy, but finds it way through both craziness and seriousness, with style to boot.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews