Peace of ass

Do you ever get to the end of an issue of Superman, Justice League or the X-Men, and feel incredibly frustrated that not once did anyone get a boner in their Spandex, or that no one peeled off their uniform for a shower scene? Tease – pulp comics should be ashamed, they’re worse than underwear ads.

Thankfully there are people like Patrick Fillion to help relieve the tension.

Vancouver-based Fillion is the man behind Class Enterprises, which publishes a line of adult comic books, illustrated and created by the 30-year-old Quebecer. In as many genres as on the mainstream shelves – from romance, sci-fi and superhero – every tale from Class Enterprises promises kinky man-to-man fun of all varieties.

Not just another perverted fan boy with a pencil, Fillion saw his beginnings with Avatar Press, a small but popular company of superhero books with adult themes, “of the hetero persuasion,” says Fillion. “So gallons of tits and ass, which, okay, I don’t mind drawing.

“But my heart wanted to be somewhere else. I think I am just better at playing by my own rules, so I left Avatar to focus on my own line of gay-orientated books.

“I think that comic books have a really magical way of pulling us into a story. They allow us to live and feel stuff that maybe isn’t possible in real life,” says Fillion, who first discovered comics when he was five. “It’s a very intimate experience. You get to show every aspect of the characters: their physical characteristics, their likes and dislikes and such. And you get to draw them showing all of this, as they live out their lives.”

With Class Enterprises, Fillion gets to explore even further. “What I really want to put out into the world is quality gay erotica in comic book format, with fun stories and characters that aren’t only arousing, but interesting and diverse.” There’s Camili-Cat, a sexy space cat-man with 9.5 inches and an insatiable hunger for anal delights, and Naked Justice, a salute to the age of the solo super guy, who fights for truth and fairness in the buff. The stories showcase a huge variety of guest tops, while the main characters are generally versatile or bottoms, with storylines that always end with the moral of make (hot, sweaty, dirty, man) love, not war.

“That whole ‘damsel in distress’ routine is so hot when it’s put on by a really sexy guy,” says Fillion, who assures that all of his men are sexy. “There’s something really disarming about it, and it peels away all that macho shit without losing any of the masculinity.”

Many storylines are your basic seduction scenes with intergalactic alien penises, but the sexual acts themselves are often very aggressive and dominating, with punishing overtones. “It can be very exciting and naughty,” says Fillion. “It’s a side of me that I feel completely safe practicing on the comic page. I’ve always been fascinated by it, and whatever the scenario, I try to put myself in the character’s shoes. So the hard-core stuff can be a great deal of fun to draw, because it allows me to go somewhere I don’t necessarily feel the need to go in my own private life.”

In the first issue of The Incredibly Hung: Naked Justice, the title character and friends are hypnotized by the evil Giganticor to screw like never before in anendless “orgy of the damned.” Things you’ll notice: Most of the boys are uncut, they are hairless except for underarms and some pubes (though one is part cat so I’m sure that counts for something), they all get boners when you breath on them,and they all fuck bareback.”It’s comics!” says Fillion. “There doesn’t need to be a danger of contracting sexually transmitted diseases in comics. In fantasy, everything goes, so long as you realize that it is fantasy, and that real life is slightly less rosy.

“I live and let live, but I have always preferred to air on the side of caution in my personal life. Besides I can’t draw a convincing condom to save my life – lol [laugh out loud].”

Some critics say Fillion’s work emphasizes a sexually compulsive and therefore negative gay image. Fillion feels that’s par for the course. “People are free to think what they like, but I don’t feel like I really reinforce any negative stereotypes any more than your average Kristen Bjorn flick. I’m out to have fun, doing the kind of art I love most in the world, and share it with people who may or may not enjoy it.

“It’s important to know where to draw the line between fantasy and real life,” Fillion points out. “I don’t feel like I need to make any bold statements about gay lifestyle through my comics, because they are fantasy material, and as such I believe they need to be regarded as fantasy. I’m not advocating any kind of sex, any kind of lifestyle. I am, however, trying to show as many variations of those things as possible.”

Fillion’s illustrations grace the pages of numerous publications including Xtra West, our Vancouver sibling. You can take a peek at all of Fillion’s boys at the mostly pay website www.patrickfillion.com; the on-line catalogue is there, too. It’s a little kinky comic fun for everyone.

CLASS ENTERPRISES.

www.patrickfillion.com.