I proudly identify as a “dildo slinger” — that’s a much way cooler way of saying “sex toy retail worker.” In addition to writing this blog, I have worked at a local sex toy boutique for nearly 8 years. It’s a unique, misunderstood job, one that often elicits perplexed looks and palpable silence. Rarely is this work given the credit it deserves, so when I picked up Lynn Comella’s Vibrator Nation: How Feminist Sex-Toy Stores Changed the Business of Pleasure, I was relieved to sink into a world where my career was treated with respect and nuance. Comella has done the work. She’s been in the adult retail industry observing, documenting, and researching since 1998; she conducted over 80 interviews; . . . read more

The Pleasure Works Rippler is like what the Tantus Echo wants to be when it grows up. It is a beast. A glimmering, swirly green beast; a beast that, sadly, promises much more than it delivers. I know. Despite the fact that I love large dildos, textured dildos, and toys that come in green, and despite the fact that I would’ve bet money I would enjoy this dildo before I tried it… I cannot find it in my heart to fully endorse the Rippler. I’ve never, since the first time I tried it, been psyched to use it. My first issue with the Rippler is that it is very, very stiff. Which I know makes no sense, since I adore . . . read more

I’ve never been a big participator in St. Patrick’s Day. I don’t go out and get wasted on Irish Car Bombs, nor do I specifically remember to wear green every year. But I do have quite the affinity for the color green. Green is one of the most under-used colors in the sex toy market, and it’s time someone honored the toys/companies that dare to go there. Thus, a giveaway! For St. Patrick’s Day, yes. But mostly for green. I have 10 green toys to give away! I was able to wrangle a little something for everyone — dildos, vibrators, a Hitachi attachment, a butt plug, and a toy for cocks. As long as you like green, there should be . . . read more

There is something about Kimberly Kane’s brain that I really like. My Own Master, her latest directorial movie, reminds me exactly why. Static on the TV in the background? Sailor hats? Music that I actually like? What is this? Surely it cannot be a porno. A little creativity goes a long way in porn. Remember Kimberly’s Live In My Secrets, with a Jesus painting, a gumball gag, a dude in a horse sling, and fake blood? Yeah, that was awesome. And so is My Own Master. My Own Master (which is shot by Eon McKai) begins with an awesome song by Deathelectric, and Kimberly smoking and making sexyfaces at the camera while wearing a sailor hat, denim jacket, a collar . . . read more

Courtney Trouble’s Seven Minutes in Heaven is a queer reality porn series. I am enamored with the first Seven Minutes in Heaven, and I thought Seven Minutes in Heaven 2 was pretty good as well. Seven Minutes in Heaven 3, however, feels like a step backward in ways that are difficult to articulate. The thing is, I don’t connect with many of the performers. The exceptions are the adorable and endearing Cyd Loverboy (duh, he’s amazing) and Drew Deveaux. I like Red Jackhammer, too, but Red doesn’t really do anything exciting in this installment. The rest just don’t strike me as people I want to watch fucking. Let’s leave it at that. I was excited about the length of Seven . . . read more

So Billy Castro, hottie extraordinaire of Bordello and Speakeasy, now has his own film. It’s called Billy Castro Does the Mission, for obvious reasons. In it, he wanders around the Mission having sex with any woman he can get his hands on. Four, in all. After a jack-off session on a weightlifting bench, Billy wanders out onto the street, where he finds Dylan Ryan stealing his bike. Obvious answer to this? Follow her and have frantic, slightly angry sex with her in a hot tub. I don’t care if this makes sense — it’s awesome. Billy’s attitude — something along the lines of “you stole my bike; I will cut you. Wait, you are incredibly hot… I will cut you . . . read more

It’s the last day of Courtney Trouble week! Yesterday: Roulette Berlin. This shall excite you: Bordello is basically Clue porn. There is a murder, a selection of murder weapons, and a dramatic reveal at the end. It’s only 58 minutes long, but its composition and scope make it feel much more epic than any other Courtney Trouble film of the past. And everything — from the costumes to the set to the lighting — is done with a more exacting eye than ever before. Bordello is hot as hell, really and truly, but it’s also deliciously subversive: its performers play with the theme of sexualized violence, using that violence and its objects (a gun, a knife) to embody queer experience. . . . read more

It’s day seven of Courtney Trouble week! Yesterday: Seven Minutes in Heaven 2. Tomorrow: Bordello and a chat with Courtney Trouble, pt. 4. Roulette Berlin follows in the footsteps of Roulette Dirty South and the original Roulette; it is a film composed of vignettes, meant to celebrate the diversity of queer sexuality. But it differs from its predecessors, too — it is more expertly made. The music in Roulette Berlin generally stays out of the way — and when it doesn’t, it usually fits the action. There is also some beautiful lighting to be seen, although a few scenes are still not up to my lighting par. The scenes in Roulette Berlin are solid, and I dare say, the most . . . read more

It’s day six of Courtney Trouble week! Yesterday: Roulette Dirty South. Tomorrow: Roulette Berlin. I was really impressed by Seven Minutes in Heaven, so I was practically foaming at the mouth to watch Seven Minutes in Heaven 2. Two of my favorite performers from the first Seven Minutes are in this one — Puck Goodfellow and Sophia (err, her name is Chocolate Chip now) — and everyone else gave me a hard-on during the opening sequence. Especially James Darling. And I was not disappointed! Seven Minutes 2 is just as hot and exciting as the first, with the same playful atmosphere. To top things off, the lighting issues I noticed in Seven Minutes have been rectified, and many of the scenes are . . . read more