Shades of A

I read this as a webcomic, as it first came out. I love the way that Kimpton has taken the (somewhat disturbing, I'm told) sexual politics of the blockbuster 'Shades of Grey' and turned it into a lyrical exploration of how romance works when one isn't quite what is expected by one's partners.

I find the viewpoint character, Anwar, to be unsympathetic, but as I've said in other reviews, I don't get young men, and having difficulty identifying with them is nothing new. He's somewhat socially inept, and this comes through in some of the behaviour, but the mix of current day and flashbacks with the parallels between the previous relationship and the current relationship say so much about how he has matured, while highlighting that he show more certainly isn't there yet.

The supporting cast are fabulous as well - members of the kink scene, each drawn/imagined so lovingly, in such detail, that there is no sense of a 'pick'n'mix' collection that can come out in stories that are about minority groupings.

Other things Kimpton does well (from my perspective) - as well as a range of sexualities, his characters are from a range of ethnic backgrounds, the characters are shown in the context of their families (in particular Anwar, where multiple family members get a look in) and scenes that are embarrassing for the characters are written in enough detail for this reader to empathise, but not feel overwhelmed. show less