About four years ago, give or take, I was working on flash animation, doing the Midnite Sally project. I stumbled on Animax, a mainstream flash animation company here in Porn Valley (ironically located across the street from the former AVN office in Van Nuys). The president of the company is a famous Canadian comic, I’ll let you figure out who on your own. They have some great ideas. One of which was to sponsor a local animation group with presentations, speeches, and networking, called Valley Flash.
It was there I met Sabri, who’s since moved on, but it was also there I saw a great presentation on how flash has changed animation entertainment. The presentation highlighted Aaron Simpson, of the Flash animation trade publication, Cold Hard Flash.
We hooked up on Facebook, and I almost forgot he was mainstream. Especially when he posted his new project Chainmail Bikini Squad.
Barely safe for work, and youtube, the pilot introduces three women seeking adventure in a fictional land of swords and sorcery. Our heroine, Ginger, plays it straight, seeking empowerment in a profession run by men, while her buddies roll with the punches. The pilot really begins to say it all as Ginger realizes that the guild requires her armor to look like it was designed by Victoria’s Secret. Even Stormy Leather would have given her a corset or something.
As the episodes progress, and the bikini-clad carnage begins, I wasn’t getting some of the jokes. Then it dawned on me, they’re not in a swords and sorcery fantasy cartoon, they’re players in a video game! Simpson and his crew have not only incorporated sexy jokes about sexism, but they’ve spoofed game developments like “leveling up”
The artwork is definitely up there, and this series would easily fit in on programming like Adult Swim. The jokes poke at sexism, with plenty of skin, but no nudity or hardcore sex.
The hard part is, the updates are rare, or so I thought. I’ve been seeing them about once a month (not surprisingly, it is still a lot of work). Then while writing up the review, I noticed two new episodes.
I definitely give this a thumb’s up for good cheesecake (and the occasional beefcake), incorporation of fetish art into the cartoons (even though it’s PG-rated and unintentional), and for taking on issues of sexism without being preachy. Ginger may not always get her way, but she does get to take a stand, and many times gets the upper hand. This is one of my personal favorites and I eagerly await more episodes.
Dungeon Net
Hogspy
