Writing a good adult-oriented sex comedy is no easy task. For every Sex Criminals or Oh Joy Sex Toy, there are a dozen sophomoric sleaze fests which feel like the comic book equivalent of Porkies 2. So how will Money Shot from Vault Comics fare?

Publisher: Vault Comics
Writer: Sarah Beattie, Tim Seely
Artist: Rebekah Isaacs
Price: £2.49 from ComiXology

Having had a stellar year releasing a variety of outstanding sci-fi and horror themed books, the team at Vault Comics are making a bold move by bringin us an scif- sex comedy. Money Shot follows a group of scientists who are struggling to finance their experiments and so decide to pool their resources and make money by having sex with aliens and broadcast it to a world which has become jaded and cynical by online porn.

While this may sound like the set up for a bad 70-s porno, fortunately the emphasis in Money Shot is more on the struggling scientists than the interspecies intercourse. So what could have been a horribly misguided series of alien sex jokes or creepy images of alien anatomy, ends up being a really fun, if often outrageous read.

It is definitely helped by some very strong writing (and dare we say it a mainly female creative team) who resist the urge to make the whole thing too crude and obvious – or graphic. Instead, the characters are well rounded and almost quite plausible and there is a strong emphasis on humour and genuine humanity rather than setting out to shock and outrage.

The visuals from Rebakah Issacs also help give the book a professional edge, with a J Scott Campbell-esque style featuring clean lines, strong colours and very expressive faces. It all feels like a really slick production and not just some cheap thrill read that was funded on Kickstarter by a punch of hormonal nerds. As well as creating a slick and well polished world, the brief adult scenes are handled tastefully and with plenty of humour as well, and there are also some fantastically designed aliens as well, which help play up to the surreal side of the story.

Inevitably with the kind of concept that this book is built around it isn’t going to appeal to everyone. It is definitely for mature audiences with it’s adult themes, and there is some strong language, and few moments of mild nudity. It feels much more like an R Rated Kevin Smith movie, or like a distant cousin of Sex Criminals, rather than some sub par erotica.

As such it is well worth a look if you are after something which is a bit more outrageous and adult orientated than your usual reads.