Adversary by Blue Delliquanti is so much more than an erotic thriller. It is a vulnerable, unapologetic look into the forever-changed lives of Curtis and Anton, as well as their non-traditional relationship. Initially flipping through the book, one may think Adversary is an “enemies to lovers” graphic novella, but that does not even scratch the surface. Delliquanti pieces together a painfully human story about grief, paranoia, and catharsis in the face of global change and travesty.
Adversary
Blue Delliquanti
Silver Sprocket, 2024
Debuted in the 2022 ShortBox Comics Fair
Taking place in 2021, when COVID quarantines and restrictions were loosening up, Adversary is about Anton, a young trans man, reuniting with Curtis, a newly out self-defence instructor. After catching up, the two come to a surprising agreement with plenty of consensual violence and sex. Said arrangement fulfills their carnal desires in an unexpected way, but it also leaves them in vulnerable positions – positions they may not be ready to share with each other entirely.
Delliquanti’s take on the pandemic is an unapologetic look into a period of great uncertainty and tragedy for so many people. While the story is not big, how the Pandemic has impacted Curtis and Anton is bound to be relatable. Either readers will have gone through exactly what they have, or they will at least understand and empathize with their fears and pain. 
With that in mind, the travesties of the pandemic are not the focus, nor are they included for shock and awe. They are an unfortunate but unavoidable part of this new reality. It’s a hard truth to live with, but a truth nonetheless.
This brutal honesty is one area where Adversary shines. Delliquanti is not handling this difficult subject matter with kid gloves. That carries over to how Curtis and Anton process their feelings in relation to the pandemic.
Anton, in particular, is rocked by it in ways that have made it difficult for him to communicate his feelings and needs. Because of that, Anton turns to action in the form of controlled violence. His words failed to give him closure, so fighting with someone is the closest he can get to catharsis.
While on paper this may not seem like the healthiest coping mechanism, readers are sure to relate to Anton’s desire to release all his grief, anger, and frustrations in some carnal way. Plus, Anton and Curtis have found a complex solution to this problem.
Their “relationship” is complicated, to say the least, but it works for them – for the most part. In terms of the fights, each character gives it their all. As a result, Delliquanti’s art hits the mark every time. There is a brutality and weight to the fights. While they are not flashy, they pack a punch. In this way, Delliquanti, yet again, grounds this story in realism.
The fights are not the only thing that feel carnal. The sex scenes are raw and gripping, literally. Adversary is not a romantic comic. It is a steamy, sweaty, sexy novella that is still full of emotion and heartache. What makes these intimate moments feel even more physical is how Delliquanti transitions between fight scenes and sex scenes.
One moment, these two are giving it their all in a fist fight. The next, they are pawing at each other in a much more intimate way but with the same ferocity. Even how they are positioned during sex is akin to how they are positioned in a fight. There’s a lot of pinning, grabbing, grunting, and sweating in both acts for these two, and it is carnal, to say the least.
Other times, the brutal yet intimate fights are more so the focus than the sex. However, readers still see the aftermath of the sex. This heavily alludes to how fighting is a key part of their sexual dynamic.
At the end of the day, the physical violence is consensual. It is foreplay. It is the build up to climactic sex that gives both characters a desired catharsis they can find nowhere else. With that in mind, their dynamic is far from perfect, which again, makes Delliquanti’s work feel all the more real.
Adversary by Blue Delliquanti is a grounded erotica that also tells a painfully real story of loss, fear, and frustration in the face of a changing world and tragedy. It is brutal in its honesty and physicality. While brutal, it is a must-read novella, especially for those looking for queer erotica that bucks the norms.
