Michael Manning is the artist/writer/creator of the graphic novels The Spider Garden, Hydrophidian, and In A Metal Web. For Tranceptor, he has collaborated with tattooist/illustrator Patrick Conlon to create a truly stunning set of images and an engaging storyline. I've been a fan of Michael Manning since I found his first book Lumenagerie back in 1996. I was so impressed by the simple, bold lines that I kept an eye out for him in the future. Over the next few years he released several other books, many of which are available here on Edenfantasys.

Manning's series follows the Tranceptors, a sort of priestess-hood of dominatrices who travel across a Dune-like desert planet in elaborate chariots. Of the two Tranceptors we meet, the first is pulled by two lovely, tall, leather-clad horse girls while the other has two well-muscled, well-hung, silky-haired horse boys to keep her company. Our protagonist, known simply as Tranceptor, arrives in a sleepy backwater mining town where the few remaining inhabitants busily dig an unknown but undoubtedly useful mineral from the ground. Upon finding lodging for the night, our Tranceptor goes to the stable to wash her horse-girls in a fashion that becomes creatively intimate as leather, chains, water, and various attachments become part of the cleaning process.

A young inhabitant of the town named Hyu catches Tranceptor's eye and the two barely get to know each other before the second Tranceptor, Ravanna, arrives at the lodge and interrupts. The two Tranceptors retire to a room and dialogue is exchanged hinting at a betrayal of some sort. Lo and behold, Ravanna with her deadly sharp pointed hair and terrifying lizard-man companion is a bad person. A sensual bedroom scene between the Tranceptors becomes an intense assault as Ravanna orders her lizard-man, curiously named Sslthsss, to rape our heroine. Shortly, Hyu makes an clandestine rescue attempt and fails miserably. As the lizard-man is moments from murdering our submissive hero, in burst the two horse-girls kicking in the finest Kung-Fu style. Following a daring escape, the story is left to be continued in book two: Iron Gauge.

The book is beautiful, stylish, trashy fun. Manning's co-author Patrick Conlon is a tattoo artist and the strong lines, stark contrasts, and bold images add greatly to the feel of the work. Tranceptor is entirely black and white in a noir style. Bright whites and deep black shadows rest across curved female forms and piles of fetish gear.

The reader seeking not just stroke material but a powerful, artistic style will be well pleased with Tranceptor, and the news that after a several year hiatus, Michael Manning has resumed writing the remaining books in the series.

Michael Manning's books are all of similar size and style: a large-format soft-cover graphic novel that feels almost more like a magazine than a book. Like Manning's other books, Tranceptor has a very explicit cover featuring several characters from the story and indeed, is the only color image in the entire book. The binding is typical of soft-cover books and should last provided it is cared for.

Despite a nine year pause in creation, the Tranceptor series is back on track as Michael Manning and Patrick Conlon continue the story. Since more books in the series appear to be close to completion, now is a great time to pick up this series and follow the new releases as they arrive.