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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 28a |
The opening of Roa's story of woodcutter Jim shows him remonstrating with his brother Leon, who is a soldier. It seems to be a classic theme of the peace-lover vs the action man approach to life. These roles contrast with the visual characterisations, however, Jim is big and strong (and rather sexy in his tights), Leon is distinctly boyish, an improbable fighter. Roa seems to be exaggerating his youthfulness here to show how dominated he feels by his older brother, because he matures dramatically in the next image where their rivalries and disagreements suddenly become unimportant.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 28b Brothers For Sale |
Both brothers are taken as war booty and sold into slavery (as a pair). Manacled and naked on the auction rostrum, their anger and confusion at this turn of events is well captured by Roa. I also like the figure of the Roman-esque auctioneer in this image. With his suave, salesman's looks and smooth manner it's not that hard to imagine him selling his own mother.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 30 Two New Slaves |
Jim and Leon, still totally naked and manacled meet their new, noble master. Their longish hair is an indicator of their rustic background, suggestive of rough manners and toughness, that contrasts with the refinement of the nobleman.
Making inferiors stand while you sit is a basic control device. The two young men tower over him and that effect is increased by a slight distortion of size and perspective, but they both seem to look younger than ever which serves to emphasise just how much they are intimidated by his status and unseen power, deferring to him even though he is unarmed and puny in comparison to their physiques. Astonishingly Roa even contrives to make their posture seem to somehow convey their confusion and fear. The nobleman revels in his power over these two fine specimens. He lounges back, legs spread provocatively with a hand hovering over his crotch, hinting at a simmering sexual interest.
The room is an interesting combination of refined elegance and crudeness, with fine furniture, artworks and carpets to one side but transitioning to bare boards and exposed brickwork in the area where the brothers are standing. It seems to underline the chasm between their previous positions in life but it also hints that the room has a dual purpose. As though confirming this, in the background we glimpse a table surmounted by a curious key-hole like device suggestive of sophisticated, perverted pleasures.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 37 Leon Groped |
Leon has now been given a haircut to suit his new master's taste and (no doubt) to 'civilise' him. It's a rather nice demonstration of the absolute power that the nobleman has over him. Less subtle is the collar and dangling chain, a badge of his subservience which is so complete that he doesn't need to actually be restrained.
He is forced to kneel on a table while the nobleman and his cronies savour his beautiful flesh, touching and groping him and thrilled no doubt by his involuntary, virile response to this humiliation. Roa doesn't characterise them as evil, old lechers but as rich, desirable men in their own right (on the face of it). Leon grits his teeth but there's a resigned sadness alongside his anger. That only serves to add to the pleasure of his cruel master of course.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 40 Jim's Pony Duty |
Jim's fate seems to be that of a more traditional slave, fulfilling his master's pleasure in a more physical but equally humiliating way. I'm glad that Roa allows him to 'pony' like the natural beast he is, without the usual horsey trappings which often tend to feminise (as in Leo's story, 'The Estate', but see also MCarcel's pony interpretation). Jim's heavy collar and chain serves as a makeshift rein, which is only needed to command his obedience since he can understand spoken directions perfectly well (in mitchmen-speak, this is known as keeping him in his place). The weight attached to his balls indicates there's also an element of punishment in this particular chore, it's because Jim has shown he is a rebellious character, resisting attempts to 'breed' him.
Can you spot the mistake in this image?
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 44 Leon Suspended |
Leon meanwhile suffers the same suspension torture as Eric in Part 3. My own name for it is the Backwards Crab. Whether this is a gratuitous example of the nobleman's sadism or if it's a punishment for non-cooperation I do not know. Either way, his lordship takes advantage of another opportunity to enjoy Leon's body, this time licking his nipple and grasping his cock as he writhes in the agony of the chains.
Roa gives us another splendid torso here with notably well-developed thighs, posed in a sexy backwards arch. Leon's masculinity bursts out of this picture. It's an ambitious, 3-dimensional pose but one that is a difficult image to integrate realistically into a complex composition. The out-flung arms and the slight angling of the body towards us are highly suggestive of movement, say of falling or a struggle, but the vertical chains imply he is simply hanging.
Compare with Eric, getting the same treatment in Part 3, this is a safer sideways-on view and his body is more relaxed, but his chains are angled towards a central suspension point, a more believable arrangement that also brings out the stressing of his back and makes clear the difficulty of movement.
In his image Leon dwarfs his admirer both in size and more subtly in sheer presence. The depiction of the nobleman seems flat compared with Leon's 3D trajectory creating the effect that he's pushed aside and diminished, grabbing at morsels rather than directly involved in Leon's psychodrama. By contrast Eric and his tormentor are fully aligned with each other, which creates a strong sense of direct interaction between them.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 48 Jim Rebels |
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image 53 Jim's Punishment |
Needless to say, Jim's intervention does not go unpunished, the ball weight returns and he's given all the biggest blocks to carry (there's obviously a big building project in hand). The angry overseer pays close attention to him, to the relief of the other slaves. The fantasy of enslavement where abducted men are forced to do physical work has the virtue that it showcases their physiques and manly characteristics and that has a special resonance for me.
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| Roa - Jim & Leon - Image |
There's a satisfying symmetry in the fates of these two brothers. Whilst Jim's occupation as a woodcutter leads him into a role of physical labour, Leon the former soldier is forced to train as a gladiator. He shows the same rebellious spirit as his brother and suffers the same uncompromising punishments. One senses that their paths may ultimately be destined to converge in the arena, when their rivalry and different attitudes towards fighting (implied in the opening scene) will factor in the ultimate test of brotherly love. As with other Roa stories, however, I have no information on how it all ends, except that there is an Image 58 which shows Jim back at his woodcutting.
This mitchmen series on the Art of Roa concludes in Part 5
Read this series from Part 1
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