Designer Bodies

Who can resist Nikki Dial? Not me, that's for sure, especially when she looks so damn fine on the cover of Wave's latest release, DESIGNER BODIES. Decked out in a red halter-top, and cut-off Daisy Dukes blue jeans, Nikki will have you on an instant order for this DVD, even if the contents inside are only "just okay." For those who have had their fill of Jenna Jameson, Jill Kelly or other Barbie Doll types, the extraordinary beauty of this perfectly proportioned, busty but petite brunette will have your mind spinning. During her all-too short tenure in porn, Nikki performed in a handful of videos for Vivid, including the recently released and underrated ANONYMOUS, the ruinously edited SEX, the mediocre ENDLESSLY and a few others which are all worth getting just for her.

However, this release, directed by Derrick Lane (also known as Mr. Racquel Darrian) fails to rise above the great pile of porn product we refer to as being "average," In fact, if it weren't for Nikki's opening sex scene with Gerry Pike, this title would otherwise be wholly forgettable. The uninteresting plot is ostensibly about tattoos, and the people in this video who wear them. Whatever your feeling about body ink (and I'm not too crazy about it when it's overdone), this plot device never gets in the way of the sex, but that's not necessarily a good thing here. Nikki appears in two scenes, but only the first one is worth mentioning. But for the sake of completeness, let me reveal that the concluding scene features a not-so-frolicking foursome between Nikki, Shawn Ricks, Stephanie Duvalle and the very nasty (as in grotesque) Dick Nasty. Ms. Dial ends up masturbating for the first third of the scene, and doesn't even come within cum-swapping distance of Stephanie, which means that we are denied a much-needed lesbian scene. Both Shawn and Dick (who is old enough to be Shawn's father) get their brief shot at both girls together (but without any DP action) before Shawn runs off with Nikki, and Stephanie gets stuck with Dick. Neither coupling generates any erotic heat whatsoever, but Nikki is always good eye candy.

Nikki Sinn and Heather Lee also co-star in this feature, and are given far too much screen time when they first appear together in a ho-hum girl-girl scene, followed by their individual straight scenes which immediately follow. For those interested, Nikki (Sinn, not Dial, unfortunately) takes an anal pounding while getting it on with Adam Voughn and Stephanie Duvalle, but I imagine that you'd have to be fan of either of them to enjoy this scene. This is not to say that the action is bad, but it certainly is generic, and not worth diverting our focus away from Ms. Dial (who looks great, even when she's fully clothed and just walking around doing nothing).

As previously stated, the only worthwhile coupling occurs between Nikki and Gerry. Nikki looks deliciously sexy in a white lace top, panties and high heels, and watching her head bob up and down on a hard-on makes me dizzy with voyeuristic elation. While in doggy-style position, she slams her perfect ass onto his cock as if she were the one doing the fucking, and her squeals of delight will make you sweat bullets. If this scene had been better lit, it might have been considered one of her best. Mr. Derrick may not the greatest director in the world (not even close, actually) but at least he allows his camera drink in Nikki's body, capturing her in many full body shots from head to toe. When a single scene can make the difference between a DVD that should either be left alone and forgotten, or else added to your library of porn, you know that the performer involved has got to be spectacular--which Nikki is. It's just too bad that the rest of the video takes a slow, downhill turn...

Besides the mediocre content, this DVD suffers from what appears to be a flawed master. If you watch your porn on a regular television, then your TV might overscan and hide the visual flaws which afflict this DVD. However, if you enjoy viewing your "adult entertainment" from your computer screen, then be aware that your player might reveal some of the disc's annoying picture problems. I am not sure what the technical term is, but during most of the scenes there is a severe distortion at the very bottom which is actually commonplace on poorly mastered videotapes. The overall effect can best be described as a sort of transparent noise bar (if that makes sense) which is distracting as hell. Well, this defect has managed to find it's way to video permanence on the digital medium; it's a damn shame that no efforts were made to correct this flaw, or at least, use a better master source for this movie. The color is also washed out, and not nearly as sharp as most Wave DVDs transferred from videotape sources. The extras include an assortment of excerpts from other Vivid/Wave releases, a couple of bios and everything else familiar with this studio's brand of DVDs. I was unable to tell whether there were any edits or music changes from the original tape release, but it doesn't appear that anything significant was removed or changed (as long as the first scene remains intact, who cares about the rest).

DESIGNER BODIES is saved from the hellish depths of mediocrity due to the illuminating presence of Nikki Dial. One look at her on the DVD cover and resistance will be futile.