Last week I quietly celebrated the 7-year anniversary of starting this blog, and today we're taking a look at a blast from the past, with the "newish" Tantus Champion.
Anyone who's been reading my blog for a while might remember my review of the Max O2 from way back in April of 2012, and if you think that these toys look similar then don't worry because your eyes aren't deceiving you.
The Champion is one of the latest in Tantus's ongoing project to tweak and re-release some of their popular toys from the past, and I thought it might be fun to do a little comparison seven years down the line.
Come see what I made of it.
The Champion, or rather I should say the Max, and I have a bit of an interesting history. It all began a couple of months into my blogging journey when I came up with this crazy notion that I could find the perfect dildo. The world of sex toys was still relatively new and exciting, and I loved that thrill of acquiring something new, so I eagerly poured through pages of well-stocked websites looking for something that would tickle my fancy.
When I finally stumbled across the Max it was love at first sight. It was long, it was girthy, it had realistic detailing, and it promised a life-like feel with its dual density construction. It was clearly the answer to everything I wanted, and I bought it in a flash.
These days I can admit that there's no such thing as a perfect dildo, but such is my fondness for the Max that I was all the more eager to try out the Champion when I saw this design making a return.
So what's new with the Champion? Let's start with the obvious, the colour. The Max - and indeed the entire dual-density O2 range - originally came in an assortment of flesh tones. There was a soft cream colour which made even a pale Englishman such as myself look tan, a rich caramel, and a deep chocolately brown. The Champion on the other hand hits you with a delicious splash of vibrant hues, with a choice of Punk Rock Pink, Rockabilly Blue, or plain old black if you're boring (sorry).
The other change is what the Champion is made from. Whereas the Max was dual-density - that is a dildo with a firm core and a squishy outer layer - the Champion is made entirely from "SuperSoft" silicone, and this is what originally drew me to the toy more than anything, because I love a plush toy.
In most other regards the two dildos are identical. The same girth, the same insertable length, the same texture and details. The only minor difference is that the Champion has a slightly thinner base, on account of it not needing a double layer of silicone.
I have to say that I absolutely adore the Rockabilly Blue colour of my Champion, and I think that the design of the Max looks stunning like this. The one thing that does slightly perplex me though is the material, because I would not describe it as soft in any way. In fact if you squeeze the tip of both the Max and the Champion then it's the Max that's the softer of the two, and this is not at all what I was expecting. I had visions of the Champion being a super-squishy flexible version of the Max, and that's what made me excited about it, but admittedly that's partly my own fault. Tantus silicone in all forms is generally on the firmer side, and that's always something worth bearing in mind. The O2 range was much firmer than Vixen Creations' dual-density "VixSkin" line, and likewise after the last 3 toys I've been playing with have been "75% Soft" from Mr Hankey it completely changed my perception of what a "soft" silicone is. The other issue though comes down to the pairing of the silicone with the size of the toy. The "SuperSoft" silicone that Tantus uses is perfect for their smaller toys. The SuperSoft Echo and SuperSoft Adam feel squishy and flexible and amazing, but the Champion is a thick toy, and it just feels incredibly solid. Personally I would have opted for something softer to counter this. It does however raise a question of something I've been meaning to write a blog post about for a while, and that's why we don't specify how soft or firm a toy is using the Shore Hardness scale. When every company has a different definition of "soft" it makes it hard to compare across brands when shopping online, but that's an argument for another day.
In terms of how the Champion actually performs the silicone appears to be firmer than the outer layer of the Max, but softer than the internal core, and the end result is that they perform almost identically. When I tried bending them around with my hand the difference in the level of resistance was negligible, if there was any at all, and they seemed equally flexible.
What this means for usage is that sadly there's not a lot of comparison to make. I put them side by side and diligently went up and down on each and I could barely tell any difference. If I had to pick one then I'd probably say that I prefer the Max by a hair because I was convinced that I could feel a little bit more of that outer squish against my muscles, but honestly if you blindfolded me and asked me to identify each then I'm not sure even my talented butt could manage that consistently.
Because of this I don't see the point of going into too much detail on how the Champion feels, because you can read it all in my Max review, but I will quickly summarise by saying that it's wonderfully filling, it's comfortable to use, and that girth does a great job on the prostate.
The truth about the Champion is that it's fundamentally a fantastic dildo, it just depends on what exactly you're looking for. If you missed out on the Max all those years ago then I'd wholeheartedly recommend giving the Champion a shot. It's a great ride for size-queens everywhere. If you already have a Max and were looking for a new twist on a familiar experience, then I'd suggest picking one of Tantus's other great dildos instead.