Can You Really Get Sex Connection Through the Screen?

After a year of very little human contact, sex tech has never been so advanced. But can it replace the real thing? Franki Cookney logs on.

- Franki Cookney

THE BLOW-UP DOLL WAS ACTUALLY PRETTY SEXY.

Or maybe it was the woman grinding on it, running it up and down her body—and then starting to look directly at Nikita*. But Nikita didn’t lock eyes with her for too long. There was too much to take in—the lime green body stocking clinging to another woman’s curves; the writhing of the many naked bodies in front of her; the vibration of the music from the speakers filling her up. As she slipped off her robe and started to dance, the other party-goers grinned and waved at her in welcome. Everyone here, clad in leather, latex, and lace masks, wanted her. She felt like she could reach out and touch them. But she couldn’t. Nikita was at home, alone in her bedroom, drink in hand, dancing in front of her computer screen.

Of all the things that happened last year, casual sex, being either illegal or against guidelines, was up there with the weirdest. After COVID-19 hit, we were ordered to stay at home and give up all face-to-face social contact with people outside our households. Even when the lockdown was eased, social distancing guidelines made it clear that close contact was not permitted. After six months of abstinence, once the restrictions were relaxed, already taken couples not living together could now meet up. But for single people, there was still no end in sight.