According to The Cut, Jerrod Blandino tried 47 brushes before he found the one he wanted. When he tested the final brush, he said out loud that it was better than sex, and the name stuck. He has said the shape was designed from Marilyn Monroe's dimensions. Too Faced itself was founded in 1998 by Blandino and Jeremy Johnson, and the name came from customers at Blandino's department store makeup counter who went too faced, meaning dramatic, when they ran out of a favorite product. Blandino has said the mascara launched in 2013 and took three years to develop, though I only found that in one interview.

That is worth knowing because the Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara is really a brush story. The shaped brush is meant to separate, coat and lock in curl, and everything else in the range borrows the name or the idea.

The first grid is the Better Than Sex family plus one other Too Faced mascara: the original, the waterproof, the natural-leaning version, a primer, a liquid eyeliner and a tubing mascara. The second grid is other volumizing mascaras from other brands, for comparison.

Here is a trick I like: put the primer or the mascara on one eye only, then look at both in daylight before you decide. Your own lashes will tell you more than any tube claim.

The original Better Than Sex Volumizing & Lengthening Mascara is meant to thicken, lengthen and lock in curl. Film-forming polymers hold the curl and peptides condition the lashes, and it is free of parabens and suitable for contact lens wearers, according to the brand. Try that one first.

The waterproof version uses water-resistant polymers, plus porcelain flower extract and omega oil to condition. Too Faced cites a consumer study of 32 people, in which 97 percent saw intense volume and length and 94 percent said it stays put all day. I would read those as the brand's numbers, not mine.

Naturally Better Than Sex is for people who read ingredient lists. The brand says the formula is 98 percent naturally derived, using bamboo fibers to lengthen and a goji berry blend, and that it is safe for sensitive eyes. Better Than Sex Foreplay is a waterproof lash primer with argan and grape seed oils, made to improve mascara wear for up to 24 hours. You can use it under any mascara, or alone when you want something casual.

Two are the outliers. Better Than Sex Easy Glide is a waterproof liquid eyeliner with a dual-fiber brush, vegan, and the brand says the line lasts up to 24 hours. The Ribbon Wrapped Lash tubing mascara is made for extreme length and separation, resists sweat and humidity, and rinses off with warm water.

Here is a pairing I like: primer, then the original, then the eyeliner across the top. That is all three in one routine, and all three are made to last.

What I would skip: the waterproof mascara if you rarely wear waterproof anything. It is built to stay put.

If you want to compare, here are seven other names in volume. Lancôme's Lash Idôle uses a curved wand and 360 micro-size bristles to grab every lash, with a lightweight gel formula and white tea extract. It is the most lash-by-lash of the group. tarte's lights, camera, lashes is vegan, with olive esters and carnauba wax, and the brand claims a 35 percent increase in curl.

For drama, look at Benefit's BADgal BANG, which builds the more you layer and is described as a volumizing mascara that lasts up to 36 hours. Yves Saint Laurent's Lash Clash uses an oversized conical brush and claims up to 200 percent more volume. Fenty Beauty's Hella Thicc is a long-wear, transfer-resistant mascara that resists sweat and humidity, and it is meant to give thick, lifted lashes in one swipe.

Benefit's other entry, Fan Fest, is the fanning option, with a brush that has a 40 degree curve and rice wax to separate lashes. Rare Beauty's Perfect Strokes is the one that talks about lash type, with a brush made to lift, lengthen, curl and volumize fine, thick, straight and curly lashes alike. MAKEUP BY MARIO's Master Mascara is clump-resistant, perfected by Mario after 25 years of artistry, with a vegan wax blend from olives, rice and sunflower seeds.

Here is a test I like: wear one mascara on the left eye and another on the right for a day. Photograph both at lunch and see which one still looks like the morning.

What I would skip: layering the very dramatic ones on lashes that are already thick. Most of these build fast.

I think the brush matters more than the formula, and the original brush is the reason Better Than Sex is still the reference point. If you have never tried it, start there and see how your lashes take it.

If it is too much, go to the natural version. If it is not enough, add the primer. Then compare it to one of the mascaras in the second grid. A week of wear will tell you what your lashes think. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Too Faced Lip Injection and the Tingle That Promised No Needles and DRMTLGY Retinol Body Lotion.