Publisher: Madius Comics
Writer/Artist: Nick Gonzo

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50 Signal tells the charming tale of an enthusiastic spaceman, genetically designed to do his job and given a living spaceship companion who was ‘born’ just for him. There’s a childlike sense of charm to the early portion of the issue as our astronaut whizzes around the galaxy with his ship buddy, soaking up the strange sights and unusual creatures with a wide-eyed innocence. “I like it cos I’m the best there is” pretty much sums up his philosophy as his mission to investigate, document and salvage leads him to a strange planet that holds a brilliantly inventive twist on the story. The second half of the book takes things in a whole new direction, adding some much-needed depth to the proceedings and framing the entire issue in a whole new light.

There’s no pretence here from Gonzo; no taking his story too seriously or trying to dazzle us with the actually rather clever structure of this outwardly simplistic story. He just lets us come along for the ride like the smiling, button-nosed spaceman and figure things out for ourselves. His artwork however remains a curious oddity. I’ve reviewed a few of his stories in the past (‘Harvey Spig in the Dead of Night’ and ‘The Tree’), and it’s impressive to see just how far he has come with his visual storytelling. Don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely a raw, unfiltered approach to his style that won’t appeal to a lot of people, and taken in isolation some of his panels can appear rough – unfinished, almost. In spite of this roughness however, it’s the way he makes the story flow that’s doubly impressive, packing expression and dynamism into the most straightforward of visuals. ‘A slightly less-polished Neil Slorance’ could be seen as damning with faint praise, but I think it’s also a fairly accurate critique of Gonzo’s ‘something out of nothing’ style.

Occasionally however, the book can feel a little too rough around the edges – crossing the line from ‘simple’ to ‘untidy’ – with the lettering in particular making some of the later pages fairly difficult to decipher. In his post-story explanation, Gonzo reveals that the story was originally created for his own amusement and only made public as a result of some gentle prodding from his peers. In a lot of ways that makes a great deal of sense, as there’s a distinctly ‘sketchpad’ style to this comic – like we’re stumbling across what could be seen as a fairly intimate, undeniably uplifting tale of a spaceman and his buddy. That said however, I actually think the sketchiness of the project may actually enhance the whimsical charm of 50 Signal. This is a book which definitely benefits from repeat readings, leaving a lot of its themes and developments open to interpretation and speculation.

Another intriguing release from Madius Comics then, and an impressive example of just how far Gonzo has come since some of his early work. Charming and surprisingly clever in equal measure, 50 Signal is a wonderful whole that is far greater than the sum of its parts.

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You can find buy the first issue of 50 Signal (as well as other releases from Madius Comics) from their online story at http://madiuscomics.bigcartel.com, and follow them on Tumblr (http://madiuscomics.tumblr.com), Twitter (@madiuscomics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/madiuscomics).

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The writer of this piece was: Craig Neilson (aka Ceej)
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