Graphic Novel Review - 'Project Nought' by Chelsey Furedi

Woah.

Wow.

What a surprise 'Project Nought' turned out to be.

One of the best chance purchases in a bookshop I've ever done.

One of the best YA sci-fi stories I've ever encountered, not just in comics.

I won't dare spoil anything about 'Project Nought' - it truly is the preferred experience to go in blind like I was.

Know only that it is powerful. It is a powerful story, and it deserves to be showcased as one of the best cases for webcomics, and passion projects in media in general.

It is effortlessly, beautifully, all-around queer, to boot. The rep is excellent, thoughtful, respectful, and funny and sweet. As well as different sexual orientations, there are more than one enbies here! The POC rep is just as effortless and fantastic. Plus the disability and body type rep.

I adore nearly all these diverse, precious, charming, outstanding, pop tart, pop chart characters. They are colourful in so many ways. They each deserve their own spinoff series. They stand out, and pop out! Yet they bounce and flow so well in a story so complex, dark and deep.

Oddly enough, the comic has a wholehearted, Nickelodeon cartoon style, charm and feel to it. If not for a few swear words in the dialogue, it could have been rated all-ages.

Okay, I'll disclose one slight spoiler: 'Project Nought' is also a story with this underlining, vital and relevant message: corporations are evil, amoral and unethical, and you should not stan and trust them. We need to hold them to account and responsibility, and depower and dismantle them, and capitalism.

'Project Nought' misses a perfect five star score from me because of a few niggling flaws, annoyances, overlooked and forgotten details, and plot holes. But overall it is brilliant storytelling and character writing. It may have started out as a webcomic, but it is a complete story, published as a singular graphic novel. And if there is new content in the future, I won't say no to seeing more of these characters! Practically no one is forgotten about by the end.

Speaking of, the comic contains some of the most effective, sensible, and shocking plot twists I have ever seen in recent memory.

Science fiction doesn't get much better than this.

It is science fiction with heart. And colour.

Highly recommended reading.

It will stay with you for a long, long time afterwards.

Final Score: 4/5