Gabagool! was a minicomic until recently, but creators Dawson and Radtke have made the jump to full issues with the three-part "Hedonism" storyline, which finds our four misanthropic, delusional nerds heading down to Jamaica. The results are predictably disturbing and funny, perfect for those who find Seinfeld or Curb Your Enthusiasm fun, but not quite mean enough. I'm reminded in some ways of Alex Robinson's Box Office Poison and Tony Consiglio's Double Cross, both in terms of art style and in terms of the completely uninhibited style of the book, which features a ton of bad language and explicit sex, all in service to the story but still the kind of thing that will put some folks off the book. Honestly, the "Hedonism" story wasn't as good as the Gabagool! stories that focus on these guys' day-to-day lives for me, but it is an entertaining look at the kind of losers we all hope we never are.
It's funny, because Dawson's protagonists are completely unlikable jerks in many ways. They typify the ugly American stereotype in Jamaica, they're not at all bright and they're motivated by the simple drive for sex, drugs and other hedonistic pleasures. And in fact, most of these characters are fun because it's fun to watch them suffer endless torments brought on by their own clueless natures. However, at the same time, there's something kind of likable about them at some times. Chris is the most hapless of the group, the most innocent, and thus the most likable. There's something weirdly charming about the way he decides that a bunch of swingers are "really nice people," and his cluelessness gives him a courage to take chances that makes the vacation the most enjoyable for him.
Mostly, though, "Hedonism" is all about dashed expectations, as the boys show up expecting some kind of pussy paradise and instead find themselves faced with the reality of this kind of shared sex experience, that it's more gross than sexy and more embarrassing than wild. Dawson's artwork is perfect for depicting people who look less like the sex club fantasy and more like the sex club reality, which includes drooping body parts, excess weight and funny looking faces. He's not beyond doing cute, as with Agnes the love interest of one of the characters, but for the most part the focus is on disturbingly average or ugly people. Which is fitting, given that his protagonists are pretty damn ugly (physically and otherwise) themselves.
While I did get some laughs out of "Hedonism," I have to say that Dawson and Radtke are probably better off with shorter stories. The basics of "Hedonism" are made pretty clear in the second part, and the third part is more or less repetition on the theme, and while the plot and characters are different, issue six doesn't really have anything all that new to say in regard to the characters or their situation. I'd rather have more short stories that explore Chris's work life, as in the start of issue four, or a hilarious look at their gaming days like the one we've seen in the backup of issue four, than more extended storylines.
Gabagool! is certainly not for everyone, because even while I liked it, there were some elements that I could easily read as offensive. Dawson and Radtke are playing around with the darker side of human society here, pushing scatological and sex humor into places that even the Farrelly Brothers might be afraid to go. Though the team has graduated from the ranks of minicomics, there's still an amateurish inconsistency to the artwork and a meandering structure that could use tightening up. However, in terms of pure creative energy and uncensored humor, Gabagool! has a lot to offer.
