Book Review: Y: The Last Man Vol. 2 by B. K. Vaughn et al.

Y: The Last Man Volume 2: Cycles written by Brian K. Vaughn, pencilled by Pia Guerra, and inked by Jose Marzan, Jr.

Yorick Brown's cross-country adventure continues as he, Agent 355, and Dr. Mann take a train to California to the doctor's back-up laboratory. Mann has been working on cloning and hopes to clone Yorick so he won't be the last man. A couple of toughs encounter the travelers in Ohio, forcing them to jump from the train. Yorick winds up in an idyllic-seeming town where all the women are nice and caring. The women are welcoming but also fearful because they have a secret they don't want let out...especially to any authorities, like his government covert spy traveling companion. And what about that Russian woman who is going to Kansas for some unexplained reason?

The idyllic town is a little unbelievable given the overall story's set-up. The explanation for why they are in such great shape and of their dark secret both strain credibility. I have the impression the authors are either going for blatant social commentary or subtle Swiftian satire. The problem is how unclear their intentions are. Neither interpretation is satisfactory because neither one is well executed. I don't think it's meant to be a meandering, fantastic adventure with a deeper but obvious meaning like The Odyssey. The deeper message isn't that deep or else it's too deep to be fathomed. Either way, it is not for me. I'm done with Y: The Last Man.

Not recommended.

Book Review: Y: The Last Man Vol. 1 by B. K. Vaughn et al.

Y: The Last Man Volume 1: Unmanned written by Brian K. Vaughn, pencilled by Pia Guerra, and inked by Jose Marzan, Jr.

Yorick Brown is the son of an English teacher (hence the Shakespearean first name) and a United States Representative. He and his pet monkey Ampersand are the two survivors of some mysterious agency that killed every male on the planet. Yorick is on the run, hoping to get to Australia where his girlfriend is hiking the Outback. He proposed on the phone just moments before the disaster struck. His continued existence is a secret he has maintained. By the time he gets to D.C. to talk to his mom (he kinda hoped that he had some genetic immunity that also saved his dad (but it didn't)), society has changed. A group of women who are called "the Amazons" go around wiping out sperm banks and any other chance for maleness to return. Other women try to get things back to normal but with half the work force gone, that's a lot of work to do. A special secret agent (code named "355") comes back to D.C. and is tasked by Yorick's mom to get Yorick to the leading cloning expert, a female doctor in Boston named Mann who tried unsuccessfully to clone herself just as the disaster struck.

The book has a very intriguing premise and is somewhat creative in establishing a world without any men in it. Unfortunately, it goes through an annoying bit of establishing its liberal credentials. It bashes Republicans, gun ownership, and pro-life issues, none of which are relevant to the story. If you can roll your eyes and move on, the other writing is pretty good. I'm willing to give this another volume.

Mildly recommended.

Parental warning: In spite of the liberal leanings, the book does have a surprising amount of scantily clad females (which you think wouldn't go along with left-wing ideology). The gender politics and commentary about abusive language is more expected, though not at all kid-friendly.