Must Read. Outstanding.
I've read a lot of comics and graphic novels, but there have only been a few that were so good that the emotional response was almost physical. The Y: The Last Man series is one of those books (Maus is one of the other books as is the 9/11 commemorative issue of Amazing Spider-Man). The story never took a clichéd turn and explored the man/woman/life dynamic in so many ways and on so many levels. I remember reading another person's comments that the series shouldn't end while I was one-third to midway through, and thinking "Yeah, I don't want to get to the end." Now that I've finished the story, I have to disagree (although I would certainly welcome a short re-visit a la Grendel Tales or the Sandman spin-offs). I think the story met an appropriate conclusion, but no Hollywood ending here. Get it. Read it.
the last trade
i read the last trade with a bit of trepidation. i knew it's the last issues left to read and i was afraid all the journey will end badly and i will feel ripped off.
actually i knew it wont happen. i was just sad the journey was over for me with these characters.
and the ending? i really liked it.
the series definitely had its highs and lows but all in all, it was great.
it was EXCELLENT.
if you hadn't read it yet - you should start.
Well, some didn't like the ending. I did. Kinda.
Brian K. Vaughan, Y: The Last Man: Whys and Wherefores (Vertigo, 2008)
The end of Brian K. Vaughan's celebrated Y: The Last Man came all too early, and all too abruptly. Still, despite a resolution that reeks of "how can we tie up all these threads in the amount of time we have left?", Vaughan does a creditable job of it. It's going to be tough to say goodbye to this bunch. ****
Wow
I used to think that Brian Vaughan was possibly one of the best comic book writers ever.
Now I know he IS the best.
Y has been an incredible ride, but often great journeys can make for disappointing endings. Not here. Everything that had been building in the previous 9 volumes pays off here. It's beautiful, sad, human, joyous and completely satisfying.
Pia Guerra's art never looked better. It started off very good and grew in beauty and subtly. She interacts with Mr. Vaughan's writing so flawlessly that words are often not necessary.
I love this series and I love this book. This is why I still read comics.
At the end of the line, with an unexpected tear in my eye
I find to disagree with the majority of critical voices here. Thinking of it, I find it hard to define what "a pushed ending" really is, but if it's like this last volume, I want to see more of it. There is no real traditional storybook ending here, no riding into sunsets arm-in-arm, or an Orwellian dark endnote. Instead, Y: Last Man wraps it up in a very lyrical, and most of all, incredibly sad way. It's to mr. Vaughan and mrs. Guerra's honour that they can pull of this (to me, anyway) satisfying action-and-romance-ending to the global "roadmovie" Y has been, while still managing to tie up all knots beautifully without opting for the predictable spectacular last twist which it seems almost everybody in the audience is expecting these days. Personally, I found # 9 to be the only vaguely disappointing volume, with the revelation of the cause of the dying men - which mr. Vaughan in all his controlled and incredibly smart writing even comments on in this volume (Pointing his finger at me smiling: "What did you expect, really? Aliens?").
The artwork of mrs Guerra is like it's been for the entire run - beautiful and relatively simple, without the over-the-top colourings and digitalized shadows that I personally feel "drowns" so much of comic art today. Her drawing hand has been a perfect companion to mr. Vaughan's subtle pen, all the way.
Here's one humble reader hoping mr. Vaughan keeps spending just some of his future bright writing career doing some comics. Because this is a milestone and easily one of the best titles of the decade. Y: Last Man always had more brains than most, but with this last volume, it also showed to have the biggest, aching heart. At least, it almost made me cry, which I rarely can say about any book, comic, film or TV series nowadays.
