Y: The Last Man Vol. 2: Cycles

3.5 for sure, this thing is growing on me. But the dude is SO unrealistic sometimes, it's totally making me laugh my ass off...he's the ONLY dude on planet earth, 90% of the women he's surrounded by are super hot, & he's all "I'm saving myself for my girlfriend over in Australia"...Bwaaahahahah! :D And then when he IS going to finally stup some girl, SHE says she isn't good enough for him because she USED to be a meth addict...Bwahahaha! Less talk, more action, people! :) But the story's getting good, and unexpected things happen, which is always good! ( )

Slightly better than the first issue. I find myself wanting to smack Yorick. ( )

I really enjoyed this and am happy to continue reading this series! It's fun, action-packed, and has a great Whedon-esque sense of humor.

I am unhappy about the death in this volume, though. As I said in my review of the previous volume, the decision to shows us a world without men through the lens of a male protagonist, while obvious, puts up total Oedipal narrative flags. There's the danger that our male protagonist will become all-important and the other female characters only significant as they relate to him.

And here, indeed, we have a flatly characterized female character who only exists in order to die tragically and further the conflict between Yorick and his sister. "But Becky," you say, "of course she's female, this is about a world without men!" Yes, but this isn't just any story about a woman - it's a story straight out of Hollywood, pulp fiction, and Victorian novels - the Innocent Female Martyr who clarifies the hero's moral values and moves the plot forward.

Basically we have a story that asks insightful questions about what a post-male world would look like, but is still a traditional action/adventure serial and repeats the same old plot cliches of Oedipal fiction.

I've hardly begun reading so maybe my criticisms won't hold later on, but I do think anyone who wants to be aware of gender in their writing should be aware that plot cliches are as important to deconstruct as character or themes. Inserting them without thought or comment will undermine your story. ( )

3.5 stars

My blog post about this book is at this link. ( )

This is genius. I will definitely complete the series. With the success of The Walking Dead TV series, I'm sure it is just a matter of time before we see this adapted for TV. ( )