Y: The Last Man Vol. 06: Girl on Girl

With Y: The Last Man, the fun just never ends! Volume 6 brings us wannabe pirates, heroin traffickers, Australian submariners, lesbian romance, plentiful phallic references, and more plot twists than you can shake a stick at. Better yet, there are some fleeting panels of imitation "pulp comic art" towards the end of the book that are beautiful to behold. This series may have had a rough start in the early installments, but the pace and the quality have accelerated considerably by volume 6. This fan is heading directly for volume 7...

The last man on Earth can be a real moron sometimes. I was glad to finally see a little of what's happening with Beth, but the ship vs. submarine storyline mostly felt like filler until they get to Japan. The 355 and Dr. Mann business came out of nowhere, at least 355's side of it. There and gone, apparently just for the heck of it. And the business with the swashbuckling captain? Irritating. What was with the love declaration towards the end, anyway? Was he supposed to be in love with the captain?

Anyway, I still want to see how it ends, but this series is kind of hit or miss for me.

Not sure how many volumes are in the series, but I've just finished the 6th and it's still as exciting (if not more) than the first. The story arcs are crazy far-fetched, but the entire story is and it's fitting. Don't mistake my last comment - the outrageousness is good!

In volume 5, you could see hints of the story unraveling. Here, it is further evinced. Don't get me wrong, there ARE good parts in here, and not just the 'Girl on Girl' that the title mentions. Some of the plot points are strong, as well as some of the points discussed in a world where all men have died from the plague (except for Yorick) I only wish that the culmination of this story in parts 9 and 10 had been better.

Summary: Dr. Mann, Agent 355, and Yorrick are aboard a ship heading for Japan, in pursuit of Ampersand's kidnappers. (Monkey-nappers?) However, Yorrick gets discovered by the captain, and that's not their only problem; the ship has been found by a submarine full of potential pirates, and traitors on board mean that no one's loyalties are above question. We also get a quick look at what's happening to Beth in the Australian outback.

Review: Up to this point, this series's been consistently pretty great; while I don't think it's going off the rails or anything, neither did I find this installment as good as what's coming before. True to the rest of the series, there's a lot of sneaking around, and a lot of people pointing guns and swords show more at each other, and a fair bit of sex... but in this case, not all of it makes sense with what we know about the world and characters thus far, and the disconnect is distracting. Typically, I'd give this story bonus points for being about pirates, but it turns out that my fascination with "boys on boats" is pretty specific to the Age of Sail, and "girls on submarines" doesn't quite cut it. Still, while this installment wasn't my favorite, the story as a whole is still incredibly interesting, and the artwork continues to well-drawn, interestingly laid-out, and gorgeously colored. (Also, it might just be my imagination and faulty memory, but I swear that they're drawing Yorrick as more attractive as the series goes on.) 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: Not the best of the bunch, but still an interesting read, and I'm sure that it's important for what comes next. show less

This is the point in the series where I started wondering 'gee, can we come up with a few /more/ ways that women running the earth will suck horribly? Let's maybe throw some slave drivers and cannibals in there to complete the picture.' Don't get me wrong - I /like/ that Vaughan does not picture everything as peaceful, rosey, or easy in an all-female world anymore than it would be in an all-male world. But with this volume, the sense of balance started to look really extreme. Fortunately, he pulls back from this a bit in later issues, but I really wish that the world he created could have been more nuanced. This volume especially just felt easy and surface-level.

So, a lot happens in this volume. Unfortunately, it's the first collection that probably deserved a little less than 4 stars. If not for the incredible ending, I would probably give it a 3-3.5.

Vaughan explores a little of what Yorick's girlfriend is up to in Australia and how she's coping with the plague. We're treated to an excellent dream sequence where Beth gets a sign that Yorick is still alive.

The only thing I didn't like was the ridiculous subplot with pirates flooding Australia with heroin and the Australian navy trying to stop them. Also, I wasn't a fan of Yorick hooking up with another girl. He seems to mention Beth less and less, which of course, could indicate that he finds it hard to believe that she's still alive and still show more looking for him. However, with the ending provided, we're being prepped to think that Yorick and Beth will meet eventually.

I'm going to be very sad when this series ends. show less