Y: The Last Man Vol. 04: Safeword

Summary: Because of Yorrick's penchant for foolhardy bravery - a dangerous and deadly trait for the last man on the planet to have - Agent 355 and Dr. Mann leave him with one of 355's friends, another agent of the Culper Ring, while they run an errand in town. However, Agent 711 has secrets that she hasn't shared even with 355, and Yorrick's stay with her may be as dangerous as anything he might have encountered in town. Later, the trio of travelers run into a separatist militia in Arizona who are convinced that the plague which killed the men was actually a evil government plot... and that goes down about as well as you might expect.

Review: While not much happened in this installment to push the plot forward action-wise, it was show more certainly a heavy-hitter on the character growth and development front. Dr. Mann and Yorrick both have to own up to some nasty truths, and it's a painful process for both of them. The book felt a little bit fragmented; it's two arcs in this volume, instead of one per as the previous installments have been. It was also rather dark - I mean, the whole series has been dark; you can't kill off 50% of the planet in the first three pages without having to face a lot of dark situations - but this one pushed the series into some darker and deeper emotional territory than it had previously gone. (Also some much more mature territory - if you couldn't tell from this volume's title, it's definitely not for the wee-uns, the squeamish, or the faint of heart.) I feel like the artwork has gotten more consistent over time - characters look the same from one panel to the next, as well as from issue to issue, much more than they did at first. The art also gets a little more... experimental? non-standard? in this volume - largely necessitated by some hallucinogenic drugs with which Yorrick gets dosed, but overall used effectively. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: A little slower action-wise than previous volumes, but just as insanely compelling anyways. I can't wait to get my hands on the next volume. show less

LOL forget what I said about the lack of a little sexual politicking in the previous volumes. This one makes up for a lot of THAT and it still manages to sweet and real and not a sleezefest.

HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?

Good writing. It's the only possible reason.

What a trip tho. Safeword had me guessing all the way and when they finally got to Arizona, I was charmed and horrified at the same time.

It's like no one will ever learn anything. And it doesn't matter what sex we are, either. All the good and the bad is always with us.

I'm finally hooked. True, it took four volumes to get this attached, but it is worth it. :)

It's one of the charms of the Y: The Last Man series that the sillier the storyline gets, the more entertaining the entire package is. This fourth installment features a silly S&M scenario, an all-female Arizona militia, and all kinds of plot thread unraveling and back story explication for the various lead characters. The dialogue remains silly, the broad strokes of the plot remain unbelievable and unexplained, and the art remains subpar (although improving considerably with the arrival of penciller Goran Parlov). But you know, it doesn't matter - Brian Vaughan has the writing chops to pull it off. So I'll keep reading!

This was brutal. Even after the amount of violence that had plagued Yorick, Agent 355 and Dr. Mann through the first three volumes, I wasn't expecting it to get so dark and gruesome.

After the events at the farm house with the astronauts and the Israelis, I was expecting more exciting spy-like adventures and more Yorick sarcasm. I was not expecting a "suicide intervention" and flashbacks to awkward and scarring childhood memories or of the complete bloodbath that was the second story collection as they tried to pass through a blocked area of the interstate, guarded by some really scary, conspiracy theory-loving, militia ladies.

I also didn't realize that this journey had already lasted over 18 months. It doesn't seem like the travel from show more Washington, DC, to Arizona, even with the events that have occurred, should have taken nearly that long. Yes, I'm aware that a large portion of that trip was made on foot, but they also have traveled by train, motorcycle and assorted other transports. I just found the comment a little jarring.

It was still an incredibly compelling story and once I started each of the two main stories in the collection, I couldn't put the book back down, but after finishing, I was hesitant to move on to volume 5. Then I saw that the ninja girl that randomly showed up for Ampersand in volume 3 was on the cover, so... now my interest has increased. show less

Yorrick, 355 and Dr. Mann continue their trek to San Francisco with notable stops in Colorado and Arizona. More time is spent on Yorrick's state of mind in this graphic collecting issues 18-23 of the series. Whether it's looking to the past with the help of another Culper Angent, understanding the grim realities of his current situation or what the future might really hold for him, one sees hints that Yorrick may be prepared to come to grips with his place in the world.

The story itself doesn't move forward much in these volumes, but the additional character development more than makes up for it. As always, Vaughan's makeup of the post-plague world in which many competing solutions exist grows more complex with each volume.

The first volumes of this series were solid, and it continues in this volume. We see more of the world without men, and the ramifications of a world without men is explored well here, we have some strong stories in here including a group of neo-Amazons who have plans for Yorick. However, these women are not the only ones who have a vested interest in the last man...

As Yorick, 355 and Dr. Mann continue on their trip to California, Vol. 4 has the most character development and immediate danger yet! Vaughn totally takes it in a completely chaotic direction; to quote one of my favorite hockey play-by-play men, Bob Cole, "Everything is happening!"

Yorick really steps it up in this collection and begins to realize that he's destined for much greater than he can grasp. I mean, it takes an awful lot for him to come to that conclusion (and it's in the craziest way possible) but it happens nonetheless.

We're also thrust into a movement involving a rouge militant group The Sons Of Arizona; a collection of women sworn to protect the state of Arizona. Blaming the US government for the plague, they withdrew from show more the union (in their own minds, mind you) and pledged to protect the state from any outsiders. Playing an integral part in several character changes, The Sons of Arizona are ruthless in their treatment of 355 and Dr. Mann which leads to an event that changes Yorick forever. show less