Homies! Welcome back to Part 3 of Billy & Mandy’s weekly review of Y: The Last Man. In this installment, we will be commenting on issues 25-36, or the third year of the series. WARNING: there will be spoilers in these articles, so if you don’t want to get spoiled, please read the issues before you read the articles. Or, read them along with us! We welcome your comments and hope that you enjoy the show.
Billy: Okay Mandercles…. when we last left our horny hero?
Mandy: Garden of Eden…that’s all I’m saying.
BZ: Garden of Eden? WTF? Let’s just cover 24 and 25 and go from there…
MP: 24 is the sexing.
BZ: Beth… hottest scar ever?!?! EVER?!!? EVERRRRRRRRRRR?!?!?!?!?!?! The scar isn’t there just to help us keep the Beths straight in our heads? It’s there for HOTNESS!!!
MP: Yes. The scar is there for hotness.
BZ: Beth’s story about what happened to her right after the plague hit was pretty cool, being in the air on a 747 and all… I loved how the air traffic controller made a reference to those really crappy Left Behind books about the rapture…
MP: …I got the reference but that’s all I’m going to say about that.
BZ: And the line about eating Jesus’ actual flesh being cannibalism? Was this arc hard for you to read? Being a religio?
MP: No. I’m not Catholic so I don’t actually interpret communion to be the physical embodiment of Jesus. But thanks for checking.
BZ: I’m just assaulting your faith again.
MP: Oh, really?
BZ: Dude, the sex… Yorick’s feeling guilty about capping that barely legal chick… do we forgive him his trespasses? Is it totally “uptight American’ for me to say I forgive the killing but not the cheating?
MP: Well, what I want to know is if you thought he was going to hit it?
BZ: Definitely thought he was gonna hit it. Yeah.
MP: Really? See, I didn’t. I was EXPECTING him to NOT hit it… I felt like, “You’ve held out for this long, Yorick. Why now? Why this girl?”
BZ: Well, I like Scar-Beth, she is way more awesome than Lesbo-Beth. Lesbo-Beth because as Scar-Beth said, she’s probably “gone down under” a couple hundred times in the last 2 years.
MP: WELL FINE. You’re an idiot.
BZ: She has a personality, well, that’s mostly by design I guess, since Vaughan hasn’t shown us much of the other Beth. You disagree? You think he should have kept it in his pants? Even though 711 basically got him to admit that the only reason he’s been semi-faithful is because he’s repressed?
MP: No. I don’t think he should have. I just thought that he would abstain. I think that the fact that he chose to sleep with her now is a signal that Yorick is a NEW MAN. It makes me trust him less….
BZ: And more evidence of the “new”, he used his head this time when confronted with danger when he scared off the fake-amazons in the church.
MP: YES!
BZ: New man makes you trust him less? Why? Because you can’t predict him anymore?
MP: Well I think that the choice to sleep with Scar-Beth signals a loss of values…he’s compromised and so yes, now he is less predictable.
BZ: On an unrelated note: Amazon chick with the watches as brass knucks? Pretty hardcore… I point that out for the male audience… also to support my previous argument about how women can be just as violent as men…
MP: I saw that, I was like AWESOME IDEA. “WHAT TIME IS IT???”
BZ: Time to get fucked up, bitches!
MP: Best non-line ever. ALSO, can I just point out that I NOTICED the watches…which is a huge leap for me. I’M LOOKING AT THE PICTURES.
BZ: I’m very proud of you. Back on topic: Scar Beth is so hot! Why do I like Scar-Beth over Lesbo-Beth? Scar Beth is totally into Yorick! Did you see how excited she was about his stupid magic?!?! SO CUTE!!!
MP: Okay, we need to move on.
BZ: No. How many times do they do it anyway? Are those pipes clean now?!
MP: If I’m not allowed to gush about my boyfriend Shia, you’re not allowed to gush about Beth. Anyway, they do it twice.
BZ: SCAR-BETH!!!… they do it more than twice. They did it later on too!
MP: SEVENTEEN TIMES!
BZ: Also, LESBO-BETH IS ALIVE!!!! Do we even care at this point? I don’t…
MP: …
BZ: Okay, fine, time to talk about Hero’s Journey…
MP: HERO!!!
BZ: What did you think of her origin story?
MP: I liked it. Speaking of Hero, I just watched Much Ado about Nothing. I love that movie.
BZ: “Sure Ken.”
MP: Okay, so she’s obviously a sexual abuse victim. EW GRAMPS.
BZ: Is it okay that this entire flashback makes me hate Victoria even more, even though she’s dead?
MP: Yes. She totally exploits Hero.
BZ: So, going forward from here, do you trust Hero more? Now that we’ve seen where she comes from? Her sad tale of woe?
MP: Yeah. And obviously, I have a better sense of her struggle. Also, I think she’s invested in keeping Yorick alive because he’s here brother… Man, condescending much? Why do you hate her so hard? Also, do you think that Vaughan is being fair to feminists in his portrayal of Victoria?
BZ: WHAT? I like Hero! And no, I don’t think he is, as I’ve said before…
MP: I KNOW YOU SAID IT BEFORE but I just wanted to point out that it’s getting worse now.
BZ: I think he loathes that type of extreme feminist hate speech and rightly so. Oh, I was reiterating my position so everyone can be sure how smart I am, duh. well, I don’t know if it’s worse, I think it’s just more obvious now that she is dead… because if her worldview was right, in Vaughan’s eyes, she would still be alive… you know? Like Alter? We don’t really know if her views are wrong or right yet because her story isn’t over, or her part to play isn’t finished yet.
MP: That her femi-nazi power reaches beyond the grave? That’s fierce.
BZ: Yeah, she really fucked Hero up with all the crazy thoughts and shit. Makes Hero scary… I don’t know if I can trust her at this point.
MP: Truth. Anyway, to answer your question, I really enjoyed the Hero issue and appreciate the reruns on her action. I’d pick Hero in any fight. She’s mad awesome, crazy or not.
BZ: She’s a tough broad… in the next four issues, titled Ring of Truth, we kind of explore the origins of the plague… did the Amulet of Helene cause it? Was it Yorick’s Ring that saved him or did something far more mundane protect his dumb ass?
MP: I didn’t buy that it was the ring that protected him. Because his bloody explosiveness did not result in immediate death.
BZ: From the very start I thought it was the Amulet, and because of what happens to it in this story, I always believed to the very end that it was the cause. DUDE, read any good knight rider fanfic?
MP: FANFIC!!!
BZ: Mann has the best dialogue… she is literally the smartest character ever. “Absolutely retarded son of a retard!” That was the best line up to that point in the series.
MP: Yes. I imagined you laughing your fool head off at that.
BZ: You know me so well, braintwin!
MP: I’m not that impressed by her smarts… because she’s a lesbian but she’s into 355…who is clearly a man.
BZ: What I learned from these four issues: Don’t argue with 355…. or you will die. Don’t kill one of her friends… or you will die.
MP: Yes. BUT she gives up the amulet sooooo easily.
BZ: Because of the secret love for Yorick. What about when Yorick hit 355??!!?
MP: BAM. BITCH WENT DOWN.
BZ: OH, you know who we’ve barely talked about and we should because he’s a main character?
MP: OH THAT GUY. Yeah. Alright. Let’s talk about my boyfriend Yorick. He’s so handsome…when he’s not all beardy.
BZ: Um, not Yorick, you tool… AMPERSAND!
MP: FAIL.
BZ: We never talk about the monkey and he’s a main character! I love how throws shit at Mann and really, she’s the only one who takes care of him. And how he hides behind Mann when everyone is arguing about dumb stuff… they are like secret lovers.
MP: But seriously, the monkey shit = SALVATION OF THE WORLD plan is FAIL.
BZ: It’s so good! It’s like this stupid coincidence that he’s still alive!
MP: Did you buy it when you first read it?
BZ: I didn’t understand it when I first read it, so I hated it. But I get it now… with like life perspective and shit.
MP: No. I get it. But it’s fail.
BZ: It totally shatters Yorick’s delusions of grandeur. This whole time he’s been pretending to not care by saying he doesn’t think he’s special… but really, he’s been savoring the fact that he’s the last dude. Like it’s some honor that makes him special. And the monkey revelation totally exposes the bullshit ideas he has about himself! SO GOOD!
MP: Are you projecting?
BZ: NO! DIE.COM! It’s not fail. You are fail.
MP: From a story standpoint, it’s great. But I don’t think it’s believable that &’s poo ONLY saved Yorick. Why only &? Why not other monkeys? Why not the men that worked with & before he came to Yorick?
BZ: Because they weren’t exposed to it long-term and because & is a mutation. It happens in nature all the time tard. IT’S SCIENCE! READ A BOOK!
MP: Alright. I guess I’ll go with it.
BZ: YES, I WIN!!!
MP: Maybe I wanted Yorick to be special too. Maybe I was disappointed that he wasn’t.
BZ: Well yeah, because you’re in love with a fictional character… weirdo.
MP: YOU’RE SO INSENSITIVE.
BZ: SCARBETH!
MP: PLOT NINJA!!!
BZ: “Bad news, Frodo…” – Yorick to 355 when she hands him the ring… that was some serious laugh out loud times.
MP: Let’s talk about the plot ninja.
BZ: Oh yeah, she is so TOUGH. Tougher than even 355. I was like, “OH NOES! AMPERSAND!”
MP: I was actually worried for 355.
BZ: She was so dead but then… HERO!!!
MP: Aptly named.
BZ: “I was aiming for her face…”
MP: Did you relate to that line a lot?
BZ: 355 shot an unarmed woman… was that shocking for you at all? It didn’t even faze me when she shot the plot ninja.
MP: NO. Not phased at all.
BZ: Issues 30-31 mark the midpoint, a refocusing of the series with the plot ninja stealing Ampersand and Yorick no longer the key to saving mankind, Yorick is faced with a choice… go after Lesbo-Beth or save Ampersand? For the first time, Yorick is faced with a real choice, and he makes it. Kudos to Vaughan, he knows his structure theory.
MP: Yeah, a real choice… to save Amp, and thereby save mankind. I think there’s still room for Yorick to be the hero here. I haven’t given up hope.
BZ: What do you think of this plot turn? I applaud Vaughan’s technique, but I feel like the plot was starting to wear thin… 5 issues ago.
MP: Me too. I tend to be a little impatient about OBVIOUS obstacles.
BZ: AVAST!!! is Yorick going to bone every chick he meets? And is 355 jealous?
MP: I was expecting it. YES. AND YES. this is why she sleeps with Mann. Obviously.
BZ: “I’m dumb she’s a lesbian… I thought I was number oooooone!” That’s what was going through Yorick’s head when he caught them “doing it”, and then he just stands there and watches her dress.
MP: I mean, the arc is called “Girl on Girl”.
BZ: Hey, I think you and Vaughan run in the same circles, with all this fanfic/slash fiction he references… maybe he’s read one of your stories?
MP: Maybe. I hope so!
BZ: Dude, also, pirate women taking shit by force! And then someone says how it’s not a gender issue, it’s a human issue! IN YO FACE!
MP: Shut up already!
BZ: The captain talks about the difference between right and wrong and how it relates to POV, like the drug trade and shit, how it’s okay for her to do this if the world is gonna end in a few years… but now that she has seen Yorick, all of a sudden it’s morally wrong for her to be selling drugs to women in Australia and China…do you think it’s wrong regardless, or that she has a point there?
MP: I think Kilina’s perspective is a naive one… to my mind, even before the plague, no person knows the length of their life so thinking that it could be over soon is no excuse for reevaluating the parameters of your morality. I think she says those things to make herself feel better… but she really just wants the love of a good man. I didn’t really understand her instant connection with Yorick… she was hot though.
BZ: Sometimes people just “connect” for the sex, that’s all.
MP: Yeah, he was connecting WITH HER HOURGLASS FIGURE. She was mad hot. I was teh jelus of her hairz.
BZ: Actually, Yorick kind of insta-connects with everyone, except for the Russian chick.
MP: He’s got the universal adapter.
BZ: Mann’s heart is broken again when 355 switches back (fucking tourist), but she finds a new “man” in the one-eyed pirate chick… is her fetish masculine women?
MP: Mann seems like a very naive girl to me… like she’s spent her whole life in her lab. I think she’s drawn to women that embody personality traits unlike hers. I think the pirate chick is Ms. Right Now because Ms. Right isn’t paying her no mind. We’ve all been there. I’m just saying.
BZ: If that is the case, she is expertly characterized. I didn’t know how much I respected Vaughan till I reread this book.
MP: I respect his hotness. And his SKILLS. I would like to learn about more of his skills. Sang.
BZ: OH NO! Sadie is the dead and Alter is coming for some revenges… did you expect to see her again? I didn’t, and I think her absence from the book is what made me feel like the plot was slowing down and getting boring. When Vaughan shipped her off 10 issues ago, he removed the central opposing force, you know?
MP: Were you sad that she killed Sadie? I was.
BZ: Yes. Sadie was nice. Innocent.
MP: Like a dog or a small child.
BZ: Scary giant Ampersand monster thing! He was scary but I think what’s so cool here is that we get a little peek into how Beth sees Yorick, her view on how he views their relationship… rescuer/victim or mother/son, instead of girlfriend/boyfriend. Creepy.
MP: Dude, the whole L-Beth storyline is intense. FYI.
BZ: What meanest thou? Explain? Also, her zatanna sucks, her hair really SHOULD be black
MP: Well, it’s a year and a half later and she’s getting this “message” from Yorick, right?
BZ: “I’m alive” – Yorick to Beth in a dream…. Lesbo-Beth touches dreamtime and “finds” Yorick…
MP: She’s still in love with him? I don’t think that she’s a lesbian, FYI.
BZ: I just call her that because that’s what my girlfriend SCAR-BETH implied about her. So, OBV lesbian if that means Yorick goes back for SCAR-BETH.
MP: Yeah, well. Scar-Beth is a bitch.
BZ: WHAAAAAAAAT?
MP: I just wanted to see what that would do to you.
BZ: So you definitely like old Beth over new Beth.
MP: I think Kilina is the hottest of the babes, anyway. and YES.
BZ: Screw old Beth. You barely know her! So you’re happy old Beth is still alive and thinking about Yorick?
MP: YES. And anyway, you only KNOW Scar-Beth’s boobies. That’s why you like her.
BZ: What about 355’s action!? Weren’t you like, “Oh shit, more complications for the 355/Yorick hookup!” Girl needs some man inside her! She’s knitting up enough rifle cozies for an army! C’mon, we have to root for 355!
MP: I DO! She totally loves him.
BZ: And Mann knows it right? She is so bitter.
MP: OBV. Stupid Mann. Go fill a test tube.
BZ: Go reconnect with you’re Asianness… obv, still not Asian, btw.
MP: SHE WILL SOON…. in JAPAN!!!!
BZ: BOOYA! But she’s half Chinese? Will they kill her on the spot? Or have they put aside all that animosity since it was mostly men that perpetrated those crimes?
MP: No. She is safe.
BZ: I hope so, cus Mann is too funny to die… even though I hate her. Anyways, you got any other nonsense to add before we end this tragedy?
MP: Our midpoint is a little muddled… just like Vaughan’s. IT WAS A STYLE CHOICE.
BZ: Well, if someone took notes…
Stay tuned for Part 4, covering the fourth year of the series, coming next week!
If you haven’t read Y yet, you can pick up the Trades at your local shop or order them online from Amazon.com at these links:
Y: The Last Man Vol. 5: Ring of Truth
Y: The Last Man Vol. 6: Girl on Girl
read/RANT! 
If he had a brain and a conscience he would be having sex with EVERYONE. Anyone that puts his girlfriend, or marriage vows or anything before the good of all mankind is an ass. Actually, the reason i liked this series less and less is that they just concentrate too much on character interaction, and not enough on dealing with the world’s one big problem. Or trying to figure out what happened, because nothing else is interesting. You’ve read one post apocalyptic nonsense world, you’ve read them all.