Y: The Last Man – Kimono Dragons

The new collected volume of the Y: The Last Man graphic novel series is out and it has left me on exquisite tenterhooks. This is one of my favorite graphic novel serials, about the travails of the last man left on earth after a mysterious plague wipes out every male animal on the planet save for Yorick Brown (the slacker magician son of a minor politico) and his pet monkey, Ampersand.

As civilization rebuilds itself after the death of 48 percent of the world's population, it confronts the possibility that the last generation of humans is alive today. Some turn to acts of heroism, others to barbarism, and Yorick sees them all as he travels incognito with a secret agent who has been charged with getting him to a lab where the secret of his survival can be uncovered.

In the new edition, Kimono Dragons, Yorick and Ampersand end up in Tokyo, which is miraculously unscathed — or at least, so it seems. As they explore further, it becomes apparent that the Yakuza has been taken over by ruthless Japanese subculture teenagers — Harajuku Bridge meets the Sopranos — and that the vice industry continues to thrive.

The storytelling in Y is perfect for a serial — tight, intense, and riddled with cliff-hangers. This installment is no exception. I am dying to read the next one!

Link, Link to every Y: The Last Man Collection

See also:
New "Y: The Last Man" collection
Must-read comic, Y: The Last Man
New "Y: The Last Man" collection: great sf adventure comic