Y: The Last Man, Book 5

The final volume of Y: The Last Man delivers a mostly satisfying, somewhat tragic ending that wraps up Yorick's epic quest to find his lost love. Everyone converges on Paris for final confrontations, epic reunions, and a few surprising revelations. And then life goes on, as it must.

I'm going to have to re-read this whole series again at some point. It took me far too long to pick up on the slow burn romance between Yorick and 355, maybe because it was such an incredibly well done slow burn. But, like Yorick, I was blinded by the quest for Beth. I couldn't see what was right in front of me.

 His resolution with Beth (and even Beth 2 and Beth Jr) was fantastic. It hit all the right beats of joy and awkwardness and betrayal and despair. Things were broken between them, and she was ultimately more of a fantasy than a real girl. I'm glad he was able to let her go in the end.

I'm mad, though, about 355's death. It was shocking and jaw-dropping and ultimately frustrating. It reminded me too much of Tara's death in Buffy's sixth season. Why, after all that, can't they find some happiness?

But I did enjoy the final flash-forward that showed a world slowly rebuilding itself, and a string of clones who must all be inoculated against the plague. Someday natural child birth might make a comeback, but until then, the human race isn't going anyway.

For the most part, this was a great series. I hope the rumored TV show does it justice. And I'm looking forward to revisiting this. It's nice to have a completed work by Vaughan, and it gives me hope that he will (eventually) stick the landing on Saga.

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