V: THE LAST MAN VOL.5: RING OF TRUTH

WINNER OF THREE EISNER AWARDS

Yorick Brown, the last man on Earth, finally makes it to San Francisco where his unbalanced sister, Hero, finds him seemingly succumbing to the male-killing plague after losing his still-unused engagement ring to the burqa-clad agents of the Setauket Ring. But is the ring really the key to his survival? And what does it have to do with the mysterious Amulet of Helene, which the Setauket leader is determined to take from Agent 355 by any means necessary. Collects issues #24-31 of the runaway hit Vertigo series by Brian K. Vaughan (EX-MACHINA, ASTONISHING X-MEN, RUNAWAYS) and Pia Guerra.

An adolescent male daydream becomes a nightmare in this convoluted SF thriller. Having somehow survived a plague that instantly killed all the other men on Earth, Yorick Brown finds himself the object of universal desire. Unfortunately, some of the women frantically chasing him are members of a lesbian Amazon cult that wants revenge for centuries of masculine oppression. Others are more interested in exploiting Yorick's unique immunity than in having sex with him. In this collection of eight issues of the monthly comic, Yorick bounces from one group to another as he also tries to discover why he was spared and whether there is any way to make the world safe for other men. Meanwhile, women debate whether the world is really a better place without men—although the story so far shows that women are fully capable of taking over male roles in violence, conceit and general obtuseness. Guerra and Marzan's sedate art makes the extreme situations look convincing, and Vaughn's script keeps the interplay of different factions moving briskly even if readers can't be sure what each represents. Despite its outlandish premise, this works much better than it has any right to. (July)
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Though it begins with a relative lull (and some sex), the fifth and longest story arc from Y: The Last Man seems to accelerate the comic's already feverish pace. It has been more than two years since a flash plague killed all males except for Yorick Brown. Now he and his monkey; the scientist Alison Mann, whose research might enable keeping future males alive; and agent 355, their escort, have reached California, where the data Mann lost in Boston is backed up. Yorick's sister, Hero, still tracks him and is still, unfortunately, affected by the Daughters of the Amazon brainwashing she underwent that tells her to kill, not save, him. Rogue former colleagues of 355 are after her to get an amulet they believe has special powers, and a ninja is out to steal Yorick's monkey, Ampersand. Flashbacks reveal more about Hero and begin disclosing the fate of Yorick's fiancee in Australia. Oh, and Yorick gets sick with symptoms like those that killed the other males. Busy, busy, white-knuckle stuff: the series just gets better. Ray Olson
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