Interpreting Y-the Last Man through the Modern Mythological Story

By
STAR WARS! That's right modern mythology is basically Star Wars. I can write and entire essay about how our generation basically interprets films through the context of the Star Wars films, but I won't. I think the point has been done to death and you really need to look no further than the constant references in Lost, or films like Kevin Smith's which play off of the story beats and philosophy of Star Wars. Also I'm not certain if there were references of Star wars in Y-the Last Man I'm sure their was but for the entire time I read it couldn't stop thinking about it.

Y is the first run that I've read in trades. As such it was a bit difficult for me to digest in that form. I would find myself reading it in a matter of hours which left me exhausted and a little sad that I didn't have a community to break down issues with, on an issue by issue basis . The only thing I've ever read in one sitting before was elseworlds stories like Kingdom Come, The Nail, Superman Red Son, and Watchmen. I find my self digressing though.

Back tot the point. If we look at Y through the context of Star Wars we find ourselves a bit let down. Yorrick is Luke Skywalker. He is the idealized youth on a journey to become a man and control his feelings of fear and inadequacy. If Yorrick is Luke then Agent 355 is Han Solo/ Chewbacca. She is the specialist who is used to doing her job and going off on her own. It's business for her. That thrusts Dr. Mann into the Leia role being the first mission Yorrick and 355 go on is to save her, and although the series does the right thing for a while and let's 335 and Doc Mann hook up they never go all the way story wise. So Leia is off nailing the Australian spy who I guess could be Lando. The problem is Leia can't stay with Lando she has to be with Han. Vaugh not only kills Han making their love unattainable but hooks Han up with some secret love for Luke. So Luke whose story is about communion with the force (in the story of Y this force is love and represented by Beth #1) never comes to fruition. Instead Luke is left with the force and the only connection he makes with it in his relationship with 355 is lost with her death. Leaving the rest of his life and humanities fate not the stuff of happy endings with joyous ewoks singing and dancing but remains bleak and sad. The ending is more reminiscent of the somberness of Revenge of the Sith than Jedi. Meawhile the person who discover's the force is the Anakin Skywalker/Boba Fett character of Hero who ends up with Fett. So the happy ending is for her. Boba Fett can't truly wield the force though he's to evil Vaughn has it all wrong.

I'm not sure who Beth #2 is Amdiral Ackbar maybe. I'm confused this made a whole lot more sense in my head does anyone get what I am saying. Basically, it does not meet the proper beats and as such makes the end difficult to identify with. I think I need to write more on the subject, part 2 will be coming soon.

Comments

Nick said…
I think the ending itself was a bit hard to take for a lot of reasons.

The whole Beth confusion didn't help matters and the ending itself seemed a bit neatly tied up...a bit too quick as it were.

The Stars Wars analogy could work but with the absence of a Darth Vader/Father figure one is a bit hard pressed.

Look forward to part 2.
May 13, 2008 at 3:20 PM
Stephen said…
vader or the empire i guess would be alter or maybe even hero
May 13, 2008 at 3:23 PM
Swinebread said…
i haven't read the end yet, must have missed the last trade.

Was the monkey Artoo
May 13, 2008 at 10:59 PM
Stephen said…
didn't think about artoo or threepio, i guess ampersand would be artoo and i guess the girl monkey is c-3po
May 14, 2008 at 7:28 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

COMICBOOK REVIEW: Garfield's Pet Force 2014 Special

By
Image
Time for a comicbook review of an unusual comic for me. Every once in a while at the comic shop, I may feel particularly random. Something odd may call to me from the shelves. This comic is one such oddity. Garfield's Pet Force 2014 Special jam-packed with two epic Garfield's Pet Force stories. What is Garfield's Pet Force? I had no idea. I'm familiar with the concept of Oddie and Garfield and watched the cartoon a few times as a kid. I wouldn't consider myself a Garfield fan in the slightest. This comic may have changed my mind on the lasagna loving cat, though. Garfield's Petforce is Garfield as a superhero named Garzooka. Garzooka leads the Pet Force which is made up of his cartoon friends who have their own superpowers and dorky names. The stories are written by Scott Nickel. The first one is called "Cat-astrophe in the Cosmos" with pencils by Gary Barker and George Lane the third, inks were done by Mark and Stephanie Heike. The story s...
Read more

Week 4

By
-Can we officially shut the fuck up about Jake Locker now? I don't care if he was playing the Pittsburgh Steelers, 4-20 for 71 yards, a TD, and 2 INTs is unacceptable. If you take away a 45 yard TD strike to Jermaine Kearse, he was 3-19 for 26 yards and 2 INTs. He's got lots of talent and I'm sure he's a perfectly decent kid but the idea that Locker is the ultimate prospect in this year's NFL Draft is inexplicable. His Heisman campaign is obviously deader than dead at this point and I see no reason that he won't be the next Tim Couch. -Here's a random one: Kansas is down 31-10 to Southern Miss...they score a touchdown with 5:17 left in the game...and go for two?! Uh...what? Who did the math on that one? What possible scenario are they planning for? Are they planning cut the deficit to 13 instead of 14 in hopes that, in the event that they have to settle for two field goals at some point, they can still tie the game (with the addition of another touch...
Read more

Count Down to the New Year By Syncing These Epic Movie Moments at Midnight

By
Image
Because this is 2020, we know most of us will likely be spending our New Year's Eve at home--but that doesn't mean we can't do something special to celebrate the death of this foul year of our Lord. So here's a list of our favorite movies that sync up to ring in the new year with a big, epic moment and what time you should start watching them on New Year's Eve.  For the best results, we suggest starting the movie, pausing it, setting it to 0:00:00 and unpausing at the time suggested. We also suggest watching these movies on DVD or BluRay if possible because even the most insignificant streaming blips can throw off the timing completely. Cabin in the Woods - 10:30:07 PM If you want to ring in the new year with the Old Gods rising again, hit play on Drew Goddard's modern classic Cabin in the Woods at 10:30:07 PM (10:30 and 7 seconds) and at the stroke of midnight, the giant hand will come crashing down. Fight Club - 9:44:19 PM Perhaps you prefer a more anarchist a...
Read more