Brian K. getting some CNN love

[hammersavage]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/books/01/30/brian.vaughan/index.html

Good to see a buddy getting some press.

[IamFogHat]

As much as I love BKV, I think we all know who the real hero here is...
"I got a phone call, from a very special man..."

[TheMojoPin]

What, are your threads fucking good for the default comic book forum?

[badorties]

slash film reported that they're considering Y film's arc to be a trilogy

[realmenhatelife]

The guy who is directing it says he'd like a trilogy because the story is too long to fit into one movie. Really, what director doesn't want a trilogy? 'Hey, you hired me to make this movie, but I'm gonna need 3 paychecks from you.' Actually I think people realize that the 'cred' angle is a good one to work with comic adaptations, so guys are going to push that they will stay as true to the source material as possible. It'd be nice if Shia LaBouf is disfigured before they start shooting, or something.

[codenhead]

Listening to writer Brian K. Vaughan summarize the plot of his comic book, "Y: The Last Man," makes it sound like just another pulp title.

"A plague of mysterious origin destroys every male mammal, human being and animal on the planet," he says, "except for one boy and his monkey. And wackiness ensues."

Well, that's the story boiled down to its basics. But the tale of amateur escapist Yorick Brown, the last man alive on an Earth now home to only women, and his monkey, Ampersand, is actually far more complex than Vaughan's description reveals, involving long journeys, the value of memory and the politics of gender roles. The title, which has had a very successful five-year run, is coming to an end this week with the release of issue No. 60.

It is a finale that is equally emotional for both fans and its creator.

"I guess I've moved into acceptance but that doesn't mean that I'm not still depressed about it," says Vaughan, 31, a soft-spoken Cleveland, Ohio, native who now makes his home in Los Angeles

It's been weird because it's a gradual [form of] saying good-bye," he says. "First, you finish the script, but then it still has to be penciled and inked, and there's so many stages in comics that it's sort of been like the stages of death."

Vaughan's career in comics dates back more than a decade, but his love for the medium stretches back to his adolescence. Already an avid fan of comic books, he discovered Alan Moore's seminal graphic novel "Watchmen" on a family vacation. It would be the spark that inspired him to give life to his own stories. Video Watch Vaughan pick out some of his influences »

When Vaughan first pitched his concept for "Y: The Last Man" to Vertigo, an imprint of DC Comics, he was focused on a specific ending, without knowing whether the series would last long enough to reach it.

"We had a long-term idea [of doing] five years but realistically, I knew I had just gotten 'Swamp Thing' canceled at Vertigo and most people hadn't heard of Pia [Guerra], the artist," he says.

"It's not like we were destined for a long and successful run," he adds, smiling.

Almost immediately following its debut in 2002, the series found success, earning critical praise as well as five Eisner Awards, the comic-book Oscars, along the way.

Yorick's quest to find his girlfriend, lost somewhere in a world forever changed by this mysterious plague, was just as much an international adventure story as it was the tale of the women in his life: his bodyguard, the enigmatic Agent 355; medical researcher Alison Mann; even his sister, Hero, and his mother. Their experiences can be read as parables on humanity in a world where gender has been all but eliminated from the equation.

Now, as their stories come to a close, Vaughan likens it to ending a relationship.

"It'll be a drag not to get to spend more time with these characters," observes Vaughan.

He adds he will also miss his collaborating with Guerra, who has provided the art for the entire series run.

"It's hard to not think about working with Pia, just because I think she is the best 'actor' in comics," he says. "[That's] a weird thing to say, but she captures emotions better than anyone. I'm very hopeful we'll work together again."

Meanwhile, Vaughan's other work in comics, including "Ex Machina" (Wildstorm) and "Runaways" (Marvel), has captured the attention of Hollywood. Both "Y" and "Ex Machina" are currently being developed into films. Meanwhile, Vaughan, a one-time film student, has begun a career in television, working as a writer on ABC's "Lost."

Remaining true to the mysteries of the island, Vaughan says he can share "just about nothing" from the upcoming fourth season of the series, which has been cut from 16 episodes to eight as a casualty of the continuing writer's strike. The fourth season premieres Thursday night.

"Everything is still sort of in flux, sadly, but I know I'm disappointed," says Vaughan, who was a fan of the show before "Lost" producer and fellow "comic book geek" Damon Lindelof approached him to write for it. "I think these eight episodes are eight of the best in the entire series."

As production remains shut down both on "Lost" and the film adaptation of "Y: The Last Man," Vaughan considers himself fortunate. Comic books aren't covered by the Writer's Guild of America, allowing him to continue to work while his colleagues cannot.

Despite the accolades and opportunities, Vaughan sees his growth, both personally and professionally, as very much a work in progress.
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"I was just a kid when I came up with the idea for 'Y' so I like to think that I've evolved as much as Yorick has over the course of the book. But I'm a comic book writer," he continues, "so I'm still a big dumb child, and I think I always will be."

DC Comics is a unit of Time Warner, as is CNN

All due to Ron and Fez Power

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[Tall_James]

I freely admit that I'm late to the party on Y the Last Man. So much so that instead of buying the finale today when at my local comic store, I purchased vol. 1 of the TPB.

I liked it so much that I will buying the rest of the series as well.

Kudos to you BKV.

[ToLEEdo]

Y would make a cool trilogy. I think I am okay with Shia but I think I would like Casey Affleck better.

[IamFogHat]

slash film reported that they're considering Y film's arc to be a trilogy

Was there any ever talk of putting it into one film? That would be crazy talk, even with as much as they'll have to cut out to fit into a film version there's no way they could make it in a single film. I think trilogy is the way to go.

[ToLEEdo]

they are saying that the first movie would end at issue 14 which is all the astronaut stuff. I don't know how that will work.

[JustJon]

Man, I can't wait for the 10th TPB to see how it ends it all and if Yorick ever sees his gf.

[donnie_darko]

after the success of i am legend.....who could blame em.

[realmenhatelife]

Y is a series I don't think you'll be dissapointed in if you buy every TPB without ever having read one page- its really good. I especially like how it's paced a little differently, it makes the story pop a little more.

[ToLEEdo]

Y is a series I don't think you'll be dissapointed in if you buy every TPB without ever having read one page- its really good. I especially like how it's paced a little differently, it makes the story pop a little more.

very true. I haven't heard anyone that was disappointed with the last issue either. Everyones response to it has been great.

[kdubya]

What are peoples thoughts on the last issue?

The last panel has hung with me since I finished it.

As far as a movie, I still say I think an HBO series would be the way to go vs a movie.

very true. I haven't heard anyone that was disappointed with the last issue either. Everyones response to it has been great.