the A- Z of cOoL
"ice cool in the afternoon."
U - Z
Undeclared, Vince Vaughn, Veronica Mars, Christopher Walken, Naomi Watts, Way of the Gun, Joss Whedon, Wild at Heart, Wild Things, Bruce Willis, Wonderfalls, Y: The Last Man
* = latest entries are highlighted
navigator
UNDECLARED (2001 - 02) http://www.undeclaredonline.com/
starring: Jay Baruchel (Steven Karp), Carla Gallo (Lizzie Exley), Charlie Hunnam (Lloyd Haythe), Monica Keena (Rachel Lindquist), Seth Rogen (Ron Garner), Timm Sharp (Marshall Nesbitt), Loudon Wainwright (Hal Karp) guest stars: Jason Segel, David Krumholtz, Kyle Gass, Martin Starr, Busy Philipps, Samm Levine, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, Ben Stiller
creator: Judd Apatow genre: college comedy drama
why it's cool: This follow-up to the magnificent "Freaks & Geeks" is a hilarious joy from start to finish. Another brilliant show which ended before its time but the Jon Favreau-directed finale (featuring Jason Segel, Kyle Gass, David Krumholtz and Ben Stiller) is pure comic genius.
number of series: 1 (17 episodes) shown on: ITV, ITV2 availability: available on Region 1 dvd
VERONICA MARS (2004 - ?) http://www.neptunesite.com/ http://www.marsinvestigations.net/
starring: Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars), Percy Daggs III (Wallace Fennel), Teddy Dunn (Duncan Kane), Jason Dohring (Logan Echolls), Sydney Tamiia Poitier (Mallory Dent) (2004), Francis Capra (Weevil), Enrico Colantoni (Keith Mars)
creator: Rob Thomas genre: crime mystery drama
why it's cool: I don't wanna hype it up too much but I can't quite remember ever being this excited about one television show. In simple terms, the show mixes the style of "Alias", with the teen element of "The OC", with the mystery of "Twin Peaks", with the witty dialogue of "Buffy", with the detective element of Raymond Chandler's "Philip Marlowe". In simpler terms, the show is utterly utterly brilliant. Along with quite possibly the most likeable lead character (wonderfully played by the luscious Kristen Bell) in recent tv history, the show's success is further accentuated by a gripping central narrative, an amazing soundtrack and a cracking supporting cast. Enrico Colantoni is the dad everyone would like to have (he's so warm and cuddly), while Jason Dohring's Logan Echolls starts off as the token teen bully character and develops into probably the most sympathetic character on the entire show (thats good writing for you - CSI take note). Plus the last two episodes of the series are pure gold: funny, surprising, thrilling and even moving. Roll on Season Two.
number of series: 1 (22 episodes) (so far) shown on: Living TV availability: available on Region 1 dvd (Oct 2005)
VINCE VAUGHN http://www.vincevaughn.it/ http://www.vince-vaughn.com/
An actor whose strong features and sinewy 6'4" physique make him appear to have been chiseled from a slab of testosterone, Vince Vaughn is Hollywood's closest human approximation of a Chevy pick-up. Rangy, solid, and all-American in a dirt, sweat, and beer sort of way, Vaughn has unsurprisingly been cast in roles that reflect these qualities. Thanks to his skills as a performer, however, he has resisted typecasting, giving effortless portrayals of characters ranging from slick bachelors to raving psychopaths to morally conflicted limo drivers.
A tried-and-true Midwestern boy, Vaughn was born in Minneapolis on March 28, 1970, and raised in the wealthy Chicago suburb of Lake Forest. The son of a self-made businessman and a mother who had done well for herself in stocks and real estate, Vaughn did not follow the upwardly mobile pattern established by his parents. Hyperactive and a lackluster student, Vaughn spent time in special ed. and ran with a fast crowd, although he has claimed that he never felt the need for all-out rebellion. Despite his poor school performance, Vaughn derived ambition from his interest in acting -- an interest he had clung to since the age of seven -- and used his position as president of his senior class to ensure that he would graduate from high school. Upon graduation, with only his diploma and a role in a Chevy commercial as his credentials, Vaughn headed for Hollywood. Upon arrival, he proceeded to work in almost complete obscurity for the next seven years.
During this period, Vaughn made the acquaintance of Jon Favreau , another struggling actor who hailed from the East. Their ensuing friendship and real-life adventures would provide the inspiration for their ticket out of career nonentity, 1996's Swingers . Directed by Doug Liman and starring Vaughn and Favreau (who also wrote the script) as two amiable Rat Pack-obsessed losers prowling the streets and bars of L.A. for "beautiful babies" and the occasional job opportunity, the irreverent-but-insightful comedy was a sleeper hit. Vaughn, whose character, Trent, was the film's resident fast-talking ladies' man, emerged as a sex symbol in the making. His profile was further heightened the following year when he appeared in a supporting role in Steven Spielberg 's The Lost World: Jurassic Park .
Vaughn subsequently took the small, quiet film route, starring in The Locusts (1997), an overheated but half-baked melodrama that owed more than a few dollars in debt to both Tennessee Williams and East of Eden , and A Cool, Dry Place , a family drama that garnered a cool, dry reception from both audiences and critics. In 1998, the actor fared substantially better with his turn as a limo driver who is called upon to make a great sacrifice for a friend in the acclaimed Return to Paradise , and he proved himself almost too convincing as a charismatic sociopath in Clay Pigeons . Colossal mental dysfunction was the defining aspect of Vaughn's most publicized character to date when he starred as Norman Bates in Gus Van Sant 's controversial remake of Psycho that same year. Vaughn earned mixed reviews for his work, and the film itself was treated with a tepid blend of indifference and bewilderment.
After the disappointment of Psycho , Vaughn took a couple of years off before re-emerging with a number of projects in 2000. Included among them were The Cell , a thriller co-starring Jennifer Lopez and Vincent D'Onofrio , Prime Gig , which starred Vaughn as California's best telemarketer, and South of Heaven, West of Hell , an ensemble Western that marked the directorial debut of country singer Dwight Yoakam . Following-up with a role in Swingers writer John Favreau 's Made , Vaughn 's next big role would come in the form of a deceptive stepfather harboring a dark secret in the thriller Domestic Disturbance . Unfortunately, the film proved to be a dud with critics and audiences and Vaughn would again disappear from movie theaters for more than a year.
Teaming with Will Ferrell and Luke Wilson for director Todd Phillips ' 2003 comedy Old School , Vaughn scored his first big hit in years and found his career gaining momentum. The following year, Vaughn would star as the villain in Phillips ' comedic take on Starsky and Hutch , giving the actor another minor hit under his belt and an opportunity to work with many of his Old School costars again. The actor's newfound momentum continued to build when, only a handful of months later, he starred in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story . Seeming to channel Bill Murray circa-1985, Vaughn received positive reviews for playing the good-guy opposite muscle-bound baddie Ben Stiller (who coincidentally was one of the heroes in Starsky and Hutch ).
Vaughn could next be seen in a small but memorable role in the Will Ferrell vehicle Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. His next major role is in the star-studded Get Shorty sequel Be Cool.
Filmography
Swingers (96), The Lost World: Jurassic Park (97), A Cool, Dry Place (98), Clay Pigeons (98), Psycho (98), Hercules (tv) (98), The Cell (00), The Prime Gig (00), Sex and the City (tv) (00), Made (01), Dinner For Five (tv) (01), Zoolander (01), Domestic Disturbance (01), Old School (03), Blackball (03), Dodgeball (04), Anchorman (04), The Sky Is Green (04), Be Cool (05), Mr & Mrs Smith (05), Wedding Crashers (05), Thumbsucker (05), The Break Up (06)
CHRISTOPHER WALKEN http://www.ojai.net/swanson/ http://www.rosenbaumcreative.com/walken/
A versatile character actor whose intense demeanor and slightly off-kilter delivery served him well in both comedies and dramas , Christopher Walken was at once one of the busiest and most respected actors of his generation, appearing in as many as five films in a year while still finding time for stage and occasional television work.
Walken was born Ronald Walken in Queens, NY, on March 31, 1943, the youngest of three sons of Paul and Rosalie Walken; Paul ran a bakery, while Rosalie was convinced her sons had talent and was determined they take advantage of it. Ronald landed his first job in front of a camera at the age of 14 months when he posed for a calendar photo with a pair of kittens. Like his siblings, he received dance lessons as a youngster, and, by the age of ten, was making frequent appearances on television and radio shows, and was a regular on a short-lived sitcom , The Wonderful John Acton . Ronald and his brothers also enrolled at New York's Professional Children's School, and he spent a summer as a junior lion tamer with a circus, later recalling that the lion was quite old and docile.
In 1961, Walken enrolled at Hofstra University . But, little more than a year later, he landed a role in the Broadway-bound musical Best Foot Forward (which starred one of his former classmates, Liza Minelli ), and decided to leave college. Spending the next several years working in a variety of musicals -- both in New York and on the road -- the young actor appeared in a 1964 touring production of West Side Story , and there met actress and dancer Georgianne Thon . The two began dating, and eventually married in 1969. While appearing in a revue starring model-turned-singer Monique Van Vooren in 1965, Walken was told by the headliner he looked more like a Christopher than a Ronald; he decided to take her advice, and adopted Christopher Walken as his stage name. In 1966, he made his first appearance in a non-singing role as Phillip , the King of France, in a Broadway production of The Lion in Winter . By the end of the decade, Walken was devoting his energies to stage dramas , although he continued to keep up with his dance training.
Walken made his movie debut with 1968's Me and My Brother -- a film directed by acclaimed photographer and experimental filmmaker Robert Frank -- and, in 1972, scored his first starring role in the low-budget sci-fi thriller The Mind Snatchers . Walken first caught the attention of critics with his performance as a bohemian ladies' man in Paul Mazursky 's Next Stop, Greenwich Village , and landed a small but memorable role in Woody Allen 's Annie Hall as suicidal preppie Duane . But Walken 's real breakthrough came in 1978, with his role as Nick in The Deer Hunter . Playing a small-town boy who is irreversibly scarred by his experiences in Vietnam, the role won Walken an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, and made him a bankable and recognizable name. He soon committed to director Michael Cimino 's follow-up, which proved to be the infamous box-office and critically-panned flop Heaven's Gate , and later showed off both his acting and dancing skills as a villainous pimp in the musical drama Pennies From Heaven .
While Walken remained a critical favorite, he fell short of becoming a major box-office draw due to the disappointing returns of many of his post- Deer Hunter films. But, by his own admission, Walken was always an actor who liked to work, and he maintained a busy schedule of both stage and screen roles. His willingness to take on edgy film characters with questionable commercial appeal (such as At Close Range , King of New York , and Communion ) helped earn the actor a loyal cult following, and small but showy roles in True Romance and Pulp Fiction gave Walken 's screen career a serious boost in the early '90s. By the time Walken turned 60, he had written, directed, and starred in an off-Broadway comedy called Him ; received another Oscar nomination for his performance in Catch Me if You Can ; appeared in films as varied as Sleepy Hollow , The Affair of the Necklace , and The Country Bears ; and got to prove he was still a great dancer with his much-talked-about appearance in the music video "Weapon of Choice" by Fatboy Slim .
NAOMI WATTS http://www.naomiwatts.com/ http://www.naomi-watts.net/
Naomi Watts had already been a working actress for over a decade when she earned notice as a promising newcomer in David Lynch 's Cannes Film Festival prizewinner Mulholland Drive (2001).
Born in Britain and raised in Australia, Watts began acting in her teens, landing her first film role in For Love Alone (1986). Watts subsequently appeared with future Hollywood headliners Nicole Kidman and Thandie Newton in John Duigan 's disarming teen romance Flirting (1991). Watts 's next film with Duigan , Wide Sargasso Sea (1992), was not so well received. After her first taste of Hollywood with Joe Dante 's schlock movie homage Matinee (1992), Watts nabbed a starring role as Jimmy Smits 's disturbed student in George Miller 's little seen courtroom drama Gross Misconduct (1993). Watts then starred as Jet Girl to Lori Petty 's Tank Girl (1995), but the science fiction fantasy suffered an ignominious box office fate. After a series of TV movies and thrillers , including Sleepwalkers (1997) and Children of the Corn IV (1996), Watts appeared in Marshall Herskovitz 's high-toned Venetian courtesan costumer Dangerous Beauty (1998) and successful TV docudrama The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer (1999).
Watts 's breakthrough finally arrived when David Lynch cast her in his ABC pilot Mulholland Drive . Though ABC canceled the project in 1999 after Lynch turned in a typically mood-drenched work, StudioCanal financed its transformation into a feature that debuted to acclaim at Cannes in 2001. A Los Angeles dreamscape akin to Lost Highway , Mulholland Drive featured Watts as the blonde half of a female duo caught in a mystery of shifting identities. Drawing attention for her not-for-network TV love scene with co-star Laura Harring , Watts also earned praise as a rising "new" actress.
Though ignored for an Oscar nomination, Watts 's tour-de-force dual performance earned her numerous accolades and critics' awards, igniting her career. Working steadily in the wake of Mulholland Drive , Watts scored a box-office as well as critical success a year later with The Ring (2002), the Hollywood remake of the Japanese horror blockbuster. Starring Watts as an intrepid reporter investigating the origins of a lethal videotape, The Ring overcame studio doubts to become a sleeper hit, solidifying Watts 's new star status. Watts subsequently donned period dress for the Showtime western The Outsider (2002), and to co-star alongside fellow Aussie Heath Ledger in Ned Kelly (2003). Balancing her genre work with potentially headier fare guided by notable directors, Watts also appeared with Kate Hudson , Glenn Close and Stockard Channing in the Merchant - Ivory romantic comedy Le Divorce (2003), and won a leading role opposite formidable actors Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro in Alejandro González Iñárritu 's 21 Grams (2003).
Filmography
Matinee (93), Tank Girl (95), Persons Unknown (96), Babe: Pig in the City (98), Strange Planet (99), Mulholland Drive (01), The Ring (02), Ned Kelly (03), Le Divorce (03), 21 Grams (03), We Don't Live Here Anymore (04), The Assassination of Richard Nixon (04), I Heart Huckabees (04), The Ring 2 (05), Stay (05), King Kong (05), Far Cry (06)
THE WAY OF THE GUN (2000)
starring: Ryan Phillippe, Benicio Del Toro, Juliette Lewis, Taye Diggs, Nicky Katt, James Caan
director: Christopher McQuarrie genre: crime thriller
JOSS WHEDON http://www.whedonesque.com/
Screenwriter Joss Whedon earned fame and industry standing as the writer, director, and producer of the popular WB series Buffy the Vampire Slayer , which he based on his 1992 film of the same name. A third-generation television writer (both his father and grandfather wrote for the medium), Whedon grew up in Manhattan and spent his high-school years at an all-boys school in England. Following higher education at Connecticut's Wesleyan University, he spent a year mired in creative and career frustration, an ordeal that ended when he was hired as a writer for the sitcom Roseanne.
Whedon stayed with the show for a year, quitting when he sold his first film script. The resulting movie, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), was a disappointment, and Whedon subsequently found work writing (often in an uncredited capacity) for a number of high-profile films, including the lavishly praised and hugely popular Toy Story (1995). In 1997, Whedon resurrected his story of a teen-aged vampire-slaying valley girl, creating the much more popular TV version; within a short time, the series was hailed as one of the best on television, and it had accumulated a large and loyal fan base. That same year, Whedon wrote the script for Alien: Resurrection . In 1999, as a measure of Buffy 's success, Whedon created Angel , a spin-off of his original show. Like Buffy , it soon boasted a loyal fan base, as well as largely favorable reviews. The next year, he co-wrote the script for the animated sci-fi adventure Titan A.E. He was also nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for the almost entirely silent Buffy episode " Hush ," a considerable achievement given the show's supernatural / fantasy bent and the fact that it did not air on a major network.
In 2002, Whedon created yet another TV series, this time a " sci-fi Western " called Firefly . The showed was short-lived, lasting only 12 episodes before being canceled (three more episodes were unaired but eventually released on DVD). The next year saw the final season of Whedon 's much-loved Buffy , which had lasted seven seasons, with Angel quick to follow suit. Though fans rallied to keep the series on the air, Angel was canceled in 2004 after five seasons. With fans mourning the end of the "Buffy-verse" and amidst rampant speculation of more spin-offs, Whedon surprisingly announced that his next project would be a movie version of his failed television show Firefly . He quickly had a script ready, and the film, entitled Serenity (after the spaceship from the series), went into production that same year, with plans for release in 2005.
Filmography
Roseanne (writer: 88), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (writer: 92), Toy Story (writer: 95), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (tv: 97 - 03), Alien: Resurrection (writer: 97), Angel (tv: 99 - 04), Titan A.E. (writer: 00), Firefly (tv: 02 -03), Serenity (05), Wonder Woman (06)
WILD AT HEART (1990)
starring: Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, Diane Ladd, Harry Dean Stanton, J.E. Freeman, Isabella Rossellini, Grace Zabriskie, Sherilyn Fenn, Crispin Glover
director: David Lynch genre: romantic comedy thriller
WILD THINGS (1998)
starring: Matt Dillon, Kevin Bacon, Neve Campbell, Denise Richards, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Bill Murray, Theresa Russell, Robert Wagner
director: John McNaughton genre: crime thriller
BRUCE WILLIS http://www.brucewillis.com/
Burly, thick-featured, and balding, Bruce Willis looks as if he would be perfectly at home behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler. Instead, he is one of Hollywood's more popular action heroes, thanks in part to the success of the Die Hard series. But to peg Willis into such a narrow category is to deny his versatility, for he has proven himself at home in lead and supporting roles in dramas , comedies , romances , and adventures .
Though he was born on an American military base in West Germany on March 19, 1955, Willis was raised in New Jersey from the age of two. As a youth, Willis had a stammer that only disappeared when he was performing, something he continued to do during high school as the class clown. He had less to laugh about after his participation in a racial incident during his senior year that got him expelled until his father hired a lawyer and Willis was allowed to graduate. After his graduation, Willis worked several odd jobs and played the harmonica for a local blues band by the name of Loose Goose . While attending Montclair State College, he performed in a production of Tennessee Williams ' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof , and his love of acting blossomed. He spent much time in New York trying out for various off-Broadway productions, finally succeeding in 1977. He left school to work in the play Heaven on Earth , but his subsequent acting career was spotty, with a commercial here and a small theatrical role there.
However, in 1984 he landed the lead in an off-Broadway production of Fool for Love and then, during a trip to Los Angeles, was selected out of 3,000 auditioners to co-star in Cybill Shepherd 's romantic sitcom Moonlighting as the egotistical, self-assured private detective David Addison . Though the show experienced trouble behind the scenes, in large part due to a long-running conflict between Willis , Shepherd , and the show's creator, Glenn Gordon Caron , it was a major hit during most of its 1985-1989 run. In the early '80s, Willis had bit parts in two major features, but did not make his official big-screen debut until he starred opposite Kim Basinger in the Blake Edwards farce Blind Date (1987). He again worked with Edwards for his sophomore effort playing cowboy star Tom Mix opposite James Garner 's Wyatt Earp in the Western spoof Sunset (1988). Both films reaped modest profits, but did little in the way of making Willis a major star.
Then came Die Hard (1989), in which Willis played a low-key New York cop who ingeniously takes on a group of international terrorists who have taken hostage the corporate L.A. office where his estranged wife is attending a Christmas party. The movie was slick, fast-paced, and filled with amazing stunts. Its tremendous popularity put Willis on Hollywood's A-list, and naturally suggested that Willis would have followed up his success with another blockbuster, but he instead appeared in Norman Jewison 's drama In Country as a psychologically damaged Vietnam vet who must care for his orphaned niece. Willis next lent his vocal talents to the voice of the baby in the inventive comedy Look Who's Talking (1989) and its sequel, Look Who's Talking Too (1990). He went on to reprise his role as a cop in both Die Hard sequels. In 1991, he made his screenwriting debut for the much-panned Hudson Hawk . Throughout the mid-90s, his film career continued to be prolific but uneven, with lows such as The Color of Night (1994) and Four Rooms (1995) and highs like Pulp Fiction (1994) and 12 Monkeys (1995).
In 1998, Willis ' reputation as an action hero was reinforced with the big-budget, big-box office Armageddon , but following this success, Willis opted for a smaller project, this time in the form of the long-delayed production of Kurt Vonnegut 's Breakfast of Champions (1999). Though Breakfast failed to live up to the expectations likely imposed by comparisons to Vonnegut 's source material and remained largely unseen, it was Willis ' next small project that would find him, as well as a relatively unknown child actor named Haley Joel Osment , in what would become one of the most phenomenally successful sleeper-hits in box-office history. As a haunted child psychologist who reaches out to a troubled young boy harboring a terrifying secret, Willis brought a subtle compassion to his role in newcomer director M. Night Shymalan 's The Sixth Sense that audiences may have been sorely missing (sans his performance in Disney's The Kid as he cemented his stature as a tough-guy action icon. He continued the trend the next year, as he re-teamed with Shymalan for the similarly eerie and enthralling, yet sensitive Unbreakable . The following year found the star appearing alongside Hollywood eccentric Billy Bob Thornton in the popular crime / \|comedy flick Bandits .
Increasingly drawn to the porduction aspect of filmmaking, Willis continued to develope his skills behind the camera as producer of such features as The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course (2002) and Hostage (2005). Turning up in such military themed features as Hart's War (2002) and Tears of the Sun (2003) in the early years of the new millennium, Willis would next step back into the role of hit man Jimmy 'The Tuip' Tudeski for the comedy sequel The Whole Ten Yards .
Following a string of poorly-received projects, Willis struck gold with both audiences and critics with his role in Robert Rodriguez 's adaptation of Frank Miller 's graphic novel series Sin City . Also starring Mickey Rourke and Clive Owen , the episodic comic-book-come-to-life found Willis as an ill-fated grizzled cop convicted for a crime he didn't commit.
In addition to acting, Willis has recorded a music CD, produced movies and a children's animated show, and taken part in the Planet Hollywood venture. Willis was married to actress Demi Moore from 1987 until 1998. They have three children.
Filmography
Moonlighting (tv: 85 - 89), Blind Date (87), Die Hard (88), Look Who's Talking (89), Die Hard 2 (90), The Bonfire of the Vanities (91), Hudson Hawk (91), The Last Boy Scout (91), Death Becomes Her (92), Striking Distance (93), Pulp Fiction (94), Die Hard With a Vengeance (95), Twelve Monkeys (95), Last Man Standing (96), Beavis & Butthead Do America (96), The Fifth Element (97), The Jackal (97), Mercury Rising (98), Armageddon (98), The Siege (98), The Sixth Sense (99), The Whole Nine Yards (00), The Kid (00), Unbreakable (00), Bandits (01), Hart's War (02), Tears of the Sun (03), Hostage (05), Sin City (05), Lucky Number Slevin (05), Alpha Dog (05), 16 Blocks (06), Die Hard 4.0 (06)
WONDERFALLS (2004)
starring: Caroline Dhavernas (Jaye Tyler), Katie Finneran (Sharon Tyler), Tyron Leitso (Eric Gotts), Lee Pace (Aaron Tyler), William Sadler (Darrin Tyler), Diana Scarwid (Karen Tyler), Tracie Thoms (Mahandra McGinty)
creators: Todd Holland, Bryan Fuller genre: fantasy comedy drama
why it's cool: Although a recent graduate of Brown University, Jaye Tyler decides to ignore her degree, live in a trailer and work at a tourist gift shop in Niagara Falls called Wonderfalls - much to the despair of her well-to-do family. But Jaye's aimless life takes a startling turn after a lion figurine begins talking to her. Her family calls it an "episode", but Jaye knows better. Fearing for her sanity, Jaye nevertheless starts doing exactly what an increasing number of inanimate objects tell her to do and is amazed when her outrageous actions begin changing people's lives in unexpected ways.
I'm not gonna even bother asking you what you think happened to this show cos guess what...it was cancelled...before its time...blah-de-blah-de-blah...I hate Fox...expletive expletive - I'm going to stop now cos this is making me sick. If you do some detective work, you should be able to catch this hugely likeable and imaginative show (currently stuck in sheduling hell - Sky One you suck) late night on digital channel 106. Either that or order the Region 1 dvd from Amazon.
"Deliciously clever...A fun, wild free fall." - US Weekly
number of series: 1 (12 episodes) shown on: Sky One availablity: available on Region 1 dvd
Y: THE LAST MAN (2002 - ?)
writer: Brian K. Vaughan artist: Steve Pia Guerra
genre: sci-fi comedy thriller publisher: Titan
why it's cool: In the summer of 2002, a plague of unknown origin destroys every last sperm, fetus, and fully developed mammal with a Y chromosome - with the exception of amateur escape artist Yorick Brown and his surly male helper monkey Ampersand.
This "gendercide" instantaneously exterminates 48% of the global population, or approximately 29 billion men.
This is the world of Y - The Last Man
"quite simply, one of the most enjoyable things I've ever read" - Andrew Watson
number of books: 5 (so far) availability: buy the entire series from Amazon.co.uk