It was around fourth grade when the X-Men and Sweet Valley Twins first became popular in our school, and I remember that an argument once erupted in our class as to which was better. The boys, naturally, were on the side of the mutants while the girls, also naturally, defended their blonde sixth grade characters. I, quite unnaturally, rallied alongside the boys. I collected the cards and read the comic books and watched the TV shows on Friday nights and when the arguments started, the boys would show the girls that I was on their side and this therefore meant that the scale was tipped in their favor.
Now I feel as though I’m back on fourth grade turf as I got hooked to the comic series Y The Last Man. The story goes – in 2002, a plague simultaneously kills off every mammal with a Y chromosome on earth, with the exception of two – Yorick Brown and his pet monkey, Ampersand. The two hook up with Agent 355 and Doctor Mann to find the explanation as to why the two are still alive and how they can use this information to prevent the human race from going into extinction.
The comic books got passed around the office recently and when I got my hands on them, I was the only girl to express any interest. This is when I start wondering if it’s possible that I just may have a Y chromosome, too?
When I was done with book 7, I asked if that was all we had, and RJ said, Aldrich also had book 8 and 9 but that he and Manny were auctioning them off to the highest bidder for its “rental.”
The next work day, both books were in my hands. And I did not even have to bid anything. Being a girl sure has its advantages. In the end, the X chromosomes win. 😉