The Last Man
Although I would struggle to actually recommend this one-man zombie apocalypse rock musical from Korea, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a good time at it.
The Last Man - by Jishiuk Kim and Seungyeon Kwon - isn’t really a case of being so bad it’s good. It’s more that it’s quite good at a load of contradictory things, that get in the way of each other: I never worked out whether the whole thing was a massive joke or not, and I suspect the writers were unsure too. With its widdly ‘80s rock guitars (complimentary) and comical-whatever-the-actual-intent-was lyrics (there is a song that literally has the chorus refrain ‘THE MOTHERFUCKING ZOMBIIIIIEHS’), it often has an endearing Trey Parker/Matt Stone-esque air of faux machismo to it. Whether this is intended to amuse, I can’t quite say; I think it is, but it doesn’t quite commit to the bit.
Lex Lee is a young-ish resident of Seoul, whose fondness for zombie apocalypse films has allowed him to spot the telltale early signs of an actual zombie apocalypse. Hence he’s built himself a bunker, which he’s stocked up a six months supply of food and a fancy climate control system. (NB the role is alternated with actress Nabi Brown, who presumably puts a different spin on it).
Much of the first half of the play consists of The Survivor making video diary entries for future generations in which he muses on the apocalypse, the events leading up to it, and a childhood he seems to have a complicated relationship with - as embodied by...
