You guys, Lumberjanes is so cute, I wanna die.
To talk about Lumberjanes is to embrace the light-hearted tone of its dialogue. I can’t very well be serious and proper about it, can I? This isn’t going to be a long, detailed review, either – I’m going to do my best to summarize what I discuss in the video above, instead!
What will either win you over or turn you away is Lumberjanes’ art style. It’s unique, colourful, and defined by the strong conceptual art for its characters. The closest thing to it—and even then, I’m doing a massive disservice to Brooklyn Allen—might be something like animated show Adventure Time, though I much prefer Allen’s illustrations to the animation on that series. The illustration imbues our main characters with so much character, sells the comedy of Beware the Kitten Holy extremely well, even manages to do a great job of creating the wonderful mood of adventure into the unknown that is central to the series.
Almost as central, in fact, as the characters themselves; but had they not worked, the graphic novel would make for sorry reading. Thankfully, Mal, Jo, Ripley, April, and Molly (along with scout-leader Jen) make for a compelling group of protagonists, their friendship and bonds with one another the absolute high-point of this first volume (and, I’m willing to wager, of the series overall). My personal among them might have to be Molly, whose beaver hat is worth every sacrifice, and April, whose flamboyance, fashion and love for puns are left unmatched even compared to my own. Oh, and Ripley, too, and maybe Mal? And I guess Jo is pretty great, too, and Jen’s attempts to keep the lot of them safe make for excellent “bigger sis” energy! As an older sibling, I could relate to her; and yes, no comic book has made me want to be a teenage girl as much as Lumberjanes has.
What else can you look forward to? Plenty of adventure – dungeons, three-eyed beasts, a holy kitten (?!), and even weird boy-scouts to interact with! Oh, and puns, did I mention puns? April is fantastic, for reals. She even earns a “Pungeon Master” badge!
It’s a great comic book, whether you’re looking for a gift for a teen you know or want to read up on some phenomenal adventuring with one of the most likable casts out there.
The Grimoire Reliquary 
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