Lumberjanes #1 (Boom! Box)

CREDIT: Boom! Box

Rating: 4.5/5 – What the Junk? Watch out for 3-Eyed Foxes!
by ComicSpectrum EiC Bob Bretall.

Lumberjanes doesn’t waste any time, writers Noelle Stevenson and Grace Ellis jump right into the action with our intrepid group of teenage girls (Jo, April, Mal, Molly and Ripley) searching the woods at night for what?  Well, at first we’re not sure, though we get an idea later in the issue.  What they end up finding is a group of thirteen 3-eyed foxes and merriment ensues.  Sounds weird?  It is, and fabulously so.

Our band of heroes are campers at Miss Quinzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet’s Camp for Girls HARDCORE LADY TYPES.  The camp name, by itself, was enough to make me love this book.  My enjoyment was cemented by Brooke Allen’s fabulously understated art that is AdventureTime by way of writer Noelle Stevenson’s wonderful webcomic Nimona with a dash of Ted Naifeh’s Courtney Crumrin thrown in for spice.  Whatever I compare it to makes no difference, though. Allen’s art is a perfect match for the frenetic pace of this issue, a lot happens and we’ve only scratched the surface of the mystery of the woods.

In addition to meeting the girls of Roanoake Cabin (nice touch in naming there), we are introduced to their counselor Jen and the Camp Director, Rosie.  For me, Rosie was the standout character in the issue, what a fun character!  And I do mean character.  So it’s clear that there is something afoot in the area, and the girls are going to take an active role in finding out just what it is.

This is what I like to call a “true all ages book”.  That means it’s not written down to kids.  It’s appropriate for all ages and is thoroughly enjoyable by kids and adults alike.  If you have a young girl in your life (daughter, niece, friends kid, neighbor) buy this comic for her.  But make sure you read it yourself, you don’t want to miss out on a quality story.  This was a great first issue that accomplished a lot.  The personalities of all the characters are asserting themselves, some standing out more than others in the pages we had available in this issue but I’m sure that this will even out as the series progresses.  What really matters is that I got a solid chunk of story complete in this issue and I was hooked on the series so I’ll be back for more!  Mission accomplished for a #1 issue.

Reviewed by: Bob Bretall
(bob@comicspectrum.com)
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