Critical Response A.

“I solemnly swear to do my best,

Every day.  And in all that I do.

To be brave and strong.

To be truthful and compassionate,

To be interesting and interested

To respect nature

To pay attention and question

The world around me

To think of others first,

To always help and protect my friends

Then there’s a line about god or whatever

And to make the world a better place

For Lumberjane scouts

And for everyone else”

            The comic Lumberjanes, embodies the theme of equality in gender due to the five female protagonists unfortunately rare nature.  Current culture produces novels like Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer, in which the main female protagonists requires the presence OF and focused interest OF a male protagonist in order to be adventurous and daring.  This is not the case with Lumberjanes.  The excerpt above is the recital of the Lumberjane motto, which embodies the various differences in expectation between male adventurousness verses female adventurousness.  The redefining gender roles in this excerpt are depicted in each of the five characters in different ways.  Jo is a transgender girl that embodies the line “To pay attention and question the world around me.”  Jo is often in a situation of leadership, specifically when a puzzle or mathematical problem arises.  A prime example of this is when Jo discovers the “Fibonacci” sequence of numbers when the girls are required to hop from platform to platform in order to escape.  Although Jo can be perceived as being the overall leader due to her analytical nature, all of the girls experience moments of rise to leadership in different ways.  Ripley, who embodies the line “To be interesting and interested”, finds a passage for the group to enter a tunnel, which allows the group to continue on their truth-seeking quest.  Molly rises as a leader with the quote “To always help and protect my friends.”  Mal becomes injured and Molly is overridden with concern although reading closely to the text there are indications of lesbian relationship between Molly and Mal.  Mal characterizes the line “To be brave and strong.”  This choice in characterization may appear at first to be odd due to Mal’s first apparent fear in regards to entering the canoe on the river, but it takes great strength in bravery to conquer great fears.  Additionally Mal rises as a leader when the girls are attacked underground.  Mal works with Ripley to bring down a large humanoid bird statue.  Lastly there is Molly who exhibits the line “To be truthful and compassionate.”  Molly’s consideration and compassion for others is apparent with her comedic existence.  She makes puns that bring a lighthearted nature to intense situations diffusing stress and anxiety within the group of girls, much like a leader.  The comic Lumberjanes is great, absolutely magnificent.  Firstly for the depiction of females as being leaders in adventurous quests but secondly because the focus on the varying leadership styles available for girls.  Hollywood and past culture has underrepresented the female and the variety in paths to be chosen it surely is a refreshing change to meet such unique and strong willed selection of heroes.