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.
One
of this series motifs is the concept of bonding and friendship, and according
to the text of the Lumberjane’s Scout Pledge this friendship will soon be put
to the test. Unfortunately, we were only tasked with reading Volume 1 of the
Lumberjanes comic, so I am not sure how my prediction will turn out. According
to the Lumberjane’s Pledge, a Lumberjane Scout must “think of others first” and
“always help and protect my friends.” Now, considering friendship and bonding
is one of the central motifs in this series, I believe it is an obvious
assumption that eventually a circumstance will arise that will test the groups
bonds with each other. As in any good comic series, any form of pledge or code
of honor will inevitably be tested. That is how good drama is created and how
the stakes can be raised higher than if they were simply put through dangerous
situation after dangerous situation. The Lumberjane’s bond must be tested if
any real character building is to occur. The Lumberjane’s must “be truthful and
compassionate.” This truthful statement in particular could be tested. Maybe
one of the group wishes to hide a secret from the others. In fact, this has
already occurred more than once. In the beginning of the series Jo took one of
the amulets that was dropped by the three eyed fox upon its defeat. Again in
the first issue, it is implied that Ripley stole the glowing crystal from Rosie’s
bathroom. Neither girl has informed the group of their theft, which could lead
to trouble down the road. Jo picked up the same kind of amulet that the boy’s
camp wears, and the ones that are implied to have forced the werewolf-esque
change onto them. Who is to say that Jo will not undergo a similar
transformation and attack her fellow Lumberjanes? Though these issues are not
solved in the first volume, the motif of friendship clearly lends an eerie and
dooming quality to the Lumberjane’s pledge if you dig deep enough.
