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Princeless (Collected Editions) #5
Princeless, Vol. 5: Make Yourself
Fresh from fighting vampires, zombies and giant creatures in the swamp—Princess Adrienne, Bedelia the Blacksmith and Sparky the Dragon are in for their biggest adventure yet! Join our team of fearless ladies as they set off into the mountains to save twin princesses Andrea and Antonia. They’ll meet a team of dragon slaying dwarf women, a farm full of trained monsters and perhaps some of their most dangerous foes yet!
128 pages, Paperback
First published July 11, 2016
4 people are currently reading
354 people want to read
About the author
Jeremy Whitley
406 books337 followersJeremy Whitley is the son of two teachers and the husband of a third.
Born in La Mesa, CA, Jeremy went to high school in Lenoir, NC and college at The University of North Carolina. He graduated with a Bachelors in English, and a minor in Creative Writing.
Jeremy lives in Durham, North Carolina with his wife Alicia and his two daughters Zuri and Amara.
Jeremy is the writer/creator of the comic series Princeless, Raven the Pirate Princess, School for Extraterrestrial Girls, and The Dog Knight. He is also the writer of the acclaimed Marvel series "The Unstoppable Wasp". His other works include extensive work for Marvel, the "Sea of Thieves" comics, and over sixty issues of My Little Pony comics.
Awards and Nominations:
3 time Glyph Winner
5 time Glyph Nominee
2 time Eisner Nominee
2 time Cyblis Nominee
2 time Bloomer Nominee
1 time Most Likely to Succeed Winner
Born in La Mesa, CA, Jeremy went to high school in Lenoir, NC and college at The University of North Carolina. He graduated with a Bachelors in English, and a minor in Creative Writing.
Jeremy lives in Durham, North Carolina with his wife Alicia and his two daughters Zuri and Amara.
Jeremy is the writer/creator of the comic series Princeless, Raven the Pirate Princess, School for Extraterrestrial Girls, and The Dog Knight. He is also the writer of the acclaimed Marvel series "The Unstoppable Wasp". His other works include extensive work for Marvel, the "Sea of Thieves" comics, and over sixty issues of My Little Pony comics.
Awards and Nominations:
3 time Glyph Winner
5 time Glyph Nominee
2 time Eisner Nominee
2 time Cyblis Nominee
2 time Bloomer Nominee
1 time Most Likely to Succeed Winner
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
February 11, 2017
CONFIRMED QUEER PEOPLE IN PRINCELESS. REPEAT: CONFIRMED QUEER PEOPLE.
Ahem.
In this installment, Adrienne and Bedelia and their dragon Sparky fly north to the mountains to rescue the twins Andrea and Antonia. They encounter dwarves, many of whom are related to Bedelia, and there is a truly heartwarming moment with her grandfather that just, ah, right in the feels. We also follow Adrienne's brother Devin as he tries to rescue his mother from someone who is totally not her alter ego. Definitely not. No way. Anyway, he also meets some interesting people.
Unfortunately, this is just the first half of the storyline. Adrienne and her dwarf companion (whose name I cannot for the life of me remember, sorry!) have just fallen into severe danger, and Bedelia is close to a major conversation with her mother (yes! we meet her mother!) and the volume ends. I will absolutely read the next one, but aaaaugh why must I wait!
Ahem.
In this installment, Adrienne and Bedelia and their dragon Sparky fly north to the mountains to rescue the twins Andrea and Antonia. They encounter dwarves, many of whom are related to Bedelia, and there is a truly heartwarming moment with her grandfather that just, ah, right in the feels. We also follow Adrienne's brother Devin as he tries to rescue his mother from someone who is totally not her alter ego. Definitely not. No way. Anyway, he also meets some interesting people.
Unfortunately, this is just the first half of the storyline. Adrienne and her dwarf companion (whose name I cannot for the life of me remember, sorry!) have just fallen into severe danger, and Bedelia is close to a major conversation with her mother (yes! we meet her mother!) and the volume ends. I will absolutely read the next one, but aaaaugh why must I wait!
July 16, 2019
Haircuts. Lesbian dwarves. Unexpected alliances. Family drama. & many many monsters. Just chilling. No panic.
Weird place to place a cliffhanger though?
Weird place to place a cliffhanger though?
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June 17, 2019
This one shifts the focus a bit. We are introduced to Bedelia's family - basically the dwarven side which includes the difference between male and female dwarves as well as queer couples. This leads to Adrienne and Bedelia splitting up because Bedelia wants to visit her mother. Adrienne uses the break to ask questions about sexuality which was handled quite well. The first part of the collection is a beautiful story about Adrienne coming to terms with hair. I wish I had read this when one my students had written a research paper about natural hair because I really think she would have liked this.
The second focus is on Adrienne's brother Devin and his quest to save his mother. He is aided by a new team of friends which includes a girl wolf-shifter as well as a prince and a elf girl. Devin is great because he shows intelligence and creatively are just as important as the ability to whack things.
The second focus is on Adrienne's brother Devin and his quest to save his mother. He is aided by a new team of friends which includes a girl wolf-shifter as well as a prince and a elf girl. Devin is great because he shows intelligence and creatively are just as important as the ability to whack things.
March 28, 2018
The art continues to be my least favourite, but everything with the Dwarven Dragon Slayers is pure joy. Also— ELVES WHAT.
February 7, 2017
Only the first half of the storyline this time, but it looks to be a much bigger and much more complex chapter. Towards the end, scenes are more or less evenly divided between Adrienne's continuing quest, Bedelia's uneasy reunification with her mother (as well as her awesome dwarven family), and Devin's quest to rescue his mother from the Black Knight, who are totally not the same person.
September 10, 2017
Another incredible addition to the series. The plot is moving along, the characters are exploring internal struggles, the feminist topics continue to be brought up. Adrienne spends the first chapter/issue discussing her hair, which I personally adored because I love talking about hair and learning about how black women think about and treat their hair. I looked for a review from a black reader, but couldn't find any. (Please link me if you reviewed this element of the volume!) There is an on the page f/f couple in this one and one of the ladies from that couple answers some (pretty invasive) questions from Adrienne, who is wanting to learn about sexuality and specifically homosexuality (though it is pretty clear throughout the series that Adrienne is straight). I still love this series, consider it one of my favorites, and recommend it to all!
February 18, 2020
This one didnt feel as good at the others. Still a nice read, but the plot with the brother was heavy in this and not as interesting.
March 16, 2019
I want to respect this book and its message of inclusion and girl empowerment. And if its story-telling were as strong as its message I would - with five stars. But it's not. The story-telling is just lazy and lackadaisical. Every problem, whether it's character conflict or physical peril, is resolved with simplicity in a matter of pages. In this book, Bedelia (a half-dwarf blacksmith) pleads with Princess Adrienne not to tell anyone that she made the princess's armor, because among dwarves women should not be blacksmiths and this would shame her dwarven family (as an aside; why a society progressive enough to accept woman warrior and lesbian relationships won't let women work with metal is never explained). The next page introduces Bedelia's dwarven grandfather. The next page he reveals that he went into the Princess's guest room, was impressed by her armor, and carried it away to show to his blacksmithing students (which is about the most awkward, intrusive way to keep this subplot moving that I can imagine). The next page Bedelia breaks down and tearfully admits that she made the armor. The next page the grandfather totally dismisses stupid dwarf tradition and tells her she's wonderful. A major aspect of Bedelia's background, and this world's lore, is created and disposed of in five pages. There's a dizzying feel of the writer trying to avoid conflict and bad feelings as much as possible. Though Princess Adrienne is still at odds with her father (possibly because that's necessary for the series to continue), every other time a major character's unpleasant family member is introduced there are always hugs and good feelings by the end of the story - making me believe that the father's character arc will end equally tepidly.
Kudos for the message, but this story is boring me too much to continue.
Kudos for the message, but this story is boring me too much to continue.
March 7, 2017
Ahhh! Cliffhanger!
Unlike previous volumes, this is not a full story-arc. Instead, it's part one of a larger arc with multiple threads. But oh, it's so so good. Whitley is at top form with his the first issue focusing on Adrienne's trials with her untameable hair, which A++. Great commentary and much needed for those black girls reading this who want perfect "princess" hair like in the movies.
The rest of the volume has Adrienne and Bedelia entering the land of the dwarves and cultural misconceptions regarding Sparky, since dwarves apparently don't like dragons. There's also a great scene with Bedelia and her grandfather where she comes out as a blacksmith, since it's the realm of men in dwarven society and women were banned from smithing.
I'm also really enjoying the secondary plotline around Adrienne's brother Devin and his quest to find out what happened with his mother (
A really solid volume, though I'm less than thrilled with the incomplete story arc, since previous volumes had trained me to expect a resolution by the last page.
Unlike previous volumes, this is not a full story-arc. Instead, it's part one of a larger arc with multiple threads. But oh, it's so so good. Whitley is at top form with his the first issue focusing on Adrienne's trials with her untameable hair, which A++. Great commentary and much needed for those black girls reading this who want perfect "princess" hair like in the movies.
The rest of the volume has Adrienne and Bedelia entering the land of the dwarves and cultural misconceptions regarding Sparky, since dwarves apparently don't like dragons. There's also a great scene with Bedelia and her grandfather where she comes out as a blacksmith, since it's the realm of men in dwarven society and women were banned from smithing.
I'm also really enjoying the secondary plotline around Adrienne's brother Devin and his quest to find out what happened with his mother (
A really solid volume, though I'm less than thrilled with the incomplete story arc, since previous volumes had trained me to expect a resolution by the last page.
May 12, 2017
Princeless Volume 5 already? I think I might have missed a few of the stories in between, but the general story is the same. A kickass princess and her dragon are trying to save her sisters. It's a wonderfully positive story for little girls that looks at women as something other than damsels in distress.
I wasn't too fond of the art in this volume. It's changed a lot from the original stories that I read and is a bit clunky for my tastes. I am also a bit wary of Bedelia's plot involving the mother who abandoned hert as a lot of the characters are pressuring her to forgive. I hope the conclusion to that is a bit more nuanced. I truly loathe the way these graphic novels are printed with so many ads in them. But that's been a problem since the beginning. If you liked the first books in the series, volume 5 continues the story and stays true to the characters.
I wasn't too fond of the art in this volume. It's changed a lot from the original stories that I read and is a bit clunky for my tastes. I am also a bit wary of Bedelia's plot involving the mother who abandoned hert as a lot of the characters are pressuring her to forgive. I hope the conclusion to that is a bit more nuanced. I truly loathe the way these graphic novels are printed with so many ads in them. But that's been a problem since the beginning. If you liked the first books in the series, volume 5 continues the story and stays true to the characters.
September 7, 2024
I'm returning to this series after wandering away from it back into 2016. It's quite enjoyable so I think it must have been that my old library didn't have the later volumes. But my new library does, so let's dive back in!
Princess Adrienne Ashe is on a quest to reunite her family by freeing her sisters from the various towers where they are being held as damsels in distress. On the way to the latest rescue, she makes a side trip to visit the family of her traveling companion, Bedelia Smith. While Bedelia works out her mommy issues, Adrienne travels on with a dwarf and takes the opportunity to ask her some burning questions about her same-sex marriage.
Meanwhile, Adrienne's brother, Prince Devin Ashe, is building his own adventuring group as he searches for his and Adrienne's abducted mother.
Likable characters work through emotional problems with the occasional battle or monster attack. I'm pretty much back up to speed and eager to see where it goes from here.
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents:
• Untitled [Princeless: Make Yourself #0] / illustrated by Alex Smith
• Enter the Dragon Slayers [Princeless: Make Yourself #1] / illustrated by Emily Martin
• Under Misty Mountains [Princeless: Make Yourself #2] / illustrated by Emily Martin
• 10 Painfully Awkward Conversations [Princeless: Make Yourself #3] / illustrated by Emily Martin
Princess Adrienne Ashe is on a quest to reunite her family by freeing her sisters from the various towers where they are being held as damsels in distress. On the way to the latest rescue, she makes a side trip to visit the family of her traveling companion, Bedelia Smith. While Bedelia works out her mommy issues, Adrienne travels on with a dwarf and takes the opportunity to ask her some burning questions about her same-sex marriage.
Meanwhile, Adrienne's brother, Prince Devin Ashe, is building his own adventuring group as he searches for his and Adrienne's abducted mother.
Likable characters work through emotional problems with the occasional battle or monster attack. I'm pretty much back up to speed and eager to see where it goes from here.
FOR REFERENCE:
Contents:
• Untitled [Princeless: Make Yourself #0] / illustrated by Alex Smith
• Enter the Dragon Slayers [Princeless: Make Yourself #1] / illustrated by Emily Martin
• Under Misty Mountains [Princeless: Make Yourself #2] / illustrated by Emily Martin
• 10 Painfully Awkward Conversations [Princeless: Make Yourself #3] / illustrated by Emily Martin
February 27, 2017
I really enjoyed all of Adrienne's curious and thoughtful questions of social norms, It was a strong characteristic from the beginning and something I enjoy about her. It starts off with her thinking about what to do with her hair because a part was burned off. She thinks about the history of her hair (which is naturally kinky) past hairstyles that didn't work, jealous of her sisters naturally beautiful hair. There is even a reference to hair relaxer that tends to burn the scalp in order to straighten hair. There was a lot of sacrifice and time spent just on her hair and she realizes this and Cuts it off! I love the troupe of women cutting of there hair because frankly there is a ton of time invested in it and cutting off or short is just so freeing! We also meet the Dwarves in this one and I love the Warriors and the Lesbian Dwarves! I love that Adrienne is asking questions to the Lesbian dwarf she's currently on an adventure with and learning more about different relationships. There are so many characters on side quests right now I have a feeling it's going to get really epic! ~Ashley
February 11, 2019
Just when I thought Whitley couldn’t get better, he gives us a whole volumne of emotional character development, plus more of the you g Prince off to save his mother.
The issue in which Adrienne talks about her hair, and all that she’s been through in her life being told that it was too kinky, too much, not pretty got me right in the feels. A necessity for any woc I think. Plus queer female warrior dwarves being both bad ass and brilliant mothers raising their daughter?
Even though it’s a part one of two, and leaves a lot of story lines to be continued, I’d give this one 8 out of five if I could
The issue in which Adrienne talks about her hair, and all that she’s been through in her life being told that it was too kinky, too much, not pretty got me right in the feels. A necessity for any woc I think. Plus queer female warrior dwarves being both bad ass and brilliant mothers raising their daughter?
Even though it’s a part one of two, and leaves a lot of story lines to be continued, I’d give this one 8 out of five if I could
July 21, 2017
AHHHH WHERE IS VOL 6?!?!?!
January 17, 2017
Since it's more of a transition volume I would say it wasn't as great as previous volumes but still great! Lots of respect for the first issue in this series where Adrienne talks about her hair. I really hope there will be more in the series soon!
June 4, 2018
I actually wasn't as big a fan of this volume as the others--the artist changes and it threw me for a loop, and then the story divides itself into three and I don't think we get enough time with anyone.
February 20, 2017
reeeeeeeally awkward place for a cliffhanger imo but still a good volume ...er, half-volume
November 17, 2017
It's so frustrating when these end unresolved, but that's why it's "part one," I suppose. Even MORE frustrating the next one doesn't come out until 2018!
I do have some questions. about if sensitivity readers were brought in for the scenes where 1 of the dwarves in a f/f relationship discusses how she knew she liked girls to the MC. It seemed to be reading through a straight lens appealing to straight readers. The MC asks questions like. "You and Greta (the f/f couple), what's the deal with that?" and "were you always like this or was it something you chose?" which are questions I've heard when people are learning about sexuality, and may be questions kids who are reading this have (it's geared towards middle grade), but it felt written for a straight audience.
It's all handled very respectfully, but I'm not certain if it's the *best* way this conversation could have gone. I'll need to read reviews by lesbian and bi reviewers and trust their opinion rather than my own perhaps misguided one.
I do have some questions. about if sensitivity readers were brought in for the scenes where 1 of the dwarves in a f/f relationship discusses how she knew she liked girls to the MC. It seemed to be reading through a straight lens appealing to straight readers. The MC asks questions like. "You and Greta (the f/f couple), what's the deal with that?" and "were you always like this or was it something you chose?" which are questions I've heard when people are learning about sexuality, and may be questions kids who are reading this have (it's geared towards middle grade), but it felt written for a straight audience.
It's all handled very respectfully, but I'm not certain if it's the *best* way this conversation could have gone. I'll need to read reviews by lesbian and bi reviewers and trust their opinion rather than my own perhaps misguided one.
August 3, 2018
After their adventure in the swamp Princess Adrienne and her friend Bedelia pause for a swim. Bedelia, tired of Adrienne complaints about how hard her hair is to care for gives her a short haircut. Then they’re off to the cold of the mountains to rescue Adrienne’s sisters. Unfortunately, their means of transport is on the back of Sparky the dragon. Living in those mountains are dwarfs who assume they’re under attack when they see a dragon coming. Fortunately, a near battle turns into a family reunion, when the dwarfs recognize their relative Bedelia, despite her unusual height.
Meanwhile at a lower altitude, two princes and their respective bodyguards are also on quests of their own. Again, what might have been a battle turns into a shaky alliance, but will it hold up when they’re attacked by giant prince-swallowing earthworms?
It’s more sex-role-swapping, gender-bending adventure from Whitley and company, and lots of fun.
Meanwhile at a lower altitude, two princes and their respective bodyguards are also on quests of their own. Again, what might have been a battle turns into a shaky alliance, but will it hold up when they’re attacked by giant prince-swallowing earthworms?
It’s more sex-role-swapping, gender-bending adventure from Whitley and company, and lots of fun.
June 2, 2019
This volumes opens with a very powerful segment with Adrienne talking about her hair. As a woman of color and especially one that has been told since my earliest memories that I have "good hair", I found this segment very touching. I love Jeremy's ability to share the emotions of young women and leading the reader through the characters growth and individual choice. Adrienne does make a CHOICE about her hair and it's wondrous. This volume also has a home coming for Bedelia and a nice side adventure with two princes, some wolves and elves! A satisfying volume all around, excited for the next volume.
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July 5, 2017
Volume Five of this series about Princess Adrienne and her faithful sidekick, Bedelia and their bold adventures finds us on a mission to save the next of her sisters, the twins, Andrea and Antonia. First stop, however, is through the homeland of the dwarves, Bedelia's kinfolk. This is only part one of this adventure and it ended with a cliffhanger that leaves you wanting more. I love this series and am enjoying the female empowerment at its core. If you are weary of graphics, this one would be a great start to whet your appetite.
July 27, 2017
First of all, the issue at the beginning where Adrienne decides she no longer wants to adhere to the white standards of beauty her sisters follow and cuts her hair is one of the most empowering and beautiful things I've seen in a comic.
Second, there's such a variety of strong women in this, which allows them to be fully well-rounded characters. There's no token female who has to embody the spectrum of womanhood, which is so great. And there's more and more queerness, which I keep questioning because I'm not used to wlw being brought up so casually.
I love this series.
Second, there's such a variety of strong women in this, which allows them to be fully well-rounded characters. There's no token female who has to embody the spectrum of womanhood, which is so great. And there's more and more queerness, which I keep questioning because I'm not used to wlw being brought up so casually.
I love this series.
September 16, 2017
I have so much love for this series and I would have gladly given this volume a 5 because there was so much awesome stuff in the book. Such as openly canonically queer developed characters; an unexpected family reunion; happy feels for the result of breaking traditional dwarven gender roles and so much plot development to the overall story. However, there were soooo many pages of ads in this volume that it annoyed me to the point of only giving this volume 4 stars. This series is so good and I can't wait to read more.
October 6, 2018
3.5. The discussions of good hair and why some women like women I suspect are targeted at the juvenile readers, but they didn't do much for me (though the two dwarves' meet cute is charming). Still, this is fun, as usual, as Princess Adrienne continues on her quest to free her sisters and her dwarf sidekick Bedelia meets up with her family. And I must say I loved the scene with her and her grandfather, partly because it's refreshing ("Sure our tradition says women can't be smiths, but you're talented so who cares?" rather than No, No, No).
July 31, 2017
Princeless is one of my most stolen books in my classroom, so that always bodes well. This latest volume features Adrienne coming to terms with her hair, Bedelia coming to terms with her mom, and frank discussion about how you discover your own attraction to others and how no one quite figures it out the same way. Princeless is a comic with diverse enough cast that it is easy to find someone with whom to identify, and few things are more important in children's literature than that.
March 29, 2018
Princess Adrienne cuts her hair then with Bedelia, she heads off to the snowy wilds to rescue her twin sisters. Bedelia takes the opportunity to visit her dwarven family. Meanwhile Prince Devin Ashe is travelling thru the wolves' forest on a mission: he's going to rescue his mother. B's cousins are adorable, once they realize Sparky isn't violent. Also it's in this collection that Princeless proudly flies its queer colors. I read this for my 2018 Reading Challenge.
June 2, 2018
I’m giving this one five stars for the hair conversation in the very first section of the book and for the conversations Adrienne has with the queer dwarf lady. It just touched my little queer heart.
The story with Adrienne and Bedelia was really good, while the story with the princes and werewolf girl was not as great for me. I liked the introduction of an elf character, but the racial conflict and bullying was stressful, and the blonde prince is annoying.
The story with Adrienne and Bedelia was really good, while the story with the princes and werewolf girl was not as great for me. I liked the introduction of an elf character, but the racial conflict and bullying was stressful, and the blonde prince is annoying.
June 4, 2018
In which Bedelia deals with finding out that her mom is alive and just never checked in on her.....
AND Bedelia has to admit to her grandfather that Bedelia is a smith (evidently only men are smiths among dwarves).
The dwarf women are awesome. Who thought of catapaulting people to attack flying dragons?
In the meantime, Adrienne's brother has met up with an elf and the elf's companion, so there's a group of 4 looking for the Queen.
AND Bedelia has to admit to her grandfather that Bedelia is a smith (evidently only men are smiths among dwarves).
The dwarf women are awesome. Who thought of catapaulting people to attack flying dragons?
In the meantime, Adrienne's brother has met up with an elf and the elf's companion, so there's a group of 4 looking for the Queen.
July 23, 2018
The addition of elves and dwarves makes this story that much more enjoyable. I’m still liking Adrienne’s adventures and Bedelia is a wonderful side-kick.
But, this time, I found myself extremely annoyed that 30 pages in this 128 page volume were ADVERTISEMENTS for other comics. It had rankled me in previous volumes but this time it just felt abundant and overkill. And the high number of pages that had nothing to do with the story? That brought it down a star.
**UPDATE** Author kindly responded to my (untagged) Tweeted review of this volume and said “We had the same reation and addressed it with Action Lab. New printings will be ad free.” Many thanks to the author for responding – and sharing a consumers distaste for the ad-heavy version!
But, this time, I found myself extremely annoyed that 30 pages in this 128 page volume were ADVERTISEMENTS for other comics. It had rankled me in previous volumes but this time it just felt abundant and overkill. And the high number of pages that had nothing to do with the story? That brought it down a star.
**UPDATE** Author kindly responded to my (untagged) Tweeted review of this volume and said “We had the same reation and addressed it with Action Lab. New printings will be ad free.” Many thanks to the author for responding – and sharing a consumers distaste for the ad-heavy version!
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