Lumberjanes, Vol. 12: Jackalope Springs Eternal

Lumberjanes #12

by Shannon Watters (Writer, Creator), Kat Leyh, Aime Sotuyo (Illustrator)

When Counselor Jen takes the Roanoke scouts on a mission to find a Jackalope, they end up stumbling on a young cowgirl who’s been living in the woods surrounding camp with her herd of unusual critters!

In the aftermath of the time shenanigans set off by Jo’s Mysterious Time Thingy, the Roanoke scouts are a little bit uneasy on their feet. It’s up to Jen to cheer them up and help them get back up and off adventuring again, with a quest to seek out the most mysterious mythological monster of all…the mighty JACKALOPE! This New York Times bestseller and multiple Eisner Award and GLAAD Award-winning series features danger, adventure, and life-long friendships. Get in on the fun with this brand-new adventure written by Shannon Watters and Kat Leyh (Super Cakes) and illustrated by Ayme Sotuyo.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Comics, Young Adult, LGBT, Middle Grade, Fiction

111 pages, Paperback

First published July 30, 2019

About the author

Shannon Watters is the co-creator and co-writer of the award-winning, New York Times best-selling comic book series LUMBERJANES, as well as the hit graphic novel HOLLOW, and a writer of animation, comics, and prose. She is also an acclaimed editor and the former founder/editorial head of BOOM! Box line at BOOM! Studios, the imprint behind critically acclaimed comics and graphic novels like GIANT DAYS, THE BACKSTAGERS, LUMBERJANES, FENCE, GOLDIE VANCE, HEAVY VINYL, THE AVANT-GUARDS, and many, many others. She loves vintage nonsense, cooking elaborate meals, and funny words. She lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews

[Baba]

A rather inane three comic book issue adventure is followed up by a standalone about (out of nowhere) the resurrection the camp newsletter in one of the weakest volumes to date, where character and main plot development seem to have taken a vacation! 5 out of 12. At least there's still the female icon exclamations, which in this volume included Sweet Grace Olive Wiley!

[Calista]

What has happened to the art of this story. It is really terrible now. The characters hardly look like themselves. The story was okay. I enjoyed the Western cowgirl with the mythical herd. That was good, but the story still felt thin. It's missing something.

I think it's time to bring this to a close. It has really gone downhill. This was almost painful to read at times. Everything needs an ending. Let's have it.

[Marc *Dark Reader with a Thousand Young! Iä!*]

The magic is back.

This is the first volume in a while that I feel lives up to the storytelling quality of the early series entries. It doesn't even need the entire four-issue collection to achieve this; the main sub-story here takes only three parts to tell, and it is glorious. Lots of great reveals and story beats. The final issue included here is a standalone story involving the Zodiac cabin and a camp newsletter, and even though it's an aside to the main storyline (or is it? Time will tell) it nails its characters, pacing, and storytelling.

[Renegade Librarian Extraordinaire]

Unfortunately, this series is kind of losing steam for me. I still love the characters, but it seems like the same plot is getting recycled over and over for each volume:

The 'Janes go into the forest around the camp, encounter *insert quirky new character* and/or *insert Monster of the Week* and working together to the MAX, solve Mysterious Mystery and/or Big Problem that threatens the Camp...and, having learned *insert valuable lesson*, arrive back to camp just in time for S'mores (or some other traditional campish activity). And all is well and happy... Until next time... *insert possible cliffhanger HERE!*

Seriously, these things write themselves. Disappointing, because when this started out it was so fresh and creative, but, as with all fresh and creative ideas that don't know when to stop, this was just...well... MEH! And, unfortunately I can't see it getting any better unless something MAJOR changes.

Not sure I'll continue reading this series.

p.s. WHAT happened to the artwork? The characters all look like potatoes in here!

[giulia ✿]

I love lumberjanes but the latest volumes have been really a miss for me. I hope this will pick up again at some point.

[Rachel (Kalanadi)]

The stories are still cute and enjoyable but I really dislike the current artist's style...

[rachel, x]

#1) Lumberjanes, Vol 1: Beware the Holy Kitten ★★★☆☆
#2) Lumberjanes, Vol. 2: Friendship to the Max ★★☆☆☆
#3) Lumberjanes, Vol. 3: A Terrible Plan ★★★★☆
#4) Lumberjanes, Vol. 4: Out of Time ★★★★☆
#5) Lumberjanes, Vol. 5: Band Together ★★★★☆
#6) Lumberjanes, Vol. 6: Sink or Swim ★★★☆☆
#7) Lumberjanes, Vol. 7: A Bird-Eye's View ★★★★☆
#8) Lumberjanes Vol. 8: Stone Cold ★★★★☆
#9) Lumberjanes Vol. 9: On a Roll ★★★★☆
#10 Lumberjanes, Vol. 10: Parents' Day ★★★★☆
#11) Lumberjanes Vol. 11: Time After Crime ★★★★☆
#13) Lumberjanes Vol. 13: Indoor Recess ★★★★☆
#14) Lumberjanes Vol. 14: X Marks the Spot ★★★☆☆
#15) Lumberjanes Vol. 15: Birthday Smarty ★★★☆☆
#16) Lumberjanes Vol. 16: Mind Over Mettle ★★★★☆
#17) Lumberjanes Vol. 17: Smitten in the Stars ★★★☆☆
#18) Lumberjanes Vol. 18: Horticultural Horizons ★★★☆☆
#19) Lumberjanes Vol. 19: A Summer to Remember ★★★☆☆
#20) Lumberjanes Vol. 20: End of Summer ★★★★★

quick thoughts:

i can't even explain why, but this is maybe my favourite volume in the whole series.

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[Ashley Marie]

So cute! I loved the jackalope storyline and meeting Emmy. The newsletter one was fun, especially for Ace Reporter Marigold!

[Alison]

Review here: https://youtu.be/4XTuWS7sOds

[Václav]

Lumberjanes went down with quality and originality of stories quite fast, but I was missing to realise the art went down too. Got simpler, easier, dull. And while the true execution of the comics was like a roller-coaster, the visual side went slowly down. One thing is the covers. They are usually brilliant. But comics art got very simplistic and except cute monsters, it lacks, especially in people. Anyway, Lumberjanes has usually nice ideas, and even they are not really unique, they're fun. But never really well used, elaborated. Lumberjanes plays with that like a toddler with the toys. Drop one, take another look, abandon this one, focus on this here... The idea about a girl and her pets was a cool, but very short and superficial effort. Here and there is more to the Lumberjanes than meets the eye, but the rest is eventually still just comics for the kids.

[Amanda]

So much fun!

[anna ✩]

4 stars!

These are always super fun to read

[Paula Phillips]

After the Voice nearly ruined the Lumberjanes camp in Volume # 11, this volume starts quite depressing with the Lumberjanes losing their zest as everything they had come to love was nearly taken away from then and now they are in the mindset that anything dangerous and magical might ruin their life as they know it. Jen their cabin leader doesn't like the atmosphere and she wants her fun and adventurous girls back instead of having them mope around the cabin. Jen knows deep down that the Roanoke cabin can't resist finding new creatures and so she invents a Jackalope which of course the cabin believes is mythical and doesn't exist yet Jen isn't ready to give up on the jackalope hunt. During the girls hunt for the Jackalope they come across a cowgirl who has a set of creatures that are one-eyed and considered freaks. She has been hunting a tornado twister that took her Pa one night and she has tracked it down to the Lumberjane camp. Can the girls help her find her father and discover a jackalope in the midst of it all? Meanwhile at the camp, the Zodiac cabin has decided to create a newsletter and Diane was in charge of Horoscopes though she gave the job to Cassandra and has now unlocked Cassandra's families curse and unleashed a horror on the camp? Can Diane fix what she has broken with the Zodiac cabin's help? Find out in Volume #12 for more magic and mayhem from the Lumberjanes camp. I don't normally get into graphic novels but this is one series that I have fallen in love with and now since I am up-to-date have to wait patiently for a next volume to be released. The Lumberjanes series is the perfect reads that can work for any age from 8+ to adulthood as every generation will find a different reason for loving and enjoying the Lumberjanes.

[Victoria]

Think I'm losing interest in this comic. It used to be one of my big favourites but i don't know, it feels like the plot just keeps repeating itself. I'm also not really enjoying the art anymore, it's okay but it's just not something that makes me wanna read on...

[Enne]

2.5 stars
I liked this volume! I just... don't think I'll remember anything about it in a couple of weeks. To be fair, it's been four days since I've read this and I barely remember what happened in this book. I think I'm just... a bit bored of the Roanokes getting all the page time in these novels. And I know they're the main characters and that we're getting to know them more with each one and all that stuff!! But I'm also finding myself a lot more interested in the Zodiacs or literally anyone else at camp. These are starting to feel a bit... formulaic to me. Although I did really the new character introduced in this and I hope we get to see more of her!

[Rob]

Story
The story doesn't really seem to be going anywhere, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I'd like to know more about the mysteries of the camp, but it can just be fun to read some self contained adventures of the Janes.

Artwork
I'm not really sure if the artist has stayed the same or not, but I generally have always found it pretty good. My favorite artwork is always the covers or alternate covers they include at the end of the trades though.

[Lauren the Reader]

I always love seeing more of the zodiacs!

[Magical_Bookworm]

This volume was so disappointing. The new art style is the worst that this series has had so far. The characters didn't look like themselves. The main storyline felt flat, repetitive, and it was only 3/4 of the volume. The last quarter was this weird one shot thing that didn't connect with the storyline in this volume or any of the previous volumes. I honestly don't know if I want to continue on with this series.

[Filipa]

*3.5stars
Very random but a lot of fun, made me laugh out loud at times. Really enjoyed chapter forty-eight.

[Chris Lemmerman]

This one's just fun, if I'm being honest. After the gloom and doom of the previous volume, this one gets a bit more loose and simple, with the 'Janes trying to rise their spirits after said gloom and doom, as well as making some new animal friends along the way. It's nothing too deep, there's no moral to learn or anything this time, it's just fun, which is nice every once in a while.

There's also a one-shot story included as well which focuses on the new Lumberjanes newsletter which puts the focus on some of the other campers rather than our main ones which is also a nice change of pace.

Ayme Sotuyo continues what appears to be an unbroken streak of 12 issues on pencils which I think might be a Lumberjanes first as well.

[Dubzor]

Somewhere along the lines this comic lost something. I mean...it was never super gritty or dark or anything, but it felt like it used to swing for an older audience that it's currently gunning for. Which is not inherently bad...I guess? It just seems to me that if you wanted to redirect the series some kind of reboot is necessary. Especially since "The Infernal Compass" was definitely geared towards teens and older youth. Tonal whiplash and whatnot.

[Alex Nonymous]

This series is such an emotional rollercoaster. I've been so let down by the last few volumes that I told myself that if I didn't like this one, I'd give up on the series but this one was just so hecking charming that I guess I'm going to keep going. I feel like tonally we returned more to the tone of the first few stories and I love how one of the stories here focused on another cabin instead. It really helped fix a lot of pacing issues.

[Brooke]

This was cute. Nothing really happened, I still enjoy the friendships.

[Anne-Marie]

3.5 stars
I enjoyed the one-off plot with Emmy and the jackalope and the issue dedicated to B and Diane's cabin but there wasn't as much substance in this volume that pushed the overall story forward.
I'm hoping all the bits and pieces of the last few volumes will reveal themselves as part of a larger story soon!

[Kirsten Benson]

gorgeous! i love how so many shows/comics/stories i love feature at least one solid cowboy plot line :-) this one was so sweet n good in reliable lumberjanes fashion!

[Lauren]

2.75 stars

Lumberjanes, Vol. 12 was okay, but not what I was expecting. After the last couple of volumes, it felt like a big storyline was being set up, but I am now guessing that was not the case, as this volume felt like another filler story.

[Julie]

Yergh. This volume wasn't awful, but everything seemed so generic... the plots are getting formulaic and the art style and writing made the characters almost interchangeable. I mean, any line in this could have come from any character, and the stories didn't put any of their individual skills or personality traits to use. The stories were just fluff.. and the art makes everyone kind of puffy with blobby hair. I'm pretty sure that if I hadn't been reading this series for 11 previous volumes I wouldn't have been able to recognize some of the characters.

[Cale]

While this is a fun volume, full of crazy creatures and interesting characters, most of it seems to have lost any sense of the summer camp. It may be because most of it takes place in the forest with a character from a different time period. Emmy's rancher character reminded me quite a bit of Sid Fleischmann's McBroom, with tall tale creatures and mighty winds.
I actually enjoyed the one-off issue about the camp newspaper just as much as the main story, and it had more of a camp feel to it. It also gave Zodiac cabin a chance to shine, which was a nice switch from the past few volumes.
All told, another strong volume.

[K]

Another great addition to the Lumberjanes series...where girls are adventurous, supportive of one another, exhibit strong leadership, are problem solvers, and work together as a team. The illustrations are great, friendship and empathy are always highlighted in each story, and they're just fun.

The girls go on a hunt for a jackalope, and in the process meat an girl who has lost her family while traveling by wagon to a tornado. However, she had accumulated a strange group of animals that were accompanying her on her journey. The girls befriended her and had to rescue her from the same twister that took her pa.

Uplifting & wholesome. I highly recommend this series for everyone.

[Ken Carter]

I really want this series to do something, but it feels like it's just kind of pumping out issues with no real distinct direction. At this point we're getting saturated with unique characters that we wont ever have time to explore later on, and we just keep meeting new ones with no real sense of direction. The voice was a good move, but now were just continuing aimlessly and not learning much new about the world. It's not bad, but it's not doing anything great anymore.