Paper Girls: Time Travel, Aging, and Our Future Selves
Paper Girls is an award winning comic book series created by Brian K. Vaughan, Cliff Chiang, Matt Wilson, and Jared K. Fletcher. The story follows four adolescent paper delivery girls in the late 1980’s who accidentally find a time machine and wind up in the middle of a future war. Time travel, dinosaurs, and futuristic Apple products ensue, setting the scene for a sensational and entertaining sci-fi adventure.
In between battles, the series presents interesting opportunities for the characters to explore how they feel about aging. The most striking examples of this are when two of the characters, Erin and Tiffany, travel through time and collide with their future selves.
Warning: major spoilers ahead.
It turns out your older self is still you.
During the first time jump, Erin is the first paper girl to come face to face with her adult self. It becomes clear that differences in age and time period separate their points of view, which makes younger Erin skeptical and slightly embarrassed of her older self. However, the older Erin tries to convince the younger to trust her, reasoning that she is her.
This scene reminded me of a conversation I had with an older friend who said they’re sometimes still surprised when their reflection reminds them of their age. It’s not like they had some transformational moment where they became an old person. This discontinuity is socially created. They’ve had more experiences and changed some because of them, but they’re still fundamentally the same person they have always been.
Fortunately, Erin ends up accepting this truth when it matters, trusting her older self to protect her and her friends.
Aging is about growth, too.
Tiffany is the only paper girl to not only meet her adult self, but also her older adult self, which provides an opportunity to see her develop over time. The youngest Tiffany is quick to respond to dangerous situations with definitive action and bravery. At the same time, she has struggled to deal with her everyday life and her parents’ high expectations, so she has spent inordinate amounts of time retreating to the virtual comfort of video games. Adult Tiffany also shows bravery, (literally) jumping at the chance to save the paper girls when needed. However, she is disillusioned with the world and other people, so she tends to act alone.
The oldest Tiffany is more restrained than the younger two. The understanding she’s gained through all of her adventures allows her to be brave in a different way, coordinating a less exciting solution that requires teamwork and intricate planning. Rather than jumping in to clash swords, she’s learned the value of patience, diplomacy, and hope.
This character arc shows the frequently under appreciated connection between aging and personal growth. Most people associate aging with decline and loss, but we can also gain emotional stability and wisdom learned through experience. For this reason, the oldest Tiffany is an essential part of the team trying to save the universe.
Working towards better societal perceptions of aging can start with realizing that we are all (hopefully) going to get older, accepting the continuity between our younger and older selves, and seeing aging as an opportunity for personal growth. Paper Girls is a valuable example of how popular media can build a thought provoking world where readers can explore these ideas with an exciting, adventure-filled backdrop that appeals to a wide audience.
This piece only covers one angle of the story. There is plenty of room to revisit this series to consider other topics, such as generational conflict and stereotypes. Stay tuned for more by following my page!
