Bill Willingham

WINNER OF FOURTEEN EISNER AWARDS. This volume features two tales of Bigby's exploits during World War II as well as "The Year After," which follows the aftermath of the Adversary's attempt to conquer Fabletown-including the birth of Snow White and Bigby's children! Collects issues 22 and 28-33 of creator Bill Willingham-s celebrated Vertigo series.

Fables Vol. 5: The Mean Seasons

Fables

Dimitris Papastergiou

Great start and I FINALLY after ages ago that I started and re-started this one, I went back and picked it up again and started once again, thinking it's not for me and why I never finished it after 1-2 issues, but I don't remember and I have to say, it's interesting, it's just a slow burn and I'm definitely going to continue.

I guess what's keeping me back is the fact that the series is so long even thinking about it is stressing me out.

Good start, and hopefully it gets better and better.

March of the Wooden Soldiers

Fables Vol. 4

Wynter

May 8, 2017: Another great volume in the Fables series. This time Adversary decides to make a move into the Mundane world and he has a surprising ally. Some intriguing possibilities are uncovered here. Something tells me Pinocchio is to play a much larger role in the future. On the other hand Snow White and Bigby are about to embark on the new chapter of their lives. Oh yeah, and apparently Saskatchewan has a portal into the fairyland. Who woulda thunk?

Rowan Myers

Full disclosure: I'm reading this series after playing through Telltale Games' "A Wolf Among Us". I quite enjoyed this and I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series. I think this is a great start to something wonderful, and I'm looking forward to coming along for the ride. However, since the first of any series is usually an exercise in worldbuilding, this isn't my favorite group of comics. 

I will say that I do love the use of fables that aren't commonly used in stories like this. Bluebeard is a great villain regardless of where he's living. I do feel really badly about Aslan. :(

Isabela H 

I really liked this book. I don't usually like mystery books or mystery plotlines, but I immediately feel in love with the world and the concept of exiled fable characters. 
And the reveal scene?? Absolute perfection, I could almost see it as a movie

Follows the adventures of storybook and nursery rhyme characters who live side-by-side with humans.

Fables. Vol. 5, The Mean Seasons

Mark Anderson

Wolves

Kayleigh hughes

SPOILERS FOR PREVIOUS VOLUMES

There was a lot to like about this volume but it also had a few issues I just can't quite get past. After being exiled from Fabletown Bigby went on the run and since then Mowgli has been trying to find him with little luck. Mowgli finally finds Bigby and convinces him to come back to perform a secret agent style mission back in the Homelands in exhange for being able to reunite with Snow and their children. But when Mowgli finds Bigby he's shacked up with another woman. Why? Is this going to play into it somehow, will she be coming back? We know that Snow has been waiting for Bigby's return, so is this just to show us that he's a pretty shitty dude or is it about something else? He's supposedly loved Snow since they first met and he's always been a bit of a loner so why did he need companionship? I just don't understand what this serves and it felt kind of hacky. As for the actual mission he goes on - that I liked. It's pushing the story into an interesting direction and I think there'll be some action-heavy volumes coming up. I also really liked Cinderella's story arc in here, secret agent/assassin is a much better career than Stepmother's cleaner or Prince Charming's wife. She actually reminds me a bit of Buffy minus the vampires which could never be a bad thing right?

Ingrid 

It was okay, not my favorite. I think I will still continue with the series though.

Nick Ringwood

Better at night.
Like a bedtime story.

Really really enjoyed it, especially that last issue, and the short story at the end.
Cozy, and relaxing.
This is probably my 3rd time reading it, and I think it might get better every time I’ve read it.
Really enjoyed it, looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
Art reminded me of Dave Gibbons work on Watchmen, but more cozy and less horrifying.
A really good read.

Mark Buckingham

Animal Farm

2nd time reading it.
Was initially dreading it, as it cut me off from reading the rest of the series last time, but this time I’m going to push through.
It wasn’t great, and I didn’t love the new art here, especially with some faces looking downright ugly at times, (King Louie and Bigby in particular for a few scenes) but I think I enjoyed it a little more than the first time, and I kinda liked the politics and story of it, Despite Snow White coming off as an idiot in this one.
Looking forward to reading the rest, hopefully the next one’s good.

storybook love

Really enjoyed it, not every part was perfect, some art like Bigby’s face was a little funky at times, but it was really enjoyable on the whole, including the art, which had a real late 90’s style to it, and the characters and story were good, and I had fun, and it had some really rewarding and savage parts that I didn’t expect. It continues to expand on and capitalize on the premise and ideas put forward by the previous installments of the series.
Look forward to the 4th.

It was decent.
Wish two of the big reveals weren’t spoiled for me, but there were still some interesting moments.
I do wonder if this will be a turning point in the series, though, as it made me wonder if I’ll like the rest as much as I enjoyed volume 1 and 3, but I’ll pick up the next one and find out.
The best part of this one was probably the flashback in the first issue, and the ending.

I’m consistently impressed by the way the author subtly weaves all of the intricate plot details together throughout not just the fables the series is based on, but the series itself, and, his working knowledge of military tactics and conditions, something that would be easy to take for granted when done well. I’m further and further convinced with each book that not only is he a veteran, but one who’s lived a life of experience, and who’s gotten wise to how the world works.
I think the series is one of the best examples of conservatism I’ve experienced, and it does so in a fairly balanced and level way.
Which I really appreciated.
I just really dig how he seems to think of and remember every fact that was previously brought up, and rewards you for noticing them and figuring them out.
There are some that are still unaccounted for, (how are the fables immortal, is it magic or science? How are fables created? By us, or are they another race from another land, like space, or Superman?)
But overall, these don’t detract too much from the really enjoyable stories.
The ones that -are- currently brought up, but we’re initially overlooked or forgotten about, create a lot of drama and compromising situations that move the story forward in an organic way. It flows.
These are great yarns, and it’s an ever-growing tapestry of rich tales that increase your knowledge and relationship of the characters here, like real people, and really breathes a lot of reality and life into them, and the story.

The art was not as good for the faces in this volume, uneven, and a little funky at times, especially Bigby’s, but not horrible, I still enjoy these books.

The good prince

Risa C

Probably the best arc in the entire series.

1001 Nights of Snowfall

I've been thinking about rereading Fables and I decided to start here.

I love this anthology for the beautiful artwork and for the amazing world-building it accomplishes. I was surprised by how many of the old story beats and arcs I remembered, but what I never forgot was how tragic so many of the characters' backstories were. Rereading this has made me hesitant about rereading the entire series again, because I was reminded of the emotional rollercoaster that's in store, but it also made me remember what I enjoyed so much about the series in the first place: an epic story of high stakes with flawed, compelling characters, set in the backdrop in a familiar world turned new and wonderful by Willingham's subversion of tropes and twists.

"The fearsome Mister Dark is dead, killed in a kamikaze attack by the only entity colder than himself: the North Wind, King of the Frozen Wastes, Ruler of the Cardinal Winds - and Bigby Wolf's deadbeat dad"--Page 4 of cover.

Becky

This was just as good as remembered. It’s the perfect start to a series about fairytale characters displaced from their home. There isn’t too much explanation of why they’re in New York but enough explanation so that you aren’t confused about what is going on. I adored seeing Snow and Bigby and I am definitely excited to continue reading.

Sees the conclusion of the beloved stories of Bigby Wolf, Rose Red, Boy Blue, Pinnochio and countless other timeless fables. The only question left to be answered is whether or not they will have a happy ending.

Farewell

Nat Welch

The greatest comic book series still being published.

Amy Troschinetz

Based on the premise I thought this comic would be lighthearted and mostly comical. However Fables is a grand war epic safely rooted in compelling character development and ingenious plot twists. This is the comic to start with if you've never read comics before.

Jennifer Merchant

Giulia Pianta

Mmm this one was.. nice?
Let's start in order.
the art style is not my favourite but I didn't hate it. It was actually easy to follow, and I liked that there was a lot of text, so the story could go a bit deeper and be more complex.

I also liked the premise of the characters from fairytales struggling on Earth and trying to fit in. The contrast between what we know of the characters and what they are in this story is bizarre enough to be enjoyable.

I think what left me confused is that I knew too little of this before going in, and it took me a while to figure out the genre. I thought it was going to be very serious at first, then maybe a noir, then something a bit too violent for my taste? and it took me ge5tting to the end to realise how I should read this. It definitely has more fun and comedy in it than I was expecting, and I think I was too focused on this being a serious crime story that I overlooked it, and missed out on the fun. Maybe I should give it a reread, knowing this it would definitely be better

I liked the story but I was just half-immersed in it. I wouldn't hate continuing with the series but it is not my priority now.

FABLES- THE DELUXE EDITION BOOK FIFTEEN concludes the sweeping FABLES saga, collecting issues #141 through the book-length final issue #150 and featuring a new introduction by series creator and writer Bill Willingham and a special sketchbook section by artist Mark Buckingham. Snow White and Rose Red prepare for the battle of their lives. Part two of the epic "Happily Ever After" storyline continues here. The end of the Fables world looms as an epic battle brews between two sisters. Will Rose Red follow fairy-tale tradition and betray Snow once more? And what role will Bigby Wolf play in their rift?a Author and creator Bill Willingham's critically acclaimed, award-winning series concludes here with FABLES DELUXE EDITION BOOK 15, collecting FABLES #141-150.

Fables the Deluxe Edition

Julia A.

Zoe Smolen

This was great! I love the mix of fairy tales and the real world that this creates!

So this is where, unfortunately, I start to lose interest in the story. Maybe it's using the more basic magic spells, maybe it's jumping between different story lines in multiple pages, but something just started to wear off when I was reading this installment in the series.

I can say that the attempt at espionage and making it seem political was a bit of a hit and miss, because I not only couldn't tell what the problem was, but also still fail to understand where the character committing this draws the desire to do this. Sure, he is a charming conman. but there isn't much to back up his murdering someone. There is also a definite lack of background to say that he would be smart enough to know how to go toe-to-toe with a political man.

The other story lines that were more sidebars were charming, but seemed to lack the draw that the main character lines created. The opener was skim worthy, in my opinion, and I don't quite understand what the point was for it to be there aside from fitting the "love" theme.

While I jumped into buying this third installment, I shall be waiting to purchase the fourth for a while.

Fables Vol. 5: The Mean Seasons

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