Fables #156 – Bill Willingham, Writer; Mark Buckingham, Artist; Steve Leialoha, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: This continues to be a revival that captures the best of the original series era while adding in some fascinating new wrinkles. The main plot of the series has been the cubs on their “Great Adventures,” as one by one they return after finding trouble and danger in the woods. Connor found himself in the companionship of a fellow warrior—who turns out to be a sadistic hunter exacting his own twisted brand of justice. Fortunately, a surprising figure from controversial literature shows up to save the day. Blossom, meanwhile, unlocked a mysterious chest—and found a spirit inside who seems to have become her boyfriend. Ambrose is taking advantage of his newfound influence to turn the monster who tried to eat him into his assistant, and Winter is still missing—having been trapped in a miniature world inside a teacup. It’s a clever mix of plotlines that seems to have long-reaching consequences.
Then there’s the other players, namely Jack in the Green and Peter Pan. We’ve known Pan is the main villain of the new volume for a while, as he was one of the only characters who Willingham couldn’t use in the original run. He’s fascinating—and much darker than the first few issues let on. The twisted nature of his relationship with Tink is revealed, and it seems clear that his obsession with mortality and never growing up is as extreme as ever—maybe more so, now that he seems to be a man. When Jack confronts him in a restaurant in the Mundy, her naivete over the way law and justice works in this world ends with her in a dangerous situation—but it’s Pan who poses the biggest danger, as one brutal double-page spread shows. Halfway through this series, it seems hard to believe that everything that’s been introduced can be neatly wrapped up in only another six issues.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
