Fables series discussion (spoilers)

[MoS]

Pretty sure the line-up is:
FABLES
JACK OF FABLES
The hardcover one-shot 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL

and something else, which, of course, I can neither remember nor find. I remember thinking at the time that Willingham was pushing his schedule with that many projects - and that many spin-off projects - going at once.

 

[Ultimate Houde]

Either way, that's exciting. One more question... Has Billingham stateed when and if there's going to be a definitive end to Fables?

He has stated before that he has an end in mind, ever since he started, much like all other Vertigo projects.

 

[Lynx]

Pretty sure the line-up is:
FABLES
JACK OF FABLES
The hardcover one-shot 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL

and something else, which, of course, I can neither remember nor find. I remember thinking at the time that Willingham was pushing his schedule with that many projects - and that many spin-off projects - going at once.

I think that's it as far as Fables goes. He has a new DC book comming, but it's not related to Fables.

And the reason they decided to do Jack as a spin-off was because he was a popular character, and Fables was too small to give him enough page-time

The OGN (1,001 Nights of Snowfall) has been a long time comming. I remember Bill talking about that when the first TPB came out. I'm glad we're finally getting it in October. It'll make the wait between Arabian Nights (And Days) and Wolves more bearable. Sometimes, I kick myself for tradewaiting this series, but its a nice format for re-reading (And I re-read Fables a lot).

He has stated before that he has an end in mind, ever since he started, much like all other Vertigo projects.

Yeah, but, unlike Preacher, its not a limited series. Basically, when Vertigo/DC wants to pull the plug on Fables (Which I don't see happening for a long time), he knows how it will wrap up.

 

[Zombipanda]

I glanced at an interview with Billingham, and thought I'd make two interesting clarifications.

There originally wasn't intended to be a Jack of Fables ongoing. Billingham was initially going to occasionally return to see what Jack was up to, but the character wasn't going to return to Fabletown. But one of the Vertigo editors called him up and asked him if he wanted to spin it into an ongoing. Jack's supposedly going to discover what happened to some of the American Fables (Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed,etc.) early on in the series. Willingham also said that in the long-term, Jack's stories are going to intersect with the Fables storyline. The stuff that happens in the first few arcs is supposed to have some impact on Fabletown, although the Fables won't know about it directly.

From the way he talked about Fables' future, it sounds like he has things mapped out for the big picture although the small-term isn't completely planned out. And the way he talked, it doesn't sound like things will be ending for a LONG time.

1001 Nights of Snowfall is supposed to tell important tales about the histories of Fabletown characters. Willingham said that a lot of the reason for releasing the anthology was that some of the stories he wants to tell in the main Fables book requires having that background out in the open.

 

[Entropy]

Last issue seemed somerhwat of an anti-climax and it left a bunch of dangling plots (a Willingham specialty, I realize). What happened to the Seventh Baby? Snow sent him/her/it to find Bigby something like a year ago. What drove the North Wind away? Who will Bigby's "ummm friend" turn out to be (since we are still following her storyline, there has to be something there)?

#49 was a really polarizing issue. You either liked it and agreed with it, or you hated it. I like it personally, and I think we're going to get really decked in the teeth by whatever's going to happen in #50. I also think the anti-climax of this issue was terrific, because everyone was looking for some kind of big event and the issue really was nothing more than it promised to be. The final setup for the actual big event.

To jump way to the other end of a discussion, does anyone else think that maybe the Snow Queen is Mr. North's daughter?

 

[MoS]

#49 was a really polarizing issue. You either liked it and agreed with it, or you hated it. I like it personally, and I think we're going to get really decked in the teeth by whatever's going to happen in #50. I also think the anti-climax of this issue was terrific, because everyone was looking for some kind of big event and the issue really was nothing more than it promised to be. The final setup for the actual big event.

I'm not in the "OMG! But Snow is Bigby's TRUE WUV! How could he!" camp, but I was, based on the buildup in the issue before, expecting several more dangling plots to be resolved or at least touched on. I've never even come close to disliking an issue of Fables, much less hating it, I just wanted a little MORE from this issue. Even so, I'd say he's just taking his time - I wouldn't call this padded or filler, I just want to know (NOW, dammit) what's been going on with some of the stuff that's been on the back burner for quite some time.

I met Willingham back in April at ECCC in Seattle - I took my first Fables trade in to be signed and I told him what I liked about the series (the huge cast of characters, the long-running plot lines, the fact that everyone seems fairly well-rounded-out). When I was done talking he looked up at me and said "okay, you can just stand right there - don't move - and keep saying things like that all day." We chatted about the series, about the wonders of writing monthly comics, original versus franchise characters and a bunch of other stuff - it was a lot of fun.

 

[Entropy]

I'm not in the "OMG! But Snow is Bigby's TRUE WUV! How could he!" camp, but I was, based on the buildup in the issue before, expecting several more dangling plots to be resolved or at least touched on. I've never even come close to disliking an issue of Fables, much less hating it, I just wanted a little MORE from this issue. Even so, I'd say he's just taking his time - I wouldn't call this padded or filler, I just want to know (NOW, dammit) what's been going on with some of the stuff that's been on the back burner for quite some time.

When I say "hate", I don't mean it in such strong terms, just as a general word for feeling the issue missed a mark. Sorry about that. Anyways, I'm sure that we're gonna get those other plotlines resolved in these upcoming issues. Like I said, this was just the final windup for a new headlong rush. We're gonna see major resolutions with Bigby, Snow, and the Cubs, something is up with North, Cindy is going on secret missions, Gepetto is holding a council of war in the Homelands. It's all coming. Personally, I was glad he did the issue this way. Bigby's disappearance has been the biggest dangling thread for some time, and throwing a curveball (and realistic) resolution at us was enjoyable to me.

You know, speaking of dangling plot threads, one I hope we get addressed in the upcoming OGN is just HOW powerful is Bigby. I mean, we've always known he was a beast, but when they started talking about how North could take out a d'jinn and it would be fun for him it made me that Bigby might be a HELL of a lot more than we've seen.

I met Willingham back in April at ECCC in Seattle - I took my first Fables trade in to be signed and I told him what I liked about the series (the huge cast of characters, the long-running plot lines, the fact that everyone seems fairly well-rounded-out). When I was done talking he looked up at me and said "okay, you can just stand right there - don't move - and keep saying things like that all day." We chatted about the series, about the wonders of writing monthly comics, original versus franchise characters and a bunch of other stuff - it was a lot of fun.

Lucky bastard :evil:.

 

[MoS]

Lucky bastard :evil:.

Technically speaking, the correct phrase with which to refer to me would be "lucky bi*ch" but I'll accept the other in the spirit in which it was meant.

Two more weeks to #50. Wonder if we'll get a preview?

 

[ProjectX2]

Is #50 the start of a new arc, or some oversized conclusion to all these loose arcs that have been happening?

 

[Entropy]

Is #50 the start of a new arc, or some oversized conclusion to all these loose arcs that have been happening?

Both kinda. It's gonna resolve some long standing questions, such as what happened to the seventh cub and what Prince Charming has planned for Bigby, but it's also gonna kick off all kinds of new craziness. It's the kind of thing that has people REALLY chomping at the bit.

 

[Iceshadow]

I just got into this series a few days ago and have read all the trades except for vol. 3, and 5. Wooden Soldiers and Animal Farm have been my favorite arcs so far, and Bigby is definantly my favorite character. I can't wait for the next trade .

 

[Entropy]

For anyone who is interested, here's a link to James Jean's cover for Fables #50 in several stages. Damn it, I wish I had the money to afford these things, JJ just does superb work. As it stands though, this is as close as we're going to get to a preview until release. Enjoy.

http://www.processrecess.com./

I just got into this series a few days ago and have read all the trades except for vol. 3, and 5. Wooden Soldiers and Animal Farm have been my favorite arcs so far, and Bigby is definantly my favorite character. I can't wait for the next trade.

You need to read vol. 3 and 5. Storybook Love was probably my favorite storyarc and Mean Seasons was also great. So was Arabian Nights (and Days) despite the lack of Bigby.

Oh, and Willingham had some news on 1,001 Nights of Snowfall over at Fabletown. As quoted directly

I suspect this will be my final update on the progress of the Fables 1001 Nights of Snowfall OGN. It's all done: written, illustrated, colored, lettered, etc. Today I did my final read-through of the entire book, looking for typos and such, before handing the thing over to DC's final proofreader on Wednesday, which is the last step before going to press. We're going to press on this early because we're producing advanced galley editions of the book to send out to bookstores (to help them gague their ordering) and as review copies and such -- in essense treating this like real book publishers treat real books. this is the first time I've had the entire book together in one (huge) package and been able to read it front to back. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out. The artists did their best career work to date (in my humble opinion) and I'm the lucky dog who gets to ride their amazing talents to whatever glory this book eventually receives.

 

[Iceshadow]

You need to read vol. 3 and 5. Storybook Love was probably my favorite storyarc and Mean Seasons was also great. So was Arabian Nights (and Days) despite the lack of Bigby.

I ordered them yesterday and should get them soon.

Edit: I was just checking out that site on page one, and I noticed that the girl Bigby has been with was named Sarah Tanaraq, is she Sasquatch (or possibly the Wendigo)? I'm reading these in trades, so I haven't seen the issue yet.

 

[Iceshadow]

Was 50 out this week? If so how was it?

 

[Dr.Strangefate]

AMAZING

I won't spoil anything until other people read it.

I'm just happy Bigby's back in town.

 

[Zombipanda]

http://www.wizarduniverse.com/magazine/wizard/000513718.cfm

New interview with Willingham. It reveals some juicy stuff about what happens after 50 (which I still haven't picked up yet), but there aren't any real spoilers to worry about.

 

[Ultimate Houde]

my LCS was out of it!

Mother ****er!

 

[Zombipanda]

YEAH! I just read issue 50 and it left me grinning ear to ear.

We get two stories. One deals with the secret mission Charming brought Bigby back for and the other deals with Bigby and Snow's wedding. The first puts provides an interesting coda to March of the Wooden Soldiers, while also tying in Blue's adventures in the Homelands. The second resolves practically all the issues surrounding Bigby and Snow's family, and the search for Bigby.

It really felt like a particularly well done season finale. Almost all the plot threads that have been floating around for a while are tied up nicely. If he had chosen to, Willingham could have used this as the last issue of the series altogether, and it would have worked. But at the same time, he has enough material that he can continue indefinitely and still have it seem fresh. The state of affairs for the next batch of story arcs is changed substantially, but is still incredibly familiar.

And the preview of Jack of Fables is smooth as hell. I was worried it was going to feel like too much of a rehash, but if the five page preview is any indication, it's really going to be different.

I've never been more excited for Fables in my life.

I was unsure about one thing though...

Spoiler

Did the Blue Fairy survive the explosion, you think? Bigby had to drag Pinnochio and Geppeto out of the cabin to safety. But the Fairy didn't get the same luxury.

 

[Fuzzy Birds]

Now that is how you do a landmark issue. It felt like everything was naturally building up to this issue, and there was really a sense of (pseudo) closure for a few of the story elements of the series so far. The quality of this title is just consistently reliable and always entertaining.

And Jack Of Fables looks and reads pretty great too!

 

[MoS]

And September is the ALL FABLES ALL THE TIME month! (Well, ignore that two of the solicits are actually for October):

FABLES: 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL HARDCOVER
Written by Bill Willingham, art by Charles Vess, Brian Bolland, John Bolton, Michael Wm. Kaluta, James Jean, Tara McPherson, Derek Kirk Kim, Esao Andrews, Mark Buckingham, Mark Wheatley and Jill Thompson, cover by James Jean.
An original hardcover collection written by Fables creator Bill Willingham set in the early days of Fabletown, long before the Fables series began! Featuring sequences illustrated by Charles Vess, Brian Bolland, John Bolton, Michael Wm. Kaluta, James Jean, Mark Buckingham, Jill Thompson and more, 1,001 Nights of Snowfall is both an entry point to the critically acclaimed series and an essential part of Willingham's enchanting and imaginative Fables mythos.

Traveling in Arabia as an Ambassador from the exiled Fables community, Snow White is captured by the local sultan who wants to marry her (and then kill her). But the clever Snow attempts to charm the sultan instead by playing Scheherazade, telling him fantastic stories for a total of 1,001 nights. Running the gamut from horror to dark intrigue to mercurial coming-of-age, Fables: 1,001 Nights of Snowfall reveals the secret histories of familiar Fables characters through a series of compelling and visually illustrative tales.
144 pages, $19.99, in stores on Oct. 18.

FABLES #53
Written by Bill Willingham,art by Mark Buckingham and Steve Leialoha and Joshua Middleton, cover by James Jean.
Geppetto's conference of imperial leaders continues in the Homelands as they discuss the ultimate fate of Fabletown. The Nome King wants war, Prince Hansel wants reprisals, and the Snow Queen wants a program of assassination. Will anyone argue for diplomacy? Plus, a backup story by Joshua Middleton.
32 pages, $2.99, in stores on Sept. 13.

FABLES #1 SPECIAL EDITION
Written by Bill Willingham, art by Lan Medina and Steve Leialoha, cover by James Jean.
A specially priced reprint of Fables #1, featuring a sneak peek at Fables: 1,001 Nights of Snowfall. This is the issue that introduced Jack, Snow White, Bigby Wolf and the citizens of Fabletown, setting the stage for Bill Willingham's Eisner award-winning Vertigo series. A perfect entry point for new readers, this issue also includes ads highlighting Fables collected editions and more.
32 pages, 25 cents, in stores on Oct. 11.

JACK OF FABLES #3
Written by Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges, art by Tony Akins and Andrey Pepoy, cover by James Jean.
Jack is determined not to remain a prisoner in the Golden Boughs Retirement Village, run by the mysterious Mr. Revise and his army of evil librarians. Jack's planning the great escape of all captive Fables, but we've seen what happens to most of Jack's schemes before. Does this one have a chance of working or is he doomed to remain a prisoner for centuries to come?
32 pages, $2.99, in stores on Sept. 27.