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Fables
Fables Vol. 12: The Dark Ages
Winner of Fourteen Eisner Awards
Collateral Damage
The great war between Fabletown and the mighty empire of the Adversary is over, and the victorious free Fables have brought their defeated enemy back from the Homelands to join them in exile. Their celebrations, however, are destined to be short-lived. As it turns out, not even beloved storybook heroes can escape the law of unintended consequences. In the post-war chaos of the Adversary's former realm, a terrible force is about to be unleased - an evil that threatens not just Fabletown but the entire mundane world.
Collecting: Fables 76-82
Collateral Damage
The great war between Fabletown and the mighty empire of the Adversary is over, and the victorious free Fables have brought their defeated enemy back from the Homelands to join them in exile. Their celebrations, however, are destined to be short-lived. As it turns out, not even beloved storybook heroes can escape the law of unintended consequences. In the post-war chaos of the Adversary's former realm, a terrible force is about to be unleased - an evil that threatens not just Fabletown but the entire mundane world.
Collecting: Fables 76-82
162 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 18, 2009
71 people are currently reading
2727 people want to read
About the author
Bill Willingham
993 books2,817 followersIn the late 1970s to early 1980s he drew fantasy ink pictures for the Dungeons & Dragons Basic and Expert game rulebooks. He first gained attention for his 1980s comic book series Elementals published by Comico, which he both wrote and drew. However, for reasons unknown, the series had trouble maintaining an original schedule, and Willingham's position in the industry remained spotty for many years. He contributed stories to Green Lantern and started his own independent, black-and-white comics series Coventry which lasted only 3 issues. He also produced the pornographic series Ironwood for Eros Comix.
In the late 1990s Willingham reestablished himself as a prolific writer. He produced the 13-issue Pantheon for Lone Star Press and wrote a pair of short novels about the modern adventures of the hero Beowulf, published by the writer's collective, Clockwork Storybook, of which Willingham was a founding member. In the early 2000s he began writing extensively for DC Comics, including the limited series Proposition Player, a pair of limited series about the Greek witch Thessaly from The Sandman, and most notably the popular series Fables
In the late 1990s Willingham reestablished himself as a prolific writer. He produced the 13-issue Pantheon for Lone Star Press and wrote a pair of short novels about the modern adventures of the hero Beowulf, published by the writer's collective, Clockwork Storybook, of which Willingham was a founding member. In the early 2000s he began writing extensively for DC Comics, including the limited series Proposition Player, a pair of limited series about the Greek witch Thessaly from The Sandman, and most notably the popular series Fables
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 540 reviews
December 27, 2023
Don't get me wrong i really like where this is going
But...
I don't like the stalling and the prolonging and the milking of the series, it looks like thats where we are headed.
A lot of events that isn't really important for the story at hand.
The new enemy is great he is invincible, nuts, pure evil, the only down side is who the hell is he? right? in a graphic novel full of fable celebrities we get a villain that isn't really that famous if he was famous at all, speaking for myself.. I am not sure if he is a legendary character or not.
I liked the small adventure in the end and i would have liked if it was a little longer maybe skipping the gepetto tour of fable town in the beginning would have been better for this issue.
Last but not least we have to say RIP and goodbye to our swashbuckling hero boy blue.
he died with a broken heart as many of us live with broken hearts...
But...
I don't like the stalling and the prolonging and the milking of the series, it looks like thats where we are headed.
A lot of events that isn't really important for the story at hand.
The new enemy is great he is invincible, nuts, pure evil, the only down side is who the hell is he? right? in a graphic novel full of fable celebrities we get a villain that isn't really that famous if he was famous at all, speaking for myself.. I am not sure if he is a legendary character or not.
I liked the small adventure in the end and i would have liked if it was a little longer maybe skipping the gepetto tour of fable town in the beginning would have been better for this issue.
Last but not least we have to say RIP and goodbye to our swashbuckling hero boy blue.
he died with a broken heart as many of us live with broken hearts...
December 29, 2021
A new threat pops up that's quite a bit scarier than the Adversary and the end result has the Fables running for the Farm.
But first, we take a peek at how little everyone in Fabletown likes having Pinocchio's father come to town. I like Allred's art in that issue.
The death that happens takes an awesome character off the board (for now) but leaves some very interesting consequences in their wake.
We'll see how all that pans out.
As far as this new threat goes, it appears that not everything the Adversary did was terrible. We find that out in this volume as the evil Mr. Dark gets loose from his bonds and flexes his muscles in our world. That he eats teeth was a particularly freaky touch that made a real impression on my poor psyche.
Well done, Mr. Willingham!
Recommended.
But first, we take a peek at how little everyone in Fabletown likes having Pinocchio's father come to town. I like Allred's art in that issue.
The death that happens takes an awesome character off the board (for now) but leaves some very interesting consequences in their wake.
We'll see how all that pans out.
As far as this new threat goes, it appears that not everything the Adversary did was terrible. We find that out in this volume as the evil Mr. Dark gets loose from his bonds and flexes his muscles in our world. That he eats teeth was a particularly freaky touch that made a real impression on my poor psyche.
Well done, Mr. Willingham!
Recommended.
August 31, 2019
I did wonder what was going to happen now that the war of the Fables has been won. I did have faith in Bill Willingham and this marvelous series, but I couldn't figure something out. Well, our friend Bill certainly came through for us.
There is a new big bad on the loose and its as a result of a power vacuum created in the fairytale lands. This dude is set free and he is one black magic baddie. All the magic that Fabletown has been using seems to be connected to this dude. It's really interesting and changing the story in a whole new direction.
Boy Blue has such a sad storyline this time. He find out there are consequences from the war for him. It broke my heart. Ghephetto has become a funny character in some ways. He is now in Fabletown and he's no idiot, but he hates the modern world and people hate him.
I though this was an excellent follow up to the last one story. I still say this story gets better and better and deeper and the characters change and the story twists and it just keeps going. It's an overlooked work in a lot of ways and this needs to be a Netflix show. It would be a great fantasy show and better than Once upon a Time.
This is fast becoming one of my favorite series.
There is a new big bad on the loose and its as a result of a power vacuum created in the fairytale lands. This dude is set free and he is one black magic baddie. All the magic that Fabletown has been using seems to be connected to this dude. It's really interesting and changing the story in a whole new direction.
Boy Blue has such a sad storyline this time. He find out there are consequences from the war for him. It broke my heart. Ghephetto has become a funny character in some ways. He is now in Fabletown and he's no idiot, but he hates the modern world and people hate him.
I though this was an excellent follow up to the last one story. I still say this story gets better and better and deeper and the characters change and the story twists and it just keeps going. It's an overlooked work in a lot of ways and this needs to be a Netflix show. It would be a great fantasy show and better than Once upon a Time.
This is fast becoming one of my favorite series.
March 15, 2021
The war is over , the Fables are victorious, time to celebrate? Hell no! With a nice turn and in a very fairy tale like way (which resonates well), Bill Willingham and co. set out the future of the series with the outcome of the huge power void made by the defeat of The Adversary. There's a number of cracking sub plots as well :)
December 19, 2021
it turns out there are some unintended consequences to defeating a centuries old empire in The Dark Ages. Parts of this are just gutwrenching. Mister Dark is creepy as hell and epitomizes the boogeyman brought to life. Plus, Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser.
June 18, 2019
The Dark Ages have begun! After the events of Vol 11, the Empire has fallen and Gepetto is now stuck in Fabletown subject to their rules and regulations. However, all is not well. Much like the collapse of the Roman Empire is popularly thought to have ushered in a "Dark Age" of chaos, the Empire's demise lead to ancient evils being unleashed. It gives another side to the idea of the Empire as merely an instrument of oppression.
It seems the Empire played a stabilizing force for dozens of worlds, it's destruction means a single power system has been fractured into multiple power centers, never mind whatever ancient evils kept at bay by the might of the Empire. This was a very ironic look considering the euphoria of the victory from the previous volume.
The Fables reacting to an overall instability in their reality as well as the introduction of "Mr. Dark" has taken the arc is a completely different direction. I am interested to see where this is headed and even after 12 volumes, Willingham is still going strong with a fun and entertaining story. The art was also really well done and I rather liked the style. No more spoilers. If you are a Fable fan read this new arc starting in the post-imperial reality. If you are new to this, Vol 12 is not the place to start unless you care nothing about the entire background. Go read Volume One. It's well worth it.
It seems the Empire played a stabilizing force for dozens of worlds, it's destruction means a single power system has been fractured into multiple power centers, never mind whatever ancient evils kept at bay by the might of the Empire. This was a very ironic look considering the euphoria of the victory from the previous volume.
The Fables reacting to an overall instability in their reality as well as the introduction of "Mr. Dark" has taken the arc is a completely different direction. I am interested to see where this is headed and even after 12 volumes, Willingham is still going strong with a fun and entertaining story. The art was also really well done and I rather liked the style. No more spoilers. If you are a Fable fan read this new arc starting in the post-imperial reality. If you are new to this, Vol 12 is not the place to start unless you care nothing about the entire background. Go read Volume One. It's well worth it.
December 29, 2019
Boy Blue has some insights into Rose Red’s love life.
February 27, 2023
Dopo la fine dell'arco narrativo di Geppetto ero curioso di vedere che direzione avrebbe preso la storia... e non sono rimasto deluso!
L'Uomo Nero liberato per errore durante i saccheggi che infuriano negli ex mondi imperiali! Favolandia rasa al suolo, le fiabe private di soldi e di armi magiche e nascoste in una Fattoria che è sempre più una polveriera dopo tutto il tempo passato a segregare le fiabe non umane.
E poi l'assenza di Azzurro e di Boy Blue (col ritorno del primo molto probabile, per il secondo chissà), le discussioni filosofiche sulla natura delle fiabe e dei loro ritorni, Geppetto a Favolandia... Il nuovo arco inizia benissimo!
L'Uomo Nero liberato per errore durante i saccheggi che infuriano negli ex mondi imperiali! Favolandia rasa al suolo, le fiabe private di soldi e di armi magiche e nascoste in una Fattoria che è sempre più una polveriera dopo tutto il tempo passato a segregare le fiabe non umane.
E poi l'assenza di Azzurro e di Boy Blue (col ritorno del primo molto probabile, per il secondo chissà), le discussioni filosofiche sulla natura delle fiabe e dei loro ritorni, Geppetto a Favolandia... Il nuovo arco inizia benissimo!
April 21, 2015
I think that this volume more than others in the series conveys such a powerful sense of loss and risk. In fact, it feels very melancholy. No doubt that was Willingham's intention. A character dies and it feels like an enormous hole is left in the Fable community. This volume touches on how someone can be such a part of your life and you take them for granted, until they are gone. I don't know if I will get over the loss of this person, and in that I feel I identify with the characters. The same has happened to me in my life outside of the pages of books.
Right now, theme of loss and death is hitting me hard, after having lost people and my beloved pets so recently. I feel that this is probably therapeutic for me, but it hurts, much like when a doctor debrides an infected wound.
Along with the harbinger of loss, there is a harbinger of a cloud of doom over the heads of the Fables. They have rejoiced in conquering the Adversary, but someone has awakened a sleeping giant who makes the Adversary look like a schoolyard bully. I really hope the Fables can band together and deal with this thread without losing more beloved members in the process.
I think this is another five star read. I find myself scared to pick up the next volume, honestly!
Right now, theme of loss and death is hitting me hard, after having lost people and my beloved pets so recently. I feel that this is probably therapeutic for me, but it hurts, much like when a doctor debrides an infected wound.
Along with the harbinger of loss, there is a harbinger of a cloud of doom over the heads of the Fables. They have rejoiced in conquering the Adversary, but someone has awakened a sleeping giant who makes the Adversary look like a schoolyard bully. I really hope the Fables can band together and deal with this thread without losing more beloved members in the process.
I think this is another five star read. I find myself scared to pick up the next volume, honestly!
June 7, 2015
ohhhh no this is not ok, not ok at all. Willingham is a cruel writer indeed.
June 3, 2023
With the war over and the Adversary captured, Fabletown needs to find a political solution. For one, Gepetto is forcibly retired - or at least they are trying. Naturally, many of the Fables don't want him to get sanctuary as it means his past sins are forgiven. CAN the things he did BE forgiven? Especially since he's far from repentent?
Then, there is a new big bad. You see, Gepetto wasn't entirely wrong when he bitched and whined about the order he brought and all the stuff that was left lying around unguarded now. And one such unguarded secret ... well.
One thing leads to another and it's destruction and mayhem without us really knowing who the new big bad is. One thing's for sure, though: he's fucking powerful if even Frau Totenkinder fears him!
Add to that the most serious repercussion of the war: ! Considering that was actually meant to , that was rather surprising - but no less sad ()!
Quite a kick in the proverbial nuts and one hell of a wake-up call. Very interesting!
Then, there is a new big bad. You see, Gepetto wasn't entirely wrong when he bitched and whined about the order he brought and all the stuff that was left lying around unguarded now. And one such unguarded secret ... well.
One thing leads to another and it's destruction and mayhem without us really knowing who the new big bad is. One thing's for sure, though: he's fucking powerful if even Frau Totenkinder fears him!
Add to that the most serious repercussion of the war: ! Considering that was actually meant to , that was rather surprising - but no less sad ()!
Quite a kick in the proverbial nuts and one hell of a wake-up call. Very interesting!
August 7, 2013
The Dark Ages is the perfect combination of things I love in any story: pathos, tragedy and a glimmer of hope. My personal favourite types of stories are not those full of nothing but despair and pseudo-grit but really those with a conflict between darkness and light. That is what this volume of Fables has.
Following the defeat of the Adversary in the previous volume, things look set to improve. The most interesting thing about the beginning of this volume is how Geppetto, once a tyrant and sorcerer, now has to readjust to life in Fabletown, among people who strongly dislike him. Things go from bad to worse however as in the Homelands a new evil emerges from captivity under the Adversary.
Again, it remains up to the individual to decide whether they like the look of this as a series. To me it remains remarkably consistent from novel volume to volume with the odd volume being better or worse. Again, I would liken it to a television show which has differing strength on an episode to episode basis but a strong overall narrative arc. Curiously Once Upon a Time seems to have been slightly inspired by this, but obviously take their own approach to fairytales (which I love).
Following the defeat of the Adversary in the previous volume, things look set to improve. The most interesting thing about the beginning of this volume is how Geppetto, once a tyrant and sorcerer, now has to readjust to life in Fabletown, among people who strongly dislike him. Things go from bad to worse however as in the Homelands a new evil emerges from captivity under the Adversary.
Again, it remains up to the individual to decide whether they like the look of this as a series. To me it remains remarkably consistent from novel volume to volume with the odd volume being better or worse. Again, I would liken it to a television show which has differing strength on an episode to episode basis but a strong overall narrative arc. Curiously Once Upon a Time seems to have been slightly inspired by this, but obviously take their own approach to fairytales (which I love).
November 19, 2017
This book kicks off with a new threat being unleashed, one that threatens the Fables. The artwork is very similar to the Hellboy pages and this is one of the best books in the series, more a reboot after Adversary conclusion. There are a few characters that meet bitter ends here and while it is shocking, it is clearly building to the next story arc of the series. The series is unpredictable and you never have a clear indication where it will go next. Great storytelling and an interesting series arc.
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October 22, 2011
Wherein we see the Adversary try to adjust to life after empire; bid farewell one last time to Prince Charming; learn what the fall of the Adversary means for different strata of Fabletown society; see a terrible new enemy unleashed by a pair of not-so-subtly familiar characters; witness the relase of Baba Yaga and the death of poor Kay; witness someone finally read the spoiled, self-centered Rose Red the riot act without caring what she thinks; and a hero dies needlessly, giving birth to what may be a new Fable religion.
This was an incredible volume. I love Mister Dark so far, and I think I'll enjoy him as the new central enemy. I also thought that his introduction was handled very deftly and believably. A series like Fables doesn't need a "big bad", not now that it's become as much about the characters and their lives as it has about warfare, but the explanation for Mister Dark's existence, release and rise makes perfect sense in context and helps explore the aftermath of an empire's fall.
This was an incredible volume. I love Mister Dark so far, and I think I'll enjoy him as the new central enemy. I also thought that his introduction was handled very deftly and believably. A series like Fables doesn't need a "big bad", not now that it's become as much about the characters and their lives as it has about warfare, but the explanation for Mister Dark's existence, release and rise makes perfect sense in context and helps explore the aftermath of an empire's fall.
April 13, 2025
After winning the war against Gepetto, the scene opens up with the Fables piecing together the preparations for stability and prosperity after getting rid of their centuries long nemesis and his armies, but things quickly devolve as a new adversary is set free by treasure hunters in one of the worlds left in chaos upon removal of the emperor's rule, so in conquering Gepetto, the fables have somehow inadvertantly released a new equally formidable, if not more, opponent.
This volume kick starts a new arc in the saga, and a sad farewell to Boy Blue, but would it be a permanent leave or would we see a resurrection of him and prince charming? there was a great deal of debate among the fables about their possible return since such important characters are fueled by mundy love, so they shouldn't die. or is it wishful thinking and denial?
I am looking forward to the new arc, hopeful of it maintaining the same level of captivating awesomeness of the first 11 volumes, or maybe even raising the bar...
MiM
This volume kick starts a new arc in the saga, and a sad farewell to Boy Blue, but would it be a permanent leave or would we see a resurrection of him and prince charming? there was a great deal of debate among the fables about their possible return since such important characters are fueled by mundy love, so they shouldn't die. or is it wishful thinking and denial?
I am looking forward to the new arc, hopeful of it maintaining the same level of captivating awesomeness of the first 11 volumes, or maybe even raising the bar...
MiM
August 14, 2019
There's some good bits here - good buildup of tension for a new threat after a somewhat underwhelming conclusion of the previous one, some shenanigans with a cranky old retired tyrant, cameos of some of my favourite sword & sorcery heroes, and Mr. Dark chatting with said heroes - but on the whole it's another small step down. The writing is less than solid, the characterization at a gradual decline, and the art is inconsistent: the story both begins and ends with guest artists who do a plainly terrible job, and there's been very little art in the story that I've actually liked, barring the usually good background and scenery.
February 19, 2019
A new chapter a new status quo.
World: The art is great, nothing much to say here, the framing and the character are just marvellous, Buckingham is a God. The world building here is great, it takes all the pieces and the consequences of the last arc and adds and builds upon it. It also opens up new little things we did not expect and the world is so much more interesting with this new arc. The status quo changes with this book and so does the overall world.
Story: I love that we had a little lull in the tension to give us some comedy and some lighter moments. After a war this was needed and those character interactions were great. Of course this is comics and the next thing has to happen and the natural progression of it is done well and a very interesting one. I love that larger implications that Ghepetto was hinting and and this is the result and it makes his argument and him as a character all the more interesting. The new status quo is interesting it’s jarring on purpose and I liked it. Then there is the two things that happen here that I won’t spoil but readers will now what I’m talking about. Heartbreaking and so wonderfully done that it lingers and changes things so much for the world and it’s characters. A great new direction.
Characters: I can’t talk about the obvious character cause that needs to be experienced, but I will say it was heartbreakingly good. The ripple effect of it was be amazing to read. The characters here get both a new direction and also a new purpose and I like that. I am being vague I’m sorry but yeah these characters are awesome and what they choose to do post war in interesting and what happens is interesting and I can see new arcs being formed for these characters and it makes me smile and shed a tear at the same time.
A new direction and a new arc begins here.
Onward to the next book!
World: The art is great, nothing much to say here, the framing and the character are just marvellous, Buckingham is a God. The world building here is great, it takes all the pieces and the consequences of the last arc and adds and builds upon it. It also opens up new little things we did not expect and the world is so much more interesting with this new arc. The status quo changes with this book and so does the overall world.
Story: I love that we had a little lull in the tension to give us some comedy and some lighter moments. After a war this was needed and those character interactions were great. Of course this is comics and the next thing has to happen and the natural progression of it is done well and a very interesting one. I love that larger implications that Ghepetto was hinting and and this is the result and it makes his argument and him as a character all the more interesting. The new status quo is interesting it’s jarring on purpose and I liked it. Then there is the two things that happen here that I won’t spoil but readers will now what I’m talking about. Heartbreaking and so wonderfully done that it lingers and changes things so much for the world and it’s characters. A great new direction.
Characters: I can’t talk about the obvious character cause that needs to be experienced, but I will say it was heartbreakingly good. The ripple effect of it was be amazing to read. The characters here get both a new direction and also a new purpose and I like that. I am being vague I’m sorry but yeah these characters are awesome and what they choose to do post war in interesting and what happens is interesting and I can see new arcs being formed for these characters and it makes me smile and shed a tear at the same time.
A new direction and a new arc begins here.
Onward to the next book!
October 23, 2020
I’ve always had a soft spot for fairytales: real fairytales. Fairytales are not “sweet”at their core; nor do they “happy endings”. Those tailored by Disney for children are just that -tailored/fabricated. I’ve always thought of them as cautionary tales. Fairytale characters are just like us -fallible, gullible, fragile.
November 10, 2018
Not sure how I can review this now. Kinda mad about a death. I hope something magical happens and he comes back.
October 4, 2022
12 volumes in and it was probably high time for the major shake up of the status quo that this volume represented, though it was still sad to have to abruptly say goodbye to some familiar settings, seemingly forever (barring flashbacks, of course).
The new antagonist promises to be deliciously chaotic, to be sure...No big surprise, then, that I'm all in for Vol. 13 and beyond!
The new antagonist promises to be deliciously chaotic, to be sure...No big surprise, then, that I'm all in for Vol. 13 and beyond!
April 21, 2011
Volumes 10 and 11 ("The Good Prince" and "War and Pieces") were so strong, that I was a little let down with "The Dark Ages." Because volume 11 brought a resolution to the series-long storyline of Fabletown vs. the Adversary, I saw volume 12 as the beginning a new storyline, with a new villain being introduced. Mr. Dark doesn't seem to be as compelling as the mystery of, "Who is the Adversary?," however he seems to be a formidable opponent for our Fables. For me, the highlight of this volume was Frau Totenkinder's conversation with Stinky the badger about the Mundy world actually being magical, "in a different way" (p. 135-136). I am glad that they are addressing the fact that the Mundy world is the only world in which stories of the Fables exist. It is important to ask the question, "Did the Fables create the stories and those who have written them, or did the stories create the Fables?" Is the Mundy world an even more magical world than the others, as it is a world of story makers? Is there some sort of Master Storyteller? Some of this has been touched upon in the "Jack of Fables" series, however, I am interested in a further exploration of this topic.
August 31, 2019
Even before the last war's dust has settled around Fabletown, new storm is brewing in a shadows lurking nearby.
With their losses piling up, spirit of its dwellers hanging by the thread and their way of life not seeing any respite from string of threats, the Fabletowners are up for harder times ahead it seems. As Dickens may have put it, "It was an age of crushed dreams. It was an age of rising nightmares." Farm is about to get more crowded than usual and become centre of operations as Bigby and his team of Avengers continue raiding the Adversary's remaining minions back in Homelands.
Hold on tight, the ride is about to get wilder...and messier!
With their losses piling up, spirit of its dwellers hanging by the thread and their way of life not seeing any respite from string of threats, the Fabletowners are up for harder times ahead it seems. As Dickens may have put it, "It was an age of crushed dreams. It was an age of rising nightmares." Farm is about to get more crowded than usual and become centre of operations as Bigby and his team of Avengers continue raiding the Adversary's remaining minions back in Homelands.
Hold on tight, the ride is about to get wilder...and messier!
February 12, 2014
And now the boogey man.... This was just okay. You can tell that the writer just doesn't want to continue this series, as it is kinda halfheartedly written. This villain would have been much better than Geppeto, and his puppet ruler.
March 6, 2018
3.5
There are things I really liked -- both in art and story -- and things I really didn't.
Also, I has an angry and a sad.
There are things I really liked -- both in art and story -- and things I really didn't.
Also, I has an angry and a sad.
July 19, 2018
Think for now I'll drop this series. It's just feeling really meh and killed off the best character. I'm good stopping here.
October 15, 2015
It's two stars partially because of the phrases Goodreads associates with star rating. It's an average volume of Fables, but I can't say that I "liked it."
This trade covers four stories. At this point I’ve given up and accepted the quality of these stories as the status quo for Fables. It’s also done made me do some things I didn’t think I’d do. Agree with Geppetto, multiple times. I'm taking out an entire star for the idiot ball that the main characters hold.
The first is “Around the Town” where we get to see Geppetto adjust to Fabletown. He doesn’t. The one small comfort about the fact that ruthless dictator Geppetto is given amnesty, when none of his wooden children are given a chance, is that he hates Fabletown. The feeling is mutual. On a related note, Rodney and June seem to have been dropped from the story.
Geppetto meets up with Snow, and she has a moment that I have mixed feelings about. Her “why-we-destroyed-you” speech is short and swift like the old, quick thinking Snow from the first volume, at the same time, it emphasizes her role of mother (Snow, he threatened your sister, husband, and friends too) and shows the issue that is going to get a lot of the Fables in trouble this volume: they don’t have a real plan for what to do with the Empire. There’s no time to take the cubs for a mystery birthday outing or have three people split hairs over the Geppetto mess when you have hundreds of worlds now rendered leaderless.
The final major event of this story is that Kai meets Geppetto. Kai was sent to bump into Geppetto to find out the true extent of Geppetto’s evil. Kai is horrified, blinds himself, and seems to be forgotten by the rest of Fabletown.
The art works, but Michael Allred makes no effort to keep some characters close to their original design. Pinocchio stands out the most, because he is drawn as just a boy in plain clothes with light brown hair; no square chin, tie, or jacket that makes him look like a wannabe mobster. Beauty suddenly becomes a brunette, her clothing seems more about emphasizing her beauty instead of the business wear she usually has. Frau’s features seem softer. The difference between his style and Buckingham’s is jarring.
“Dark Ages” introduces a new villain, who creatively names himself Mr. Dark. Name aside, Dark has solid motivation for a strike against Fabletown, since some of their most powerful magical devices were made using his magic, and magic always has a price when dealing with a Dark One. (Rim shot). Mr. Dark is extremely powerful and is a touch crazy, and he’s targeting some of the most powerful Fables, so I’m cautiously optimistic about this villain. I have mixed feelings about his power set. On the one hand, the destruction of Fabletown buildings is a good entrance, but his power to corrupt children has no pay off in spite of getting a cut to the North Pole to show it. Granted, the struggle is still not coming to the Fables, as they’re able to successfully evacuate before mundane police can question them.
Also, Boy Blue is suddenly dying. It’s a slow affair. He has a reunion with Pinocchio and Flycatcher.
Red has abruptly married Sinbad in the time since the war, but the sight of an injured Blue thoroughly shocks her, and she receives a brutal treatment for the rest of the volume. Snow and Bigby get her to snap out of her depression and go see a dying Blue, and in the process Bigby threatens to cut her off from the rest of her family. I’d like to point out King Cole does have depressive and nervous fits but is given Fabletown on a silver platter and receives treatment that is much less harsher when he has trouble functioning than Red. She also gets a verbal beat down from a dying Blue, who accuses her of still being a romantic thrill seeker. I thought that she had gone past that after she got the responsibility of the Farm and broke up with Jack. Blue’s put down causes her to spiral into depression and divorce Sinbad. The latter isn’t important, because we’re told it’s just Red being impulsive.
In spite of being the epilogue to “Dark Ages,” “Waiting for the Blues” is drawn with a drastically different artist who favors sharp lines, a cartoony style, and bright colors. This is set after the service for Blue. Stinky the Badger talks magic and stories with Frau and a young woman from the 13th floor, most likely to set up Issue 13. Frau requests that he study at the 13th floor, which is interpreted as an insult. It transitions to the reveal that, surprise, The Farm is not happy with the fact that it’s always ruled by human fables when it was made by human fables to hide the non-humans fables away from the mundanes. Stinky is convinced that Blue will return and lead the Fables of the Farm to equality because reasons. What has Blue done for The Farm again?
Sinbad decides to work on surveying the former Empire because he’s sick of tending to Red and is an adventurer at heart. Not out of any sense of urgency to prevent more mysterious dark wizards from attacking Fabletown. Just because he got a divorce.
There’s build up to a throw down between Beast and Bigby because Beast is enforcing the law, and that suddenly offends Bigby, who apparently can’t just stay in wolf manor anymore and finds it unfair that vowing to eat everything made the other animals distrust him, when they’re willing to keep Frau, Beast (who apparently has a body count), and Flycatcher. In spite of Fly being shown to only be willing to hurt a fly and gives the Farm fables a place in his kingdom, Bigby thinks that Fly is as big of a threat to the Farm because he has magic.
“Return to the Jungle Book” is my favorite of the bunch. Mowgli and Bagheera return to their home world of “Indus” to see if it can be reclaimed. They’re given Bigby’s brothers as bodyguards. These six are atrociously characterized and come off as even more annoying, immature, and generic than the cubs. Bigby also some how isn’t severely questioned by the kids for giving them their uncles as goldfish then taking them away. The only reason he was questioned by Winter may have been to set up a reminder for readers.
They meet the leader of the resistance in Indus, who is a clockwork tiger that served the “pale viceroys” before the Adversary attacked. I’d like to say I’m surprised that in Fables, white men rule the world of the Jungle Book, but I’m not. Just exasperated. Sure, it could be a reference to Rudyard Kipling’s nationality, but with the handling of Arabian Fables, I don’t feel like giving Willingham the benefit of the doubt.
Mowgli is a clever agent, and doesn’t have an ego problem to the same degree that Cinderella had the last time the story focused on her. Like Cindy, he has fun with his job. Mowgli also comes up with clever plans to deal with the adversary in Indus. Bigby’s brothers are turning into monsters and terrifying the goblin soldiers, and they’re disguised as the Adversary giving false orders, and one is impersonating Mowgli to lure the goblins into a feast. Mowgli is confident they’ll take back Indus, although Bigby is upset that his brothers are now agents, and he can’t push them around.
This trade covers four stories. At this point I’ve given up and accepted the quality of these stories as the status quo for Fables. It’s also done made me do some things I didn’t think I’d do. Agree with Geppetto, multiple times. I'm taking out an entire star for the idiot ball that the main characters hold.
The first is “Around the Town” where we get to see Geppetto adjust to Fabletown. He doesn’t. The one small comfort about the fact that ruthless dictator Geppetto is given amnesty, when none of his wooden children are given a chance, is that he hates Fabletown. The feeling is mutual. On a related note, Rodney and June seem to have been dropped from the story.
Geppetto meets up with Snow, and she has a moment that I have mixed feelings about. Her “why-we-destroyed-you” speech is short and swift like the old, quick thinking Snow from the first volume, at the same time, it emphasizes her role of mother (Snow, he threatened your sister, husband, and friends too) and shows the issue that is going to get a lot of the Fables in trouble this volume: they don’t have a real plan for what to do with the Empire. There’s no time to take the cubs for a mystery birthday outing or have three people split hairs over the Geppetto mess when you have hundreds of worlds now rendered leaderless.
The final major event of this story is that Kai meets Geppetto. Kai was sent to bump into Geppetto to find out the true extent of Geppetto’s evil. Kai is horrified, blinds himself, and seems to be forgotten by the rest of Fabletown.
The art works, but Michael Allred makes no effort to keep some characters close to their original design. Pinocchio stands out the most, because he is drawn as just a boy in plain clothes with light brown hair; no square chin, tie, or jacket that makes him look like a wannabe mobster. Beauty suddenly becomes a brunette, her clothing seems more about emphasizing her beauty instead of the business wear she usually has. Frau’s features seem softer. The difference between his style and Buckingham’s is jarring.
“Dark Ages” introduces a new villain, who creatively names himself Mr. Dark. Name aside, Dark has solid motivation for a strike against Fabletown, since some of their most powerful magical devices were made using his magic, and magic always has a price when dealing with a Dark One. (Rim shot). Mr. Dark is extremely powerful and is a touch crazy, and he’s targeting some of the most powerful Fables, so I’m cautiously optimistic about this villain. I have mixed feelings about his power set. On the one hand, the destruction of Fabletown buildings is a good entrance, but his power to corrupt children has no pay off in spite of getting a cut to the North Pole to show it. Granted, the struggle is still not coming to the Fables, as they’re able to successfully evacuate before mundane police can question them.
Also, Boy Blue is suddenly dying. It’s a slow affair. He has a reunion with Pinocchio and Flycatcher.
Red has abruptly married Sinbad in the time since the war, but the sight of an injured Blue thoroughly shocks her, and she receives a brutal treatment for the rest of the volume. Snow and Bigby get her to snap out of her depression and go see a dying Blue, and in the process Bigby threatens to cut her off from the rest of her family. I’d like to point out King Cole does have depressive and nervous fits but is given Fabletown on a silver platter and receives treatment that is much less harsher when he has trouble functioning than Red. She also gets a verbal beat down from a dying Blue, who accuses her of still being a romantic thrill seeker. I thought that she had gone past that after she got the responsibility of the Farm and broke up with Jack. Blue’s put down causes her to spiral into depression and divorce Sinbad. The latter isn’t important, because we’re told it’s just Red being impulsive.
In spite of being the epilogue to “Dark Ages,” “Waiting for the Blues” is drawn with a drastically different artist who favors sharp lines, a cartoony style, and bright colors. This is set after the service for Blue. Stinky the Badger talks magic and stories with Frau and a young woman from the 13th floor, most likely to set up Issue 13. Frau requests that he study at the 13th floor, which is interpreted as an insult. It transitions to the reveal that, surprise, The Farm is not happy with the fact that it’s always ruled by human fables when it was made by human fables to hide the non-humans fables away from the mundanes. Stinky is convinced that Blue will return and lead the Fables of the Farm to equality because reasons. What has Blue done for The Farm again?
Sinbad decides to work on surveying the former Empire because he’s sick of tending to Red and is an adventurer at heart. Not out of any sense of urgency to prevent more mysterious dark wizards from attacking Fabletown. Just because he got a divorce.
There’s build up to a throw down between Beast and Bigby because Beast is enforcing the law, and that suddenly offends Bigby, who apparently can’t just stay in wolf manor anymore and finds it unfair that vowing to eat everything made the other animals distrust him, when they’re willing to keep Frau, Beast (who apparently has a body count), and Flycatcher. In spite of Fly being shown to only be willing to hurt a fly and gives the Farm fables a place in his kingdom, Bigby thinks that Fly is as big of a threat to the Farm because he has magic.
“Return to the Jungle Book” is my favorite of the bunch. Mowgli and Bagheera return to their home world of “Indus” to see if it can be reclaimed. They’re given Bigby’s brothers as bodyguards. These six are atrociously characterized and come off as even more annoying, immature, and generic than the cubs. Bigby also some how isn’t severely questioned by the kids for giving them their uncles as goldfish then taking them away. The only reason he was questioned by Winter may have been to set up a reminder for readers.
They meet the leader of the resistance in Indus, who is a clockwork tiger that served the “pale viceroys” before the Adversary attacked. I’d like to say I’m surprised that in Fables, white men rule the world of the Jungle Book, but I’m not. Just exasperated. Sure, it could be a reference to Rudyard Kipling’s nationality, but with the handling of Arabian Fables, I don’t feel like giving Willingham the benefit of the doubt.
Mowgli is a clever agent, and doesn’t have an ego problem to the same degree that Cinderella had the last time the story focused on her. Like Cindy, he has fun with his job. Mowgli also comes up with clever plans to deal with the adversary in Indus. Bigby’s brothers are turning into monsters and terrifying the goblin soldiers, and they’re disguised as the Adversary giving false orders, and one is impersonating Mowgli to lure the goblins into a feast. Mowgli is confident they’ll take back Indus, although Bigby is upset that his brothers are now agents, and he can’t push them around.
June 29, 2023
The Dark Ages! The war is over, now the Fables need to confront the aftermath. Gepetto is a piece of work. Life after Empire is not easy. New relationships to figure out, old despots gone and treasure to be divided. This five-parter is pretty traumatic for Boy Blue, oh my.
We have a new bad guy and adversary. Who is Mister Dark anyway? The Bogeyman? The Tooth Fairy? A new story arc, anway…
Oh, interesting development for Gepetto!
Another one where I could have done without the various changes in artwork.
The next, shorter part is Homeland Recovery. The Jungle Book reunites us with Mowgli and Bagheera, they are off to explore the state of the enemy in the Jungle Book.
Collecting: Fables 76-82
Full review with some artwork at my Wordpress blog eventually…
We have a new bad guy and adversary. Who is Mister Dark anyway? The Bogeyman? The Tooth Fairy? A new story arc, anway…
Oh, interesting development for Gepetto!
Another one where I could have done without the various changes in artwork.
The next, shorter part is Homeland Recovery. The Jungle Book reunites us with Mowgli and Bagheera, they are off to explore the state of the enemy in the Jungle Book.
Collecting: Fables 76-82
Full review with some artwork at my Wordpress blog eventually…
February 18, 2024
Now that Fables is in the 'Public Domain', I thought it was time I read the entire series (including all spinoffs and specials) from start to finish in sequential tpb reading order. Here we go!
Fables First-to-Finale reading #20
Fables vol 12: The Dark Ages
So the twist from last volume pays off with Geppetto totaling raging like a grumpy old man! Two mercenaries go a lootin' and release a spooky dude trapped in a box. Red and Sinbad hook-up. Dont tell Boy Blue, ok? He has all he can handle right now.
There's a funeral for a Prince. There is destruction! There is a pig on a stick again spouting doom! Mister Dark is here! Another damn funeral. Time to sing the blues.
Fables First-to-Finale reading #20
Fables vol 12: The Dark Ages
So the twist from last volume pays off with Geppetto totaling raging like a grumpy old man! Two mercenaries go a lootin' and release a spooky dude trapped in a box. Red and Sinbad hook-up. Dont tell Boy Blue, ok? He has all he can handle right now.
There's a funeral for a Prince. There is destruction! There is a pig on a stick again spouting doom! Mister Dark is here! Another damn funeral. Time to sing the blues.
October 31, 2024
Her kitapta çıtası biraz daha yükselen inanılmaz bir çizgi roman serisi.
Çizimleri, kapakları, hikayesi, göndermeleri ile mutlaka okunması gereken serilerden.
Çizimleri, kapakları, hikayesi, göndermeleri ile mutlaka okunması gereken serilerden.
March 22, 2019
Setting up the next arch in the series.
I like the new villain seems very powerful and very evil. Seeing some more parallels from OUAT with the idea of finding "the storyteller." The magic doesn't make sense that it becomes unbound in some places and with some people, but not others - just something I have not not think too hard about.
I like the new villain seems very powerful and very evil. Seeing some more parallels from OUAT with the idea of finding "the storyteller." The magic doesn't make sense that it becomes unbound in some places and with some people, but not others - just something I have not not think too hard about.
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