DC Vertigo
Bill Willingham, writer
Mark Buckingham, artist
One of the reasons I don't talk about Fables with every issue I read is because all I tend to do is gush about the title. I haven't much cared for some of the DC superhero work that Bill Willingham has written; his stint on Robin wasn't a half-bad story at all if he'd told it using an original character, but it really didn't fit the established personality of the Tim Drake Robin character; and his work with the magical-based heroes, Shadow Pact, or the legacy-minded Justice Society did nothing for me at all.
I can't say the same for his superhero work from other companies. I've long been curious about his Elementals series from Comico, but still haven't read any of those issues yet. And while those characters are superheroes, my understanding without having read an issue is that the Elementals characters have a lot in common with the Fables crew. That's one of the reasons I'm still curious to try that series someday.
But the world presented in Fables -- as far as I know pretty much wholly created by Willingham himself (Yeah, yeah, all of the characters are ages-old characters from fairy tales and folklore created by others, but the world they live in in this series and their current personalities and voices are pretty much all Willingham, right?) -- is just a fantastic read every single issue. Having said that, every now and then an issue of Fables comes along that is just a step above the usual greatness of the rest. This issue, focused on Little Boy Blue and Bigby in the afterlife, is one of those best of the best.
Blue died way back during the great war to overthrow the Adversary, and Bigby more recently met his end at the hands of the treacherous Prince Brandish. There has been hope offered that Bigby might be resurrected if all of his various pieces can be reassembled owing to the fact that he is a natural shape-shifter. This issue seems to further indicate that possibility while also revealing even more about the supernatural nature of Bigby.
As the issue opens, Bigby finds himself in an unfamiliar forest without any memory of how he got there or how long he's been there. In short order, Blue comes to meet him and explains that he is in a transitional period between worlds/realities/lives; the very nature of reality and life and death is much more complicated it seems than most suspect.
Blue has come to explain some things to Bigby about his situation before moving on. Blue has no desire to go back to his life in Fabletown, having found a measure of peace in his own transition, but he confirms that Bigby can indeed return if he wishes to do so, although the journey will not be easy. Blue also cautions Bigby that going back might not be the best course to pursue and warns that there is more trouble ahead for the denizens of Fabletown.
Of course, if you've seen the news that Fables has only about another year to go before the title comes to an end, the threat of danger lurking doesn't seem like a huge surprise. But the simple discussions between these two characters satisfies on many levels. This issue serves as a quiet, non-action issue in the middle of a larger sprawling epic. It is two old comrades who haven't seen each other in quite some time catching up. There are even a number of revelations given to readers, although in true comic book fashion, the revelations leave more questions than they truly answer.
As nice as the bulk of the issue is, however, the real heart-tugger moments come at the very end. Blue is not the only person to visit Bigby in this transitionary forest before the Great Wolf must decide his course of action. Someone else wants to speak with him before Bigby moves on, whichever direction he chooses to go, and this person represents a truly once-in-a-lifetime, no-parent-would-ever-wish-for-such-a-meeting-nor-turn-it-down reunion. Readers aren't privy to all the details of this second reunion, but we see enough that I think Willingham made the right choice in leaving the rest to the imagination.
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