Fables

1 Legends in Exile (1-5; a Lan Medina, Steve Leialoha & Craig Hamilton). [From DC Comics: When a group of fairytale characters are exiled from their respective homelands, they're forced to take up secret residence in modern day New York City. But life in the "real" world among the "mundanes" isn't easy for these displaced refugees — especially after their community is rocked by the apparent murder of Rose Red. It's up to Deputy Mayor Snow White and a reformed Bigby Wolf, Fabletown's one-man police force, to sniff out whodunnit to Snow's estranged party-girl sister.]

2 Animal Farm (6-10; a Mark Buckingham & Steve Leialoha). [From DC Comics: Ever since they were driven from their homelands by the Adversary, the non-human Fables have been living on the Farm - a vast property in upstate New York that keeps them hidden from the prying eyes of the mundane world. But now, after hundreds of years of isolation, the Farm is seething with revolution, fanned by the inflammatory rhetoric of Goldilocks and the Three Little Pigs. And when Snow White and her sister Rose Red stumble upon their plan to liberate the homelands, the commissars of the Farm are ready to silence them - by any means necessary!]

3 Storybook Love (11-18; a Bryan Talbot, Lan Medina, Mark Buckingham, Linda Medley, Steve Leialoha and Craig Hamilton). [From DC Comics: A fairy tale ending? Not likely. In the Fables' world, there isn't a lot of happily-ever-after to go around. As refugees from the lands of make-believe, the Fables have been driven from their storybook realms and forced to blend in with our gritty, mundane reality. But that doesn't mean they don't have any room for romance - or the pain, betrayal and jealous rage that go along with it. In fact, love may be blooming between two of the most hard-bitten, no-nonsense Fables around. But are they destined for happiness - or a quick and untimely death?] Book of the Week 4/21/04

4 March of the Wooden Soldiers (19-21, 23-27, Last Castle OGN; a Mark Buckingham & Steve Leialoha, Craig Hamilton & P. Craig Russell). [From DC Comics: For centuries the Fables have watched the gateways between our mundane world and their lost magical homelands, ever on guard for signs of invasion. Now, after decades of quiet, it seems that someone has finally escaped the Adversary's oppression and made it to sanctuary. But appearances, as always, can be deceiving, and there's plenty about this refugee's story that smells wrong to the right noses. In fact, things are even worse than they suspect - plans are already underway for the complete destruction of Fabletown, and every one of its citizens is about to get a refresher course in the unforgiving lessons of war.]

5 The Mean Seasons (22, 28-33; a Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Tony Akins & Jimmy Palmiotti). [From DC Comics: With the Battle of Fabletown won, and the surrounding city of New York none the wiser, the Fables have gained a little time for rebuilding and reflection - in between the interrogation of the Adversary's agent and the anticipation of Snow White's impending motherhood. For Bigby Wolf, the father of her soon-to-be newborns, that means a visit with an old friend - and a reminiscence of another, even deadlier war. For the Mayor of Fabletown, it means a rude awakening to the harsh realities of civic administration - and its conflicting demands. And for Snow herself, it means a long, painful labor - and a series of joyous, heartwrenching surprises.]

6 Homelands (34-41; a Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, David Hahn, Lan Medina, Dan Green). [From DC Comics: Homelands follows Boy Blue on a mission of revenge as he uncovers the Adversary's true identity! Plus, the 2-part story of Jack's adventures in Hollywood and the one-shot story of Mowgli's return to Fabletown.]

7 Arabian Nights (and Days) (42-47; a Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Jim Fern, Jimmy Palmiotti, Andrew Pepoy). [From DC Comics: Fables: Arabian Nights (And Days) opens a new front in the struggle between the Fables and the Adversary as the worlds of the Arabian Fables are invaded -- leading to an unprecedented diplomatic mission to Fabletown and a bad case of culture shock! This seventh volume of the popular Vertigo series also includes "The Ballad of Rodney and June," the 2-part story of forbidden love among the Adversary's wooden soldiers.]

8 Wolves (48-51; a Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Shawn McManus, Andrew Pepoy). [From DC Comics: Collecting issues #48-51 of writer and creator Bill Willingham's award-winning Vertigo series, WOLVES also includes newly-created maps of Fabletown and the Homelands illustrated by Willingham and, as a special bonus, Willingham's complete script to the double-sized issue #50.]

9 Sons of Empire (52-59; a Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha). [From DC Comics: Pinocchio suffers seriously divided loyalties between his father, the evil Adversary, and his fellow Fable refugees in New York. Plus, Bigby Wolf reluctantly decides it's finally time to square accounts with his long-estranged father, the North Wind, and makes a journey with Snow White and their kids to find him.]

Misc.

The Last Castle (one-shot; a P. Craig Russell & Craig Hamilton). [From DC Comics: In this epic tale of war, lust and intrigue, Boy Blue tells the story of the last stand against an unstoppable army and a pitiless foe. Amidst a bloody, hopeless battlefield crawling with the emissaries of The Adversary, we meet a mysterious woman in red and learn why Boy Blue plays nothing on his trumpet but the blues. Snow White, Bluebeard, Robin Hood, Rapunzel and others guest-star in this haunting, bittersweet tale of love and loss. This prequel to the award-winning Fables series reveals the secret history of the occupation and why the Fables were forced from their homelands into exile, taking refuge in present-day New York City.]

1001 Nights of Snowfall (OGN; a 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). [From DC Comics: Don't miss this stunning 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.]

1 The (Nearly) Great Escape (1-5; w Bill Willingham & Matthew Sturges; a Tony Akins & Andrew Pepoy). [From DC Comics: Think you know the greatest Fable of them all? You don't know Jack! After earning a fortune in Hollywood by cashing in on his own legend, little Jack Horner - a.k.a. Jack B. Nimble, a.k.a. Jack the Giant Killer - is now the most famous Fable alive. Sure, he's been stripped of his wealth and banished from Fabletown forever as a result, but Jack has always been a wanderer at heart, and the open road is like a home to him. So it's a real shame when he's plucked off the pavement and unceremoniously tossed into a gulag filled with other renegade Fables. Within the walls of the Golden Boughs Retirement Home, however, Jack finds allies as well as enemies - and once he learns the ultimate goals of his jailer, Mr. Revise, breaking out becomes more than just a point of pride. Of course, over all the centuries that Revise has run his prison, no one has ever escaped from it. But hey, he's the Jack of the Tales! How hard could it be?]

2 Jack of Hearts (6-11; w Bill Willingham & Matthew Sturges; a Tony Akins & Andrew Pepoy). [From DC Comics: In this volume collecting issues #6-11, Jack reveals the secret of his former relationship with the illustrious Snow Queen - when he took her powers and became known as Jack Frost. And in present times, he lands in Las Vegas and meets his lovely new bride, a directionless heiress. Could it possibly be "happily ever after" at last?]

Fables

Jack of Fables