Who knew happily ever after included exile, divorce, poverty - and murder?
"Fables" opens with a murder investigation. Rose Red, Snow White's sister, is missing, her apartment is covered in blood, and the Big Bad Wolf is on the case.
The story is a clever twist on familiar fairy tales. Creator Bill Willingham takes the characters and sends them through a modern lens - the familiar here isn't just in the name recognition, it's also in the trappings of their modern, urban setting. When Bigby Wolf, Fabletown's lone cop, investigates Rose's disappearance, he orders a re-creation of the crime scene, CSI-style.
The pacing is solid, with Bigby setting his sights on possible suspects and eventually putting all the pieces together. The story doesn't move too fast, nor does it creep along - by the time Bigby solves the crime, readers have been given all the clues to solve it themselves.
While the plot is concerned with Bigby's investigation, the first story arc in "Fables" also gives readers a good introduction to the society the characters inhabit.
Instead of a fairy-tale ending, the characters of "Fables" got a life of exile in our mundane world after their lands were conquered by the mysterious "Adversary."
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If they look human enough, they get to struggle for a living in the Big Apple, running failed Internet start-ups and working as bookstore clerks.
But if they can't pass for human, such as Bigby's pig friend - yes the one whose house Bigby blew down - they get to live upstate at The Farm.
Snow has the thankless task of serving as the mayor's deputy in Fabletown's exile government. She does the real work of the government, leaving the mayor to act as a figurehead.
Without the ability to tax, Fabletown's government relies on donations and doesn't offer much in the way of government services, as she explains to Beauty and the Beast in the first issue.
Mr. Beast is looking a little too beastly and needs to move upstate with the rest of the inhuman-looking fable people unless he and his wife can come up with the money to either afford marriage counseling - her anger affects his appearance - or a glamour to hide his appearance.
That quirky modern touch is the beauty of "Fables." Snow has to deal with her ex-husband, Prince Charming, who she divorced after she caught him in bed with her sister. Pinocchio is tired of living in perpetual childhood. And Bigby has to deal with a perpetual unwanted houseguest in his pig friend.
Those sly bits of humor make the book more than just another post-modern exploration of fairy tales. "Fables" is just as much about people as it is about tweaking familiar characters.
The art is also perfect for such a character-driven book. Lan Medina's storytelling is clear, moving effortlessly between portrayals of the castle Blue Beard keeps inside his apartment to the streets of New York. He perfectly conveys such emotions as Snow's distress over her sister and Bigby's annoyance with Jack - the Jack of beanstalk fame.
The combination of art and story makes "Fables" one of the more appealing books on the market. It's not strictly a genre book like many modern comics, but succeeds on the strength of its original take on what should be familiar ground, but is instead a humorous blend of mystery and fantasy.
"Fables" comes out monthly from Vertigo, an imprint owned by DC Comics. The first story arc is collected in the graphic novel "Fables: Legends in Exile." The volume also contains a short "Fables" story written and illustrated by Willingham.
