by Bill Willingham (writer), Mark Buckingham (pencils), Steve Leialoha & Dan Green (inks), Lee Loughridge (colors), and Todd Klein (letters)
The Story: Rose Red takes control of the farm and does some restructuring while Bellflower/Totenkinder learns a secret about Mister Dark.
What’s Good: After months of lying bed, this is the first issue where Rose Red finally returns to her old self. I hardly think that I’m the only person to have Rose Red as one of my favourite characters, so this issue should make the fans happy in that respect. It genuinely feels good to see Rose Red back in action and even better see her, and the book, moving about again after having meandered with flashbacks for several issues. There’s a sense of forward movement with this issue, both for the series and Rose herself, and it’s definitely welcome.
Rose’s return works well because of how quickly Willingham goes about it. There are no moments of self-doubt and there’s no navel-gazing. She grabs the reigns of the farm and slaps it back into order, with dissenters, the dryads in particular, being dealt with in short order. I’m really happy that this consolidation wasn’t prolonged and it made the Farm, and Fables in general, feel suddenly more dynamic.
Better still are Rose’s changes to the power structure. Her adopting the blue neckerchief and forming a privy council are both interesting, yet natural, developments that just feel right. Furthermore, Rose ends up in a more politically powerful position than she’s ever been in. After months of hiding, she’s now the most central of Fables characters. All of this leads to promise for the future, as does the new information about Mister Dark.
Mark Buckingham’s art remains consistent, with Fables readers knowing exactly what to expect. That said, his work on Rose’s facial expressions is particularly good, working to make her all the more lovable.
What’s Not So Good: While things happened this month and I was pleased with Rose’s actions, I’d be lying if I said that this wasn’t a particularly exciting issue. I suppose that’s to be expected when a comic is devoted to political shifts and consolidation. Perhaps it’s also because of how dialogue-heavy this issue is. I’m not one to demand action in every comic I read, but there was a lot of talking this month, and not all of it was needed.
When there’s that much talking, it also makes some of Willingham’s weaknesses all the more visible. After reading a lot of his comics, it’s clear that there’s a very particular tone of voice that Willingham is comfortable with, and at times ends up universally employing amidst all of his characters. It’s a voice that’s intelligent, older, and semi-formal. At times, this voice can make certain characters’ voices feel untrue or inappropriate. Worse still, it can make things feel “samey.” This singular, oft-repeated voice was probably the biggest problem I had with Willingham’s recent run on the Justice Society of America.
Anyway, that voice is definitely in play this month. While it’s not criminally overused, it does jar a little bit when it’s employed on Rose and it can make all the dialogue a little more tedious when all of it carries a similar tone.
Conclusion: It’s great to have Rose back again, despite the dialogue issues.
Grade: B –
-Alex Evans
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Conclusion