By: Marc Andreyko (story), Shawn McManus (art), Lee Loughridge (colors)
The Story: Cinderella discovers a love-hate relationship with mice.
The Review: When I finished reading this issue, I immediately went back and flipped through it again—not because it was so great that I had to experience it again, but because I wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing pages. Without a doubt, this is the thinnest issue, plot-wise, that I’ve ever read. I’ve done some short reviews in my time, but I think this will have to be the shortest because there simply enough material to review.
I want to make it clear from the outset that this doesn’t mean the issue was bad, necessarily, only that it’s grossly inefficient. The first three pages, for example, are a complete waste, a partial retelling of Cinderella’s original origin story that’s charming, but far less so than what you’ve seen from Disney pictures. Why Andreyko decided to start here and not with the invigorating sequence of Snow White fending off an assassination attempt by a band of ninja mouse-men is baffling, to say the least.
That scene is then followed up by another prologue scene of sorts where Beast and Crispin banter for a few pages, then narrowly escape another, more explosive assassination attempt. It’s not until halfway through the issue that we finally get to the actual opening credits and Cindy herself, which isn’t quite the same as starting the story. You see, Cindy’s already in the middle of another mission, and she has to wrap that up and tie up a couple loose ends before she can finally get back to Fabletown and deal with the real problem at hand—for three pages, because that’s all the space Andreyko has left by that point.
So you can see why I don’t have much to talk about. For those new to the Fables franchise, perhaps some of what you see here will be valuable as introductory material, but I doubt it was intended as such. Andreyko offers little context for who anyone is and what exactly they’re doing, and only those with a fairly good bit of Fables experience will understand what’s going on with the minimum of explanation he provides. Case in point: when Cindy declares, “I need to go to Ultima Thule,” with an expression of determination, it’s clearly intended to be an important announcement, but even I had no idea why until I looked it up. That should tell you how new reader-friendly the issue is.
But it doesn’t appear that the issue was meant to cater to Fables veterans either, for those people will find little in the issue that’s truly novel. There’s only one exception: Dr. Swineheart’s amazement over Snow’s attackers, exclaiming, “They are neither Mundy nor Fable.” That one line may be the only new piece of information Andreyko brings to the table here, and while intriguing, that’s pretty poor pickings for a single issue.
I’m always a little concerned when I see McManus’ name in the credits because his particular artistic style is so limited in its inherent cuteness, to the point that it’s almost a little disturbing when he depicts anything graphic. The characters tend to look clownish, almost bouncy, which makes it hard to take them seriously at times. That being said, McManus brings a little edge to his portrayal of Cindy, who looks tough and full of grit as she takes down a trio human-trafficking trolls.
Conclusion: A mildly entertaining issue that takes far too long to get to the point and doesn’t quite serve either new or old readers.
Grade: C
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – So the Huntsman is gay and in a relationship with Crispin. Did not see that coming.
Grade
Conclusion