Bill Willingham – Fables, Vol. 8: Wolves

141. Fables, Vol. 8: Wolves by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Shawn McManus, Andrew Pepoy (2006)
Fables, Volume 8

Read my Review of:
– Vol. 1: Legends in Exile
– Vol. 2: Animal Farm
– Vol. 3: Storybook Love
– Vol. 4: March of the Wooden Soldiers
– Vol. 5: The Mean Seasons
– Vol. 6: Homelands
– Vol. 7: Arabian Nights (and Days)

Length: 160 pages
Genre: Graphic Novel, Fantasy

Started: 08 November 2008
Finished: 09 November 2008

Bigby Wolf comes back,
goes on a secret mission,
then gets all mushy.

Summary: This volume consists of three story arcs, but they seem more like parts of a single story than those collected in previous volumes. In the first story, “Wolves”, Mowgli has to track down Bigby Wolf, and persuade him to return to civilization. The main story, “Happily Ever After”, is the longest; Bigby returns, and after a covert mission to the Homelands (by means of the Cloud Kingdoms) to repay the adversary for the destruction wrought during the Battle of Fabletown (in Vol. 4), he is reunited with Snow, and his children, and they decide to make a go at living, well, happily ever after. The final story, “Big and Small”, concerns Cinderella on a vital diplomatic mission to secure a treaty with the notorious giants of the Cloud Kingdoms – a crucial ally in the Fables’ fight against the Adversary. This volume also includes maps of Fabletown and the Farm, and the original script to “Happily Ever After.”

Review: Nawwwwwww! It’s great to have Bigby back, even if I get the feeling that it’s only for this volume. His return to the story (and to the Fable community) is pulled off well, working within the established story yet not being overly predictable, and at the end of the day, a little sentimentality and mushiness are well earned. (Also… nawwwwwww!) While his and Snow’s storyline is brought to at least a temporary close, I continue to be impressed at how Willingham can keep other characters and storylines moving forward with only a frame or two at a time. It’s really impressive to look back to Volume 1, and see how much the story’s grown since then, simultaneously becoming more expansive in scope and more layered. There’s enough going on here that dismissing it as a mere comic book seems unfair, yet at the same time, it couldn’t be told any other way. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: Good times, and wholly satisfying – Fables fans won’t be disappointed, and Bigby fans will be thrilled.

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