| Title | : | Fables, Vol. 3: Storybook Love (Fables, #3) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 192 |
| Publication | : | First published May 1, 2004 |
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?
Collecting: Fables 11-18
Fables, Vol. 3: Storybook Love (Fables, #3) Reviews
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Bluebeard and Goldilocks team up to get rid of Snow and Bigsby.
Bigsby & Snow have been dancing around each other since the first volume and by the end of this one they've got something cooking, whether or not it's Storybook Love is a question for another volume.
Snow and Big get a little help from a Charming but unlikely ally, and it looks as though this help will probably come back to bite them in the ass later on down the line.
There's also another issue with some of Jack's misadventures in it that was a lot of fun.
Recommended. -
this was a gift from the lovely
kat stark. and noooo, i haven't read the earlier books in the series, but there was a handy little summary at the start of this one to catch me up, and i don't think i missed too much by starting partway in.
i always enjoy a good fairytale-based riff; familiar characters, unfamiliar storylines, and while i'm not in love with the artwork in this book, i really enjoyed the various tones of the tales - a little noir, a little crime/intrigue, some love, some murder, some talking animals, some goofiness - all over the map, but continuing to hold my interest.
it's hard to review anthology graphic novels, especially this one, wherein many big things happen which i'm sure will have long-reaching consequences. so instead, i will post my favorite panel from each of the stories and call it a day.
thank you, kat, for this introduction into a new graphic novel world!
Bag O'Bones
A Sharp Operation
Dirty Business
The Mouse Police Never Sleep
Into the Woods
Duel
Roadrunner and Coyote Ugly
Barleycorn Brides
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In which we learn about the spell cast on Briar Rose (Sleeping Beauty), about how Prince Charming seeks to improve his fortune, about how Bigby went about pursuing Snow White and the legend of the Lilliputians and the Barleycorn Brides. By the end of volume 3,
Bill Willingham,
Mark Buckingham,
Steve Leialoha etc. have somehow managed to miraculously integrate numerous fairy tales and many fantasy and fable stories into a workable reality full of multifaceted characters, many with interconnected histories; as well as their detailed and innovative origins. This is a wonderful piece of work and the main story (re: The Adversary) is compelling and well integrated into every character journey AND personality! Solid 9 out of 12.
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I enjoyed this story. Bluebeard and Prince Charming get into an epic sword fight. Bluebeard is trying to kill off Snow and Bigby. They are sent out to Washington in the woods where Goldilocks is trying to kill them. This is the juicy stuff. Bigby reveals that he has fallen for snow and they talk and you need to read it to see how good it is. There is also a surprise at the end.
There is a bump at the end of the episode about the lilliputans and how they came to smalltown. That was interesting and it makes me want to re-read Gulliver's Travels.
This is solid storytelling and I am enjoying the retold myths. I think this is the best way for fables and fairy tales to be told, all together like a community where they all interact. There is a lot of stuff that works. -
Not as awful as the first two volumes, but still not very good. Not very good at all. It all comes down to the the unpracticed awkwardness of the writing. The characters spend most of their time explaining the plot, and the rest spouting movie cliches.
They don't have much personality because all we know about them is what we're told in the wordy exposition of other characters. If you want a character to be clever, have him do clever things, don't just have other characters tell us how clever he is. But even in the moments where the characters might actually exhibit some personality, it usually falls flat due to unrealistic or cliche dialogue.
Like this little gem:
"I have to call ahead. This is a SECURITY residence".
That's a sentence that no one has ever said or written before, yet somehow, it still sounds unoriginal.
Prince Charming is untrustworthy. We've been told as much every time he has appeared since the very first story arc, and he also demonstrates it at every opportunity. Long after this has been established, this line is delivered to him: "and you would know "treacherous" when you see it, dear--". Most authors would leave this unremarkable observation hanging, letting the reader fill in with a knowing raise of the eyebrows, but Willingham boldly completes the caesura: "being so personally experienced at it."
Really? The original statement is already redundant, it doesn't give us any new insight into the character, it's not clever or original, it's just another bubble, rudely pointing at someone's head, filling up space. Then, he adds an unnecessary and repetitive cap on it. That's what drives me crazy about this comic: it's not realistic enough to be sympathetic, nor is it ridiculous enough to be entertaining.
Later on, as two characters find themselves driving out of control down a tree-covered cliff, one of them remarks, mid-plummet "Try to avoid hitting the trees head on, but use contact with them to slow us down!" Even a character who was the picture of grace-under-pressure would phrase that with more 'oomph'. James Bond would make a bigger deal of it, and he's a sociopath with suicidal leanings. There's just no feeling to it, no character, no sense of how human beings behave.
If you noticed the author's GR bio there, next to this book, you might have learned that he worked on some of the early 'Dungeons & Dragons' modules, which gives me a warm, nostalgic feeling. But now I can't help but think of all the worst stereotypes about those guys, and what a pain they were to play with:
I find myself careening down a tree-lined cliff when suddenly, in my moment of peril, I hear a bland, unmodulated voice speaking to me, calmly telling me to use glancing contact with trees to slow myself. Was that the voice of Kanggax the Elf-Lord? Did he turn his head to me, wriggling in the ever-tightening grip of a Gynosphynx to scream across the widening expanse, while completing an off-hand attack, telling me how best to fall down a cliff?
No. It's just Steve, his dim-witted player, wriggling in the ever-tightening grip a belt he has already punched new holes into with a nail, blandly explaining in monotone, while deftly pushing his glasses up the same nose he peers down with such practiced condescension, because explaining things makes him feel useful.
But Ravager Deathwarden can't hear you, Steve, he's falling off a cliff in a magic, storybook world, deafened by his own roar of impotent, plummeting rage.
Even those of us who didn't spend our formative years in a basement playing games likely still recognize this kind of impersonal exposition; perhaps from an awkward, know-it-all cousin trying to explain the plot of the movie you're currently watching. Clumsy, overly-detailed exposition is not a very entertaining way to tell a story.
But it's not like the dialogue is the only thing 'off' about this comic, it's just the most persistently annoying one, and its spoiling effect seeps through to everything else in the book like a ruinous sop. The characters are dull. Our protagonist is Wolf, who is clearly Willingham's sweat-stained love letter to a mid-nineties Wolverine. He's so hairy and smoke-wreathed and grimacey with his fuzzy, undefined, threat-spewing mouth that I just want to give him a guest spot in Spiderman every month and make him the leader of the Avengers.
Oh well. This comic book sucks. I'm going to go read something else. I just want to leave you all with a piece of wisdom to turn over in your minds when you have a solitary moment, letting the variance of meanings coalesce; really try to SEE the hypocrisy of dualism highlighted in its central, ironical conceit:
"I have to call ahead. This is a SECURITY residence"
A security residence, indeed.
My Suggested Readings in Comics -
This was a kaleidoscope of stories that all centered around the theme of love, more or less, which made it quite fitting for February. *lol*
Goldilocks is still at large after her assassination attempt of Snow White in the previous volume. So Snow and Bigby are trying to survive and find her at the same time.
Meanwhile, Prince Charming is scheming to become rich and powerful again, which puts him at odds with Bluebeard of all people.
But we also get independent stories like the first and the last, though the last at least really DID have something to do with the overall theme of this volume.
Some big changes are initiated here. I mean, who would have thought that ?!
And then there's which simply can't be good, no matter which way you look at it.
Nevertheless, this lacked the charme of the first and the true action of the second (despite the part with Goldilocks). I don't know ... I'm not too convicned of the series yet. I'll give it another volume and then we'll see, I guess. -
Me ha gustado tanto como el primer volumen de la serie,
Leyendas en el exilio. De nuevo el dibujo es magnífico, los personajes - adaptados de los cuentos tradicionales, Blanca Nieves, Barba Azul, el Lobo Feroz - son divertidísimos y el guión muy inteligente. Una gozada.
4,5* -
"She's such an ice queen."
"Ice cream? Yum."
As this series goes on, I'm shipping Bigby and Snow together more and more. Also, Briar Rose's curse/enchantment is wicked cool.
3.5 -
Prince Charming is a more interesting character than i gave him credit before. And magic can have unintended consequences. Just ask Snowwhite.
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Also available on the WondrousBooks blog.
Now that I have read this volume, I could actually change the rating I gave to the first two, in comparison.
Storybook Love is a very good collection of stories - it includes all of the characters we know and like, who, while being the power that moves the story, are not the story, and all those that we don't like, but might very soon.
I really enjoyed having a lot of the characters that weren't shown nearly as much in the previous volumes, or even the ones, like Prince Charming, that I dislike, but I still like to read about. If the story is good, of course.
I think the "fable" from this volume that I liked the most was Bag O' Bones, and it's a perfect example of what I was trying to explain above: I could really care less about Jack Horner before reading this, but after I did, I felt a humorous liking toward his character.
The story about Sleeping Beauty was interesting in terms of how the author reimagined the curse, and how he implemented it into the story.
Obviously, the Snow and Bigby's story line was the main arc in the volume, however, to me, that was the least interesting one. First, I really, really disliked Goldilocks in every sense of the word, and second, for some reason, while I find him endearing at times, I can't warm up to Bigby. He's too dark and moody and aggressive for my tastes. And when he's not aggressive, he is usually bragging about his dad, the wind.
I really liked the story about the Barleycorn brides. I would say that the flashbacks are one of the best parts of Fables as a whole. We are all aware that the main story is the one in the present, but considering that there are many different versions of all fables, many fable characters included in Fables, a lot happening all the time, and the readers needing background information about the impending war, it's great that Willingham is actually providing that information... in the form of fables. It would be impossible to go through all existing fables included in the story, but every little bit adds greatly to the whole, in my opinion.
The only minor issue that I have with Fables is that considering how much action there is, a lot of the characters, especially ones that I like, occasionally fall off the grid. For me, as a reader who is not following the story in a straight line, but reading other books in between, it's sometimes hard to recall what happened to someone last I saw them, because months might pass until the next time. And while it's good to have a variety of interesting characters, it also presents a certain degree of a challenge.
The main point is, however, that I feel like Fables is becoming better and better with each volume, so I'm excited! -
Жила-була і переклала!
Синопсис для тих, хто не читав попередні томи: зловісний Ворог захопив усі казкові королівства, тож персонажі казок мусили від нього втекти у наш прозаїчний світ. Так вони опинилися у Нью-Йорку у ХХІ столітті, що вже ставить перед казковою громадою низку логістичних викликів (як співіснувати в одному просторі всім колишнім дружинам Прекрасного Принца - Білосніжці, Сплячій Красуні, Попелюшці, і т.д.; як приховати від прозаїчних мешканців світу саме існування казок, якщо, скажімо, щоразу, як Красуня свариться з Чудовиськом, у Чудовиська знову відростають ікла; абощо), і ці виклики тільки ускладнюють казкові політичні тьорки - чи треба відвойовувати казкову батьківщину? як часто потрібно проводити вибори мера Казкополя? І таке інше.
Для тих, хто читав попередні томи - у цьому томі ми дізнаємося:
* про походження Сірка, зокрема чому він так дивно поводився з Трьома поросятами;
* як важко живеться Сплячій Красуні у ХХІ столітті, коли принців, які могли б розбудити її поцілунком, обмаль;
* що буває, коли прозаїчні мешканці нашого світу дізнаються про існування казкової спільноти (тобто про існування потенційно безсмертних істот, які не змінюються століттями - а тлумачити це можна по-різному).
І т.д. -
I really enjoyed the first two Fables volumes, but god, this one bored me to tears. I skimmed massive chunks of it because I just couldn't get into the story of it at all. It was nice to finally see some of the predictability of Bigby and Snow's interactions come to fruition, but otherwise, I was not a huge fan of this volume. The art changed every so often, and one of the illustrators was not my cup of tea at all - I honestly could barely even recognize the horrific features given to Bigby for that section of the volume.
Meh. I have volume 4 checked out from the library anyways, so I'll give it a try and see if I want to continue the series. -
Fables Volume 3 is the precise definition of what a graphic novel should be in my eyes. And I use graphic novel in distinct difference to the concept of a comic book. It's smart, adult and has a distinctive art style, which while not the glossy art I've loved in other works, adds its own special tone to the work I've read so far in the series.
Storybook Love continues the adult themes and the unique ideas of the previous novels in the series. In this particular novel several references are made to previous fairytale lives of the characters (very much in a similar vein of thought to Once Upon a Time - something I've also enjoyed) but most of the action takes place in the world of Fabletown. The idea of what happens when a mortal journalist finds out about the world of Fables and threatens to expose them is a fascinating side story in this overall tale of romance and fairytale world balance delivered by Bill Willingham and his team. Although, one wonders whether a better solution to the issue might have been to give the journalist to the Daily Planet and help them figure out who Superman really is. I mean they call themselves the world's best journalists and Superman's under their eyes? Really?
I've chosen to call this a fractured fairytale - which is a term I've borrowed from elsewhere. I don't know where exactly. Maybe it escaped into my world from another one. Basically what it does - and despite some claims to the contrary I found this to have relatively strong dialogue - is take faiytales and use them as they have always been used. To tell a moral about reality, and of course in this instance how modern reality works. Definitely a highly recommended graphic novel and series (at least to this point). -
This was such a good GN, I started it and was sucked back into Fabletown and out of my own world. Now, Mr. Willingham, you know how to do a fairy retelling very well. While I found some parts of this book quite graphic and disturbingly violent, it fits in with the storyline and the series and the grim kind of world of fairy tales, and the situations that the characters find themselves in.
I never did like Bluebeard. I was prejudiced by his past of murdering his wives. It's really hard to get past that, especially in absence of a changed life and persona. That Goldilocks has some issues (even outside of her unconventional relationship with the Bear family). As usual, Prince Charming is being a scoundrel and manipulating situations to his advantage.
Can I tell you how much I love Snow and Bigby and their relationship? My fingers are crossed that the forthcoming stories don't take their courtship into the dumpster, especially after the interesting conclusion in this volume.
I remembered why I didn't give this a higher rating. I didn't like Jack's parts as much, although they were good folktale stories. Jack is a rascal and not in a good way. But it's nice to get his in between story.
I feel a whole lot of affection for this series so far. In fact, I picked up the next three volumes and
Fables: Werewolves of the Heartland because I couldn't help myself.
Overall rating: 4.5/5.0 stars. -
I need the next one now now now now
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This is volume #3 in the Fables series and I very much enjoyed the read through of this one. I felt as though Animal Farm was a little better just becuase it didn't skip around the world quite as much and so we got to grips a bit quicker with the characters, but that doesn't mean this was worse, it just means there was more packed in and it was an expansion of the world, characters and overall plot. In terms of the pacing of this series I do love that every time I think 'ooh, wait' as if I have figured something out it's immediately contradicted or explained so you never feel like anything is too drawn out or dull. I also really like the relationships that we're starting to see develop between some of the different main characters and I am looking forward to these progressing as the story goes on.
This mostly focuses on the ongoing conflict between Bigby, Snow White and Bluebeard and when a Mundy (normal human) starts to ask questions about Fabletown and the people who live there the three of them, and some of the other Fables, have to do some quick thinking to sort out the issue. I think Bluebeard was certainly a pretty scheming character in this and I enjoyed seeing the twist about our other Public Enemy No. 1 becuase that was surprising to me.
On the whole I still really liked this but didn't get quite as caught up in the story as I did with Animal Farm. I also felt as though some of the changes to art style were a little bit of an annoyance becuase although I don't 'dislike' the newer style, it means that the characters are not as quick to recognise and that's always an irritation for me (Bigby's character style change is the one I most dislike but we'll see how it continues).
Overall a 3.5* rating from me. Looking forward to the next one very soon! -
I'm really fond of Snow and Bigby now. I recall finding Snow a bit stiff in volume one but she's pretty cool now. I also liked the return of Bluebeard and Goldilocks. I'm curious to see what other fables and characters are included in this series!
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I really enjoyed this one and liked it much more than the other two I read. I got to see more of Bigby who is starting to be my favorite character. I can definitely see each volume getting better and better. Great series!
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Hikaye biraz daha dallanmaya başladı. Ben beğeniyorum bu seriyi.
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4.5 stars
Top tier drama if I do say so myself. Some great action too! -
Another excellent installment of the Fables series. This one is written in a series of smaller tales, unlike the previous two volumes that were all one tale. It is a collection of "love" stories. Though the first one is really about a mundy (human) reporter that thinks the Fables are vampires. The story is of how Bigby was able to stop the reporter from publishing the story. No spoilers so I shan't say anymore. The rest of the stories are sort of connected in that many of the side stories carry over. From Prince Charming moving in with his ex-wife to Snow White and Bigby still attempting to survive being assassinated by Goldilocks. I enjoyed the interplay between Prince Charming and Bluebeard, though I was sad to see Bluebeard go. He was one of my favorite characters. The final tale is the story of how the Lilliputians were able to leave Fableland and settle in our world and the adventures they had trying to find mates with the help of John Barleycorn.
As per usual, this was a creative and very entertaining volume. For the most part the art is very good, though the final two stories aren't perhaps the best. But, it is never awful art. fables continues to amuse and entertain. I am glad I have continued with this series and if you read them you will be as well. Highly recommend to anyone who grew up reading fables and had their favorite characters. You will enjoy this subversive re-imagining of those childhood tales. I know I did. -
The main story in this is really strong. This is the best volume so far.
So Blue Beard and Goldie are knocking boots (that means fucking) and they devise a plan to kill Bigby and Snow White. It's actually a half way decent plan aswell. With it all starting with a huge chase, a bunch of brutal and fucked up fights, and a ending that leaves this series up to a lot of possibilities. Oh also there's a little story at the end of the book.
Good: The whole main focus of this book is great. Each character has motives and they feel very flushed out. The fights are exciting and the end result is both brutal and well drawn. Art is once again great, and the pacing is the best the series has had so far.
Bad: That last extra chapter is really really boring. Just a side story that ends in a "meh" way that let me down compared to the rest.
I really enjoyed this volume, and think it's the best of the first 3. I'd go with a 4 out of 5 on this one because for the most part it's great except that side story. -
Це класний том, дуже цікаво було. Шкода мишу 😢
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Pretty good, the story was a little more interesting than the previous two volumes. I loved Bluebeard and Prince Charming's duel and the development between Snow and Bigby. The world and the various characters were again the most enjoyable aspects. Looking forward to the next one.
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Kısa kısa hikayelerin olduğu bir ciltti. Özellikle Ölüm ve Jack olanı sevdim. Ayrıca Arpa Kızlarla ilgili olan da güzeldi.
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Have I ever told you how much I love the Big Bad Wolf? No? Well i absolutely fucking adore him! Especially when he is given storylines like the one in the Fables series. Trust me, read it and you will fall in love with him too!!
In other news, I never thought that I would develop so much hatred for a character like Goldilocks! Then I read Storybook Love . Goldilocks, you are such a bitch!
My only real beef with this volume is that -
Стільки років минуло, відколи дивилася Десяте королівство, а я досі шипперю одну і ту ж пару))))
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I am kind of head-over-heels over the cover art before each volume. It's so different compared to the rest of the art style, yet manages to provide a perfect glimpse into what to expect.
This volume is all about different folklore and "fables" surrounding more of the characters in Fabletown. Primarily focusing on Snow White's and Bigby Wolf's growing relationship amidst plots threatening their lives, the volume is also interspersed with disconnected chapters shining a light on Bigby's fascinating backstory, and other characters such as the Lilliputians, Prince Charming, and Jack of Tales.
There is quite a lot of badass action in this one and a very surprising ending. -
This series has a really twisted attitude towards sex and consent. The opening story in this book was Jack, basically blackmailing a woman into sleeping with him: her choices were fucking Jack or... death. So yeah, it's not like that's a real choice. Luckily for the reader, she immediately switched from being a frigid lady to being a total nympho, draining him dry and begging to be called a filthy whore. Meanwhile, Prince Charming continued to be borderline abusive to women; now it's Briar Rose (aka Sleeping Beauty) who he's leeching off and manipulating. Sleeping Beauty getting kissed by everyone and the dog while unconscious was played for laughs (I guess we should be grateful we didn't have to see her kiss a dog?). Goldilocks shacked up with Bluebeard, and joked about paying him in blowjobs for keeping her hidden. Bigby's continued to pressure Snow White to get together with him, even though she's said no quite firmly. Since, it's been perfectly clear from the start that they're the lead couple, this is a rather tiresome dance. We all know where it's goes.
Or at least, that's what I though. Except the story went there in the most unsatisfactory way possible, taking another turn towards the non-consensual.
It would be expecting too much for any of the characters in this story to do anything intelligent, though. Even on the black-ops mission to silence the interfering Mundy journalist the men continue to behave like idiotic little boys, abandoning their posts and roles to squabble with each other about whether to kill their victim or not. Perhaps that's something that should have been decided before the mission started? Maybe you should have some kind of chain of command or even an actual plan? No, that would get in the way of all the high-school style bickering and posturing.
The world-building continues to be shakey. It's strongly implied that Goldilocks will recover with enough time because her fairy tale is famous, but Bluebeard is definitely murdered. Maybe fairy tale characters don't come back if you throw them down a magic well? Who knows? -
L'evoluzione del rapporto tra Luca Wolf e Bianca Neve; il ritorno in scena del Principe Azzurro, e la mossa di Barbablù; la Topolizia e il fato di Riccioli d'Oro.
Il tutto lascia con il desiderio di scoprire come reagirà Bianca alla novità scoperta alla fine dell'albo, e come si muoverà il Principe Azzurro.
Poi abbiamo una storia interessante sulla presenza femminile nel villaggio lillipuziano della Fattoria, una vecchia storia di Jack e una bella storia in cui Luca e soci devono occuparsi di un giornalista che pensa di aver scoperto il loro segreto, ritenendoli... vampiri.
Un buon numero, anche se un po' frammentato.
