Jack of Fables #50

Written by Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges
Art by Tony Akins, Russ Braun, Andrew Pepoy, Dan Green, and Bill Reinhold

I think it's surprising that this title, which was a spin-off from Fables, lasted for almost half the run of the parent title.  That's pretty rare.  Jack of Fables was a welcome change in modern comics when it started.  It was basically a humour comic linked to another series, which while often filled with humour, is actually a pretty dark affair a lot of the time.  Jack, especially in the early issues, was irreverent and very unpredictable.

Jack Horner is not a nice guy, and it was through the large and lovable supporting cast that this book was able to hook me, as Jack worked to escape the Golden Boughs Retirement Community for Fables, worked to stay ahead of the Page Sisters and other dangers, and eventually participated in defending the Boughs from a worse evil.  Later, the book crossed over with the Fables title, and that's where it started to lose me, as most of the series's plotlines were resolved.  The book was more or less given over to Jack's son, Jack Frost, and I quickly lost all interest in it, dropping it until I realized that Willingham and Sturges were wrapping things up, and returning every last living character to the book's pages.

This issue takes what Jack calls the 'Shakespearian' approach to finishing things, which means just about everyone dies.  The story is mostly told through large splash pages, as all these characters that have been gathering for a while turn on each other, and mayhem ensues.  It's a fitting end to the title, and much of this issue is amusing, while evoking some twinges of nostalgia.

Two of my favourite features of this comic get one last hurrah.  Brian Bolland gives us one last terrific cover (he did most of the covers on this book), and Babe the Blue Ox gets the chance to narrate one last page, revisiting the character of Alonso, the cruelty-free pirate.  The Babe pages were frequently the best part of the comic, and I hope that the promised Babe one-shot happens one of these days.