Fables #110

Written by Bill Willingham
Art by Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, and Mark Buckingham

Generally speaking, I don't like cute.  Sure, I love books like Chew, which are built around their own in-jokey cute-ness, but that's more of an exception than the rule.  I especially don't like it when the cute is mixed with the more serious.  Star Wars's Ewoks and droids, the hobbits in Lord of the Rings; I hate them all.

Why do I mention this?  Because Willingham has moved things squrely into cute-land in Fables, and it's affecting my enjoyment of the book.  This issue is split between two plot-lines (with another Nurse Spratt interlude) - the adventures of Bufkin in Oz, and the trials of Bigby and Snow White's cubs in the land of the north winds.

The Bufkin stuff is getting to be annoying.  A giant who eats people for the Emperor of Oz, and who speaks like a cross between a recent immigrant and a child with a developmental delay joins Bufkin's little rebellion, and I quickly found myself skipping over dialogue.

The plot concerning the search for a replacement for the North Wind is more interesting, mostly because we aren't subjected to much of the cubs this issue, instead learning about the moral obligations of the other cardinal winds, one of whom looks like he belongs in Elfquest.

Usually I love Fables, but this arc feels a little tired.  Here's hoping it picks back up again soon, and stays away from light-hearted cuteness.