Fables Vol. 6: Homelands

I really have to hand it to them, I wasn't that much of a fan of Jack or Blue until I read this collection. Jack's story takes place with his greatest scheme yet, which places him in Hollywood, creating a blockbuster trilogy and boom... well, you have to see. And Boy Blue's story is just fantastic as he battles his way across the Homelands to rescue Pinnochio and Red Riding Hood. A definite must.

With shadowed hints about the Homelands and how various Fables escaped this may be the volume fans have been waiting for. But upon opening the cover, they have to wait a little longer. The first two issues tell the tale of Jack. He has left Fabletown and hit the road. Now he is in California and using stolen Fabletown funds to finance a new movie industry. The idea is to make a series of movies about himself and increase his popularity/presence. But we know things do not always work out the best for Jack. I was a little disappointed in this tale as Beast now seems able to change at will as opposed to in relation to Beauty's feelings. This is just wrong, he is Beast nor Bigby. After Jack's little adventure we finally move to the Homelands. Boy Blue has taken the Witching Cloak, the Vorpal Blade and Pinocchio's body and fled to the Homelands. Now we see what he is up to and what is going on in these fabled lands. Boy Blue is quite the unstoppable force as he secretly works his way from world to world. His quest takes him through many adventures and brings him face to face with many powerful denizens including the Snow Queen and the Emperor. But when trouble takes him to the second part of his quest, Blue and the readers learn the truth behind what has been going on in the homelands. Eventually Blue returns to the Mundane world to face the consequences of his actions and we learn even more secrets. While Blue is on his adventures, things are not completely quiet in Fabletown. Beast is growing into his role as Sheriff while Prince Charming has his hands full as Mayor. We learn a little more about the Tourist and even meet one. We learn of a traitor and his fate. We even learn a little about hoe the Fable community plans to respond to the Adversary and his incursions into the mundane world. All in all this volume is packed with adventure, intrigue and revelations. Like earlier in volumes there is a lot of action off-stage. This makes the story move quickly but may be disappointing to some (although they should be used to it by now). If you have been following the series you will really want to read this one. Check it out.

The five-part Homelands arc of Bill Willingham's amazing series Fables drops a huge bombshell on us by finally revealing the identity of the mysterious Adversary. At last, the exiled Fables have a face to place with the name of the being responsible for enslaving their lands and exiling them to the mundane world of ours. Before I get into the Homelands story, though, I will start off by reviewing the first arc in the collection, Jack Be Nimble. It tells the story of Jack of the Tales in Hollywood, which starts off around the same time as the events of The Mean Seasons. After the Battle of Fabletown in March of the Wooden Soldiers, Jack was able to steal a large amount of treasure from the Fabletown vaults and use it to finance a series of films about his life. He, along with the Fable Jill (who, for some reason, is a miniature woman who has been forced to live at the farm her whole time in our world due to her inability to blend in with "mundies") start a production company and become one of the most "fascinating" people in Hollywood due to their elusive nature. This is a fun arc that leads directly into the spin-off series Jack of the Fables, set to premiere next month. The Homelands arc involves Boy Blue's return to the Homelands after the Battle of Fabletown. After stealing a cloak with a powerful enchantment, the Vorpal Blade of Jabberwock fame, and Pinnochio's lifeless body, Blue has been trekking across the Homelands in order to defeat the Adversary once and for all and to save Red Riding Hood, his lost love. However, nothing is what it seems to be, with the Adversary's true identity coming as a huge shock as well as a bizarre reunion with Red. An intermediary issue in the Homelands arc shows what has been going on in Fabletown. Prince Charming, Beauty, and Beast, have finally settled into their roles, and they must find out who has been leaking information to the Adversary, while Mowgli, of the Jungle Book, is introduced. He is called a "tourist", which is a Fable agent under the sheriff who travels the world performing missions. Beast's latest mission for Mowgli, though, may prove to be fatal for the man-cub. All the stories in this collection are good, but it seems like nothing can compare to March of the Wooden Soldiers, which was an amazing story. The Homelands arc also has a strange pace, but it still very enjoyable. And while the revelation of the Adversary's identity might seem like the beginning of the end of the series, it is really a catalyst for many more stories to come. The following story arc is alluded to when the Adversary states that after countless centuries, he has just finished conquering the lands of European Fables, and is prepared to begin enslaving the Arabian Fables. Also, now that his identity is known, the Fabletown Fables may try to strike back, or he may try to make another attempt at enslaving Fabletown. This series is amazing, and it seems like things are only going to get more interesting...

Volume 6 opens with Jack of the Tales in Hollywood, using the billions of dollars of loot he stole in the last volume to start his own studio. This story (and the entire volume) takes place over a period of years, so Jack's scheme actually works better than most of his previous ideas, though as usual, things don't turn out quite the way he wanted in the end. But tying up many loose threads left dangling in previous volumes, the main star of "Homelands" is Boy Blue. No longer a blues-playing office clerk, in this volume he hacks and slashes his way across the many worlds from which the Fables originally fled, giving us a look at what this fantasy realm is really like and how the Empire ruled by "the Adversary" really works. On his quest to kill the Emperor, we get the answers to many questions, but the war continues, and the future of Fabletown is still an open question. Back home, there are several interesting developments both in Fabletown and up on The Farm. We meet Mowgli of the Jungle Book, who has a conversation with Bagheera (imprisoned since his participation in the failed rebellion in Volume 2) and then is given a secret mission by Prince Charming. A long-time character is revealed to be a traitor, Snow White's children are growing up, and the volume ends with a sad twist. Many subplots from previous volumes have been wrapped up, but plenty of new ones are spawned.

I absolutely love Fables. That's the best way to express it. I lover everything about it...its originality, its irreverance, its twists, its art, everything. Homelands is the sixth volume in the series and collectes Fables #34-41. The first arc picks up after the battle in volume 5 and shows what Jack has been up to. I don't want to give anything away but let's say that it involves Hollywood and a trilogy. A very entertaining read and is told from the POV of characters that Jack had interacted with in show business and pokes fun at the current media obsessed society of today. The second story follows Boy Blue after his return in the Homelands. He slowly and after spilling much blood, finally learns the true identity of the Adversary...this one is worth the price tag of the book alone. After being captured by the Adversayr, Blue finally learns motives behind the Adversary's actions and finally finds out the truth about Red Riding Hood. This story really puts Boy Blue and makes him shine. His side as a cunning warrior is explored as evident by the way he escapes from the Adversary. Fables has quickly become one of my favorite non-superhero title. It is one of the best adult-themed comics in the market alongside the likes of 100 Bullets. The author Willingham really flshes out each character and humanize them with the imperfections that come with the territory. Fables has been a very fun read since its inception and the trend continues with the Homelads. Very high recommendation for old fans and new fans alike.