The first five issues of the popular FABLES spin-off series are collected in this amazing new volume! Last seen hitchhiking from Hollywood, Jack's now a wayward Fable in the heartland of America. His extreme road stories and encounters with other notorious, renegade Fables are just a few of the situations in store for this fan-favorite character.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Willingham first created a contemporary world inhabited by fairy tale characters in his series, Fables. He continues that success with Sturges, who co-writes this recent spinoff. A new story line further develops Jack Horner's escapades in Hollywood and establishes him as the most dangerous Fable loose in the "mundy"—short for "mundane"—world. Jack is forced into the Golden Boughs Retirement Community, a jail of sorts where Fables are imprisoned until society-at-large forgets about them, thereby diminishing their magic powers. Enlisting the support of Goldilocks and a cage full of fairies, Jack plans the entire retirement community's escape. Willingham and Sturges give Jack a bad-boy attitude, making him an everyman hero that readers won't always identify with, but will enjoy watching flub and fake his way to freedom, complete with clever riffs on the Turtle and the Hare, the Toothfairy, Mother Goose and Humpty Dumpty. Readers will enjoy this more if they first familiarize themselves with Willingham's established Fables world (Legends in Exile, Wolves, etc.). Rated for mature readers, the tale includes sex, nudity, corruption, so it's got a little bit of everything that any sophisticated comics fan will enjoy. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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More About the Author
Matthew Sturges has written a number of comics for DC, including House of Mystery, Justice Society of America, and the Eisner-nominated Jack of Fables (with Bill Willingham). He has also written the novel Midwinter, available from Pyr, and its sequel The Office of Shadow, which will be published summer 2010.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
All customer reviews posted at the time of this writing would have you believe that if you enjoy Fables, you will necessarily enjoy its spin-off Jack of Fables. Not so fast! I want to encourage you to at least proceed with caution.
I only recently discovered Fables and have quickly read the entire series. I love myth, fairy tales and fantasy and I think the Fables series is wonderfully entertaining (though it arguably features more intrigue and mystery than standard fantasy fair). Bill Willingham's characterizations are believable and endearing, his stories are sweeping and epic, and the artwork and design are remarkable (paneling and layout are unlike anything else I have seen).
Other reviewers note that Jack may be the least likable of the Fables characters in the original series. But whereas he is self-serving and self-pitying in Fables, there was something underneath that made him tolerable if not likable. Yes, he was a jerk, but he was not devoid of all merit. Through the first two books of this series, his jerk factor has really escalated. Perhaps it's just because the focus now resides so squarely on him. Perhaps even more likely it's because these tales are primarily narrated in a first person voice. You get inside Jack's head and thoughts and his arrogance and braggadocio are just overwhelming. He constantly tells the reader how much better he is than everyone (including the reader), he closes each story with a teaser for the next in which he lauds himself and insults the reader or where he tries an infantile trick or insult to get you to read on. Whereas I assume this is supposed to be humorous, it falls completely flat for me. It lacks wit and seems amateurish.
And this brings me to the real problem plaguing this series. Both Bill Willingham and Matt Sturges are credited as writers. Whereas I do not know what actually occurs, I had to wonder if Matt Sturges wasn't the primary or almost exclusive writer. Willingham may have editorial control or input (and it is certainly his character), but I cannot believe that he is directly responsible for this. Willingham has amazing talent as demonstrated in Fables, but it is not in evidence here. The plotting feels telegraphed and the pacing is frenetic. Aside from the writing, the beautiful artwork and design of the original are also missing.
In fairness, some of the magic is still here. You meet more fairy tale characters which has its own inherent fanciful appeal. Plus you get some back story and tie-ins to the Fables series. The idea of the Golden Boughs Retirement Community and its mission to remove all magic from the world (fable or otherwise) has wonderful potential. In fact, if that plot device were rolled into Fables, I imagine we would have a great story. But the writing and presentation here are just sub par.
I got and read the first two books but I will not be getting any subsequent volumes. Whereas the vocal few seem to love this series, it is not a foregone conclusion that liking the original Fables means you will also like this spin-off. By all means proceed to look into this series for yourself, but do so with caution.
I only recently discovered Fables and have quickly read the entire series. I love myth, fairy tales and fantasy and I think the Fables series is wonderfully entertaining (though it arguably features more intrigue and mystery than standard fantasy fair). Bill Willingham's characterizations are believable and endearing, his stories are sweeping and epic, and the artwork and design are remarkable (paneling and layout are unlike anything else I have seen).
Other reviewers note that Jack may be the least likable of the Fables characters in the original series. But whereas he is self-serving and self-pitying in Fables, there was something underneath that made him tolerable if not likable. Yes, he was a jerk, but he was not devoid of all merit. Through the first two books of this series, his jerk factor has really escalated. Perhaps it's just because the focus now resides so squarely on him. Perhaps even more likely it's because these tales are primarily narrated in a first person voice. You get inside Jack's head and thoughts and his arrogance and braggadocio are just overwhelming. He constantly tells the reader how much better he is than everyone (including the reader), he closes each story with a teaser for the next in which he lauds himself and insults the reader or where he tries an infantile trick or insult to get you to read on. Whereas I assume this is supposed to be humorous, it falls completely flat for me. It lacks wit and seems amateurish.
And this brings me to the real problem plaguing this series. Both Bill Willingham and Matt Sturges are credited as writers. Whereas I do not know what actually occurs, I had to wonder if Matt Sturges wasn't the primary or almost exclusive writer. Willingham may have editorial control or input (and it is certainly his character), but I cannot believe that he is directly responsible for this. Willingham has amazing talent as demonstrated in Fables, but it is not in evidence here. The plotting feels telegraphed and the pacing is frenetic. Aside from the writing, the beautiful artwork and design of the original are also missing.
In fairness, some of the magic is still here. You meet more fairy tale characters which has its own inherent fanciful appeal. Plus you get some back story and tie-ins to the Fables series. The idea of the Golden Boughs Retirement Community and its mission to remove all magic from the world (fable or otherwise) has wonderful potential. In fact, if that plot device were rolled into Fables, I imagine we would have a great story. But the writing and presentation here are just sub par.
I got and read the first two books but I will not be getting any subsequent volumes. Whereas the vocal few seem to love this series, it is not a foregone conclusion that liking the original Fables means you will also like this spin-off. By all means proceed to look into this series for yourself, but do so with caution.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By Heather
Format:Paperback
Jack of Fables gets his own spin-off series! I have to admit, at first, I was sort of like, why? But, now I understand. It's because Jack kicks butt! In case you don't know, Jack also goes by Jack of the Beanstalk, Jack B. Horner, Jack of the Tales, and apparently Jack Frost in colder climates.
When we last saw Jack in the Fables comics, he had become a huge player in the Hollywood scene, with fame, money and lots of girls, only to have it all taken away from him by the sheriff of Fabletown, The Beast (from Beauty and the Beast, of course). Left to fend for himself, we meet up with Jack as he walks along a highway with the million dollars Beast let him keep. Suddenly he is picked up with a strange woman and two bagmen (men who are, well, bags, it's weird I know) and taken to a place called The Golden Boughs Retirement community. There he finds Goldilocks (missing from the Fables comics for awhile as well) and other various and sundry fable characters many of whom are very obscure. Someone did their research! Among them are Mother Goose, the Pathetic Fallacy, and a quick little guy called Sam. There are also cameos by Dorothy, Tin Man, Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Toto, and many others.
There Jack meets a rather nefarious guy called Mr. Revise who runs The Golden Boughs. Mr. Revise's mission is, apparently, imprison fairy tales until the world at large forgets about them, making them less magical. Mr. Revise's sinister intent is to do away with them and rid the world of magic forever
As I said before, I was surprised when they decided to spin-off Jack. Now that I can see where the story is going, I totally understand. This series looks to be completely separate from the Fables universe (no Adversary, none of the regulars from that comic) and has a great story going. The parallels to our own world and the issues we face with censorship are expertly addressed in the story arc with Mr. Revise and the Golden Boughs. I can't wait to see where Bill Willingham and crew go with this in the next part of the series.
And, as always, the art was simply amazing, especially James Jean's beautiful covers. And, I would advise catching up on the Fables comics, not because this can't stand alone because I think it really can, but because they are just so fantastic they need to be read too!
When we last saw Jack in the Fables comics, he had become a huge player in the Hollywood scene, with fame, money and lots of girls, only to have it all taken away from him by the sheriff of Fabletown, The Beast (from Beauty and the Beast, of course). Left to fend for himself, we meet up with Jack as he walks along a highway with the million dollars Beast let him keep. Suddenly he is picked up with a strange woman and two bagmen (men who are, well, bags, it's weird I know) and taken to a place called The Golden Boughs Retirement community. There he finds Goldilocks (missing from the Fables comics for awhile as well) and other various and sundry fable characters many of whom are very obscure. Someone did their research! Among them are Mother Goose, the Pathetic Fallacy, and a quick little guy called Sam. There are also cameos by Dorothy, Tin Man, Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Toto, and many others.
There Jack meets a rather nefarious guy called Mr. Revise who runs The Golden Boughs. Mr. Revise's mission is, apparently, imprison fairy tales until the world at large forgets about them, making them less magical. Mr. Revise's sinister intent is to do away with them and rid the world of magic forever
As I said before, I was surprised when they decided to spin-off Jack. Now that I can see where the story is going, I totally understand. This series looks to be completely separate from the Fables universe (no Adversary, none of the regulars from that comic) and has a great story going. The parallels to our own world and the issues we face with censorship are expertly addressed in the story arc with Mr. Revise and the Golden Boughs. I can't wait to see where Bill Willingham and crew go with this in the next part of the series.
And, as always, the art was simply amazing, especially James Jean's beautiful covers. And, I would advise catching up on the Fables comics, not because this can't stand alone because I think it really can, but because they are just so fantastic they need to be read too!
10 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Bill Willingham's "Fables" series has already taken some of the world's best-loved characters in a new and thoroughly modern direction. Now, Jack of the Tales -- a.k.a. Jack the Giant-Killer, Jack Horner, Jack Frost, John Trick and Jack B. Nimble -- has broken with the fold (OK, he was banished) and is out on his own. It doesn't take him long at all before he's tossed unwillingly into the Golden Boughs Retirement Community, where the dread Scissorman keeps story characters captive until they fade from the collective subconscious and lose their power.
On the bright side, the revolutionary and homicidal maniac Goldilocks is there, not at all dead as previously believed, and without Baby Bear to sate her, she's willing to get kinky with Jack. (There's nothing explicit, but this isn't a book for youngsters.) But Jack wants to escape the inescapable, and with the help of Humpty Dumpty, a handful of fairies, a large flock of birds and an elderly Sambo, he just might do it.
Anyone who enjoys the "Fables" series will love this. And since everyone should enjoy "Fables," you might as well pick up your copy now.
by Tom Knapp, Rambles.NET editor
On the bright side, the revolutionary and homicidal maniac Goldilocks is there, not at all dead as previously believed, and without Baby Bear to sate her, she's willing to get kinky with Jack. (There's nothing explicit, but this isn't a book for youngsters.) But Jack wants to escape the inescapable, and with the help of Humpty Dumpty, a handful of fairies, a large flock of birds and an elderly Sambo, he just might do it.
Anyone who enjoys the "Fables" series will love this. And since everyone should enjoy "Fables," you might as well pick up your copy now.
by Tom Knapp, Rambles.NET editor
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding offshoot
Story lines age, and even great comics need to rejuvenate themselves from time to time. Sometimes they simply come to a halt and reboot, sometimes they split like amebas into... Read more
Published on December 16, 2010 by wiredweird
3.0 out of 5 stars
It's kind of cool
The idea is pretty interesting and a lot of people really enjoy the Fables series, but I was surprisingly underwhelmed. It's not a bad story I just wasn't hooked.
Published on November 14, 2010 by R. Sweet
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Very Good Fables Spin Off, quite different from Fables
After I read the Great Fables Crossover (a story that I loved in Fables), I became a little more interested in the Jack of Fables series. Read more
Published on June 25, 2010 by Enrique Trevino
4.0 out of 5 stars
Vol. 1 Makes a Worthy Spin-Off with Plot More Than I Expected!
In my journey to read the "Fables" series, I find it is time to switch over and get myself up-to-date with the "Jack of Fables" series. Read more
Published on June 22, 2010 by Nicola Manning
5.0 out of 5 stars
You Don't Know Jack! But If You Like Fables, You'll Love Him!
For Fables fans that can't get enough, Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges hit us right between the eyes with "Jack of Fables! Read more
Published on December 22, 2009 by Paige Turner
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable
For a spin-off of the Fables series, this one is definitely fun to read, and even better, follows a Fable with a wonderful and interesting story of his own. Read more
Published on November 23, 2009 by M
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific spin-off with its own great voice
The (Nearly) Great Escape is the first collection in Jack of Fables - the spin-off series from Willingham's long-running 'Fables'. Read more
Published on April 29, 2009 by J. Shurin
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Fables" spinoff TPB exceeds expectations
This spinoff of Willingham's popular "Fables" series centers on the rascally Jack of Tales, the subject and producer of a highly successful autobiographical film trilogy and recent... Read more
Published on February 8, 2009 by K. W. Schreiter
5.0 out of 5 stars
AS GOOD AS THE REGULAR FABLE SERIES
If you liked the original FABLE series then you will like this offshoot, especially if you liked the Jack character. Read more
Published on September 14, 2008 by MISTER SJEM
5.0 out of 5 stars
I'm shocked (but delighted) that I liked this so much
I'm a huge fan of Bill Willingham's FABLES series, but I was rather loathe to give the Jack books a try. Why? Of all the characters in FABLES, Jack was easily my least favorite. Read more
Published on April 9, 2008 by Robert Moore
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