“Fairest” comes to a close this week with a special final issue written by the “Fables” king himself Bill Willingham. The series doesn’t go out on a big note but it is a sensible ending.
Written by Bill Willingham
Illustrated Meghan Hetrick
This final issue of FAIREST features a special stand-alone story written by Bill Willingham! Dont miss the return of fan-favorite maniac Goldilocks, with art by Meghan Hetrick (BODIES, BATMAN ETERNAL, THE JOKERS DAUGHTER) and a special horizontal format cover by Adam Hughes!FINAL ISSUE
“Fables” might be one of my top ten favorite series of all time; I have been reading it almost since it launched. “Fairest” was launched just a couple of years ago as a way to tell stories with characters that weren’t necessarily involved with the bigger plot of “Fables”. Characters such as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Rapunzel and even Prince Charming got their own multi-issue arcs. What made up the final arc wasn’t as strong as it could have been, but “Fairest” #33 makes up for that – for the most part at least.
“Fairest” #33 marks the last issue of the series and as such Bill Willingham comes back to write one final story. The focal character is Goldilocks. Goldilocks hasn’t been seen in years. She hasn’t even been mentioned much, if at all, since she departed the story after trying to kill Snow White way back near the beginning of the series. Willingham catches us up to what she’s been doing: Goldilocks has been traveling the Mundy world, trying to find a new place to settle down. She eventually gives up on this and takes to the clouds by climbing the famous beanstalk that made Jack famous. The entire issue features her trying her best to take over a kingdom, any kingdom, and settle down.
Goldilocks was one of the best villains of the entire “Fables” series, and I always felt she was underutilized. At the time she was around, there was a political thriller like story going on and while changed, I still felt there was a use for her. “Fairest” #33 puts all of her personality on display. She’s kind of as close as you’ll get to Doctor Doom in the Fablesverse. She’s power hungry, smart and a bit silly at times. Willingham falls right back into writing her voice like no time has passed. The plot itself is really well suited for the final issue of “Fairest”. “Fables” is where the main action happens and “Fairest” was a chance to see more of this world. Taking Goldilocks on a tour of the entire Cloud Kingdom gives us that last chance to see it all. It’s a sad moment for fans of the world but it’s not written that way and I sort of wish it were.
My biggest issue comes from the open endedness of the issue. It leads into what happens in the “Fairest In All the Land” original graphic novel. It’s a nice bit of marketing but I don’t think it ultimately works for a final issue. I wanted to feel like this was final. I wanted to feel sad after finishing it. Instead I felt like I finished an issue in the middle of the series. I like that feeling of true finality. This didn’t give me that.
Meghan Hetrick handles the art and she does a really nice job. Her style is very different from what we’ve seen in “Fairest” so far. Her design of Goldilocks is in line with what we’ve seen before but there’s a tinge of sex appeal to her and I really liked that. It’s not cheesecake but she does come off far more womanly than before, which I like in an artistic style. She also has a real knack for the background and creature designs. It screamed fantasy and honestly made me wish she would have had an opportunity to do something for this series earlier.
“Fairest” didn’t go out as strongly as it could have but longtime readers will find no reason not to enjoy what we get. Willingham writing Goldilocks is a ton of fun and Hetrick’s art style fits this world perfectly. I wanted a little more finality from this issue but I’m pretty sure we’ll get enough of that when “Fables” #150 hits.
Final Verdict: 7.7 – Genuinely fun with great art but lacks a feeling of finality.
