The long-awaited return of Fables has been given an official release date, with the dark fairy tale series set to return in not one, but two separate spotlights at DC Comics. First, with a detective team-up starring Bigby Wolf and the Batman himself--an appetizer looking more like a meal--followed by the release of Fables #151 in Spring 2022, picking up right where the series had previously stopped.
Combining the greatest detectives in two different worlds is an exciting promise of its own, with Batman vs. Bigby! A Wolf in Gotham #1 releasing in September under DC Black Label. But since word of the confirmation first dropped, fans have had one question: is this return of Fables one last adventure... or a sign that creator Bill Willingham is bringing the series back for good? To find out what this return means for both the creators and the readers, Screen Rant was fortunate enough to speak with Willingham directly. Readers can enjoy his insights into delivering the detective story he dared dream might be possible, picking up the Fables series with original artist Mark Buckingham, and what this new 12-issue story means for the future of Fables in our full interview below.
Screen Rant: With the announcement that Fables is returning, there are going to be a lot of fans breathing a sigh of relief, followed by some serious excitement. Would you say those same feelings extend to you and your team, as well?
Bill Willingham: I certainly hope that the excitement is there for Fables readers, new and old, and yes, I have quite a bit of excitement too. My part of the new Fables story is already done. All twelve of the new issues have been written, so I am already past the “can I do this?” stage. Now I get to experience the great part of seeing the penciled and inked pages as they come in, then relive that moment of discovery when the colors come in.
It’s the most exciting part of the job for me. In comics the story is only told when the script and art are combined, so, even having written the entire thing, the story is still at least half a mystery to me, until I see what Mark Buckingham and Steve Leialoha do with the art. For the record, they are knocking it out of the park. They're knocking it so far out of the park that it's soaring over the next six parks to boot. Some great stuff is on the way for which you can thank these incredible artists I get to work with.
SR: The world of Fables (and one of its most beloved inhabitants) will be starting its return with some serious firepower: Batman vs. Bigby! A Wolf in Gotham. Is it fair to call 'Bigby meets Batman' one of the most perfect crossovers DC and Fables could produce?
BW: It may not be for me to say, but yes, since you asked, it is the best of all possible DCU/Fables crossovers, in my not very humble opinion. I’ve wanted to have these two characters meet for years, and finally got to write it. I don’t know if you could call it a dream come true, but it’s certainly a longstanding ambition come true.
SR: The idea of these two telling a Detective story is easy enough to grasp, but where is the line drawn between Bigby putting one foot into Gotham City, versus Bruce Wayne taking a step into the realm of Fables?
BW: For the Fables side of things the line doesn’t need to be drawn, because Fables has included the premise of all of these hundreds of different worlds from the very beginning. From Batman’s point of view, it’s potentially a bit trickier, because sometimes the DCU has been very open to the notion of many, many worlds out there, and sometimes it hasn’t been.
But, leaving all of that aside, Gotham City has always been a truly weird place. Batman might be surprised at some of the bizarre things that happen in Gotham, but he is never overwhelmed by it. His ability to adjust to new and changing conditions is unmatched. He adapts and overcomes. That’s his thing. This is one of the main reasons we decided to confine the entire story to Gotham, because anything can happen there, and Batman will cope.
SR: On a similar note, how did you approach the fact that there will be readers who know Batman backwards and forwards, but will pick up this story knowing little about Fables, or have this as their first exposure? (And vice versa.)
BW: Batman vs Bigby was written with the idea that some of the readers will be new to Bigby and Fables. Everything essential that you need to know is already cooked into the story. You don’t need to be Fables-wise to fully enjoy it. But that’s not to say a reader couldn’t enhance the experience by starting to read Fables too. In fact, I hope many new readers will be inspired to come to Fables as a result of this tale.
However, if you’re one of the readers who knows all about Fables but nothing about Batman? I’m not sure such a creature exists, but if you do, I’ve tried my best to make the essential Batman as understandable as can be. We’ll see if I’ve succeeded.
SR: This miniseries is being released under DC Black Label, the imprint set aside for mature readers. Did that play a role in deciding the story you wanted to tell, or what is and isn't "off limits" once this narrative starts taking shape?
BW: It did play an important role. To my understanding, Black Label doesn’t only exist to tell more adult/mature stories. It also exists to provide a home for out-of-continuity DCU stories. That’s the part that convinced me this is the way to go. The Batman that exists in this story does not neatly fit into the established DCU continuity and the existing timeline. It transcends it, holding onto everything I count as essential to the Batman mythos, and leaving aside the extraneous bits that crop up over decades of stories.
The main change readers will notice has something to do with the nature of Robin, his partner and sidekick. I’m not going to spoil things by giving away details, but it’s something I've wanted to try with the character since back in the day I was the regular writer on the Robin series.
SR: So Batman and Bigby have the Fall covered, but fans also have the standalone Cursemas this December to look forward to. What can you tell us about this 48-page special?
BW: Cursemas isn’t connected to Fables, it’s a standalone tale about Arvo, one of Santa’s elves who doesn’t quite fit in up at the North Pole. He’s a pooka, which is a variety of shapeshifting elf, and works in the Black Gang, which is the crew who spends the year filling the (almost infinite) coal hopper on Santa’s sleigh. They load it with lumps of coal, destined for all the bad boys and girls. It’s hard, back-breaking work. But Arvo has an idea: If there were more superheroes in the world, providing good examples for growing boys and girls, there would be fewer bad ones who only get a lump of coal for Christmas.
So he pitches Santa on the idea of forming their own super team. Many elves have powers that are similar to the superpowers of Earth's Greatest Super Heroes, so why not enter the good fight with a team of their own? Unfortunately, Santa shoots down the idea, but that doesn’t stop Arvo. It just means that he has to prove his concept by running away to join the Justice League, and show everyone that his plan is a good one and he’s not a crazy-elf. His idea is sound. That’s the set-up and the story takes off from there.
SR: These books are celebrating the return of Fables, but many fans will be marking their calendars for May 2022, and the arrival of Fables #151. What is it like to plan and execute a "relaunch" of this series on the twentieth anniversary of its original launch?
BW: It’s pretty cool. We’ve been working on this for years now, ever since Mark Doyle floated the idea to me at a convention. For years I haven’t been able to tell anyone what we were working on. Now I can. So what’s it like? It’s a big relief. I’m very happy DC went along with the idea to pick the numbering up at 151, to signal that this is a continuation of the long-running series. It’s not a side-story, it’s the main story, which just happens to be continuing after a protracted break.
I’m not sure if this counts as a relaunch. I guess that’s up to readers, who always hold all the power. If readers take to this story as well as they supported Fables in the past, we might just be able to continue the numbering indefinitely, with more to come after this twelve-issue saga.
SR: For fans this will feel like a homecoming, but Fables #151 sounds like it won't waste any time in launching a new story arc, "The Black Forest." What can you tease about this story picking up where Issue #150 left off, and this new story to come?
BW: It does pick right up where issue 150 left off. In the first issue we meet a couple of new characters, and reconnect with some of the old and beloved ones. It follows the Wolf family, who’ve decided it’s time to move back to Bigby’s old stomping grounds (which is where the title “The Black Forest” comes from), and it also follows a Fables character we expected not to see again, as she navigates our world which used to be the mundy world, but is now a place of unleashed wild magic. The story’s about growing up, adapting to new ways, and letting go of old things that are past their time.
SR: Fans will also be thrilled to see the creative team assembled for this release, and Mark Buckingham returning for this arc. Can you speak to that collaboration, behind the scenes with this series return?
BW: Mark Buckingham was my chief worry about this project. I didn’t want to do it without him, but I didn’t know if he’d be available. The often-frustrating reality about our business is the best of the best artists keep pretty busy. They aren’t just sitting around waiting for me to come along, so I was plenty worried about what we’d do if he wasn’t available. And let’s be honest: Mark Buckingham is the second-best artist working in comics today.
I say “second-best” only to keep him humble. (Don’t tell him that, though. I dread the day he realizes he doesn’t need me to tell marvelous stories.)
SR: If fans have found Fables in trade paperbacks, or even the acclaimed video game, that "Issue #151" on the cover is going to seem daunting. Do you take new readers into account even more in this situation? Do the preceding books help you to draw in new audiences?
BW: Yes, we do keep new readers into account, and thank you for asking this important question. I believe, in addition to the continued counting, starting with 151, we’re going to count each issue with Black Forest 1 of 12, and so on. We plan to work hard to get the word out to everyone that this is a self-contained story. You don’t need to have read the previous hundred or so issues to know what’s going on. If you have done so, that’s great, but it isn’t necessary.
I do hope readers will consider reading the stories that have gone before, because I believe they tell an entertaining (if sprawling) story. But all along the way the Fables series has been broken into smaller stories, so that readers don’t have to be intimidated by every other Fables book out there. One advantage new readers will have, if they do want to read the other Fables books, is that we’ve recently launched our Fables Compendium editions, which collects all of Fables so far into four big books. And these were published having corrected many mistakes and typos that have existed in previous editions, finally taking care of some nagging errors I’ve been wanting to correct for years – for decades, in fact. This really is the best time to start on Fables, if you haven’t already.
The six-issue Batman vs. Bigby! A Wolf in Gotham arrives in comic shops in September, with Fables #151 continuing in May 2022.