At Comic-Con International's July 26th
Fables panel, attended by CBR News's TIMOTHY CALLAHAN, franchise creator
Bill Willingham and a number of his collaborators discussed upcoming storylines, miniseries and related ancillaries.
Jack of Fables co-writer
Matthew Sturges, who just signed a two-year exclusive DC comics contract, announced a crossover for early next year, to run in the two regular titles and a new three-issue miniseries called
The Littles. He also said that upcoming issues of
Jack will feature a few more obscure--or completely forgotten--tall tales, including "Man of Fruit" and "Captain Scurvy the Toothless Pirate"(?!)
Fables artist
Mark Buckingham promoted TwoMorrows Publishing's imminent edition of
Modern Masters which will be devoted to him. The volume's cover will feature a new
Fables-themed tableau by Buckingham, and the contents include "a lot of behind the scenes stuff and what goes on in the creation of [
Fables]."
Novelist
Chris Roberson and artist
Shawn McManus are producing a miniseries entitled
Cinderella, from Fabletown, with Love, in which the writer, who described the story as "spies, sex, and shoes," dramatizes the fate of Cinderella's fairy godmother.
Speaking of Cindy, Willingham said an upcoming
Fables two-parter finally will reveal the favor that she owes Frau Totenkinder for her help with the Cloud Kingdom negotiations.
Willingham also is taking
Fables into novel territory with next year's
Peter and Max, to be illustrated by
Steve Leialoha. The book will explain what happened to Peter Piper and his brother Max, who grew up to mess around with pipes and rats.
And, despite the scare caused by the writer's cruel April Fool's Day prank, fans don't have to worry about
Fables ending, unless Willingham dies or Buckingham wants to do something else. However, readers should expect changes after issue #75.
"The prequel's over," teased Willingham, "now we start the real series."
He also said he might be up for drawing an issue of
Fables himself if he gave up writing and if there is as yet no artist locked in for #1000. He also said that cover artist "
James Jean has a standing offer to do an interior story whenever he wants."
And there's "always something underway" regarding a
Fables movie, but Willingham claimed not to understand how the movie business works.
"If you ever want to enter a fantasyland that doesn't exist," he cracked, "go to Hollywood."
P. Ryan Anthony
