Redheads for the Win!
July 14th, 2010 by Susie
The two standouts from my pull this week, both featured redheads on the covers. In fact the covers were so similarly composed, that I kept mistaking one for the other, when flipping through my stack. I had a brief moment of shock when I realized Fables has been running for over eight years. I need to give it some props, because in that time it has rarely dipped in quality. I think people have basically come to expect that it will be excellent, and therefore have stopped writing about when it is. I am really enjoying the current arc, it is focusing on the relationship between Rose Red and Snow White, and clarifying how Snow White went from the happy young peasant girl, with a loving mother and sister, to the orphaned only child princess, with an evil stepmother. It also shows what caused the rift between Rose and Snow, something that has been alluded to since issue one. I’ve seen some complaints, that these issues have drawn the the focus from, (and have very little to do with) the overarching plot of the dark being that has taken over Fabletown. That is entirely true, but I don’t mind really. I am just as interested in the dynamics of these two sisters, that are essentially the heart of the series. I trust that Willingham will take us back to the main plot, in his own time, and perhaps by the conclusion of the interlude, it won’t turn out to be as disconnected as it may now seem.
Scarlet is the new creator owned series by Brian Michael Bendis, and Alex Maleev, who previously teamed up for Daredevil. I picked it up partially because I had really liked their run on Daredevil (I know I was harsh the last time I wrote about Daredevil, but that was because I felt it had gotten repetitive), but mainly because I really liked Bendis’ last series starring a female protagonist, Alias. So far the heroine of Scarlet (who is named Scarlet) seems to have almost as much of a messed up past Jessica Jones, but it has put her on a more proactive path, than Jess. She gets violent, where Jess just got drunk. Scarlet’s story is told by Scarlet, and she breaks the fourth wall by talking right to the audience. In fact it is almost unfair to say the fourth wall gets broken, because it never really seems to exist at all. She is speaking to us nearly the entire issue. It is an intriguing first issue, the character is instantly compelling, and the art is gorgeous. I am looking forward to seeing where the story goes.
Tags: Alex Maleev, Brian Michael Bendis, Fables, Redheads
