Fables #100

It's hard to believe it's only been 100 issues. Fables celebrates the milestone issue with an issue that feels more like a mini-trade paperback instead of a comic book. 
 

The Good 

This is what everything has been building up to. The epic battle against Mister Dark. Will Frau Tot...I mean Bellflower, be able to stop him in a magic duel to end all magic duels? If you've been waiting for this battle, you won't be disappointed. we really get to see what these two are made of. And just when you think it's over...be sure to keep reading.  
 
The story isn't just about the battle. The nice thing about the oversized issue is so much happens. This gives the feeling that the story is longer than it actually is. Without giving anything away, there are major changes that happen. New faces appear and old ones depart. Pretty much everyone you would want and expect are here.  
 
The main story ends on page 68. In a change of roles, there is a nine page prose story by Mark Buckingham with some illustrations by Bill Willingham. There are paper puppets you can cut out (but who's going to cut up their comic?), a couple other short stories as well as Celebrity Burning Questions about Fables characters. 
 

The Bad 

I had some concerns over the $9.99 price tag for 100 pages. Those 500th and 600th milestone issues from another publisher tend to have more pages at half the price. After reading this 'issue,' I'm okay with the price. It does feel like a mini-trade. There aren't any ads that most likely caused the price to increase. It's a gripe but not a major one when you compare it to the content you get. 
 

The Verdict 

All hail Fables! I was a little late getting into Fables. The nice thing for me is that meant I was able to plow through the first few arcs in trade format. This 100th issue has that trade feel to it. It is a worthy milestone issue fitting for Fables. Everyone involved did a smashing job delivering the story we've been waiting for. It might not be new reader friendly but there are some endings and new beginnings. The story of Fables is far from over. Big things happened in this issue and there are clearly big things that will happen in the next few issues.