Hate It Here

Written by Steve Earle. 

Featuring heavy breathing and snorting pug sounds by Dexter. 

THE BEST BAND IN THE WORLD: MARK BUCKINGHAM ON THE END OF ‘FABLES’ [INTERVIEW]

By Juliet Kahn

Mark Buckingham’s art hasn’t just made Fables a classic — it has made it, and comics in general, accessible to reluctant readers the world over. His work on the long-running Vertigo series chronicling the lives of exiled fairy tale characters is simple, but never simplistic, and visually strong without ever sacrificing complexity. From Buckingham’s pen flow wooden soldiers of truly oaken resolve, smart-mouthed witches, rumpled detectives and alcoholic, anthropomorphic pigs, all living and loving in the little slice of New York City they’ve made their own.

Buckingham has helped propel the Bill Willingham-written series to the bestseller lists over and over again, inspired decadent cosplay and made Fables the kind of work that’s beloved by your bag-and-boarding friends and your mom alike. Now, as the story nears its end, Buckingham is preparing to say goodbye the world he so richly imagined. ComicsAlliance found him at San Diego Comic-Con to discuss the fond farewell and what the future holds.

CA: Does it feel weird to prepare to say goodbye to these characters after so long?

MB: Oh, definitely. I keep saying to people, I’m sort of the continuity cop on this book. I’ve been the one that’s been holding all of this stuff in my brain all these years. So, I’m usually the one that has to remind Bill, “Oh, we haven’t finished that plot with that character yet.” Or, “What are we gonna do about so-and-such?”

So to be actually letting go of them all is going to be really tough. Although, it might be useful, because now I’ll start to remember the names of some of my friends, and birthdays, and other bits of information that I’ve actually been jettisoning for years in order to just cram all the nonsense into my head.