EP 3: Question for those better versed in the lore (possible spoilers)
So can those who are more versed in the comics than myself (I've read the first 2 deluxe editions) tell me how an urban legend counts as being a fable (e.g. Bloody Mary)? I'm quite curious...
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If you want to get technical, very few of the Fables' stories are actually fables, they're fairy tales. Fables are allegorical stories designed to impart a moral.
If subjects of nursery rhymes like Boy Blue and Georgie Porgie count, I don't see why well-known urban legends can't. Generally, Willingham had no qualms about including any character that would fit the story he wanted to tell.
The way I see it, any character is a go, as long as they're a subject of tales that get passed between the mundies. The more ancient and popular the tale- the more powerful is the Fable that is born of it. But it's all very complicated and I don't think it's ever fully explained even in the comics- for instance, some of the Fables' origin stories seem to have originated in the mundane world well after the exodus from the Fable's Homelands. But I suppose a Fable can always be "born" in the Homelands and THEN escape into the mundy world. Hell, it's all very convoluted and if you try to think too hard on it, it'll make your head spin
I was actually curious about this myself; i.e. the standards by which a fable is judged to fit within the canon.
Bill Willingham, the writer, states that he has two criteria for admission as a 'fable':
1) Is the character or story free for use (i.e. not under copyright)?
2) Do I want to use the character or story?
Anything else goes, apparently.
I'm not certain-but a fable is the discourse (happenstances) within a story, I think it comes from the Latin meaning such (Fabula). So I would say that fables would be like the whole contained universe (comics etc) a fable is a singular part of the discourse with their own backgrounds and morals etc.
I suppose this Mary character breaks the mold, since there really is no moral attributable to the conclusion of her discourse. It is not like, you know, 'listen to you parents and stay on the path or the Big Bad Wolf will get you etc.' Red gets into a bad situation, is saved, then it is said she should have listened to her elders and stayed on the path.' There is what Dan Dennet would call an intuition pump in a story like Little Red Riding Hood(if it is good one or not is for another discussion). The moral of the story helps to enrich the discourse for survival.
Mary's legend is more like, 'hey kid, don't say this crazy lady's name in front of a mirror, or she will brutality kill you and your friends.' It is superstitious, and evokes unnecessary fear, what is the use of such a story? I think that is the primary difference, I'm not saying she should not be in the game,I just like talking about this stuff.
Thanks for your comment!
Has he ever used mythical characters, ex. from Greco-Roman myth. Like Cadmus, or Odysseus?
I wouldn't know. I haven't read the comics. I just spotted that quote on the wikipedia page for Fables, under the 'characters' section.
Wikipedia has a complete list of characters who have made appearances. There appear to be an awful lot.
I suppose he would not be able to use characters with a complete narrative like Achilles. But all we know from the Odyssey, is that Odysseus has one more voyage wherein he will die. It would cool to see the legendary Greek tactician face off against Bigby.
He used Saint George (unnamed, for copyright reasons of some kind, I suspect). Also lots of characters from Arthurian legend.
Saint George like Saint George and the dragon? Seesh, who owns the copy rights for that? lol
There are a crap ton of Fables from the comics that even I didn't know their original stories to until reading the comics. I love how Willingham (The writer of the comics) incorporates stories not only from our society, but from Japanese culture, Arabian Fables, European, etc. He's very educated in that regard.
I don't know, but it's possible someone owns the rights to use him in the comic format, or maybe it's something to do with him being a real religious figure?
I would say that your latter premise (him being a religious figure) is the best one. Yet people depict Jesus (obviously more important for Christianity than Saint George), Buddha, and the Hindu gods without getting much flack. It would seem that it is the depictions of Muhammad, which seem to entail the burning of embassies, riots, fatwas etc...