Graphic Novel Review: The Fable Omnibus 1 by Katsuhisa Minami

Posted on October 14, 2025 at 6:41 am by Gene Ambaum

The Fable Omnibus 1 by Katsuhisa Minami. Kodansha, 2024. 9978888772447. 416pp. Publisher’s Rating: Mature 18+

This manga series opens with Fable, a legendary hit man, taking out a bunch of goons. He’s unhurried, the violence is balletic, and when he takes off the hood he’s wearing he’s a bit of a goofball. He loves Jackal Tomioka, a third-rate comedian who can make Fable laugh no matter how many people he’s killed. (That’s Fable on the cover with his pet bird on his head.)

Fable’s boss tells him and his driver that they won’t be taking any new jobs for a while. He wants them to lie low in Osaka and to try acting like normal people for a change. They’re to pose as brother and sister, and they are absolutely not supposed to kill anyone while they’re there.

The local yakuza give them apartments and are instructed to leave them alone. But some of them have other ideas, including members set on testing Fable’s skills, running him out of town, and trying to follow in his footsteps.

This first volume is odd, at least if violence doesn’t bother you. The next two get rougher when, among other things, a gang member returns from prison and tries to force Fable’s neighbor into prostitution. Fable’s unique, light approach to life stands in contrast to this character and others, which seems to be setting him up to be a hero of sorts.