Graphic Books Best Sellers: Bane and Doomsday Return March 9, 2012, 1:26 pm The 1990s were a glorious time for comic books, particularly at DC Comics: Superman was murdered by Doomsday, Batman had his spine shattered by Bane, and Wonder Woman ran around with biker shorts and a leather jacket. Two of the stories are revisited on the graphic books best-seller lists this week. 5 on the hardcover list is "Superman: Reign of Doomsday," which features the return of the foe that temporarily vanquished the Man of Steel. This time, Superman has Superboy, Supergirl, Steel and other allies in his fight. 4 on the paperback list is "Batman Versus Bane," in which the villain, who temporarily put the Dark Knight in traction, returns to plague Gotham City. Bane is also one of the villains in this summer's film "Dark Knight Rises," the concluding chapter in the Batman trilogy directed by Christopher Nolan. In comic book stores this week is the first issue of "Fairest," a spin-off of "Fables," the long-running series by Bill Willingham, about storybook characters of myth. "Fairest" is meant to focus on the legendary ladies of those tales: Rapunzel, Cinderella, Thumbelina, Snow White and more. I say "meant to focus" because the primary star of this first issue, at least, is Ali Baba, the prince of thieves. The reader does not meet the women (The Snow Queen and Sleeping Beauty) of this first arc until about halfway in - and they are in a deep sleep. The artwork, by Phil Jimenez, is richly detailed, and Ali's sidekick, an imp called Jonah Panghammer, whose running banter includes some TV commentary, is a winning creation. I've enjoyed the "Fables" series in collected editions; I suspect that will be my preferred format for this spin-off also.