There is usually a hierarchy in the world of the fairytale but given it is usually the youngest of the children who do well in these stories, you could argue it's a reverse one.
Justice is always done in some form (oh how real life was like that!) and Andersen especially was scathing about hypocrisy. See The Little Match Girl for a good example of this given the tale revolves around pity for a dead match seller and the clear moral is you should have helped the poor soul while she was alive. How well that went down at the time of publication I don't know but it does show Dickens wasn't the only one writing what is effectively social commentary. Another great example is Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince.
So, yes, I love fairytales and always will. They can be long, short, funny, serious or any combination. That's bliss to a writer - you get the green light to write as you feel. In other forms I think you can be more restricted.