The Wolf Among Us Season 1: Episode 2 ‘Smoke and Mirrors’ Preview

The Wolf Among Us is an episodic graphic game from Telltale Games released on October of last year. However, the second episode Smoke and Mirrors is only coming live next month. Will this long waiting be worth it? Probably yes, since suspense, mystery and enigmatic leads are all over this Fable story. Who’s the responsible for the two homicides? Who’s the fable who has become a serial killer? And most of all, why is he or she targeting girls who seem to be related to sheriff Bigby? For now, all we have are elusive suspects and a lot of questions but the preview trailer can make things a bit more clear. Check it out here if you didn’t have the chance yet.

The Serial Killer: ‘Oh god, it’s one of us!’

At the end of the first episode it became clear that Bigby is dealing with much more than just a murderer, it’s indeed a serial killer. But the killing is not random or indiscriminate. Apparently, this serial killer is obsessed with Bigby. It’s easy to tell since both victims were related to him, could it be a coincidence? I doubt it.

The Woodsman was one of the main suspects during episode one due to his aggressive behavior towards Faith, who showed up dead a few hours later after being beaten by him.

There are several candidates but so far, none of them are clearly guilty. The Woodsman seems to be the perfect candidate, he used to be a hero and he even defeated Bigby, back when he was devouring people as the Big Bad Wolf. Things are different now, Bigby is the town’s sheriff and the Woodsman is a mere violent drunkard. His hate for the wolf is well known, now more than ever it’s not just hate; it’s envy and jealousy. He surely has great motive to back up the murders but he seems to be innocent this time. He was at the bar with Bigby, he couldn’t have decapitated Snow while Bigby walked home. The second suspect is one of the Tweedles, but once again, he showed up at the bar just before Snow’s head was discovered. The top two suspects were eliminated at the end of the episode and only one prime suspect remains, Bluebeard.

Bluebeard: Redemption or Reassurance?

Bluebeard used to be a serial killer who decapitated his brides, now he’s a business man, one of the richest in Fable Town and he uses his money to secure political influence for personal gain. Could the villain be back on his old business? After all the murdering patterns fit his old methods – women, decapitation, they’re just not his brides.

Bluebeard didn’t show up in episode one, he was simply mentioned as a rich guy who used to be a killer. Episode two will introduce him as a real character and possible prime suspect.

Or were they? We don’t know that, however there’s an illegal network going on, Faith was part of it and apparently Beauty is involved as well. If Bluebeard is actually behind it, then his female workers could be considered brides and everything would fit together. But it could be him as it could be someone else, there’s no solid evidence so far. Just because he used to do it in the past it doesn’t mean he did it this time. I believe a new suspect will emerge in Smoke and Mirrors mostly because it would be too obvious and predictable to make Bluebeard the real killer, even if he currently fits perfectly as the prime suspect.

Beauty and the Beast: Secrets of the Night

Beauty and the Beast will have more relevance in the upcoming episode and apparently, something shocking will be revealed. I suppose Bigby will discover what Beauty has been doing late at night. I think she’s involved in the shadow network, as I said before, and that will surely disappoint Beast. For some reason Bigby will most keep the information from him (perhaps he thinks Beauty is in danger or something alike).

The two beasts get in a rough fight, however the reason is not clear.

The trailer shows Bigby and Beast fighting but the reason isn’t clear. I’m not sure if it’s about Beauty or if it’s actually related to the homicides. I noticed back at Toad’s place that there were claw marks at the window, which means the serial killer is a wolf or a beast? The almost perfect decapitations would be explained then – sharp claws can execute perfect cuts.

Bigby Wolf: Hero or Villain?

Wouldn’t it be surprising if Bigby turned out to be the bad guy once again? The guy barely sleeps or eats and he’s always involved in fights. It wouldn’t be too shocking if he had some moments of euphoria where his natural form would break through his charm disguise. Then he would commit the most atrocious acts. In the preview trailer, the mirror pronounces an enigmatic riddle: “Friend on friend, at the end of the end.” And Bigby appears in the mirror with his eyes glowing yellow. Is the mirror pointing towards Bigby as the killer or is it trying to tell him that all the murders are being committed by someone who used to be his friend?

No one would tell this is sheriff’s Bigby true appearance but it really is.

At the very end of the trailer, Bigby is shown in his true form, a ruthless werewolf. He shows no signs of humanity and he seems to be about to strike someone while Toad asks if that’s really himself. Is Bigby a hero or a villain? The answer will be known next month.