#twau2 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ladyantiheroine · 11 months

Note

Hey bestie, I hope you're doing good. I'm back with another question about twau if you don't mind answering. I know that we basically went over this already, but which version of the Bigby and Snow's relationship do you find to be better between twau and fables? How would you improve on the other? Also, how you foresee Bigby and Snow getting together in twau compared to fables? Thank you.

Hello bestie! I’m doing good and I hope you are too!

And yes, I’m happy to answer because I’m happy to talk about this franchise!

So like I’ve said before, I still haven’t read all the comics (I’ve been meaning to, I’ve just been busy and I’m easily distracted lol). So this is based on imperfect info as I’ve only read up to issue #50-ish.

Short Answer: Bigby and Snow have a better romance in the Telltale game than in the comics. The chemistry is better, their characters are better fleshed out, and there's more emotional vulnerability between the two.

Long Answer:

Comics Spoilers Below

It’s pretty obvious based on my other posts, but I prefer TWAU over Fables overall. For a lot of reasons, one being that Telltale does the Snowby romance far more justice than in the comics.

A part of all this has to do with the fact that Fables and TWAU tell very different kinds of stories with the same characters and premise. Fables is an epic war story, with a bigger scope and a wider cast of characters. TWAU is a detective noir story, with a scope limited to Fabletown. This means TWAU has more time and space to explore the characters' interpersonal relationships as opposed to the wider Fables politics. It partially explains why Snowby feels more developed in the game, because the game has the scale and focus to do so.

There’s also the fact that…Bill Willingham just isn’t very good at writing romance. Like I mentioned in my post about Snow White, he's not very interested in the characters' internal lives. He also seems to have a conservative man's idea of women and male/female relationships (ex. strong women are bossy bitches, wives are nagging shrews, etc.). He writes scenes that are romantic in a vacuum but with little evidence beforehand that these characters even care for each other. Because he only seems to care about the character relationships on a surface level.

Telltale, on the other hand, cares about the characters on an emotional and psychological level. We see the personal toll on Bigby as he struggles to protect a community that doesn't trust him. We see Snow's strict, business-like front slip and how rightfully scared she is. We see them work together. We see them banter and laugh and make each other smile. We see them be open and vulnerable with each other. We see them bicker and fight and then make up. That's how you write a relationship people can get invested in.

Meanwhile, in the comics, I don't know if Bigby and Snow even like each other. He's outright mean and threatening to her at times, and she's spent centuries turning him down over and over. Sure, they work together and he saved her from the Adversary that one time, but so what? They hardly seem to get along, and not even in an "enemies to lovers" kind of way. When they do act romantic towards it each other, it feels forced because there was no groundwork laid out before then. Willingham wants these two together, so he smashes them together despite them having little reason to even like each other.

As for how I'd improve it (based on what I've seen from the first 50 issues), it's funny you ask that because I had an idea for a rewrite a long while ago. It has to do with the airport scene in volume three after Bigby and Snow escape the woods after killing Goldilocks. (I'm assuming you've read at least the first three volumes. If not, this might not make sense, sorry)

Basically, as they're leaving, Snow tells Bigby she might be interested in going on a date with him. Now, Bigby has not told Snow that they had sex in the tent yet. He knows they did because he could smell it with his super scent. His reason was that it would have upset her and they had bigger fish to fry at that moment (being hunted by Goldilocks). But at this moment, in the airport, they are safe. Bigby could have told her what happened and he didn't. It's not until later when Snow discovers that she's pregnant that she connects the dots and gets rightfully pissed at him for not telling her.

I think about this moment a lot because it had so much potential both to further their romance and Bigby's character.

See, Bigby's whole thing is that he's a "reformed Big Bad Wolf." He's struggling between the violent, selfish person he used to be and the more peaceful person he's trying to be (you see this more clearly in the game with all the choices you're given where you can be an asshole or more cooperative).

This scene, where Snow is warming up to him but still doesn't know they had sex, is a chance for Bigby to choose to be a better man. If he told Snow that they did have sex, and that he lied about it, it could push her away (remember, he’s been failing to get with her for years at this point). However, being honest with her would be the right thing to do.

(I’m not sure why Bigby doesn’t tell her the truth at this point. I don’t know why it takes Snow busting the doctor to find out. I mean, they likely didn’t have protection, so what did he expect to happen?).

If I were writing this scene, I would have Bigby tell her the truth right at that moment, right when she’s warming up to him. From his perspective, he could keep his mouth shut and finally get a chance to date Snow. But instead, as part of his mission to “reform” himself, he chooses the selfless option. He tells Snow the truth about what happened in the woods even if it means pushing her away right when she’s giving him a chance. He sacrifices his own desires in favor of being honest with her.

Not only would this be an interesting character beat for Bigby, but it could help develop their romance better. Obviously, Snow will still be upset that he lied and they that did have sex under the spell. But she’d probably appreciate his uncharacteristic honesty. And it means she won’t feel as betrayed by him when she finds out she’s pregnant. It opens up a chance for them to face this problem together.

And one other thing. I mentioned this in a response to someone’s else comment, but there’s a scene where Bigby tells Snow they “need to talk” about their upcoming kids, but Snow is busy so she tells him they’ll talk about it later. We never see this “talk about it later” scene. The Battle of Fabletown happens, we see them on a park bench, and Snow says her water is breaking. That’s it

This is my biggest gripe with the comics’ romance in general. It feels like there are scenes missing. Scenes of Bigby and Snow actually talking to each other and working out things. Why didn’t Bigby just tell Snow the truth about what happened in the woods? Why didn’t we get a scene of them deciding what to do once Snow gets pregnant? Willingham doesn’t seem to care, which is weird given how much attention Bigby and Snow’s relationship is given in the overall story.

I understand that Fables has a bigger story to tell and the Snowby romance isn’t the main point. And I also know that Fables is set in a world where traditional, fairytale happily-ever-afters are not the norm. But if you’re going to write a love story, one that we as the readers are invested in, you need to give us more than that. We need more than just him saving her life a few times.

Basically, overall, I would improve the comics romance by just having Bigby and Snow talk to each other more. I would write more scenes of them communicating instead of skipping ahead like Willingham does. I would also show more scenes of compromise between the two. Bigby choosing to be less of an asshole, Snow softening her demeanor a bit, etc. More scenes of them being vulnerable with each other. And like the game, more scenes of them working together as a team because that's what made their game relationship so good to me.

As for how they get together later in TWAU? That's a very good question. The answer is, I'm not sure. It depends on what happens in season two and what direction they take the characters.

Bigby and Snow don't get together in season one because it's meant to be a canon prequel to the comics, and they aren't together at the start of the comics. If they're committing to the games being canon to the comics, then they probably won't end up together.

However, if they decide to divert from the comics (my preferred option), then that opens the doors for more. We still don’t know much about the game’s plot at this point beyond Bigby being suspended from the force, a new case coming up, Bigby in anger management therapy, and the Wizard of Oz characters showing up.

It’s going to be very interesting with Snow suspending Bigby from the force and making him go to therapy. Snow has always had a problem with Bigby’s more violent side, and his inability (or unwillingness) to control it at times. It’s a core part of their dynamic: she’s law and order while he’s violence and chaos. Snow using her new authority as mayor to force him to get his shit together could lead to some interesting internal tension.

However. We also get this voice-over in the teaser trailer from Snow:

“There was a time when you were heartless. Brutal. A monster. And I’m proud of you for changing all that. But I’m here to ask you to be those things once more. For them. For me. Can I count on you? Bigby, can I count on you?”

This is very interesting to me. Snow, who has always been weary of Bigby’s monstrous side, is now asking him to come back after suspension and embrace that side of himself again. This tells me that Snow might be slightly more lenient on his Big Bad Wolf approach than in season one. And this tolerance could open the door for their relationship to develop, as her repulsion won’t be such a dealbreaker anymore. I like to imagine after Bigby's suspension, the two would grow to miss each other and be glad to be working together again "just like old times." But that's just me.

Also, after she asks Bigby if she can count on him, he answers, “Always.” This could just mean he’ll always be there to protect Fabletown. But given the emphasis in the voice over that this is for her as much as the town, I think there’s a romantic undertone to that to. He’ll always be there for her. Maybe that’s a sign that their romantic potential isn’t over?

I don’t know. I’m just speculating and there’s a lot we still don’t know about the game. And of course, with any Telltale game, the player’s choices will affect things as well. Even if we do get an option to romance Snow, not every player will take it.

If I were the writer for Telltale, I would throw out continuity with the comics entirely and let the games be their own thing. Lots of fans have expressed disappointment on how the comics compare to the game so I don’t think there would be too much pushback. I know Telltale is capable of writing a great, convincing romance (Hello, Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle) and I would love to see Bigby and Snow get the same treatment. It excites me to think what a Telltale Snowby romance would look like.

So yeah, in conclusion: I’ll always be impressed by how Telltale managed to write a more organic romance than Willingham despite the games having fewer explicitly romantic scenes. It speaks to just how awesome Telltale is at character writing. I didn’t feel much when Snowby kissed in the comics. I didn’t get butterflies in my stomach reading about their wedding.

But in the games, when Snow told Bigby that it scared the hell out of her when she thought she lost him? When Bigby told Snow that he’d never leave her? This one, small, intimate moment and the only explicitly romantic one between them in the whole game?

I was jumping up and down, screaming at them to kiss already.

And that’s just not a reaction Willingham has ever gotten out of me. Fables!Bigby can make as many poetic declarations of love he wants, but it will never hold a candle to “Snow, I would never leave you.”

Anyway, there’s another overly-long ramble for you. I could say a bunch more but this is long enough. I don't know if this all makes sense but I hope it answers your questions. :)

#twau rambles #the wolf among us #twau #bigby wolf #snowby #twau snow white #fables #fables comics #fables comic #bill willingham #dc comics #the wolf among us 2 #twau2 #long post

26 notes · View notes