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There was no time to lose! I was the only one who could save the writer and the very soul of literature from these evil haters! The fate of all art rested on my shoulders. The stakes had never been higher. - ― The Waitress.
Number One Fan is the first episode in the Night Springs expansion of Alan Wake 2. A failed attempt by Alan Wake to escape the Dark Place, the story follows a young woman known simply as "the Waitress" as she tries to save her beloved Writer from his "evil" twin brother, "the Bad Boy".
Plot[]
- A fan. The dictionary definition of the word is: An enthusiast, a fervent devotee. An abbreviation of fanatic. What comes across to an outsider as a dangerous obsession or even madness, is something entirely different from the point of view of the fan herself. To be a fan is a joyous existence, one filled with the happiness that stems from knowing with utter clarity- the purpose of your life. But what if that purpose could be more still? If you could be lifted out of the flock as your idol's chosen one? The only one who could decipher his secret messages. What lengths would you go to save the object of your obsession in... Night Springs. Tonight's cult-classic episode: Number One Fan.
- ― Opening Narration
The Waitress and the Writer
The episode opens in Nite's Diner, in the town of Night Springs, where a young woman, "the Waitress", is staring at her own reflection in the bathroom when a man, "the Writer", appears behind her in the mirror, causing her to smile. The Waitress exits the bathroom and goes to the front of the diner to attend to her customers, who are overjoyed to see her. The Waitress serves them coffee refills and gives some of them advice while receiving compliment for her achievements and her relationship with the Writer. She then collects the dirty dishes before another customer asks her for a good book recommendation, to which she advises him the Writer's newest crime book. The Waitress goes the storage for a copy of the book when she hears, through a singing fish, a message from the Writer, who warns her that he is in danger and that she is the only one who can save him. Upon hearing that her beloved is in danger, the Waitress goes to the diner's kitchen for her "accessories": a fully automatic 12 gauge shotgun, and a bolt-action hunting rifle. Ready for her mission, she leaves the restaurant and makes her way down the main street, receiving cheers and support from the residents of Night Springs.
The Waitress meets the Bad Boy.
Entering the boat yard, the Waitress encounters a man, "the Bad Boy", who resembles the Writer - though "slightly less handsome" - fixing his motorcycle. Disgusted to be compared to him, the Bad Boy reveals, much to the Waitress' surprise, that he is the Writer's "wild and rebellious estranged twin brother", who, tired of living under his brother's shadow, intends to get rid of him. The Waitress tries to convince him to make amends with his brother so the three of them can have "popcorn and movie nights", but the Bad Boy tells her that it is too late for that and reveals that has kidnapped the Writer and locked him somewhere she will never find. The Waitress tells him that he will not let him get away with it, but the Bad Boy states that he has an army of haters who despite the Writer as much as he does and who are willing to die for his cause. He then abandons the place in his motorcycle as a group of haters appear and attack the Waitress. After killing all of them, the Waitress notices the fiery trail left by the Bad Boy's motorcycle and follows it throughout the woods. During the journey, she is attacked again by more haters and finds another message by the Writer in one of his crime novels.
The Writer communicates with the Waitress through a deer.
The Waitress follows the trail to a cabin, where hears the Writer's voice melodramatically pleading for help and goes in to help him. However, she soon realizes that it is actually the Bad Boy posing as him. With his deception over, he tells her that he is upstairs and promises there will be no more tricks, but this turns out to be yet another lie, as he was never really there, much to Waitress' irritation. The Bad Boy then tells her head to the beach to talk. Once there, the Waitress confronts the Bad Boy and, seeing that he won't tell her where his brother is, begins to scold him for his actions and attitude. Hurt by her words, the Bad Boy confesses that he never actually had the Writer and that it was all a ruse to keep her distracted while his army of haters storms his brother's mansion. He then escapes in his motorcycle once again. After another confrontation with the haters, the Waitress follows the motorcycle tracks and comes across a deer through which the Writer speaks to her. He compliments her for not falling for his brother's lies and reiterates that she is the only one who can save him, telling her that he believes in her. Encouraged by these words and his love for her, the Waitress resumes her mission.
The Writer and the Waitress reunite.
Arriving at the Writer's mansion, the Waitress once again encounters the Bad Boy, who decides to stop her himself. He begins attacking her with his "love" before revealing that he is also a werewolf; his motorcycle also turns out to be a werewolf as well. After the Waitress defeats the two of them, the Bad Boy tells her to finish him off. However, she refuses as he is, after all, her beloved writer's brother. Realizing that her love is genuine, the Bad Boy admits that he was jealous of everything his brother had, especially her love. The Waitress assures him that he can also have what his brother has, but to do that he first needs to stop wanting to be him and start wanting to be himself. The Bad Boy realizes that the one who he actually hated was himself and, lamenting his actions, implores the Waitress to save his brother from the haters, which she promises to do. The Waitress enters the mansion and, after another arduous battle with the haters, she reaches the Writer's room, where he is waiting for her. Reunited at last, the two embrace before kissing.
- A fan and the object of her joy come together against a world trying to keep them apart. A happy ending, for some. But is happiness, like beauty, all in the eye of the beholder? Where is the line between fandom and fixation? One can never tell in... Night Springs.
- ― Closing Narration.
Cast[]
- Jessica Preddy as The Waitress
- Matthew Porretta as The Writer and the Bad Boy (voice)
- Ilkka Villi as The Writer and the Bad Boy (model)
- David Harewood as Warlin Door
Walkthrough[]
Main Article: Number One Fan/Walkthrough
Notes[]
Connections and similarities with the Remedy Connected Universe[]
- This episode has many similarities with Rose Marigold's life:
- The Waitress is virtually identical to Rose Marigold both in terms of appearance and personality, including their fixation on their respective writers.
- The various methods the Writer uses to communicate with the Waitress are similar to the unusual ways in which Rose (supposedly) received messages from Alan Wake.
- The Waitress fighting the Hater, which are identical to the Taken in terms of appearance and behavior, is similar to Rose fighting the Taken at Alan's (supposed) request.
- The plot and overall tone of the episode is reminiscent of Rose's fan-fiction story found in some of the Alex Casey lunchboxes. In it, the protagonist (most likely a self-insert for Rose) defended her home town from a threat, with her weapon of choice being a rifle. In addition, she also found herself in the middle of a love triangle between a sensitive writer and the estranged twin brother of her childhood's friend, who also wore a leather jacket and referred to the protagonist as "babe".
- Aside from his similarities with the character in Rose's fan-fiction mentioned above, the Bad Boy also bears some resemblance to Mr. Scratch, being the writer's "evil" counterpart who intends to get rid of him and take his place. While his appearance is similar to that of Alan when he was possessed by his double, the Bad Boy's personality is more reminiscent of Scratch's initial arrogant and flamboyant self. Moreover, the Bad Boy acting out of jealousy, insecurity and self-hatred is similar to how Scratch represents Alan's worst traits, including his insecurity and his desire for people to love him.
- The Writer's best-selling crime book "thrill-ogy", Will Hurt, is a reference to Alan's Alex Casey series. The character's name, however, seems to be a much more direct allusion to Casey's own inspiration, Max Payne.
Gallery[]
Promotional images[]
Concept Art[]
Screenshots[]
