- "On the plus side, I got a new character I think people are going to love."
- Henry Stein
"I'm outta here!" |
Wally Franks is a previous Brooklyn resident, former janitor for Joey Drew Studios, and the apparent founder and owner of Franks Handyman Service in Bendy and the Ink Machine, with only his recorded voice, heard from Chapter 1 to 5. A man who is willing to go along with Joey Drew's strange practices as he writes the paychecks, Wally's voice primarily appears in audio logs that explain his views on how the studio runs and his day to day routine. Shown from the Ink Machine's blueprints and design sheet, Wally is the attendant and designer of said machine.[1][2]
A note in the first game's ending revealed that Wally retired due to Joey Drew Studio's closure as he moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida with his family.
Personality
Though Wally has never been seen in person, he comes across as an "average Joe", a regular working man whose only real concern at the studio is getting his work done. After the introduction of the Ink Machine, he appeared suspicious of the workshop but never bothered to looker deeper than his job required. Judging by him losing his keys in the Music Department and a conversation with Thomas Connor on working on the ink pressure, he is somewhat absent-minded. He also seemed to have felt somewhat annoyed about some situations within the company, such as the Ink Machine's abundance of leaks and why most of the staff appeared to be angry when they were making cartoons at the studio. In terms of social behavior, he is noted to be friendly and easy to get along with, as evident by his note found in Joey Drew's apartment, which also notes that Wally's surprised that Joey remembers him since Wally was not especially memorable among his coworkers.
In The Illusion of Living, Joey describes Wally as a self-starter, never knowing when and where he'd find the man around the studio fixing things.
In The Lost Ones, Wally says he doesn't understand why people like to keep secrets, and what you see is what you get when it comes to him. He isn't foolish enough to not notice anything wrong, but he also isn't the type to seek out answers and prefers to mind his own business. Wally also says he enjoys being the dark and can tell when people need to answer a question despite him not always needing one himself, along with when they've answered all they feel like answering.
In-Game Appearances
Bendy and the Ink Machine
Chapter 1: Moving Pictures
Wally's first appearance is as a voice from an audio log located on the table of the narrowed room.
He talks about Joey Drew's plans and the Ink Machine, claiming he doesn't understand Joey's plans for the workshop. He also claims that the animations are not being finished on time and the Ink Machine's noise and tendency to leak is making things hard to work.
Wally then mentions the bizarre command Joey gave to his staff; including Wally himself, to donate things from their work stations and set them on pedestals in the break room in order to "appease the gods". Wally then claims that he will leave the company if any other pipes burst.
Chapter 2: The Old Song
Wally's second diary cassette is located near the entrance to Sammy's office. He complains that he lost the keys to his cleaning closet, most likely in one of the garbage cans while making his rounds a week ago, and has a bad feeling about what Sammy would do if he ever found out.
This audio log gives Henry the task of finding Wally's keys, so the former can unlock the latter's closet.
Chapter 3: Rise and Fall
There is a duo audio log in the trailer room of Level K, where Wally is talking to Thomas. Thomas tries to teach Wally what to do when the ink pressure reaches over 45, but Wally has trouble understanding him. He then states that if Thomas thinks Wally's going to do his job and Thomas', he's leaving.
Wally's third diary cassette is found on Level 11, just outside from the waiting room where the Projectionist is first seen skulking around. In his tapes, he complains about the behavior of the studio's staff members, wandering around in the room while likening their faces to being as if they were angry or grieving when they should be positive given how they should make cartoons. Wally threatens that if the attitudes of the people in the studio do not change, he will leave his post. The Ink Machine can be heard running in the background of the tape if Henry listens more carefully.
Chapter 4: Colossal Wonders
Wally's fourth audio log is found in the Storage 9 warehouse, between two closed amusement park game attractions (Bulls-eye Bonanza and Bottle Wallop), far away from the punch card stand.
He complains about the workers in the warehouse getting involved playing games while he is stuck cleaning up after they leave. One day, he tells them the idea about rigging these games up to knock the door open if they win, so his trip down will be saved every day, and they went for it like "a dog to pot roast". Wally threatens that if anybody doesn't start realizing who the real genius is (referring to himself), he will leave this area.
Chapter 5: The Last Reel
Wally's fifth and final audio log is located on top of a desk with some books in one of the offices found in the Administration maze.
In the log, Wally reveals that the day where he cleaned up some of the offices around 2 AM was his lucky day because a large chocolate cake was on one of the chairs, which (according to him) was yelling his name. Wally states that as a janitor, he works hard and earns his pay on every dollar. He then claims that the studio is missing little, benefiting perks, and believes that the chocolate cake he got was a perk.
At the end of the audio log, Wally hopes that no one would find out about what he did, and proudly claims that if anyone finds out about his work, he will leave.
In Joey Drew's apartment, there is Wally's note talking about what he has been doing since the closing of Joey Drew Studios. As evident by the company logo shown at the bottom of the letter itself, Wally has moved on to a different work placement. Unexplained as an employee or the owner, though the latter is more likely, hence the company name "Franks Handyman Service". The letter reveals that he is not only married but also a family man:
- "Dear Mr. Drew
- I have to say it was a big surprise getting a letter from you after all these years! I'm surprised you even remember me from back in the old days at the studio. I mostly just swept up the place.
- I'm doing good here in Florida, lots of sun for me and the Mrs. Hope you're doing good too. Sorry to hear about the studio closing down. You all made some great little cartoons there. They was good for some laughs.
- Ok, I gotta wrap this up. The grandkids want to hit the beach so I'm outta here!
- -Wally Franks"
Boris and the Dark Survival
An audio log recorded by Wally Franks appears in the game. In this log, he rants about Thomas Connor's bossiness towards him, even boasting that he is smarter than Thomas having received a formal education.
Another audio log recorded by him was added in The Wolf Trials and can be found randomly. In this log, he documents a personal account of a shift of cleaning the floors in what was once the employee coat room now converted into a laboratory by Thomas Connor, for use by Gent, when a puddle of ink would not come off the floor. He then goes on to mention that the ink only expands as Wally mopped. He then declared that he would leave should the inky messes spiral out of control.
Novel Appearances
Dreams Come to Life
Wally Franks is a relatively minor character in the novel Dreams Come to Life. He is mostly mentioned by Daniel "Buddy" Lewek, as coming across him during his errands at Joey Drew Studios and is said to have a makeshift office to serve as a home-away-from-home for Wally to use when he is not cleaning the studio. He does make a brief appearance when Buddy's Grandfather suddenly enters the studio unannounced, when he is pulling the latter by the elbow, falsely seeing him as a threat. Buddy steps in and snarkily reassures Wally that he is not a threat, to which Wally shrugs and walks away, replying "You never know..." secretly foreshadowing Buddy's fate of becoming a cartoon character in real life after being brutally murdered by Beast Bendy.
The Illusion of Living
Wally makes a minor appearance in the third chapter of Part V: Living in the Now. While on his way to the archives to retrieve an article with Bertrum Piedmont in it, Joey Drew passes Wally in a hallway. The two briefly exchange a few words before Joey continues heading towards the archives. In the book, Joey praises Wally for being a self-starter and for his solid handywork, and says he has a great deal of respect for him.
The Lost Ones
Wally appears only in the prologue of The Lost Ones novel, which is told from his perspective. In it, he expresses his enjoyment of late nights at the studio while also acknowledging that strange things occur around. He also notes that the new renovations are causing his muscles to ache more frequently, but he isn't ready to retire yet. Wally overhears Thomas Connor yelling at others to be careful when moving something and Wally explains that he always overhears conversations, even when he's standing in the same room as them. Wally at first thinks he may be wrong about it being Thomas since he was recently fired, but he is proven to have suspected correctly when he bumps into Thomas as he turned the corner. Wally asks if Joey rehired him, to which Thomas responds that they didn't have a choice, which Wally doesn't understand but nods anyway. He then asks if he's moving the machine, and Thomas repeatedly says yes to end the conversation. Wally lets him go and goes on to talk about Joey Drew Studio's attempts to save money, listing off the things he's seen. He then claims he's seen everything, including what dragged the ink so far down the halls and on the walls. He ends the prologue by taking the trash out of a small tidy office and making sure to turn the lights off.
Dialogue
The following information contains spoilers. To view them, click the [show] tag. | |||||||||
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Chapter 1: Moving Pictures
Chapter 2: The Old Song
Chapter 3: Rise and Fall
Chapter 4: Colossal Wonders
Chapter 5: The Last Reel
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Trivia
General Facts
- Wally's line "I'm outta here!" is repeated in every audio log he appears in, acting as his catchphrase. It even appears in his note to Joey Drew which is seen in the latter's apartment.
- In the transcript of his audio logs in Chapter 3 and above, Wally's line "I'm out of here!" was changed to "I'm outta here!".
- This was referenced during the Hot Topic Q&A, when Sammy claimed that Wally can never keep things in order as his mind is "way out of here".[3]
- His line is also used in one of the official images for merchandise.
- Wally's name could be based on Frank Wells, who was the president of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 to 1994.
- In the Joey Drew Studios Employee Handbook, it is revealed that one time Wally ate what he thought were churros, but were something else that currently remain a secret.[4]
- Wally has been shown to touch the tip of his cap at the end of conversations as a sort of salute.
In-Game Facts
Chapter 1: Moving Pictures
Wally's audio log as it was on the shelf instead of the unimplemented table in one of the early pre-updates.
- The quality of his voice recording's sound was also slightly cleaner.
- Wally is also the only radio speaker from this prototype and the chapter's first remastered update before Thomas Connor's audio log was planned to add.
Chapter 2: The Old Song
- Wally's recording in Chapter 2 implies that him losing his keys has happened before, as he explains that Sammy would probably fire him if he was caught doing so again.
- According to theMeatly on Twitter, Wally's keys were in the trash bin for 30 years, as he never had a chance to retrieve them.[5]
- Despite this message, Chapter 5 reveals that Wally managed to leave the studio without any trouble.
Chapter 3: Rise and Fall
- When playing Wally's audio log and walks farther away then come back after his tape ends, a bug will occur to cause Wally's transcript not disappearing after his speech was finished until playing his audio log again.
- Before the release of Chapter 4, the audio log for both Thomas and Wally to record at the same time was not made due to the trailer room not planned to be implemented.
- Wally and Thomas are the only workers to use the duo audio log together.
Gallery
References
- ↑ Inkmachineplans.png
- ↑ JoeyPapers.png
- ↑ "That Wally! That man can't ever keep his things in order! If I didn't know better I'd say his mind was wayyyy out of here!" - Hot Topic. July 26, 2017. Twitter.
- ↑ "Let Mr. Franks tell you about the time he though he ate some tasty churros but they turned out to be... well, we'll let him tell you." -Joey Drew Studios Employee Handbook, page 189
- ↑ "Why would Wally leave his keys in the trash for 30 years? It's almost as if he never got a chance to go back for them..." - theMeatly. June 25, 2017. Twitter.
Executives | Joey Drew • Henry Stein | |
---|---|---|
Art Department | Abby Lambert • Jacob • Richie • Dave | |
Story Department | Dot | |
Music Department | Sammy Lawrence • Jack Fain | |
Voice Providers | Allison Pendle • Susie Campbell | |
Daniel Lewek • Wally Franks • Norman Polk • Miss Rodriguez • Emma LaMonte |
Major characters | Allison Pendle (Allison Angel) • Bertrum Piedmont • Buddy Lewek (Buddy Boris) • Henry Stein • Joey Drew • Norman Polk • Sammy Lawrence • Susie Campbell • Thomas Connor (Tom) • Wally Franks | |
---|---|---|
Minor characters | Boris Clone • Grant Cohen • Jack Fain • Lacie Benton • Shawn Flynn • Lost Ones • Balcony Lost One | |
Mentioned | Linda |
Major characters | Buddy Lewek (Buddy Boris) • Lost One Player • Sammy Lawrence | |
---|---|---|
Minor characters | Boris Clone • Emma LaMonte • Jack Fain • Norman Polk • Shawn Flynn • Thomas Connor • Wally Franks • The Patron | |
Mentioned | Nathan Arch |
Major characters | Abby Lambert • Allison Pendle • Buddy Lewek • Dave • Dot • Irena Lewek • Jacob • Joey Drew • Mr. Schwartz • Mr. Unger • Norman Polk • Richie • Sammy Lawrence • Thomas Connor | |
---|---|---|
Minor characters | Bertrum Piedmont • Lenny • Miss Rodriguez • Mrs. Panek • Wally Franks | |
Mentioned | Henry Stein • Mr. Lewek • Linda • Susie Campbell |