#smallestgods

[aquato-family-circus]

GOD I really like the au idea of Gristol just deciding to keep being the mailman, specifically the idea that like, just through building rapport with the other workers he realizes how much taking over and ruling grulovia would SUCK.

He already has money (evidenced by his "banishment and squalor" being a fancy casino and piles of caviar), so he doesn't have money to gain from ruling a country, and his perception of peak grulovia and power was having a cotton candy machine in his room. LEADING TO THIS CONVO:

Lori, coming by to grab some mail, seeing Gristol doodling images of him as Gzar with his cotton candy machine: Oh those are cute, I didn't know you liked cotton candy so much! Now I know what to get you for your birthday!

Gristol, annoyed: cotton candy?

Lori: No silly, that would be a cheap thing to just get you candy! I'll get you a whole cotton candy machine!

Gristol: ...

Gristol: You can just do that?

Lori: Why not? Only the best for our best mailman!

Gristol: No. I mean, um, don't you need to be, like, say, gzar of a country to have a cotton candy machine in your room?

Lori: That's oddly specific, but no I don't think so. You should live your life how you want to! Put it right by your bed and wake up to breakfast cotton candy, ya know? Grab life by the horns - or cotton candy cone!

Gristol scraps his evil plan the next day, waiting for his "surprise" birthday party in a few weeks.

Lori does, in fact, buy a cotton candy machine as a gift, and Gristol feels very smug when everyone is amazed that he already knows how to use it.

This entire ask made me lose my fucking mind thank you very much

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Raz is a cute lil 10 year old with *grulovian* heritage that Gristol somewhat got to know throughout the game. there are dolls of him in the gift shop in his mind - there is NO WAY he didn't get somewhat attached. Anyway more convos:

Gristol: Who ended up finding my body, by the way? Did you hire a new mailman?

Sasha: *raises his eyebrows*

Gristol: ... not that i CARE about the mail or anything, I just want to know who I can blame for any bodily damage.

Sasha: ... right. young rasputin found your body - he was meant to intern for yo- for nick johnsmith. He told us he found you while sorting the mail.

Gristol: *tearing up from getting a mailroom intern and his little grulovian intern SORTING HIS MAIL* r-right. cool

Sasha: ... did you just mentally add "adopt child heir" to your evil master plan?!

GRISTOL NO HSKFJSKFJKD

it just pops up like a fuckin phone notifcation and Sasha is just, so tired, what is fucking wrong with this guy.

Gristol's view on Raz is interesting bc like he sees the kid as a puppet for his devices. does not respect him. but can make one (1) connection with him through his own warped world view during the part of the level where you talk to gristol after his father died and theres like. a HINT. a SMIDGE. of humanity there bc he's sad and pathetic in his stupid prince suit in his ugly trashed hotel.

what a deeply lonely kind of life he leads honestly.

[aquato-family-circus]

While I love that Truman already sees Raz pretty positively, I feel like the fact that he has single-handedly resolved most of the issues in Truman's life would be the tipping point.

You beloved uncle who you had to fire for being a drunken mess? Oh, well Raz actually helped him through his trauma and convinced him to get better. And also found his alive dead husband.

Maligula? Raz not only squashed a plot to bring her back, he literally made it impossible to do so and now you have a Friendly Water Grandma :)

Your daughter resents you? Well, actually, after reflecting at camp with Raz and saving your body from the Rhombus (with Raz), and finding your brain in the ocean (...due to Raz) she has decided to be a giggly happy 10 year old again and show her appreciation.

Oh and not to Mention the plot he thwarted at camp, saving your daughter from getting her brain removed, Ford Crueller and the rest of the psychic 6 being healed of their emotional trauma and Able to Assist the psychonauts again

And Raz "Son-boy-allowed" Aquato comes over to say hi and check on his girlfriend and u imagine him in a prom tux awkwardly picking up your daughter for a date, because you KNOW he's a perfect son-in-law to be.

Also that he needs therapy

Truman goes and shakes Augustus’ hand like sir did you know your son saved the entire organization and is super cool and Augustus is like yes he’s the best and Truman’s like yes

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thinking about tim schafer's raw power that basically ran a game studio on chewing gum and toothpicks, loving his creation so much that he kept trying to make it for YEARS. yes, there are supporters and dedicated fans, but psychonauts 1 is still mostly a "cult classic". The people who love Psychonauts made Psychonauts 2, and didn't just *make* a sequel, but a sequel which was updated for the times (i.e. the accessibility settings, the user warning and link to mental health site, the story being *slightly* less kooky to give space to heavier ideas.)

Idk where but I think there is an interview with Tim Schafer where he essentially says that this game is for the players of the first one who grew up with and since the game, which I totally felt while playing. For Raz it's been a few days, but the player is back, is older, and maybe there are ways they DON'T fit into the world anymore, without some childlike wonder.

Maybe you're like Cassie now; tending to something from your past without making the steps to move forward

Maybe you're like Compton now; Anxious about the judgement of your peers, even those that you love

Maybe you're like Otto; you are adjusting okay to your adult or older life, but you've lost touch with those you used to hold dear, and still have some lingering regret

Maybe you're Bob; coping poorly with the weight of life, or trauma, or loss. Feeling alone on an island, or pushing people away

Maybe you're Helmut; you've lost some sense of identity, or felt lost yourself, or become overwhelmed with life in the present

Maybe you're Ford; You hurt so deeply you completely shattered your sense of self, and have hard time recognizing or being proud of the you that is left

Or, maybe, you're Lucy, and life has hurt you so terribly that you decided to Hurt Back.

The game feels like it got older with me, and every moment made me Feel So Intensely because while the story is mostly about trauma and how Bad Action is not the same as Bad Person, it really feels like a story, to me, about growing up, and aging out of the world you were used to.

For me, since I was a little kid when I played the first game, it felt like the game was saying "hey, you know all of the stress and fear you get from growing into an adult? How you can't be as close to the people you care for anymore? How things you knew as fact suddenly Aren't? It sucks, but it doesn't have to. We can still find joy, and whimsy, and love in all the dark places of ourselves and others. Life is different now that we're older, but we can adapt, too. We can find the people that lift us up, grow from our hurt instead of revel in it, and, just maybe, at the end we will Learn to Swim"

brb im gonna cry

While I didn't quite grow up with Psychonauts in the sense that I never managed to beat the game - it has always been with me in one way or another. I think I watched my brother play it, then it was one of the first LP's I ever watched on youtube (pour one out to the guy's channel I don't think theyre findable anymore this was like. Late 2000s/Early 2010s).

So for me playing the sequel felt like. Getting to know an acquaintance I've known my whole life after seeing each other and learning we both ended up growing up into the weird artsy person. And becoming friends!! and learning it's a small world and people are more complicated than you think. And finding out in some way you'd been drawn to each other for some kind of reason that makes sense in the end.

This whole game and experience has just felt very special to me. I feel, seen?? I feel like the story looked at me and says hey you also have your own world inside you and that's facinating and beautiful! There's people like you who go thru heartache and it doesnt "make them stronger" but they get through it and have ppl who love them.

that's just, really cool... much 2 think about

[aquato-family-circus]

ok so i headcanon that there is more motherlobe than we see, and there are more floors etc. but i AM thinking about how a lot of it still seems to be made for psychics, like the "elevator" in a lot of places is just. a hole. or the platforms in the quarry that a regular joe would have to jump to get to the front gate, or take a fucking rowboat. two of the mailroom chutes would require a ladder, and a ladder you climb holding the packages by HAND

what im saying is if gristol wasn't already plotting against the psychonauts he would've started to anyway after working there a week

I’d hope the non-psychic staff have at least some fuckin way to get into the damn place but god it’s so fucking funny to imagine they’ve gotta like get ladders and shit out to do shit

Gristol, having to basketball slam dunk any mail that has to go to the upper chutes: I Fucking Hate It Here I Hope That Was Fragile And It Breaks

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FUCK I JUST REALIZED SOMETHING SAD.

In the mailroom, when Helmut is posing as nick, the thinkerprint reader identifies him "Helmut Fullbear, Diceased".

When Raz gains Zanotto's thinkerprint access, it identifies him as Zonotto, so the identity is not *necessarily* tied to the brain, it's tied to what the system has that person's brain registered as.

What I'm getting at is someone who knew Helmut's brain well enough to have the system log it gave him senior staff access to the psychonauts.

Bob made sure his dead husband's brain was recognized as an Important Psychonaut, even if he would never see what they became.

Helmut’s legacy in the Psychonauts is so sad. I really like the little headcanon ive seen around that Helmut and Bob had a really strong psychic link to each other and so I could definitely see Bob being able to use the remains of that to record Helmut in the system. It hurts to remember but he doesn’t want ppl to forget about him.

And speaking of his legacy. You ever think about how before Bob got fired he probably came into work and saw that big mural with all his friends in the atrium. The one with him and Helmut together. You ever think he tried to avoid it. Or inversely just spent time staring at it. You ever get real sad,,

[aquato-family-circus]

once everything calms down and raz debriefs the other agents on what happened end of game, besides getting that boy some Food and Sleep and Therapy, i think this interaction would happen:

Milla: Sasha, no.

Sasha: Young Rasputin recently lost faith in his psychic hero, Milla, it stands to reason-

Milla: He needs rest! Not a grown man trying to prove he's the coolest agent!

Sasha: ... I am simply stating that that position in his life is now empty.

...and I'm very "cool"

Milla: *sighs* Of course you are, darling

He wants to be Raz’s fav so badly look young Razputin he is so “with it”

[aquato-family-circus]

it was what made me SO shocked by the twist. everything was perfectly set up as a funny gag but actually had such a logical reason

What really tricked me the most was how comical i found the name "nick johnsmith". I thought, "ha ha, how funny to give the non-psychic, boring mailman npc a name that is essentially normal mcnormalman. what a funny little goof"

And after the twist i was like Tim Schafer you SON of a Bitch! The name was ridiculous because Gristol is out of touch yet needed to fit in, mashing together the most generic name for his disguise possible! How dare you make a perfect reason!

this is also ignoring how the game makes us normalized to his body/endeared through using helmut, which for sure removed suspicion too

The character animation difference between the two especially is really stellar. You can truly tell when it's helmut vs gristol just by how they animate his eyes and body.

Another fav misdirect of mine is Hollis saying "well, our top suspect is nick" to the immediate rejection from Sasha Milla AND Raz. like god. its right there.

[aquato-family-circus]

hello i read ur post abt gristols propaganda and i would like to add: a lot of service workers are invisible to people. the way Hollis says "You'll LOVE Nick!" etc. sounds like the platitudes ppl use when they know that you SHOULD respect and care about someone, but don't really care/think about it. he kept to himself in the mailroom, made nice when required, but people left him alone and it's easy to forget he's there, after all who would visit the mailroom if nick just sorts the package into the correct tube anyway? They didn't even know he was gone for at least 3 days (maybe longer, idk when truman kidnapping occured exactly) and even then only lori comments on it while looking for a package, and she doesn't even seem concerned.

Gristol could easily manipulate the motherlobe after becoming the mail guy there because 1. he is effectively invisible as long as he does a competent enough job 2. he has access to everyone's MAIL are you KIDDING me? the power of that, which is likely how he learned about the rhombus, brain switching, etc. 3. not only is he inconspicuous as a mailman, he also is POWERLESS. Having no psychic powers when you want to be unassuming and spy? Who is going to suspect Nick, i mean, what could he POSSIBLY do to elite psychics? essentially using their bias/superiority against them

also we know in the games that loboto was pretty messed up in the head, so i could see him being more susceptible to hypnosis/brainwashing. We know Oleander planted a trigger in Boyd too, so i feel like Gristol just did it from the outside in instead of going in the brain. I.e. "Put the egg in the basket, the other egg in the box" not only instructions, but a visualization technique to get Loboto to swap the brains WITHOUT THINKING. How is he going to spill secrets he can't remember/doesn't know?

i also like the idea of gristol using maligula to scare loboto by taking advantage of his mental state - i dont think itd be hard to convince loboto that maligula was alive and under gristols control with enough bluffing.

this got v long but anyway. love to think abt this

(the post for other people’s reference)

MAN, Gristol’s invisibility as the non-psychic mailman in this huge psychic facility is a really interesting observation to add! Postal Service is a pretty unthanked job but an important one and honestly the fact he could use that to his strategic advantage? Makes so much sense!! And he’s senior staff too, so he’s probably been quietly collecting intel about the workings of this place for at least several years. He might only be able to read package addresses if he at all respects the integrity of not reading mail, but considering his shitty attitude toward folks beneath him I could imagine he risked it a few times. Anything else he might be able to gleam from office gossip, having to physically go deliver mail if it’s not for The Tubes, and apparently there’s a line in the game about rotten caviar in the air ducts so he’s not below more direct spying tactics either.

All this doesn’t stop him from not knowing terms like thinker-print, but then again he’s so laser focused on getting his stupidly dangerous plan to work that he must’ve been trying to keep tabs on what’s important and what isn’t - psychic tech he can’t use going in the unimportant pile.

[aquato-family-circus]

My guess is that the way you're intended to use mental connection is within your own mind, hence Hollis using it when she's brainstorming. Just because you can't keep more than 7 thoughts in your head at once, you keep a few thoughts around to link and connect.

For instance, I feel like if Hollis used it while searching for the mole, she'd have a "suspicion" bubble and try it against different people in the motherlobe - sort of like memory recall.

Like, for socks and sandals, you dont actually seem to make her /like/ them when u associate it with something good, it just says they "remind her of her favorite professor", her actual opinion on the topic itself doesn't seem to change. It seems more like it just jogs a thought process that you have already had once, even if off-hand.

I also think that you CAN use it to change someone's mind in a crisis or with their express permission. I assume that wpuld count when Truman fixed Dr. Potts, or other instances when bad connections are putting people at risk.

You know what, I think you might be right on target. This ask reminded me of this shot of Hollis when she & the other agents piece the Mole mystery together. So between this & her quiet place you've got plenty of evidence to suggest mental connection as intended is some kind of organizational tool.

[aquato-family-circus]

tbh it'd be MORE humiliating if they pay him. like. they go through it ethically and his choices are mailroom or prison due to almost murder and impersonation of the head of the psychonauts, not to even MENTION the maligula stuff.

He chooses mailroom because Who Chooses Prison and gets a like, simple but acceptable apartment, ankle monitor, etc.

Lori works with him but is somewhat acting as his parole officer so he can't just Not Do the mail and sit there. She is however a kind boss and lets him have lots of breaks for chilling and gossip, but that almost makes it worse too

the worst humiliation to befall a Malik... no special treatment whatsoever

[aquato-family-circus]

The reason there are seven pillows evenlynspaced out in the heptadome is because Otto actually glues them all down. they literally cannot be moved close to each other. this is the punishment he bestows as 7th wheeling

Otto is so tired,,

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The reason Booles explode things with their minds is that they are too small and cannot contain all of the psychic energy in their tiny bodies. Sam is slightly taller and therefore is less likely to explode things as her psychic energy has more space

this is a fact trust me i am a scientist

They’re like how chihuahuas tremble bc they are too small and angry

[aquato-family-circus]

i was watching some review channel that was saying that cassies level was a "weaker" level and im like... first off the level design is one of the most GORGEOUS imho but i was also thinking about the meaning

cause the guy basically thought it was weak because "shes a writer = book level" which is the WILDEST thing to me

like yeah everyones level is based on what is at their core, but cassies level has so much good stuff within the library

1. The projections act as escapism for any given issue she's having. she has her "tough gal" persona to slip into and dissociate from how awful her life was at the time etc.

2. her mental projection of ALL the psychic 6 (7), because while she wasn't as close with some of them, she thinks the idea of all of them being together is important

3. Who is Teacher cassie? We know why Librarian, Money laundering, and Writer cassie came to be, but Teacher cassie doesn't have a direct in-game explanation (at least that i recall, mightve missed it)

this is me speculating, but i think cassie taught herself english through the various library sections. starting with kids books, then textbooks and classic lit. She used books as escapism into other worlds and absorbed from them inspiration to leave her situation by writing a book herself.

i think that her greatest asset for a long time was her love of books/stories/escapism (or "compartmentalizing") and to her detriment when the Problem Cannot be Solved. It's fine for her to escape for a little while, it gives her ideas to use next time she's back to being "real cassie"! but she couldn't fix fords mind, or helmut being gone, or the psychic 6 (7) splitting up, so library cassie comes to be. Librarian cass goes ignores the past, dissociating from the bad things which happened to keep cassie "safe". So Cassie blissfully tries to get the gulch ready for everyone to return, not thinking about the fact that they wont, which would hurt! lets think of the good old days instead and get ready for more! And in terms of ignoring problems, it worked for 20 years, showing how deeply Cassie can separate her identities and experiencing them.

Cassie doesn't have a problem if she logs it and shuts it away!

Anyway this got long but i was pissy that cassies level wasnt "deep" enough for some youtuber.

your pissiness is valid bc she has a wonderful level and you did a real good job at giving it the credit it deserves

Cassie teaching herself english is a very nice headcanon & I like that a lot for tying into the teacher archetype! Especially bc if I remember right, during the Diebrarian boss fight you can hear dialogue abt how she's never actually been a teacher nor a librarian.

Teacher archetype manifesting for her own benefit to learn something as complicated as a new language? Fits!

She clearly has a very rich inner world and probably a very good memory for retaining all the literature she's read bc its important to read a lot if you want to write :]

[aquato-family-circus]

imagine cassie finally going what the heck am i gonna do with all the excess honey???

anyway i propose that she donates it to the psychonauts and Hollis breathes a sigh of RELIEF because 1) it can be sold to tourists/psychonaut enthusiasts the same way the comics were 2) can be used as their sugar source for all meals in the cafeteria.

Like that amount of honey in preserve jars being sold for 15$ a pop? Pure Profit

Having a sugar source for meals in the motherlobe for years? THE SAVINGS!

Basically Cassie and Hollis become bffs - They also have mutual understanding of money struggles and hardships and being Clever to get out of them so I feel like Cassie would respect the use of her honey

hell yeah babey!! savy women respecting each other.... powerful friendship bonds being formed

[aquato-family-circus]

Headcanon nicknames for Cassie -

Boole is too anxious to give her an elaborate one, but if he's feeling secure enough he'd call her "Cass" or "'Pia". I feel like Otto and Ford would also use "Cass" sometimes.

Helmut would call her "Queenie" in reference to ancient greece's Cassiopeia b/cuz hes a nerd and also thinks she Deserves the World; Lucretia would also adopt this name cuz its cute.

I also think Helmut would call her "Nosey" and when she asks about it, thinking he is saying she's a gossip, he gleefully goes, "No! It's 'cause you know a lot of things - so you're "Know-sey"! And cuz hes cute he gets away with it. Also ties in to why she is Smell in his brain (the excellent pun is why)

Bob never got very close with her to give a nickname, but if they got closer after the end of the game he'd jokingly call her "Beehive" (and she would call him "Beanstalk")

These are all very cute 🥺 I love queenie especially