#brain level

It’s about that important symbolism about the issues

Brain thoughts, observation and musings on the two Couples’ brain levels changing from before they met their partner to after, having added elements of each other in the constant decorations of their mind.

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Helmut’s level having a ton more plants everywhere (figments, decorative pieces, and even having vines integral to navigate some parts) because of Bob, creating a very alive mindscape with pieces of his husband that blooms everywhere to be remembered.

Bob’s having sailor stuff, with the drunken sailor mixed in the bg music because of Helmut’s motif, to sailing around as an important way to navigate through the sea and finding the seeds to reconnect. Whole boat at the wedding, sinking boat at the Motherlobe bottle (and no such motifs when it was Tia’s bottle).

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Ford’s levels having numerous water elements that causes havoc in each fragment, all representative of the very bad things because of Maligula and his own actions. All very important facts and emotional turmoil to present with its face of water. To the ending of a relationship, to unspoken messages, to a disaster and force of destruction, to a deep well of buried memories (though the water is not there but the movement very much implies the deep body of water)

Now for a more subtle connection my brain connects, as well as like general level thoughts added in. 

Lucy’s having a separate place from Ford’s construct of the Flea Circus, which is made to be pretty goofy and entertainingly weird yet open to the ominous void. It has the whole family package of mental representatives, complicated dynamics, performances, and issues. 

Additionally, Donatella & Dion’s section require no psychic powers to accomplish, Augustus & Frazie’s also would require no psychic powers but Raz used TK anyways, to the members he knows are psychic (and perhaps implies so did Nona), and lastly the one where it is needed to use time-bubble to help the kids, y’know, psychic powers, to help both the psychic and non-psychic. A specific power that probably isn’t too common too, I think. 

Anyway, onto the next section, where Lucy uses an empty space of the teacup where water is suppose to be, as a portal to her real mindscape. Into a walkway  of a lush forest and portal summarizing important memories in her life as an Aquato she can easily recall (in contrast to Ford, who couldn’t remember and had broken off shards instead of portals between aspects). 

A dam is evidently present in the first you enter area and it is more of a roadside pathway than forest. In the second area, it is a longer road down a hill with larger trees, and two dams are off to the side of the hill, easily miss-able if you don’t go to collect the tree figment and explore a bit past it. Then the third area is deeper into the woods where no dam can be seen but very evident in the last zone. It is leaking so very close to the truth. 

SO here’s to me grabbing mental connections like red string on a detective movie for her level, because we mostly rely on implications on what Ford’s specialty actually is, but is not actually outright stated in any piece of canon (that I remember) what he specializes in. (I headcanon Jack-of-Trades but also really good at Illusions & Teleportation-- so get that connection the constructs and portals. Either way kinda hard to represent with a single simple concrete representation)

It is also harder to find the connection since its very deliberate for these two to be apart, other than the planned Flea Circus, so it may be stretching it when I connect to the Lament mindscape.

The last time she would’ve seen Ford before Grulovia would be when they were having tea, so there’s that little connection I’ve stretched for the teacup portal.  Taking off on her own initiative and leaving with something in relation to family safety (Lucy taking off with her picture of her sister, Nona making sure her family is safe and have done their performance before showing off her Lament and the Mal Dam)

Ford’s Construct space and Lucy’s actual mindscape are quite separate-- just like Lucy’s life as an Aquato. But if you are like me and look far too much into things, you’ll take the growing presence of the woods and the presence of tags behind portals as a connection of some sort, at least for Nona remembering the truth that there is unresolved baggage that could be sorted.

Tags are hidden behind portals, where you actively have to look back to get them. A ticket to resolve emotional baggage simply existing at the back of her head as she lives her life. The last one is in a pocket of open area deep in the woods, and the other pocket contains one of the nugget of wisdom. Accessed through easily miss-able tunnels if you didn’t think to TK them at first (like me haha anyway). 

The tunnels leading to the pockets reminded me of the tunnel system at whispering rock, a fast short distance method of travel to places Cruller would be. I’m like struggling to get the words to say about the presence of elements in her level but guh--  the little secret locations deep in the woods remind me of GnG, of the two locations common to find Ford around in both games which are the woods. Put into emphasis with the previous broken wooden building (which I think is the Ranger Tower at the cliff) with Agent Cruller.

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Oh god I just remembered, technically the first Ford mindscape we entered was the one with the campfire at Whispering Rock. The body of water there could have just been a serene setting to enjoy the night sky with, but as you move forward, guided by lamp lights, the looming moon goes in the way of your path. The results shown at that end with the moon, a force that control the tides, a jarring end of a shattered and incomplete building, mirroring ford’s mind.

You don’t see what happened just yet (what with the emptiness of the sea like a blank sheet over the events) but it had a linear direction like the passage of time, leading you to see how it ended up for Ford. 

God that transition bumps you like the skull cake, you know something happened, but still -- happy memories ending in a bad fate.

Even this peaceful canoe ride had a sad meaning for the water. From being a beginning of knowing about Lucy to the linear path of time that was for all the nice things, into a tragic turn of events that ended with Maligula. Lucy’s Lament starts with her life with Augustus, but in the end of the her own swerved linear path, there is dam hiding Maligula.

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*more mentions and reminders of Portal*

Ah hell heck now I really gotta post my Otto mindscape ideas because I CANNOT let the idea of visually moving and adjusting mental landscape in game time out of my head.

DOTHA Interview #145 - Brian Level

Next in a series of mini-interviews with the creators of the Death of the Horror Anthology, available to support RIGHT NOW on Kickstarter. Today, we talk writer Brain Level…

Hello fellow DOTHA creator. Please introduce yourself and your story in the collection…

Hey! I’m Brian Level and my story is called Goodnight Stars.

What do you find scarier in horror stories: inhuman monsters or monstrous…

This issue would have served better as an addition to an oversized Batman #50, but alone it feels and reads desperate.

Worst picnic ever. Which is pretty bad because picnics are shit.