u/Talon-Cross

Very Long ADHD Theory Ahead:

With a recent AMA stating that Jester's family attempted to stay in a colony of their own species before every thing went South for them. In the wild the kind of animal most likely to form colonies are insects. Neko also stated that some members are missing limbs. If Jester is an insect like monsters he could have lost limbs (an extra set of arms) in the fall of his colony which would have contributed to rough state of poor health Doctor found him in.

In the picture where all of the monsters silhouettes are gathered around Columbina while standing Jester's fingers look freakishly long. I believe the reason for having such long fingers would be for borrowing underground. If he had two sets of arms the second set that he may have lost would've had more practical hands for daily tasks. If his species live like ants in a underground tunnel system this would make sense. Living underground would be an effective way for a colony to avoid humans if they weren't constantly tearing down forests for land or mining for gold and coal.

In an insect colony every member has its natural place from the Queen to the drones to the workers and so forth. In order to keep communication smooth and effective in a large underground insect monster colony these monsters would have an innate telepathy ability to interact with their kind. Thoughts would be shared down the line to communicate from one place to another within the colony as a hive mind.

In another AMA Ticket Taker states that when he first met young Jester there wasn't anything remarkable about him at that point in time. Jester may have been more aloof at this point of time because he was cut of from his hive mind. He may been used to communicating with his family and fellow hive members with thoughts instead of conversation. He would have to adapt to outwardlly expressing himself as he warmed up to the group.

Wether or not his telepathy works on other monsters with limited range is yet to be determined. If it does he and Harlequin could have "quietly" discussed determining Columbina's fate without the others ever knowing about it. He did apologize to Harlequin after the deed was done after all.

After Columbina's death he took the "Queen" position of the pack and assigned everyone else their roles similar to how insects function in a hive. Everyone has their set purpose within the pack and are encouraged not to stray from it.

As we know eating humans give monsters a boost in their natural powers. For Jester his telepathy us upgraded to mind control over human minds at the very least creating his own personal hive mind. I believe that once a human is under his control he can pre-program them with the instruction s to do basic circus tasks independently. This will give the fools the ability to run the food stalls, hand out flyers, and do street acts without Ticket Taker constantly baby sitting them. This allows Carol to remain good at whatever Ticket Taker wanted her for.

Jester only programs the fools to have limited pre-reccorded lines which why Carol can only tell us to enjoy the attractions. This prevents them for asking for help if they are aware they're being controlled that is. Carol looked at us way to intensely for me to believe she didn't know who she was looking at.

When Jester wants a fool to do a more specific task he has to put more effort into his controll on that one fool. This can be seen during his play as constantly shifts his position around the stage's backdrop to be in range of the specific fool he manipulating. This also explain why the actors representing Jester, Ticket Taker and Doctor literally do nothing on stage but stand there while the other three actors perform.

I also think the fools are pre-programed to drag anyone who faints from the food to the pink tent before the crowd can notice.

What do you think?

I'm not gonna spoil it but I recommend listening to it alone or with headphones 😳.

Long ADHD Theory Ahead:

Many birds in the wild mate for life (90%) such as swans. Far fewer mammals practice monogamy in the wild. Oddly enough some of the most common animals Pierrot is theorized to have similarities to are wolves (many dog references in the AMAs) and Amazon River Otters (swimming, fishing) are monogamous. Monogamous animals form bonded pair the practically do everything together. A bonded pair are emotionally dependent on one another and can develop separation anxiety or depression when apart. If one mate dies the odds surviving mate finding are mate are slim. The surviving mate usually loses their drive to survive and dies of a “broken heart” (Pierrot’s father).

I believe monogamy among monsters is rare and only a few species naturally practice it in their unique culture. I can see packs of 1 male monster with several “claimed” mates being common place in most monster cultures. Having more mates gives higher chances of reproduction and survival. This makes monsters who form single pairs social outliers in places where many species of monsters mix together.

If Pierrot is a monogamous monster by nature it could have contributed to his obsession with Columbina and his rivalry with Harlequin. It would make him possessive over Columbina and fight with Harlequin if he made any advances towards her. Sharing a mate is not an option that has ever occurred in Pierrot's thought process even in present day. With Pierrot's innate nature being a rarity among monsters the rest of the Circus crew aren't aware of his unique social and emotional needs and have never properly address them to aid Pierrot’s declined mental state after Columbina's death.

While being apart of the Circus's pack has given him the will to continue living following Columbina's passing he's become a "lone wolf" among them. He withdrew inwards and spends most of his days when not working directly for the circus alone in his thoughts. I believe Harlequin's teasing may be one the few thing the crew does to snap him out of his lonely haze but it's a short lived solution to a long term problem.

I don't know if Ticket Taker or Jester have encouraged Pierrot to socialize with other monsters who visit the black tent as Pierrot doesn't know how to notice social cues for his life. With Pierrot still being a virgin decades after Columbina's death I wouldn't be surprised if Harlequin tried to "Wingman" Pierrot some monster ladies as a joke in the past. These attempts probably lead to Pierrot avoiding anyone Harlequin sent his way like the plague, because Pierrot yearns for unconditional love not a hook up.

With the rest of the crew being emotionally constipated as hell they wouldn't understand Pierrot's need for a long lasting intimate connection that having a mate provides. He repressed his need for this intimacy until we came his way.
We showed him that unconditional affection he has been wishing for all these lonely years. We've become prime mate material and he will go to any length to claim us. The rest of the circus are very unprepared to handle Pierrot's current metal crisis now that he has finally found a new mate and their attempts to chase us away will backfire.

His natural need for monogamy drives his obsessive and possessive tendencies towards us. He longs for you to chose him and only him because his kind needs that emotional stability that comes from forming a bonded pair. He doesn't understand that not all humans are wired the same way he is and may want more than one mate.

I think the scariest part of the poly route will be trying to convince Pierrot when he goes full yandere mode that he can be in a poly relationship and still be loved while sharing your love with someone else.

What do you think?

The Official Tumblr is hosting a free AMA today only. Please read rules and guidelines before asking. Comment the post to ask your questions. You only get to ask 1 character 1 question, so make it count. Hope you guys get picked for answers. Good Luck!

Monster Hunter Boss Theory:

Neko has stated the Boss Nathaniel has an interesting past that will be explore in future days.

I believe Boss is a retired monster hunter who opened the cafe to make up for the fact monster hunter is not a career that comes with retirement benefits (you're lucky if you live long enough to grow old in that line of work). With Carol being 26 (official Tumblr question) she has mostly likely been his first employee. Carol said she need this job and with Boss only having two employees; he seem to a good enough employer that will pay a thriving wage rather than minimum wage. Knowing Carol for so long, I believe Boss saw her like an honorary daughter and took her disappearance as a personal matter.

Evidence:

1. Mysterious appointment first night of the game.

This cafe closes late enough to give those working the graveyard shift their first cup of coffee to get them going. After business hours for most businesses that would require appointments. Who could he have an appointment with so late a night. I suspect he was having a meeting with a fellow monster hunter who is still hunting, to get any tips if the recent disappearances could be monster related.

2. Interviews same day of job posting.

Who gets job applications that are interview ready the same day the job is posted? He had only finished getting police confirmation that Carol is an active missing person case and he is already replacing her. I don't think any baristas were getting interviews that day but monster hunters were instead. Carol's bag and a used pink ticket were shown on the news and if the police also told him this information he'd know where she was last. He might be hiring Hunters to investigate the circus on his behalf if he isn't in shape to do it himself.

3: Immediate Suspicion of Pierrot.

The moment Pierrot walked in and finished pointing to his order on the menu he pulled MC aside to question them about the large red clown standing in his cafe. He may have overheard MC call the silent clown by name and wanted to see if MC might let something interesting slip since that implies they know him personally. He then leaves MC to tell the 6'5" clown"no flyers" themselves. He may have also seen Pierrot immediately grab MC to whisper in their ear before heading to the back.

4. Surviving "large cat" attack.

Boss's past life experiences granted him reflexes and skills to doge Pierrot's most likely fatal blow with only a "cat scratch". He was quick enough to retreat back into the cafe and didn't seemed startled by the encounter. He brushes off MC's concerns of a scratch that large coming from a cat with ease.

5. Casual interest in the circus

When MC suggests that Boss should also check out the circus, he smiles and suggests he might do just that. This man just got mauled by one of this circus's clowns and he still willing to go. He's got nerves of steel if he didn't take the attack as a warning to stay away.

Going from Ticket Taker's version of Columbina's fate to Jester's bastardized version of the love triangle made my blood boil for Harlequin's sake. I believe he loved both Pierrot and Columbina equally and felt heart broken when Pierrot started obsessing over her and neglecting him. From Jester's story it seems that Columbina wouldn't have been against being with both of them so everyone could be happy. I bet Harlequin’s ideal version of a throuple would have been him and Columbina sharing Pierrot. Unfortunately Pierrot didn't see it that way and didn't want to share Columbina which started the rivalry.

In the end Harlequin was forced to choose between his first and second love and chose to sacrifice his second to save the first along with everyone else. Even though his choice saved everyone else Jester still vilified his role in this love triangle. I believe Harlequin takes this version to heart. Now the closest thing to love he believes he can get from Pierrot is hate. He uses his sex drive as coping mechanism to fill the void of love in his life. Right now the current love triangle dynamic is Harlequin trying to steal MC from Pierrot before MC can steal Pierrot from him.

While Pierrot immediately throws you into the deep end of his "romance" burning the candle at both ends; MC is the one to spark a slow burning romance with Harlequin of their own free will. It's up to Harlequin to choose if he will fan the flame MC started by accepting genuine love or blow it out by rejecting his worthiness of being loved.

What do you think?