Bethany Plays: SPM Post-Chapter 7: No Longer Who They Were

Remember these guys? The last we saw of them was when Dimentio sent us to the Underwhere before the chapter formally started. They haven't been seen since Luigi.

To be fair, that's still less time than the X-Nauts have spent being absent from the story on occasion in TTYD.

They assumed Dimentio killing the Heroes was more permanent than it was.

Dimentio himself doesn't seem to have held any illusions this would've worked.

I've never heard "twiddlin' our biscuits" before. It's usually "twiddlin' our thumbs", but it's weird I couldn't even find if this was a regionalism to somewhere in the British Isles. This one may be on O'Chunks.

I'm told that punch slaps.

Team Bleck is going to be throwing a big party for the final chapter, and we'll get to see all of them at play.

Side note, but Mimi's outfit here is a cheerleader's outfit. She actually changes again before showing up in Chapter 8 outright.

Considering she leaves pretty quickly into this scene, that leaves the cheerleader one of the ones with the least screentime.

Dimentio prepares to go off on his own rush-

But he does have one last thing to say before he goes.

...Dimentio, what the hell's going on?

She said no such thing in-game. I'm not sure when Dimentio would've heard this, either- Tippi has been atypically reluctant to put a stop to Blumiere, even if he is the Count.

I suspect this is almost entirely to make the Count second-guess himself rather than a truthful report from a reliable minion. Dimentio's betrayal is going to have to be soon, and Dimentio is being pretty overt about how he's no longer going to be of assistance.

And when next the two meet, they may not be friends anymore.

Nastasia, despite her crush on the Count, is willing to do everything she can to drop Bleck's omnicidal rampage and help reunite him with his lost Timpani. Ironically, she and Tippi never wind up having a conversation.

I do suspect, at least in part, that Nastasia is mostly asking to try and get the Count off the warpath, not because she's actually personally invested in Bleck/Timpani.

Count Bleck would never have stopped it. Count Bleck is only around to get this done.

Nastasia, in the midst of her begging, demands Bleck pay attention by appealing directly to Blumiere. Which also raises the implication that Nastasia met Blumiere before he became Bleck.

As Bleck himself considers it, Blumiere and Bleck do not coexist.

Count Bleck is nothing but Count Bleck. And soon, he won't even be that.

Sorry, Nastasia. This guy's gone mad.

And to prove his commitment to the Bleck identity, he does the dramatic villain monologue.

And what better way to follow up a reflection on who Blumiere and Bleck are than a showing of how the latter came to be?

Blumiere's father, despite his disapproval of Blumiere's life choices, is still worried enough about him.

Or, well, he's worried about all the consequences that could come about from this moment. Especially the ones that affect him.

But Blumiere is not to be swayed by his father's words. Nobody who could reach him is here.

Blumiere opens the cursed book, that which the Tribe of Darkness has been keeping a hold of, and does not care about the consequences of what comes next.

I can't decide whether he's the best person to read that book or the worst. He's not exactly going mad...

But it's also not like he wasn't already there.

So far, I think the only thing he's done is try to commit suicide by cosmic horror book.

And if Blumiere's going down, Bleck's taking everyone else with him.

So there is no doubt that Bleck just killed his father here? Nobody'll miss him, but still, you know this has gotten serious now that we have committed patricide.

Bleck, meanwhile... he will be mourned, but right now, he needs to be stopped a lot more than his dad.

That flashback is brought to a halt by the horrified reaction of Tippi, who in addition to having a good idea which character in the story she is, is also coming to grips with just how bad things got without her. We don't know how her encounter with Blumiere's dad went down, but with the amnesia she picked up wandering as a lost soul, she gets pretty much the entire tragedy of the situation pressing down on her in one fell swoop.

...I think that was Luigi? Hard to tell from off-screen.

...In what way could those two things be confused? Like, how does "Tippi rushes ahead back to town" look in any way like "Tippi has collapsed under the weight of the tragedy being dumped on her in one go"?

Tippi, being the same helper fairy she always is, tries to brush it off and get us back on track.

Peach knows she's gotta pay closer attention to something like this.

...Or not.

Look, game, there's an upper limit to the amount of foreshadowing you can do before you have to actually pay up the reveal. There's practically nothing left hiding Tippi's identity and role in the story. We're on Count Bleck's doorstep, and knowing your deal is going to help immensely. Please stop dancing around it.

It's Tippi, your friendly... friend. And guide. Her name was Timpani before Merlon turned her into a Pixl.

I guess her Catch Card really is something you were expected to see in postgame. Despite, you know, being easily attainable as early as Chapter 2. At least the player likely figures this out before the game spits it out.

To Merlon's it is!

Compared to everything else we've done, a piece of cake!

Of course, Peach. Although once again, the implication Flipside is unique in suffering this fate, and not the Mario universe back home too.

Tippi, of course, is still grappling with the full extent of how Blumiere ties into this to feel as excited to take down Bleck as the rest of us.

Well, if what the rest of this game has built up is any indication, this is indeed going to be a load-bearing magic and not one that continues after the caster's death.

Eeyup. Of course. I was not looking forward to killing Bleck and then wondering how to shut off the Void.

More accurately, we never considered the possibility that this might be anything other than a net positive for everybody concerned. Count Bleck showed up and was evil, and nobody seemed too upset about him, specifically, doing it.

Please please please walk back-

There is a time and a place for tactfully sidestepping a hard topic, you five.

~~Bowser's not ignoring this out of respect, he probably just doesn't care.~~

Merlon explains, although not entirely because it is necessary, that Luvbi's Pure Heart will spawn a door that can be found on Flopside's Tower, rather than Flipside. This might come as a surprise, unless you notice the lack of room on Flipside's. And, of course, we'd have the camera pan when we put it in anyway.

Honestly, mood. I can only hope I'd panic about an apocalypse that impressively.

Although the begging makes it turn from "actually kind of funny" back to a more appropriate "horrifying".

Or... you could study. The answers should be in there somewhere. And it's not like fortune telling would get the answers easier?

I don't want it.

Just keep swimming! Swim down!

...I probably couldn't recommend that. I mean, sure, Captain Gills probably won't eat you, but still.

Priorities, man. On multiple counts.

...This is a gateway between worlds, to the point Flopside was made because it wasn't sustainable on its own merits. I don't see much in the way of access to other worlds without those doors.

...So do you not normally see things from the second floor here? That's a pretty good view out into the void... OK, maybe it's the lack of things back there that's the comparison.

...Is Hammer Whacker really that fun? I like it, but...

The afterlife is going away too, you know.

...Oh yeah, there is an afterlife. So much for reincarnation as a belief.

We tried our best.

~~So not at all different to usual?~~

...Well, Walter's probably going to pay for that one later.

That might actually qualify as new information. Although I have no idea whether it's reliable enough. Or, you know, something we can actually act on.

I'm behind. Way behind.

Well... it raises my defence? I guess that counts.

Sacre's depression is completely unrelated to the whole crisis.

...Which kinda makes the idea that his paintings are just not selling because of the Void come up. Do these two look outside enough to notice?

...It'll be just fine. This is a Mario game. I think.

Even the oblivious lady is coming to terms with her impending death. Even if her boyfriend seems less concerned.

Grandma's advice continues on advice that's useful in many circumstances... although it's kinda dark for this one. Hey, they couldn't do anything about it, best not to worry about trying.

Is that what the afterlife smells like? I guess we did take a bath in the Twygz and get up close and personal to Satan, but still... we also went to heaven. Sure, a poorly managed one, but...

It's a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it.

Anyway, now we're coming to the end of the recipes, my surplus of coins has to be converted into something else, and why not Catch Cards? Selling the extra Zombie Shroom card since it has no practical value, and Hoodin is startled enough for a confirmation textbox.

This is what buying from Catch a Dream tends to look like. You really need a checklist, especially as you get halfway through the Cards you need.

New Catch Cards:

Max HP: 10, Attack: 2. This resilient revenant won't rest in peace. Maybe it's its undying loyalty to Bowser. Or was it the pie it never got a chance to eat?
Max HP: 10, Attack: 2, Defense: 2. Skellobits roam the dark pits of The Underwhere. Their spears make them pretty much unstompable.
Max HP: 10, Attack: 2, Defense: 2. This airborne ghoul rules the foul skies of The Underwhere. It'll mostly try to impale you with Skellobaits. It'll also throw its own head at you. That's hard core.

Can you believe I missed three freebie Catch Cards in the Underwhere and Overthere, respectively? One of them was in the easiest level to navigate! I do come back for Dry Bones, but I don't know if I ever did find the other Skellobit ones.

(It was probably the pie. Poor Dry Bones probably can't finish it.)

Max HP: 7, Attack: 3. Someone left this flower out in the winter cold. On the plus side, it can cool beverages in a hurry.

It will cool them and then it will deep-freeze them in rapid succession. And then you will not be consuming them. Because you will be frozen too.

Max HP: 1, Attack: 4. Lava Bubbles always have a bounce to their step. But watch out: they've got fiery tempers.

...Well, the Paper Mario artstyle makes them look pretty cranky, but they're less so in the main games.

Max HP: 1, Attack: 1, Defense: 3. Just look at this cute little Buzzy Beetle with wings. It'll lose its wings if you stomp on it. Of course, that would be totally heartless.

Of course it's heartless, they're our... well, actually, they don't really seem all that much in a hurry to hurt us. Even in the platformers, Mario can cross a swarm of them as platforms without harming them.

Max HP: 1, Attack, 2, Defense: 3. Not so cute anymore, is it? Wings! Spikes! Come on! You can't stomp it, AND it's hard to hammer. Brutal.

But, of course, Mario gets Carrie before Cudge in this game. Ironically, I think Cudge is easier to hit a Parabuzzy with than Carrie- assuming they fly in range, of course.

Max HP: 5, Attack: 2, Defense: 1. Skellobombers use these as ammo. Their icy breath can cause freezebite.

As distinct from frostbite by being fourfty percent less lethal.

Max HP: 5, Attack: 2, Defense: 1. It's a Spiky Skellobait. Like a Skellobait, but spikier. You can't stomp on it or throw it, so don't even try. Just use a Skellobomber's head, why don't you?

Yeah, just throw the head, it's hilarious and helpful.

Max HP: 10, Attack: 3, Defense: 1. This elite Koopa goes bananas for boomerangs. Unfortunately, they hurt when you try to eat them.

...The guy who wrote this has a huge attention deficit issue. In what world was it a good idea to try and eat wood?

...Don't answer that.

I'm sure it's a coincidence. Although I need to have some words with Garamond.

You can get this result with any Apple other than Black. We had this since we first got the Dining Specialiser and can only now cook it that we have forbidden ingredients from the afterlife.

Although they always seem to think you used the Blue Apple.

Huh, it's even worth points. Worth it? Not at all.

Again, mood. Even the top brass feel their jobs are worthless sometimes. Ideally. Also ideally, something is done about it.

So yeah, you know all about Pixls by now, am I right? Yeah, sure you do... They were a new form of life created as tools to help the Ancients' lives. But seriously, they're way more useful than any normal tools. Being able to think on their own made them more useful... and problematic. There was always the fear that if they grew too wise, they'd ignore their masters. Some say the original Pixl personalities were created to prevent this. There were some very bright Pixls... But then something dramatic happened, and the Pixl personalities changed. I wonder what happened? If you find out, let me know...

...Yeah, I think this the idea of a tool that can think on its own is a flawed one from the premise. Tools are, by definition, instruments to extend the will of the user. A tool that can think on its own doesn't really add anything, merely supplement the skills of those less adept at using the original forms... with the side effect of adding another mind who can disagree with the thing you are trying to do. The expression "too many cooks spoil the soup" was coined for a reason: the more people are involved in something, the harder it is to agree on what that something is. "Grew too wise and ignore their masters" was never the problem- the problem was them thinking they knew better than their masters regardless of whether they actually did.

So yeah, the Pure Hearts are powerful treasures created by the Ancients. The secret of that power is the ability to detect and amplify love energy. Some among the Ancients believed strongly that the power of love was infinite. They believed this power to be so great that no forces could ever defeat it... They believed it would last and survive unchanged for the 1,500 prophesied years... This is what they believed about the power of love. The power of the Pure Hearts. As long as there's love in the world, the Pure Hearts can overcome any setback. You could say the Ancients believed in love abiding. Kind of romantic, really...

...That says little about how the Pure Heart was restored. It certainly lends credence to the idea that the Pure Hearts are indestructible enough for the plan to work, but what Jaydes did- and more importantly, how we can copy it- is vague and down to hope. Then again, it may just be powered by hope.

That's a goldfish... He's the cute fish that the boy on the third floor loves... He seems happy to have a larger area to swim in... It's much better than the bowl. Oh, and I hear his name is Captain Gills...

...Was that skeleton always there...

We have both. Well, OK, a parasol is not wings, but...

Poor Luigi. He's made fun of for being forgettable even in a game where no one should know who he is in the first place.

...

Go stand in the time-out corner and think about what you made me consider there.

"This town is full of hotties, that's why I'm going to gush about a completely unrelated woman." Look, if I'm going to have to sit through this, I want it to at least make sense.

...Please. I'd like to see Nastasia controlling your actions.

...Is this hinting at a mechanic that's a downside to having a Charm up? If there's any such mechanic, don't even bother with it.

If you have something, that's just the status quo. Being deprived of it really helps inform you exactly what advantages you had for possessing it.

...Nolrem's out. Must be waiting at the Heart Pillar.

I don't think there's a "somewhere" for them to go to. All aboard the train to nonexistence, destination depression.

...I'm not sure if she'll be heartened to know we won't exist to wander aimlessly or not. To me, existing to wander aimlessly in nowhere is far less heartening.

...Is this setting up for the idea of Timpani doing just that? I don't think those would be the words I use to describe that occurring.

It's a view to die for.

Handful of recipes and, apparently, getting a full deck of Catch Cards.

...Wait, what did we do for him, again? There weren't any sidequests to help him- there weren't any sidequests period. Well, except Piccolo.

...On second thought, I don't think I want to know. Sounds like he's confused us for a paramour.

...And it's just depressing hearing about the half the story this lady knows.

...OK, I can see how that would come across as being genuinely helpful information, but you're off your game, Ditto.

Poor kid. Stuck in a hobby he doesn't enjoy because of an addiction. It won't be for another few years until gachas are popular enough that we consider this a societal problem rather than a funny joke.

Was this even funny at the time? This just feels super mean nowadays. I mean, I was his age at around the time this game came out, but I didn't exactly make friends enough to get caught up in these shenanigans. Nor do I recall if my allowance was enough to be able to get into this.

...You're going to tell us how to get that one? Well, I guess we might as well.

Well, never mind, we're just going to hear it exists. At least it really is top dog.

I'm saving it for the final rush.

I wound up talking to this guy as Peach this time around, and this is the exact moment I discovered this was something that existed in the game.

"That look was tried and cliche two decades ago, and it'll be a few years until retro is cool again."

This is the SPM method of bringing in Peach's ponytail to gameplay! As a game originally designed for the Gamecube, this was still in fashion, but the fact they still made an effort to keep it around- and honestly, that they praise it as better than the original makes it come off pretty well like they genuinely wanted to keep this version around rather than doing it just because Sunshine was the newest game.

And hey, I do wish this stuck around.

But sadly, it isn't. This costume will last only so long as you are on this specific map. Changing characters to Mario or using an elevator will cause Peach to revert back to same ol' hair-down Peach. Fortunately, this room includes Dyllis, a fitting use for a ponytail alt.

...I have questions. Several questions.

Why do I find myself asking that question over and over?

As it turns out, the reason Peach lost her ponytail was the fact it is allergic to verticality. Sucks when Bowser has developed a fondness for his Clown Car.

...Look, now's not the time. Anything good will sell well, everyone's emptying their wallets, just...

Even in the end of the world, the businessmen gotta heartless shark. Because it's good when line go up.

So as you know, Count Bleck has four minions. One is an authoritative young woman named Nastasia, his right hand. She has the ability to brainwash people by looking them in the eyes. She can enslave even very powerful beings this way. And it seems none of the count's underlings can resist her power. That's how she's able to order them around. She rarely expresses her innermost feelings, but she seems to love the count. She has eyes only for him, you might say. I'm a little jealous...

I... Well, I suppose it's hard to judge Carson in particular without also judging the character of Nastasia, but this was a bit of an uncomfortable story. I think it's a combination of the ambiguity of whether O'Chunks and Mimi have been brainwashed in addition to the Koopa Troop (since "the count's underlings" describes them more closely than it does the Koopa Troop) and the fact that her personal comment is about her crush rather than her stoic organisation as a whole. Nastasia actually gets a second story that focuses more on the crush, which doesn't exactly help holistically.

So have you heard of the Pits of 100 Trials below Flipside and Flopside? I hear they were created long ago to test the forces that guard the Pure Hearts. The Pit of 100 Trials here in Flopside was used to study the powers of darkness. I don't know exactly what that means... but it sounds pretty terrible. There's even a rumor that treasure awaits those who make it to the bottom. Do you have the courage to find out for yourself?

...That's an interesting way of looking at things. The Pits are not trials for us to undertake... they're the old dumping grounds of the things that the Ancients were testing. The thing at the bottom of Flopside's Pit is something that failed QA so thoroughly that, unlike Fracktail, they didn't ultimately put it to use anywhere. I wonder which Pure Heart it was supposed to guard- probably Merlee's, honestly. Mimi broke in and took over way too easily there.

The new maps. Map 8 leads to a spoilery thing, while Maps 40 and 42 point to the Chapter 7 areas. On the other hand, Maps 26, 30 and 32 don't seem to have any relevance to Chapter 7, and many Chapter 7 maps we haven't acquired point to Chapter 7-specific cards that wouldn't exactly be spoilers to not dump now. I wonder why they were all saved for postgame. It's not like there's a lack of Maps to dump on us there.

...Surely there was a more polite way of phrasing that. Not by much, but still... something?

...Are those the same lesson? They're both good lessons, but they're kinda at right angles. I'd go with the second lesson before the first- Expectng the worst when the worst is "total annihilation" is both depressing and a poor overall plan in case of the opposite result.

I do like that one, though.

These two didn't have new lines, which makes them... far more hilarious to talk to than the rest of them.

Luvbi's Heart Pillar is located right outside Flopside, in the same position as the one leading to Outer Space in Flipside. Where that one was guarded by Thudley, this one has nothing. So what's stopping you sticking the wrong Pure Heart here? This Heart Pillar isn't spawned- only the blank hole is. I like to imagine Jaydes turning Luvbi into something that wasn't a Pure Heart caused the Heart Pillar to go into dormancy.

Time for the door on Flopside Tower to make its appearance.

That is certainly a door. Only one thing can be behind that.

And that door leads to the final area.

It's not a point of no return, but you should play as it if it, because there will be some rule changes that encourage it. The Return Pipe apparently does work, but specifically not during one random part- which only makes it more surprising it works on the rest of them.

Ooh, spare!

Now that I've beat the Pit of 100 Trials, a rip in the fabric of space and time appears, allowing Fleep to open the path to Flopside's Pit of 100 Trials. Not doing that yet. I could do it, but it would make me overpowered and is also kinda scary in and of itself.

...Interesting, this chapter is "The Underwhere." I guess mentioning both or just calling it "Afterlife" (or perhaps "Land of Game Overs") didn't suit them.

Good to know. Ignores Void in background.

...So what is "normal".

Fast Flower platforming being agonising, as one expects.

At least we got a level out of it.

There are no enemies in the Overthere anymore- at least outside of one optional room- but apparently the Nimbis are still hard at work keeping things that way.

So many more Nimbis all over the place.

So yeah, it turns out I missed a few secrets in 3D around here. This one's the main one, although apparently there's some Cards elsewhere I didn't grab.

Technically an enemy.

Although it only sorta cared about fighting me. Very profitable to bop, though.

Joining Cooking Disk P is Cooking Disk PU, for Purple. This is why other versions use numbers.

The actual characters in the Overthere continue to mourn Luvbi's absence. Apparently she really did brighten these people's days while she was around.

Yebbi continues to hide in the restroom despite the lack of enemies to hide from. To the chagrin of the people who apparently need it.

SO ARE OTHER PEOPLE!

What is your job, and who do I ask to get you fired from it?

This is the Nimbi who was faking his unconsciousness. Looks like he was punished for it.

Yup. Hagitha is just out of touch, tape isn't the normal way of watching this show after the fact. Although I'm sure Hagitha will be happy for company.

I mean, how often do monsters make themselves known here? I would think you shouldn't get much of that in the place of eternal relaxation.

...Well, bravery to face her fate with a smile. She didn't do much against Bonechill, and probably shouldn't have been asked to.

...You mean you loved Luvbi or Grambi? I think it's "I loved Luvbi as much as Grambi did"... which is still kinda creepy.

Eh, I thought she liked things a little spicier than that.

Well, up to the part of the Overthere that has the Itty Bits.

He did. And he hated it with every fibre of his being.

...Also, technically, he did something to prevent it, and Luvbi changed things around.

Being frozen probably wouldn't give you much in the way of exposing you to germs- quite frankly, I hate the implication that you can get colds at all in the afterlife. I did my time in life.

The Nimbis still here are very disoriented about the circumstances that have come to pass.

And that's something they learned from dying the first time, presumably.

...That might just be the ice.

...Did the video store not give you leniency owing to the whole "everyone got frozen" thing? I'm not sure you should maintain your patronage.

And I swear to Grambi, if they have a monopoly on video rentals, heads will roll.

In the post-chapter state, Whibbi is as interesting as he was before we finished: Not at all.

Right, gimme some Hot Sauces.

Heading up to the Overthere Shrine to check on how Grambi's doing, one thing you'll notice immediately on coming in here is that the Overthere Shrine has its own music, joining Paper Mario's Happy Sun Tower in being a remote theme you'd never hear in normal gameplay. There's a Map that points here post-game, though, so it's not quite as bad.

The tune itself is pretty solemn, but it's cool and it fits. Although it is a bit of a flash in the face when you transition from the bouncier Overthere theme to this.

Grambi doesn't have much he can do other than hope for the best.

That's Grambi... He governs The Overthere as the chief of the Nimbis... He met Jaydes of The Underwhere through work, and they soon had Luvbi... He endures his sadness and regrets here, alone...

~~...Still your own damn fault.~~

Everyone who has ever played Super Mario Bros. 1 knows your pain, man.

Impressive. That's why they normally make a sound when shot in newer games, I assume.

You'll have eternity together later. Let her have her life now.

No, no I don't. And I think less of you.

...I can only assume this is a reference to Dr. Mario, talking about specifically "multicoloured Viruses". The general implications of this line, therefore, is that Dr. Mario has actually killed people by malpractice. By whihc I mean, we all joke about this (Mario is a blue-collar worker and even at his most competent is not exactly smart, and is highly unlikely to even have the time or the chance to get a medical degree), but there's a difference between fan communities joking about it and actually, you know, implying, in an official game, that the Mario Jumpman Mario has killed a man by being a bad doctor.

And I hope I'm not suffering from whatever illness killed me in the afterlife. Can any of these Shaydes and Nimbis imply this is a place I'd want to spend eternity?

Dashell jumping gets us so far across the River Twygz in one go. Sadly, not the whole way.

Always a good lesson to learn. Although perhaps you should've learned it sooner.

(The fact he's still allowed to talk to us is a good indication he gets off lightly.)

I mean, I certainly can, but I don't think it'd help too much.

...I forgot what you were doing earlier and have several questions. Particularly about what your day job is.

Hey, don't disparage those who choose to be fit in life! Sure, they're trying to avoid coming down here, but just because you don't need to do it doesn't mean you have stones to throw. Hell, there are other hobbies.

Despite the lack of restraint most people have, this isn't reflected by an influx of new arrivals down here.

And all the worlds that are going the way of Sammer Kingdom sound like they're definitely not arriving. I'm... mildly surprised there's evidence for the theory that the Void doesn't allow you to move on to the afterlife. Even if it was also destroying that.

...Well, that's a stark contrast from last time.

Oh.

...That's certainly a philosophy to take to your work.

I'd say Game Over screens aren't traditionally silent, but it's certainly something they have been and Game Over can often lead into silence when you shut off the game, sit down, and ponder how you want to move forward from your defeat.

...Yeah, I 100% think your problem is more fundamental than the fact that Luvbi is not a real child, but one you invented out of wholecloth. Luvbi is going to rebel against your idealised version of parenthood and you won't have an excuse to hide behind about why Luvbi isn't who you want her to be.

More goodies! The Berry Snow Bunny is suggested to be made from a Pink Apple in addition to the mandatory ingredient of Snow Bunny, which seems in part to hide such a good item from you until after Chapter 7. This can be made so much easier if you substitute a Primordial Fruit, Peach Juice, Gradual Syrup or something.

This recipe requires Snow Bunny and Berry Snow Bunny. Put these two lovebird food items together and one gets...

The Couple's Cake. You can eat this for 5000 points, although I don't recommend it.

If you cook the Couple's Cake with a Ghost Shroom, Black Apple, Egg Bomb, or other various bad recipe items like Odd Dinner (Ghost Shroom is probably the easiest one to farm), you get the real prize item from this chain.

Trial Stew. This gastronomical test used to give Star Power, but with a lack of it, it has switched to points itself. It reduces you to 1 HP, and gives you 100 points for every heart point you lost- if I ate it right now, I'd get 7400 points.

Hot Sauce on your Mushrooms to make this. Most of these stick to the "Doubles Attack" effect, not having the accompanying heal effect.

Hot Sauce on many ingredient items, such as Big Egg or Horsetail.

I went with Slimy Extract + Hot Sauce, I believe. You can get this from combining several liquids with Hot Sauce, like Peach Juice or Gradual Syrup... or you could also use the Sap Soup as a substitute for the Hot Sauce. And yes, Hot Sauce + Sap Soup points here.

Logging this in, and...

Meat Pasta Dish: Fresh Pasta Bunch + Power Steak.
Spicy Pasta Dish: Hot Sauce + Fresh Pasta Bunch.
Ink Pasta Dish: Inky Sauce + Fresh Pasta Bunch.
Koopasta Dish: Turtley Leaf + Fresh Pasta Bunch.
Choco Pasta Dish: Fresh Pasta Bunch + Mild Cocoa Bean.
Love Noodle Dish: Lovely Chocolate + Fresh Pasta Bunch.
Roast Whacka Bump: Whacka Bump.
Spicy Dinner: Big Egg + Hot Sauce.
Primordial Dinner: Primordial Fruit + Shroom Shake
Koopa Pilaf: Turtley Leaf + Horsetail.
Dyllis Special: Roast Shroom Dish + Fruity Hamburger.
Dyllis Deluxe: Shroom Steak + Gorgeous Steak.
Luxurious Set: Dyllis Dinner + Fried Shroom Plate.
Space Food: Ice Storm + Shroom Shake.
Emergency Ration: Fire Burst + Shroom Shake.
Trial Stew: Poison Shroom + Couple's Cake.
Fresh Pasta Bunch
Hot Sauce
Whacka Bump

Seen most of these now. Although that's funny that Roast Whacka is listed before Whacka.

Selling off a bunch of these new items- why would I want to increase my Attack when I already break the game in half?

It is now time to load up on Mystery Boxes.

And hey, while we're in 5-1, we have some Maps here.

Max HP: 100, Attack: 5. Fear the woolly foot of the mighty Muth! It'll trample you just for looking at it wrong.

And that's our damage output against the EXP sponges doubled. Not that they're the most worth it anymore. But still, Bowser could take 'em in three hits now.

Oh, and yes, when I said "load up", I meant it. This recipe is RNG, with what I believe to be an 8% chance of giving what you want.

And would you believe me if I said this was first try? The Miracle Dinner is worth 2000 points, and can only come out of cooking a Mystery Box.

There is a 42% chance of getting a random recipe ingredient, and I'm told each one in the list (not all of them are available) has around 2% of the total.

And 50% of the time, you get the traditional Mistake. Hope you don't think this is the only thing you can get out of Mystery Boxes!

Funnily enough, this was indeed the first time I added a Mistake to the recipe list.

With that, I have now completed my recipe list, 96/96. No more cooking!

Ultimate results. Two Miracle Dinners, a small handful of good items, and a whole lotta mistakes.

All of which is getting dumped for coins.

Bleu will, thankfully, be happy to get our hair back into its ponytail any time you enter the map.

Although I do wonder just what her traditional hairdo did to this man. Perhaps it's how his wife wears her hair.

Time to get cooking. This time, for pure utility.

I brought a lot of meat and mushrooms.

And through combining them over and over, pressed them down into three blue-ribbon cooking ingredients. Imagine a whole inventory full of these.

Map here in Chapter 1. We actually got this back after Chapter 6, but I wasn't in a rush for it.

It's a Golden Leaf. This is probably how you're getting a few of these ingredients, if you don't get one from Flimm sooner.

...I've been doing how much shopping? I guess those Mystery Boxes did do a lot.

There are two Catch Cards available by shop points- Mega Koopa and Whacka. Mega Koopa is available at 100, if you have a lot of cooking to do, but it takes far too much effort and cash to get all the way up to 300 for Whacka.

Max HP: 1, Attack: 2, Defense: 1. This Koopa got a Mega Star. Now it's a mega problem. Don't look at it in 3-D, or it'll blow your mind!

...Look at it in 3D? Huh, never thought to try it.

This map was the one we got for Chapter 1 after Chapter 7.

Max HP: 64, Attack: 5, Defense: 4. This is a souped-up version of Mr. L's robot. It looks like he went all out with the customizations. Too bad they don't help much!

That's because it's where we can find the Card for the boss of Chapter 6! Better late than never. Although why this guy has it is a question we won't pose to his brother.

Anyway, something about this guy in 3D? Thankfully, he comes back naturally.

...What the hell is that? It's not exactly that interesting to look at.

Even Luigi didn't get to the end of this rampage after all. Wasn't just Bowser being slow.

This one was also kept from us until Chapter 7.

Max HP: 10, Attack: 2. Hooligons love to wreak havoc in the depths of space. They blend into their habitat, waiting to attack.

Unlike that one, there's no real reason to hold this off. It's... a common enemy in Chapter 4. Why is this one even in a Map?

...I kinda think it's supposed to be bait...

Next up, 5-2 and the volcano- from the outside.

Definitely just here to bait me and waste my time.

Who wants to climb the Overthere Stair again? There's totally a Map here, too! Just one, though, we won't need to come back here postgame unless we want more apples.

Stair 49 is the one you want for it.

Pure utility. Unless you need money in large numbers, this can be skipped.

At last, the time has finally come for us to head up to the top of Flopside Tower.

One big black door, and one big bad boss.

At the very least, this isn't just a vague truism telling us to press forward. There's another reason this gets brought up, although there's no connection back to its mention here.

These are just the right words for one of us in the party...

I'd ask why not, but he hasn't been useful at all for the rest of the game, why would he be here?

They just thought they could say something nice for us. I can sorta appreciate the sentiment, but we really haven't gotten attached to these two enough for this to be a heartwarming scene the same way, say, Frankly sending us off was. Despite the two ostensibly being in the same shoes.

Bowser, of course, is having none of it. And continuing to voice sentiments the player shouldn't be sharing.

Tippi is the character with the most personal stake in what's going on, and so we're going to centre the last moments on her. And we're doing that by... telling her to stay behind. Sure, she's been uncertain of her wings, but right now, she needs to face Count Bleck.