- I knew he looked like Dr. Wily for a reason!
- Alternatively, he's a Well-Intentioned Extremist who only got Pico involved in these fights to prove that kids aren't useless. It's just that everything else Pico and his friends got themselves into was out of his hands.
- Wait, then how was Samurai Asshole even alive in Newgrounds Rumble, let alone with Nene, too?
- Nothing a little Time Travel can't fix. Samurai Asshole's route in Newgrounds Rumble even states that he only came to Newgrounds (there the game treats like a location) to find the destroyer of his village.
- Darnell and Nene represent "safe spaces", of sorts; they're Pico's friends, so they could be translated into people Pico wants to have around him to feel safe, so to speak. However, every safe space can be broken down at times (as he doesn't always get along with his friends).
- Adding to this, Nene in particular could also represent Pico's "feminine" side, with him wanting to translate that into one of his "safe spaces"; something he hopes nobody will make fun of for that... albeit, there are times where that happens (which would deconstruct Nene's suicidal nature, which would be Pico likely thinking about opposing and trying to get rid of his feminine side).
- The goth punks represent loss of innocence. Specifically, they represent each "stage" of loss of innocence: Cyclops being shock (translated into him without an eye), Alucard being betrayl (translated into him having supernatural abilities), Hanzou being denial (translated into them being ignored, with no one but the bad crowd they hang around), and Cassandra being acceptance (for obvious reasons).
- The Penillians represent people who have already accepted the fact that the world is a scary place, to which Pico interprets them as being evil because he's scared of change.
- The Uberkids likely represent what Pico hates; being not perfect enough.
- As for non-official characters...
- Otis could be yet another "safe space" or yet another real person outside of this (Pico's cousin, pretty much). Otis, however, would reflect Pico's more "innocent" side if we go with the safe space option, but even he's affected by repressed memories, if the Neo Goth Punks are anything to go by.
- Piconjo is what Pico fears he'll become if he gives into what he thinks is bad; he conjured an evil-looking version of himself so that he thinks he won't end up that way in the future.
- Convict would represent the fear of the world being against Pico, hence his shapeshifting abilities. Nene being killed off in Pico vs Convict represents the world forcing Pico to get rid of one of his delusions, even one that makes him feel better about himself.
- Other characters in the series are either also metaphors or are real people trying to get him back to reality, yet he still imagines them as characters in his mindset.
However, I don’t buy this at all.
See, the thing is, Penilians are established as arrogant assholes who simply want to conquer and humiliate Earth for shits and giggles. They simply have no care for any lives other than their own, and often shown to betray anyone who worked under them. The only thing they seem to care about is their giant Maygar from UFA, the only other pet that’s mentioned to be owned by them.With the Hominids’ and their species, they just don’t have that same malevolence. In their game (both Flash and console version), the titular Hominid that crash-landed on Earth was only concerned with getting back to their home planet. The little critter only decides to kill the incoming FBI, KGB, and Area 51 agents in self-defense. Not once does the Hominid show any form of aggression or distaste towards humans (not counting the player killing that Fat Kid in the opening). As a matter of fact, in the console version, the spaceship is confiscated by the agents trying to cover up the crash landing. So, if anything, they’re simply getting in his way.
Now, if this is anyone’s first introduction of the Hominids, then they’re more likely to be seen as a group of Space Nomads wandering the cosmos, simply minding their own business, not one to concern themselves in conflict with other species, unless they are attacked first.
So, how does it make sense that they’re the pets of the Penilians? My theory is that, to put it bluntly, they aren’t.
I believe that the Penilians simply recruited a random Hominid to help them with their plans. They likely have a superiority complex and think that they are greater than any other species. However, despite their apparent technological achievements, they are ''far'' from the interdimensional geniuses they claim to be. As such, they have secretly resorted to stealing from other alien species to make themselves look more powerful and enlisting others to do their dirty work. We have seen this with Cassandra and the Goth Punks, as well as Damien and the Neo Goth Punks™, so who’s to say they didn’t do the same thing with the Hominids? With that in mind, let’s say Damien likely hired a member of the Hominid race to help with their plans of revenge on Pico and his family (including Otis). I’m not sure how they’d convinced them to assist, but regardless, it worked.With them being so self-assured, they demeaned what they considered the “lesser species” like the ungrateful dicks they are, insulting them further by calling them their “pets”. Of course, this temporary alliance is just that: temporary. So, I really doubt that the Hominids would take kindly to that kind of disrespect, and they definitely retaliated against them afterwards, pretty much shattering their pride.
TL;DR: The Penilians just hired the Hominids to help them kill Pico’s family, but were too cocky about it and promptly got their asses handed to them.