As the twists involving Garcello are so integral to the mod he's effectively a Walking Spoiler, this page will be Spoilers Off!
Awesome Music: The entire soundtrack is awesome, from the strong introduction "HEADACHE", to the slowed-down "NERVES", to the energetic "RELEASE", and finally the bittersweet "FADING". Listen to the soundtrack and instrumental versions here!
Crosses the Line Twice: Garcello gets into a few coughing fits during "NERVES", a cause for alarm considering he previously mentioned his chest hurting. Boyfriend simply beeps along to his coughs.
Because this mod and the Vs Annie mod were created by atsuover, there are fans circulating theories about Annie and Garcello's relationship as either family/(ex-)lovers/friends/etc. This is also due to some similarities in their songs, such as Garcello's "FADING" having similarities to Annie's "LOVER". atsuover would later confirm that the two are indeed very close friends, and Hazy River, released for Smoke 'Em Out Struggle's 1st anniversary, includes a bonus song titled "Dilemma", where the two go get food together.
There was a widespread interpretation that Garcello's paranormal cigarette was given to him by Daddy Dearest with the express idea of killing the Boyfriend with it. atsuover and Rageminer later confirmed this to be true on a stream.
Some fan works depict Garcello and Whitty hanging out or otherwise interacting, since both were encountered (and rap-battled against) in a back alley.
At the end of atsuover's official upload of the mod's soundtrack, there is an In Memoriam image for Garcello... with a quote from the man saying that he's going to the Ghost McDonald's. Fittingly, the image is of him sitting at a table with his order. Rageminer, Garcello's voice, confirmed his order as well: a regular McChicken, large fries, and a large iced/sweet tea.
It's entirely possible to die before the first cutscene begins. On the intro text slide, note inputs still register, and missing notes does drain your health. If you put in enough inputs to force yourself to fail, it results in the game crashing.
A meta example: Courtesy of an FNF remixer known as Neonight, there now exists a cover of "RELEASE" with a character from literally every fnf mod ever (specifically Bob's Onslaught) that brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "Tight bars, little man".
Among the bonus content in Hazy River is "Dilemma", where Garcello and Annie sing while ordering food at McDonalds. Special mention goes to the ending, where the cashier goes "Alright, so that'll be one-" before singing himself, to which Garcello and Annie turn to each other, confused.
Harsher in Hindsight: While the story is generally bittersweet, future content and the expansion of the lore reveals that Garcello dying alone was actually the result of him being trapped in an endless loop of smoking himself to death unless he transferred his addiction to Boyfriend by getting him to smoke, as he was forcibly hired and cursed by Daddy Dearest. His close friend, Annie, was diligently trying to find cures and ways to break his curse but ultimately finds him dead in an alleyway after trying her hardest to save his life, leading to her singing battle with Daddy Dearest in Hazy River's "Drowning".
Garcello telling Boyfriend "Tight bars, Little Man" during "RELEASE". Cue literally every fnf mod ever's secret song for Bob's Onslaught, "Little Man", sang by a character known as Little Man... who is a little man.
It Was His Sled: The fact that Garcello dies and becomes a ghost as the mod's climax has become such common knowledge around the fandom that almost anyone who plays the mod for the first time will already know what's going to happen.
Best Anti-Smoking PSA EverExplanation Many have claimed (jokingly or not) that the mod is a better anti-smoking PSA than most official PSAs about the topic. A lot of said PSAs, especially from the '80s and '90s, tend to be very heavy-handed, to the point that a lot of people can't take them seriously. In contrast, the mod's message against smoking doesn't detract from Friday Night Funkin's fun gameplay and music, and is instead told mostly through visual cues and subdued dialogue on Garcello's part. It also helps that Garcello himself is surprisingly sympathetic, and a genuine Nice Guy who doesn't get angry at the Boyfriend like many other FNF mod characters, making his death tragic to many people despite (or perhaps even because of) his addiction.
Ghost McDonald's Explanation At the end of the official soundtrack video, there is The Stinger which shows Garcello visiting the aforementioned restaurant in the afterlife after the rap battle. Many fans loved how ridiculous the idea was and have tried to conjure up what he would order until Word of Godfinally came out with what he ordered.
Garcello dying in unbelievably hilarious ways.Explanation The meme consists of putting the image of Garcello's corpse into some random location and then making up a hilarious way of how he died.
Lung Cancer Explanation Garcello's heavy smoking habit, his rapidly declining state, and his eventual death has led to many fans jokingly suggesting that he has/had lung cancer. The phrase is tossed around most often when there are jokes about "NERVES" (and his coughing in that song).
Garello Explanation Intentional misspelling of his name inspired by other similar mod character misspellings such as Tricky/Tiky, Whitty/Whit, Zardy/Zary, etc., and is usually represented by a chibi-fied Among Us-styled character design.
"Tight bars, little man."Explanation Garcello's catchphrase became memetic and referenced in other FNF mods such as the Vs Nonsense mod. Minus Garcello has a variant in his week from Hazy River, being "Not bad, little man."
In general, Garcello's voice is regarded as pleasant to listen to and very angelic, ironically so for a man who is a heavy smoker.
Nightmare Fuel: After suffering from the usual symptoms of heavy smoking during the first two songs, Garcello coughs and more or less vomits a massive cloud of smoke, killing him almost instantly.
Recurring Fanon Character: On top of the mod being well-made in general, Garcello himself became incredibly popular for being a surprisinglynice guy whose songs are incredibly fun to play without being ridiculously hard to beat. What endeared him the most to the fanbase, however, is how his smoking habit had gotten him killed in the middle of the mod, and how his final goodbyes at the end made him a very likable and tragic character, to the point where fans want him to be an official character in the game itself.
Signature Scene: The animated cutscene of Garcello's death and Garcello saying "Tight bars, little man" in the middle of "RELEASE".
Tear Jerker: After completing the week, the Story Mode menu is dead quiet save for the sound effects. Returning to the main menu makes the instrumental of "FADING" begin to play, and if you stick around to listen or take a while to pick what you're doing next (it's a short song after all), the game closes itself after the song ends. Lovely...
The Woobie: Garcello. Not much is known about him but without any context or knowledge of his past, he comes across as a tragic figure who is being hunted by Daddy Dearest for whatever reason and Boyfriend and Girlfriend manage to catch him in his last moments in life as he is determined to smoke himself to death in a dark alley way alone. Him being one of the kindest opponents Boyfriend has faced among mods has helped him win many fans' hearts, who express their sympathy and grief for his unfortunate death.
and instrumental versions