“Well if you do Liam’s first then Ryan’s makes more sense”, which just seems rather baffling."
Hm. Is that so? Ryan gets more depth as you explore Liam's route. I don't see anything wrong with that. People who like Ryan don't need Liam's route to enjoy the character.
Besides... you'd be surprised. Every experience is different and I've seen people pick Liam first.
"But you’ve sorta introduced him as like the ‘main’ love interest since he’s CLEARLY into Joel."
I don't consider him the main LI. That's for you to decide. Just because Ryan likes Joel doesn't mean we're obligated to return that sentiment.
"Why would anyone pick Liam above Ryan in terms of who to read first based on introductions?"
Well, that's your opinion. Not everyone started with Ryan just like others started with Liam first.
It's a unique experience that changes depending on the route order, because it recontextualizes stuff.
"So what type of hive mind to act so bi-polar? Geth style where every ‘drone’ has a voice or a gestalt consciousness?"
I think it's closer to a gestalt consciousness. I wrote about this in Liam 5. The strongest one takes control, but can be replaced by another.
"The name on the phone you said is a password reference, but password’s actually has a use. Does MC’s?"
The... coffee cup at the beginning of the same has a use? I thought it was just a silly Easter egg. Damn. I replayed the game 5 months ago and I don't remember that being important at all.
The name chosen will return later in the game. I just don't want to say more.