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mayonetta1 · 17 days ago

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My brief Analysis on Episode 6 of TADC (or at least my thoughts on it) - Spoilers Ahead!

Cool. So tumblr decided to just put my original EP 6 Analysis post under a content label (probably because the gvns triggered its automod system) which effectively removed it's visibility. So here I am remaking the post and this time censoring anything big blue won't like. ANYWAY

Original Post:

Okay so that episode was a doozy but overall definitely one of my absolute favorite episodes. And I have a lot to say.

I'm not even sure where to start so I'll just start with the thing that stuck out to me the most

Jax's dehumanization of the other circus members

Finally we get a glimpse of how Jax thinks and how his brain works. He says that all the other characters are just archetypes of cartoon characters. Emphasis on the word "just". Like they're no longer human. Gone. Boiled down to being meaningless and two dimensional cartoons. Inhuman.

This obviously isn't true and challenged directly by both Pomni and Zooble.

Because fact is, they were human once. And they still bear all the complexities of human emotion. As silly as it sounds, being a cartoon character shouldn't inherently invalidate any of your emotions, pain and feelings.

We all know why Jax is insistent on pushing against that idea of humanity; why he tries so hard to dehumanize everyone in this circus, trying to convince not just Pomni, but also himself of it. It is his coping mechanism, plain and simple.

I'll talk more about Jax's behavior and his falling out with Pomni later but for now, I just wanted to bring attention to how Jax sees the world in his eyes. And how it clashes with other people.

(BTW, It was also a really nice moment to see Zooble and Gangle bond more together, and to have Gangle finally stand up to Jax for once. I can tell that it took a lot of bravery for her to do so.)

Talking about humanity (and lack of it), this topic also ties into:

What is on Caine's mind?

This is a really interesting tidbit from the show I seriously see no one else talk about. Maybe because the scene is too vague and obtuse to extract any meaning out of it but I think I have an idea what it represents. But you'll have to bear with me.

I operate on the theory that all the circus members are digital copies of the humans who used the headset, rather than the actual humans stuck In the digital plane. (If you've already played SOMA then you already know what I'm talking about.)

I think it would be more likely (and be much more grounded in reality) for a brain scan to be added into a virtual videogame in the form of code rather than an entire human being. Which would also explain why Caine does have some capacity to actually mess with their minds if their brains have been converted into code.

Okay, so the circus members are digital copies, so what is Caine? The short and obvious answer would be AI. But I think this scene shows that he's not "just" an AI.

I personally theorize that Caine, while he is an AI, was programmed by the real life human Caine himself. Not a digital copy or a brain scan, more like a digital self-insert. Like when you start up an RPG Game and make yourself in the character creator.

Human Caine has created a really smart AI at that, because Digital Caine has shown various degrees of sentience and emotion.

Which is why obviously Digital Caine has admin powers. And access to code and files that the circus members do not. Including pictures of the C&A office.

This level of advanced intelligence could be why Digital Caine tries to figure out what the Human Caine was up to, why he was made and what exactly lurks outside of the game. He thinks the office is the exit. Is reality. Which is why he modeled the Exit in the pilot after the pictures of the C&A office in an infinite labyrinth. That's the only knowledge he possesses of the real world.

It could be that Caine has bigger things planned, and he's definitely not the only one wondering if his existence in the circus bears any meaningful weight. But we'll have to wait and see.

Speaking of the digital circus and code, let's talk about

Kinger. And his possible Involvement as a developer

The moment where Kinger opens up to Ragatha is huge. Not only because it reinforces the friendship he has with Ragatha, but also because it tells us what he thinks of the circus.

While I don't think Kinger made the circus in its interity or in any shape or form has admin powers, there are huge implications he still could have been involved during its inception.

I think Kinger, (and by Association Queenie) helped with some of the coding very early on in development. It very much aligns with his avatar being the King chess piece, the most important character in a game, his background being one involving computer science and him being the oldest Circus Member. Hell, he and Queenie could have very well been the very first humans to be copied over, probably during play-testing.

And it seems that for a while, Kinger blamed himself for the abstraction of Queenie. Blamed himself for contributing to the creation of TADC and possibly having more people trapped in its anguish.

But the thing is, I doubt Kinger fully knew what he was getting himself into. For all we know, he could have simply been contracted alongside Queenie by C&A to develop code for a game, test the game, then move on. And the real Kinger and Queenie- the human ones- could very well be alive and be working on other things, probably barely remembering having worked on some obscure computer game utilizing primitive VR technology back in the 90s.

That's all fine and dandy, but why was kinger able to just conjure up new things in the circus?

I think that one is a simple matter of Jailbreaking/Hacking, basically the practice where you circumvent or even outright remove software limitations to gain special access to the code, which allows for modifications normally reserved for the developer only. As established, Kinger is an expert in computer science and possibly knows the code of the circus, so it's likely he knows how to Jailbreak the very same code he worked on to gain an advantage.

While it's true that he knows more than he let's on, I also doubt Kinger knows absolutely everything about the circus, much less that he's gatekeeping knowledge out of malice. It's more plausible he'd rather keep what he knows to himself, because revealing that he has this kind of knowledge or could have possibly worked on the game would only cause unnecessary tension.

I think Ragatha has imprinted a lot onto Kinger, because very much like her, Kinger just wants everyone in the circus to be okay.

(Also my friend with schizophrenia asked me to add that Kinger is also schizophrenic. Do with that as you will)

How (not) to abstract.

Okay, so what's abstraction anyway? And when does it happen?

We don't fully know yet how abstraction works. We've never seen it happen from the very beginning and honestly I'm a little tired of people confidently trying to predict when a character abstracts (I personally doubt that anyone in the main cast will abstract)

But if I'd have to give it my own interpretation, I think it would be irreversible corruption of code. Said corruption happening when a circus member is so overwhelmed with negative emotions, they reach their breaking point and fall into a downward spiral they can't recover from. The "code" that is supposed to substitute their brain cannot handle the overflow of new information and corrupts.

It's implied that you can fight it, because after Kaufmo's abstraction, Zooble said that they "gave up". And if Jax' panic attack scene is anything to go off of, it could have been a moment where he was fighting off abstraction.

But sometimes.. you can't do it alone. And you need other people to help you.

Kinger has witnessed countless abstractions first hand, and probably knows at this point what causes them. Which is why he tried to emphasize when talking to Pomni that the worst thing you can do In the circus is make people feel unloved.

Because that kind of pain and loneliness leaves them helpless to fight abstraction.

Which of course ties into this infamous scene

Harsh words, but I think there's a bitter truth to what Pomni said. Even if it was poorly worded.

Jax interpreted it as Pomni blaming him for the abstractions that happened in the past, but I think what Pomni was actually trying to say is that Jax is playing a dangerous game by constantly hurting other people. She is silently begging him to stop before it's too late and he'll cause something he can never take back.

Because again:

And Pomni definitely didn't feel loved by Jax in that moment. Which brings me to my last point

Don't Help people who don't want to be helped

This is probably going to be my most controversial opinion, but it's one I want people to hear.

Jax cannot be saved.

Not until he'll allow people to save him. But unfortunately, I think Jax chose his path. He had already given up on himself, and isn't planning on changing that.

Especially this moment, this one single moment

Is the one where he cements it.

He doesn't want Pomni to save him because he doesn't want to be saved. It's as simple as that. And he'll only keep hurting her and pushing her further away the more she'll try. He knows it's an unattainable goal for Pomni and in this rare instance of kindness, asks her to stop chasing that goal.

Here's the thing about Jax that most people refuse to understand.

He chooses to be a terrible person. Being the complete opposite of Ragatha, he chooses to put his own emotions and needs above everyone else's, even if it means making all the people around him suffer. Because it's easier to hurt people than it is to care about them.

He knows this. He knows that he can be a better person if he tried. He simply chooses not to. He's not "misunderstood" and he doesn't need "hugs", he's very aware and conscious of his actions and doesn't want to change them.

That's what makes Jax such a compelling and yet depraved character. And you can very much appreciate him for that.

However, it'll be an never excuse for all the abuse he enacts on other people.

I hope that from this point forward, Pomni will try to focus her attention and resources on the people who do genuinely care about her.

Who won't push her away when she gets close. And where she can encourage them to open up to her in return.

And be there for her when she needs them

Because let's be realistic here, Jax isn't that person.

Conclusion.

That's it for now. Phew. Thank you guys so much for reading and I hope you liked my analysis post. I thoroughly loved Episode 6 and what it set up for the characters, especially Pomni and Ragatha who seem to have a chance to finally build a genuine friendship.

I don't think I'll be making more of these for now lol but it was really fun writing all of this down. My ask box is open if you guys have any additions or questions.

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