#Tgamm scratch corruption

[tgammsideblog]

Scratch’s Corruption Theory Megapost

A very common theory/speculation that has been going around Tgamm fandom is the possibility of Scratch becoming corrupted. It has been an idea in the fandom since the episode ¨Howlin Harriet¨ (Season 1 Episode 2-A) aired back when the series was just starting. Fans have made their own fanart of corrupted Scratch designs, fanfics involving Scratch becoming corrupted, etc. It’s a popular concept to explore in the Tgamm fandom. The question is: Could Scratch become corrupted in this show? What could lead him to become corrupted?

In this post i’m going to talk about what we know about ghost corruption so far and why Scratch has a chance to become corrupted at some point during Season 2.

What is ghost corruption?

According to Libby’s guide in ¨The Unhaunting of Brighton Video¨ episode ghost corruption is the result of ¨A ghost that is so obsessed with their unfinished business that they get consumed by a single emotion¨. In this case Libby cites the example of Howlin Harriet, who became so obsessed with finding her missing toes that her form became very different from the one of a ¨normal¨ ghost. (Howlin Harriet episode)

Something that is interesting about the Howlin Harriet episode is how it was one of the first episodes of the series, episode 2-A, to be precise. Almost as if ghost corruption as a concept is going to gain importance later on in the show, such it has been the case of the episode ¨The Unhaunting of Brighton Video¨ diving further into how the process of corruption works.

Both creators of the show, Bill Motz and Bob Roth, have shared important information regarding ghost corruption around these last months. (Taken from a Discord AMA)

Link to Bob’s tweet:  https://twitter.com/automaticgravy/status/1659984445347348481

Based on this, ghosts can become corrupted by obsessing with their unfinished business or focusing on a single emotion like controlling others. They ¨become nothing more than their desires, losing all of their humanity¨. Ghost corruption varies depending of the ghost and what their unfinished business is. This explain why Howlin Harriet looked completely different from other ghosts while Blair looked normal but behave agressive in some ways. Ghost corruption could also depend on how long the ghost has been corrupted. Blair has been stuck in that video store for what would be around two decades while Harriet had been haunting the woods for probably hundred of years. Harriet probably was more in a ¨advanced¨ stage of corruption after being roaming in the woods for so long.

Blair could speak and communicate with the protagonists. Her corruption state manifested as her being on denial on her own situation and watching horror movies obsessively over and over again. She claimed to like staying in the video store, something that was later revealed to not be the case. Blair’s corruption came from not being able to return the tape of a horror movie she really liked before she died. She was consumed by the guilt of having kept the tape for so long. This showed that unfinished business doesn’t have to be ¨tragic¨ for a ghost to have one and the corruption is result of the ghost becoming obsessed by an specific emotion.

Another ghost that could be considered to had been corrupted is Sonia Davis, the Ice Princess, who was consumed by the obsession of doing a perfect triple jump she failed at doing when she was still a human. She was freed when Pete reminded her to have fun in ice skating instead of obsessing over past mistakes. (Ice Princess- Season 1 Episode 11-A). In this case Sonia’s ice powers seemed to have been distorted by years of haunting the lake and thus generating blizzards in Brighton every four years. Sonia didn’t look aware of the chaos her powers were creating in the city, probably because she was too consumed by her unfinished business to notice it.

Now that it has been clarified what ghost corruption is, where does Scratch fall into all this?

Possible hints of Scratch becoming corrupted

One of the things that Scratch needs to become corrupted is for him to have an unfinished business. Something he left from his human life and that he wasn’t able to complete before he died. It has to be something that it was important to him like an activity he loved doing or a person that was special to him... ...Ah What about that flashback he had about his childhood friend, Adia, saying goodbye and moving away? (A Soda to Remember-Season 3 Episode 3-B)

At the start of ¨A Soda to Remember¨ Scratch talked about how he wasn’t able to recall most of his past except for a memory related to Surly Sid’s strawberry soda. Near the end of the episode it was revealed this had to do with a promise he made to Adia, a childhood friend.

What if the reason of why this was the first thing that Scratch was able to recall was because he tried looking for Adia in his human life but he couldn’t find her? What if finding Adia is Scratch’s unfinished business and he doesn’t know it yet?

In addition to this, some fans have pointed out that what would Adia’s house from the flashback could be the same one Scratch was living at the start of the series and now it is the Mcgees’ home. If the Mcgees’ house used to be previous Adia’s home, this could would support more the idea that Scratch waiting/looking for Adia may be his unfinished business. While he wasn’t able to remember it, part of his subconscious must have told him to stay in this house because it was familiar to him.

A few days ago one tumblr mutual of mine @the5n00k​ made a video highlighting parallels between how Blair/Ollie were acting in ¨The Unhaunting of Brighton Video¨ and Scratch’s general behaviour when it comes to confronting his past.

During the episode Blair kept being in denial of her own past and unfinished business. She pretended that everything was fine and lashed out when the protagonists asked her what happened to her so they could help her. She would scare workers out of the video store, protecting the place she found herself ¨stuck¨ in.

Blair’s behaviour resembled a little too much Scratch’s in ¨A Soda to Remember¨ episode. In this episode Scratch did everything he could to avoid being reminded of his past, expressing fear of what could happen if he remembered and finding out that his human life wasn’t exactly a good one. He sabotaged Molly’s school heist to get him the surly sid’s soda and lied about a few things such as ghost not being able to go through safes. Almost as it was something he has been avoiding for years to be reminded of.

In ¨The Unhaunting of Brighton Video¨ hints that Scratch is still scared of confronting his own past. When Libby and Molly told him that they couldn’t leave Blair without helping her with her unfinished business first, Scratch didn’t think there was anything wrong with Blair not wishing to confront her own past. (¨What is so wrong with that?¨). Scratch thought it was okay to leave Blair being haunted by her own past, stuck and in denial of her situation instead of seeking help. Since the two characters share many parallels, it wouldn’t be surprising if Scratch was subconsciously his own personal issues in that conversation.

Expanding a bit more Scratch and Blair’s parallels, the way Blair haunted the store and kept workers away was much alike how Scratch acted towards the Mcgees when they first arrived in Brighton. Scratch would try to scare Molly and the rest of the Mcgees out of the house, almost as like he was protecting it. If that house was in indeed Adia’s, this could explain in part why Scratch was so grumpy about the Mcgees moving in. He didn’t want a place that reminded him of his unfinished business be invaded by others.

Another aspect worth of noting is the amount of time Scratch has been repressing and avoiding his memories. The creators and the show have both implied that Scratch was alive between 50′s-70′s. He know who Sonia Davis was (who participated in the Winter Games during the 50′s) and seems to be into old music like Jazz/Broadaway (Fried Food song)

Based on this, Scratch has been a ghost for around 50 years, if not more. It isn’t nearly as many as Harriet, who has been implied to be a ghost for hundred of years but it is still enough time for a ghost to become corrupted due to their unfinished business.

Scratch has been dealing with a lot of things in this season too. He has become the new chairman of the Ghost World, a role that really stresses him out because of the responsibilities that go with it. He is also dealing with a neighbour ghosthunter family that has been causing conflict in the Mcgee family and to clash with Molly more than one time. On top of that, he is now having more flashbacks related to his past and put in situations that remind him of this issue.

All of these problems are enough to push Scratch into a situation that could trigger his corruption, even if they have nothing to do with the moment this transformation takes place. It’s simply something that would lead to anyone to have a mental breakdown and Scratch isn’t exactly the best when it comes to dealing with so much stress.

What could trigger Scratch’s corruption?

If the corruption is going to take in some point during this season, for it to happen Scratch should have to go through a very emotional moment that is strong enough for him to trigger the transformation.

My speculation is that being reminded more of his past is what could cause it. Scratch brought up in ¨A Soda to Remember¨ that they could be a reason of why he forgot about his past. In general, he is scared of learning more about it, as something bad could happen if he does.

Maybe this is foreshadowing that once Scratch gets back most of his memories, he is going to remember Adia, and thus, remember how he was looking for her and didn’t found her. Being reminded of his unfinished business could ¨reactivate¨ his corruption and losing control trying to look for her childhood friend.

The second option could be him ¨losing¨ Molly, fearing the same thing that happened to Adia could repeat again. As it was stated in ¨Scaring is Caring¨ Scratch’s biggest fear is losing Molly, a fear so big that was enough for him to make him return to his normal form. If Molly gets taken away from Scratch for some reason with Scratch having his memories back, it could trigger the corruption, since the feeling of losing another friend would be too much for Scratch to deal with.

Conclusion

So far, many things hint that Scratch’s corruption is a event that is bound to happen sooner or later in Season 2. This season has been diving more into Scratch’s personal issues, his tendency to avoid his past and confront it. The concept of ghost corruption has been hinted more frequently both in the show and by the creators, giving more detailed descriptions about what causes it and what happens to the ghost when is during that state. It’s hard to pass this off as some lore and not an aspect that is going to gain importance later on.

Scratch getting corrupted is an interesting direction his character could take considering all the emotional baggage he has carrying all this years. It could be a good opportunity for him to realize he needs other people to help him and finally deal with these personal issues.

[emositecc]

I made these like 7 months ago!! Based on the fanfic Double Jinxed!

Man, I loved the corruption theory.

[the5n00k]

‼️‼️‼️BIG SPOILERS FOR THE UNHAUNTING OF BRIGHTON VIDEO PLS DON'T WATCH IF YOU HAVEN'T YET I'M SERIOUS‼️‼️‼️

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so this video isn't 100% certain and I know this episode was about Ollie (love that btw) but I couldn't help but think this might have been foreshadowing something bigger

[chytag]

Wanted to try my hand at Corrupted Scratch since I was inspired by @the5n00k and @emositecc designs!

[bennydwight]

"... When did it s-stop…  hurting … to think about them…?"

 "... It didn't."

~

Drew this for @the5n00k‘s final chapter of “I Can’t Lose You” (hence why my usual review is taking so friggin long lol). This scene was so potent that I started this the moment I finished reading. I hope I did your vision justice, Snook! ❤

Experiments: Layer effects, bloom filter, liquefy tool,

[art-ificial-sweeteners]

Wanted to finish a background for this cause I think without it it just doesn’t communicate how BIG he’s supposed to be but I’m really proud of it and wanted to show you before The End so

[silviaflowers]

OOPSY DAISY i foRGOT to post this

So this is fanart of another of @the5n00k 's fics "I Can't Lose You" !!

Wraith molly does NOT look that good in my style but I tried! Im much prouder of corrupted scratch!! please go read I cant lose you its one of my favorite fics ever its so good i swear its up there with Passerine

also i referenced the howling harriet design but. also from memory :,)

the first is from later in the fic than the second but i put them in order of when I made them

I also forgot to write Scratch's "ADIA" in the second picture :,)

[tornrose24]

All I can say about this one is that if you are reminded of a certain Miyazaki film, then you are thinking in the right direction. Anyway… on with the chaos!

Also, shoutout to @jackie-sugarskull for double checking something for me.

[strangeharmonystarfish]

Old TGAMM dump

[ladymiraclewings]

A lil sketch comic i did following the Scratch Corruption Theory that i already posted on Mollycord

I was mostly inspired in a particular scene in the Nimona movie, when Nimona is consumed by dark energy and became that giant creature.

[tgammsideblog]

Do you hope TGAMM actually goes through with a corrupted Scratch arc or do you think maybe Scratch will gradually learn to open up to Molly when the time is right and then Molly will wholeheartedly help Scratch find his long lost friend from his past? Personally, I think the latter sounds more fitting for such a non-cynical show like TGAMM…

The second would be more appropiate for the tone of the show. The thing is that both the creators and the show have been hinting at corruption lately. Libby talked about how Ollie was in ¨denial, lashing out and hinding things¨ when trying to avoid talking about his issues. And Scratch probably hasn't told Molly about the flashback he got in ¨A Soda to Remember¨ knowing him. He hinted at possibility of having forgotten about his memories for a reason too.

Outside from Jinx getting obsessed with revenge, Scratch is the most likely to corrupt in the show. He has been having all these issues accumulating for decades now and that's going to come to bite him back in some moment.

If he ever gets corrupted, i don't expect the transformation to last more than one episode because of the tone of the show. I think it could be cathartic for his character and for what has been shown to be corruption so far.

[emositecc]

He did an oopsie 😩

[the5n00k]

Since the first chapter of my corrupted scratch fic is out with the next one on the way, now's as good of time as ever to share my current corrupted scratch design and what inspired him

Big parts of him are consciously Never drawing him with an angry expression and the explanation of the toxic nature of his ectoplasm being his body manifesting the internalized idea that he ruins everything he touches

Gimme a few minutes and I'll bs a reason as to why I gave him spines too other than it looks cool lol

[ilove2draw2008]

MOLLY I TOLD YOU NOT TO COME IN!!!!!

[rainbow-beanie]

Identity Crisis is my favorite TGAMM season 2 song. Valid?

It’s pretty good, but my favorite part of this episode is how scratch’s little ‘phase’ is like a direct parallel to her identity crisis (how does a ghost have an identity crisis if they are already dead? Well it’s safe to assume that as long as one is not corrupted, a ghost’s identity can remain just as they did in life.)

How, with lack of a better word, cringeful way scratch went about trying to convince every one of his friends that he has a “rockstar personality”, I haven’t rewatched the episode to really relisten to the song.

I love scratch very much, he is my sweet blorbo, but BY GOD did I experience the worst type of second hand embarrassment imaginable.

[art-ificial-sweeteners]

They’re fine, don’t worry about it.

Everyone say thank you @the5n00k for breaking the spell of my art block.

This is fanart for the last part of their fic I Can’t Lose You. I love the corrupted scratch theory. So much angst potential. Go read it (if you’re caught up with season 2 because there are spoilers for A Soda to Remember).