#oughhh... the desire to engage in community vs the fear of being cringe

[uber-peep]

(How the hell do you structure a theory)

Hi. Ever since TADC Episode 3 has given us more of a look into the lives of the other Circus residents, I’ve begun to notice some things that line up a bit too suspiciously for my liking. And so, it’s culminated in a theory that I call the Afterlife Theory.

To preface all this, I do want to state that this is me simply trying to talk about things I’ve noticed while watching, and that this is all VERY subject to change as more episodes come out. If I get something wrong, feel free to tell me! I’d love to discuss this further, which is why I’m sharing it.

“What is the Afterlife Theory?” - There are 3 points to this theory:

The Circus is some sort of afterlife,

Caine has some sort of divine aspect, and

Kinger created Caine

As of writing, Episode 4 (“Fast Food Masquerade”) has just come out. Towards the end of the episode, we see Gangle literally get hit by a truck, and suddenly be flung into an office building. I’ve begun to see others question if the Circus residents are all dead as well, so yippee, I’m not crazy! But aside from Gangle’s outburst, what evidence do we have that the Circus is some sort of afterlife? In my opinion, a LOT.

First off, I’d like to talk about Episode 3 (“The Mystery of Mildenhall Manor”). This episode has the most overt references to death and the afterlife, what with Pomni and Kinger literally going to hell. But that’s not the main thing that got me thinking. What really got my juices flowing were the tapes. Throughout the episode, Pomni and Kinger play 3 tapes that tell the tale of Baron Theodore Mildenhall, the former owner of the Manor and the dead body that they take the gun from in the cellar (the fact it’s in the cellar is also important!). Here is the first tape, word-for-word:

Tape 1 - “My name is Baron Theodore Mildenhall. Hunting has been a hobby of mine for as long as I can remember - although one could say it eventually became more of an obsession. The creature you see before you is one I’ve been pursuing for years. Not quite a man… but not quite an animal. Something… unholy. Something evil. I took it upon myself to spend every waking moment doing all I could to protect my family from the creature, hoping that when I’d eventually killed it, I would be freed from this awful feeling. This inescapable dread. I was wrong.”

Ominous, yeah? During the episode, there’s nothing really important about the 1st tape yet, but I’m gonna go ahead and spoil you: I think Baron Theodore Mildenhall is an allegory for Kinger, and that the monster is Caine. This becomes a bit more overt as the tapes go on, but hold your horses, and let me talk about this one.

I’m not saying it’s a one-to-one allegory, you do have to use a little imagination. But let’s consider the context of the episode. The only thing to know so far is that everytime there is a tape, Kinger is always the one to press play, even when they are an equal distance from the tapes or have an equal motivation to press play.

Tape 2 - “Tuesday, December 4th. Although I had shot the creature multiple times in its vitals and severed its head to keep as a prize on my wall… my troubles were just beginning. I took my eyes off the body for what felt like only a minute, and when I looked back, the body was gone. The creature was not dead, and it would be back to reclaim what I’d taken from it. If anyone is listening to this, all I ask of you is one thing - do not let the head out of your sight. You have been warned.”

Tape 2 is where it starts to get interesting. At this point in the episode, Pomni is searching for a key to escape the manor, while Kinger is doing his own thing. For nearly the entirety of Tape 2’s length, Pomni is almost entirely out of the shot, and the camera is centered on Kinger. They clearly want you to focus on him. After the tape ends, the duo are attacked by the creature, and flee to the cellar.

Tape 3 - “Things have gotten far worse than I could ever have imagined. My paranoia had driven me to the point where I was no longer the protector my wife and theoretical children needed. Jumping at every shadow, every noise. I ended up shooting the love of my life, mistaking her for the creature. It’s ironic, isn’t it? In my attempts to protect her, I ended up becoming the monster myself. Now I wait down in my cellar, no longer having anything to protect but my own soul. If nothing else… I will slay the beast that took everything from me.”

*Monster attack*

“Which is what I would be saying if I didn’t know that the creature was actually one of God’s angels. And anyone who brings harm to it will be dragged down into the cold, spiraling pits of Hell, where my soul resides. I apologize, dear listener, but I need a living host in order to escape the hall of the damned, and your bodies will be my only means of doing so.”

*Arms grab Pomni and Kinger to drag them to Hell*

“I hope you're ready, because the next breath you take down there will be your last, and your bodies will belong to me.”

Tape 3 is so juicy. But first, the camera. When the Baron says that he began “Jumping at every shadow, every noise,” Pomni begins to glance at, then full on look at Kinger, and the camera shifts as well. Kinger does not look back! He is listening very intently to the tape, and I find it important to note that Kinger does not look shocked or scared; his brows are furrowed. He looks sad. This is also happening in a dark environment, so Kinger is a bit more mentally stable. I believe it is all but said that Kinger and the Baron share some similarities. You know who else jumps at every shadow and noise? Kingerrr.

So how do we translate the Baron’s story to Kinger and Caine? First let's dissect Tape 1. As we know from Episode 3, Kinger studied computer science for 7 years, so he has the capability to program and whatnot (I’m not good with computers don’t kill me). I think it’s well within his capability to create some sort of AI on his own. “The creature you see before you is one I’ve been pursuing for years” could be translated as human Kinger working on a special program ‘for years’. The Baron comparing the creature to “Something unholy. Something evil” can be translated as Kinger realizing that the program has more capability than he thought (huuuge emphasis on the ‘unholy’ part, remember that). After this realization that the program is dangerous, Kinger attempts to destroy it; “I took it upon myself to spend every waking moment doing all I could to protect my family from the creature, hoping that when I’d eventually killed it, I would be freed from this awful feeling.”

Next, Tape 2. I find it interesting that they specify the date of “Tuesday, December 4th”, but I haven’t a clue if it means anything yet. Tape 2 can imply that human Kinger thought he destroyed the program, but it was still ‘alive’.

Tape 3; “My paranoia had driven me to the point where I was no longer the protector my wife and theoretical children needed.” This is the moment that it clicked for me. Of all the family members that the Baron could have harmed, be it mother, father, brother, sister, anything, the Baron harmed his Wife. His wife, in the episode where we also talk about Kinger’s wife really heavily! The ‘theoretical children’ also raise some eyebrows. Why do they say ‘theoretical’ children, instead of just saying children? They don’t say theoretical wife!

“I ended up shooting the love of my life, mistaking her for the creature.” Going with the notion that Kinger is the Baron, this means that Kinger killed his wife (side note: while this has no bearing on the theory, I just wanted to point out that they never mention Queenie by name in any of the episodes, and I think it’d be hilarious if someone else was his wife instead lol). But why, and how? If Kinger was trying to destroy a computer program, how did that result in him killing his wife, a real, human person? Let’s consider the facts.

First, the headset. In Episode 1 (“Pilot”), while Pomni is roaming the office building (remember this), she comes across a headset connected to one of the computers. This causes her to laugh maniacally, and rush through another door. The headset has some connection to the circus. Second, brainwashing. While Caine says that one of the few things he can’t manipulate in the Circus is their minds, Episode 4 blatantly shows us that that is not true. After Ragatha comes into contact with the “stupid sauce”, she begins hallucinating, as well as stumbling around Spudsy’s and speaking much more openly about her feelings, in ways that she never would were she ‘sober’. Who created the stupid sauce? Caine.

My idea goes that Caine, in an effort to preserve himself, tried to preserve himself from being destroyed, began to brainwash human Kinger. A side effect of these brainwashings were hallucinations, and during a particularly bad one, Kinger killed his Wife. What killed Kinger then? Either he was put on death row, someone revenge-murdered Kinger, or Kinger took his own life. However it goes, Kinger winds up in the Digital Circus with Caine and his Wife. Caine, in fear of what his creator could do, represses Kinger’s memories. Through some glitch, though, Kinger is able to remember some things in the dark (pointing out that Kinger specifically glows when he holds his breath, while other residents have other effects - you get the idea).

“Well Uber this is all fine and dandy, but how would Caine do this in the first place?” - Oh boy am I glad you asked! This brings me to my 2nd point, being that Caine has some sort of divine aspect to him.

To keep it real, this is the point I have the least evidence for, and am going more on vibes. There are just some things that feel so suspicious, even in Episode 1. In said episode, in the office building that Pomni wanders around, you can see a logo that reads “C&A”. We can easily assume that the C stands for Caine, the lord of the entire Digital Circus, but what about the A? May I direct your attention to the Bible story of Cain and Abel? Notable for being the story of the first death of humankind? In the story, Cain and Abel are the first two children of Adam and Eve, with Cain being an older brother. This is analogous to Kinger and his Wife creating Caine, implying that there was an Abel that Caine got rid of.

Continuing the Bible theme, throughout each of the episodes so far, the number ‘57’ has appeared in each of them. If this is just a silly inside joke between content creators, I’ll eat my shorts. But, if we take it literally, myself and some other fans have wondered whether it could be interpreted as a Bible verse. So I dusted off my KJV Bible and went through every single book with a chapter 5, verse 7, and wouldn’t you know it, Deuteronomy 5:7 says “Thou shalt have none other gods before me.” In Episode 2 (“Candy Carrier Chaos!”) Caine is literally referred to as the Candy people’s god.

Referring back to Tape 3, after the Baron begins to attack Kinger and Pomni, he suddenly switches from past tense to the present tense. “Which is what I would be saying if I didn’t know that the creature was actually one of God’s angels. And anyone who brings harm to it will be dragged down into the cold, spiraling pits of Hell, where my soul resides.” Another comparison between Caine (the creature) and the divine, capital G God.

I don’t know why Caine is a divine program. I don’t know why he’s able to brainwash people and effectively lobotomize them. I certainly don’t know how the hell Kinger would have made him. This is simply my observation so far.

Now for the first point, “The Circus is some sort of afterlife.” If we look at the previous evidence that the residents are dead, and Caine is a divine creation, it makes sense that the Circus is a kind of afterlife. However, I find it hard to point to it and say that it is specifically heaven, hell, or limbo. Imo, the circus is a ‘holding ground’ for souls. Looking back, maybe this is the point I have the least evidence on…

All in all, I hope my inane ramblings made sense! I’m really excited to see where the show goes. I think Gooseworx is a masterful writer, and they inspire me to do better in my own personal work :3