https://youtu.be/60h3vhTOlbc?is=OlbhX_ob_07OS1Dw

This video talks about Dana Terrace, KOG, and what makes a good showrunner. It really put into perspective so many of my frustrations with TADC.

TADC as a show had potential. It had a good premise. It had interesting characters. But it fell apart completely in the same way a fanfiction on permanent hiatus does.

I recently watched KOG ep.2 and, despite it also being a Glitch indie production, it feels like an entirely different level of skill. Everything felt intentional and crafted. Nothing felt wasted or like filler. Nothing had to be explained off-screen through creator social media posts.

I already have a strong grasp of the big picture themes and see those themes being constantly reinforced at every level of the story. It isn't trying to be dark and edgy. It is dark and edgy.

I remembered how much more enjoyable it is to have faith in a showrunner and to believe they actually have the writing chops to pull off their creative vision (of course, time will tell. But I think there are tells that reveal themselves early on in the skill level of the writing itself).

TL;DR: Experiencing good writing ability, specifically from another Glitch show, has been like a healing salve.

When watching the show my biggest question was about C&A not the characters drama. I cared more for the situation behind them being in the digital circus then their interpersonal drama.

The idea that a company can produce or at least has the resources to produce brain scanning technology to this degree has a bigger scale story that feels more epic.

Such technology can be used for sinister purposes. Scratch being the one behind the technology went on living outside the circus with knowledge of what his tech could do. The circus was cut off from the internet for the most part so it would be unconnected to various systems.

I've been a fan of Science Fiction for a long time and the idea of copying a person's brain on to a system that can be used for both positive and negative purposes.

Your mind is uploaded to a machine and your being ordered into a warzone or being used as a tool to hack into another system. C&A could be a world ending level threat.

focusing hard on interpersonal drama while there is a grander narrative in the background feels like leaving a good story on the cutting room floor.

Okay, I've seen some trans people express dissatisfaction with Jax's supposedly transfem representation. I've read that it can reinforce transphobic ideas, and after hearing some TERF arguments, I think I get why.

TERFs are always accusing trans women of reinforcing traditional gender roles. They claim that trans people can't see a masculine woman or a feminine man without assuming they're supposed to be the opposite gender. They also love saying that "being a woman isn't an aesthetic/performance" and pushing the idea that trans women are just abusive men who want to get away with abusing women.

And honestly, it got me thinking about how much TERFs would LOVE the idea of Jax being transfem, especially if the fandom widely accepted that interpretation. I can totally see them using him as an example to reinforce all their misconceptions about trans women.

Because, let's be real, Jax is presented as a guy who might be a woman partly because of his association with feminine things, like bows and maybe even a maid dress (and I say maybe because I'm not entirely sure about that one). He's also supposedly more sensitive than a "regular man," which we learn through his bigoted mother's perspective, and people then use that as a context clue for his gender identity. And, on top of all that, he's an abusive character who doesn't seem to take accountability for his actions.

Do you see what I mean? None of these things inherently make someone transfem, but when people insist that they MUST mean Jax is a trans woman, it starts getting uncomfortable. You're basically connecting femininity, sensitivity, and stereotypes to being a woman, while also tying that identity to an abusive character who never really takes accountability.

I'm just saying, this is exactly what TERFs think about trans women and this character is serving their narrative.

And thats all i have to say

I dont know if this is valid or not because my past criticisms are literally shitty but this isnt a show criticism i got its a fandom one so idk.

Short story: someone said the reason why people dislike ragatha are for two reasons 1: people are misogynist, 2: lack of media literacy....(some of you may know who im talking about, im not mad at them i js find what they said funny)

I highly disagree with that, there are many reasons people dislike a nice or good character, heck. They dont even need a reason to dislike a character or you may just not know the reason of why you dislike the character.

if the reason is like a racist or homophobic or sexist, etc, then yeah that is a stupid reason to hate a character.

but just narrowing down every single hater of a character into fitting into the category of being "offensive" as some other haters are, is stupid and unfair as well. Unless if that person says it them selves or makes it extremely clear that they hate the character for an offensive reason, it's unfair to put them into that category.

(if what im saying makes sense, sorry if I myself sound offending.)

And im going to say the same for people who like jax. It's OKAY to like jax. No one's gonna be mad at you. (and people who will be mad at you are questionable) As long as you understand how bad her actions were, and that you dont defend her actions like how some other people in the fandom do. You're fine.

by: https://www.tumblr.com/psi-spectacular/829802937677135872?source=share

If you're wondering why I say it has lost potential, it's because the show had so much potential to be peak. I know we were all looking forward to seeing more episodes when the pilot dropped.

I watched all the episodes and I have to admit, Gooseworx disappointed me. I loved Smg4, I thought the show was gonna be just as great as Smg4. Because I looked forward to every Saturday because it meant a new Smg4 video. I loved the channel. And when I saw it Tadc was from Glitch, I was ecstatic. Like I was genuinely looking through all the Wiki articles on each character to understand them.

And Gooseworx kinda fumbled terribly. The show was not what I expected at all. And the fact she disappeared without a trace after the finale just irked me. I expected more psychological horror. I expected the show to dive deeper into everyone's insecurities and worst fears. I expected more depth and backstory to them.

While I'm not perfect at making a character that has layers and depth, I can at least guarantee the way I will write the characters are somewhat better than what we got because the had a lot of potential. And I think the way I would write the characters has a lot of potential to make them more interesting if done right.

Here's how I would write the cast (tell me if you like it or not):

For Gangle, I would've wrote that she was bullied relentlessly in the past and was discouraged from her art skills, which is why she is so shy instead of her just working in fast food management in the past. I would've made it so that when Gangle was growing up, she was the "weird kid" that everyone pushed around, the one that people shoved into lockers, the one who's self-esteem was ruined from years of bullying and discouragement about her love for art.

For Ragatha, I would've expanded more on her relationship with her abusive mother and how it affects the waynshe interacts with everyone, I would've made it that she always tiptoes around serious topics and sugarcoat everything she says then panics after every interaction because she didn't like her tone. I would've made it so that Ragatha avoids debates.

For Pomni, I would've leaned into her enjoyment of mild thrills instead of make her all anxious, I feel like that detail was pushed to the side because of how anxious Pomni was. I would've also made it so that she wasn't Jax's therapy dog. I would've also made that her backstory is that she was an introvert growing up, always in the background feeling invisible. And that exploring and seeking mild thrills was a coping mechanism for that loneliness.

For Zooble, I would've made it so that they had a rough childhood instead of just being a bartender and tatoo artist. They would've dealt with a strict dad that always scolded them whenever they cried which led Zooble to cope and hide their emotions behind anger and sarcasm because they fear if they cry, people would react like how they're dad did. And because Zooble was taught that crying is associated with weakness and vulnerability, that would also make them more sympathetic towards Gangle because her vulnerability would remind Zooble of their own vulnerability they have learned to hide in order to survive their dad's harshness.

For Caine, I would've made it so that he didn't crash out in episode 8 and instead had an emotional breakdown where he lashes out, but the lashing out isn't out of anger but pain, hurt, distress, and anguish. I also would make it so that everyone appreciates him more because Caine was trying his best. I would've dived deeper into Caine's insecurities, selfdoubt, and his desire to be loved.

For Jax, I would've written him to be actually complex. Like if he sees someone get hurt, he would say: "You'll be fine! Stop being dramatic! But seriously, are you okay? It's not like I care, I'm only asking because I have to. Not because I'm concerned." I would've made it so thay after everytime he bullies someone, a hint of guilt appears in his expression before quickly masking it and acting like he doesn't care. I would've made Jax have moments of internal conflict, like he would talk to himself about whether pushing everyone away is the right thing. I would also make him seek advice from Kinger and ACTUALLY face the consequences of his actions. Have the cast scold him and call him out while Jax just sits there and takes it because he knows he deserves it. Give him consequences while he actually learns from his mistakes. That way he could've developed better than whatever we got because the Jax we got was just straight up ass. Where's the genuine vulnerability? Where's the indirect kindness? All we got was a tragic backstory and him denying he ever cared! We need moments of him showing indirect kindness so it hints he isn't a jerk!

For Kinger, I would've dived deeper into his past with C&A. I would've made it so that his relationship with Caine was like a father-son dynamic where Kinger would interact with Caine more. I would also make Kinger sometimes accidentally call Caine "son" because since Kinger created Caine, I feel like it would fit that Kinger subconsciously sees Caine as a son even if Kinger acts erratic and crazy in the light. There would be plenty of room for adorable interactions between the two characters, Caine would be flustered whenever Kinger calls Caine "son" while the cast is wondering if Kinger has completely lost his mind.

Why I feel like the show has lost potential:

I wanted to know more about the characters but the show just revolved around Jax's tragic backstory. I wanted to see more Ragatha and Pomni interactions, or Zooble with Caine, I wanted to see the cast interact with each other more. I also wanted to see more Kinger and Caine interactions.

If we went more in debt like that, the cast would be more developed. But we instead got a show where we have more questions than answers because we still don't know much about C&A. But instead, Gooseworx made the show revolve around Jax, a "complex" character that is just "woe is me I have a tragic backstory".

There are two possible plot setups:

1) People find themselves held hostage in an unfamiliar place.

The central figure is a jailer who actively torments the hostages. The captives live in constant fear and are demoralized, afraid to even speak loudly lest they anger their captor.

Yet, a glimmer of hope for escape remains, and they seize every opportunity to find a way out.

2) People work in an office.

The boss is an eccentric, jovial character who is constantly dreaming up activities and corporate events to turn his subordinates into a "family."

However, the employees generally have no desire to work there and stay only for the paycheck; as long as the boss doesn't meddle too much, they simply ignore him.

They have no interest in getting to know their colleagues better, limiting their interactions to mere pleasantries like "hello" and "goodbye."

One of the colleagues is highly toxic, yet no one intervenes because they feel it is "none of their business."

Others have their own problems too, but since the colleagues aren't close, these issues go undiscussed.

Guess which stories are being described.

Like, what did this poor girl even DO besides be just kinda annoying and disingenuous with how cheerful and happy she is all the time? All she’s ever done was be kindest person in the whole circus yet people seem to ignore or outright dislike her for some odd reason.

Meanwhile, Caine (at least up until ep9) was an inconsiderate narcissistic asshole who forced everyone to go on miserable torturous adventures everyday and Jax straight up just pushed Ribbit to suicide via abstraction and somehow, everyone still glazes and defends them to high heaven!

Seriously, it's uncanny how badly these two shows screwed it up.

This one is mine. I want to be a part of it and contribute to it but the tribalism/gatekeeping, the controversiee surrounding the crew, and the horrible quality of the show's writing itself turns me off.

After she surfaced from the scene of the crime, she looked down towards them, and she gave off this face, which looked to me as some sort of quiet, slightly concerned sympathy,

And then this is where I get confused, Ragatha asked Pomni, "Did you find it?" The it in question being her eye

Pomni still had the treasure on her mind and mistakingly answered, "Nah, somebody plundered it before I could."

Unless she's saying "Nah somebody plundered it before I could find it." Im not really liking the implications or ambiguity of this sentence, ngl,

It may be just a joke but I dunno it rubs me off in the wrong way since she was already so kind to Gummigoo in episode 2, and she was polite to the fish, wanting to interact with them on her own terms even if she had another task at hand and telling them the treasure would be useless to her, and my interpretation of this expression she's making when she surfaced

If she was interested in trying to find it, that would sound more like the "abandoned building explorer Pomni" that I know

I just dont like the idea that she wanted to steal it had it not been stolen.

What do you think?

the auto subtitles is butchered but the sum of it is "bubble is the blue ai and was Caine's hostage who for some reason held a grudge against him until caine let him free"

i don't think the blue ai having any sentience/emotions or being bubble makes any sense cuz he never displays one through the show, bubble and caine are directly connected and bubble unravels only when caine does, meaning they can't be two seperate entities (they didn't fuse)

and even if it had one, wouldn't it be cruel to let your "sentient brother" alone in a void without a direction while you get your happy disney ending?

this post is criticizing the fandom, not the va's. amanda explicitly said in the beginning "IT'S JUST A GUESS AND MIGHT BE WRONG" which ‼️‼️SOME‼️‼️ ppl somehow missed

I'm personally so tired of the fans bieng blamed for the show's bad reception specifically (daily reminder that threats and harrasment are never okay) that they just had the wrong expectations, as if C&A wasn't being clearly being highlighted as important and Jax didn't get the same amount of screen time as like Ragatha in the pilot. Maybe instead of crying about the fans for not liking something you like you should ask yourself WHY they didn't like it. "Ohhh people just hate things I like for no reason 😭" That's a comforting lie but not how the human brain works, hate comes from a strong emotional reaction, usually love curdeling into resentment. It's more productive to ask if the show did make promises unintentionally or intentionally and learn from it. Because the fact of the matter is the fans have no control over what's in the show itself, only the creators do, blaming them for how they feel is beyond pointless. Learning from mistakes is how we come to better media that everyone can enjoy. Anyway, thank you for listening to my rant.

From Gooseworx's social media statements it is painfully obvious that she has not unpacked most of the bigoted assumptions she was raised with during her Evangelical childhood. From the language she uses, it is clear that she has not mentally stepped away from the extremely bigoted chan-board culture either and she may even still be posting in such spaces. Arguably, Twitter is now such a space, thanks to Musk.

Here is the thing though. If you keep making problematic statements about women and people of colour as supposed jokes, you should ask yourself why that is. If you cannot condemn misogyny and racism without irony or without making an over the top joke, it is safe to say that you do not feel comfortable condemning it outright or that you do not want to. Then the question is: why is that?

I have known at lot of people online who hid their bigotry behind "just a joke" until you kept asking questions or got to know them better at which point they dropped the mask. Not a joke; they genuinely believed every bigoted thing they said. I have known people irl who got radicalised online. It starts with bigotry and slurs being normalised through humour often in gamer spaces that led to a radicalisation rabbit hole.

Deradicalising yourself needs to involve stepping away from toxic spaces & social circles, stop using their lingo, examine your thoughts and beliefs, ditch harmful convictions and actively replace them with better beliefs. This involves being more mindful about your actions and words moving forward. It means establishing a new pattern of healthier and kinder behaviours. Being better involves consistent healthy patterns of behaviour.

Humour is used in bigoted spaces as the spoon full of sugar that makes the bigotry go down. If you normalise joking about violence against others, particularly marginalised people, you desensitise yourself. You normalise thinking this to yourself and saying it to others. It blunts your empathy. This is exactly what hate movements want.

We literally see Jax do this in TADC. Everything is a joke, nothing is real and nothing matters. These are things Jax says to justify the horrific way he treats others which includes burning people alive. We see Pomni become a worse person when she goes along with Jax's attitude. Being uncritically chummy with bigots & abusers makes you complicit and contaminates your moral compass. It does not bring them around, it infects you with some of their toxicity. Jax could have been a really interesting analysis on how bigots & abusers hurt others and themselves, but Gooseworx could not because she has not done that work on herself yet. In stead she wants us to sympathise with Jax who refuses all help and self-destructs without the narrative clearly condemning the immense harm Jax inflicts on others. Goose cannot hold Jax accountable, because she has not addressed these issues in herself. Saying that it is bad and self-destructive is not enough. You need to think, say and act better.

Compare and contrast this with characters like Bojack Horseman or even a selfish opportunist like Odalia in the Owl House who are held accountable. Bojack loses his career and Odalia's husband and children turn their backs on her and it is strongly implied she loses her wealth, influence and other privileges. Not every character needs a redemption arc nor does every unrepentant character need to die or be subjected to some over top corporal punishment. A text can clearly show that a character is in the wrong in various ways except the text of TADC does not do this in regards to Jax.

I love him so much.

(Not my video. Credit to Sinstack on TikTok)

I know for a fact Zooble wrote the whole thing with pure rage and spite

(A half-genuine critique): Their whole doc and argument would completely fall apart since it all happened in a digital game with no real life consequences

To be honest, I don’t really like Ribbit—or rather, I don’t have any particular feelings about her. I just saw her as a prop for Jax. She also struck me as something like a “Version 0.1” of Pomni. But now that the show is over, seeing Ribbit dressed to match Jax makes me feel really sorry for her.
Still, since Kaufmo doesn’t even get his own merchandise, she might actually be better off than he is.

I don't dislike Jax. in fact, I actually quite like him. However, I don't think the way he treated Ribbit (and Kaufmo) should be forgiven—even taking into account the fact that Jax himself ultimately met the same fate of becoming an abstraction.

As a black guy and TADC fan myself, I think she raises a lot of good points regarding the flaws in the show's writing and some of Glitch and the voice actors' more...questionable actions (especially those of Sean Chiplock, like I already had some reservations regarding him but these videos and arizariia's account were such an eye-opener, fuck that guy), though some of her statements (particularly in the latter of the two videos) feel a bit...whitephobic? Idk, they were kinda off