#ragatha can be seen for 1 second

[nanavuu]

“ you cry! … you cry. “

thank you guys for 100 followers!! spent the day cooking this up as a gift, hope you guys like it :,)

i like to imagine that queenie and jax got along because they both shared a lot of the same views on things. ngl i just feel like jax and his mentally ill ass needs a female parental figure who he can actually get along with lolll

context for animatic ; earlier in the day, jax saw his first abstraction. that night he struggles to sleep and queenie comforts him :,)

you can find this animatic on youtube as well! : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjJHyBg02UY

[wkngsnds]

HC: Ragatha and Jax know each other the best out of all the members, but not in a “sweet and good for each other” way like Zooble and Gangle and not a “mutual respect and understanding” like Pomni and Kinger.

Instead, it’s a “we’ve known each other long enough so we made some kind of subconscious bond and have a weird attachment to one another” as well as “I’d rather die than be truly vulnerable, especially in front of you, but you’re also the only I can probably even remotely trust to slip something by”

We’ve seen two instances of Ragatha letting on to this, the first at the end of ep 2, “maybe they’ll be blood, death, and violence in the next one”. The second, “why do you always gotta do this?…can’t you find ways to relieve yourself that doesn’t involve torturing people” (improv notwithstanding). Ragatha probably sees beyond his apathetic and psychopathic behavior, and it’s an uphill battle trying to reach for that person (but she tries anyway). It could also imply they’ve had some discussion before about his frustration issues, that or Ragatha is just as perceptive as him when she’s not in her own head.

Now Jax is a little funny, because his bullying and “torturing” is not random— in fact, it’s very pointed.

Gangle is emotionally unbalanced and thus an easy target for him.

Pomni is new and he wants to see how far he can push her buttons.

He doesn’t really bother Kinger too much—possibly the only person he openly “respects” in his way.

He likes to get under Zooble skin in a sibling kind of way.

With Ragatha? He’s particularly nasty with her— actively mocking her, using her fears against her, and leaving her to die and threatening to kill her as a joke. There’s no real invasion of space with her unlike Gangle, Pomni, and Zooble. The only time it occurs is when he’s using her to rebel against Gangle. It’s psychological warfare with no winners.

That being said, he’s been the only one so far to have her back albeit in his own way. In EP 1, he humors her by opening Kaufmo’s door even if it was to set up his own joke. In EP 4, he gives her an out/excuse for her behavior. Now, Zooble did say “she huffed paint or something”, but the difference, to me, reads as “something’s wrong because you’re insulting me/being cranky” vs “something’s wrong because you’re being emotionally open with me”. I think it says a lot that Jax was the only one she was calm with and opened up to. By telling her “you’re drunk or something” it gives her the chance to put that vulnerability away. And she does so throughout the rest of the episode. It’s like “oh yeah, I AM drunk! Time to be super silly!”

Given that Jax is mentally exhausted in EP 4, we see more baseline reactions. While he still rejects her emotional reach, he doesn’t outright mock her— he’s almost kind about it regardless of his tone. It’s like he dreads opening up to her, but can’t find it in himself to completely lock her out. It feels like he has a hard time keeping her at a specific distance where she’s far enough not to formally bond with but close enough to keep her attention.

[snowthedemonfox]

Okay so we're at it again with me posting another theory, this one I haven't seen anyone else point out yet so I might as well post about it. This might be a bit long, so prepare to do some reading

TL;DR: CAINE'S OFFICE IN EP 4 IS CONNECTED TO THE OFFICE AREA WE SEE IN THE PILOT

I'll explain under the cut because THIS WILL TAKE A BIT:

ONE: Even if Caine was playing the part of upper management this episode, I don't think he made this office area just for the sake of the adventure.

There's heaps of books in the background, ranging from info about Gloinks, a Murder Drones parody, a reference to the Pilot, and a book that's called "MatPat Theory". You can see a small version of the Tent next to his monitor, along with various drawings on his desk and on the pinboard in the background.

I think this is Caine's ACTUAL office, where he goes to work on any upcoming adventures he's making for the cast. I've said in a previous post that after this episode I believe all future (or at least most) adventures will be based on suggestions from the suggestions box. (To make a long story short, Ragatha seems to like baseball, and the season 1 trailer showed us a WIP version of a baseball stadium. Would not surprise me if she's the one who suggested that.)

Yes, we see Caine throw away the box after deciding on the Spudsy's adventure, but Caine logic is Caine logic and it wouldn't surprise me if he just /tp'd that box to this out of bounds office area for him to look through later. His main priority is making sure that EVERYONE likes his adventures, and it makes sense that he would take advantage of the suggestions box (after being reminded it exists), especially after his therapy session with Zooble in episode 3.

He's in his office because he's decided to scrap his current list of adventures and instead make adventures based on what the humans seem to want. It'd also make sense that this is the one adventure where he actually decides to use his 'all seeing eyes' to watch the cast throughout the day. He's seeing if they do better on a suggested adventure compared to an adventure HE came up with. That's why he's got all the photos of them throughout the day, and is keeping track of their scores on his computer (An AI having his own computer? A computer within a computer?). And based on the scores he gave them, he doesn't seem to notice that nobody really had the best time on a 'realistic' adventure.

It's hard to make out since the screen is blurry, but I'm pretty sure the spreadsheet has the character's names on it (Kinger, Zooble, Jax, Ragatha, & Pomni) along with their scores in the second column. Hard to read what the last one says though. Maybe it's just for additional notes? Gangle most likely isn't listed yet because Caine's talking to her in this scene. He'll write down her score once she leaves.

(Side note, but Caine probably repurposed his horror adventure for Kinger to have fun with while everyone else was at Spudsy's, which would be why his A+ score doesn't count towards the whole 'checking if the humans prefer suggestted ideas more' thing. Kinger didn't do the horror adventure Caine had planned.)

TWO: If every map has a 'backrooms-like' out of bounds area, wouldn't it make sense for this office area to be the out of bounds area for the Tent?

If you compare the office area to episode 2's out of bounds area, they look pretty similar, like a giant maze. We saw that episode 2's out of bounds area still had little areas of importance, like storing the character models, so why wouldn't the office area also have these small rooms? We have the notable computer we see at the end of the pilot, and now Caine's office.

If this area is still connected to the Tent, then it'd make sense for Gangle to know how to leave. Caine probably has a door he spawned in for them to leave through, similar to the Exit door from the Pilot. If I had to guess, it's probably connected to either one of the various doors on the side of the Tent (where we see Pomni checking looking for him in the Pilot), or to one of the bigger hallway doors we see on every floor (which I talk a bit more about in this theory).

Speaking of that Exit door, though- We know Caine never actually finished making that exit. If he had no idea what to put on the other side, wouldn't he just put a placeholder there instead? Like, I don't know, maybe lead it to the out of bounds area directly connected to the Tent? Where his office is? So he can still keep an eye on it?

It's probably why his wackywatch never picked up on the fact Pomni was there until she ended up in the Void. If Gangle can walk freely through the office area to get back to the Tent, then Caine probably has no reason to be alerted if someone's there.

It's not like they're not supposed to be there EVER, and if they got lost, he could find them anyway! (Referring to Kinger's line in ep 2 when talking to Ragatha about Pomni being lost) Someone just tells him that there's a person missing, he tracks them down, and brings them out of the office area.

THREE: If you compare the two locations, a lot of things seem to match.

The lights on the ceiling look near identical, the only difference being that the Pilot's version has some kind of filter... air conditioner thing? I don't know what those are called but if this is a general employee area, it'd make sense to have that there.

There's the same cabinets and even the exact same plant model. The office area in the Pilot already had a lot of re-used models, so if Caine's office is directly connected to it, it'd make sense if it also had these re-used models.

The only thing that doesn't match exactly are the computers.

The monitor Caine uses has little buttons on the bottom of it, while the Pilot computer doesn't. But you could argue that's because the computer seen in the pilot is much older. So if it's been there for a while (Since I can only assume this entire office area is based on the office the actual computer hosting the game's server is in), then you could argue that whatever office this was, just, never upgraded this computer specifically. All the other computers look much newer and more clean, but it's hard to tell if they also have those buttons on the monitors.

If it weren't for the fact we see the C&A logo in Spudsy's as well I'd argue that's also a thing the Pilot and episode 4 have in common, but since we DO see the logo in Spudsy's, I can't really make that argument.

But it's still worth pointing out that Caine uses a computer with the C&A branding on it, and the Pilot's office area has a giant C&A logo on one of the walls. Again, not the strongest piece of evidence here, but I think it's still a good idea to mention it.

Still have no idea on why Caine started glitching out at the end of the episode, though. Hope he's okay.

[meowshroom1230]

Y’all ever wonder why it’s called the amazing digital circus when no one in the amazing digital circus is from a circus? Well so did I… at 1 am so i’m going to do my best to make sense of my late night ramblings:

Caine- Getting the obvious out of the way he’s the ringleader. Not much more to explain here, keeps the group together, etc.

Kinger- He would be the beast master. I made a point about gloinks in my ramblings but everyone interacted with them in the pilot. My real explanation is just the entirety of episode 3. He was the only one who could calm his wife, he knew how to handle the creature that attacked him and Pomni, and he keep Pomni safe when they were walking through an area infested with demon like creatures. “tHoSe ArEn’T rEaL aNiMaLs!” HIS CONNECTION WITH BUGS THEN. He has an undeniable attachment to bugs and while he might not be taming them I’m sure he could if he wanted to

Gangle- She’s the tightrope walker. She is constantly teetering between being too much and not enough often putting herself at risk often. Depending how you saw the truck scene (either a as a rep for su!c!dal thoughts or just a funny truck-kun reference, goose said those scene was up for interpretation), she could also be teetering the line between life and abstraction. Gangle is in some kind of danger and it is up to her to save herself, until she makes it to the other side.

Ragatha- Now this one you gotta hear me out on, but she is the bearded woman. LISTEN, some interpretations of a beard that aren’t just facial hair are linked to covering up something. A beard in the US can be someone who completes a transaction to cover someone else’s identity. A beard can also be a person who pretends to be in a romantic relationship with a person who they are not attracted to to cover for their sexuality. Using these terms of ‘beard’ as an example I concluded that Ragatha’s ‘beard’ is a cover up for her true feelings. Something’s off about her, and we got glimpses of that in episode 4. She’s not as happy and friendly as she’s made out to be. Now I don’t think it’s something dramatic like she’s evil or a villain, but she’s hiding something and she’s ashamed of it. Bearded women in history were often very ashamed of their beards and some thought the circus was their only way of having some value. Maybe Ragatha finds value in making people happy? Maybe that’s what her ai was programmed to do… but that’s a theory for another time :)

Pomni- Ok after a long one I felt another easy one was in place. Pomni is the clown. Jesters and clowns are often grouped together… but it’s also in how she’s treated. She’s often the butt of physical comedy jokes, she often finds herself in pain because of the circumstances surrounding her. I don’t think she’s trying to be funny but because of the situation she’s in she’s forced to be the clown of the circus. She also keeps everyone ‘entertained’. She’s prevented at least one, if not 2 people from abstracting. I believe that her presence does more than she realizes. Also when first joining the circus i guess who she replaced…

Jax- Now here’s where my ideas are mostly based on vibes and headcanons, so i understand if these are taking more with a grain of salt. Jax is the contortionist. A contortionist isn’t someone you’d think would be in a circus at first glance, i mean they’re just a regular person right? Nothing special about them- JESUS CHRIST WHY ARE YOU BENT LIKE THAT. Now Jax isn’t bending his body into weird shapes… but i think his emotions are. There’s something beneath Jax’s surface of annoying attitude. We see hints of emotion break in only spans of seconds. I can count on one hand the number of seconds we’ve seen a genuine emotion from Jax. I think he’s forcing himself to bend to what others think he should be. People think he’s an asshole? Well then he has to be that way 24/7 or else… something. That’s the only part I haven’t figured out yet. Is he scared of rejection? of vulnerability? caring about someone? That’s the only thing I can’t figure out about him. So just in case I’m wrong about this Im giving him a secondary option… the acrobat. He’s still preforming but he isn’t hiding some tbh in him this version. He’s doing this for himself because either way he gets the attention that he wants. The acrobat is more focused on gaining and keeping attention then hiding anything about himself.

Zooble- Another loose one… I’m pretty sure we’ve had no more than 20 lines from them an episode. Zooble is the oracle. They seem to know so much about the circus despite not going on many adventures. They stay in one place more often than not. They tell you the truth whether or not you like it. They’ve been around for a while and will probably be there for a long time. I don’t know how Zooble knows what they know but they’re quite sure about it. They also stay strong to the ideas that they’ve figured out and refuse to change their mind. Caine is an excellent example, they seem assume things about Caine that most of the members wouldn’t even think of, yet Zooble is very certain in themselves. But because this one is also loose I’m also giving them a secondary, as the contortionist. If it isn’t Jax then it’s definitely Zooble… but for different reasons. Zooble clearly has issues with how they look and often want to change themselves, contorting in every way possible to just find something that’s comfortable. Contortionists suffer pain later in life due to their abilities, forcing them to keep moving their bodies in odd positions just to be comfortable. Zooble could be the same way but in a much more literal sense, forcing to have to try more parts just to find something that works for them.

Here’s the ramblings of anyone else wants to make sense of them lol

[oh-so-adhdish]

Jax Hidden Personality / Hidden Emotions Analysis: TADC Analysis by Midnight Moon ( @oh-so-adhdish )

So in terms of personality masking / emotion masking in TADC, we already know that Gangle, Ragatha, and Jax all do it quite frequently in their daily lives. Of these three characters, Gangle is by far the easiest to reveal her true self hiding under her mask; in fact it doesn’t take very much for this to happen. While Gangle actually wears a real mask in her character design, it breaks easily & she has little to no ability to mask her true self once this mask breaks. While Ragatha & Jax don’t wear a mask, their metaphorical masks are much more difficult to break. However, we did see Ragatha’s mask break in episode 4 because she got very drunk. As for Jax, we haven’t really seen his own mask break for really more than a minute before he starts masking again, which makes his backstory / personality much more mysterious. So here are all the times we’ve seen Jax’s mask break for extremely brief moments, in the order they occurred during the series so far:

1. End of Episode 2: When Kaufmo’s funeral is announced, Jax has a sad expression that lasts for a fraction of a second before he suddenly seems kinda angry & walks away. Jax is the only one of the main six who does not attend Kaufmo’s funeral.

2. Beginning of Episode 4: When Caine reads a mean note about Jax that Zooble wrote, Jax pretends to not be offended by it & smiles. For a fraction of a second, his smile falls a slight bit; when this happens, the smile looks faker.

Now obviously the first two things were so quick that I did not notice till I saw other people mentioning it / posting screenshots of it. Though these screenshots have become quite popular in the fandom so many people who missed it while watching the actual episodes are still aware that it happened. The next two are much more noticeable ones.

3. Middle of Episode 4: When Gangle starts punishing / torturing Jax during the employee re-evaluation scene (which not gonna lie, Jax 100% deserved for both the way he bullies Gangle & for tossing Ragatha into the fryer), Jax asks Gangle “no one can see this right?” Jax is more concerned about other people seeing him anxious / afraid than he is about Gangle hurting or possibly even killing him (Jax does not deserve to die & Gangle would never ever kill anyone anyways).

4. End of episode 4: Jax goes into his car and is finally alone. We see him smile as he leaves the building, but the moment he sits down in his car, he gets an extremely tired expression & his ears droop. From my memory (I’m not 100% sure) this is the ONLY time his ears have ever drooped.

5. Episode 4 is the most recent episode of TADC at the time I typed this so unfortunately you aren’t gonna get the examples you’re reading this for if you’re reading this after watching episode 5 and / or episode 6. I can’t control the fact that I impulsively decided to write a thesis-length essay analyzing a mentally ill purple cartoon bunny tonight & it’s not my fault that you’re reading my weird shit after watching episode 6.

So now my question is WHY does he hide these emotions / aspects of his personality?

1. Everyone else went to Kaufmo’s funeral. Why does Jax want to be seen as the only person who is disrespectful of Kaufmo’s funeral & why does he not want to be seen as being sad about his abstraction?

2. Why does he not want anyone to know that Zooble’s mean comment about him hurt his feelings? Maybe Zooble would be less likely to say shit that hurts his feelings if he communicates how offended he felt by it?

3. Everyone would feel anxious / afraid if they were in his position during the employee re-evaluation scene. Why is his reaction to it anything he wouldn’t want anyone else to see?

A headcanon I have regarding all of this is that Jax is tough on the outside but hypersensitive on the inside. I may be wrong though; don’t be leaving a ton of comments on this saying I’m wrong if you’re reading this after watching episode 6.

One more thing is that I really hope we get to see Jax wearing a black outfit again in a future episode cause in my opinion the Spudsy’s uniform looks a lot better on him than the pink overalls. I mean damn the animators really fucking outdid themselves with the way they animated Jax & Zooble in episode 4.

You reached the end!!! Congratulations on being fucking crazy I guess; I honesty appreciate it very deeply ♥️♥️♥️

[gravitycavity]

Sunshine (Pomni x Ragatha) Chapter 1 - Put On a Happy Face

[Click here to read from the beginning on AO3!]

Cover art by @blukiar

“You’re supposed to $%#&ing smile, Pomni!” Zooble's hoarse scream reverberated throughout the big top. “Are you stupid?! We can’t finish the new intro if you aren’t @#$%ing smiling!”

“Leave. Me. Alone!” Pomni, denied the catharsis of slinging her sailor’s mouth, expressed her disdain with her middle fingers instead. She only ended up seething harder, however, when a pair of other-dimensional censor bars appeared to obscure the rude gestures.

“Oh! So that’s how you want to play it, Puffball?” Zooble narrowed her eyes, limping toward the jester with as much aggression as their awkwardly-constructed body would allow — which, for the record, wasn’t very much.

Ragatha had seen enough. “Relax!” She raised her voice, swooping vigilantly between the bickering belligerents. “Both of you!”

Gangle, moping off to the side, sniveled pitifully. In all the commotion, her comedy mask had been shattered. For the second time. This morning. “Guys…! Please, just stop fighting…”

Jax crossed his legs, reclining smartly against Kinger’s impenetrable pillow fort. “Can it, crybaby. This is the best entertainment we’ve had in years!” He flicked a piece of popcorn into the air and caught it in his mouth. Meanwhile, a vibrating Kinger poked his eyes out from between two pillows, saying nothing and everything at the same time.

Ragatha’s good-natured attempts to keep the peace were all for naught. She flinched out of the way of Zooble’s punch — but before the strike could connect, a floating boxing bell materialized out of nowhere, piercing the air with a shrill shriek.

“Now, now! There’s no need for that!” Caine’s wagging finger appeared beside the bell, followed shortly after by the rest of the entity. He lifted his tophat, and a cheesing Bubble gingerly drifted out.

“Naughty, naughty~” Bubble chomped his teeth.

Caine snapped his fingers, and an unseen force pushed Pomni and Zooble apart. “The Amazing Digital Circus — copyright 1996 C&A Incorporated, all rights reserved — is a magical, marvelous CD-Romp for all ages! Zany shenanigans and cartoon mischief I can abide, but outright violence? Strictly out of the question!”

With a grunt, Zooble spiked their arm against the floor. “What are we supposed to do, then!? We’re on take fifty-seven of your dumb@%$ theme song because poor little Pomni thinks she’s the main character of the universe!”

Pomni responded to that, but whatever she said, it was profane enough to be scrubbed out entirely.

“Yes, well…” Caine crossed his arms, steeped in careful thought. The last hour-and-a-half of unusable footage played back through his mismatched eyeballs in a matter of seconds. “It’s nothing we can’t fix in post.”

Zooble swiped their discarded arm off the ground and crammed it back into its empty socket. “Great. Then you can edit me in, too.” They stormed off, reciprocating Pomni’s earlier gesture. “Eat $@#%, sad sack.”

Jax sighed. “Aw, shucks. Right when things were getting good…”

“Uh…!” Caine skipped a beat. He swiveled toward the five circus members still gathered beneath the big top. “Well, then!” he elbowed his soap bubble companion, “Looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us, Bubble! As for the rest of you, consider yourselves off the hook for the rest of the day — my treat! Take some personal time, get some sleep, and try your darndest not to dwell on the soul-crushing scale of eternity!”

“I have no soul!” Bubble turned upside-down. “So I don’t mind it one bit!”

“You and me both, old pal!” Caine’s laugh sounded forced and unnatural.

There was a pause. Gangle glanced around, then meekly raised her ribbony hand. “But what about—”

“Go on, now! I won’t take no for an answer!” the ringmaster stabbed the air with his cane, “I want you all in tip-top condition for tomorrow’s wacky adventure!”

🎪 🎪 🎪

It wasn’t long before everyone had gone their separate ways. Jax had slinked off to the digital carnival to terrorize the NPCs, Gangle had left a trail of teardrops all the way to the digital lake, and Kinger, as per usual, had just disappeared without anyone really noticing.

At last, Pomni was alone again. She curled her tear-stained face inward and filled her chest with three shaky breaths. She couldn’t hold it in anymore. Hands tightened into trembling fists, she threw her head toward the sky and let loose a long, ear-shattering shriek.

Why was this happening to her? What did she ever do to deserve this!? She was a person — a human being, for God’s sake — not some stupid, one-dimensional children’s character. How dare anyone expect her to just grin and bear it? She didn’t owe anything to anyone — not even one second of feigned emotion. As far as she was concerned, the moment she forced that goofy smile onto her face would be the moment she surrendered, and she would never, ever, in a million years—

“I’m always here if you need to talk. You haven’t forgotten, have you?”

Pomni flinched, wrenching away from the sudden voice. After the emotional hell she’d gone through during her first day, unexpected noises didn’t exactly put her at ease — nor did anything else in this deranged digital purgatory, for that matter.

“Ah! Sorry!” Ragatha covered her mouth. “I didn’t spook you too bad, did I?”

“You did, actually! Wh-What’s wrong with you?” Pomni gathered herself quickly. She didn’t dare to even look in the direction of the person who had just watched her childish tantrum. The moment she found her footing again, she stormed off like her very life depended on it. “Don’t just sneak up on people like that!”

Silently relenting, Ragatha stepped aside to let Pomni pass. She watched the pouting jester jingle and jangle with every step, stomping with boundless confidence in the completely wrong direction.

“Uh…” Ragatha tilted her head. “Pomni? Do you remember the way to your room?”

“Ugh! What do you care?” Pomni doubled her pace. “Mind your own business!”

Ragatha smirked. “Alright, I guess I’ll just head back to my room, then. Which, for the record…” She pointed behind herself, “…is that way.”

Pomni stared vacantly as Ragatha sauntered off. The doll had read her like a book. Locking herself in her room for days on end meant she still had no clue how to get around the tent — if she wanted to get back to her regularly-scheduled self-pity anytime soon, she would have to swallow whatever was left of her pride.

Pomni grumbled under her breath, fast-walking to catch up. “Hey! W-Wait!”

🎪 🎪 🎪

There was no ambient noise to dampen the tension; the dormitory hall’s plush carpet absorbed the sound of Pomni and Ragatha’s footsteps. Ragatha led, hands tucked politely below her waist, while Pomni trailed behind.

The complete, unbroken silence wasn’t exactly the most comfortable thing in the world, but it was preferable to whatever inane smalltalk would have filled it. That’s how Pomni saw things, at least.

In the time it had taken to walk here, she had managed to cool off a bit — and the unwavering quiet gave her plenty of mental space to reflect on the last few minutes.

She wasn’t sorry. Pomni didn’t care if Zooble hated her — she could hate them right back. Breaking bread with Jax was pointless; that creep preferred to provoke. Gangle was friendly, but to interact with her was to walk on eggshells, and Pomni lacked the patience. And Kinger? Was Kinger.

Arms crossed, Pomni looked up from her big, dumb clown shoes. Her gaze settled on the doll in front of her. Pomni despised everything about this place — but now that she was going through her laundry list of grievances, she had to admit: she had nothing on the redhead.

…What was her name? Ragatha…? She was by far the most mature of the circus’s captives. She was kind. Predictable. An island of calm in a stormy sea.

Pomni’s harsh features softened. Ragatha was the only character who had shown her the slightest shred of compassion since she’d arrived here. The realization weighed down her stomach with more than a few pangs of guilt. Ragatha, of all people, certainly wasn’t a deserving outlet for her angst.

Oh, no — nice going, you idiot. Ragatha was the one thing about this place keeping you anywhere close to sanity, and you’ve already repelled her by acting like a petulant child. She probably hates you now. You know that, right? Actually, it’s not ‘probably’. It’s ‘definitely’. That’s why she isn’t talking. That’s why this is so awkward. That’s why —

“So…what’s under your cap?”

Pomni stumbled. Had the wall not been there to grab onto, she absolutely would have fallen flat on her face.

Stabilizing herself, Pomni gawked up at Ragatha as if the doll had just beamed down from another planet. What’s under her cap? Did she hear that right? It was such an odd, out-of-the-blue question — but at least it had yanked her out of her head.

“I’m sorry?”

Ragatha bent down to Pomni’s eye level. “Your cap.” She said gently, resisting the urge to prod one of the little bells dangling from either end. “It comes off, doesn’t it?”

Pomni blinked. She hadn’t really given it any thought. In fact, until Ragatha had brought it up, she had forgotten that her ridiculous new form came with a hat at all. Doing nothing but hiding under the covers and sobbing for days on end had that effect.

With much bigger problems weighing on her mind, Pomni didn’t really care to check — but something about Ragatha’s expectant gaze possessed her anyway. Very carefully, she hooked her fingers beneath the golden rim. She felt a small amount of resistance as she pushed up, almost as if the headpiece were attached to her body through some kind of magnetic force.

With a just a little effort, though, it popped right off.

“…Huh.” Pomni held the striped cap in her hands. “Look at that.”

“Oh, goodness!” Ragatha tried and failed to suppress a squeal. She paid no mind to her question’s answer, too distracted by the worst hat hair anyone had ever seen. It was certainly a look; a chaotic mess of tangles, knots, and flyaways did as it pleased atop the jester’s capless crown.

“Hey! What gives?!” Pomni ducked her cap back onto her head. A few extra clumps of hair stuck out from underneath. “Why are you laughing?”

“I’m so sorry! Your hair is just…” Ragatha giggled. “Well, it’s a bit messy at the moment. But I like it!”

Pomni leered. “…Liar.”

“I’m not making fun of you! Honest!” Ragatha crossed her hands over her heart. “I love your hair, Pomni. It’s…”

“It’s what?!”

“It’s so cute!”

Pomni’s eyes grew two sizes. That was…not the answer she expected to hear. She didn’t know what to say — just that her face felt a lot warmer than before.

“Obviously, you could use a comb…or three. But who cares about that?” Ragatha’s hand drifted through her own thick, yarn-like locks. “You really lucked out, you know. I’d trade your hair for mine in a heartbeat.”

Despite everything, the smallest of half-smiles lit Pomni’s face.

“I, um…” Pomni took a deep breath. And then two more. Her whole body slumped closer to the floor. Try as she might to keep her personal pity party alive, Ragatha’s radiant energy made her forget her troubles, if only for a moment.

“…Why are you being so nice? And to me, of all people?”

Ragatha just shrugged. “Do I have a reason not to be?”

Pomni gripped her other arm, gaze flicking down the corridor. Her smile faded in the silence.

“Well, um, anyway…” Ragatha glanced at the door behind her — Pomni’s awkwardness was infectious. “You have your room key, right?”

Pomni’s heart skipped at the thought of having lost it, but eased at the feeling of cold metal in her pocket. She nodded.

Gently, Ragatha took the cartoonish key from Pomni’s hand. With a turn and a click, the way to the jester’s room was open.

Ragatha held the door, smiling warmly. “You look like you could use some space. Go enjoy some quality alone time, okay, new stuff?”

“O-Okay.” Pomni didn’t hesitate to do just that — until she did. “Um…” She peeked behind a door half-open. After the longest pause, a simple, stammered “thanks” was all she could manage to get out.

Her door clicked shut. And audibly locked.

My Ko-fi - Tips are very much appreciated! :)

[Next Chapter]

[dialpforpomni]

So you wanna know the basics, huh? How I got here? Alright let me start from the beginning.

Name's Pomni, least in here it is. I can't remember my original name. It's all blank.

My prior life, my memories, my boring office job. The only think I can recall is putting on some headset to play some "Open World Game where you can be anything." Sketchy as hell..

No real name, just some game pre-installed on this VR Headset. All things considered, it's not all that bad here.

I didn't pick to be a P.I(Private Investigator), the game chose for me. HE chose for me. Before you ask all I know about him, is his name

Caine. The Creator. Some AI that watches over this place like some sort of god. No one has ever seen him in the flesh.

I don't know how long I've been here, but it seems real. This city. The City of New DigiYork is my new home.

I've made a name for myself. Some say it's bad. Some say it's good. I've become numb.

Those red doors keep appearing on buildings and in ominous places? But do I go to them no. Because there's no point. They always disappear the second I touch the handle. Caine is taunting me. All of us.

Anyway, that's the basic summary.

If you ever need me. Just dial P. It's my call sign.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The Story

Case 1: Mildenhall Murder

Case 2: Contracted Abstraction

•Part 1 •Part 2 •Part 3 •Part 4 •Part 5

•Part 6

Case 3: Gloink Trouble

Case 4: Candy Carrier Chaos

Case 5: Fatal Fast Food

Case 6: Masknapped

••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The Characters

Pomni

Ragatha

Jax

Gangle

Zooble

Caine

Bubble

Loolilalu

Queenie

Kinger

Max

Chad

Martha Mildenhall

Theodore Mildenhall

Orbsman

Gloinks Queen

The Angel

Dr. Football

Bobby

Bone Pastor

••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Extra Stuff

[imaginary-regret-608]

[The Amazing Digital Circus/Hazbin Hotel] - AU/Reimagining Masterpost

Thank you to everybody who took part in the recent poll, and the definite majority being seen for 'Yes' in the responses, especially in regards the enthusiastic response from @willowthefoxxo 's Reblog!

To provide context for why I've recently been making Non-Undertale/Deltarune Projects, whilst writing the Second Issue of the SwilTaett NEWSLETTER, I began to question what it would be like if I attempted making Concept Art for similar Indie Communities. But this doesn't mean that the rate of SwilTaett content will be decreasing!

The two projects I'll be showing here will likely be worked on the most when experiencing moments of Burnout whilst working on SwilTaett, or in sudden moments of inspiration.

First, despite being the second of the two in regards to their initial creation date, isThe 5-Star Digital Hospital!

An AU for The Amazing Digital Circus where each of the Humans is based on a respective time period and an individual part of the human body, while still maintaining the style of the source material! Each Cast Member has been renamed and given new lore to fit the time period they're based on (even though none of them are actually from these eras of history), so here are examples for each:

Pomni is now Tricul (Pronounced ‘trick-yull’, based on the scientific name for the stomach because of Pomni consistenly throwing up in both Episode 1/The Pilot and in Candy Carrier Chaos)! 'Tricul' also translates to 'Kicker' in Romanian, which is reflected in Tricul experiencing such an unexpected arrival to this unusual world.

Tricul's Design Style has also been changed to resemble how Pomni looks in The Amazing Digital Circus, with the best examples of how she'll look in later Concept Art seen in the bottom left of the image. Tricul even has her own 'Well, it's possible' Replacement, further hinting towards her representing the stomach.

Kinger is now Fector, based on the Effector muscles and glands seen in the Nervous System. He's also based on the Middle Ages, is noticeably less quick to be startled, and will likely act as a wise mentor to Tricul speaking in a similar way to how Kinger does to Ragatha in Candy Carrier Chaos while riding atop The Fudge.

Zooble is now Promexis (Pronounced ‘prom-E-six’), with the design now being based on Ancient Greek medicine and prosthetic limbs. Whether Promexis has control over these false limbs is quite the mystery among the Humans (in which the answer is yes), and whether they still can if they becomes one of THE INCURABLES (Abstraction Replacement, she does and it's probably one of the hardest FIGHTs).

Gangle is now Nestling, based on the Great Plague, Leeches and the Eye. There isn't as much to say about nestling, other than her Plague Doctor-Inspired appearance, as most of her time is spent crying in the break room.

Although also not dedicated to a specific Human, these Doodles were used to finalize front-facing expressions while also creating a list of Potential Nicknames (although definitely not all of these would be used because of how spontaneously), while also providing the first looks at Ragatha as Rammczi and Jax as Geronimo! Both are based on the Great War as their , but. Rammczi is based on the Heart (based on multiple interpretations of Raggedy Ann and the candy heart she's described as having, such as in 'Raggedy Ann Stories' (the original book by Johnny Gruelle where the painter's Mamma ), 'Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy' (1941, ), 'Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure' (1977, when Ann/Andy sing as a duet in 'Candy Hearts and Paper Flowers' and when 'I'm sorry, and I'd like to help you, but I'm only a ragdoll with a little candy heart-') and the 'Rag Dolly'/'Raggedy Ann: The Musical Adventure' (1986, which is also the only version with the candy heart stitched onto the outside, after Marcella says 'Look! (What?) She has no heart! (Sure she does, inside, you can't see a real baby's-)' before the song 'Carry On' begins)) and nurses seen on the Western Front.

Geronimo is instead based on 'GERTIE, The Wonderfully Trained Dinosaurus' from 1914, which is often regarded as the first animated character with her own personality. Geronimo also exists with the currently-unnamed Bubble Replacement in a group known as the 'Pearly Knights', with Jax represen and currently-unnamed \bubble representing the Wisdom Teeth. The Pearly Knights have their own pre-written lore in the world of the Digital Hospital (which is best seen in the Candy Carrier Chaos Replacement) that Geronimo had nothing to do with, even if he definitely would've if given the chance.

Although not being as different to his toothy counterpart in comparison to the Humans and their Original Versions, it's time to re-introduce Caine as Braine!

bbh (as Braine would've ended up doing surgery on her involuntarily, as Tricul suddenly replaces the Dummy that Braine was planning to use).

Braine having a brother to act as the Replacement to @sm-baby's (sorry for the notification!) Able has been considered and probably does exist somewhere in-universe, but no digital reference exists of him yet. His name would likely be Braune, allowing for the Caine & Able biblical reference to be paralled with 'Brains and Brawn' in The 5-Star Digital Hospital.

The only idea I've had for his design so far is a 3-fingered hand with eyes that resemble fingers, with pupils as the fingernails, which also has a hole in its wrist for the mouth.

There are designs and lore made for the Candy Carrier Chaos Replacement (including Design Reveals for Gummigoo and The Fudge), but I'll be adding that in a Reblog in order to keep this as short as I can due to this post being much longer than average, despite only being the first half.

-----------------------------------------------

The next project is Ring Around the Halo, a reimagining of Hazbin Hotel with new designs and lore, for both Heaven and Hell!

Just like what's happening for The 5-Star Digital Hospital, the lore for Ring Around the Halo will be much more open because of them not being the primary focus of this Tumblr Account. This is why I'll first be introducing this project through God's Design Reveal, as well as the changed structure to Heaven and Hell's Hierarchies!

Because the commonly-accepted design of God in Hazbin Hotel content was first a Headcanon Design Drawn by Voidseeker, I decided to make My Take on what God could look like for Ring Around the Halo, focusing on the Holy Trinity, the Word of God, and the Good Word spread by the Apostles of Jesus after His ascension.

This image also presents how the palettes of Sinners are decided upon entering Hell, with the Sin that led them to be seen as deserving of Eternal Damnation being a dominant part of their design.

It also shows the Reimagined Version of Angel Dust, with an appearance resembling a male Orb Weaver Spider. I'm not sure about whether his time period will be the same in this reimagining, as this version of Angel Dust has multiple parallels to a real-world person born in 1978, with a similar occupation (even with the Character Theme being reused from the same source)! I'd also made a Poster Redraw based on Angel Dust's films seen in backgrounds of Season 1, but I currently won't show it here for similar reasons to the anonymity of Angel's accidental real-life parallel.

Niffty's Reimagined Version is the most recent example of what Ring Around the Halo is currently planned to be like!

Niffty, formerly known as 恵子/Keiko in the mortal realm, was a Japanese child who was taken out of her education during the events of the Pacific War, and placed into a textiles factory. As the war progressed, higher demands were needed and longer shifts were put in place, some children having to work year-long shifts. As this would be the time when Keiko's brain would first start maturing, spending her life in the factory was responsible for her warped view of adulthood, focusing on the tasks and responsibilities expected of a typical housewife (as that was already what she was also being taught at school beforehand) and leaving that as all she now knows.

Her design in Ring Around the Halo still has her as a cyclops because of her having a one-track mind by the time she arrives in Hell, and her childlike appearance is kept as a representation of her childhood being taken from her because of the conflict she was forced into sewing work for, which is also why she wears a near identical version of her uniform. Niffty's bug-based activities and appearance also have an expanded cause because of her being Japanese. This is because children in Japan collect bugs in order to feel closer to nature, as well as cockroaches being the most common type of insect in Japan, having Niffty's new appearance in Hell cause her to remember herself as unclean and having a wasted time alive as just another worker.

Finally, here are the Reimagined Versions of Alastor and Vox as presented in 'Stayed Gone'! Vox's Design is the oldest that Ring Around the Halo has, even being made before a name for the Reimagining was finalized, which means that his and Alastor's Designs could become subject to change, as the concept has changed very much since then.

However, Alastor's censored face (which has an appearance inspired by the Lost SOULs from Asriel's FIGHT in Undertale) being a physical representation of having 'a face made for radio' is an element of his design that will remain unchanged if he is ever redesigned.

-----------------------------------------------

If you have any further questions about Ring Around the Halo or The 5-Star Digital Hospital, feel free to ask and make your own suggestions for what you'd like to see from these projects!

[ghostdiva]

My Prediction for Episode 2 of The Amazing Digital Circus

heads up, this is purely my own theories based on what I know of the trailer, as well as gooseworx's tumblr posts. this can easily be interpreted as a guess to the plot of the second episode, that said, if any of these guesses are correct, then I'm sorry for the spoilers.

let's get into it.

we start the episode with what I assume to be a dream sequence for Pomni. which makes sense considering what happened in episode 1 (aka the pilot). it wouldn't surprise me at all that her run in with the abstracted kaufmo was traumatizing. Watching that abstraction later get thrown into the cellar, and realizing that abstraction is the digital world equivalent to death, is also a pretty rattling experience. so it would make sense that Pomni would have a dream about abstraction as she tries to wrap her head around it.

that said, her dream sequence starts in the main area of the circus tent, where it is presumably the next day and she's with the gang waiting for Caine to show up and drag them all into an adventure of some kind. And either when Caine shows up, or while they're waiting, something happens that is disturbing to Pomni. what that is, is very much unknown. but this reaction doesn't just naturally happen, it's triggered by something.

so she sees something horrific, and in this dream it seems to start to push her to her breaking point, existentially.

Pomni looks down at herself and her horror grows. part of her is abstracted. Pomni feels a bit of fear and confusion not knowing what to do, and scared about going in the cellar. Caine doesn't care about that though, and upon seeing that she's "abstracting", does the same thing he did to kaufmo. opening a hole in the floor and throwing Pomni in the cellar.

Pomni tries to grab for anything, desperate not to join the fully abstracted. she yells "no", almost as if to plea that she wasn't insane. that there was no need to lock her away just yet.

then Pomni wakes up with quite the start.

I think anyone would be disgruntled with a wake up call like that, but nonetheless, Pomni gets up and joins the others at the main stage area.

Pomni waits with Ragatha and Gangle, asking questions she didn't really get to have answered in the last episode.

now, I have no way of knowing what kind of dialogue the characters will be sharing between each other during this episode, so I don't know what is said until the episode airs. all I have are the episode 2 quotes that gooseworx dropped on their page.

so broadly speaking, Caine gathers the rest of the gang, Zooble opts out of the adventure, and Caine shoves everyone else through a portal into the Candy Canyon Kingdom!

Yippee!

now in this episode we have 3 characters (technically 5 but I'm counting gumigoo and his gang to be all 1 entity here). the list is loolilalu, gumigoo (+max and chad), and the fudge monster. Princess Loolilalu, I believe is the sort of quest giver of the adventure. I think loolilalu will send the gang to deal with Gumigoo, and his compatriots, chad and max. who are bandits, and make a bit of a habit of stealing from loolilalu's subjects, even resorting to violence to get what they want.

Princess Loolilalu simply can't let that stand, and sends the circus crew (minus Zooble) out to apprehend them. giving Ragatha a Key in the process.

now a lot of people speculated that it'd be a key to the kingdom or something like that, but that doesn't make sense considering pretty much all the shots outside of the celebration on their arrival take place outside the castle walls. No, I think that the Key is for a truck, specifically the truck the circus crew use to chase Gumigoo and his gang with. -this also makes sense to the degree of "how would Caine know the visual difference between a door key and a car key? they're both just keys to him"-

also quick side note: during the celebration as the circus crew arrive at the candy canyon kingdom, one of the audiece NPC's is seen absolutely booking it at Gangle, and I think that the NPC is going to run into her, breaking her comedy mask.

anyway, the Gang piles into the truck, Gangle driving, Pomni, Kinger and Ragatha in the backseat, and Jax getting shotgun...

... -ahem- anyway, through a series of whacky hijinks, the circus crew and gumigoo's crew end up in an intense car chase, with Pomni somehow getting on top of Gumigoo's van in the process.

However, something happens to the truck the circus crew are in, that makes it have to either slow down or stop. rather that's a tire falling off or something else entirely is still up in the air. this normally wouldn't be too bad of an issue.

but Pomni is still on top of gumigoo's van...

this is where the circus crew splits up a bit, as Pomni is left to Gumigoo and his gang while the circus crew figure out how to get the truck up and running at full speed again.

So Gumigoo and his gang try to get Pomni off their van. However, Pomni is a survivalist at her core, and a resilient one at that. So the gummy gators have a hard time getting Pomni to let go of their car. they have such a hard time about it that they start doing doughnuts in an effort to spin her off the car.

what happens after is pretty up in the air, but I'm pretty sure Pomni ends up getting flung very far after loosing her grip and literally flying off.

Meanwhile, with the rest of the circus crew. Ragatha's upset on Pomni's behalf, at the fact that they left her with the gator gang. Jax brushes it off, which only upsets Ragatha more.

The circus crew pull over and assess the damage to the truck, which could be anything from a flat or missing tire, to complete engine failure. what needs to happen to fix the truck is unknown, but the truck needs fixing regardless.

-a moderate amount of chaos later-

the circus gang has fixed the truck and started back on the road again, however they are all completely lost. and end up accidentally wandering into the fudge monster's domain... oops.

Ragatha probably tries to reason with the fudge monster in order to not get eaten. it'd be a bit fucked up, but maybe the gang offers to feed some gummy gators to the fudge monster in exchange for freedom? idk, it's anyone's guess.

anyway, after the crew is done getting harassed by the fudge monster, they decide it's time to harass the gummy gators, and set out to find them.

seek and ye shall find, and find the circus crew did. not only do they manage to catch up to the gator gang, but they manage to tie up Chad and Max, leaving Gumigoo by himself.

this is also where the sweet sweet Jax angst is, as we see him just picking at the floor while hugging himself a bit. Not behavior you expect to see from the lanky bastard that makes his existence everyone else's problem. it might also be that he's a bit disheartened that Pomni was not with the Gator Gang, who knows.

anyway the gang start searching for Pomni, and uh...

I think they found her? honestly that small dot flying out of the water could be anyone, but Pomni was the only one missing from the group for a prolonged period of time. so it only really makes sense that it'd be her.

last but not least, we have the most confusing clip of the trailer.

now, strap on for this theory. so I think that this happens after gumigoo's companions are captured (chad and max). now, I think gumigoo was coded as an extrovert of sorts, constantly checking back on chad and max to make sure they're there and stuff. and now that they're gone, gumigoo doesn't know what to do. like his code doesn't have anything for when his compatriots aren't around, and the lack of his friends is maddening. because that is a look of existential dread and shock. and while specifically WHAT happened is a mystery, I do have a few theories as to what it could've been.

maybe gumigoo ended up running into a border of the world and that's what that blue grid is. him accidentally peeking beyond a world border to see a grid with lines and lines of code. maybe this event happens to cause gumigoo to gain a level of sentience, coming to the realization that once the gang is done with the adventure, his world will cease to exist. that all he was, is, and will be are just lines of code, moved around by another AI that is above him (caine). maybe gumigoo just experiences the existentials surrounding the mindset of "I am just a blip in the cosmos, a small insignificant spec in the grand scheme of things". which can ultimately lead to depressive lines of thought. Goose did say this episode would be about depression, I wouldn't be surprised if they also threw in something existential for funsies, or just to hit the point home.

and then the gang finishes the adventure and gets a lovely prize!

some MPPED!

[dib-thing-wannabe]

My opinion on Tadc ships

Remember, this is my opinion, and even if I don't like the ship, I'll never judge you for liking it!

To just get this out of the way first, any ship that involves Kinger (besides Queenie): 0/10, mainly because of the giant age difference between everyone else (The second closest person of age to him is Ragatha, and it's still an 18 year difference). Also, I am a firm believer that he'll never even think of romance with anyone other than Queenie.

Pomni x Ragatha: 10/10 Favorite ship. Anxious girl x Motherly girl, best ship dynamic.

Pomni x Zooble: 6/10 Don't really see it, but it's cute!

Pomni x Gangle: 7/10 I see it a bit better than Pomni x Zooble, but not by much. Still cute that, and it makes sense!

Pomni x Jax: 2/10 I view them more as siblings than anything, so I don't like this ship much. But it can be cute!

Pomni x Caine: 5/10 I can see it, and I can also not see it. Though I'll admit, it's growing on me.

Ragatha x Zooble: 3/10 haven't really seen anything of this ship, so I can't say too much. But I'll say that it's cute, the dynamic is interesting!

Ragatha x Gangle: 8/10 Basically just Ragatha x Pomni in a different font. But still, it's cute!

Ragatha x Jax: 4/10 Eh, I can see it, but it's not really my jam.

Ragatha x Caine: 5/10 Once again, haven't seen anything of this, but I think it can be interesting! Insane ringmaster x Motherly doll, seems like it'll be an interesting yet fitting ship!

Zooble x Gangle: 7/10 It seems nice!! Could definitely happen!

Zooble x Jax: 6/10 I personally don't ship it, but I can see it happening! But I feel like the main reason this ships exists is because their voice actors just so happen to be together.

Zooble x Caine: 1/10 once again, haven't seen this ship, but I don't feel like I would enjoy it, because Zooble seems more like an angsty daughter to him than a possible love interest.

Gangle x Jax: 5/10 It's cute! I don't ship it, but I like it!

Gangle x Caine: 1/10 I just don't see it, in general.

Jax x Caine: 1/10 Same as Zooble x Caine. Definitely more of a father and son relationship to me.

Caine x Kinger (yes I semi-lied, but quiet): 9/10 I like it! If I had to ship something other than Kinger x Queenie, it'll be this!

Caine x Moon: 10/10 One of the only semi canon ships, and I love it.

Edit: missed one, oops-

Jax x Kaufmo: 9/10 Unironically, this ship has grown on me, and I cannot help but love it. The dead guy is literally the only person that I actually ship Jax with, not making a mean joke. (Eh? Get it? Making a mean joke? Like mean jokes, one of their ship names?? Eeeeeeh-)

[thegooseoforegon]

Amazing Digital Circus Theory

Move over Film Theory, it is time for I, the amazing Goose of Oregon, to debut my first ever theory about something with my over the top analytical skills. (no hate towards Film Theory though. You guys are great!)

The Amazing Digital Circus is an in-universe TV show, with the main cast being trapped in it by the headsets they put on. And Jax is either a hacker hired to take it down from the inside, or hired by the ADC company to be the antagonist of the show.

To clear up the TV show theory, both Jax and Bubble (and arguably Caine) acknowledge people are watching the show. Jax points to the camera multiple times, sometimes even speaking directly to the audience, while Bubble (indirectly) acknowledges in episode 3 that kids watch this like a tv show. Yes, I know that's more of a reference to the real world, but it can swing both ways (just like me, if you catch my drift) also, they have a theme song, as seen in episode 1. Just like a kid's tv show!

Obviously Caine and Bubble are Ai assistants, higher level than a regular NPC. Meanwhile, NPCs act like monsters/sidekicks of the week, not having much motivation behind them, just being there to be there. The original main cast was also made up of AI bots, but that put the ADC company under fire from lawsuits and critics, cause let's be honest, generative AI sucks. The current main cast then unknowingly got transported into the Digital Circus by putting on those headsets, in a sort of Truman Show way.

Now for Jax

Jax has either one of two roles in this world. My first theory on him is that he's a hacker, hired by a rival company to take it down from the inside, trying to derail the show plots and get ratings down. Also be a bad role model for the children who are presumably watching the show. After a couple seasons of this, the show would be shut down, and the rest of the cast would either be released or killed.

The second theory about him is that Jax was hired by the ADC company to be an anagonist. The ADC company was under fire by critics for never having a consistent protagonist, like so many shows now adays, instead sticking to villains of the week like the Gloink queen, Gummigoo and his bandits (yes, I know he's not a villain from our viewpoint, but the show was setting him up to be a sort of sympathetic anti-villain), and The Fudge, to name, well, all of them.

Both of those theories about Jax explains why he has access to everybody's rooms, knows the camera placement, (Hacker abilities or admin access), and why he's such a dick to everybody.

Here's are the problems with this theory; Abstraction and the second part of Mildenhall Manor. We'll deal with the latter first.

The second part of Mildenhall Manor is what Pomni and Kinger went through, with the angel and hunter guy. My guess is that was meant to be either a subplot/plot B for the episode, while Ragatha, Jax, and Gangle where the main plot/plot A. (We got a view more heavily centered on Kinger and Pomni, of course.) Either that, or the show was punishing Zooble for not being compliant with what they want, or trying to help them (Zooble uses they/them prounouns, right?) feel more comfortable with the show. Probably the first one, but the second one could work.

Now for Abstraction. We all know what happens, so I'm not going over that. The question is, what happens to the IRL bodies after the ADC character abstracts? My guess is they go brain-dead and die, and the ADC company gets rid of them. I don't exactly know how they explain Abstraction in the show, but we'll have to just wait and see...

[tadc-confessions]

How is Ragatha not suspect #1 in the "Is anyone secretly an NPC?" discussion?

She cares an unreasonable amount about how Pomni is doing at all times. In episode 1 when she was glitching (and remember that glitching causes pain) she still prioritizes being polite to Pomni when she needs help. In episode 2, when the semi truck crashes, her first reaction is: "Is everyone okay? Oh man, poor Pomni...". Then Jax reminds Ragatha that they crashed off a cliff two seconds ago and are stuck in a ravine full of fudge. Then the MOMENT she sees Pomni again, Ragatha rushes to her side and asks how she's been. Oh and let's not forget that Ragatha goes to Pomni's room at the beginning of episode 2 to forgive Pomni for abandoning her for the exit.

Another thing, why didn't she run when she found out that Kaufmo abstracted? Instead she stays and tries to calm him and Pomni down. But we know that this isn't her first time losing a friend to abstraction because she 1. Knows what it is, 2. She says herself that having funeral for the abstracted is a tradition at this point.

My last topic is about why she didn't warn Pomni about Caine deleting NPCs. Yeah, you could say that she's never witnessed it before, and the only argument I have as a counter is: She's supposedly been here for years, and no one has tried to bring an NPC into the circus before Pomni? I know this current paragraph is mostly speculation, but what if Ragatha intentionally let Gummigoo get deleted out of jealousy? Imagine Ragatha as an NPC that made it into Caine's (and everyone else's) good graces undetected. This could explain why Ragatha is SO FOCUSED on being accomodating to everyone. Who doesn't love a good little doormat?

She hates that she's not 'real' in the same way the players are. She hates that she's technically expendable. She hates that if a real exit were to ever be found, she'd have to remain trapped here. So Ragatha distances herself from other NPCs out of shame for her identity and self preservation. She's not program. She has a bedroom. She's loved by her friends. She goes on adventures. And maybe... she just found out she can feel love?

Ragatha is just that therapist friend who has enough trauma that it’s either numbed her, or she expects things she hates to which i respect 🫡

but chances are she’s seen more abstractions then she has seen members which is ultimately pretty sad

[wdefender]

Thoughts on TADC

I meant to collect my thoughts/theories about this after the first episode, but now that the second episode is out now's a good time!

Firstly I've seen things where people suggest that the cast members have been "sucked into" the Digital Circus or something, but I think it's more like their mind got copied and dumped into it through the headset we see in Ep. 1. I say this because it seems like the only actual damage they can take is Abstraction, which isn't really a corollary to any real mental illness, but would likely be an error in the digital representation of their mind, brought about by extreme despair.

That said, I don't know what the consensus is on this, but I think Caine is broadly benevolent. The adventures he cooks up don't seem to have any purpose but to keep the cast entertained, or at least occupied so they don't abstract.

With episode two we've gotten a bit more insight to some characters, specifically Ragatha and Jax. Ragatha looks like she focuses on helping other people, like Pomni or the Candy Princess, to keep sane. She seemed genuinely tickled with the Princess's personality, even though she's familiar enough with adventures to know it's not real at all. I thought she might have been passive-aggressive mentioning Pomni's abandonment from the first episode, but when talking to Kinger she makes it clear she just wants Pomni to have an okay time at the Circus.

Jax is a funny one, because apparently the second episode gave people a different impression of him than the first one, but it only strengthened my initial impression. He's in it for funny things to happen to people, and his idea of funny is similar to a 12 year old boy who has GTA 4 with all cheats unlocked. So he's an asshole who wants chaos and violence to happen. Some people have suggested he might be an AI who snuck in, but given how he acts that doesn't make much sense to me. It seems like none of the cast can actually be harmed aside from abstraction, and there's no reason he would consider NPCs as people, so he might as well go ham. It's like that one D&D player who tries to stab the important NPC because he thinks it would be funny.

We still don't know much about the other cast members. I hope we get more about Zooble, I wanna know why they opt out of adventures, and what they do while the others are out.

Kinger is my favorite human in there, his absentmindedness seems to be a coping mechanism for being in the Circus for so long, or maybe that's just what happens if you don't abstract for long enough. His moments of lucidity are interesting though, like when he comforts Ragatha about Pomni, or how he seemed the most composed during Kaufmo's funeral.

Needless to say I'm really enjoying it, from the teaser before it came out I thought it was going to be much more mean-spirited, but it's hitting that existentialist beat that I really like. Can't wait for episode 3!

[marbofmoorock]

Since I've seen practically nobody make content on kind jax, I'm going to make a semi-Swap AU featuring him right meow(using his design here by this excellent artist as reference).

Let's rethink the show with the Swap AU in Mind:

Characters:

Jaxxy: Like Ragatha in the main canon, Jax is a kind sweetheart with a sort of feminine energy to him, always putting a kind foot forward to be compassionate and Considerate of the others in Circus Cast. He is often compliant with Caine the most. playing along with the adventures, as per his strongly agreeable nature. He's closest to Pomni and Dangle, softly admiring her gentle and Empathetic nature, always coming to her rescue as a sort of a group dad/older brother type, trying to keep the peace in a very diplomatic and gentle way, often to Ragsy's chagrin(detesting Jaxxy and his softer ways, sometimes calling him "Not A Man." Jaxxy often retorts in a sort of sassy way that "He's a bunny, Honey~ *snap, snap*")

Pomni: As a Jester Boy new to the circus, Pomni, unlike the main canon, is more confident and friendly. She is quick to see how she could help everyone, and becomes fast friends with everybody, except Ragsy, whom slowly warms up to her. Pomni is a kindhearted friend, always helping out and doing what she can. In this circus, she learns to let go of Gummigoo quickly, realizing the other cast members are the realest people, as opposed to kind npcs. This prompts Pomni to push for a strong friendship with Ragsy, which is impossible at first, but overtime, wins Ragsy over, and they bond very closely to each other.

Ragsy: Instead of being kind and nice like on the main Canon, Ragsy is kinda grumbly and secretive, as well as a sly prankster, liking to play tricks on everyone. This often puts her at odds with Jaxxy, who aims to smooth over every bad situation, to which Ragsy scoffs at with a semi-indifferent attitude about her presence in the circus, becoming embittered and finding joy only in other people's pain, much to Jaxxy's annoyance. Ragsy isn't close to anyone in the circus, isolating herself from the rest of the group at first, as she has done that since day 1 of entering the circus. She later redeems herself through being given a second chance via Pomni after everyone gangs up on her and calls her out on her toxic behavior. Pomni helps Ragsy to realize that it's better to get along and hug it out, instead of provoking people all the time, prompting Ragsy to experience character growth where she apologizes to everyone and becomes a warm, and empathetic character, strongly resembling who she is in the main canon, with the exception of her tomboy fashion of wearing a t-shirt under blue overalls instead of wearing a dress(but she still has her bow in her hair).

Dangle: Unlike Gangle, being shy and turbulent in the main canon, Dangle is instead more exuberant and assertive, as well as flexible. He has plastic unbreakable masks for every day he doesn't need, but wants to wear anyways, as he is super theatrical and silly. His favorite mask was a japanese kitsune (fox) mask, a close second was his anime persona mask, which had huge colorful 90s styled anime eyes, which also gave him a cuter japanese voice and dubbing for some odd reason. He loved talking about some of his favorite animes, he was a big fan of fox girls in particular, finding their tails and ears to be cool, often styling his ribbon body to have ears and a tail as well, always on the lookout for more ribbons to add to his body, as he also had a bunch of different colored ribbons on different parts of his body on top of the usual red, sporting Blonde hair above his mask over his red head which was thicker with knotted red ribbons to make him more endurant and tough. He also had blue pants made of blue ribbon and a green shirt with a graphic design he stitched by hand out of multiple colors and ribbons, depicting one of his favorite anime characters, Fufu-Chan(A Cute Fennec Fox girl with big fluffy ears, from Kitsune no Yume/狐 の 夢 (Disclaimer: Not A Real Anime, don't look it up, lol). He's always looking up with joy, bringing out the positive side of Queenzie. Dangle, while occasionally picked on by Ragatha, knows how to scare Ragsy back as he sometimes keeps a centipede housed between his masks as a safeguard to surprise her(Ragsy before apologizing to everyone, didn't like Dangle and kept her distance from him, as she hated bugs, especially centipedes). Dangle collects bugs, also leaving a bunch of jars of bugs in his room he collects from different adventures, from roaches, to ants, to beetles, to other bugs, so Ragatha wouldn't come in his room (especially if she saw his favorite pet Tarantuala, a hairy fellow named Neil), all as a way to keep her out. Dangle also has a strong friendship with Queenzie, who's super into Bugs, often going searching for bugs with Dangle, as it helps her remember Kingo, her abstracted husband.

Queenzee: Unlike being crazy and warm in the main canon, Kinger has his head fully screwed on as a woman and is smart but hotheaded. Her husband, Kingo, the black king chess piece, was big into Bugs, and was a huge softie loved by everyone. Queenzee, on the other hand, has an aggressive flair, easily enraged by Ragsy's antics, which would often lead to her competing/fighting Ragsy on adventures, often challenging her in a very arrogant and self-inposing kind of way, with a bossy regal energy like the red queen from Alice in Wonderland. Dangle often helped her in such scaenarios (secretly having a crush on her, but feels unable to tell her his feelings because of how much she still mourns Kingo as a widow, as well as out of fear of her temper, which was quite scornful). After Ragsy makes up with Queenzie later in the series, they bond and form a loving relationship, putting aside their differences, as they both admired each other's wit and agility.

Zooble: Unlike her Grumpy and Sarcastic character in the main Canon, Zooble is affable and mild, embodying the quieter persona she tries and fails to emulate in the main canon. Zooble has no body issues, easily accepting himself and all of her many opportunities to arrange his body parts any sorts of ways she liked. Somewhat of a playful Wild Card, some days Zooble will surprise everyone as a way to be a humorous comedian, sometimes going on adventures with only one leg just to make someone laugh, or no arms, or sometimes, he'll just let Dangle carry her head anywhere, as he's secretly is in love with Dangle, finding him to be a real cute sweetheart, especially when he makes his :3 face. Dangle isn't aware of this, but later on, he learns of his/her feelings, and they end up together, Queenzie openly supporting their relationship due to loving both of them.

Ragatha and Jax (Swap Au) cute little baby 💙💜