Rock Candy Reviews

Full SPOILER review

My experience at the theater was honestly better than I expected. Little talking, no littering, and lots of cosplay. It gives me hope that some people have enough human decency to behave at the movies. Beyond that, I really enjoyed the last episode of The Amazing Digital Circus.

What doesn’t give me hope is the petty and entitled reactions some fans have had to the events of the finale. A lot of people are more concerned with wanting the story to go exactly the way they theorized. Making theories and head cannons is fun, but we, the audience, are not in the writers’ room. Expecting the story to bend to your will is not a healthy viewing habit. Not to mention the fact that the writing made it very clear that the main focus was the characters, not the lore.

Getting into specifics, characters like Gangle and Ragatha have had their development downplayed, just because they had reactions people disagreed with. If a character only reacts in a way you personally wouldn’t, that is not a valid criticism. What matters is, if it is foreshadowed and in character. Ragatha and Gangle both had plenty of moments showing their emotions beyond their archetypes. They both had time to develop complex feelings towards the other characters.

For instance, Ragatha has had plenty of moments showing she feels under appreciated and lonely. The one time she crashes out, she shows that she is better at being direct than subtle. She states how she feels, instead of dancing around the subject in order to spare the others’ feelings. This is why she wants direct confirmation that Pomni is her friend in the finale. People have been saying this was poor writing, but it is actually the way she has communicated consistently throughout the show. Subtle gestures of kindness do not register with her, due to her abusive mother. It makes perfect sense why she would speak her feelings, and best receive information the best in blatant talks. “Show, don’t tell” is a good rule of thumb, but not every character interacts with the story the same way.

Gangle having the “wrong” reaction to Jax abstracting is another example. Fans are very quick to judge her reaction based off of their own experiences, while ignoring the story’s clear attempt to show nuance instead of black and white morality. Her not being able to cry for Jax at first, and the complex thoughts she has later on fit with her character perfectly. In her focus episode, the ending shows that she is still dealing with feelings of self loathing and uncertainty about her interactions with others. She finds out that putting on a happy mask doesn’t work, but she is still trying to find herself outside of her sadness. Which is why it takes a while to settle into a reaction to Jax abstracting.

Finally, Caine’s return and his thoughts on the rest of the cast was completely in character. Him being able to self reflect and learn is part of his arc, and makes sense that he had to be isolated in order to come to those conclusion. Caine was always a performer looking for the audience’s approval, so he was only able to quiet down and think when he was away from the humans of the circus. Sure, it was spoken allowed, but that lines up with what he likes to do. Throughout the show, Caine talks to himself when no one is around or listening. This is how he processes things, and ties into his performance mentality. When he returns to the circus, it makes sense for him to still be conflicted, but capable of doing something kind for the humans.

This finale was not perfect in terms of how long certain scenes lingered, and the comedy timing, but it was in no way a terrible ending.