tell me, what makes a "real woman" since you're in charge of that
I'm honestly tired of being accused of things I didn't say or mean.
I'm not saying I'm the one who decides who is or isn't a "real woman." No one person gets to decide that for everyone.
What I meant was specifically about the character. Saying a character was intended to be trans or that fans interpret them as trans is different from saying they're canonically trans. Unless it's confirmed in the official story, it's still a headcanon or behind-the-scenes intention, not established canon.
As for real people, I respect how people identify themselves. If someone tells me they're a woman, I call them a woman. If someone doesn't identify that way, I respect that too. My comment wasn't about deciding anyone's identity it was only about the difference between fan interpretation, creator intent, and official canon.
What's especially frustrating is that instead of asking what I meant, some people have followed my account just to continue this argument and even reblogged one of my posts to publicly label me as transphobic. I don't think that encourages honest discussion: it just turns a disagreement into a personal attack.
Please stop putting words in my mouth or assuming the worst. If you disagree with what I actually said, that's fine but don't accuse me of beliefs I never had and will never have.
I know it’s the transmisogyny, but part of me is still baffled by the reaction to transfem Jax being canon because like… if Jax wasn’t trans, she’d be a very boring character?
Like, if Jax was cis, none of anything she says or does is new. Part of her conceit that is explicitly pointed out in the show directly is how basic and boring a character archetype “mean shitty man who’s mean and shitty because secretly he’s sooo sad and traumatized inside” is.
I can’t imagine being so defensive over making sure that yet another one of those characters exists, because it’s such an overused and overdone archetype.
Nothing about Jax is new or original or (imo) very interesting unless you factor in the fact that she’s a closeted trans woman.
She brings nothing new to the table if she’s a man that you couldn’t find in other media somewhere else.
Frankly I feel like the reason anyone was even ever that invested in her before is because they're either addicted to that specific trope to the point they're always happy to see more of it, or are so new to media they don't know that it's everywhere, which given how young the fanbase of this show skews, is also a distinct possibility.
Her plotline in the show pre-reveal is done well enough, for an example of an extremely boring and overdone trope, but it really isn't anything new, unless you narrow down to the elements unique to the setting and claim them as inherent to her character in specific.
And ultimately it doesn't really fit together or cohere into something unique and interesting without the realization that she is trans.
Hii on a thing you said abt pomni (and Caine) being too rushed as characters-
Goose said that Pomni as a character was meant to be written to have anger issues, and that she toned it down because the voice actor they got for her had a more innocent voice (she also said in retrospect she regretted that) but I think it's really interesting to look at her character through that lense, especially knowing it was supposed to be way more evident.
Watching the show, I honestly never picked up on that for her, she seemed to be a fairly emotionally balanced person in terms of writing. I think the scene where she is trying to fight Jax shows it off best, but I really do wish that it was devolved into more, since a lot of the characters have very obvious issues we can point to but she's the only one where you kind of shrug.
Hi 👋 :)
I 100% agree with you
Looking at Pomni after knowing that "she was originally meant to have anger issues" makes a lot of her reactions more interesting in hindsight.
The only traces of it are when she fights with Jax and when she confronts Caine, but I never would've described anger issues as one of her defining traits just from watching the show because of it… (Can we talk about how she forgave and cared about Jax so quickly after all he did to her...)
It’s really a shame that it didn't get explored more, especially like through the series; it just looks like she’s totally ok with everything, want to be friend with everyone, and that her only problem is being stuck in the circus (that's why even if I don’t agree with people saying that Pomni is a Y/N, I kind of see why…)
Goose adjusted the characterization because of the voice actor, but I do think the original direction could've made Pomni stand out more and made her troubles visible at least a bit like other characters, it would give her more personality…
I’ve said it, but I said it again, but in my opinion ep9 ruined all chances for her to stand as a complex character (I have problems with that episode lmao)
Thank God 🙏🎉
Seiing how it’s going now, maybe it's for the best if Glitch handles writing your characters. They seem to write them way better than their own creator does…
Just look at the quality of those ads compared to episodes 6–9 (especially ep 9 that was trash in my opinion)
But i don't think people should take someone disagreeing with your opinion as a equal to a personal attack and to the point that disagreeing with multiple of your opinions, is considered harassment.
Like i am sorry...i am really really sorry...for not getting this...but in what moment did i hurt you personally?
I can't tell if this is a hate ask or not considering you have been, to be frank, very wishy-washy in my notes.
If it is: I've been told to kill myself, I constantly get bigoted assholes in my notes, I was constantly getting asks from Green calling me a race traitor before I was able to block them, and multiple people insist on calling me a transphobe for calling out Goose's racism, including people mentioning me by username off of Tumblr in order to spread misinformation about me. All of that is harassment, and that's not even everything. Do not tell me I haven't been harassed when I have.
If it isn't, and you're on my side and talking about others:
Phrase it better, but more importantly,
If TADC fans are being harassed over this, that's horrible. That's not my intention. That's why I almost always crop out usernames when I'm talking about specific fans being antiblack here unless they're bothering me specifically, because I don't want an open invitation for them to be harassed by people looking for an excuse to do so. But at the same time I know you meant the first scenario, I'm moreso just writing this for my own sake.
You never hurt me personally until just now, ironically. I've dealt with worse people, as you can see. But, again, you do not get to act as if I haven't had to deal with a lot.
it says something about the tadc fandom where the insults directed at me, a white person, are all second-grade level things like moron, loser, freak, etc. (and the occasional media illiterate and transmisogynistic ones)
but the insults directed at the black crits are all racially charged. i do not need to point out the irony in calling the black fans racist because they're pointing out Goose's repeated racism
and if you ever call them out for it, they're going to excuse it because they're neurodivergent or their great great great great great great great great great grandparents were indigenous or they have black friends or they're queer or whatever
it is literally these images. if you're mature enough to be racist, you're mature enough to be able to handle criticism of your favorite show or your favorite character. you're mature enough to block the tag and move on if you disagree
Just wanted to ask, is there any chance you could include your transfem jax criticisms / disagreements / etc under a different tag? e.g. transfem jax critical, tadc critical, etc. Those of us under the transfem jax tag just want to enjoy content about transfem jax.
this is not just about transfem jax btw, this is just tagging ettiquette on tumblr. I remember I used to tag my criticisms of a popular marauders character (regulus) under the just the 'regulus' tag, until someone informed me that I should be tagging it under 'regulus critical' or 'anti regulus'. Tumblr doesn't really have an algorithm the same way other social medias do, so there's no need to proximity tag.
Tbh, this is why I prefer to tumblr to other social media, you can really curate your own feed with the tags.
Hi! thanks for asking politely, i do get where you're coming from, and i know some fandoms prefer using separate critical tags
That said, my posts are meant to be part of the discussion around transfem jax, so i intentionally tag them with #transfem jax because i want people interested in the topic to actually be able to find them
I also already tag all of my criticism posts with #tadc fandom critical, so if someone doesn't want to see that kind of content, they're welcome to filter or block that tag.
I know not everyone wants to see criticism in the main tag, but i don't think the main tag should be reserved exclusively for positive posts. discussion and criticism are still discussion about transfem jax
also, part of why i don't use #transfem jax critical is because it sounds like i'm criticizing the idea of transfem jax itself, which isn't what i'm doing. my posts are about whether it's canon, not about whether people are "allowed" to have that interpretation. fandom is full of different interpretations, and people are absolutely free to have theirs.
I’m sorry but I’m not planning on removing the main #transfem jax tag, because if i did, the posts would completely miss the audience they're actually meant for. i want to talk to people interested in transfem jax, not just people who already agree with me or are specifically looking for critical posts.
thanks again for asking respectfully, though! i appreciate that we can disagree about tagging etiquette without it turning into a fight.
hey. I would just like to say im so sorry for all the hate you're receiving.
even though I am a transfem jax artist along with other versions of jax, no one deserves the scrutiny you're getting for simply standing up for people who follow a different view.
you are right. almost none of the people who use he/him or view jax as cis are transphobes. They are just normal people who didn't catch on to the "subtle" (quote FROM gooseworx) implications.
everyone has their own views, and shouldn't be attacked for them.
some are transphobic, dont get me wrong, but that isnt everyone.
so in the long run, imma send you a digital hug. have a great day.
Thank you so much; this genuinely means a lot. 🫶
Messages like yours have been really rare lately, I'm very happy that you understood what I was actually trying to say 💜 (you know that gets annoying and a bit maddening to repeat the same thing differently over again because people don't understand but receive the same comments)
I've never believed that everyone who uses he/him for Jax or sees Jax as cis is transphobic (every time someone posts about Jax being cis, they delete their blog a little while later; no wonder why) (I’m talking as someone who sees Jax as nonbinary)
(There is some transphobia of course, but people should be able to make the difference….)
People can interpret a character differently, and that's okay; we shouldn't jump to conclusions about other people's intentions or attack them over a different interpretation about fiction
question about this whole situation, not meant to be hostile, but from what I’ve seen:
in your opinion, for something to be canon, would jax have literally had to stare at the camera and go “I am a transgender woman” for it to be enough?
No, not at all
For me there is a lot of room between "Jax looks into the camera and says 'I'm a transgender woman'" and "fans has to infer it from symbolism and creator comments"
Characters are established as things all the time without literally announcing them: It can happen through dialogue, how other characters refer to them, or events in the story that clearly communicate information to the viewers
My point has never been that Jax needed to give a speech about gender identity. My point is that, if the conclusion depends primarily on interpreting symbolism, metaphors, characters' reactions, or knowing what Gooseworx has said outside the show, then I don't think it's unreasonable that viewers relying only on the episodes don't come away with the same conclusion.
The thing about symbolism and metaphor is that they're open to interpretation. Different people can honestly read the same scene differently, especially if there isn't something in the text that clearly confirms one interpretation over the others.
That's why I distinguish between "the creator intended this," "this is a strong interpretation of the text," and "the episodes themselves establish this as canon." Those aren't necessarily the same thing, and different people use different standards for canon…
I disagree slightly on the Jax post, but only to add: having a girl’s room and the bow scene were meant to be explicit, but goose herself has an issue with writing consistency and allowing heavy scenes to BE heavy without cutting into them immediately with humor. The transgender allegory was definitely present, but it wasn’t at all focused on enough within the writing for many to pick up on the pattern (as well as neglecting a lot of other character writing in favor of this character’s focus seemingly midseries)
Tks for this comment :)
I think this is a good to frame it
And yeah, it's totally okay to disagree with parts of my post, that's kind of the point of having discussions about media. (I’m extremely disappointed with every in ep9 so yeah) I never have issue with people reading Jax as transfem or arguing it’s with the idea that anyone who didn't arrive at that conclusion from the episodes alone must be media illiterate or transphobic ..
If this was a major part of the character why didn’t she plant seed since ep1 instead of saying it at the end of the show… especially when it was THIS focused on Jax, like you can’t even she was lacking of time she had 3 years for saying it…
I’m so disappointed that other characters didn’t have enough time, for me, it just ended by all characters development (even Caine and Pomni) being rushed and Jax being too OOC…
lmao. your entire argument is that gooseworx wasn’t explicit enough in detailing jax’s being a transgender woman, but it was exceedingly obvious. that’s like saying gooseworx was too subtle about ragatha’s mom being abusive
You're arguing against a point I didn't make.
My argument wasn't "Gooseworx wasn't explicit enough for me."
My argument was that if a significant portion of the audience watched the show and didn't come away believing "Jax is canonically transfem," then it's unreasonable to treat those people like they're denying something that was plainly stated in the text.
Using Ragatha's mother as an example actually show clearly the difference.
The show directly depicts Ragatha's trauma, fear, and reactions. Viewers can point to scenes and dialogue in the work itself to support that reading
So I'll ask the same question I asked in my post:
Where in the episodes is Jax identified as a transgender woman?
Which scene?
Which line?
Which interaction?
Not "which scene can be interpreted that way."
Not "which scene makes more sense if you already know Gooseworx's comments."
Which scene, on its own, tells the audience that Jax is trans?
If your answer is "Gooseworx said so outside the show," that's fine. Some fans treat creator statements as canon. Others only count what's presented in the work itself. That's a longstanding fandom debate, not something I invented.
The point of my post wasn't "Trans Jax can't be canon."
The point was "People who only use the show's text as their definition of canon aren't automatically media illiterate or transphobic."
No other character identifies Jax as trans and here is no discussion of transition, gender history, or a former identity.
The conclusion depends on interpretation and/or external creator statements rather than explicit information in the episodes.
OP do you have any idea how Censored queer media is? There were literally theaters the show got pulled from because they felt the version we GOT was too heavy on queer themes.
Being trans is literally Illegal in some countries.
Have you ever noticed or paid attention to what happens to Movies or Tv shows that show LGBTQ+ individuals or relationships WITHOUT sensationalizing them like a zoo animal, turning them into a punchline, or watering them down so heavily people can shrug their shoulders and say "eh it doesn't count"
Steven Universe got pulled off the air because Rebecca Sugar wouldn't remove Garnet's lesbian wedding. She even specifically put Ruby in a dress and Sapphire in a tux and put lore-relevant things into those episodes, so that the countries who changed the dialogue to show Ruby as a man would either have to skip a story-relevant episode the next ones won't make sense without, or show a "man" in a dress.
In SVTFOE, the original concept had Marco as a trans girl who iirc, was going to discover herself during the series. The showrunners were told they'd be rejected outright if they didn't remove that part. So they did, because they were artists who wanted to make art. And there's nothing evil about that
Goose has VERY openly talked about the struggles with the industry and how it affects her creative freedom.
They WERE NOT ABLE to have Jax say "I'm a closeted trans woman and all that misogyny is a mix of hating myself for my repressed desires and hating my mother and-" Because The show Wouldn't have been allowed in any theaters. At all. Do you have any idea that transphobia is real? And systemic? And that we are lucky that this story was able to be shown at all, even if it couldn't be outright said?
It is absolutely 100% media illiterate to deny that Jax is not a cis character
The only reason they didn't make it "fully outright"
(youve got to be kidding me. "Isn't She Lovely" with a montage of Jax. The bow. What else could Jax have been talking about when Jax talked about the argument with Jax's mother????? The "little girl" style room Jax was put in?? Explain all of those extremely intentional details and how they somehow Aren't pointing to 🏳️⚧️.)
Is because movies and shows that outright humanize trans and queer characters are censored, or their makers are witchhunted to death by the "protect the children" crowd. Gooseworx was avoiding both as best as she could. Frankly I'm impressed she avoided both this well.
Do not pretend this is a media literate take when you didn't even consider the fact that Transphobia and Queerphobia exists in the real world and the film industry.
Trans Jax is canon. Headcanons are ok. But the canon is Jax is a closeted transfem. That's literally canon.
I agree that queer creators face censorship. This is a real problem, and there are many examples of LGBTQ+ stories being changed, toned down, or removed due to network standards, distributors, or international markets.
But that isn’t my point.
You are arguing why something might have been left unspoken. I’m arguing how audiences decide what’s in the text.
Those are different discussions.
You also mention that Gooseworx couldn’t make Jax openly trans because of censorship. However, tadc is an indie production, not a network TV show. It doesn't have the same restrictions as programs like Steven Universe or Star vs. the Forces of Evil.
More importantly, the show is already openly queer. Zooble is canonically nonbinary, and the series acknowledges that. If the production really couldn't mention transgender or gender-diverse characters due to censorship, we should question why Zooble's identity can be openly stated while Jax's supposedly had to remain completely implicit.
This doesn’t prove Jax isn’t trans. It just means that the censorship explanation alone doesn't answer the question.
If Gooseworx chose to use symbolism and coding instead of direct confirmation, that is a valid creative choice. However, it also means those elements are indirect rather than explicit.
That’s why I asked for an example from the episodes that identifies Jax as a transgender woman.
I don’t mean:
a scene that makes more sense if you already know Gooseworx's intentions,
an interpretation of symbolism,
or a statement made outside the show.
I want something in the episodes that tells the audience Jax is a transgender woman.
If the answer is that the show couldn’t say it outright, then we’re back to my original point: it’s understandable that viewers who only consider the show’s text don’t believe that’s canon.
That isn’t automatically transphobia, and it isn’t automatically media illiteracy. It’s just a different standard for what is considered canon.
You are also treating "Jax is trans-coded" and "the episodes show Jax as canonically a closeted transfem" as if they are the same claim.
They are not.
The first is an interpretation backed by coding, symbolism, and possibly creator intent.
The second is a claim that the text itself establishes it as fact.
Those require different levels of evidence.
If Gooseworx has confirmed that Jax is transfem outside the show, people are free to accept that as canon. Creator statements have always played a role in canon for many fandoms.
But it’s also a common view in literary criticism and fandom that some people differentiate between creator commentary ("Word of God") and what the work itself clearly presents.
That’s the distinction I’m making. I’m not denying that censorship exists. I’m not denying creator intent. I’m saying that people who define canon by what is actually shown in the episodes aren't automatically denying reality or acting from prejudice.
yeah, because that’s obviously something her mom would yell, laugh, and hug her over, something ribbit would give her a bow in response to, that she wouldn’t want kaufmo to hear, which explains why she visits what’s implied to be a gay bar in the real world, and why her abstraction has a song about the birth of a baby *girl*. i really hope you read some more difficult material and develop your critical thinking skills
That's a lot of confidence for someone who keeps arguing against a position I never took lmao
You're listing interpretations of scenes, symbolism, and creator intent. Cool for you, those are all valid ways to read a work
But notice how your argument keeps relying on implication rather than explicit confirmation: "It's implied. "It makes sense if..." "This symbolizes..."
That's exactly what interpretation is.
My question has remained the same through this entire conversation :
Which scene explicitly identifies Jax as a transfem within the episodes themselves?
Not a scene that supports your reading.
Not a scene that becomes obvious after reading Gooseworx's posts.
Not symbolism.
The scene.
If the answer is "there isn't one, but the creator confirmed it elsewhere," then we're back to the same fandom debate my original post was about: whether creator statements outside the work are part of canon.
You can answer "yes."
Other people answer "no."
Neither position was invented yesterday.
As for the "develop your critical thinking skills" bit, that's pretty funny coming from someone who's spent two replies arguing with a claim I explicitly said I wasn't making.
Maybe spend a little less time treating disagreements about a fictional rabbit like a moral emergency
I really hope you discover that fandom debates and interpreting fiction differently isn't a personal attack
Can we stop acting like everyone who doesn't immediately agree is committing a federal crime against media literacy?
Because apparently we've reached the point where saying "I don't personally consider that canon" gets you treated like you just kicked a puppy.
Here's the thing: People keep throwing around the word canon like it only has one universally accepted definition.
It doesn't.
Never has.
Fandom has been arguing about "Word of God" versus "Death of the Author" since fandoms exist.
Some people believe that if the creator says something outside the work, it's canon.
Some people believe the only canon is what's actually in the work itself.
Neither side invented this debate.
This is not a brand-new TADC-exclusive phenomenon.
It's literally one of the oldest fandom discussions on the internet
"But Gooseworx said—"
Yes.
I know.
Some people count creator statements as canon.
Some don't.
Congratulations 🎉 , you've discovered that fandom philosophy exists.
Now let's look at the actual show:
Where does anyone say Jax is trans?
Where does anyone mention transitioning?
Where does anyone reference another name?
Where does anyone use different pronouns?
Where does anyone say ANYTHING that explicitly tells the audience this?
...
Exactly.
So maybe, just maybe, the people who watched the show and concluded "Jax is a another gender than transfem" aren't actually delusional.
Maybe they just …watched the show.
Wild concept, I know.
"But the art!!"
Do you know how many artists post doodles?
Alternate universes?
Jokes?
"What if" scenarios?
Character redesigns?
Concept sketches?
Congratulations.
You have discovered artists 👍
When an artist posts an illustration, people asking "Is this canon?" is a completely normal question.
Not every drawing uploaded to social media is automatically in the show.
"But the VA said—"
Cool.
Voice actors are awesome.
Voice actors also aren't automatically the final authority on lore.
Sometimes they know everything.
Sometimes they know almost nothing.
Sometimes they joke.
Sometimes they accidentally spoil things.
Sometimes they misunderstand things.
It's perfectly reasonable for fans to ask where information comes from instead of treating every convention quote like it's carved into stone tablets by God.
"But it was supposed to be subtle!"
Okay...
Then why is everyone acting shocked that people didn't notice?
If your audience needs Bluesky posts, screenshots, Tumblr essays, reposted Discord messages, fourteen YouTube breakdowns, and a PowerPoint presentation to understand something...
...perhaps people missing it isn't the moral failure everyone keeps pretending it is.
The funniest part of this entire situation isn't even the discussion.
It's the absolute Olympic-level mental gymnastics some people are doing:
Person A:
"I personally don't see it as canon."
Fandom:
"So you hate trans people."
HUH???
How did we get from discussing fictional clowns to assigning strangers entire political identities because they have a different opinion about storytelling?
Do you know what's actually exhausting and maddening?
Watching people use "canon" like a gun.
Watching people tell artists to change fanart.
Watching people correct pronouns on fanworks that were made before any external statements.
Watching people dogpile someone because they said "I only follow what's in the show."
Watching people tell writers to change their fanfics
Watching people act like every disagreement is malicious.
You know what this fandom used to do?
Debate.
Now apparently every discussion has to end with someone getting called media illiterate, a bigot, or "problematic."
Can we maybe...not?
You think Trans Jax is canon?
Awesome.
You think creator statements count as canon?
Awesome.
You think only the episodes count?
Awesome.
You think the reveal should've been clearer?
Also awesome.
Those are all completely normal opinions to have about fiction.
The only opinion that isn't normal is deciding someone deserves harassment because they interpreted an intentionally subtle character differently than you did.
Touch some grass.
Drink some water.
Go draw your favorite rabbit
The internet will survive if some people says "I still read Jax as another gender."
Your definition of Canon is so narrow that by that standard Queenie isn't canonically Kinger's Wife nor are Gangle and Zooble a couple by series's end.
That comparison doesn't really work.
Queenie being Kinger's wife is explicitly established in the show.
Gangle and Zooble, I ship them, but they also aren't canonically a couple by the end of ep9 as it’s in the credit, so I'm not sure why you're using that as an example.
My standard isn't "characters have to stare into the camera and explain everything." It's simply that I distinguish between what's established in the work itself and what's established outside of it.
Those examples are either explicitly in the show or factually incorrect. They don't contradict the point I was making.
I was just debating about an opinion without insulting anyone.
You responded by telling me to "shut the fuck up."
I think that speaks for itself and pretty much proves the point I was making. If you read my post and felt personally called out, you might want to ask yourself why.
what else do you think jax could’ve told her mom in response to her comparing her to her dad, which was followed by her abstracting while a song about the birth of a girl plays
I'm way tooooo tired to explain this over and over again, so here's a quote from someone who had enough courage to put my thoughts into words:
Self-worth confession: “I feel like I’m a disappointment.” “I don’t think I matter.” “I don’t think I’m good enough for anything.”
Masculinity / identity insecurity (non-trans-specific): “I don’t feel I can be like dad .”, “I can’t be strong like you want.” , I don’t feel like I’m the man you want me to be.”,I dont want to be like him.”
Abandonment / father-related wound: “I miss Dad.”, “I think he didn’t care about me.”, “I wish he stayed.” (His mother could easily mock this blaming him saying that it’s bc he too fragile)
Admits emotional instability: “I can’t deal with this anymore.” “I feel like I’m breaking.”
Social isolation confession “I don’t think anyone actually likes me.”, “I feel alone all the time.”
I'm not linking or naming their post because, judging by the kind of attention my blog has been attracting lately, I don't want to send unnecessary hate their way.
