While I can definitely see Jax as a cautionary tale about not opening up to change and bettering themselves, I felt like this idea could have been represented in a better manner. To have a confirmed suicidal character abstract rather than to grow as a person, especially in a show with themes of mental health and finding meaning in life, feels tragic and not in a meaningful sense. It feels tragic for the sake of tragedy, rather than intertwining with what the early show was praised for.
I feel like this would have worked better if the show didn’t spend so much time focusing on Jax, which came at the cost of the other character’s arcs and development. If Jax was always meant to be an irredeemable person, the series should have put more focus on the characters who did want to better their health and relationships rather than giving all the focus on the person who didn’t. We could have focused on Kinger’s grief over his wife and why is mental state is the way it is. We could have focused on Ragatha’s grief over literally and metaphorically losing her friends, as well as her trauma response due to her mother. We could have focused on Gangle’s mania and the trauma she endured due to Jax. We could have focused on Zooble’s self-image issues and them missing their old life.
I am not arguing that Jax is a good person. Far from it actually. However, I did think that Jax and the people he’s hurt (especially Ragatha and Gangle) did not deserve an ending where he dies. An ending where he is killed off (where his character is denied redemption and his victims are denied closure) does not mend well with the show’s central theme of mentally healing and finding emotional support.
