I got most of my venting about TADC out of my system, but one more thing I gotta say
All that to say, I was comparing the finale of TADC to the finale of a show that I really love and hold in high regard: Gravity Falls.
Yeah, it's a little unfair to compare a show from an indie studio to one from a much bigger company for multiple reasons, but just hear me out.
GF has one of the most action packed, satisfying, and emotionally compelling finale episodes that I've ever watched in a show. The episode is well paced, balancing the tension of the first half with the emotionally heartwarming second half.
Stan's sacrifice and subsequent memory loss does get reversed, but the pacing is what makes it carry emotional weight. The show allows the sacrifice to simmer, to let both the audience and the characters sit in the grief from losing such a beloved character. So when his memory does come back, there's not only a sense of relief but also satisfaction.
TADC's finale doesnt let those moments sink in.
The characters arent given room to truly react to anything really. Caine's death, the disintegrated circus, the hopelessness of the situation, and then the reveal of them being brain scans. All of it is crammed together, taking up maybe 3 minutes of screen time before we see the cast conjuring together, mere seconds of narrative levity before Jax abstracts.
(I'm gonna skip over the Jax backstory stuff because frankly, I find it adds nothing to the narrative)
I don't think it's biased to say that Caine should have gotten WAY more focus in this episode, considering the decision to "revive" and redeem him.
It's his deletion that sets the finale in motion, but the characters just...dont react to this at all. Sure Jax gets upset, but only because of how it worsens their current situation. Emotionally, they dont seem to care that Caine straight up died.
Unlike Bill in GF, Caine isn't a villain - he's an antagonist in the sense that his oblivious nature made him unintentionally bring emotional distress to the humans trapped in the circus, despite his intentions being to bring them joy and happiness. Prior to his disasterous adventure in episode 7 and his crashout in episode 8, the cast see him more as a mild nuisance than anything. He was someone they all knew and interacted with every single say, some of them even knowing him for years or even decades. But we get no reaction to his death, and only mild caution when he's revealed to still be alive.
And on top of that, the story itself doesnt even allow for the death to sink in. He dies, we spend basically 30 minutes focusing mainly on Jax, and then out of nowhere Caine is shown to be alive in the void. The rest of the cast dont even spare him a passing thought prior to this reveal.
Hell, I wouldnt blame anybody watching if they had just straight up forgot that he died. Caine's death is treated as inconsequential by the narrative AND the characters, despite it being the catalyst for the finale.
And the only way the narrative can achieve that happy ending is by bringing Caine back from the dead.
To loop GF's finale back into this, it would be like if Stan's regained memories had been revealed in say the last 5 minutes after spending 20 minutes on a flashback to Robby or Gideon's childhoods.
I'm sure it's not intentional, but discarding Caine only to to bring him back because the ending just doesnt work without him, feels kinda gross. His role in the circus hasnt really changed. He's still not really allowed to be a person, but a tool for the others to get their Happy Ending.
Words are no longer enough to capture the tragedy my family and I endure.
My name is Wedad Shadi, I am 15 years old, and I live in Gaza, Palestine.🇵🇸
Our home was completely destroyed, and now we live in a torn, fragile tent. We are a family of 7, and my mother, father, and my little sister Mira were injured when our house was bombed.
As shown in the video, we are searching for our clothes in our destroyed home.
My mother and Mira are in urgent need of medical treatment, but we have nothing to pay for their care, not even food to survive.
My mother and my sister were injured during the war. I am terrified of losing them… please, don’t leave me without my mother and sister. They need urgent help to survive.
They desperately need medicine and medical treatment, as shown in the videos. Every moment without help is a struggle for their lives.
Please, I beg you… save them, help us, and give them a chance to live. 🙏💔
I have started school, but I could not register because I cannot afford the fees.
Please, I beg you to help us. Donate to save my mother and my innocent little sister before it’s too late. Every contribution can save a life and bring hope to a family in desperate need.
Every day we wake up to the same reality: destroyed homes, no safety, no stability, and needs that keep growing.
People think the pain paused… but for us, it never did.
Even with a so-called “ceasefire,” nothing has really stopped.
The explosions, the drones, the fear — the violations never ended.
And our suffering definitely didn’t.
Your support is the only reason many of us manage to keep going.
Your donation 🙏🙏 — no matter how small — can mean medicine, food, warmth, and a little bit of dignity in a life that’s been stripped of everything.
Please, stand with us. Don’t let this struggle fade from the world’s attention.
We still desperately need you to get back on our feet.
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Hello, my name is Mickey from Michigan USA and I am raising funds for Wedad… Mickey Dee needs your support for Support Wedad's Journey to Sa
I am Hamza from Gaza, a husband and father of four children. Before the war, I worked and provided for my family, and we lived a simple but
I am Hamza from Gaza, a husband and father of four children. Before the war, I worked and provided for my family, and we lived a simple but stable life. Since the war began, everything has changed. We were displaced many times, and our home was eventually completely destroyed, leaving us without shelter or stability.
During this period, I was seriously injured in my hand while trying to obtain food for my children, which left me unable to work and in need of surgery I cannot afford. My young daughter Amira was also injured and urgently needs medical treatment. We have lost relatives, our home, and all our belongings, and we are now living in a tent under very harsh conditions. My youngest daughter, Aya, was born during the war and needs basic supplies and care.
I created this campaign to seek support for my family — to help cover urgent medical treatment, food, and essential needs for my children. Any support, no matter how small, can make a real difference and give my family hope for a safer, more dignified life. 🤍
Welcome to my new AU! Here's an overview for now, I eventually want to expand on it but here's the rough concepts! Caine and Kinger are the two main focuses of the AU, similar to how Rocky and Dr. Grace are the two main focuses in PHM. The other circus members have roles in the lore but are not as important as they are in canon TADC (at least they aren't my main focus, but I make sure to give them all something!).
This is a bit long so it's under a read more, but I'm including a lot of lore!
Caine: Caine fills a similar role as Rocky, though some aspects are changed. He comes from a separate planet who noticed the dimming earlier than earth. His original crew was meant to be larger, but many died early into the mission leaving Caine and Abel (a minor character) as the sole survivors and actors of the mission. Abel eventually dies in a freak accident which Caine blames himself for. He's been lost in space for quite a long time now alone (he lost count of the years), unable to fully complete his mission due to dwindling resources, but too determined to give up.
When he meets Kinger he's ecstatic despite the language barrier. He's quick to start creating symbols, tools and knickknacks to help overcome the barrier. His planet's technology is more advanced in some ways but lacks the same precision that earth's technology has (fairly similar to how it is in PHM). He and Kinger end up working together to save their individual planets, though they get up to many shenanigans along the way!
Kinger: Kinger fills a similar role as Dr. Grace, with Kinger being a code name of sorts. Far before being sent to space him and Queenie both were respected scientists in their fields before an experiment gone wrong killed Queenie (and/or they separated in some manner), and Kinger largely left the scientific community.
His specialty was an intersection between phenomenology and ethics towards extended life forms (aka hypothetical aliens), and computer programming (not specifically AI). He worked at a school teaching social sciences and/or computer programming and was contacted by Scratch (replacing the role of Eva Stratt) to join the mission as there were concerns about the dimming of the sun being caused by an alien presence.
Queenie: Similar to TADC canon, she's dead and mildly haunts the narrative. She's one of the first people Kinger remembers after he wakes up on the Hail Mary alone and his memories of her helps keep him stable after being forced into space.
Scratch: Filling a role similar to Eva Stratt and being the Head of the international task force behind the mission, Scratch is somewhat distance, abstract, and doesn't mesh well with others but his pattern of thinking solves problems before they even arise. He specifically offered Kinger the chance to join the mission because he believes that if there's a chance the dimming is purposefully caused by an outside alien force, that having someone that understands consciousness beyond the human perspective could help with a smoother, less violent first contact. Kinger's skills in programming only further qualify him.
Like Grace, however, Kinger wasn't initially intended to actually go to space, so Kinger's role was more speculative. Despite this, Scratch purposefully included Kinger in as many meetings as possible as a backup plan, so to speak. Part of Scratch's urgency/determination with the mission comes from his brain tumour giving him a limited time left on the planet, and he wants to help save humanity before whatever time he has left runs out (Kinger sympathizes with him on this, and they have some sort of friendship almost forming, though still distant).
The rest of the original TADC cast (aka Bizco, Rattie, Spike, and Wormo): They're all scientists and/or have some role in the international task force behind the Project Hail Mary mission, though none of them are picked to actually be on the ship. They're all tied to various governments and aid in developing earth's understanding of what's going on with the sun dimming. They and Kinger end up working together a lot and forming some level of friendship before he's sent to space.
The other abstracted TADC cast (aka Kaufmo and Ribbit): Both Kaufmo and Ribbit would be people in training to be backup astronauts for the mission, but something went awry during training and they died. While Kinger was never all that close to the back up crew being trained for the mission, he's the one that encourages everyone to hold a small funeral for their loses before everyone returns to focusing on the mission.
The main TADC cast (aka Gangle, Jax, Pomni, Ragatha, and Zooble): They're all part of the crew meant to go to space! Jax was originally part of the backup astronauts team prior to the explosion that killed them before working more closely with the main crew. Pomni is the newest recruit brought on as a secondary pilot. Originally they were going to do a 3 person crew like in PHM, but after the incident that killed Kaufmo and Ribbit they expanded the count to help mitigate the risk to the mission if anyone dies. The new structure is roughly 2 mechanics (for safety), 1 main pilot, 1 main scientist, and Pomni who's mainly a scientist but also trained as a pilot just in case.
They all end up working more closely with Kinger after the Kaufmo-Ribbit incident, though Kinger is still fairly separate from the group. It's either Gangle or Jax that ends up being unable to board the ship in the end, forcing Kinger to take their place. Unfortunately, if you know PHM, this means that the rest die during the journey to Tau Ceti system.
Moving away from the angst, let's get to some more fun details!
Kinger still has memory issues similar to in TADC, though less extreme, caused by the sedatives Scratch used to force him onto the Hail Mary. He regains some of his memories, but large chunks of his past (unrelated to his education) remains hazy to him. The lighting from Caine's ship/used by Caine's species ends up exaggerating his memory issues, adding to their communication difficulties. They do get over this though and figure out a system!
To get an understanding on memory, visualization, strategic planning, and sociability, Kinger tries playing chess with Caine fairly early on before they have full communication capabilities. Once they communicate better, Kinger ends up describing various board games that Caine recreates and adds his own spins to for them to play!
Caine creates a lot similar to Rocky! The material he uses is far more colourful and he's able to create in more detail.
His species also have a form of mind-communication where they can swiftly transfer abstract information to each other. The only time Caine tried initiating this with Kinger lead to Kinger being "stuck" in an "adventure" for a short while (though he learned lots!). It also made his memory issues worse for a while, so they agree to never do it again. <- This point I don't know if I'll fully keep, but it's an interesting concept?
Everyone's name is a code word of some sort due to the high stakes nature of the mission. Due to his memory issues Kinger can't remember anyone's original name. Theoretically they have them, but who's to say what they were?
Caine fully adapted to zero gravity and quite enjoys floating around! The gravity on his home planet is less than earth's, so he adapts far better to it than Kinger does
They do end up saving their planets, don't worry about that!
Kinger finds the open, whimsical way Caine's mind works to be fascinating and finds comfort in the lack of judgment natural to Caine's culture/species. Caine finds a similar thing in Kinger, and joy in finally having someone around after being alone for so long
Due to them both experiencing something no one else really has, they end up staying very close even after the mission is over
That's my early thoughts about it, I have more I'm thinking up for this AU still though! I'm thinking of writing a fic for this, though I might try my hand at art if I can :p
I write to you with a broken heart: I will not forget those who see my plea and ignore it. My child is withering away before my eyes, and my strength as a mother is no longer enough to save him alone. Please—help me, share, and donate now. Don't let your silence cause me to lose my child.
My child lives in a tent lacking the most basic necessities, in harsh conditions unsuitable for his health. With each passing day, his suffering increases and his health is put at greater risk. Every moment that passes means more pain for him. Please, your donation could be the reason his life is saved.
I am Hamza from Gaza, a husband and father of four children. Before the war, I worked and provided for my family, and we lived a simple but
I am Hamza from Gaza, a husband and father of four children. Before the war, I worked and provided for my family, and we lived a simple but stable life. Since the war began, everything has changed. We were displaced many times, and our home was eventually completely destroyed, leaving us without shelter or stability.
During this period, I was seriously injured in my hand while trying to obtain food for my children, which left me unable to work and in need of surgery I cannot afford. My young daughter Amira was also injured and urgently needs medical treatment. We have lost relatives, our home, and all our belongings, and we are now living in a tent under very harsh conditions. My youngest daughter, Aya, was born during the war and needs basic supplies and care.
I created this campaign to seek support for my family — to help cover urgent medical treatment, food, and essential needs for my children. Any support, no matter how small, can make a real difference and give my family hope for a safer, more dignified life. 🤍
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