Alright, it's time for me to rip the bandaid off...oh good lord, I can just feel all of the fandom ripping me to shreds.
Here we go...my main issue with TJ2 is that Tess's role feels forced and Aiden could've filled this so much better.
Now before I get into this, I would like to preface this by saying that I adore both of these characters. I love Tess and she's a very relatable character while Aiden...I cannot express how much I adore and I could go on how much the writers screwed him over in All-Stars.
But that's not the point here. I'm just going to go over why I personally feel like this is forced. Just note that this is my opinion and I can be in the wrong here, so feel free to share your thoughts.
Let's start with Tess...oh Tess, what can I say about you? I'm glad you're doing something but it's very off to me, I honestly would've preferred if you just...didn't appear in this spin-off at all. You should've just...sat out and locked in for DC5. I mean, hey, the more Tess content the better but I can't help but roll my eyes here.
From the get-go, seeing Tom and Jake check in on her was...odd. I don't recall any major interactions and to me, there was really no reason to. Then again, the TomJake spin-off always had this weird "power of friendship" thing going on.
Tess and Tom...a friendship and dynamic that for some reason, I absolutely despise. Watching them have their bonding scene, Tom talk about confronting the past to her and Gabby (in which the latter makes sense) and who knows what Ep 3 is going to do left such a sour taste in my mouth as none of their connection felt genuine to me.
To be a major character in TomJake, there's a criteria that's clearly set...you HAVE to have a relation to Tom and/or Jake of some sort whether that be a rival or a friend.
Tess...she doesn't have that and there are plenty other characters who are more deserving of this role than her (Aiden will get his own thing).
Ashley had a whole friendship with Jake that was developed throughout All-Stars and despite having little to no moments with Tom, they've started to have a developing dynamic. Not only that but Ashley herself has dealt with issues in her past, burning down her whole farm is a reminder of her wrecklessness. She could give Tom some good advice and share her story which would be interesting.
Grett had a WHOLE thing with Tom and it barely gets touched upon in All-Stars. TomJake 2 could've been the perfect opportunity to develop their dynamic and watch it change from being enemies to becoming semi-friends. Grett also has a past she is ashamed of and she could've helped Tom, not only that but it would've been a big bonus for GabGrett fans (such as myself). A trio of Gabby, Grett, and Tom would've been incredible to watch.
But why? Why Tess of all characters? I think I have an answer to that...we needed a Season 2 character to play a role in TomJake. Yet of all the characters they chose...they chose Tess. A character with no connection to TomJake at all. Great. Way to go.
If you need a Season 2 character to play such role, Aiden was right there. I mean, he's in the opening AND the crowd-funding poster for a reason, right?
Now I know people, especially those on dctwt, would be highly annoyed at me because they have a hate boner for Aiden and they may call me biased since I am well know for loving the E-boy. But let's consider this...
Aiden has a pre-established and underdeveloped relationship with Tom.
I know...shocking. Aiden's relationship with Tom was due to well...the whole TomJake which already makes this friendship feel less genuine. It absolutely sucks as these two share a lot in common and every single moment was just Tom venting about Jake.
Now, can you imagine that this season of TomJake can properly expand upon this existence of the Tomden dynamic? The two can share a bond that can reach to DC5 as well (which having Aiden in DC5 is a whole can of worms I can talk about some other day). By extension, Tom and Aiden have shown to be close enough to where Tom can open up about his past. It'd be really nice to see Aiden and Tom bond over being introverts where they talk about their social battery. Any type of genuine bond could work so well with Tomden and hey, there could be a moment where they get to bond over their scars (which Aiden being an introvert is a THING...ONC, don't think I know what you all are trying to erase...)
Aiden's personality could work well here since he's already helped out Tom before with his issues back in All-Stars. He's always been the listener type despite being irrational times (ex: James and Jake) and he can give advice, I mean, look at his scenes with Lake in the BETA.
Think about the possibilties of Aiden helping Tom confront his past with Gabby alongside the two boys; not only would it be good for Aiden and Gabby since they never really got moments together and they could finally fix a bridge that broke due to Ellie's early exit in All-Stars, exploring the potential dynamic of those two but for Aiden and Tom, the two could grow stronger.
And since Aiden already has strong connections to both Tom and Jake, it would just feel right to give this character who has such a major role in their story and them getting to their happy ending, a major role in their spin-off as well! Alas, we can never get good things for him...except for the DC2 remake which made me love this character even more.
But hey, that's just my opinion. Feel free to share yours! If you want, I can rewrite TomJake s2 or at least share a version with my take on it.
And who knows? Maybe Aiden does play a major role later down the line and they gatekept it for a reason! Maybe my issue will be fixed if Aiden does play a major role! It would suck though to have one of TomJake's major players be in the background for their spin-off for the second time.
