I feel like what needs to be addressed is how what modmad is now asking for is not as easy as it sounds. I don't think asking for changes in the design is going to be as possible and simple as fans let on, and as someone coming to this situation as a fan of modmad and their work since 2017, while I very much care for their health and wellbeing, I find these recent statements to come from a place of misunderstanding of SMG4 and GLITCH's practices and industry.
If the show's direction is anything like the Amazing Digital Circus, changing one rig or model will not fix the entire show. Multiple scenes could use customized models and rigs of the same character to achieve certain expressions and actions. The amount of effort that would go into painstakingly updating and re-rendering scenes would cost the production team so much more time and money. We don't know how much of the show is already finished, and having them change the design can undo months of hard work. When Digital Circus released their announcement video stating that they were picked up for a full show, the series had been in production long enough to have fully rendered scenes be shown from up to episode 4, with progress on episode 5 being teased.
This is also a company that likes to create a lot of different pieces of merchandise and have it available to be purchased right when a new episode premieres. If this show does the same, they would need to get in contact with the company and factories that handle the merchandise, toss anything they've already made and start production on anything tweaked. This is even more money and time down the drain.
And if they were to make these changes, they would most likely have to issue a delay. No matter what SMG4 and GLITCH could say about this, it will cause harassment to come modmad's way. Even if they did not give a concrete reason, this situation has blown up enough to where some fans could connect the dots. Not every fan of Mr. Puzzles is on Tumblr or keeping up with the drama, and those that might look into it after seeing the news will...Unfortunately be coming at this situation seeing modmad's less than professional posts and statements with an already negative attitude.
As much as modmad has made their intentions and stress clear in later posts and as genuine as I believe their distress to be, outsiders could and most likely will make the assumption that modmad is being dishonest and manipulative. Their oversharing and hiatus of their biggest works will leave those unfamiliar with modmad to believe they're truly holding their works hostage and intentionally putting everything on the line in order to force SMG4 to bend the knee. It's a very wrong way to see the situation, but an inevitable one.
And god forbid anyone then looks into modmad's Toonkind DnD campaign. The designs of the characters in that property alone could get people suddenly accusing modmad of hypocrisy, no matter how unwarranted that claim is.
Okay, I wrote, and wrote, and worte, and clocked in that my phrasing got more and more heated during it. Which sounded like I would be attacking you personally, but actually that's not the case : I was more thinking of a certain group of people that you have nothing to do with, but will probably read this post. I admit I got more emotive when writing, because the situation has been taking a toll, we're soon on 3 weeks, and as you can see I often put huge efforts in answering.
All this to say : if my phrasing gets more direct and snippy, I'm not aiming at you personally, that's not my intend. I'm addressing a general audience and talking about how I feel things regarding some people's behavior.
Alright, let's go through it point by point :
Changing the designs is not as easy as it sounds : that's true, but since CAV seems still very fresh, there's still a possibility that things can change in time, IF they were to change. As Mod still has some experience as an animator, they asked for no changes on the rig or the whole model, just small things on Mr Puzzles' face (it doesn't take a whole week to change the angle of the dials, and rework Mr Puzzles' smile's order of colors and add a few detail, I think ?). Which means that the animators don't have to remake a whole model or skeletal structure for him, just change details, the same way TADC does when updating the characters' models (Jax's fur texture and color, Gangle's ribbons, and most of all Bubble, who looks more and more like a realistic bubble each episode or almost).
So... kinda what animators already do on the regular.
It's not easy but it's still easier since the show is still in production.
Redoing the scenes, I agree, will take more time - I'm no expert on how 3D animation works, but, well, there's always a time between the pilot episode or the announcement of a show, and the series starting properly (ex : Hazbin Hotel - Pilot was out in 2019 and the first episode of the series in 2024, so around 5 years later). Things got time to change in-between, scenes got added, remade or scrapped, because that's how production works (I'm an artist and come from an art degree - literally, comics. So on that one I know how production of a comic goes, and animation is not that far away in terms of storyboarding, changing scenes at the last minute, and so on).
And the budget accounts for that.
TADC is a case where the show was already picked up for an episodic series, and as you said, we have no idea how far in production things are now with CAV for now, so I can't say either. From my POV, it is feasible though if CAV is on the beginnings of production. If it's not, another solution will have to be found : either SMG4 makes an explanative video along with Mod that they're aware of the controversy, acknowledge Mod's rights and IP and that RGB predates Mr Puzzles and both have nothing to do with another, it's all a huge coincidence, so stop harrassing Mod for that already, or IF it isn't coincidence (if the legal parties estimate that there has been copyright infringement), then Mod receives account for profit, or compensation of damage : basically, a percentage of the income goes to them.
Or, simply, give the credits : a way for them to pay nothing would be to recognize RGB as Mr Puzzles' inspiration, and since it falls under "homage", it falls under fair use. Just like parodies (what they've been doing for Mario). So, NO LOSS OF MONEY.
On the merch : yep, on that one it'll be hard to "undo" it all, I fully agree, but since merch is made by batches or on demand, they can rectify the next bunch of batches, or do a call-back on the merch (that's IF Mr Puzzles has the small changes), or again put up a disclaimer (that infamous "any resemblance with a third party is purely coincidental") or IF the legal party estimates there has been copyright infringement, then same as above.
Yeah, it'll be money and time down the drain. But this is also what happened with Glitch and the KoG sticker issue : the artist wasn't given credit (so, a case of copyright infringement), they apologized, and rectified things.
So this has already happened at least once and it didn't sunk them.
Same thing could be done here again : give Mod the inspirational credits, and no loss of money, since that's what's on some people's minds the most, apparently.
I agree that it's tricky, but a solution could be found to make all parties okay if a direct dialogue was established between the two so they could talk things out. What we've been trying to reach since the beginning, here.
On receiving hate again : that one in particular always makes me chuckle, no offense - I've seen that been tossed around as an argument, and, well...
We're already up to our neck in hate.
We'll receive hate anyway, no matter what happens, no matter if Glitch/SMG4 wins, no matter if Mod wins, no matter if both parties win (which is what I'm wishing here), no matter who loses. Cube's statement was very helpful in having at least something to use as a shield (stop the deniers and make people calm down, also to know where Cube personally stands), but it's not a long-term solution.
(Note that there can be any combination of solutions (free/costly) and win/losses here, but I'm giving the big ones I can make hypothetical eventualities of. Not saying they'll happen necessarily, or that one case or the other is the truth, this is just what-if scenarios)
Glitch never responds or decides to never answer ?
=>We'll receive hate. Nothing changes, and it just keeps going forever just like it has been doing.
Mod loses/Glitch wins and Mod has to pay funds ?
=>We'll receive hate (people going "ha in your face told you, if you just shut up and let yourself be hated in peace this wouldn't happen, haha die poor [insert vile insults here]"). Nothing changes - hate will just keep going forever like it has since 2 years, coming back each time someone goes "hey isn't that Mr Puzzles/RGB actually ?".
Mod loses/Glitch wins and there's no funds to be paid ?
=>We'll receive hate ("how dare you, see, you've lost everyone's time, happy now [insert vile insults here] ?!"). Nothing changes and hate will keep going forever.
Mod wins/Glitch wins, all similarities were coincidental with no innocent plagiarism (no changes to Mr Puzzles), they find any form of agreement and hopefully issue a statement that RGB and Mr Puzzles have nothing to do with each other, RGB was there first, now stop harrassing the creator already ?
=>We'll receive hate because people decided to be entitled anyway ("you forced my fave creators to do that happy you have your attention now you can stop milking it for all it's worth, what's next, asking Toby Fox or Vivzie [insert vile insults here] ?!"), and it might die down a bit, but will come back each time someone will ask why the hell RGB and Mr Puzzles look so similar. Which means both sides will receive the question again, and the mess might start all over again. The statement will make it easier to disrupt though.
Mod wins/Glitch loses, similarities were found to be innocent plagiarism. Whatever they choose or the law chooses (amicable arrangement - free/recognizing RGB as an inspiration of Mr Puzzles and give credits - free/account of profits - monetary or royalties compensation), whether or not Mr Puzzles undergoes changes ?
=>We'll receive hate, because some pissbabies will scream since, y'know, self-entitlement ("RAHAGAGHGGG how dare you touch Mr Puzzles get cancelled I'd rather have you be unable to draw because I prioritize a fictional character [insert vile insults here]"). Might be a bit more tolerable, but if Mr Puzzles doesn't change, same crap all over again every episode of CAV out.
If Mr Puzzles does change, the hate will come back one final time, but nobody can reanimate it by confusing the two ever again. It'll suck for a while, but we'll know there'll be an end to this, and we can finally be at peace.
Mod wins/Glitch loses, the plagiarsim wasn't innocent, Mr Puzzles changes as compensation of damages ?
=>We'll receive hate (same as above), BUT it will die down over time and nobody will confuse one for the other as much ever again. So the hate will come back one final time, then die down, thanks to legal proof issued, and we can finally be at peace.
Mod wins/Glitch loses, the plagiarism was fully intentional, compensation of damages, additional damages, Mr Puzzles changes, etc etc etc ?
=>We'll receive hate because the haters love to blow their top anyway ("you [insert vile insults here, generally same as above] !!!!!!"). One final wave, against which we can defend ourselves with the legal proof issued, and then we can finally be at peace.
In EVERY possible scenario, even those I don't have or didn't think of, we WILL be harrassed. So, when people say "yeah Mod better not do it, the hate might come back", the hate never left. It just reached peaks, but it never left. It's like deciding to turn the grill to 11 instead of the usual 8 or 9 (and it has already happened twice) - for Mod, it has never been 0 since two years. Also, outsiders already were and are making assumptions : proof, a lot of stuff already going around thinking Mod wants money and sue Glitch when it's NOT the case.
Hate will always rear back. Only, in some scenarios, we can face it one final time, one last push, and then know it'll be way more manageable and over or with way lesser risks to come back.
If we lose, it won't change anything for us - just continuous grilling. So when some people say "Mod better not do it, the hate might come back", I think they're just more afraid to see something happen to their beloved fictional character (who CAN'T be cancelled) because they don't like change (IF he has to change), than a real person's well-being.
And if the resulting thought is "well, if it ain't gonna change and you still receive hate all the same, why don't you just ignore all that and leave SMG4 out of this, huh ?"
First of all, that's just victim-shaming. As if I were saying 'Well, if you're gonna be hit anyway, why don't you stop asking the police for help ?' And, trust me, I've been abused for 23 years. I've heard a LOT of stuff like that. This is just 'suck it up and shut it' mentality.
Now who wants to sit through that daily, for life ?
(Please don't take the following as if I was talking to you, the asker, directly. I'm more addressing the skeptics and haters here)
"Just ignore it" ? Mod has been trying for two years. It came back twice, and it will come back again.
"Block and report" ? Well there's a reason these people are anon, and doing that takes a good chunk of the day, each day. Plus people can make multiple accounts, and yes, those are multiple people. It's like going 1v100 against a horde of zombies with a keyboard.
"Just push through, make your comics to forget them" ? They literally threaten to get you cancelled, and keep saying you're the plagiarist - artists, especially smaller, indie ones, can get absolutely CORKED by bad rumors, they need every possible unit of money they can get. If people spread bad stuff, you're out of a job. And if anyone bigger than you wants to sue you just for shits and giggles, you're defenseless. Also, trust me, very hard to create when depression strikes. Depression caused by the very people preventing you to create, and make your disability even worse (chronic pains + pain linked to stress). Snake biting its tail.
"Just overcome it" ? Do I need to dignify that with a response ? Because that's quite ableist.
"Why don't you ask for help" ? Well the therapist isn't gonna save your living situation. Especially if you need money to pay them and you can't make it because you were bullied into depression, with your main source of income on hiatus because of it.
"Just do another job, then !" Which one, given the disability in question ? Also, you love your job, which you had since 13 years now, and it's at risk because of hate and silence surrounding your situation. I thought the goal was to 'push through' ? And the other job won't go any better due to said depression.
So, if the hatred doesn't stop (and hasn't for years), if it's all gonna come back in cycles as long as nothing changes, if trying to solve things discreetly didn't worked, if we can't ask the creators of the character for help to reach a solution together, as the design of their character is the root source of the situation (although the haters are the problem, fully agree), what are we supposed to do then ?
Yeah well Mod already did that once and it ruined their mental health to the point of almost not coming back.
Because, another thing I want to point out, is that at the very worst, SMG4/Glitch will just lose money. They're a studio with many successful series now, they can rebound back (or do their own kickstarter/crowdfunding). As for PR and image, their silence hasn't been helping at all already (but maybe, maybe they're going over things with lawyers... there's still the matter of that unanswered legal letter), but it can still be saved : visibly some people don't care much about it, they just want their entertainment.
And Mod does NOT want money, they made that clear :
So, if Glitch/SMG4 directly losing money is a lot of people's concern, well, that's not even gonna happen. (Plus, they already did have an oops or two on some problems, and like said, they're still around). So yes, everybody's favorite shows will keep rolling around, yes, everybody's favorite character will still be there (maybe with small details changed), and if there's a delay, well... some shows do have delays for other reason, it won't be the death of anyone.
There's a huge power and situational inbalance here : on one side, a production studios who might risk losing some amount of time (can't tell how much), and maybe money indirectly due to it, but it's stuff they can rebound back from more easily as a company and maybe there's not even the need for that if the parties involved talk together and meet half-way : for example, a statement video detailing the whole affair properly and officially citing and acknowledging Mod's rights and IP, that RGB was there first, and that Mr Puzzles and him have nothing to do together. They'll still have livelihood, PR, reach, comfort, mental health, financial support and income. If there's a pocket hole, it's gonna get patched up quick.
On the other side, there's a 1-person team, and indie disabled cartoonist at risk of losing everything - the haters, and the design of Mr Puzzles being too similar to RGB, directly endangers them as an indie creator : people will see RGB and think it's Mr Puzzles, dismiss him as something already seen, tanking crucial visibility points and thus income away from them. And that's without the sheer toll it's all taking : mentally, physically, psychologically. Glitch has a lot of series earning them money. Mod has TPoH mainly, and it just went on hiatus because of the whole situation.
If people are more afraid that a show gets delayed or a character changed rather than someone losing their whole livelihood, I wonder where their priorities are.
It's not even an unrelated thing out of nowhere : Glitch is owned by SMG4, the creators of Mr Puzzles. They are the best people to solve this mess and give it the best possible outcome for everyone.
Maybe, as many people pointed out, they can't properly say anything due to Non-Disclosure Agreements. But they at least could have sent someone from their legal team to tell Mod that, and, well, answer their attempts to reach out and their legal letter from 2 years ago.
Note : that's the only thing I'm holding against them, I do not hate Glitch, I do not think they're the bad guys (I'm a fan of TADC, among other shows !). When I'm pointing out they are the most well-off no matter what happens, it's not out of spite to them, it's to address certain people out there on the net thinking and acting like Mod suing Glitch (wrong, they don't want to) is gonna bring them down crashing and cancel shows.
Literally, this can't happen.
On Mod's professionalism/posts/Toon DnD : addressing the latter first, literally Toon DnD is showcasting characters from other franchises (like the Conductor of Hat in Time) in the same way people would make a non-profit, non-lucradive AMV featuring Warrior Cats and WC OCs. Or writing fanfics. The characters' likenesses are represented in their entirety, and some with more creative liberties but clearly looking like a copyrighted character fall under "homage" or "parody" (aka "fair use", just like SMG4 did for Mario) - so, totally agreeing with you here that people of extremely bad faith would just use that as an argument... yet again, they're already doing that anyway. Same for the "taking the coming hostage" thing - see above for the list of 'arguments'.
On the oversharing thing... I'm not sure what you mean. If you mean these the ones where they talk about their mom, or that time with the pain medication ? (Apparently that one was a private ask, they accidentally hit public then changed it quickly). I'm gonna answer both that and the professionalism thing in the same following, I think :
Mod has multiplied the posts where they apologize ("sorry for the continued delay of TPoH", "sorry for boosting this again", etc) and alternated with regular, more positive posts ("we're gonna be okay", "thank you for helping me out" - one post was about hair dyes and all) to try to keep positiveness. But they really don't like talking about the details of their disability nor the toll it's taking due to the stress because they genuinely don't want to given an impression if "using a sob-story" as extremely bad faithed detractors would say, to guilt anyone into doing anything.
Hell, even them asking us to help out was a last straw move : there was really no other option. So when people are accusing Mod of "whining" and "milking it", they really, really didn't read their posts at all.
As on the attitude, I think it's precisely because of the toll of the situation. (This is readible on their Tumblr openly so I hope they won't mind me posting here...)
And I mean... who wouldn't be, here ? No answers from the ones you're trying to contact and that are directly involved on this topic (not at fault, but still involved), growing desperation because you're more and more at risk, the isolation and hatred from the haters... Note, again, I fully know that nobody's perfect, and some of Mod's reactions made me raise an eyebrow too. But, is it really my place to judge when I'm sitting more comfortably on my sofa, typing away and responding to asks (who are far from what they received in terms of unpleasantness - there has been one or two but never crossing my threshold for now), with my job and life (finally) stable and not endangered ? I'd be having quite the downtrodden mood too.
I do see where you're coming from, though. There are things I'd like to tell them too, privately, personally, but I'm waiting for all this to blow over, and wait a time where I'm sure the trauma won't take over. I see them as a friend (over the 2 years spent translating TPoH in French), but it's irrealistic to think that everyone's perfect, and I'm not blind either.
But I made my choice. It's not just about Mod being a friend, or them being the author and their work having helped me out of the dark whether they knew it or not, and now it's certainly not about TPoH getting out of hiatus to me : forget author, forget friend, they're a person.
They don't deserve to be treated like that.
Trying to get Glitch/SMG4 to answer them directly isn't a bad move in a full basket of good ones. It's the only one we have left.
Unless anyone else has a better idea, but I haven't seen suggestions yet... the goal is for the hate to stop permanently, so just doing nothing isn't an option, I think.
Thanks for your ask, I hope I have addressed everything you were asking for, and that you have a great day ^^
