Among just....... all the Other Stuff...... I take issue with in the finale, one thing I don't see talked about much is how the abstracted characters are treated. I would've hoped that this would have been addressed, the fact that this whole time they've just been dumped into a dark void isolated from everybody else in the circus. It's very reminiscent of care homes; just dump the old and/or disabled people you don't care about anymore and walk away. With Caine able to conjure things, there was more than enough possibility for an alternative. I feel like the aquarium still isn't the best option (if it's the only place they can be), but why couldn't they have just done that before? Why must the entire circus be unable to be around the abstracted members, even when in a safe environment? I don't think depicting this at all is bad; as I brought up, stuff like this happens in the real world. But when it's not even attempted to be examined until - and only - Finale Jax, that's a problem. And why is Jax the only one who gets a pillow fort? What makes Jax more worthy of having a bit more freedom than the others? Even then, I find it weird that we basically only ever see Pomni visit the tent (given that the circus is quick to forgive abusers apparently). Despite being less cruel than the void, it still gives me the vibe of care homes. The feeling of being disabled and the people you care about not reciprocating that care, leaving you isolated because you're too much of an inconvenience.
I need more time to come up with ideas, but here's some stuff that I propose:
Finding a way to communicate to the abstracted members.
Attempts to see if abstraction can be treated; note that I'm saying "treated" NOT "cured". This is given the disability lens of things, plus just being able to completely revert back to pre-abstraction feels like a cop-out.
IF abstraction can be treated to any extent, the characters could have an "inbetween" state in their design. For example, they go from general abstraction form to one that has a similar shape to their original form. They could shrink down closer to original size, be partially in their original form while sill having abstracted eyes / patches of black spikes that can still glitch out characters
(Abstracted forms changing to the general shape of their respective character can also be representative of how they are finally being viewed as an individual, and not lumped in with the rest as Just Another Monster).
Parts of the day are reserved for blackout periods, where the abstracted members can come out and interact with the other circus members while in the dark.
Giant room for abstracted members that is essentially the equivalent of a dark version of the circus. One section of it is windowed so that they can be visible to the other circus members if they feel comfortable doing so.
Regardless of the level of abstraction, everyone is still provided as much care as possible.
Not everybody will be able to revert to the same level. Just like in real life, not everybody can respond to medical treatment the same way, even when sharing the same disorder(s).