I JUST realized how shitty of a friend Tron actually was, I mean. I knew he was. I have older posts saying so. But I mean it like during the Grid Era (I'mma call it that). Have y'all noticed that when Tron thought Ram and Flynn died during that blast from the first movie-- he was so utterly upset he shouted and his circuits increased in brightness? Yeah, obviously. But have y'all noticed how Tron didn't do that to Dyson in Uprising when that disc hit him across the face? You'd imagine that after losing, and almost losing his beloved friends he'd be more protective of his new ones.
Like, if your friend got sliced in the face you'd call for medical help right? Carry them to safety, seek help, comfort them, and show them that you're there for them. Well.... Tron didn't do any of that. He just saw Dyson's face get damaged, probably asked if he was okay, and just didn't do anything about it. Even when Flynn arrived later-- he didn't beg or worriedly tell Flynn to fix his dear friend Dyson. He just interjected, "He sustained that injury while in the field, sir." All matter of factly. He never even brought up or asked Flynn if he could help, he was just indifferent about the situation.
Also (my memory may be a little foggy of this one) Tron didn't seem all that upset Able died either. Sure he could've stayed strong for Beck, but I don't think he even comforted him. Just gave him the, "Shit happens." Shpeel. However, Tron obviously cared more about Beck than he did to Dyson and Clu. I would assume it's because Beck is his successor, his heir if you will. I'd imagine that Tron would have to care a little more since he wasn't physically okay to go and search for a new Renegade every passing cycle, and after a while he probably did begin to genuinely care for Beck and saw him as a program he needed to help grow.
Before anyone says, "TRON HAS FEELINGS." I know he does. I've seen him feel despair, love, happiness, anger, loneliness, hopelessness and hope. I've seen him do all of that. That's not why I made this. I made this to point out that AFTER entering the Grid, he became indifferent to the people around him other than Flynn. My point being, and this is my own HC that I believe firmly in, is that Flynn programmed Tron to be more loyal and animated towards him. However the result of this is that Flynn grew emotionally distant from other people and ultimately made him a bad friend. I'm unsure if Flynn was aware of the consequences of that or not, or if he knew what he was doing would change Tron. But Tron didn't start off as bad friend (especially in Kingdom of Hearts, but that's a bit different), he cared about the people around them and was protective of those he loved. But right when be entered the Grid he was different, and I think Flynn did something. I just think Flynn was being selfish, enjoyed being praised, changed Tron's coding so all he did was side with Flynn-- probably because he knew the programs would like Tron and wanted him to convince the others that Flynn was great and knew what he was doing (which has worked before), and because that would mean Tron would be protective of him meaning Flynn could do whatever he wanted and the security program would just keep him from dying. And as he know, Flynn put himself in a lot of dangerous situations because he was aware Tron would prevent him from being harmed.
This would explain why Clu was so aggressive about Tron talking or defending Flynn and even telling him later on, "He betrayed all of us." Clu's way of possibly telling Tron he knew what Flynn did, and Tron should feel betrayed despite being programmed to continuously support Flynn, which could also explain why Tron never brought up Flynn or said his name-- because he understand Clu's words and meaning, finally understanding why things ended the way the did.
I love Flynn and Tron, I really do. I even ship them, but that doesn't mean I can't shit on them. Tron was left to deal with the aftermath of Flynn's actions. The possible change in his coding lead to him being a bad friend, which caused Dyson to easily not regret teaming up with Clu to hurt Tron, not regret torturing him, and surely not regret taking everything away from him. Again, I'd like to say that Tron was a good friend in the Old System Era, but obviously he became indifferent to the people around him and hadn't bothered to become a better person. Not that I blame him or what he's done or ended up becoming.
I'd love to hear your guys' thoughts or ideas!
(Also note, I'd like to say that everyone who was Tron's underlings, that includes his three special soldiers, Cyrus, and Beck-- all brought out a different reaction in him. Probably because he felt obligated to lead and protect them, failing at almost all of them possibly made him feel incompetent and hopeless)