Jax (Michael Kovach) in ‘The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act’<\/p>\n
Glitch<\/p>\n
Who is Jax, really? <\/p>\n
Viral YouTube sensation, The Amazing Digital Circus, created by Gooseworx and released by Glitch<\/a>, is officially over, and the Jax question has been answered.<\/p>\n The Last Act delves deep into Jax (Michael Kovach), revealing that the bunny has been hiding his true self the entire time.<\/p>\n Warning\u2014Spoilers Ahead<\/p>\n What Happens To Jax In ‘The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act\u2019?<\/p>\n After Caine\u2019s (Alex Rochon) apparent deletion, the group learns the truth about their life in the Circus\u2014they are brain scans, reconstructed from code, not people wearing headsets (confirming the \u201cSOMA\u201d fan theory).<\/p>\n Some of the characters already suspected this, but shortly after learning the news, Jax isolates himself and abstracts.<\/p>\n While the others lament the loss, Pomni (Lizzie Freeman) regrets not reaching out when Jax tried to speak to her.<\/p>\n In the penultimate episode<\/a>, Jax panicked when Kinger discussed the origins of the Circus, shocked to learn that his situation was \u201creal.\u201d <\/p>\n It\u2019s unclear what Jax believed the Digital Circus really was, but learning that his companions are living people (kind of) seemed to disturb him.<\/p>\n We learn what his issue is after Pomni faces the abstracted Jax in a hallway, determined to help, somehow.<\/p>\n Using the skills he taught her to shoot all of the ceiling lightbulbs out, Pomni plunges the monstrous Jax into soothing darkness, and hugs him. <\/p>\n For a moment, Jax lets his guard down and Pomni enters his mind, witnessing intense intrusive thoughts and interacting with different manifestations of Jax\u2019s personality.<\/p>\n Viewers delve into Jax\u2019s first-person perspective of his early life at the circus, learning that Jax was best friends with a woman named Ribbit (Skye Redden). <\/p>\n In the flashbacks, Jax is uncharacteristically friendly and joyful, growing close to Ribbit and opening up about his secret.<\/p>\n What Is Jax\u2019s Secret?<\/p>\n Jax describes being emotionally abused by his mother, who would relentlessly criticize him and compare him to his absent father. <\/p>\n When Jax tries to open up to his mother about a deeply personal secret, she laughs. During an intense argument, he pushes his mother away. She falls to the floor and Jax fears that she is badly injured, or even dead.<\/p>\n Jax flees the situation and becomes homeless, eventually making his way to a C&A headset and disappearing into the Circus. He never knew the fate of his mother, and has carried the guilt with him ever since.<\/p>\n Ribbit reassures Jax and places her ribbon on his head, seemingly understanding Jax\u2019s implied struggles with gender identity. <\/p>\n Is Jax Trans?<\/p>\n It\u2019s unclear what Jax is hiding\u2014he enjoys crossdressing and might be trans, but his exact feelings and identity are left ambiguous.<\/p>\n At the end of the film, the fate of the original people who put on the C&A headsets is revealed, and Jax is not shown to be explicitly trans, but clearly experimenting with how he presents himself. <\/p>\n Jax\u2019s identity might not be clear to himself, as his difficult upbringing has taught him to repress his feelings.<\/p>\n Jax Becomes A Cartoon<\/p>\n After the intimate moment between Ribbit and Jax is interrupted, Jax immediately regrets opening up, and begins to distance himself from Ribbit.<\/p>\n A heartbreaking montage of Jax growing colder to Ribbit follows, with Jax developing the cynical, protective shell that viewers are familiar with. Ribbit\u2019s isolation leads to her abstracting, resulting in Jax convincing himself that nothing in the Circus is real, for his own sanity.<\/p>\n Jax\u2019s Looney Tunes-like mastery of the digital world was a result of him leaning into a larger-than-life persona to hide his true self.<\/p>\n For a moment, it seems as though Jax might return to his normal form, but Pomni\u2019s friendship isn\u2019t enough. Jax gives up on himself, abstracting after showing Pomni who he really is.<\/p>\n Jax\u2019s anxiety was hinted at in previous episodes, but the finale exposes Jax\u2019s smooth persona as a hollow act\u2014he turned himself into a literal cartoon to survive in the Circus.<\/p>\n Jax Suffers A Tragic Fate<\/p>\n The finale ends with a bittersweet conclusion, the characters accepting their fate and reuniting with Caine for a more balanced relationship, but for Jax, it\u2019s a tragic ending.<\/p>\n Jax remains abstracted, the others building him a dark tent so that he can enjoy peace. <\/p>\n Abstracted characters seem to revert to an animal state\u2014a simple life snoozing in quiet darkness might be the most serene existence this version of Jax will ever enjoy.<\/p>\n Jax\u2019s new life is accompanied by Stevie Wonder\u2019s \u201cIsn’t She Lovely,\u201d another hint at Jax\u2019s gender identity, implying that Jax\u2019s discomfort in his skin has finally ceased.<\/p>\n Can Jax\u2019s Abstraction Be Reversed?<\/p>\n Abstraction is irreversible in the Digital Circus, as far as we know, a permanent corruption of brain-scan code. <\/p>\n Kinger (Sean Chiplock) has no ability to fix the abstraction (as he explains, the files are impossibly small and nobody could work out how to use them but Caine).<\/p>\n Caine also seems unable to fix the abstracted, even with his new attitude and knowledge.<\/p>\n That being said, Pomni did seem very close to a breakthrough when she hugged Jax\u2014might there be a way for the abstracted to fix themselves?<\/p>\n There could be a possibility, but the question is left unanswered.<\/p>\n Will There Be A Second Season Of \u2018The Amazing Digital Circus\u2019?<\/p>\n Series creator Gooseworx has repeatedly confirmed<\/a> that there will be no second season of the hit show.<\/p>\n The finale marks a powerful ending for Jax\u2014just as fans got to know the real person behind the grinning rabbit avatar, he disappeared into himself.<\/p>\n MORE FROM FORBESForbes\u2018The Amazing Digital Circus\u2019 Team Talk The Making Of A Viral HitBy Dani Di Placido<\/a>Forbes\u2018Obsession\u2019\u2014What Is The One-Wish Willow, Exactly?By Dani Di Placido<\/a>ForbesHow Does A24\u2019s \u2018Backrooms\u2019 Compare To The Online Phenomenon?By Dani Di Placido<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jax (Michael Kovach) in ‘The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act’ Glitch Who is Jax, really? 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