examining tma's ending from a thematic perspective really baffles me.
so like, theres an obvious theme about fate and free will and whether one can defy it or if there is some sort of ... something guiding us. in tma there is literally a malevolent entity pulling the strings. and in the end jon does exactly what that malevolent entity wants. now at first glance it seems like the ending is saying "You can't escape your fate no matter how hard you try" which... certainly is a message. like maybe that IS what jonny wanted to say
a more charitable interpretation would be a commentary on how trauma causes us to repeat cycles of abuse. traumatized people can feel helpless in the patterns of behavior they find themselves in. jon goes out and traumatizes other people as a result of the trauma hes been through. he feels he needs it. its an addiction. (theres also heavy themes of addiction throughout which can be followed similarly to trauma) in the end jon tries to change and do what he thinks is right, but ends up instead following what the trauma (the web) wants him to do. (the argument about whether jon was right or the others are right are missing the whole point about how one of the choices is obviously being puppeted by the literal manifestation of manipulation and addiction.) this would be a dark conclusion to the theme but valid i guess? it really feels like it isnt leaned into that hard in making it tragic and heartbreaking though. if it was more tragic that message would feel more impactful, and since it isnt i also dont think thats the intention
maybe im missing something. some nebulous message about the power of ~love~ (eugh). let me know your thoughts