my brain’s going on another Connections Spree
You know how we love to use “I/O Tower” as a sexual innuendo
But I think it’s more than that
I think at least some programs (including Tron)
actually have a circuit cluster there
(“There” meaning, that gorgeous bulge)
… a circuit cluster which is used in connections to the I/O tower
and/or to the outside world in general
Don’t get me wrong I think it’s still used for pleasure and still feels amazing to touch
But when that pleasure makes him feel like he’s seeing God, it’s ‘cause there’s actual User communication going on
Evidence:
When Tron powers up at the energy pool, he makes noises that toooootally sound like he’s getting aroused
Then immediately afterwards he says he “feels Alan-1 calling him”
But he can’t get more than a feeling unless he actually goes to The Tower
So he goes there to actually communicate with Alan
Dumont lets him in–
(incidentally, and very relevantly, Dumont is dressed like THIS)
and then Dumont begins reciting those words about extending into the invisible –
and as he begins, Tron grabs himself there
and holds it, all the way through the entire speech
Like it’s a part of the ritual or something
Like activating his own personal, um, Tower is a necessary part of interacting with the Tower itself
…
… This would give a whole new layer of meaning to the Deleted Scene when Yori used his circuits as a map for how to reach the Tower.
Makes me think he’s got actual landmarks on his body
representing things on that map
and… the Tower is one of them
…
So, if we’re gonna try for an in-universe explanation of this intensely sexual flavor to the methods of contact between programs and the outside world…
well, let’s listen to Walter (Dumont’s User)
who has a line that suggests a supernatural explanation for the world inside the ENCOM system, and for the programs spontaneously developing consciousness.
He talked about the “spirits” of programmers living on in their programming
And just suppose we take that explanation
and assume that the world of the programs formed itself from the spiritual signature of Users
In that case:
when this formation occurred, the whole concept of “reporting back to their Users” somehow got inextricably connected to the SEXUAL aspect of human spirit
Perhaps because this communication (like sex) is a form of exchange, of sharing?
Perhaps because programmers are pervs?
Perhaps both?
idk, i am just deeply thankful it happened.