Baby, You’re Too Slow

Tenna art by @9Aaaalt29 on twt

"We should be focusing on the harassment Mod is receiving instead of trying to accuse SMG4 of plagiarism!"

(Or really anyone that tries to support Mod whilst also denying the fact that Mr. Puzzles and RGB look incredibly similar.)

Because, yeah, the harassment and death threats Mod is receiving from SMG4 fans is objectively the worst part of this whole situation. I do get the impression that Mod would have never said anything about Mr. Puzzles or cared that the designs were similar if she was never harassed in the first place. However, now that this situation has started and she has spoken about it, I think both her and her fans have the right to be mad about the plagiarism. We can, and in my opinion, have to, talk about both. This take acts as if the harassment Mod is receiving and the likelihood of SMG4 plagiarizing her work are two entirely separate things and we can just talk about one and not the other when that really isn't the case.

I am not going to sugar coat it, the harassment Mod has received is a direct consequence of SMG4 plagiarizing RGB's design. The reason people are attacking her is because Mr. Puzzles looks similar to RGB. To my knowledge, Mod has not received harassment due to existence of other, more popular TV heads that look similar but do not meet the criteria for plagiarism (such as Vox). It is likely that none of this would have happened if SMG4 had not plagiarized her. Of course, we shouldn't blame SMG4 for the actions of their fans. Anything could gain a toxic fanbase at any time. However, we should at least still acknowledge the part they played in the situation, even if it is not full blame we should put on them. Plagiarism is an act of disrespect. Even if it isn't as severe and direct than death threats and harassment, they are both disrespect. I do not think that we should harass SMG4 or act as if they are personally responsible for everything their fans did, but we should hold them accountable for the fact that their act of disrespect set of other people's disrespect. It is impossible to talk about the harassment without talking about the plagiarism because the plagiarism is the root cause of the harassment.

2. Additionally, their plagiarism of RGB is likely why they have not responded to Modmad regarding the harassment, and thus, why they have not attempted to stop the harassment. If you accidentally made a character that looks similar to someone else's, and they were receiving harassment because of it, then any reasonable person would respond to that person and attempt to fix the situation! The only reason I can think of as to why they aren't responding is because they know that they are guilty and are trying to save their own ass. I genuinely cannot think of any reason why they would not be responding to Modmad if the similarities between RGB and Mr. Puzzles were legitimately a coincidence. Once again, you can't talk about the harassment but not talk about the plagiarism because the plagiarism is the reason SMG4 are ignoring the harassment.

3. And, on a more emotional note, this bullshit has been going on for so long that I think Mod has the right to be mad about more than one thing. Obviously we want SMG4 to make a public statement about the harassment, but at this point, if they just came out and said "oops my bad" and nothing else then I don't think that would really cut it. They still plagiarized her character and ignored her for years.

All in all, even though the harassment obviously is the worst part of this whole ordeal, we can't just talk about harassment. Talking about the plagiarism is not taking attention away from the harassment because the two are inextricably linked. It is very hard to talk about this situation without acknowledging the plagiarism because the story is incomplete with it. And although SMG4 cannot be held directly responsible for the actions of their fans, their plagiarism of Sarah Jolley is one of the major reasons the harassment started and why it has not yet ended, and they should be held accountable for that.

I have seen too many SMG4 fans claim to support Modmad by saying they condemn the harassment but then turn around and defend SMG4 the minute someone points out the plagiarism. And I am sorry but it just doesn't work that way. You can't claim to support Modmad whilst also defending SMG4. I am sorry, but it is easy to condemn a toxic anon. Since they are anonymous you don't have any prior attachment too them, and they are so obviously wrong that no one will disagree with you when you speak out against their actions. It takes someone with a bit of a backbone to condemn Glitch/SMG4, a company that people love. Don't get me wrong, speaking out against the harassment is obviously still good and I encourage it, but the harassment situation cannot be fully resolved until SMG4 is held accountable for their actions. If you truly care about Mod and don't like what is happening to her, then you shouldn't be defending SMG4.

Thank you to everyone who has been sending such kind messages, I promise I really do read them all, even if I can't reply, but while these messages are wonderful (and really. I mean it. just the nicest and most heartfelt things I've ever seen) the sad fact is they don't change my situation. But you can change it. You can help me.

If you know my situation, if you want to help me, please write to Glitch Productions. They are the only people who can, and I believe, might, be able and willing to save me. SMG4 has ignored me, even through a legal letter. I have no hope that they will do otherwise, but Glitch are a different case and I think they just genuinely don't know I exist. I have sent them a message, to no reply, but more messages means more of a chance they will notice. IF you are on twitter please message that way, I closed my account there years ago, and please be polite: I am not asking for hate, even if I've received it.

1) TIMELINE RGB was created long before, over a decade before Mr. Puzzles first debuted. (*RGB's first appearance may have been 2011, was a little iffy on that)

2) UNDENIABLY UNCANNY RESEMBLANCE The number of traits, some uniquely specific to and representative of RGB's design, that are copied in Mr. Puzzles design are too many to be chalked up to 'just a coincidence'

Especially when you look at the designs of all of the other TV head characters out there - I collected as many as I could find (though I'm sure there's more) and none of them come even close to sharing the number of similarities that these two do.

3) TV MODEL AND DESIGN CHOICES While looking up references for older TVs, I found that for the exact TV they're based on (small retro box TV with knobs in the upper right of the TV and an antenna) most of the references didn't have a vent on the side of them like RGB and Mr. Puzzles do.

I looked up 4 different reference terms, and still had to scroll a while before I found one that matched exactly (above collection just a general sample/example of types of TVs I found). Unless my browsers are wigging out, either the pictures that would come up for these kinds of TVs were different in 2023, or this exact combination of features are just not very common for this style of TV. If that's the case, it may be a bit strange to design a character with those features together.

Here's where that distinction is important: Mr. Puzzles as a character doesn't have much of a reason to go with this design over other styles of similar TVs. But RGB does. The vents on the sides of RGB's head aren't just an aesthetic choice - they're included as a legitimately integral part of the story-line (Negative RGB). The same can be said for a number of other choices Modmad has made, down to individual items of clothing, that show just how much thought and intention and consideration went into every aspect of RGB's design.

Which makes it that much more frustrating to see him get plagiarized in such a careless manner by people who don't even seem to put much care into their own character (common criticism I've read that SMG4 fans have had about Mr. Puzzles and his 'arc').

4) OTHER PEOPLE, EVEN THOSE WHO HADN'T HEARD ABOUT THE SITUATION FROM MOD, NOTICED This has been noted by fans of both series since Mr. Puzzles first came out.

TL:DR I do not want to cancel the show, I don't want it to cancel me.

So I have been forced, basically, to make this statement as I am being asked about this character or 'introduced' to it (and the incoming new show) against my desires. I have deleted all previous posts about my encounters with this problem long ago for personal reasons that will be apparent, but people don't know about my situation and do deserve an explanation. I will keep this post short for my own mental health. This is the first time I have disclosed any of this information to the public, and it is hopefully the last. My silence has been a part of my uncomfortable situation, but it's clear the world won't let me try to just ignore it any longer, so it's full disclosure time.

1, Yes. I know about Mr Puzzles and his uncanny resemblance to RGB, my character from the on going comic The Property of Hate, who pre-exists Mr Puzzles by approximately ten years.

I did not, as a consequence, base RGB off Mr Puzzles...

2, I have received very violent and manipulative hate mail from fans of that character over the past few years due to this similarity, many threatening to slander me via cancel culture to discredit my own creations. The worst of these messages almost caused me to commit suicide which close friends can attest to (this period coincided with the death of my father which they used against me to full effect).

Since then the hatemail has been less frequent, but continues, and I am afraid it will pick up again with the advent of this new show.

3, I have contacted the smg4 management about these issues, to no avail. My first email was a request to tell their followers to cease sending me hatemail, which they did not attempt in any way. They have never responded to the large overlaps in terms of RGB's design, and when I finally sent them an email via a lawyer as a last resort (which cost me £4000) they did not respond. Please note that I did not ask for a cease and desist, I only wanted the hatemail to stop, and perhaps for them to alter Mr Puzzle's design very slightly to be a little less like RGB's. I even made this simple suggestion as an example:

Despite going out of my way (against the lawyer's wishes) to phrase the letter in a none-hostile manner, and offer them an alternative, they did not reply to this email at all.

I am a disabled indie cartoonist; I do not have the money to take further legal action, and in any case I do not want to. I hate conflict, and the emotional toll of sending that email alone was enough to make me miserable and exhausted for months. All I want is to be left alone, and for people to know that RGB was invented first. I cannot afford to do anything to protect myself or make anyone listen legally; this post is the most I can do, and it is the only post I intend to make about it.

that's it. that's the whole situation. please do not message me about the show, or the character, as both are very distressing to me: if you do I will either delete the message, or block you, depending on the angle. I have blocked all related tags, and I will unfollow if I see posts, so I am doing everything I can to take care of myself in a non-aggressive fashion. I have only made this statement so that people understand.

a small example of some of the hatemail (which was preserved only to be sent to the makers as evidence which, again, they did not respond to) below the readmore. read at your own discretion, it is unpleasant.

thank you for taking the time to read this.

But that's the thing. She doesn't exaggerate or grotesqueify or alter people's bodies to fit some standard. (Except insofar as she draws different species differently, and those are exquisitely practiced to ensure they have the same diversity of appearances that humans do.) She just presents people exactly as they are, complexities and oddities and all.