[moloch-hai]

The reasonable interpretation at first is that Michelle is trans Jeff, post-transition.

But then it goes off the rails. We quickly learn Michelle is somebody entirely other, whom we learn practically nothing about despite that she authored an extremely likeable Jeff. We learn that the other, peevish, Jeff is just Jeff from before college, before he was scripted up. We also learn practically nothing about him. The only character we learn anything about is fake Jeff, and then only a variety of impressions of him.

It has elements of a good story, but omits the good parts.

[brazzy]

It is a possible interpretation, but certainly not the reasonable one.

[moloch-hai]

It is reasonable in that a plausible story would follow, instead of a fantasy.

[brazzy]

My point was that other interpretations result in an equally, if not more plausible story.

Additionally, I'd say that none of them result in a fully plausible story, and that the author wrote it like that intentionally.

And I vastly prefer it that way to a pure allegory, which to me too often seems like a dishonest way to make an argument.

[wizzwizz4]

The best allegories are the ones that go completely off the rails, and only make the author's original point if you squint. (Even better if they're still good allegories, but for things their authors didn't know about.)