Bump.
I'm just going off what's on the profiles but turning into monsters who are much stronger than their original selves and can corrupt anything through physical contact seems way more useful than being a literal piece of turd. We need more context for the Protagonist but as it is right now, turning into poop doesn't seem to grant him any sort of advantage.
The issue for TADC is that in-universe, Abstracting is practically death.
The characters in there are all electricity/numbers/data & stated by the creator to be unable to die. Plus there's probably some level of deliberate imperviousness.
Not to mention Toon Force.
Death & injury thus aren't a threat to them, by design, & Caine, who controls everything, supposedly can't affect their minds. (Which seems to be why he can't fix the Abstracted either.)
While there is a possibility for violence in the Adventures Caine orchestrates, any pretense of danger is an utter facade, since they can't really die nor get injured, despite their capacity for pain.
Meanwhile, if they get Abstracted, they lose their mind -Seemingly wholely, if not entirely, even if Queenie may've been somewhat of an exception- & now get enhanced physicals & corruption.... In an environment where they can't die, injury is likely impossible or permanent, & defeating foes is about as important as winning a game of pretend.
Putting those they touch into corrupted agony also isn't useful, for similar reasons.
It also doesn't seem to work on NPCs; The Gloink Queen & her Gloinks are NPCs, but did not seem to corrupt when Abstracted Kaufmo attacked them, IIRC. So their Corruption likely doesn't work on anyone EXCEPT their fellow humans. Since Adventures -The only time where combat would be plausible- are built around NPCs, Corruption that doesn't work on NPCs also isn't useful. & if it did, Caine would probably see a Corrupted NPC as akin to one that left its world, & delete it. Or cure the corruption upon notice, like he did with Pomni & Ragatha.
& AFAIK, most of the Circus members don't want to try & end the others. Not to mention, noticed Abstracted are just thrown into a seemingly out-of-bounds hole in a void that Caine closes as soon as he opens it; Even if you could control it, the utility would be short-lived.
Abstraction also only happens when one goes insane, so it's unlikely anyone who achieves it does so voluntarily & it's doubtful they could use it effectively.
TL;DR - Abstracting means having gone insane & literally losing your mind, permanently, for extra strength, Corruption that doesn't seem to work on the only things that could be opponents, where, again, combat is a non-threat that serves almost exclusively as entertainment, normal death is statedly impossible, & in a world where the only characters that can Abstract have Toon Force, Immortality, & being living data/electricity are the norm. It also means being a target for BFR ASAP.
It is basically the death of that universe, & in context, is basically all drawbacks, downsides & detriments.
The "advantages" it grants aren't useful in the context/circumstances of its verse.
Sorry for going at such length.
