Why would it? It’s not After Story, and the characters aren’t in the same situations or environments. The Tomoya at the start of TA is very different to the Tomoya at the start of AS, and while AS Tomoya has figures to look up to and learn from, TA Tomoya is surrounded by people with unresolved issues similar to his own. I don’t believe the story is about Tomoya’s growth as a better person, and the VN makes that obvious in multiple scenes. Tomoya is recklessly heading towards the future he wants, and Tomoyo is heading somewhere else just as recklessly… They have never, even in Clannad, understood that about each other. This guy still hasn’t talked to his dad about stuff. He’s just running from stuff he doesn’t like.
What you consider a “major theme” of the VN, in my opinion, isn’t a theme present in the VN all that often, especially in regard to Tomoya. I think you’re blurring it too much with After Story.
