Now that didn't happen and that's fine, but I just didn't read it as lighthearted, and I think there are quite a few elements there that keep it from appearing that way.
It was light-hearted to me because the whole premise is absurd and funny. No one actually gets stuck in washing machines irl (afaik), it's a silly porn plot. While there is some urgency to get her out for the characters, the scene is mostly focused on getting them naked and sticky to create a misunderstanding (and also some titillation, ofc).
He was reduced to tears a few times and often enough if you look at the walkthrough, we end in death ALOT of the time. Frankly, what 'should' be expected happen to the MC by the flow chart alone, would be for all this to just end in death.
Also, the optionality of these scenes is optional to us the player, not to him. There would still be a difference but I think if there is a moral chasm, it's really tiny in universe.
I'm not sure I understand you correctly. What I mean when I say that the encounters are optional is that, if the player doesn't want the MC to end up in peril, there are options to avoid that. Most of the scenes have an option to end them prematurely and to completely stop the characters from coming onto him. So it's completely possible for the MC to go through the game without being assaulted.
And it's clearly supposed to be seen as a bad thing in-universe. Multiple characters mention how unprofessional the crew is, how the lower ranks are taken advantage of, etc. It's kind of part of what makes the MC doubt the morality and righteousness of SpaceCorps, amongst other things.
They let you be very cruel to Rick, not the most optimal scene but it's a good one. That one they left you with the option to do it and to leave it there to hurt him. It's not the same energy but we are very close as it is.
When I was talking about scenes being non-canon, I meant specifically the scenes where the MC SA's someone. The Rick encounter is instead an example of a scene where the MC is able to turn the table on someone being aggressive with him. It's not like he just walks up to Rick and starts taunting him out of nowhere about how his girlfriend is cheating on him.
In general, the game punishes the player for jerk-like behaviour. Usually, choices where the MC is casually cruel to someone result in losing points with the characters, premature endings or game overs.
How about this: "I know where this is going, I'm going to save myself this time"
Doesn't have to be tit for tat, it just has to lose all it's moral weight which I think it already has
I don't think the situation for the MC is literally kill or be killed, and it's definitely not enough to warrant him behaving like this. And it would be one thing if he was just on the defense and standing his ground in some situations, but actively attacking someone for no reason makes no sense to me.