I don't personally agree w/ krissociation for more or less the same reasons stated here, although I'm willing to admit I just also wouldn't find it as satisfying or interesting a narrative regardless (for example, while I recognize Deltarune is its own work, I feel like if it truly has little to no connection to the narrative and/or major themes of Undertale, it simply wouldn't have been given anything in common to begin with).
Not a system though so my opinion can be taken with a grain of salt; like, I don't really hold any ill will to people who find the interpretation compelling or relatable, even if my kneejerk reaction to it is somewhat negative. (It might be worth noting that at least a few of the systems I'm friends with- incl. who I reblogged this from- also disagree, but I'm not going to attempt to speak in their place. Take it or leave it, I suppose.)
However, I feel like viewing the Weird Route through the lens of "intrusive thoughts" isn't entirely without merit, just in a much more... Literal? Sense of the term. (I could have my definitions wrong, to be fair.) Personally, I think gameplay choices aren't necessarily indicative of what Kris (or any portion/derivative/ subcategory thereof- et cetera, I'm not sure what the most appropriate descriptor for the context would be) would want, or even actively consider doing; it's more that you are both limited to and enabled by what they can think of. Something that might've been a passing worry to Kris would then be, to an outside force, just as feasible a possibility as whatever they would normally plan (...or as "normal" as possible from within the stress of the Torment Nexus).
Such concerns could then, logically, be amplified by- if not entirely originated from- societal expectation. Due to the influence of religion on culture, in both Light and Dark World(s), one could reasonably assume that the overbearing presence of ~the prophecy~ plays the biggest role in determining what's "expected." Even in fiction, the influence of religious doctrine can't be escaped; "Dragon Blazers" is based on "Lord of the Hammer," which is based on the same prophecy that, in the end, seems to hang over our protagonists' heads like a guillotine. Much like real life, mythology and pop culture are interlinked. Stories can travel from "entertainment" to "prestige" to "belief," and back again, and all three can influence each other along the way.
I believe the nominal invoking of Tolkien's work- and how some aspects of his life have rough reflections in the corresponding in-world author figure - were deliberate choices to build a theme. Much of Deltarune can be easily read as circling around the theme of "fate," but I would be more particular in that it's interested in "nature vs. nurture" more specifically. Furthermore, I believe Deltarune ties those themes to the ideas of "fiction vs. reality." To return to the original point, it can be hard to envision a future outside of what you've been given a blueprint for. Like the conch, many characters are stuck "repeating what [they] knew."
But then why is the Weird Route so violent? Sure, it's possible to think of doing horrible things irregardless. However, I think it makes the most thematic sense when one considers the implication that Kris, one way or another, was very likely once considered "male" by the people around them, and had to transition out of that role. In particular, the interpersonal abuse of the Weird Route and the way it "feels heteronormative" make sense as a sort of nightmare scenario and dysphoric fixation for Kris: this is what they see manhood as, and this is what they desperately want to avoid embodying.* While the religious connotations of gender roles in small-town America are likely more allegorical than literal, as Hometown isn't Christian (unlike, say, the Catholic influence of Tolkien across the vast majority of the fantasy genre), the misogyny of characters such as Burgerpants and Spamton** suggest gender roles do exist. I mean, "love finds its way to the girl" at least suggests amatonormative standards towards women, does it not? (On the alternate reading, being coerced into a relationship- particularly with a socially-dominant partner- has historically attributed to Levels of Violence finding their way to many women...)
*I'm not transfeminine, nor do I have significant material relations to their experiences in society. Therefore, it is difficult for me to confidently express that I would interpret the Weird Route as "'feeling heteronormative' because you are narratively detransitioning Kris." However, considering the Mancountry egg room and aforementioned themes of "what is True Fate vs. mere expectation," i.e. if Susie was right/wrong in her statement that "...choices don't matter," I think a complete understanding of Deltarune isn't possible without a transgender reading. This would be a part of that. Again, crucially, with the player as an outside force.
**This isn't to say that said characters are "irredeemable" or "exclusively villainous" or what-have-you. In some regards much of the misogyny expressed by characters in Deltarune is somewhat subtle; the sort of thing that might eventually be deemed "period typical" to the real-world context in which the game was created. However, I do think they were included intentionally, and not as "just a joke." Honestly, considering Spamton is often a) read as transmasc and b) canonically struggles with having to exist as a mechanism of capital, I think it's possible that there's some amount of projected self-loathing in his insults towards the women in the story. That doesn't make them excuseable, though; it's moreso something he could potentially overcome in better circumstances, and honestly? It's soberingly realistic to the behaviors of certain real people (particularly depressing in that many aren't in nearly as deep of a Torment Nexus as he is, baseline horrors of today notwithstanding).
tl;dr Weird Route is what Kris *doesn't* want to do, and that's exactly why it's on their mind. It's possible to go through with because, while you interact with Deltarune via Kris, you're still someone else; just someone in a place of (incomplete) authority over them.
...I could be wrong though the games only half-out LOL
origamiaround
annaxmalina
vaporwave
kianamaiart
discoholicmusic
andulkaphoto
janainaart
romaincrisis
