I completely agree with all of this. Also Addy I’m so sorry people have been rude on your Papyrus Knight videos, they’re so interesting and informative, and even if Papyrus turns out to not be the knight, you still demonstrated the intrigue and quiet seriousness of Papyrus’ character.
In regards to Sans being mysterious and people taking nuggets of information about him and emphasising that HE specifically is displaced from Deltarune into Undertale, but somehow not Papyrus, is very interesting to me actually.
We know very little about Sans… But we know nothing about Papyrus. And I think he does that intentionally.
He says at one point that Sans doesn’t talk about himself at all, but Sans will be candid with the player under duress. He doesn’t talk about himself not because he’s cagey but because he doesn’t care to let the player/frisk know him.
Papyrus meanwhile has been proven to omit details in certain circumstances, depending on who is around. (An interesting parallel to Ralsei actually)
Papyrus’ character slips through the cracks in every way, in his world and in fandom conversation. He is forgettable, not to be taken seriously, he is the comedic relief and I suspect that is entirely his intention. He hides in plain sight. And perhaps it’s because he doesn’t really want us to know him. Because he doesn’t want us to know what he has done.
The one thing we do know about Papyrus though is that he is profoundly lonely. This is a quality that is reflected in all of the main cast of Deltarune, in Kris, in Susie, in Ralsei and even in Noelle, and the running narrative for Susie especially through Deltarune is that she is finding escapism in the Dark World from what is suggested to be a very troubled life.
Kris, who is “just Kris”, the creepy kid who nobody wants to be partners with, is somebody because of the Dark World.
And isn’t that everything Papyrus has ever wanted? To mean something, to be loved, to belong?
People are very dismissive of Papyrus being the knight because he’s “already had his story told” and that the new Deltarune characters deserve to shine. But they’re not understanding that Undertale and Deltarune are not different stories. They are one story, and if Papyrus is the knight, I believe that his story could not truly be told without the context of Undertale, and the process of falling in love with the characters.
I think the potential motivation behind Papyrus being the knight has enormous gravity to it, and fits the running narrative of Deltarune, of escapism and emotional connection to “things that aren’t real”. As a person who has a very strong emotional connection to “things that aren’t real” I know that comes from a feeling of loneliness that I have experienced always, and that is a big part of why I feel so connected to Papyrus.
So for him to be the knight, trying to create that escapism for himself, I don’t know. I just think it’s heartbreaking and so deeply interesting. And it just fits.
Meanwhile if Dess was the knight, well. Maybe there is something I’ve missed, but there isn’t a thematic set up for her motivation. Or for Carol’s motivation. So if it did turn out to be one of them, that motivation would have to be explained.
I like to picture a Papyrus knight reveal where very little needs to be explained, because Papyrus will speak directly to the player. And he already knows you know him, because you have played Undertale. His ultimate Dark World.
Which he is attempting to create in the shelter.
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