I really like that TV man @thattennafan - Tumblr Blog

My Tenna yappings master post

(they don't deserve to be called analyses tbh)

Hello! :D This is where I'm going to put all of my Tenna analyses that I've posted on Twitter but I'll be expanding them further here, since Twitter's character limit sucks ass

Part 1: Tenna and the Dreemurrs

Part 2: Tenna and being an object

Part 3: Tenna and Toriel thoughts

Part 4: Tenna's goals and motivations

Part 5: Tenna and Obsolescence

Part 6: Tenna's self-objetification

#deltarune analysis #my tenna analysis #my tenna yappings

aubobbies

ALWAYS BET ON THE TV WINNING!!! 🥇 📺

lebestococonut

God... Tenna is making me start to feel empathy for inanimate objects... I miss my old TV! \(ToT)/

ecto-hazard

Guys I need tv sickfics or im going to wither away

gummywyrmmy

do you ever think about how codependent miketenna/battenna is…. and how they think if they show their true selves/feelings it’ll drive the other awayy 🥹

yeah i think about them sometimes

goldenstrwbrry

also hello tenna fat beautiful man truthers

eyegengrauu

little boxes

rockinmusicquarterly

I'm mostly indifferent on the discourse, but I'm starting to get more annoyed at the "Tenna should stay at Castletown" truthers atp.

Don't get me wrong I get where they're coming from, I get the idea of Tenna learning from his mistakes and beimg more than just an object. But the problem is that most of these takes comes from people who

A. Have this obsession of wanting Tenna getting severely punished. Because of fandom has this problem of treating him like the devil as if he doesn't go through a lot on his own chapter.

And/or

B. Being hardcore spamtenna or spamton fans. Because of course they care more about their ships or victimizing the Puppet Guy.

But I also don't that the o ly way he learns this is limited to just keeping him in Castletown. Why couldn't he learn this while still being allowed to be adopted or learn it while being with Mettaton. Just because there's potential of him to grow doesn't mean it's limited to one solution. And this discourse is showing more how unnuanced the fandom is.

the biggest thing for me is that like. all - ALL - of tenna's biggest problems are due to neglect and isolation and abandonment and etc etc etc.

there's certainly things to be said about his role as an object and how he treats it and i don't think you'll ever get a satisfying answer with that - either he still lacks agency by being an old tv in somebody's house who can't move around in a meaningful way, or he lacks agency by being an old tv in a storage closet who can't move around in a meaningful way. altho it's getting more into theory speculation, castle town is a very big sitting duck to me so irregardless i think being a darkner sucks major ass

sorry what was i saying. OK YEAH I WAS GONNA BE LIKE. i think a lot of people interpret tenna's Main Problem as being his prioritization of lightners, and thus their solution is to stick him in castle town and force him to only perform for other darkners until he suddenly decides it's better for him. and i just............ i don't know man. i don't knowwwwww

it feels like it's missing the fact that his problems stem from neglect. him performing for lightners is literally just his purpose - he's a tv, it's what he was made for and it's something he clearly loves even if the situation has forced it to become somewhat strained. hell, he's the first boss to really pay attention to and include ralsei - a darkner - and is clearly fond of many of his other fellow darkners since he introduces them during the boards, dedicates the entire 2nd board to helping elnina and lanino make up, has a whole miniboss role for shuttah, etc

the reason he "prioritizes lightners" in chapter 3 is because his life is quite literally in their hands. not just from kris threatening him into compliance, but the years-long threat before that of knowing they could throw him away at any moment just because they have too much going on in their own lives to watch tv. he's neglected and isolated and watching the people he loves split apart day by day with no power to stop it. THAT'S his big problem. that's why he gets stressed that's why he ever met spamton that's why he panics and lashes out at his employees when they don't listen to him - because he's severely neglected

so why would giving him to a household that appreciates him and clearly cares for him not help him improve? why would giving him the connection and attention he's longed for, putting him in a safer and healthier environment that isn't going to throw him away because he brings bad bittersweet memories of the good ol' days, not help him become kinder and softer? because that's what people say they want, they want him to Grow and Heal and Develop and Get Better.

except to them, a lot of that means punitive justice. he has to make amends. he has to go on apology tours for having a nervous breakdown - and like okay yeah of course you still need to take responsibility for how you hurt people during moments like that but also he literally got his arms cut off i dont think he needs to really debase himself much more for anybody - and he has to become his ex partner's caretaker because it's HIS fault his life fell apart and he has to Stay Put In One Spot until he magically decides to heal

it just feels very mean-spirited to me, is the thing. it doesn't feel based in reality for how people actually grow and heal - which happens when people are Safe and Cared For and feel like they have actual worth. like, we See this in-game! the moment susie is kind to him, relates to his struggles and gives him hope and promises to personally help him out in finding a better environment for him, he INSTANTLY becomes better! he only hesitates for a moment in giving up toriel despite having been threatened into doing it, he's bouncing off the walls with joy, he blooms one of his happiness flowers for the first time in the entire chapter. it's an instant stark difference from his performance face or his panicked desperation prior. it's Good for him!! it's Good to be nice to him!!!!

and like... i could See castle town being good for him in this way too. ultimately what he needs is connection and safety and a support system that actually treats him well and cares for him for who He is. and we don't see that in castle town right now - we see him getting mocked by spade king or sent into spirals by battat, mostly cooped up in his own room and clearly uncomfortable where he is - but he Could have a good environment and friends there with time! (hi queen). i just don't know if we're going to get that within the timeframe of the actual game, but that's what fics and comics and other what-if's are for yknow

so i think my main points are 1.) i think mettaton and castle town can and probably will both be good, hopeful endings for him in the long run, so i dont mind people making their arguments for which one, and 2.) but also people are so fucking annoying about punitive justice shut upppppp he doesn't need to make up for his crimes he needs friends and ice cream and to be treated decently for once. also stop making him spamton's caretaker idgafffffffff