#Undertalethingem chats

[undertalethingems]

How do you think Sans reacts to Papyrus’s death during the runs?

If you mean in the base game, uh... we kinda already know? If Papyrus is killed, Sans doesn't show up again until the final corridor, where he'll ask "if you have some sort of special power, isn't it your responsibility to do the right thing?"

If you answer yes (that you do have that responsibility), then he responds, without eyelights or sound font, "Then why'd you kill my brother?"

And if you answer no (you aren't responsible), you get "well, that's your viewpoint. i won't judge you for it.... You dirty brother killer."

There's also the line of description you get if you go on to have a concert with Shyren after killing Papyrus: "A hooded figure watches the commotion from afar." It replaces the line that mentions Sans selling toilet paper tickets to your concert, and of course, of all the characters with hoods in the game, he's the one who would be most concerned with tracking your actions after killing Papyrus. So, it makes the most sense to infer that this hooded figure is Sans.

So his reactions, to me at least, suggest that not only is he heartbroken, he's furious with you. But Sans isn't one for direct confrontations and shouting like Undyne is, so he watches, and I think he still tries to understand why you'd do something so horrible. But that doesn't stop him from being angry because there's no excuse for killing his brother, but sparing other monsters, that he can fathom.

I'm personally not a fan of depictions of Sans sobbing over Papyrus' dusty scarf--he just doesn't strike me as a guy whose first reaction is to cry. For my understanding of him, it makes more sense for him to go numb, initially, then save his anger for his parting shot in the last corridor. No matter what you answer, Sans gets the last word in, and it's always to remind you that you did not have to kill his brother.

So uh, yeah. that's what I think.

[undertalethingems]

Er, except we can know some of it, because of the screenshots shared above as well as many more points of data. We know Sans reacts very negatively to Papyrus dying, because we can compare that to other character deaths and how he generally doesn't react to those (the only other one that comes close, surprise surprise, is Toriel, someone else he cares a lot about.) He's clearly not nihilistic about it. And no. We don't know that he doesn't go full ugly crying offscreen, but again--Sans doesn't come off like a character who finds it easy to be that vulnerable, even when no one is watching. He keeps his emotions close to his chest. Even if he were to cry, it might not be until well after the events of the game.

For folks who want to understand Sans as he is presented, or are artists trying get his character right, his canon is important to take into account. Many people, myself included, like Sans as he appears in the game, and are disappointed when so many depictions of him veer too far off course, resulting in someone who doesn't feel very much like the character we care about. If you can sell it with your premise, you can push things further in either direction--people often "break character" under extreme duress. but, if you're still claiming to be writing canon Sans while making him a sobbing nervous wreck, or making him callously nonchalant about the people he's known to care about, without good reason...? Well, it's not going to feel like a complete understanding of him.

People can, have, and will make whatever they want, and that's fine... but if we want to talk about Sans' canon character and what we can realistically extrapolate for him in fanworks, it's important to review the information we already have--what he says, how he says it, how he acts, what the people around him say he's like.

The discussion's not really about being right or wrong--it's about trying not to simplify a complex and interesting character into a shadow of their former self ^^;

Overcorrecting

Actual canon:

Furthermore:

I get wanting to distance yourself from old inaccurate fanon but recently it feels like the fandom is just being contrarian and overcorrecting so much they create a new fanon, just in the opposite direction

[undertalethingems]

Having made the poll about cosplaying Undertale characters, I feel like I owe you guys some pics of my own cosplay.

I made my Sans cosplay in 2016, and I've worn him pretty regularly ever since. He features LED eyes, but I didn't wire them quite well enough so they don't have all their functionality anymore (it's supposed to have his flashing left too, but alas) . He's due for a remake, but I'm still pretty happy with how he turned out all these years later. ^^

I think there's a few more pics of him on my blog, but there you guys go ^^

[undertalethingems]

I'm going to see the moon eat the sun

Yup, I'm going to see the eclipse! But I'm traveling this weekend to do so, so I won't have enough time to finish the comic update--look for it the following week, Thursday 11th!

Idk if I'll get pictures, but if I do I'll be sure to share :>

[undertalethingems]

Heya, just wanted to check in on you! Your probably getting a lot of asks about it. But I just wanted to make sure your ok, and that everything is well. Have a great day/afternoon/night.

Hey, I appreciate it ^^

I can't say too much has changed since my last post on the subject... but I do have some good news! I was able to finish a section of comic yesterday, and I have a pretty good idea of how the next bit should look. Hopefully that means it won't take as long to do.

That said, I'm considering holding off on posting an update until the new year. That way I can potentially build up a buffer and avoid another long hiatus.

so, I'm hanging in there, and I hope everyone else is too -.-

[undertalethingems]

That's what I meant by going to the actual blog page--but, I guess I don't know how accessible it is on the mobile app (i never use it) >>;;

It's the kind of thing I'd put in a pinned post, but I like having the latest page be pinned... So, maybe I could tag the 1st page of each chapter accordingly?

I'll have to do it when it isn't late and I'm supposed to be asleep, eheh.

Hey there, i saw your reblogs on unexpected guests--yes, it's still going, and if you go to the actual undertalethingems(.)tumblr(.)com blog page, there's a tab that has links to the beginning of each chapter, as well as any pertinent extras. Calysto left off right at the beginning of Chapter 6, Act 3 :>

Thanks, but I checked that blog and didn't see anything like that. Each page had a link to the previous page and next page, as well as the beginning of the comic, but I didn't find any link to the start of each chapter. Idk tho

[undertalethingems]

ough

sorry for making everyone worry; i did mean to upload new pages this last thursday (the 18th, the date on the eclipse post was a mistake :"D), but, well, obviously that didn't happen

i'm not 100% sure what's going on but i think a new medication i'm trying is making me feel much more tired than usual, and it's difficult to feel motivated, which i already struggle with and was something the medication was supposed to help. ironically.

I don't think it's burnout on the comic specifically, because I haven't felt like doing any sort of art, which as you can imagine is pretty frustrating for someone whose main hobbies are all art.

i think it'll ultimately be ok, but I think I'll have to take what i guess is an official hiatus from posting comic updates for now. I plan to still work on it and hopefully build up a bit of a buffer in the meantime. With any luck I'll get things sorted out, and be able to get back on top of updates like normal.

Thanks for all your patience so far, and I really appreciate the folks who sent messages to check in. How about we meet back up May 16th? :>

[undertalethingems]

WTF since when Gaster was the brothers father?! Sans mentioned it? I don't remember he saying it!! Oh boy that makes the emotional baggage way heavier than I thought!!

Heheheh, it's been my headcanon, and canon for unexpected guests, this whole time--but sans carefully left that detail of their relationship out.

He told the truth, but not all of it...

[undertalethingems]

Can you please release the next page early? My heart can’t take the anticipation anymore

Listen, i'm glad you're excited for the next update! But there's a few problems with releasing it early...

i still have to have time to draw it

i don't really want to set a precedent for posting early updates just because someone asks. you're fine, anon, and i've been fortunate that it's only happened rarely--but i've had others get very rude about my update schedule not being what they want it to be. or even just forgetting i live in a different time zone from them =u=;;

where the story's at now, i could leave it off at a much worse cliffhanger >:3

[undertalethingems]

Just out of curiosity what is sans doing right now when all the fighting and commotion is happening out side the house?

Sleeping, mostly. Any action he's noticed has just sounded like what happens when Papyrus and Undyne get into a heated round of sparring--nothing unusual.

Nothing worth getting up for.

[undertalethingems]

I love how Gaster was going for all of them and then saw papyrus. He had a face of "Oh shit." But papyrus seems not to be aware of what or who he is.

He doesn't understand who he is or doesn't remember him at all, but Gaster? He knows him, he remembers him, he remembers everyone and everything.

Wellllll....... regarding Papyrus remembering Gaster, I suggest revisiting Chapter 8 :>

But there's certainly some recognition going on between them, isn't there...? :3

[undertalethingems]

you’re probably getting bugged by other asks about the comic; just wanted to send some love from myself and other fans, who i know will all be here whenever you return ♥️

Anonymous asked: is everything okay? I don't mean to pry or anything you can answer this with a dot if you want

Anonymous asked: Hey, just wondering if you're alright, been loving the comment, and it's been a couple weeks of radio silence. Just wondering if you're okay.

Anonymous asked: How are you doing as of late? Things are scary but I hope you are doing okay wherever you are, cool person on the internet! Also Jefferly says hi

Anonymous asked: are you okay?? usually I wouldn't go out of my way to even ask, because I figured I'm not the only one asking but at this point, I'm not worried about the comic anymore. are YOU okay? I'm very worried for you.

hi all. sorry for the lack of updates; tbh, this month has been pretty generally bad in terms of getting any art done. not just the comic--even my other projects have been difficult to focus on. but, it means a lot to me that some total strangers care about how i'm doing.

so, i'm hanging in there, and i'm grateful for everyone's patience. i think it's a safe bet a lot of us are Going Though It these days, and have been for a while, for all kinds of reasons. I know my comic brings a lot of you joy, and that's why I want to keep making it. I hope to get back to it soon.

Also, idk who jefferly is, but i hope they are some manner of cute animal :>

[undertalethingems]

May i ask what papyrus’s “fun quirks” are after the accident? Or at least what you have them as in unexpected guests? Or is that something we might find out in future updates?

(I know him ‘floating’ is a big one, but i also know of the other headcanon stuff that I’m wondering if he’s got aswell haha, but then again i don’t want to spoil anything so no worries if ya can’t-)

haha, well, they're not really spoilers because most of them are just directly from canon, or things I extrapolate from canon--but here are the main ones:

As you mention, he cheerfully ignores physics when he wants

Like Sans, Papyrus knows about things that happen in the game ahead of time, before he has any reasonable way of knowing about them; this is what I have Sans term 'premonitions' in chapter 7.

He seems to be able to see from the player's perspective, at least sometimes...

As for things not supported by canon--while it's not a headcanon I came up with myself, I do like the idea that Papyrus can also shortcut, he just doesn't like to because it's lazy.

In general, aside from karma effects, I like to think Papyrus can do all the same things his brother can--he just usually chooses not to. :>

[undertalethingems]

Continuing the theme of posting about cosplays...

I'd love to make some costume pieces for Toriel, Asgore, and Alphys. I don't want to wear them myself (i am physically not big enough to pull off either toriel or asgore XD)... but I think it'd be fun to make them for someone who did, in the semi-realistic style I draw them in. They'd all present their own challenges, but as shown in my poll, they don't get cosplayed often... Come to think of it, I don't know that I've ever seen a non-gijinka Alphys??? Granted, I haven't gone looking.... but, point is, it's not common, and I'd like to see them.

So I guess, uh, if you like the way I draw these characters and have a burning desire to cosplay them... I could be convinced to take on some special commissions, eheh.

[undertalethingems]

Why does flowey care for Sans’s forgiveness?

Well, he doesn't, not really.

With Sans figuring out the terrible things he's done in past timelines, Flowey feels he'll use this information to guilt-trip or blackmail him, and Flowey doesn't want him to have this advantage over him. So, he reasons that if he can bring Gaster back, he and Sans are even. If Sans tries to hold something over his head or take issue with something he's done, he can counter with the 'favor' of bringing back his old colleague--hence why he says "He (Sans) can't be mad at me ever again!"

That's, uh, not how apologies work, but Flowey's still viewing things as a transactional 'game' he can 'win'. =u=;

[undertalethingems]

Quick question, for ao3 you locked your fics, but is there any benefit to it? (Genuinely just curious ^^)

it is, hopefully, to prevent web scrapers from using my works for training data in assorted automated plagiarism schemes =_=;