Random Strange Facts:
- Papyrus is the only character to
speak without an asterisk- Papyrus’s dialogue shakes on a
consistent basis when no one else’s does- Papyrus is described as “forgettable,”
something only mentioned elsewhere in context with Goner Kid and Gaster- Papyrus seems to be able to see
what the player is looking at when he calls them (”THAT BAG OF DOG FOOD LOOKS FAMILIAR…”)- Papyrus seems to know that MTT has
eyes before MTT becomes MTT Ex- Papyrus has a total of 2184 lines
in the game—more than any other character, and almost as much as the narrator
of the game, which is at 2418 lines. The next closest character is Undyne, with
1268 total lines.- Similar wording is used to
describe Papyrus as it is to describe Gaster. (It’s rude to talk about someone
who’s listening)- Papyrus’s theme, “Nyeh heh
heh/Bonetrousle,” is used in all of the trailers of the game- Papyrus and Sans break the 4th
wall in the stream greenlight trailer, which shocks Toriel- Papyrus flies/breaks the laws of
physics casually and seemingly on a regular basis- Papyrus is one of the few
characters that refers to gameplay mechanics (“PRESS [C] ON THE KEYBOARD FOR
DATING HUD!” “HOLD UP LONGER TO JUMP HIGHER, JEEZ!”)- Papyrus says himself that he knows
nothing about his hands because he always keeps his gloves on.- There is nothing, nothing known about his past before his
showing up to Snowdin. By the end of the game and after some research, you can
basically know more about Gaster and Sans than you do about Papyrus, despite
him having the most dialogue in the game besides the narrator.- Papyrus has such control over his
magic in his fight, that he can make his attacks do zero damage because he
refuses to kill the human.- You are healed to full HP right
before the Papyrus fight, as well as immediately after if you are captured.- Papyrus doesn’t seem to realize
that Frisk is a kid, despite Frisk wearing a striped shirt, which is a common
indicator for childhood in monster society. (is he unfamiliar with common
monster culture, for some reason?)- Sans reads Papyrus bed time stories on a regular basis, but Papyrus himself never seems to sleep
- The Undertale Q&A that Toby Fox did for Undertale’s anniversary revolves around Papyrus
- His defense raises in the spare phase of his fight, unlike every other monster. He seems to be able to manipulate his own stats.
Relationships:
- The two 4th wall
breaking characters (Flowey and the Annoying Dog) seem to have a special
interest in Papyrus- Annoying Dog:
- Steals bone attacks on two
separate occasions (Papyrus fight and aborted Genocide hangout, in which the “special
attack” is hinted to be Gaster Blasters)- Steals bones in general on two
occasions (Under Papyrus’s sink and during the hangout with Undyne)- Eats Papyrus’s lasagna
- Snuggles with Papyrus
- Flowey:
- Says Papyrus started a “Flowey Fan
Club”- Says Papyrus took a long time to
get boring on his repeated runs- Asks Papyrus to call Frisk before
the True lab, gather everyone together before the True Ending, and probably
leave a note in Alphys’ trash can- Flowey is the only one who knows
Papyrus’s favorite food, which is dinosaur oatmeal (no, it’s not spaghetti.
Papyrus has never eaten it.)- When Flowey attacks the group during the True Pacifist fight, he binds everyone with two vines, except Papyrus–who he binds with four.
- Sans (overlooking the bounteous
brotherly goodness of the two):
- Papyrus lies to him on a
consistent basis- This is to probably humor Sans
about his level of knowledge?- Papyrus still expects Sans to know
more about Papyrus than Papyrus does himself?- Papyrus acts negatively towards
Sans’s puns, but then turns around and makes the most (and arguably best) puns
in the game out of anyonePersonality:
- Doesn’t outwardly acknowledge
criticism- According to Sans, he is
trash-talked a lot- May have self-worth issues
- Extremely blasé about his own
death- Doesn’t seem to have friends,
despite working very hard to get them- He phrases things in really strange
ways. (”UNMANDATE IT SAFER”)- Papyrus staunchly refuses to
really hurt people, despite it being very likely that he could be just as hard
or harder of a fight than Sans- He has a strong and unshakeable
belief that people can change (does he know this from personal experience?)- He hates Grillby’s and Hotland
- He is an amazing artist
- He considers himself a great chef, even if he doesn’t necessarily eat what he cooks
Quotes:
- “DEADLY SPIKES, PRECARIOUS
BRIDGES! TRULY THE PILLARS OF YOUTH!”- [when dying] “ALAS, POOR PAPYRUS.
[this is quoting Shakespeare while he’s dying]
WELL, AT LEAST I HAVE MY HEAD!”- “I WOULD NEVER TAKE A VACATION FOR
ANY REASON!”- Undyne: “Papyrus… doesn’t know how
to sleep??”- “I WANT TO MEET DEATH!”
- “YOU CAN SEE YOUR REFLECTION IN A PUDDLE, BUT… DON’T LET A BODY OF WATER DETERMINE YOUR SELF WORTH!”
- “IT’S MY LEAST FAVORITE
NIGHTMARE!” – referring to Hotland lasers and conveyors- “A MYSTERIOUS SCIENCE HOUSE. […] LABORADOR-Y?”
When talking about Alphys’s lab with Sans present.- “A LAB?? MY BROTHER WOULD LOVE THAT!” –when talking about Alphys’s lab without
Sans present.- “ICE CREAM? THANKS, BUT I LIVE IN SNOWDIN! THERE’S ICE
CREAM ALL OVER THE GROUND!” –when talking about ice cream when Sans is present.- “I TRIED TO CAPTURE YOU… WHERE’S
MY ICE CREAM.” –when talking about ice cream without Sans present.- “STOP LOOKING IN MY EMPTY MAIL
BOX. THAT’S MY EMPTINESS, NOT YOURS.”- “I AM A PRETTY BRUTAL KIND OF GUY.”
- “HOTLAND! I KNOW IT LIKE THE BACK
OF MY HAND. WHICH, SINCE I’M ALWAYS WEARING GLOVES… I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT!”- “WELL, IF YOU WANT TO GET SOMEONE TO OPEN UP, YOU SHOULD ENGAGE THEM IN COMBAT! HUM HUM HUM…” – before the Shyren encounter. This is one of the few times where Papyrus actually gives you something helpful, but how does he know?
Links for additional
reading/theories(most links to @batter-sempai, @papyrus-knows, and @queenofdragons6 posts and reblogs):
Optimism does not make Papyrus naive
Papyrus casually breaking laws of physics
Strange music (or lack of) in Papyrus’s room
Brutal kind of guy screenshots
Some disturbing connections
Some suspicious screenshots
Part 3 of a sans theory where the writer realizes Papyrus is ridiculously mysterious
Chara and Papyrus similarities–they’re always smiling!
Phone call and 4th wall suspicions
Papyrus surprising cynicism
Sans and Papyrus dynamic speculation
Vague Gaster and Papyrus connection
Papyrus’s skewed views on what is safe for kids… possible backstory connection?
Another compilation of sketchy Papyrus-y things
Insomnia and nightmares
More on music and rooms
Papyrus creeped out by echo flowers
Papyrus and Annoying Dog interactions (there are a surprising amount)
Sans and Papyrus dynamic speculation 2
Papyrus: treated like a child
Papyrus: nasty words with a huge grin
The fodder for many an amnesiac theory
Papyrus is literally the skeleton in the closet
Papyrus battle mechanics and minor Flowey connections
The dude is lonely
Theory: is Papyrus Gaster?
More Papyrus fighting skill plus reality breaking phone call
He’s a gentleman
Papyrus doesn’t sleep
Undertale Q&A/Papyrus’s favorite food
Reference–How many lines each character has in the gameDebunking Stupid Papyrus 1 – he knows what death is
Debunking Stupid Papyrus 2 – the sink height. Strange, but workable
Debunking Stupid Papyrus 3 – “solving” the horoscope
Debunking Stupid Papyrus 4 – the lab
Debunking Stupid Papyrus 5 – pet rock
Debunking Stupid Papyrus 6 – spaghettiPapyrus masterpost! 😀