I SOLVED Gaster's Mysterious Valentines Card | Deltarune Newsletter Discussion and Analysis

[@spookydood5500]

Thanks for watching! Like I said, this was a very long video made in a very short amount of time, so there's less editing than usual. Also- I know I take a long time to get to who I think wrote the letter, but it had to be that way. Everyone's already decided Gaster wrote the letter, trying to argue otherwise is like trying to convince someone the sky isn't blue. So it's a long video. But honestly I think this is the kind of video I enjoy. Pure thoughts and feelings and discussions. Anyways, thanks for watching! More highly edited videos coming soon.

[@supershyguy1476]

Honestly your talk of the Vessel being the Delta Rune is just very straw graspy. You act like this is some sort of insurmountable task to convince people? There’s something very aggressive and honestly kinda dangerous about saying it ruins characters being more than one sided like Papyrus. Near the end it sounded like an emotional breakdown about how characters should act how you want to act, even if you acknowledge your bias. It feels too passive aggressive to say you’re jealous of people? I have to ask. Is everything ok?

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

​@@supershyguy1476Nah, don't worry, he's just being Based, unbased people like you don't understand 🗿

[@supershyguy1476]

@@whocaresaboutthename6850 I’m just kinda concerned. It kinda feels a bit worrying to say certain interpretations just “feel off”.

[@bigbadgammagnome]

@supershyguy1476 Are YOU okay? Calling a deltarune theory dangerous is more concerning than anything in the video. Calm down. You don't have to agree with everything in the video to appreciate the good points made. You are trying to analyse the character of the person making the video rather than actually making any arguments for or against anything. That is poor criticism, and weird behaviour.

[@ultranathan992]

What if it's Dess? (Noelle's lost sister)

[@UnisRapper]

plot twist: the reason why its so cheerful and has bad grammar is because its actually Wing Gaster the royal scientist from undertale battle mode

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Real

[@DinIsSoCool12]

Im wing gaster! The royal scientist

[@saiashadoesstuff1133]

​@@DinIsSoCool12I'm wing gaster! The romantic scientist From: To:

[@tr_aux]

spitting #facts

[@BelBelle468]

Idk why, but the fact Wing Gaster has somehow just become famous in the community only recently after being being introduced in an oooold fan game is amazing. Gotta thank that VA for basically turning him into the greatest meme.

[@toastydevil]

It, to me, sounds like river person. A character forgotten, speaks with whimsy, forgetful themself, and often confused. Has connections to Gaster ("Beware of the man who speaks in hands"), and would probably know about Deltarune, but in their own confusion, would call it Delta Rune, similar to the prophecy of the underground.

[@Fangria]

ohh yeah. i like that more than egg man

[@comicallylargerodent]

@@Missingno_Miner neither does the valentine!

[@Missingno_Miner]

@@comicallylargerodent -I have made a severe and continuous lapse in my judgement, and I don't expect to be forgiven.- I was not paying attention lol, I thought this was a totally separate conversation I was having in the comments of an entirely different video. Got up from my computer and forgot I switched to a different tab when I came back.

[@waluigiisthebest2802]

A good idea, but the river person doesn’t speak in all caps, and the letter doesn’t have their catchphrase, Tra la la. Although that would be too obvious.

[@BelBelle468]

Considering the reoccurring themes of the ocean and the sea, the river person becoming more relevant and connected to DR is something that could very well happen

[@Han-yb7qo]

43:42 it’s simple. the egg man’s goal is to defeat sonic

[@eremation]

Da da da da da da (tttttt) dadadadadada (tttttttt) bbbbbbbbbbb bbb bb bbbb

[@Sappysappster]

GET A LOAD OF THIS!

[@jalolastname5446]

You know what they say, the more the merrier!

[@think_of_a_storyboard3635]

all systems, FULL POWER!

[@emitrioff]

I hate that hedgehog!

[@Lunarcreeper]

imagine if in chapter 3 queen just says something like: "oh i'm just trolling on the internet and made a mysterious valentines letter"

[@MeloniestNeon]

LMAO KRIS DID YOU KNOW THAT HANDING OUT FREE EGGS TO CHILDREN BEHIND TREES IN AREAS OUTSIDE THE BOUNDS OF REALITY IS LIKE, ACTUALLY REALLY FUNNY? I KEEP THEORY BAITING THESE NERDS ON THE INTERNET LOL LMAO

[@emidemi7211]

this is worryingly in character

[@DAVINNIA314]

@@MeloniestNeon This sounds in-character, but QUEEN's text doesn't Look like that, it's more like this: Hey Kris Did You Know I Was The First Fast Search Engine They Totally Didnt Expect That Dearie

[@SpaceMan377]

That would be dissapointing.

[@childeofepickness]

@deltashot_Queen: Actually This Guys Username Is Really Weird Who The Heck Names Themself “Tobias Fox”??? Lol They’re Going To Be So Surprised When They See This

[@lemoncandy571]

im gonna be so honest the idea of the letter being written by the egg man genuenly brought a smile to my face because like? the egg man? giving us a valentine? the idea is so adorable and it fits what we've seen with him so well. I mean like, not only does all of the evidence add up, but I just find the idea of the egg man having an actual character and being this happy little fellow is such a refreshing idea in a world where most people think every mystery revolves around gaster. I think I would really like if the egg man was his own separate guy with his own separate story. Like how the description of the egg is not to important, not too unimportant. Like the sideplot of this egg guy being optional and probably not affecting much in the game overall, especially since the eggs arent that easy to find, but I'd love for him to have a character and, however minor it may be, his own place in the plot. I feel like it would be a waste to tie this guy down to only being connected to gaster and not having any purpose otherwise. Don't get my wrong, I find gaster very interesting, honestly abnormally so but whatever, but every mystery I see is just theorized to be related to him even when it doesn't make the most sense ( like the absence of gasters leitmotif in the music of the egg man room being ignored in favor of people wanting to tie this person to gaster despite gasters theme showing up like everywhere else) So when I first saw the newsletter I was kind of worried the same thing would happen, and it kind of has, but a video like this is so nice to see. I feel like when people look past like surface level stuff, they let so much more creativity into their theories. I honestly don't know if any of this made sense but my point is I love the theory of the man with the egg writing the letter because personally I would be honored to receive a valentine from a man who hands out eggs for free. (also because it makes perfect sense regarding all the evidence but my other point stands too, who else is going to keep kris fed?)

[@NovaAeternus]

"only being connected to gaster" OR "most people think every mystery revolves around gaster" Pick one. A space that shouldn't exist. A room that shouldn't exist A hallway that shouldn't exist Yet on chance, They occur. Unrelated to him? Disappearing, Just like every trace? Except..

[@tobiasbayer4866]

Honestly, I would actually like if egg man was Gaster, or atleast a fragment of him because it would show that he also has a nice and caring side instead of the fanon Gaster where he is just this omnipresent lovecraftian entity. It overshadows the actual Dr Gaster that he must have once been. And I feel like egg man and the valentines card is where his old personality shines through a bit. Giving us a glimpse into who he once was.

[@dumbassgoth]

i thought this exact same thing omg id love for it to be the egg man

[@ScuttleBugReal]

I am the egg man.. I got the master plan..

[@aykarain]

@@tobiasbayer4866 i had the same thought too!!!

[@creakingskull7008]

Things like the line "It's rude to talk about someone who's listening" would get ruined if Gaster was yet another quirky goofball character. For real, i got that event naturally on a random Undertale playthrough and it filled me with a feeling of dread like very few games have managed to do.

[@AceSpadespoken]

That and how the things surrounding him are eerie, like his theme and how the people who follow him are literally called "goners," being doomed in some way.

[@username5155]

20:36 I know Toby and his team undrerstand Japanese very, very well because of Spamton. He uses words like die and death in place of だい and です, he uses tons of loanwords, he uses kanji for their pronunciation as opposed to their meaning, and even the Japanese name for [[BIG SHOT]] translates to POWER OF [BIG], a joke you’d only get if you knew the English name for MTT NEO’s theme *AND* speak Japanese. These are all things that *specifically* Spamton does, making them the equivalent to Spamton’s _EV3RY BUDDY”S FAVORITE! YOU'RE LIGHT neR< AREN'T YOU? SPECIL D3AL 4 Y0U!_ grammatical errors.

[@-Teague-]

There's actually a whole book about the translation process for Undertale called Undertale Legends of Localization

[@theonlycarpy]

BAHAHAHAHA POWER OF BIG

[@magpye5623]

The letter writer has major Alice and Wonderland vibes

[@NovaAeternus]

In.

[@mmrguerra2009]

There is a theory that Mike is some kind of a cheshire cat and the letter's writer

[@k0w0res]

I was just thinking this. Plus with March being right after February, which holds Valentine's day, and the ideas of the March Hare and the Mad Hatter both stemming from Alice in Wonderland- it's interesting to think about. Especially with the Hare and the Hatter being essentially opposites- the Hare always running around, late for this or that, and the Hatter being eternally stuck at his tea party. Also if we factor in the fact that Humpty Dumpty is mentioned in the original "Through the Looking Glass", that could be a connection for the egg man theory, too

[@WithASock]

for real. what a curious dream toby had

[@MrLegendofLP]

I like this point. It is *extremely* Alice in Wonderland. Like, this entire Valentine’s Day Card feels like a Cheshire Cat interaction. You don’t really get anywhere over the entire long conversation, and it seems like the speaker is completely mad. Contradicting statements back to back. So it’s possible that this valentine is a preview of a character in chapter 3 or 4.

[@droycon]

My main problem with this being Gaster is not that Gaster can be goofy. like okay he’s goofy, but why reveal that now? Why in a random newsletter? I feel like if Gaster was to be a bit goofy, we’d only find that out once we actually meet him, since he’s had so much build up. Would be weird if Toby just confirmed this randomly imo

[@UnisRapper]

The Wing Gaster meme is now canon

[@blahblahgdp]

Id like to think toby is having fun and everybody is taking this way too seriously

[@KingOfDarknessAndEvil]

​@blahblahgdp Toby knows is though, he knows we'd take a potential gaster letter super seriously

[@MahNamJeff]

toby revealed his next project via vagueposting as gaster on twitter for 24 hours Its not that far fetched.

[@PikaPenny17]

I mean, consider the various reveals in the Spamton Sweepstakes. Noelle's connections with mysterious figures and Spamton. Noelle's connection with computer glitches. Confirmation of Dess being missing. Revealing Tenna and insinuating that Spamton doesn't hate Mike, who pretty much everyone thought hated Mike. Kris's weird piano playing. Kris and Susie backstory. Probably more stuff I'm forgetting. Why reveal those in a random charity giveaway?

[@GarlicBredArt]

Wait a minute. Egg Man is similar to Schrodinger's cat, there is/isnt a man here, his emotion up to our interperetation, CatPetterz is the game Noelle got the egg from. Egg Man is all about us making choices, as if we're a "puppet master", the only intelligent cat characters we have are manipulating something, the Occult, the Queens servants, Seam is literally a doll, they're puppet masters as well. Element 6. Cat/Puppet. Eggs are measured by two things, Temmie, who is part cat, and a refridgerator, calling back to the True Lab foreshadowing of Egg Man. Is the egg man Element 6?

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

6? GASTER??? 😱😱😱😱😳😳😳😳 1!1!1!1

[@GarlicBredArt]

@@whocaresaboutthename6850 this is a whole other level of cooking

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

​@@GarlicBredArtWho let me cook? Lmao 💀

[@nellymurkthewitch]

Eggman is a catboy confirmed

[@MeloniestNeon]

I can't believe we have possible evidence that the egg man is literally just a happy little cat, who hands out eggs and is confused as to whether he's a man or a cat, and whether he's there or not there

[@3πςιλον]

Egg Man is actually a really solid conclusion.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

*It's the only conclusion*

[@TheRealSuperKirby]

Except that would still make in 90% likely to be gaster

[@JALETRATOR]

Hedgehog Stew.

[@apastelnerd]

@@whocaresaboutthename6850 It would only be the only conclusion if you limit yourself to thinking the mystery character is an existing character and not a character that will soon be introduced.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

​@@apastelnerdThat's Cringe

[@sugarbumful]

A bit off topic, but I hope when Toby finishes Deltarune he creates a game called “Tundra eel” Edit: With all the comments I’m getting I dare yall to search up every single anagram for Undertale/deltarune

[@ayhanirgin9716]

Hmm what about NUTDEALER or NUDEALERT?

[@Plzinsertnameplz]

And then when they get bought out and filled with microtransactions they'll make "ea trundle"

[@raymiemiller1455]

nudealert

[@magdalenaj47]

Still hoping NutDealer comes first

[@enderking5220]

I'd like to see "U leend rat"

[@LiMe251]

Good by was used around the 1800s and 1900s, if the gap between humans falling was pretty long, it would make sense for him to use it.

[@luizzeroxis]

Hey completely unrelated but when did the old west period happen again?

[@LiMe251]

@@luizzeroxis Around 1865 to 1895.

[@ospreysstuff]

didnt chara fall in 2010

[@LiMe251]

@@ospreysstuff It was 201X, so either 2010, 20110, or 201(hidden number), good catch!

[@artnerd3727]

maybe secret 3rd boss is from an old-timey play?

[@infarious_]

Interestingly, assuming this image I found on Google is the actual Japanese version, the letter ends with "サラ　ば！", which you could say is a misspelled and old-fashioned way of saying goodbye. So, maybe the English is both misspelled and old-fashioned as well?

[@pancakes8670]

"Good by" could very well be old English, as it was used in the 1800s

[@benjaminfricke4791]

@@pancakes8670 That would still technically be Modern English, just an outdated dialect of it. Old English is something else entirely.

[@ilexdiapason]

​@@benjaminfricke4791archaic english, then

[@SemiHypercube]

I was thinking that maybe the letter is our first glimpse at the Chapter 3 secret boss, though your idea seems really good too

[@captainbeefster]

The egg man (assuming that the man in the car is him) smiles and waves at you, and disappears in a similar matter to the letter. Could he have written this letter? Edit: I should have finished the video before posting this.

[@LiMe251]

Perhaps, assuming he isn't, like, Papyrus or something.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

​@@LiMe251PapyrusMan is cringe

[@Glitch-the-YouTuber]

Man, sounds like the egg man really hates blue hedgehogs.

[@eloise2319]

The reason that people think it is him is because The Man in the car only appears if you have interacted with The Egg Man in the previous chapter. So I think it's likely to be the same person.

[@windego64]

There's a strong theory that there's two Gasters. If anything this strengthen it

[@pteroid11]

The Deltarune vs Delta Rune thing reminded me of that one Bill Wurtz bit. “There’s the Gupta Empire not Chandragupta just Gupta. First name Chandra. The First.”

[@Dudeman23rd]

"(Makes sense)"

[@herecomestheboy]

Okay, I get it ✅️

[@Dudeman23rd]

The Egg Man is an excellent candidate. I hadn't seen this valentine yet but as you read through it, I immediately clocked that it was a complete tonal mismatch for Gaster. Honestly my first thought (and what I thought you were building up to) was that this was our first hint at the Chapter 3 secret boss: the valentine is in all caps, the speaker is dazed and confused and brings up oddly specific objects, they are aware of the player as a separate entity, etc., all traits that can easily be seen in both Jevil and Spamton. But it would make more sense to foreshadow the characterization of a preexisting entity to fans who signed up for the newsletter than provide dialogue for an entirely new character with zero context.

[@Kaitou1412Fangirl]

Yeah, same here. Something about it being from Gaster didn't click, but watching the video, the idea of the Egg Man writing it did pop into my head. Plus, it's in character for him to give us stuff.

[@Sappysappster]

23:04 I actually like this analogy that shows the difference between characters and real life people; as it's something I actively think about when I'm making characters ("Do not think about them as people, think about them as puzzle pieces") People are books, whilst characters are pages Adding depth to a character is one thing, but writing an entirely different sentence is another thing. It's not that you can't add layers to a characters (I literally assumed the love letter was Gaster and Toby showing that he's a sillybilly like the skelebros because Of Course) But it should STILL be in line with the preestablished character Even if this video turns out to be wrong I'm glad you still spoke about this concept because character consistency is something that's very important to me as a writer

[@TheSoulCalledZuzia]

EXACTLY

[@3DFella]

I disagree personally with "Do not think about them as people, think about them as puzzle pieces" I like when characters are like people, infact, I prefer it. I'd rather have a character act like an actual person rather than a means to the end of the story.

[@Sappysappster]

@@3DFella I literally just said that I don't mind when a character has layers, so long as it fits the preestablished personality in some way I prefer it when characters act like actual people too! But it's important to remember that at the end of the day, they are not and cannot be real; they ACT like a real person So it's important to remember what they are first: characters and characters, to ME, are puzzle pieces not every character needs to have 500 layers of symbolism and depth, but their existence needs to be worth while; they should complete "the bigger picture" If they do not serve anything narratively, thematically, or in-universe (like a minor character who acts as the guide for the MC with amnesia) Then they should not be there That's was I was trying to get at.

[@TheSoulCalledZuzia]

​@@3DFella I think you kind of misunderstood. Characters *should* act realistically, that's the point of characters. Being just a plot device *is* a bad writing. *However,* characters will never be 100% realistic human. In a way, that'd be also bad writing. Nobody wants to see characters act 100% accurately to their unrealistic struggles, trust me. Also, that'd be overcomplicating them. And characters should *never* be overcomplicated.

[@joshuaperry7323]

it sounds like someone trying to sound like Gaster without knowing how to sound like Gaster, or even potentially understand some of the things Gaster says. like either someone other than Toby wrote it and didn't understand how to sound and feel like Gaster, which I don't see Toby letting happen, or someone in universe pretending to be gaster, which would explain the difference between DELTARUNE and Delta Rune. whoever they are might have seen gaster talk about deltarune but have no idea what gaster is actually referring to and thinks he is referring to the Delta Rune, my first though was Dess, though a completely wild though came to me that probably has no actual basses but Noelle could be trying to in secret ask for your help with finding Dess. of course there's a million holes in this and it doesn't really make much sense but Noelle does seem like the type to talk herself in circles while trying to seem mysterious. and the jovial tone certainly fits.

[@zeo4481]

It's just Gaster ! How do we KNOW how Gaster sounds? Misterious ? Serious? Come on! We clearly have no idea what Gaster is!

[@ma_cherri]

​@@zeo4481 Gaster, or the Deltarune version of him, speaks on Tobys twitter, and is the one who greets us into the game itself. We know how he speak from there. He speaks in all caps, weirdly, and speaks to the player like he knows its a game and stuff.

[@wholehorse331]

I have considered "someone who isn't Toby tried to write like Gaster" as well and it kind of saddens me if that ends up being true (but probably not)

[@NovaAeternus]

​@@ma_cherriKnow how he speaks? Or know How he writes? Pick one.

[@ma_cherri]

@@NovaAeternus How bro felt after typing that 😈😈😈👹👹⛓️

[@CalamitasCalliope]

I do like the idea of the Egg Man sending the valentine. I am hoping that Toby develops the "shattered into pieces" part of Gaster’s story, and i do like the idea of multiple Gasters who have different goals and personalities. Hell, if your theory is correct we might need the Egg Gaster's help to win. Collecting all of his eggs to, idk, summon his power or whatever. It could be cool

[@solairefan5420]

The ultimate omlette

[@magic2546]

​​@@solairefan5420WE'RE MAKING THE MOTHER OF ALL OMELETTES HERE KRIS, CAN'T FRET OVER EVERY EGG!

[@spurrit7156]

its like vegapunk

[@CalvinNoire]

​​@@magic2546 "YOU CAN'T MAKE A GOOD OMELETTE WITHOUT CRACKING A FEW EGGS! ISN'T THAT RIGHT KRIS?" [Egg Gaster walks to face Evil Gaster] "TIME TO COOK SOME HOLY SPIRIT!"

[@alyx5491]

One of the most important things not mentioned is how Gaster speaks in all caps.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

The letter is also in all caps, SpookyDood just rewrote Bruh

[@fabiosonhandogrande1697]

​@@whocaresaboutthename6850Then a secret boss...? I mean, they're basically the only others to speak in all caps other than Papyrus and Gaster

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

@@fabiosonhandogrande1697 Eggman

[@Eve.v]

pointing out the exclamation marks is a Very Good Point !! i had thought that it's possible that, well, a person (or entity) would probably speak differently during a scientific experiment than they would while writing a valentine. the coat / face reference honestly reminded me of some of the error/placeholder dialogue in deltarune. but, yeah, like, even reading it the first time, i was like "this is DEFINITELY gaster!!!", but before i even finished, i was like, "Huh, this *could* be a more jovial gaster than we normal see ... But" -- most of what you mentioned was part of the reason my mind (also!) went to the man behind the tree -- or a potential future secret boss, as i saw someone mention on reddit -- as being the writer instead of gaster. but!! the two "well,"s was an even better catch!!!! like, that feels like a ALSO !! i know you know that the letter disappeared after a day or so, but! even when the valentine existed, you couldn't save it. if you downloaded the image, it would be blank. you have to screenshot it. idk!! feels even more like the egg man. "well, there was not a letter here." Bonus!!! so: the valentine's cards have a rarity curve (common [c], rare [r], super rare [sr]) with some being super-super-etc. rare, as shown in the image's name. the letter from the "unknown" sender, as they are referred to in the image name, is "sssssssr". that's SEVEN supers GASTER WOULD HAVE HAD *SIX*

[@riluna3695]

I've had this thought in the back of my head for a while now....there's a "missing Amalgamate". And this video may have finally solved that for me. Maybe... In the True Lab in Undertale, you encounter a bunch of amalgamates, and fight with many of them...but not ALL of them. There are three specific instances that stand out, two obvious, one less-so. 1) There's a room with a shower, where a weird wiggly thing shakes around, and as soon as you pull open the curtain, it's completely gone, and you get the key and leave. 2) If you choose to sleep in the available bed, and wait there a while, a similarly stick-shaped _thing_ rises up, develops an appendage of some kind, and proceeds to tuck you into bed and I think pat you on the head? Interrupt this at any point and it immediately disappears. 3) If you visit the room with Snowdrake's mother before turning on the fans, the room is obscured, and checking one of the fridges will have Chara tell you that there's "something in the shape of a man" there. But when the fog is cleared and you check again, there's nothing. It's empty. I suspect that all of these are the same one amalgamate, and it's one we never fight. All three instances share the quirk of only partially seeing it. You can see its silhouette through the curtain, but can't see it directly. The player can see it when Frisk's eyes are closed, but it disappears when they open them again. You can make out its rough shape in the fog, but can't see it when you have clearer vision. It resists being seen, either actively or passively. And this video showed me that the Egg Man behaves in a very similar manner. Though possibly reversed? Kris can seemingly see them, but the player cannot. But at least in general, the overall feeling remains. They both do and do not exist. They come and they go. But they're also looking out for you. Giving you an egg, wishing you happiness, tucking you into bed. Very wholesome person, maybe even wholesome father vibes. There's also the possibility that this is the same person yet different. Just as most Undertale characters are different in Deltarune (glares at Sans), perhaps the Egg Man in Deltarune is simply a Man, and only in Undertale did he become a wiggly thing in the _shape_ of a man. So there's my crack theory for the day. Dunno what it means, if true, but it's neat. And having fun is half the battle :D

[@patrickserrats6919]

Could also be related to everymam being in deltarune

[@riluna3695]

@@patrickserrats6919 I wanna know what Everyman's deal is SO bad. Though could they be the egg man? I suppose it's possible, but there's nothing really pointing to it that I can see. My theory's not all that much better, but it does at least have "you can't see it but it's nice to you" as a common thread, and would answer a lingering question. Though, so too would Everyman.

[@Pepstep_07]

im convinced the egg man is grandpa semi. him being old would explain why his memory was failing him and why he used good by (an old fashioned term). also if gaster is the dad or older brother of sans and papyrus, it would make sense that grandpa semi was looking for him, he's family. so far gaster, sans and even some hints about papyrus hint they all know about quantum physics and in general have scientific backgrounds. grandpa semi being a teacher or scientist would explain why he also got himself stuck in the depths or in the space between where he gives you the egg, and he probably did this while trying to help gaster. I also think gaster being forgotten in undertale and possibly deltarune is true, but not in a paranormal sort of way. i think after he died he naturally faded out of memory the same way people who pass in real life slowly get forgotten about.

[@hyperlinkblocked5659]

I genuinely had the exact same idea lol. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone else saying the egg man is Grandpa Semi.

[@sdvblue5185]

YOU KNOW WHO THIS GUY IS? GERSON HEAR ME OUT old timey speech, laughs at the player, know meta stuff(hides in a shop in geno so you cant kill him, and he knows), he’s only supposedly dead, as his son lives ( SO HE DIDNT DIE HE GOT SUCKED INTO THE DEPTHS LIKE DESS AND IS TRYING TO SAVE HER), and he has weird lore in deltarune, ALSO HE MENTIONS DELTA RUNE LIKE GERSON DID (shown in 16:38) IT MAKES SENSE

[@Jojoton56]

About the "GOOD BY!" thing I talked with some people about how it was translated in JP According them, It's 「サラ　ば」(saraba in romaji) which is just a really old way of saying goodbye but the way "saraba" is written is irregular and reads like a mistake It stands out to them as an "error" or typo of some kind because part of it is in katakana and the other part is in hiragana. It's also spaced out in a way that doesn't make sense at all "GOOD BY" in english can be more understood as an archaic spelling (because ,'good-by' IS an actual old way to spell that word) but in japanese it's completely off and... dislocated

[@CalvinNoire]

Wait, there's a Japanese version of this letter? Wow, props to that one guy who had the Japanese setting on and still had the luck to get this letter.

[@kramkrum3672]

If Gaster turns out to be a villain, I feel like there's TONS of golden interactions between him and Susie.

[@tuvergalarga6144]

Is this "Gaster" here in the room with us?

[@CalvinNoire]

​@@tuvergalarga6144 Well, he is listening.

[@minichad5456]

​@@cindyzhaoyingzi8719Dooby

[@adamantii]

thank you Very much for putting this scenario in my head

[@HyLion]

@@cindyzhaoyingzi8719 GASTER FOLLOWER: It's rude to talk about someone who's listening SUSIE: Thanks, I try

[@leafgem]

I feel like it could be a new character, maybe a new secret boss or something. The speech patterns reminded me of Jevil a lot.

[@JokerDoom]

Everything is a new character if you just believe

[@AceSpadespoken]

I'm honestly thinking that too!

[@leritykay8911]

With your speech about Character Presentation, to be fair, I always love when characters are justifiably out of character. Like maybe not Papyrus coming home tired, but I Would love to see, for example, someone play an especially cruel prank on Papyrus, and for a bit see Papyrus not mad or crying, but just... Upset, not feeling it today. That would hit harder than him bawling his eyes out or stomping his foot like always

[@danielhanisek6915]

THANK YOU! Skrungly Gaster is something I really really don't want and I'm glad to have a video like this to put my thoughts into words.

[@Yes-me4pk]

Every time you said "Egg man" I couldn't help myself from thinking about Sonic's Eggman to be involved in this whole conundrum

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Imature

[@seriyserek]

​@@whocaresaboutthename6850 thats literally a game like deltarune

[@SteampunkFridgeRider]

I feel like toby is extremely deliberate with his characterization, like EVERY character has a super unique voice, and while he might reveal some lore things out of game, any change of characterization or actual character development happens during the game. the lore pieces we got from the spamton sweepstakes were all related to things that had already happened, not events new to the chronology like a sudden change in a very clearly written character. i really dont think its gaster and not just because i dont want to be. maybe ill be proven wrong but im so entirely confident about this that im not even worried about it.

[@Narnes64]

What if it’s Another Him? Jokes aside, I’m surprised that people really haven’t made the connection between the Egg man and the letter. Especially since this finally separates Eggman from Gaster. Also the Papyrus comparison might be pretty funny if he is revealed to be the one behind the tree like some theories say. I’m starting to think that maybe Mystery Man was truly just egg man all of this time and Gaster really was just [redacted] (though technically the names almost imply both could be the Egg man if his existence truly was erased). But maybe this idea goes even deeper, if we bring back up the idea that [redacted] is Dess, then there is a chance we truly have never seen Gaster outside of the follower’s fragment. It could even explain who both of the people Gaster was talking to in Entry 17 were (though I still love the idea that the two are Kris and Dess back when they explored the Bunker. It gives me huge horror film vibes imaging that dialogue in that context which fit Gaster really well)

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

I prefer the idea that Entry 17 is something that Gaster tells us and Kris ingame the moment we first meet him

[@Narnes64]

@@whocaresaboutthename6850same…

[@tobiasbayer4866]

Redacted is most certainly not dess. Redacted is truly cut content as its locked behind dog check. Not an easter egg like everything with Gaster. Im all for theories but I think including very very obscure stuff from Undertale is going to far in terms of Deltarune theories.

[@Narnes64]

@@tobiasbayer4866 bud I’m just having fun. No need to take my stuff so seriously

[@tobiasbayer4866]

@@Narnes64 No need to get so defensive about me giving my oppinion on your theory 🤨

[@hyparpax]

regarding the broader point about gaster not being goofy, personally i've always expected gaster to have at least some degree of goofiness just because he seems to potentially have origins in "grandpa semi" whoever that is, who was (according to datamining in the korean demo) going to call about a large pepperoni pizza which seems like a character gag. of course possible that's a different character, or the traits got moved elsewhere. the thing is that i guess gaster already is sort of capable of being goofy but just not in an overtly comedic way? more of the "serious and analytical to the point it can be part of a bit" way. lines like "of course of course of course they are the same" etc seem to be scratching at that surface. egg guy is definitely a really good possibility for the identity of the letter writer who definitely feels "gaster adjacent" but not quite actually like what we presume about gaster, which is true of the egg guy too. (i have to wonder if likewise the mystery man from undertale is the egg guy and not gaster, which is also interesting because our mystery letter writer seems to mix up his coat with his face)

[@Cebollas]

That part of the game where ralsei talks about his experience in vietnam was one of the heartbreaking moments in deltrune..

[@toadstoolsandfrogchairs]

Personally, the reason I was a little annoyed with everyone immediately saying it's Gaster is just because it's boring??? For a while now the UT/DR fandom had this thing where everything mysterious = Gaster, but mysteries are not actual mysteries when you know the answer to them already, and I'm sure Toby knows that as well so he wouldn't make the answer to everything Gaster anyway. But because of this rather than actually looking at the evidence we did get and trying to figure out who it could be based on that, people are trying to make this match Gaster by cherry-picking the evidence that matches him and then reshaping the image of Gaster to match the rest. This also results in a self-feeding cycle where people use these things later as "evidence" to prove Gaster in more things, like people saying the letter is from Gaster because "it disappears like Gaster does in UT" (that sprite was never confirmed to be him), or "Gaster could be silly because he could be related to Sans and Papyrus!" (that's, like, 100% fanon at this point). But the biggest reason I find most Gaster theories annoying these days is that they always lead to a dead end, because we just don't know enough about him to discuss anything! Like, yeah, sure, there's nothing saying that Gaster can't have a goofy side, or that this couldn't be a different version of him, but there is also nothing saying that it could be that, so we are kinda just... stuck with that I guess

[@OmgMcGamez]

The annoying dog, it feels like the letter is typed by the annoying dog. We know it has similar properties and weirdness, he exists within the game world and is unexplained yet has a physical presence and can interact, and is goofy and silly, given it's meant to represent Toby Fox as a sort of self insert, him forgetting you're meant to help someone but forgetting who feels like a thing for the little fella.

[@ponocni1]

Nah, annoying dog is knight.

[@Pmf95k]

Egg man is dog

[@swapdisc]

"Are you enjoying Delta Rune?" would also make a lot of sense

[@ceriisu]

the idea of the egg man sending us a valentine is super heartwarming and my new favorite interpretation!! fsr he never crossed my mind but it makes so much sense! i like this idea quite a bit more than it being image_friend (assuming that character is a separate entity from the egg man)

[@pipislover1997]

i Made the Damn TWEET about the "Well There is a man here" "well there is Not a man here" thing with the Constanly Contradicting connection WHEERES MY DAMN CREDIT. wheres my Damn credit Spooky dude im Done spooky dude im done.

[@ceriisu]

@@pipislover1997 pipis i think people should credit you in every video even if you didnt do anything

[@pipislover1997]

@@ceriisu DAMN Rite.

[@NolansGoons]

My hairbrain theory is that the secret valentines card isn't from gaster or some other mysterious character, but just from Toby himself. Nothing specific to back this up, just raw vibes

[@ivanbackfromthecardshop8093]

I think its worth considering their could be 2 gasters. The undertale and the deltarune one. While so far their hasnt been much drastic departure from personalities i dont think thats a hard rule especially for as weird of a character that he is Alternativley i do think this could very easily be the next secret boss. Both jevil and spamton have been very meta characters with quirky peronalities this new one could easily slot alongside them and just be hype for the upcoming chapter

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

🥚

[@BelBelle468]

There does seem to be the chance of there being 2 Gasters due to the “HIM” and “OTHER HIM” song stuff. But I we don’t really know for sure, esp since both examples of Gaster speaking in UT and DR have the same way of talking. The only way we can say that this other Gaster is different is by assuming the UT Gaster content is actually DR’s, or vice versa.

[@artnerd3727]

I feel like I was going crazy thinking this wasnt gaster while everyone else swore it was

[@MeloniestNeon]

At first, while reading, I thought that this could have been a younger, more naive Gaster, right after he fell into his creation and was shattered across time and space, yadda yadda all that. He's still not himself again, still confused and dazed from his experiences, but that doesn't quite add up considering he asks us how we've already been enjoying Deltarune, and he very clearly has his normal way or speaking in the intro cutscene and twitter posts for both chapter 1 and 2. I instead think, and I haven't finished the video yet so excuse me if this is brought up, that this letter is from a new secret boss, maybe even the main chapter boss from chapter 3, 4, or heck ANY of the upcoming chapters. It doesn't quite have enough wacky-ness to be a secret boss in my opinion, but it could just be that Toby wanted us to tie this character to Gaster, whether it is him or not. Maybe its one of his followers? Maybe it IS him in a more confused but friendly state, either way, I've REALLY excited to see how this letter ties into future chapters, just as I am for the Spamton Sweepstakes! Edit: I was also, in the back of my mind, thinking it was the Man behind the tree, but at the same time I had always thought "Well, its probably Gaster..." So I just lumped the two together. This is, honestly, the strongest evidence I've seen yet for the Man and Gaster being separate characters, and once again that prospect REALLY excites me, because it means that it might very well be Dess that the Egg Man is seeking to help. ... Or maybe it IS Gaster. Not the one writing the note. Well, maybe it is. But the one he wants to help could very well be Gaster, and what is the Man behind the tree but the living enigma of whether or not he is Gaster? Perhaps even he doesn't know if he is or not, if he's trying to help himself, or someone he's forgotten.

[@kirbyfreakyt4695]

A space that shouldn't exist, a room that shouldn't exist, a hallway that shouldn't exist, disappearing without a trace. That applies to the Egg guy's room just as much as it does Gaster does. Believe whatever you so wish, but I continue believe they're the same person.

[@lilacpenguin5329]

Could it be Papyrus?

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

If the Egg Man isn't Gaster, then i think he is probably Everyman.

[@godoatthegoat2884]

Ok, I mostly agree with this, but I don't think the writer of the letter is necessarily a goofball. A lot of the things they say seem nonsensical, but I think it's because we lack context rather than them just being goofy. Kinda like when we first talk to Jevil and he seems like just a goofy prisoner, but as you move on through the jevil side quest both Seam and Malius warn you that there is real danger ahead if the key is used. Speaking of which, another good option for the Valentine's letter is that it's a secret boss for a future chapter. It would explain the way it kinda feels like Gaster, since the secret bosses seem to all be influenced by him. It would explain the caps lock, which both Jevil and Spamton use for most of their dialogue. And it may explain knowing about "Delta Rune" too, depending on what Gaster said/showed to this secret boss. If it is a secret boss for chapter 3/4 then personally I liked this letter as a way to present them. They seem important to the themes of the game (with the whole forgetting about someone possibly being tied to "Don't forget"). Personally I don't think it's weird for Gaster to behave differently than this formal way we have been presented this whole time, and in fact I look forward to seeing more of how he is as a person. I just don't think Toby Fox would ever reveal his motivations, his feelings etc in such a random place like a Valentine's Day newsletter instead of the actual game. This character has been a mystery for almost 10 years, and this is how Toby decides to give us a peek behind the curtain? I don't buy it.

[@noteless1]

part of me wants to think the letter is written by the river person. the bit about washing your face and putting on your coat, or the opposite, etc., etc. felt very on-brand for them. also it could act as a red herring, but that's just me.

[@cythulhubuthebegamin4902]

That would be so cute! To be fair, we haven't seen them in Deltarune yet, so it's entirely possible they could make a cameo in game at some point

[@CalvinNoire]

​​@@cythulhubuthebegamin4902 I'm pretty sure we have. River person appears as a bus driver in Deltarune (I believe).

[@guygeva7375]

I laughed so hard when you said it is the eggman (that's what he is) - I had a full emotional rollercoaster, but it sounds like such a fun breath of fresh air. Let's have a goofy mysterious dude alongside an eldrich one!

[@Grim-c8n]

Dang you really went off with this one. Gaster definitely feels to me like an existential horror so I'd find it weird if he ended up like this, and I legitimately think your evidence for it being the egg man are solid. Good stuff.

[@t.k.5088]

I think that plot twists involving horror and a peaceful exterior are a Toby thing. Like flowey turning into his Photoshop form. Or Chara's =) Gaster seeming creepy at first, then turning into a goofball wouldn't be a stretch

[@Grim-c8n]

@@t.k.5088 I disagree, from the beginning Flowey is presented as childish and chipper and that aspect of his character never changes. Even when he is shown to be more threatening he still uses phrasing like "Howdy!" and taunts you like a school bully. In the Genocide route Chara's dialogue is very purposeful and to the point, some of the only lines I can think of off the top of my head that are humorous being "Looks like free EXP.", "No chocolate.", and "It's as comfortable as it looks." Within Deltarune as well as on Twitter all of Gaster's dialogue characterizes him as professional and intellectual. I could accept the occasional cheeky comment like the ones Chara makes but this Valentine's letter comes off as completely casual and unsure of itself. It would be like if Chara suddenly started cursing you out in Undertale, that's just not how the character acts or has been presented with any of their dialogue.

[@bennyandjackson1261]

River Person Maybe..? "Is it the new year or the old year." "Put your cloak and wash your face or is it wash your cloak and put your face."

[@ScuttleBugReal]

Why does everyone associate mysteries with Gaster? Dess? Gaster. The KNIGHT? Gaster. The Egg Man? Gaster. The mysterious disappearance of my dad? Gaster must have took him.

[@benjaminfricke4791]

Is that a rhetorical question? Because the reasoning is fairly obvious, even when it’s incorrect. Gaster’s mysterious and seemingly important to the plot of Deltarune, so when people see something in Deltarune that’s mysterious and seemingly important, they connect it back to Him. Sometimes needlessly so.

[@JaruJaruJ]

Interesting perspective. I can see better now why there would be this pushback against Gaster being goofy or silly in some way. I do personally think it would be more peculiar for him to NOT be silly, as he is likely related to Sans and Papyrus, two VERY silly characters. But I also never saw Gaster as this eldritch horror lurking behind the veil of reality. I saw him as a mad scientist abusing the laws of reality to achieve some ultimate goal in his mastermind plan. And mad scientists are, on general principle, pretty silly. However, I also feel like there's no reason that he can't be a foreboding presence while also having a sillier side to him. Sans is a memelord, except for when he's an iconic unstoppable super boss. Undyne is a comically absurd anime cliche, except for when she's this valiant last stand against the apocalypse. Asgore is the epitome of this idea, with him being a big old fuzzball, except when he's murdering children. Even other serious antagonistic threats like Flowey have moments where he's silly or absurd or pathetic. It doesn't make him any less threatening. In short, I think mixing the absurd with the serious has always been Toby Fox's MO. King in DELTARUNE is a psychotically violent man who threatens to murder his own son while smiling like a maniac. He also nibbles on a giant hamster water bottle. I don't know with 100% certainty that Gaster made the Valentine. You brought up some good counterpoints against that. I certainly believe he did, but I also understand I could be incorrect. Either way, I do sympathize with your feeling of loss regarding the idea of Gaster being lessened by this characterization.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Common Jaru and SpookyDood W

[@unboundsoul3582]

What if Egg Man scoffed at Valentine's Day... because he's an Easter guy? An Easter... egg?

[@kimjongunsucksbooty750]

Bnuuy gaster real

[@mattcatt1165]

"I am evil and Satan and Ben drowned and I am going to kill you!"- W.D. Gaster during a cool fight.

[@mattcatt1165]

Btw no hate I just thought it was funny.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

"Also, i'm God"

[@Cherryscentedcandle]

Great video as always! I personally think the letter might be from either Mike, Tenna, or the friend. I saw a Twitter thread recently that went into why it could be from Mike and I really liked that tweet, but I still think that it could be Tenna or the friend (the friend possibly being Mike or Tenna). Relating to that, I think that the friend could be Mike as we see the friend sprite spying on us in the queen's basement, and microphone's (what Mike's possibly short for) are sometimes used as wires for spying which I find interesting. I also really think that the egg man is a good guess as well (as people theorize the egg man is Papyrus, that could be the reason it sounds so similar to him, but yeah).

[@odysseus4871]

The idea of there being multiple enigmatic figures on the fringes of "reality" does seem a bit redundant, but at the same time, you're totally right. He just doesn't talk like Gaster. I've always enjoyed Gaster's incredibly stilted, fragmented way of speaking, and this letter s just totally different. The Egg Man being behind it does seem more plausible given everything, though that raises the question of who or what the egg man even is if not Gaster, but that's really not possible to guess about.

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Everyman

[@themustardman219]

He's the egg man with the master plan

[@friskycalibri2293]

​@themustardman219 I AM THE EGGMAN

[@halfmoon4163]

My best guess is that Gaster interacts with the world of Deltarune from the outside (communicates with us via Twitter, speaks directly to the player at the beginning), whereas the Egg Man represents Easter eggs ingame. The letter is our first time hearing him outside of any gameplay, but he's not the only game character sending Valentine's cards. Gaster, in the first game, anyway, represented cut content, which are usually distinct from Easter eggs. Notice we didn't get a card from him...

[@janLilin]

I love the idea of silly Gaster. I adore seeing interpretations that make him just a fun guy to be around, with memorable dialogue and perhaps an important role. But that's the thing, I love the *idea* of silly Gaster. If Gaster in universe was actually silly like this, I don't think I would be out of measure to feel robbed. He needs to be important, he needs to be mysterious and have his mysteries explained, he needs to be scary, at least predominantly so. No other interpretation allows for Gaster to be a satisfying character whose arc has been built both in and out of two entire games.

[@D_YellowMadness]

Yeah, it's like how it's fun to watch GMan being silly in Half-Life parodies & when it's done well enough, Silly Gman feels like an actual character who's really entertaining but if he were like that in Half-Life 3, it would just be disappointing & kind of infuriating. Well, okay, GMan already is serious but in a fucked up way that feels sociopathic & might make you laugh sometimes but also makes him creepy.

[@swapdisc]

The Egg Man seems to be the one who wrote it... and the dialogue looks like Papyrus'... and Papyrus is seen behind a tree in the merch... oh no, this just opened a whole new can of worms...

[@chibistarzz]

@20:36 While I understand not wanting to talk about the Japanese translation when you can't understand it, I don't like how its dismissed as it's not Toby's native language, as if being bilingual is an impossibility? Toby has shown multiple times that he was communicating and learning the language, and even gets invited to multiple Japanese events (the Live a Live orchestra, being invited backstage to discuss with the creator of Touhou Project). He also mentions multiple times being directly involved in translations for Korean and Japanese in his games. For Korean, he specified that Sans was the older brother and in Japanese having a say on Susie's pronouns. The Newsletters keep being translated in Japanese too, and a lot of colabs with Deltarune/Undertale are done with games that mostly have an audience in Japan. Even if English is Toby's first language, he has shown multiple times to be working in Japanese and discussing about Japanese. He might not be good enough to be able to translate things fully on his own, but I can definitely believe that he is continuing discussing with his translating teams to make sure that the speech/words/sentences in Japanese and Korean are correct and accurate to the English representation.

[@artsofapollo]

FINALLY. oh my god I'm so excited to see another video from you, spookydood!! I've been brainrotting this to the moon and I'm so glad I'm not the onky.one to be doubtful on this as gaster. I think.it's likdjy.it's the next secret boss, but whoever it is, I'm hyped because I can tell they'll be a lovable character. :)

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Egg

[@xurkitry]

Egg

[@ninjoshday]

It was Dr. Eggman the whole time!

[@GoofyAhhSonic]

I thought the same lol

[@iSmartMan1]

Thoughts -We shouldn't look too deeply into the Japanese phrasing. Let's not forget about how the Japanese translation for Sans in Undertale gave him the equivalent of a country accent. -Whether this is Gaster or Egg Man, this would be the largest single message either character has ever given. In a message of such length, it's entirely possible for new phrasing habits to appear that their previous messages were too short to show, or for the previously established phrasing habits to be impractical for a message this long. -The tone I get from this character is "deceptive" or "untrustworthy". They seem a bit too friendly, and the things they're forgetting seem a bit too convenient. The inverted statements feel like doubletalk (more so than Egg Man's statements, since these are right next to each other), and the remark about the absurdity of Valentine's Day (whether about its meaning or its fundamental existence) exhibits an unusual amount of pessimism for the characters under consideration. It has an "uncanny valley" sensation, as though an alien were trying to impersonate a human ("I am a normal human and do normal human things like eat food and have skin.") -It's possible that this could be a character we haven't met yet. It could be The Knight, or Dessie, or even a preview of the secret boss for Chapter 3. We should keep an open mind and not put too much investment into the idea that this message came from someone the player already knows.

[@princetbug]

Well, thank you for pointing out the second point so I don't have to. Parts of the message sound deliberately roundabout, some almost sounding poorly translated. Honestly, I could see this being Gasters goofy "schtick". We literally just don't know enough about the character to solidly say it *isn't* the same guy, especially assuming his relation to Sans an Papyrus is legitimate. Denying that this could ever possibly be Gaster feels all to similar to how the fandom has treated Sans since the start. Treating him as nothing but this tragic character with a cool temper you don't want to burst, but completely ignoring just HOW goofy he is. Constantly. By default. We have ONLY seen the "hallway" side of Gaster up till now, even in the bits we've seen in-game. Also, the analogy about the straw and the tub in the video is just way overblown imo. It wouldn't be THAT complex for a character (especially a very mysterious one) to be super weird and have drastically different modes of speaking. I definitely like the idea of Egg-Man but don't find it super convincing honestly. Unless I missed something, we don't even really know IF the egg-man has spoken to us before or if it's just the narrator being goofy. I definitely look forward to more evidence toward this particular theory if it ever pops up. That said, I also agree it's most likely someone we have yet to meet assuming it isn't Gaster. There aren't really other characters who speak in ALL CAPS like that without also using a different typer outside of Gaster and the Secret Bosses. So it'd likely be one of those options.

[@gabrielatroya6490]

Friend inside me

[@krisdone]

Friend inside me

[@AR_Animates]

Friend inside me

[@MeloniestNeon]

Friend inside me

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Friend inside me

[@ibis03]

Friend inside me

[@ActuallySpanky]

I can't wait for toby to add a scene where papyrus sits down on the couch and says "oh god, this day was rough. Listen, I don't have it in me to be too silly right now. I honestly would just prefer to take a nap. Maybe tomorrow though, alright, have a good night"

[@gregyoung9980]

I hope that Gaster remains a behind-the-scenes character and never shows his face, but he's still ever-present everywhere and manipulates the game. I like that idea way better.

[@Eisegesis623]

Despite being decently convinced that this is another character over the past few days (especially by the different Japanese translation), I do have to push back against the "silly" criticism. Where are folks getting goofball vibes from this? Insanity, maybe, and personality, but nothing about this message reads as remotely light-hearted. At most, it's earnest. But there's a distinct tension and eeriness that permeates every single word. "Things that don't entirely make sense, but also don't entirely not make sense," to quote a certain seapkeeper. All of the other arguments hold up pretty well. The grammar, the cadence, the linguistic style, the relationship to the reader. But I felt nothing but horror reading this. And I continue to feel nothing but deep, deep unsettledness. I don't see Papyrus saying it, even with his face in the dialogue box. Nor any other silly character. It's different. It's distinct. If it were to be Gaster, the personality I got from this was horrific tragedy. Somebody who was once trying to do something, who now isn't even able to know if it was selfless or utterly selfish. Who doesn't even know how to get dressed. But who exists in a place of eldritch power beyond anyone's ken. What could be more terrifying than that? What could be less goofy? It gives a heart to the demon, a history subsumed by hubris. It makes the smile freeze onto its face. It's difficult to humanize a character while simultaneously making them even less human, and having them lose the humanity they once had is one of the only ways of doing it. But I will concede it is probably somebody else. Regardless, it's safe to assume that the manner of speaking is in the same family as the secret bosses. Which means this is either another secret boss, or the one who has been "helping" them. I'm inclined to believe it's the latter, what with the talk of helping and forgetting. Furthermore, there's no way Toby released this without expecting people to latch onto "Gaster!" initially. Which means it's likely that there is an intentional desire to mislead us into conflating these two characters. Which means their similarities are intentional and their differences equally considered. And ultimately, that means that there are possibly more Very Mysterious Characters at play than just Gaster, Dess, the Knight, Mike (arguably), and the Man Behind the Tree (if he is not one of these folks). This is beginning to turn into a lot of Very Mysterious Characters. And yes, the Man Behind the Tree is certainly the most likely option out of all of them. As a side note regarding the Man, the very way he's referred to is just as parallel, yet different, to Gaster as everything else. Gaster is "him." In some many places. The Man is "a man." (And, not implausibly, a human.)

[@natashasaravia3137]

Strongly agree with your interpretation of the mystery writer. This does not feel like a whimsical writer, this feels like a deeply disturbed person pretending to be whimsical for our benefit. The pauses - the repetitions - the trailing off... I do believe this person has forgotten themselves.

[@LiMe251]

This could be a different piece of Gaster, he was SHATTERED across time and space after all.

[@UnisRapper]

its Wing Gaster

[@madelynscorner]

​@@UnisRapperthe royal sciwnt-AAAAAA

[@WillButtlerYeets]

Kaard has a similar face to Gaster. Something I noticed a while back.

[@BelBelle468]

Maybe the eggs are unborn Gaster clones I’m kidding. Gaster is just funny to make stupid theories about

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

​@@WillButtlerYeetsSo do Seam and Jevil

[@pedrofromrio645]

I think this valentine is either from Mike or someone we haven’t seen yet from Chapter 3. Gaster never tips his hand like this. He also always types in either all caps or in a formal tone.

[@danusio7548]

Came for the Gaster lore. Stayed for the genuinely great advice for writing characters.

[@darknimbus_]

This is an interesting point, and i agree this doesn't feel like gaster, but maybe someone similar. It does make me remember though, there are two speakers during the vessel creation screen. I'm not going to detail, but someone made a video essay on it. Gaster is (likely) the main speaker, however the last couple lines, specifically the line "will now be discarded" moment is definitely a different narrator. This is an important note, because gaster through the menu's etc IS a diegetic narrator. Yet, there is this other unknown character that has that same control over these same systems, someone else that has control (atleast somewhat) of the same strings as Gaster. So maybe this letter is this unknown narrator, and someone we're going to meet soon. I have ideas of this, but frankly we have even less information on this than we do on GASTER himself, so saying its speculation at best

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

SpookyDood belives they are the same bro

[@lucr8070]

This was set up really well. A third of the video in, I had come to the same conclusion you ended up on. I even excitedly wanted to write a comment about "my theory"... Very strong arguments. Consider my head-canon updated.

[@caffeinatedbison9145]

I loved all the editors text in the video. The uses of "obtuse" and breaks in gamsplay were pretty funny. And the theory made sense too lol

[@DarkBuddhist]

It all sounds exactly like the River person from Undertale. Why is nobody talking about that?

[@magnapanther]

YOU'RE SO RIGHT, WHAT??? the weird little questions the speaker asks, seemingly rhetorically, the sort of singsong cadence to it, the absolutely random stuff they say, it all fits their character, you're SO RIGHT, i mean DAMN nice catch, it all fits with their weird way of talking

[@Kristallica]

@@magnapanther Alright, but what if the River Person IS the Egg Man? I mean, yeah, *MAN*, but... What if?

[@magnapanther]

@@Kristallica "Well, there is a man here." "Or is there a woman?" "It doesn't really matter"

[@MisterLambda]

Only the little _Tra la la. Tri li li. Tre le le._ they always say is missing.

[@Kristallica]

@@magnapanther Imagine something like this happens or would have happened before hand, that would make the person behind the tree so much easier to... I dunno, distinguish?

[@Christianburn-tq5mo]

maybe Gaster just has a very good work life balance

[@amilemon]

a point for the eggman I haven't seen here is how little chance that specific valentines was to get. ...sort of how like how little of a chance there is to end up into the egg tree room

[@joemama-alt]

feels like toby wants us to believe that it is gaster, through using similar style in text (written in all caps, and also text breaks) but whoever is writing it (egg man maybe) is trying to copy gaster's way of speaking but is failing, making slip ups and stuff. the problem is there's just not really much else we know about this egg giver character to make a solid enough theory on. my best guess is that the egg dude wants to copy gaster or something, i mean there's already stuff about the egg guy that's similar to gaster but just has something that differentiates it (eg: the tree room, its incredibly similar to the mysteryman room from undertale, but just ever so different. or another example, man.ogg is similar to gaster's theme, but it is actually a completely different song, it doesn't use gaster's motif and is more than just 4 looping notes)

[@eggmanprettyhotngl.4721]

I definitely think Gaster is going to be creepy as all hell, but I do believe he will have a couple humours moments as well. Just the fact he's most likely related to Sans and Papyrus in some way makes me feel that he'll have some type of absurdist humor. Not like, overly goofy or jampacked with puns, But more sublte. Maybe in your face too, but instead of laughing with him, it's too unsettling. The characters either won't get it because they don't have the same knowledge as we do, or it'll seem cruel when it's really just an observation. Maybe it is meant to be cruel. He clearly is the most informed of any character so far, so, it would make sense if his "jokes" are more aimed at the player and the future of the game than anyone else. Sans, and to a lesser extent, Papyrus, still manage to give you some gut punch moments while keeping their respective "silly" personalities. I think the opposite can be attributed to Gaster, as long as it's played on in a way that still makes him a cohesive character. Like, the Goner Maker sequence is absolutely meant to unsettle, but there's odd options like "Pain" and "Cold" being a flavor, a bunch of the legs being the exact same except for the last one, the inclusion of blood types that don't exist, and to a lesser extent, having only four colors to choose from when picking a favorite, two basically just being blue. It feels like humor meant to confuse, but also not at the same time. Perhaps he just doesn't have as much information on humans as he needs? Perhaps it IS meant to be funny, but his delivery makes it unnerving, intentional or not? And the flavors...with more game context, they're even creepier now. That's definitely deliberate, so maybe anything he says that seems absurd will actually be expanded upon as a story beat, or character growth. Either way, I do think he will have a couple "haha funny" moments. But nothing that will make him seem less than a tragic but terrifying adversary. I mean, Flowey still gets blown away at the start by Toriel in the goofiest way possible, but I'd be lying if Flowey X isn't creepy as hell. It's a constantly moving mass of limbs and flesh, with bullet patterns that are difficult to adjust to. The music is overwleming and prone to shifting, and all your friends are basically dead during this fight. There's also the Amalgamates. Their conception still makes me shudder, but they're all very tragic characters. Edogeny is spared almost the exact same way as Greater Dog, through a fairly silly list of ACTs, and still manages to be an upsetting fight to a lot of players. Gaster, should then be able to be funny, tragic, and damn terrifying all at the same time, it's all just in the delivery, which I am confident in saying will be pulled off well. Now, I'm personally of the camp that he won't be like. Mr. Supreme Evil or anything, because the way he talks about the characters and Deltarune makes me think he has SOME appreciation for them, even if it's just scientifically, or for his own goals. But, he's defintely done some awful stuff. Like, I love Flowey, Asgore and Alphys, but GEEZ, that is not a great group of people to follow up if you're an antagonist meant to be even MORE messed up. Especially with the antagonists we DO have in Deltarune. Gaster is GOING to be messed up. Gaster is GOING to be a threat. Gaster is GOING to be scary. But he's also going to have some laughs for us in store, because Alphys, Asgore, Flowey, King, Queen, Jevil, AND Spamton all made us laugh too.

[@eggmanprettyhotngl.4721]

Also yeah the letter is almost certainly the Egg Man lmao I was a little suspicious of it because of the use of the "Well" and the disappearing act, but I hadn't sat down to think about it fully yet. It's nice to see all the connections laid out like this! So yeah, it's definitely him.

[@braydenschreiber5355]

If Gaster is going to have humor, it should be old man humor. Have him do dry, sarcastic, almost black kind of comedy. Gaster is meant to be out of place, not exactly fitting in. The idea of him trying to be friendly and do his kind of humor, only for the fun gang to be weirded out by it, is the dynamic I want.

[@eggmanprettyhotngl.4721]

@@braydenschreiber5355 I like this approach too! Maybe he's trying to be "relatable" to our characters, but his jokes are too specific to their lives and issues for someone they just met to be funny. It's off-putting because he's so calm about knowing so much about them. Even the jokes that don't need deeper context don't land because he's just so strange.

[@Linkdouble0zero]

I don't think he'll be a threat if he even shows up at all. He's likely everywhere and everywhen at once while simultaneously nowhere and nowhen. There's possibly multiple variations of him in various forms all at the same time. Gaster seems more likely to be a scientist simply observing the results of the variables set in place. He was scattered across time and space and got very curious about this state. There's no real pointer that he even has a goal beyond observing something very, very interesting. I do not get the feeling he's an antagonistic force. If we ever meet him for real he's not going to be in our way.

[@braydenschreiber5355]

@@Linkdouble0zero The idea ive been seen going around is that the Titans are the main route final boss, where the weird route it's Gaster. Basically him seeing the shit the player is doing and going "bro that is not how this is supposed to go! Stop that!". Imagine if the DM for your dungeons and dragons games got pissed at how you were fucking up the story and challenged you to a duel.

[@lonleygamerXeno7856]

every time you say "the egg man" i cant stop imagining eggman from sonic with eggman's theme while giving kris a egg

[@IsaSozy]

A couple of interpretations that I like: 1. Since Gaster, according to undertale, was shattered in time and space, the part of Gaster that talks to us in a letter is a completely different part from another space or time than the one that conducts the experiment with deltarune. 2. This is actually Toby Fox's special writing style that he uses for different things, not just for Gaster. 3. My own interpretation, Toby Fox got away with this again and everything is completely in line with his plan. 4. Also my interpretation, Toby Fox was not in the best condition when he wrote Gaster's letter, and after he published everything, he reread it and realized that nothing made sense, deleted it as if it had never happened

[@AudreyRitley]

glad I'm not the only one who read the valentine's card and thought, "This doesn't really sound like Gaster." I always liked the idea that there are other people populating where ever it is Gaster ended up. People don't discuss the Goners much on their own despite the fact that Goner Kid, Chara, Dess and the Man all seem to have there own thing going on. The idea of someone else in Schrodinger's zone having an unrelated or possibly even conflicting agenda to Gaster's plans makes me excited. Also I'm adding this to the "Papyrus is the egg Man" evidence pile.

[@feliciaroseantonia]

You know, I honestly just kind of assumed Gaster was the one giving Kris the eggs. I figured it only makes sense because there's just never been anyone else shown to just... BE outside the normal "code" of the game like that; except for Dess, but it obviously can't be her, because not only is she lost, but the one thing the game straight up tells you about the egg-giver is that he's a man. (It's literally even in the name of the song that plays when Kris encounters the rooms he appears in.) So I figured, well, it's gotta be Gaster... right? There doesn't seem to be anyone else... but then again, the full game's not out yet, so who knows, it could be someone who will be properly introduced in a future chapter. When I read this letter, I definitely picked up on the connection to the egg-guy (I can't say "Eggman" without invoking the urge to tell copious amounts of Sonic jokes lol), but then I also immediately noticed, just like you said, that this person clearly just isn't Gaster; their way of communicating is way too jovial and jaunty, sort of disorganized and more whimsical. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I think Gaster is incapable of being funny or happy, but he's just much more of a no-nonsense, cryptic person. He's analytical, cold & calculating. So what this proves to me is essentially just that the egg-giver person is NOT actually Gaster, but rather, another man who is a lot more bubbly... and also apparently has the same kind of void-y powers Gaster has. But now the real question is... Just who exactly IS the egg-giver man, or should I say, "The Man"??? What's his name, age, species? What does he look like, where does he come from? Is he a Darkner? What does he want with Kris? Why does Kris' entire party disappear when they enter The Man's room? And for the love of Christ whaT DO THE EGGS _Me AN_ (It's also worth noting that the only other person we've seen thus far having any association to eggs is Temmie. But that might just be the development team's jocular way of foreshadowing. 👀🥚)

[@whocaresaboutthename6850]

Everyman

[@michaelcreel6522]

The only thought that comes to mind is that if we had to consider more candidates, in entry 17, Gaster does ask, "What do you two think?" Maybe he had a jolly intern.

[@dubstepdoughnut]

Oh my goodness, Gaster and Temmie combined is egg man confirmed!!11!!11!!1!11 (In case you couldn't tell, this is a joke.)

[@erinpetersen569]

I really like the comment you made around 37:15 about the whimsy characterization of most of Undertale and Delterune possibly being Toby's preferred style of storytelling. Because I'm not sure if this letter is Gaster either but if it was, I wouldn't be entirely shocked. Almost every character Toby has made is capable of being silly at some point and maybe Gaster is like this as well. And I also thought this letter could be from the egg man! They share a lot of strange dialogue. I know a lot of people like to assume Gaster is the Mystery Egg Man too, but I have a hard time seeing this kinda spooky and clinical-speaking scientist lurking behind trees just to give us eggs. If the two are related then I can only assume it's by them being separate fragments of Gaster.

[@SamHammie]

3:12 Gaster is the only one who knows of Deltarune, the game. Delta Rune, the symbol that appears everywhere in the game, like on the front of Toriel's house, and on the front of the school, is also in Undertale, and within Undertale, it symbolizes an angel coming down from the heavens to liberate the monsters. They're not the same.

[@zabianreubens4989]

Plottwist This guy is actually the Nut Dealer (The egg man) And the eggs are a referance to silly little gasty the pokemon being shatt across stopwatch and laundry machine

[@gjk-arts5855]

I AM CONVINCED! HOLY CRAP. YOU DID IT

[@goodname9154]

same

[@UnderTheUmbrella_]

You know, I think I figured it out... it's the river person. The odd speach pattern, the contradictions, it all fits.

[@ShirubaGin]

So people went like? "Kris is a red herring and is not the knight!" *Secret valentine's day letter comes out* "Omg it's Gaster it's totally Gaster!" Anyways my take, timeloop theory real and this is the 3rd secret boss who's lost their sense of time from seeing the timeloop. There's no order to anything cause everything repeats according to them. Edit: I like the egg man theory lol. I think he could be another piece of the gaster or whatever

[@here1snyan]

I LOVE this video, your analyses is so comprehensive despite it being rushed as you say. I'm now fully sold on Egg Man theory, what a silly silly man.

[@benjaminfricke4791]

I would agree that the Man is a good candidate. You made quite a good case. That being said, the logical next question is “why does the man talk kind of like Gaster?” Because while there are distinctions, I still fell as though it’s invoking a similar “vibe,” if you will (all caps, relatively short sentences, etc.), which has a lot of… potential implications, to say the least.

[@yellowsnake7300]

Well, the only way to answer that is pure speculation. ...but if you'll forgive me the indulgence... Remember that famous line at the end of entry 17? "What do *you two* think?" Well, maybe we just found one of our two. We were always sure one of them was Sans, but the only real candidates we had for the second one was either Alphys or Papyrus, and neither of them ever fit quite right. Papyrus never seemed scientifically inclined enough, and the timeline with Alphys never really fit. We heard how she became royal scientist, and it had nothing to do with ever working under the last one. Even if Gaster was forgotten, if Alphys was the other speaker then she would have been next in line for royal scientist immediately. Instead, it took Asgore years to find a replacement. That doesn't sound like she ever interned under Gaster. Of course, this is pure speculation again. There is no way to prove that Egg Man was one of the two Gaster spoke with when he recorded the experiment that was "Darker, yet Darker." _...but if you'll indulge me just al little more..._ A recent video I saw pointed out the discrepancies in the true lab entries. They claim that there are two different authors with some of the entiries being written by Alphys, and some by someone who worked in the true lab in the past, during Gaster's time. This theory has been disputed, there was recently another video saying that all the entries were indeed from Alphys. So it really all comes down to this: Some entries are all lower case. Some have normal capitalization. Do these styles mark two different authors, or do they not? If we decide not, then the styles changes between entries could simply reflect the change in Alphy's mental state. If we decide that this was, in fact, a deliberate change to show a different character is speaking... Well, the video makes the case that the other author was Gaster. But, they also bring a point that maybe Gaster has someone in the lab with them to transcribe the entries, writing them for him. One reason they bring this up is the writing style. Not only is the writing not in Wing Dings, but the tone also seems too casual and friendly to match with what we know of Gaster's character. One of the entries that would be written by him literally ends with a "I'll send them all back tomorrow : )" A smiley face does not jive with gaster. However, I dare say that it might jive with the friendly, whimsical Egg Man. As an aside, the video makes a great point of proving that entry 17 is not an entry itself, but rather a recording of Gaster making the entry. I won't re-count all the points here but know they are entirely convincing, regardless of whether or not you agree with their conclusions on who wrote all the other entries. It shows that Gaster is having one of his two helpers/assistant/whatevers transcribing the entries for him. The "What do you two think" was not part of the actual entry of entry 17, it was a question directed to the person who had just finished writing the entry and whoever else was in the room. So, if you ask me, the reason the valentine author sounds similar to Gaster while it's actually Egg Man is because Egg Man once worked closely with or even under Gaster, and so would mimic some of his mannerism while still being their distinct, whimsical self. Maybe the person Egg Man forgot and wanted to help was actually Gaster. And if it turns out that Egg Man, in one way or another, *is* Gaster in some way... Well, Perhaps the person he wanted to help was himself, after all...

[@professorhazard]

Couple of first impressions on who it could be: I could buy that it's Gaster, but it would have to be from like, the past or the future, where his mind is totally different in a way that the story would explore. I could also buy Gaster as a silly guy, but in the way of like, he stands on a golf course and holds a club and says YES... LEISURE. I SEE. The other option is that it's from the Annoying Dog. Compare the cadence to the text to speech program Toby has used a couple of times for the plush dog.

[@OnyxVortex.]

I think its the river person honestly the dialogue style lines up

[@thepineappleyempireofsuper9612]

Honestly, I think it'd be really interesting (and become a much more horrifying message in hindsight) if this was Asriel. What could have caused Asriel to become so lost

[@TheNotSoGreat1]

I think the letter is probably Gaster trying to come across more friendly due to Valentine’s Day and cause we don’t see him as very trustworthy. I do like the Man theory but there’s also a lot of evidence that Gaster is the Man. Also, I think Gaster will be an unintentionally funny character. Like when you name your Vessel and make your Name the same, his reaction being like “of course. Of course they are the same” is rather funny when read a certain way In the end, good job on the theory and once again having a big, yet smart hot take that the community will probably dislike because that’s just how it is

[@SkylerDemness]

These are my suspects: 1. Egg man 2. Gaster fooling us into thinking it's not him, for whatever the reason might be. 3. The River Man 4. A friend of Gaster 5. A Gaster follower

[@ahmedseen]

​@@SkylerDemness6. gasters dog 7. gasters dad 8. gasters fursona 9. gasters wife 10. gasters wifes boyfriend

[@SafiraCoyfolf]

My guess is it's a character in chapter 3 or up, and that who the person is wanting to help is Gaster

[@eldabys]

this is genuinely great. i came into this feeling sure that i would come out still believing its gaster but ive been entirely convinced

[@epicphantom589]

The letter feels like a secret boss or main character from Chapter 3

[@Mr.Auternick_006]

THANK YOU! dude, i hate how the r/Deltarune treats like this is 100% Gaster. shouldn't everyone know that Gaster isn't a goof ball??

[@imgolds]

We know like 4 things for certain about gaster, we dont even know if his one appearence is him, who knows. Maybe he is kinda a goof ball, we just dont know enough about him yet. Maybe this is that mike/tenna guy we also know almost nothing about.

[@Mr.Auternick_006]

@@imgolds Well. this whole video is my answer, rewatch it will ya? I'm mean, but people did goofy mistakes before too! Remember the days when we thought that Mike was a nickname to Gaster that Spamton made!? That kind of mistake can happen duo to lack of information. And second, why would Gaster, the character who has been represented as demon, the royal scientist, a multiversal self aware character would goofy? Toby is known for doing good writting, and not bad plot twists!

[@UnisRapper]

idk i think it would be really really reallly funny

[@UnisRapper]

like imagine if we met him for real and he had all this creepy build up and then when we see him it turns out hes just a normal dude and he goes "hi im Wing Gaster! the royal scientist ."

[@imgolds]

@@Mr.Auternick_006Yes, I belive that this is too much to be gaster, and im not going to argue against that. I hate the fact that this could be gaster because its too silly, but then again, if it was gaster, its the worst way to build him up. I personally think its some form of future secret boss or something, but the lingering thought that it could be gaster is kinda jarring. It would suck. Inside and out. I agree with you fully.

[@grayblacklight560]

A very, very interesting video and honestly a strong argument for Egg man to not be gaster on top of that, although there are a select few potential counter-arguments i want to point out. Nothing that breaks the theory but enough to make it not quite as clear cut. 1; i kinda disagree with the notion that the letter is as silly as it's appears at first glance, as most of the letters lines could be read with a double meaning, as JaruJaru was very quick to point out in his analysis- part of that was because he immediately dismissed the possibility of it not being Gaster (but that's to be expected from jaru, he makes far bigger leaps on a regular basis) and decided to try taking each line as seriously as possible as such. The main ones i find worth noting are A: the confusion over the year and the confusing statements about order might be connected to time travel which is a prevalent part of Undertale's story and will likely be significant to Deltarune in some way, B; the fact that the use of the word 'LOVE' pretty much always requires additional context in these games, and C; that 'put on your face' and the part where the letter asks for help in tandem with the actions that were apparently taken might suggest that 'we' the players might not be the ones that the letter is talking to. (Even without all that, the thing is still a hair unsettling in general) 2; many, if not all of Gaster's other lines involved him actively running an experiment of some kind, which would explain the difference in formality here. Granted, I agree with the notion that it's odd that this shift isn't called attention to, but on the other hand like i said the shift might not be as drastic as it appears 3; Association with the concept of being forgotten in Undertale doesn't nessisarily require being canonically forgotten - The Great Papyrus's check description changing to 'forgettable' on the genocide route, as well as Sans' basement, both associate these to characters that are both such major presances in the underground that few monsters are likely to forget them and seem are tied to Gaster in other ways with the concept of forgetting and being forgotten, which is also a major theme in Deltarune as a whole. Just because goner kid's dialogue wasn't literally what happened to Gaster doesn't mean that forgetting isn't strongly tied to him. (Although in the same breath i am also confirming that Gaster himself isn't the only character tied to the concept either, so that could just be evidence that the one who wrote the letter is somehow associated with him, if that) 4; i saved the least important for last- while definitely still up for interpretation, the letter was definitely intended to make most people think Gaster sent it- there's no way Toby didn't know what he was doing with the all-caps and such. This doesn't mean all that much - the end of chapter two was clearly meant to make us think Kris is the Knight and by this point most will agree that they aren't the strongest candidate. It mostly just means that a connection to Gaster of some kind is extremely likely.

[@gremlin2239]

arguments really are easier to formulate in a video essay and not when the entirety of #lore-pit is throwing soyjack memes at you huh

[@gremlin2239]

this isn't a hashtag trend youtube

[@pinecubes]

its like what happened to rain world, like fanonization, everything boils down to skrunkly and only half the fans find that tired and tiring