I realize how frustrating bad fanon takes on the Undertale characters have always been, having been a fan since the game came out. I get it, I've felt it too.
But I also kind of feel bad because it takes so much effort to dig through all the dialogue. There's SO MUCH of it.
Especially for fan works being made between 2015 - 2018 because there was still new stuff being brought to light constantly that any normal single playthrough or "watched one playthrough on YT" wouldn't show you. There wasn't even a general consensus on Chara's role in the story for the first several years.
I feel like everyone goes through the "UT characters are funny and endearing!" >> "Wait, there's a lot of mysterious lore and implications here" >> "Actually, there's lore but it's still mostly funny" phases, but not everyone's at the same point in the ride.
I guess, I feel like as obsessed as I am in understanding the characters fully, I still think it's OK not to get them 100% right. People have been asking me questions about the game for 8 years like I'm an authority on the subject and I still don't have it all right.
(Honestly I think AUs that are totally and intentionally off base are OK too. Characters are toys, play how you want. Plz still tag them as their own thing though lol i beg you)
No purpose for this monologue, just to say writing the UT/DR characters in the perfect chef's-kiss sweet spot is actually really hard and don't feel too bad if you don't get it right lol
It's OK not to have Tolkien-scholar levels of knowledge on UT/DR, I still want to read your fanfics and see your art.