03-08-2022, 07:29 PM
Warning: This contains spoilers for Chapter 2 of Deltarune
In Chapter 2 of Deltarune, the player can encounter the Pipis enemy throughout Queen's mansion in the hidden Weird Route. Checking these enemies produces the flavor text "PIPIS - ''The Original'' An invasive species of freshwater clam."
![[Image: SPOILER_FDds_z_WUAMKfJs.png]](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/708106066017255425/950909106821136424/SPOILER_FDds_z_WUAMKfJs.png)
This strange, idiosyncratic description appears to reference two different things at once. First and most readily obvious is the point about invasive clams, which alludes to Plebidonax deltoides, and Paphies australis, two species of clams found in Australia and New Zealand, respectively; both species are commonly known as pipis (singular: pipi), though they're both saltwater clams rather than freshwater and are endemic to their locations.
![[Image: Pippies_close%2C_square_crop.jpg]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Pippies_close%2C_square_crop.jpg)
The "invasive freshwater species" aspect appears to have been transplanted from the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), well-known in North America and Europe as a malignant presence in both natural and artificial bodies of water.
The fact that both real-world pipis clams are edible may additionally explain why Kris is able to eat "Fried Pipis" as a healing ACT during the Spamton NEO fight in the Weird Route.
The second reference is more obscure, but appears to be plausible: the phrase "The Original" appears to reference a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, called Pipis (sometimes rendered as "Pipi's"), which uses this exact phrase as its tagline.
![[Image: Pipis-logo.jpg]](https://puertovallartatravelshow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Pipis-logo.jpg)
The uncanny similarities in both name and wording, combined with the fact that the restaurant has been active since 1986, makes it reasonable to infer that the Pipi's enemy's CHECK description is in part a reference to the restaurant as well as the shellfish.
In Chapter 2 of Deltarune, the player can encounter the Pipis enemy throughout Queen's mansion in the hidden Weird Route. Checking these enemies produces the flavor text "PIPIS - ''The Original'' An invasive species of freshwater clam."
This strange, idiosyncratic description appears to reference two different things at once. First and most readily obvious is the point about invasive clams, which alludes to Plebidonax deltoides, and Paphies australis, two species of clams found in Australia and New Zealand, respectively; both species are commonly known as pipis (singular: pipi), though they're both saltwater clams rather than freshwater and are endemic to their locations.
The "invasive freshwater species" aspect appears to have been transplanted from the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), well-known in North America and Europe as a malignant presence in both natural and artificial bodies of water.
The fact that both real-world pipis clams are edible may additionally explain why Kris is able to eat "Fried Pipis" as a healing ACT during the Spamton NEO fight in the Weird Route.
The second reference is more obscure, but appears to be plausible: the phrase "The Original" appears to reference a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, called Pipis (sometimes rendered as "Pipi's"), which uses this exact phrase as its tagline.
The uncanny similarities in both name and wording, combined with the fact that the restaurant has been active since 1986, makes it reasonable to infer that the Pipi's enemy's CHECK description is in part a reference to the restaurant as well as the shellfish.