History YMMV / AtopTheFourthWall

* AlternativeJokeInterpretation: During the Silver Ranger arc in ''Series/KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'' when Don uses the [[Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger Dragon Ranger form to defeat a monster]] Linkara starts to complain about [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers Tommy Oliver]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad worship]] before cutting himself off. Did Linkara forget he was reviewing ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' and not ''Franchise/PowerRangers''? Or did Linkara realize it would be [[HypocriticalHumor hypocritical to complain]] when he owns a Green Ranger costume?

** The Lord Vyce arc, which took around nine months from beginning to end, and went on continuously (the Mechakara and Entity arcs, while eight months long, both had extended "breather" periods, whereas the Vyce arc didn't). Still, it could be divided into three sub-arcs -- Linkara's abduction and return, the story of the Magic Gun's origin, and the actual confrontation with Vyce -- for easier consumption. This was repeated with the Gunslinger arc, which also has three sub-arc divisions (Linkara losing his magic and Holokara taking over, the team trapped in the apartment by the Gunslinger, and the final confrontation with the Gunslinger [[spoiler: and Dr. Insano]]).

** Ironically for what was supposed to be a BreatherEpisode, The Contest of Champions itself has also fallen under this. Due to real life scheduling issues, the fallout from the [=#ChangeTheChannel=] controversy, and the COVID-19 pandemic, Lewis was left unable to film the intended scenes for the arc for months at a time and had to scrap plans altogether. As of 2022, the arc has gone on for ''five years'' and the conclusion is still not yet in sight, and even Lewis has indicated that he's also unhappy the storyline has gone on ''much'' longer than he intended and he's also tired of it. As mentioned on the Trivia page, there was a point he very seriously considered [[https://youtu.be/oWXqo3gw33U?t=5467 scrapping the arc entirely and providing a summary of the ending instead]].

** The score that plays during the [[spoiler: restoration of Comicron One]] in "Comic Book Quickies #7".

** The King of Worms. Some found him to be a suitably good villain and that the Court of Worms storyline had some great tension and didn't overstay its welcome like some other storylines. Others found him to be stupid looking, and ultimately feel that he's proof that the show couldn't [[SerialEscalation escalate]] past the Entity, a sentiment reinforced when [[spoiler: the Entity returns and is revealed to have been responsible for the King's demise]].

** [[KnightOfCerebus Mechakara]] is a robot from an AlternateUniverse where Linkara's RobotBuddy Pollo turned evil and killed him when the machines overthrew humanity. His first plan revolves around sending [[AntiHero Linkara]] into a mental breakdown; when that fails, he captures him and plans to kill him slowly, simply because his death went too fast the first time around. While that would normally make him just another killer robot, he stands out when, after getting the magic MacGuffin that he came for, he vows to [[OmnicidalManiac destroy all organic life]] in the multiverse. During the ''Silent Hill Dead/Alive'' videos, Mechakara [[spoiler: slowly {{mind rape}}s Linkara into thinking he's the (actually long dead) man who tortured his son to create Linkara's Magic Gun and almost convinces him to kill himself]]. In ''WebVideo/ToBoldlyFlee'', Mechakara passes himself off as Linkara and infiltrates the USS Exit Strategy, intending to kill the entire crew with the help of the [[UnwillingRoboticisation forcibly assimilated]] Todd and Nostalgia Chick. Later, Mechakara assimilates the crew of the Caelestis space station and drains the life force of one astronaut in an attempt to recharge the ship. Only working with others when his goals coincide with theirs and perfectly willing to kill them otherwise, Mechakara is fueled only by his hatred for Linkara and all organic life forms.

** As of the [[http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/linkara/at4w/34091-the-new-guardians-1 New Guardians #1]] review, the spotlight has been taken from Linkara by the crazy antics of Snowflame. Read the comments to see why.

** Mechakara is also a pretty popular character. Mostly for being a KnightOfCerebus, how he was nearly able to kill Linkara in their battle, and that he's [[spoiler: an evil Pollo from an alternate universe]]. He's so popular that [[spoiler: he was resurrected during the Vyce Arc]] and makes a cameo in a couple other reviews. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades his own popularity]] in the ''Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes #2'' review. He's one of the major villains in the Website/ChannelAwesome 4th year anniversary crossover ''WebVideo/ToBoldlyFlee'' and is also the BigBad of TheMovie.

** The fans have dubbed [[spoiler: the spirit inside the magic gun Meg (based on the initials MG for "Magic Gun")]]. This later became AscendedFanon for a while, as in the ''Catwoman: Guardian of Gotham #1'' review, [[spoiler: the wizard Steven reveals the spirit's name is "Margaret". However, starting with the review of ''The Ring, vol. 4: Birthday'', the spirit adopted the name "Mark" after coming out as a trans man]].

** In panels, he's mentioned this is the reason he doesn't do reviews of work by Garth Ennis and Mark Millar, despite not liking their work. He eventually reviewed Millar's ''For The Animals'' (noting it's a very good comic that really gets Superman as an inspiring icon) and ''ComicBook/TroubleMarvelComics'' (which, although he did pan, no one complained, likely because Millar himself considers said book to be an OldShame).
** He drew some criticisms when he admitted during his review of the comic adaptation of ''Film/RogueOneAStarWarsStory'' of hating the iconic hallway scene where Darth Vader slaughters the rebel soldiers. Though for some, not so much the criticism than the lead up (Basiclly his mocking BaitAndSwitch), his tone sounding more like he was experiencing HypeBacklash, and his rather confusing reasons why he didn't (Essentially he likes the more methodical and taciturn Vader from the OG series and felt the scene was too bombastic for his character despite Vader barely being in the movie). Some commenters against him saying he came off as a curmudgeon old man doing the "[[WhenIWasYourAge Back in my day...]]" rant when trying to illustrate how Vader should be scary.

** I AM A MAN! *punch* and variants.

** 'Of course! Don't you know anything about science?"

** After his appearance in a Sad Panda [[http://atopfourthwall.blogspot.com/2012/04/forget-about-it-top-10-that-guy-with.html countdown in which it was claimed that Linkara reviews lamps]], the whole idea of him being a lamp reviewer has been mentioned many times by other reviewers.
*** He later made a similar joke in his review of ''All-Star Batman and Robin #8'' where he joked that maybe some people live in their own little worlds where he's a badger who reviews late-night talk shows. Badgerkara quickly took off.

** Mechakara firmly crossed it when he [[spoiler: tried to [[DrivenToSuicide drive Linkara to suicide]] (and it was ''not'' PlayedForLaughs) by making him think he was [[AbusiveParents the father]] of the child who was turned into his magic gun]].
** [[spoiler: Holokara]] pulls an extreme FaceHeelTurn and dives over the horizon in a single move, when he ''[[spoiler: [[AxCrazy threatens to kill '90s Kid]] if he ever [[DisproportionateRetribution interrupts the show again]]]]''. Definitely '''not''' PlayedForLaughs. To top it off, he later [[spoiler: threatens to maim Harvey Finevoice when Harvey calls him out for threatening to kill '90s Kid. Specifically, he casually threatens to crush the singer's vocal chords.]]
** [[spoiler: Lord Vyce]] crosses it either when he [[spoiler: {{Mind Rape}}s NIMUE, forcing Linkara to shut her down (at which point we can pretty much drop the "Anti" part of AntiVillain)]] or when he [[spoiler: tries to destroy the Earth and even the ''universe'' with a singularity generator because he can't accept that the Entity is truly gone, ''despite having just watched Linkara defeat it for good'']].
--> '''NIMUE:''' You are '''''evil''''', [[spoiler: Lord Vyce]], despite your proclamations to the contrary.

** Less mean-spirited than the above, but [[ComicBook/TheAtom Ray Palmer]] is always "Our [[ComicBook/{{Countdown}} Great Disaster-stopping pal]], Ray Palmer".

** The Entity. A creature that can make people disappear from the world with ease [[spoiler: and absorbs them into itself]], watches Linkara just to laugh at him as his friends disappear and turns out [[spoiler: to have been hiding in plain sight by his side the entire time]].

** The arc involving [[spoiler: the King of Worms]] shows it using [[spoiler: the cybermats to attack and replace almost all of Linkara's friends with robotic doubles]].

** [[spoiler: [[AxCrazy Holokara]] threatening to kill '90s Kid. It starts off with just him telling '90s Kid to stop interrupting the show, but then suddenly turns to Holokara phasing his hand into '90s Kid's chest and threatening to stop his heart.]]
** During the ''Star Trek/Green Lantern: Spectrum'' war story segment [[spoiler: There's a brief moment of relief from Nimue and Pollo trying to assure Linkara that the Entity is dead. Then the engines start going haywire, Comicron-1 crashes on the moon, and Linkara and the gang have to escape in the Vigilant. The episode concludes with Linkara being sure that the Entity is still alive, and the all too familiar musical cue ends things with a final shot of the wrecked Comicron-1]].

** The Gunslinger notices that his gunshots produce sparks and explosions, yet do no damage to anything in Linkara's apartment. [[spoiler: This becomes a plot point in the next episode]].

*** Vyce's ship looks really fake and compared to the show. which is not helped by the poor lighting and textures used during these sequences or the abundance of dramatic flyby shots that intensify these issues.

** During the Sleepwalker arc, Linkara's friends choose to walk out on him for starting to cross lines that they don't agree with, such as putting them under surveillance without telling them and trying to hack into government satellites instead of waiting for help from Alan. While they have valid concerns about him JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope, they ignore that Linkara has very good reason for acting like this as [[spoiler: 90s Kid is working with Vyce and the very real possibility of the Entity's return is looming over their heads]]. Linkara's friends come off as very unsympathetic toward his efforts to prepare for future threats, especially in light of how often they get caught off guard. Granted, this is undermined by the fact that he was watching them without their knowledge or consent due to 90's Kid's apparent betrayal and that the last time something like this happened, Linkara was becoming evil. It's further undermined once it's revealed that [[spoiler: the Entity is possessing Linkara]].

** [[spoiler: Mark, the spirit inhabiting Linkara's Magic Gun, as shown during "A Story of Magic" story arc. The parents who he loved and adored never cared about him other than using him as a sacrifice to forge a weapon to use in mass genocide for their God. When he turned 13, he was tortured and killed to create the weapon, but when they touched the weapon they were driven insane and killed.]] The fact that [[spoiler: his name was forgotten for years, even by the cultists who killed him]] makes it just a bit more painful.
** After [[spoiler: Holokara threatened them]], '90s Kid and Harvey became Woobies as well.

*** [[spoiler: The Gunslinger is also a massive example of WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds; despite being the [[ArcVillain main villain]] of his arc ([[HeelFaceTurn initially]]), when his backstory is revealed, it's hard not to feel bad for him.]]
*** [[spoiler: Somehow, the Entity becomes this at the end of its life, overcome by the painful realization that even its existence is meaningless, and the revelation that the entire Sleepwalker arc was it trying to justify its existence. When the Entity fizzles out, it's depicted as a sad moment.]]

* ArchivePanic: ''600 episodes'' and counting over ''twelve years''.

* {{Moe}}: Thing Tucker as Sadako Yamamura in the title card of "The Ring, vol. 2" is just plain ''adorable''.

* AuthorsSavingThrow: There seem to be many of these. If enough people complain about a perceived plot hole or just that something wasn't addressed, it will most likely be addressed in the next storyline-related episode.
** After various comments pointed out that Linkara never saw the ''outside'' of Vyce's ship, yet instantly recognized it, the next episode has Pollo note this, then Linkara asks who else would have a ship with a giant V on it.
** In the commentary of "Pokemon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu", Lewis admits to having pulled one [[spoiler: with why Missingno was afraid of Lord Vyce, aware that didn't track with how he built it up as an unstoppable universe-devouring Lovecraftian demon. He came up with the idea that Vyce's attacks were able to hurt it, but -- according to Missingno, at least -- couldn't kill it, but it found being able to be hurt at all such a blow to the ego that it hid out in our dimension so Linkara would defeat Vyce. It was NOT afraid of Vyce; just sufficiently ''annoyed'' with him]].
** The very end of the ''Real Ghostbusters in Ghostbusters II'' review features [[spoiler: Jaeris, visiting Linkara via portal, returning the mobile emitter he'd stolen during the Gunslinger arc, thus tying up the loose end left from the AbortedArc of him planning to use it against his then-enemy]].
** During the Sleepwalker arc, Linkara's friends come across as a little ''too'' unsympathetic to Linkara starting to cross lines they're uncomfortable with, treating it as baseless paranoia when there ''is'' an actual and obvious threat that's driving him to such extreme measures. This gets addressed [[spoiler: when they meet 90's Kid again and call him out on working with Vyce, pointing out that they left Linkara because of how far he was going, but 90's Kid is hardly any better for what he's done. On top of that, 90's Kid himself reveals why he was working with Vyce and [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness the real reason for Linkara's behavior]]]].
** His decision to shift storyline segments to being purely at the end of his reviews post credits can be seen as this. Prior reviews, especially earlier ones, had a tendency to be placed in areas that segued into reviews, sometimes at the front end, during the review itself, and so on. While this could be interesting at times, it could also come off as very distracting, since the video would be shuffling back and forth between review and skit, thus making people who only wanted to see one or the other have to muddle their way through both to find the parts they were interested in. With all storyline segments placed at the end nowadays, people could easily skip to the end of the review to see storyline segments without having to watch the entire review, or vice versa.

** His decision to shift storyline segments to being purely at the end of his reviews post credits can be seen as this. Prior reviews, especially earlier ones, had a tendency to be placed in areas that segued into reviews, sometimes at the front end, during the review itself, and so on. While this could be interesting at times, it could also come off as very distracting, since the video would be shuffling back and forth between review and skit, thus making people who only wanted to see one or the other have to muddle their way through both to find the parts they were interested in. With all storyline segments placed at the end nowadays, people could easily skip to the end of the review to see storyline segments without having to bother with the entire comic review, or vice versa.

** His decision to shift storyline segments to being purely at the end of his reviews post credits can be seen as this. Prior reviews, especially earlier ones, had a tendency to be placed in areas that segued into reviews, sometimes at the front end, during the review itself, and so on. While this could be interesting at times, it could also come off as very distracting, since the video would be shuffling back and forth between review and skit and thus detracting from the strengths of both. With all storyline segments placed at the end nowadays, people could easily skip to the end of the review to see storyline segments without having to bother with the entire comic review, or vice versa.

** Some fans find the storyline segments to be fun and enjoyable, while others feel they're amateurish sci-fi pastiches that distract from the main point of the show, reviewing bad comics.

** [[KnightOfCerebus Mechakara]] is a robot from an AlternateUniverse where Linkara's RobotBuddy Pollo turned evil and killed him when the machines overthrew humanity. His first plan revolves around sending [[AntiHero Linkara]] into a mental breakdown; when that fails, he captures him and plans to kill him slowly, simply because his death went too fast the first time around. While that would normally make him just another killer robot, he stands out when, after getting the magic MacGuffin that he came for, he vows to [[OmnicidalManiac destroy all organic life]] in the multiverse. During the ''Silent Hill Dead/Alive'' videos, Mechakara [[spoiler: slowly {{mind rape}}s Linkara into thinking he's the (actually long dead) man who tortured his daughter to create Linkara's Magic Gun and almost convinces him to kill himself]]. In ''WebVideo/ToBoldlyFlee'', Mechakara passes himself off as Linkara and infiltrates the USS Exit Strategy, intending to kill the entire crew with the help of the [[UnwillingRoboticisation forcibly assimilated]] Todd and Nostalgia Chick. Later, Mechakara assimilates the crew of the Caelestis space station and drains the life force of one astronaut in an attempt to recharge the ship. Only working with others when his goals coincide with theirs and perfectly willing to kill them otherwise, Mechakara is fueled only by his hatred for Linkara and all organic life forms.
** "[[Recap/AtopTheFourthWallAStoryOfMagic A Story of Magic]]": [[AbusiveParents Margaret's parents]] were members of a {{cult}} that worshipped the [[EldritchAbomination Entity]] and [[TheFundamentalist sought to rid the world of any non-believers]]. Working with their sect to forge a weapon capable of smiting their enemies, the two had Margaret in the first place so [[PoweredByAForsakenChild her very life essence could be used to power the Magic Gun]]. When Margaret turned 13, her parents assisted in a ritual that saw their daughter tortured and tormented, laughing at her sobs of pain. When Margaret's blood and soul were drained into the Magic Gun, her parents immediately wielded it in the hopes of using it to kill in their god's name. The two showed no remorse when confronted by Margaret's vengeful spirit, believing their actions were fully justified even as they succumbed to madness and death.

** The fans have dubbed [[spoiler: the spirit inside the magic gun Meg (based on the initials MG for "Magic Gun")]]. This appears to be AscendedFanon now, as in the ''Catwoman: Guardian of Gotham #1'' review, [[spoiler: Wizard Steven refers to her as "Margaret"]].

** Mechakara firmly crossed it when he [[spoiler: tried to [[DrivenToSuicide drive Linkara to suicide]] (and it was ''not'' PlayedForLaughs) by making him think he was [[AbusiveParents the father]] of the girl who was turned into his magic gun]].

** [[spoiler: The little girl from the ''Silent Hill Dead/Alive'' prologues. The parents who she loved and adored never cared about her other than using her as a sacrifice to forge a weapon to use in mass genocide for their God. She was tortured and killed to create the weapon (Linkara's magic gun), but when they touched the weapon they were driven insane and killed.]]
*** The fact that [[spoiler: her name has been forgotten, even by the cultists who killed her]] makes it just a bit more painful.

* UnexpectedCharacter: Who the hell expected ''[[spoiler:Mirrorkara]]'', of all people, to be the ArcVillain of [[Recap/AtopTheFourthWallTheCloneSaga The Clone Saga!]]

** In the ''Anime/JojosBizarreAdventure'' review, Linkara criticizes Jonathan's frankly ridiculous outfit choices, and is quite happy when it's destroyed. Without context, it sounds quite a bit like EatingTheEyeCandy.

* UnintentionalUncannyValley: The Entity is just unsettling to look at. [[spoiler: Never mind that it's taking the form of comic relief '90s Kid with a distorted voice and unnatural, interference cascade eyes, but every shot focusing on it just glitches from time to time, like its voice scratching and repeating, or its body blinking in place or from one place to another]]. Just its presence is outright creepy, let alone all the rest.

* UncannyValley: The Entity is just unsettling to look at. [[spoiler: Never mind that it's taking the form of comic relief '90s Kid with a distorted voice and unnatural, interference cascade eyes, but every shot focusing on it just glitches from time to time, like its voice scratching and repeating, or its body blinking in place or from one place to another]]. Just its presence is outright creepy, let alone all the rest.

** Ironically for what was supposed to be a BreatherEpisode, The Contest of Champions itself has also fallen under this. Due to real life scheduling issues, the fallout from the [=#ChangeTheChannel=] controversy, and the COVID-19 pandemic, Lewis was left unable to film the intended scenes for the arc for months at a time and had to scrap plans altogether. As of 2022, the arc has gone on for ''five years'' and the conclusion is still not yet in sight, and even Lewis has indicated that he's also unhappy the storyline has gone on ''much'' longer than he intended and he's also tired of it.

** Ironically for what was supposed to be a BreatherEpisode, The Contest of Champions itself has also fallen under this. Due to real life scheduling issues and the fallout from [=#ChangeTheChannel=], the arc has both gone ''months'' without any sort of update and was even put on hold for the 10th Anniversary storyline in October 2018. Many fans have become burnt out on the storyline, which Linkara has indicated will not end until at least 2020. Lewis would later state that due to the ongoing quarantines and Social Distancing measures in Minnesota as a result of COVID-19, he is unable to film any live scenes to continue the storyline. Thereby leaving the story in a hiatus until 2021 and even then with only a handful of updates, resulting in the arc now going into 2022.

* EvilIsCool: Lord Vyce qualifies for doing DarthVaderClone right, being a KnightTemplar with a [[EvilSoundsDeep truly menacing voice]], an [[{{Determinator}} absolute refusal to give up]], and a surprisingly sympathetic backstory that flavors his legacy of conquest. Mechakara counts, too, being the show's [[KnightOfCerebus first villain to be taken seriously]] and an absolutely terrifying KillerRobot and OmnicidalManiac who makes ''Vyce'' look like the picture of rationality.

** His {{take that}}s towards Creator/BradJones and WebVideo/RedLetterMedia in 2020 episodes. Well-deserved digs at the right targets, or petty, unprofessional and immature? Notably, when Lewis put together a compilation video of his reviews of his Prequel Trilogy, he removed his jab against the latter and admitted it really wasn't necessary.

** His {{take that}}s towards Creator/BradJones and WebVideo/RedLetterMedia in 2020 episodes. Well-deserved digs at the right targets, or petty, unprofessional and immature?

* FanPreferredCouple: Linkara and Viga are the ones people now ship together the most, likely due to both the real-life relationship between their actors and the fact they are just downright {{adorkable}} when in each other's company.

* FandomRivalry: An odd rivalry popped up between [=AT4W=] fans and fans of ''WebVideo/OneyPlays'', mostly related to a joke made about Linkara's old webcomic ''Webcomic/{{Lightbringer}}'' (something he considers an OldShame), which Linkara wasn't really amused by. Oney's fans see Linkara as someone who can't take a joke made about him very well, while Linkara's fans say the problem is the fact the joke has either been run into the ground or is just getting used to try and harass him by bringing up something he regrets.

** Him picking and choosing when it is okay to use personal interpretation and tie-in material in terms of if a product is good or bad; mostly with films. Many have pointed out his comment about Batman V. Superman ("I've heard what you THINK it was trying to say") and how isn't correct and his The Last Jedi review where he did exactly that, stopping often to give his fan take on why plot holes weren't actually plot holes.

** Not wanting to review tie-ins for Events Comics Month. While some found it understandable since tie-ins (especially if under the pen of different writers) would open up a can of worms such as continuity issues and inconsistent characterisation of characters involved in the main plot (something that has been brought up in his criticisms of the first Civil War), others point out that many of the complaints people have with the events involve the Tie-Ins and not addressing these means Linkara can't get the full story. Most recently this came to play in Civil War II, where he considers Tony Stark to be in the wrong and Captain Marvel to be in the right since he chose to ignore the tie-ins which play up Carol's more negative traits (including her own series).

** Him picking and choosing when it is okay to use personal interpretation and tie in material in terms of if a product is good or bad; mostly with films. Many of pointed out his comment about Batman V. Superman ("I've heard what you THINK it was trying to say") and how isn't correct and his The Last Jedi review where he did exactly that, stopping often to give his fan take on why plot holes weren't actually plot holes.
** Not wanting to review tie-ins for Events Comics Month. While understandable others point out that many of the complaints people have with the events involve the Tie-Ins and not addressing these means Linkara can't present the full story. Most recently this came to play with Civil War II, where he spent much of the episode blasting Tony Stark but shrugging over the Carol Danvers hate because much of her sins are in the tie-ins.

** He drew some criticisms when he admitted during his review of the comic adaptation of ''Film/RogueOneAStarWarsStory'' of hating the iconic hallway scene where Darth Vader slaughters the rebel soldiers. Though for some, not so much the criticism then the lead up (Basiclly his mocking BaitAndSwitch), his tone sounding more like he was experiencing HypeBacklash, and his rather confusing reasons why he didn't (Essentially he likes the more methodical Vader from the OG series and felt the scene was too bombastic for his character despite Vader barely being in the movie). Some commenters against him saying he came off as a curmudgeon old man doing the "[[WhenIWasYourAge Back in my day...]]" rant when trying to illustrate how Vader should be scary.

** Ironically for what was supposed to be a BreatherEpisode, The Contest of Champions itself has also fallen under this. Due to real life scheduling issues and the fallout from [=#ChangeTheChannel=], the arc has both gone ''months'' without any sort of update and was even put on hold for the 10th Anniversary storyline in October 2018. Many fans have become burnt out on the storyline, which Linkara has indicated will not end until at least 2020. Lewis would later state that due to the ongoing quarantines and Social Distancing measures in Minnesota as a result of COVID-19, he is unable to film any live scenes to continue the storyline. Thereby leaving the story in a hiatus until 2021.

** In panels, he's mentioned this is the reason he doesn't do reviews of work by Garth Ennis and Mark Millar, despite not liking their work. He eventually reviewed Millar's ''For The Animals'' (noting it's a very good comic that really gets Superman as an inspiring icon) and ''ComicBook/TroubleMarvelComcs'' (which, although he did pan, no one complained, likely because Millar himself considers said book to be an OldShame).