History YMMV / BattleGround2020

* ArcFatigue: Harry's in trouble of being disciplined by the White Council ''again''?!? [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] in that Harry seems to be as tired of this long-running threat as much as the audience, and his reaction is more of resignation and surprise at Carlos agreeing with the decision than surprise at the decision itself.

** Downplayed; As reflecting the complaints about Butters being seen as a CreatorsPet, this book not only has him [[spoiler:[[CurbStompBattle getting his ass handed to him by Ethniu]] (providing those who aren't fans of Butters a bit of a CatharsisFactor), but also has him showcase his genuine CharacterDevelopment by standing up to her and talking down a grief-stricken Harry from killing Rudolph, showing just how far Butters has come and why he ''does'' genuinely deserve to be a Knight of the Cross]].

** [[spoiler: She can't return to Earth until all memory of her is gone. '' You'' tell Dresden he can't pay a visit to Valhalla….]]

** Harry might come across as an UngratefulBastard toward Carlos Ramirez for refusing to trust him despite all the times he had Harry's back previously and the help he gave the Justice League of Chicago behind the scenes. On the other hand, Ramirez himself can come off as one given his betrayal of Harry's trust in the previous book and his automatically assuming the worst of matters.

* AudienceAwarenessAdvantage: The readers know that Harry is a genuinely good man with (usually) good reasons for what he does. However, to most members of the White Council who don't know him personally, all they know is his record: Raised by a dark wizard, never passed his formal trials, was under the Doom of Damocles, advertises his wizard status publicly, might be working for/with Marcone (whom he sponsored as a Freeholding Lord under the Accords), kicked off a world war with the Red Court that left hundreds of wizards dead, has used necromancy (albeit not ''technically'' breaking the Laws since it was on an animal), dropped a challenge to the Senior Council and later to an invited guest who was present under Council hospitality, appears to be very close to the White Court, is the Winter Knight, and his former apprentice was under the Doom of Damocles herself and is now the Winter Lady. Oh, certainly, there are explanations for all of these (such as the fact that his brother is a whampire, he's not actually been working for Marcone or making out with Lara, and most of his choices were due to necessity rather than desire), most wizards wouldn't know this, and as Carlos says, his needlessly secretive and standoffish behavior hasn't helped matters any. The fact that he almost never visits Edinburgh, meaning that most wizards outside the younger Wardens don't know him personally, doesn't help either. Really, it's honestly more of a wonder that they had [[spoiler:waited ''this'' long into the series to boot him out]].

* SignatureScene: [[spoiler:Murphy's tragic death]].

** [[spoiler: She can't return to Earth until all memory of her is gone. '' You'' tell Dresden he can' t pay a visit to Valhalla….]]

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** Downplayed; As reflecting the complaints about Butters being seen as a CreatorsPet, this book not only has him [[spoiler:[[CurbStompBattle getting his ass handed to him by Ethniu]] (providing those who aren't fans of Butters a bit of a CatharsisFactor), but also has him showcase his genuine CharacterDevelopment by standing up to her and talking down a grief-stricken Harry from killing Rudolph, showing just how far Butters has come and why he ''does'' genuinely deserve to be a Knight of the Cross]].
*** Harry also notes the advantages of the new form of the Sword in this book, showing that Butters getting the lightsaber wasn't just a fun gimmick but actually a relevant and useful plot point.
** Relatedly, the Redcap having been such an AntiClimaxBoss and subject to a bit of BondVillainStupidity in ''Literature/ColdDays'' gets a HandWave here when he reveals to Harry that [[spoiler:he was Mab's [[TheMole mole]] within Maeve's court and intentionally held back his punches (relatively speaking) so he wouldn't offend his Queen by offhandedly killing her new Knight]].

** Harry comes across as an UngratefulBastard towards Ramirez for refusing to trust him despite all the times he had Harry's back previously and the help he gave The Justice League Of Chicago behind the scenes.

** From Ebenezar's perspective: He genuinely loved his daughter, but could only watch as she became more and more alienated from her mortal allies, took up with monsters (not entirely through her own choice), and eventually got herself killed. Now pretty much the same thing is happening to his grandson, and there doesn't seem to be anything he can do to stop it. Time will tell how much Harry mirrors his mother's path, but certainly, it's understandable from that point of view just why he's been freaking out when he sees Harry and Thomas working closely together (and why he was so harsh to Lara back in ''Literature/TurnCoat'').

** Harry told by Carlos that he was kicked out of the White Council might have been more of a WhamLine had it been a direct result of Harry's various questionable actions in this and the previous book. However, ''Literature/PeaceTalks'' starts by saying that the White Council is already planning on voting to expel him, with various political ploys in play along with Harry being too busy with the Accords to defend himself suggesting that there's no known way for Harry to stop it. So, instead of being a PlotTwist, Harry's expulsion is more of a ForegoneConclusion.

* Harry ends up forming a 'banner', consisting of every human fighting in his name. He quickly finds out this means he can feel every injury that happens to any one of them... and every death, too.

** Harry comes across as an UngratefulBastard towards Ramirez for him despite all the times he had Harry's back previously and the help he gave The Justice League Of Chicago behind the scenes.

* AudienceAwarenessAdvantage: The readers know that Harry is a genuinely good man with (usually) good reasons for what he does. However, to most members of the White Council who don't know him personally, all they know is his record: Raised by a dark wizard, never passed his formal trials, was under the Doom of Damocles, advertises his wizard status publicly, might be working for/with Marcone (whom he sponsored as a Freeholding Lord under the Accords), kicked off a world war with the Red Court that left hundreds of wizards dead, has used necromancy (albeit not ''technically'' breaking the Laws since it was on an animal), dropped a challenge to the Senior Council and later to an invited guest, appears to be very close to the White Court, is the Winter Knight, and his former apprentice was under the Doom of Damocles herself and is now the Winter Lady. Oh, certainly, there are explanations for all of these (such as the fact that his brother is a whampire, he's not actually been working for Marcone or making out with Lara, and most of his choices were due to necessity rather than desire), most wizards wouldn't know this, and as Carlos says, his needlessly secretive and standoffish behavior hasn't helped matters any. The fact that he almost never visits Edinburgh, meaning that most wizards outside the younger Wardens don't know him personally, doesn't help either. Really, it's honestly more of a wonder that they had [[spoiler:waited ''this'' long into the series to boot him out]].

* AudienceAwarenessAdvantage: The readers know that Harry is a genuinely good man with (usually) good reasons for what he does. However, to most members of the White Council who don't know him personally, all they know is his record: Raised by a dark wizard, never passed his formal trials, was under the Doom of Damocles, advertises his wizard status publicly, might be working for/with Marcone (whom he sponsored as a freeholding lord under the Accords), kicked off a world war with the Red Court that left hundreds of wizards dead, has used necromancy (albeit not ''technically'' breaking the Laws since it was on an animal), dropped a challenge to the Senior Council and later to an invited guest, appears to be very close to the White Court, is the Winter Knight, and his former apprentice was under the Doom of Damocles herself and is now the Winter Lady. Oh, certainly, there are explanations for all of these (such as the fact that his brother is a whampire, he's not actually been working for Marcone or making out with Lara, and most of his choices were due to necessity rather than desire), most wizards wouldn't know this, and as Carlos says, his needlessly secretive and standoffish behavior hasn't helped matters any. The fact that he almost never visits Edinburgh, meaning that most wizards outside the younger Wardens don't know him personally, doesn't help either. Really, it's honestly more of a wonder that they had [[spoiler:waited ''this'' long into the series to boot him out]].

*** In light of how internally-factional the White Council can be, the answer in both cases is likely "all of the above," or depends on which individual member is being discussed.
** Harry's final break with the White Council. Is it a justified case of DudeWheresMyRespect? Or is it a case of NeverMyFault, as he time and time again flouted their wishes and outright ''refused'' to give Ramirez and co anything resembling a straight answer when they asked what he was doing with Lara? [[spoiler: By the end, they also think he is hiding the Eye of Balor - a supernatural ''superweapon'' - from them, and they're entirely ''right''.]]

** Harry comes across as an UngratefulBastard towards Ramirez for him despit all the times he had Harry back previously and the help he gave The Justice League Of Chicago behind the scenes.

* AudienceAwarenessAdvantage: The readers know that Harry is a genuinely good man with (usually) good reasons for what he does. However, to most members of the White Council who don't know him personally, all they know is his record: Raised by a dark wizard, never passed his formal trials, was under the Doom of Damocles, advertises his wizard status publicly, might be working for/with Marcone (whom he sponsored as a freeholding lord under the Accords), kicked off a world war with the Red Court, dropped a challenge to the Senior Council, appears to be very close to the White Court, is the Winter Knight, and his former apprentice was under the Doom of Damocles herself and is now the Winter Lady. Oh, certainly, there are explanations for all of these (such as the fact that his brother is a whampire and he's not actually been making out with Lara), most wizards wouldn't know this, and as Carlos says, his needlessly secretive and standoffish behavior hasn't helped matters any. Really, it's honestly more of a wonder that they had [[spoiler:waited ''this'' long into the series to boot him out]].

** Relatedly, the Redcap having been such an AntiClimaxBoss in ''Literature/ColdDays'' gets a HandWave here when he reveals to Harry that [[spoiler:he was Mab's [[TheMole mole]] within Maeve's court and intentionally held back his punches (relatively speaking) so he wouldn't offend his Queen by offhandedly killing her new Knight]].

** Harry comes across as an UngratefulBastard towards Ramirez for refusing to give up any information and refusing to trust him.

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Harry and Bradley mocking Rudolph for his RecklessGunUsage is played as just another example of how much Rudy sucks. But then that same recklessness leads to [[spoiler:him accidentally shooting and killing Murphy]].

** [[spoiler:Justine's CharacterDevelopment from ''White Night'' onward now comes across as bittersweet at best once this book reveals that she's been possessed by Nemesis the entire time, and it's completely unknown what actions were done of her own free will or were just Nemesis puppeteering her]].

** Similarly, as soon as it's stated that either celestial fire or {{Hellfire}} is needed to breach Ethniu's armor, it becomes obvious that either an angel or one of the Denarians will show up to form an alliance against the Fomor. However, of all the Denarians to arrive, virtually ''no one'' was expecting it to be [[spoiler:'''Thorned Namshiel''' in the hands of '''''Marcone''''', especially when circumstantial evidence in ''Small Favor'' had implied that Namshiel was infected with Nemesis (who the Fomor are broadly on the same side of)]].

** Mister is also nowhere to be seen, not even getting a brief cameo appearance like he did in ''Skin Game'' or ''Peace Talks''.

** Michael and Charity [[spoiler: already knowing Molly is the Winter Lady]] works as an amusing AntiClimax, but unlike when Harry confessed to having Lasciel's coin in ''Proven Guilty'', there's no real explanation as to how they came by this knowledge (granted, Michael ''did'' see the Statue of Hecate in Hades's Vault in ''Literature/SkinGame'') or how they came to terms with what's happened to their daughter, and it can feel like cheating for this plot point to be brushed off so quickly after multiple books of build-up. On the other hand, however? Complete, instant acceptance, love, and kindness... is completely characteristic of Michael and Charity, as are HiddenDepths, so befitting a YMMV page, this issue is understandably ambiguous.

** From Ebenezar's perspective: He genuinely loved his daughter, but could only watch as she became more and more alienated from her mortal allies, took up with monsters (not entirely through her own choice), and eventually got herself killed. Now pretty much the same thing is happening to his grandson, and there doesn't seem to be anything he can do to stop it. Time will tell how much Harry mirrors his mother's path, but certainly, it's understandable from that point of view just why he's been freaking out when he sees Harry and Thomas working closely together (and why he was so harsh to Lara back in ''Turn Coat'').

** Relatedly, the Redcap having been such an AntiClimaxBoss in ''Cold Days'' gets a HandWave here when he reveals to Harry that [[spoiler:he was Mab's [[TheMole mole]] within Maeve's court and intentionally held back his punches (relatively speaking) so he wouldn't offend his Queen by offhandedly killing her new Knight]].

** Mab claims that the White Council is only (or primarily) fighting to acquire the Eye of Balor, and Harry (who has understandable issues with the Council) agrees. This despite the fact that Harry later notes that the Council is closest of all the powers to humanity. How much of their participation is to get their hands on the Eye of Balor, and how much is to actually protect Chicago?

** Harry's final break with the White Council. Is it a justified case of DudeWheresMyRespect? Or is it a case of NeverMyFault, as he time and time again flouted their wishes and outright ''refused'' to give Ramirez and co anything resembling a straight answer when they asked what he was doing with Lara?

** Harry's final break with the White Council seems motivated by the fact of DudeWheresMyRespect. Despite saving them multiple times and bringing down the wrath of God to end the Red Court among other threats, he's still treated like a pariah. It's also possible he's just outright SICK of his treatment and it is a case of TheDogBitesBack.

** Mister is also nowhere to be seen, not even getting a brief cameo appearance like he did in ''Skin Game''.