History YMMV / Dark2017

* FriendlyFandoms: Netflix and the corporate media have marketed ''Dark'' to fans of ''Series/StrangerThings'', due to similarities such as children vanishing under mysterious circumstances, a small town haunted by seemingly supernatural phenomena, and references to the popular culture of TheEighties. Though many ''Dark'' fans see a FandomRivalry between the two shows, typically angered by ''Stranger Things'' having [[ItsPopularNowItSucks greater popularity]] and more [[TrueArtIsIncomprehensible straightforward]], lighthearted writing.

* EsotericHappyEnding: As stated above, It is easy to see the GrandFinale ending as this for how it plays with the idea of [[ExpendableAlternateUniverse toying around with universes as if they were expendable]] and completely leaves out the moral ambiguousness of the entire thing. [[spoiler: Two universes are erased for the sake of only one to continue to exists. Even if the remaining characters lived HappilyEverAfter, it's not like drama and misery will cease to exist because of it and it seems to ignore the fact that a little more than twice as many lives ''at least'' were sacrificed as a result, and gives the [[AccidentalAesop implication]] that "if you were unlucky enough to live in one of these two worlds... well sorry, but you don't matter".]]

* FriendlyFandoms: Netflix and the corporate media have marketed ''Dark'' to fans of ''Series/StrangerThings'', due to similarities such as children vanishing under mysterious circumstances, a small town haunted by seemingly supernatural phenomena, and references to the popular culture of TheEighties. Though many ''Dark'' fans see a FandomRivalry between the two shows, typically angered by ''Stranger Things'' having [[ItsPopularNowItSucks greater popularity]] and more [[TrueArtIsIncomprehensible straightforward]], [[TrueArtIsAngsty lighthearted]] writing.

* EsotericHappyEnding: As stated above, It is easy to see the GrandFinale ending as this for how it plays with the idea of [[ExpendableAlternateUniverse toying around with universes as if they were expandable]] and completely leaves out the moral ambiguousness of the entire thing. [[spoiler: Two universes are erased for the sake of only one to continue to exists. Even if the remaining characters lived HappilyEverAfter, it's not like drama and misery will cease to exist because of it and it seems to ignore the fact that a little more than twice as many lives ''at least'' were sacrificed as a result, and gives the [[AccidentalAesop implication]] that "if you were unlucky enough to live in one of these two worlds... well sorry, but you don't matter".]]

* WhatAnIdiot:
** [[spoiler:Ulrich decides to murder a child Helge Doppler to prevent the kidnapping and murder of the missing boys.]]
** '''You'd Expect:''' Ulrich to make sure [[spoiler:Helge truly is dead,]] and then make his escape to 2019 quickly and quietly, so he's not caught by local law enforcement.
** '''Instead:''' Ulrich simply assumes [[spoiler:that the unconscious Helge is dead, leaves him in his own family bunker,]] and tries to make his way back to the caves not through the forest, but along the state road, still covered in Helge's blood.
** '''As a Result:''': Not only to [[spoiler:Helge surviving the attack and receiving brain damage substantial enough so that Noah takes advantage of him to steal the boys]], but Ulrich is then caught by Egon Tiedemann, to whom he shamelessly confesses [[spoiler:to murdering Helge]], and is rightfully incarcerated for his actions. [[spoiler:Season 2 reveals that he is still locked up in a psychiatric hospital 34 years later for not taking the necessary precautions to get away with his crime.]]

* AuthorsSavingThrow:
** Season 1, while widely praised for its storytelling and cinematography, received some criticism due to the fact that its relentlessly gloomy atmosphere and the heavily flawed main characters made it difficult to get emotionally invested in the story. Starting with Season 2, the show managed to balance things out by putting more emphasis on the characters' sympathetic traits and adding some moments of genuine levity.
** One of the main criticisms of Season 1 was that Magnus, Franziska, and Elisabeth added little to the main story, with the former two's romance subplot being seen as particularly distracting and clashing with the show's general tone. In Season 2, the show finally began to use them in more interesting ways, with them becoming actively involved in the time travel plot and [[spoiler:revealing their older selves as members of the Sic Mundus cult]].

** H.G. Tannhaus, who is at first shown to be a typical clockmaker and scientist and [[spoiler: Charlotte's non-biological grandfather]] to be normal and inconsequential...until [[spoiler: it's revealed in Season 3 that ''he'' [[UnwillingInstigatorOfDoom is the reason the entire events of the series occur in the first place]]]] when he attempted to [[spoiler: prevent the deaths of his son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter]], showcasing that [[spoiler: both universes were a reflection of his pain, sadness, guilt, and overall suffering that he endured from the incident]].

** [[spoiler:Ulrich decides to murder a child Helge Doppler to prevent the kidnapping and murder of the missing boys.]] You'd expect Ulrich to make sure [[spoiler:Helge truly is dead,]] and then make his escape to 2019 quickly and quietly, so he's not caught by local law enforcement. Instead, Ulrich simply assumes [[spoiler:that the unconscious Helge is dead, leaves him in his own family bunker,]] and tries to make his way back to the caves not through the forest, but along the state road, still covered in Helge's blood. This leads not only to [[spoiler:Helge surviving the attack and receiving brain damage substantial enough so that Noah takes advantage of him to steal the boys]], but Ulrich is then caught by Egon Tiedemann, to whom he shamelessly confesses [[spoiler:to murdering Helge]], and is rightfully incarcerated for his actions. [[spoiler:Season 2 reveals that he is still locked up in a psychiatric hospital 34 years later for not taking the necessary precautions to get away with his crime.]]
** The whole town, really. ''Don't let your kids go running around alone in the woods where children go missing in droves.''[[spoiler:Yasin is a particularly egregious example, as he stubbornly decides to walk to school alone and promptly gets abducted and murdered by Noah.]]

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A minor case occurs in 1953 timeline, when the police discovers [[spoiler:the bodies of 2019 timeline kids, one of them of Middle Eastern descent, and both wearing clothes labeled as "Made In China" (in English, mind you).]] The cops look like the only way they can wrap their heads around these details is to conclude it must be some sort of BadFuture.

* EsotericHappyEnding: As stated above, It is easy to see the GrandFinale ending as this for how it plays with the idea of [[ExpendableAlternateUniverse toying around with universes as if they were expandable]] and completely leaves out the moral ambiguousness of the entire thing. [[spoiler: Two universes are erased for the sake of only one to continue to exists. Even if the remaining characters lived HappilyEverAfter, it's not like drama and misery will seize to exist because of it and it seems to ignore the fact that a little more than twice as many lives ''at least'' were sacrificed as a result, and gives the [[AccidentalAesop implication]] that "if you were unlucky enough to live in one of these two worlds... well sorry, but you don't matter".]]

* {{Narm}}:
** The reveal that [[spoiler:Charlotte and Elisabeth are each other's mother and daughter]]. Not only is the concept itself pretty loopy even for this show, but the reveal is done in such an offhand, understated fashion that you could easily miss it, and doesn't seem fitting at all for such a major development. And then it's hardly ever referenced again for the rest of the show, coming off like it was just randomly thrown in to be a MindScrew.
** [[spoiler: The Other Martha's]] death, while chilling and horrifying, is a bit hilarious considering [[spoiler: she's spinning around tornado style]].
** Almost every conversation in the show has very long, very awkward pauses during which someone who was asked a question just stares at the questioner for an agonizing amount of time before finally gracing them with a reply. While this can work as a dramatic tool when used sparingly, the show overuses it to such an extreme degree that most characters simply come across as dimwitted, making even the most dramatic conversation nearly impossible to take seriously.

* TheScrappy: ''Hannah''. She spends most of her time plotting revenge against Ulrich because [[spoiler:he rejects her for Katharina in two time periods]]. She also is a false friend to Katharina, blames her [[spoiler: false rape accusation against Ulrich]] on the already bullied Regina, blackmails [[spoiler:Aleksander]], and constantly lies to everyone including the police for her own selfish reasons. She becomes more and more unlikable until the fanbase seems to universally ''loathe'' her, which is a surprising feat considering the flawed nature of ''most'' characters in ''Dark''. It was first implied by Season 2 that Hannah would go through a redemption following some [[spoiler: callouts from Jonas...only for [[ThenLetMeBeEvil her to agree with his belief that she doesn't need no one due to her selfish reasons]], going back to 1954, leaving Ulrich in the institution and deciding to [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere leave her present day life and start anew in the past]]]]. It's gotten to the point where fans just want her ''dead'' considering how unlikable and unbearable she is, [[spoiler: which was fitting when she afterwards was strangled by Adam]].

* TakeThatScrappy: [[spoiler: Hannah is chewed out through season 2 for her most assholish behavior, and after escalating her awfulness she ends up outright strangled by Adam in season 3]].

* BrokenBase: [[BittersweetEnding The ending]] has involved [[{{Understatement}} a huge slew of debates]]. Some fans like it due to the fact that it provides [[EarnYourHappyEnding a genuinely happy ending for at least some of the characters]], even if it comes at the cost of [[spoiler:a huge majority of the main cast, including Jonas and Martha, [[RetGone being erased from existence]]]], which is consistent with the show's theme of self-sacrifice for a greater purpose. Others, however, argue that the final twist which [[spoiler:allows for the breaking of the time loop]] is revealed with barely any foreshadowing and contradicts the show's previous emphasis on determinism. Essentially, whether the ending is perceived as good or bad basically depends very much on where the viewer's personal belief lies on the SlidingScaleOfFreeWillVsFate.

* BrokenBase:
** [[BittersweetEnding The ending]] has involved [[{{Understatement}} a huge slew of debates]] to say the least...: Some like the ending due to the fact it [[spoiler: it provides a much [[EarnYourHappyEnding happier ending for some of the characters]]]], even if it meant that a huge majority [[spoiler: were RetGone as a result of it]], which still fits the show's black and white view. But others argue that [[spoiler: the ending doesn't work due to the show's emphasis on determinism, which makes it rather odd the show would then reveal a huge twist like that and wipe a huge chunk of the cast as a result]].

** In Season 2, the show finally began to use Magnus, Franziska and Elisabeth much more properly, with the former two being integral to the show's timeline plot (as well as [[spoiler:[[FaceHeelTurn their future counterparts working with Adam/Jonas]]]]) while Elisabeth [[spoiler:in 2053 is part of the scavengers who survived the 2020 disaster, and a bit of a brutal ActionSurvivor]].

** Season 1, while well liked, was criticized due to the heavy BlackAndGrayMorality and ambiguous "heroics" of the cast and heaving TooBleakStoppedCaring. Season 3 however rectified this by having half of the characters employ an AntiHero morality but still sympathetic nature to them. Season 2 also [[spoiler: was able to balance the ambiguity and revelations of what happens in the show, somewhat]].

** Season 1, while well liked, was criticized due to the heavy BlackAndGrayMorality and ambiguous "heroics" of the cast and heaving DarknessInducedAudienceApathy. Season 3 however rectified this by having half of the characters employ an AntiHero morality but still sympathetic nature to them. Season 2 also [[spoiler: was able to balance the ambiguity and revelations of what happens in the show, somewhat]].

** [[spoiler:Ulrich decides to murder a child Helge Doppler to prevent the kidnapping and murder of the missing boys.]] You'd expect Ulrich to make sure [[spoiler:Helge truly is dead,]] and then make his escape to 2019 quickly and quietly, so he's not caught by local law enforcement. Instead, Ulrich simply assumes [[spoiler:that the unconscious Helge is dead, leaves him in his own family bunker,]] and crawls out of the bunker...to ponder the consequences of his actions. This leads not only to [[spoiler:Helge surviving the attack and receiving brain damage substantial enough so that Noah takes advantage of him to steal the boys]], but Ulrich is then caught by Egon Tiedemann, to whom he shamelessly confesses [[spoiler:to murdering Helge]], and is rightfully incarcerated for his actions. [[spoiler:Season 2 reveals that he is still locked up in a psychiatric hospital 34 years later for not taking the necessary precautions to get away with his crime.]]

** [[BittersweetEnding The ending]] has involved [[{{Understatement}} a huge slew of debates]] to say the least...: Some like the ending due to the fact it [[spoiler: it provides a much [[EarnYourHappyEnding happier ending for some of the characters]], even if it meant that a huge majority [[spoiler: were RetGone as a result of it]], which still fits the show's black and white view. But others argue that [[spoiler: the ending doesn't work due to the show's emphasis on determinism, which makes it rather odd the show would then reveal a huge twist like that and wipe a huge chunk of the cast as a result]].