History YMMV / Gone

* AngstDissonance: Sam Temple.

** Edilio (likely due to being [[spoiler:BadassGay]] and a NiceGuy).

* HolyShitQuotient: You'll need a paper bag to stop hyperventilating by the time you get to ''LIGHT''.

** ''Villain'': [[BigBad Dillon Poe]] is a FAYZ survivor and a would-be comedian who grew envious of the fact that he never got powers. He sees an opportunity when he buys a sample of the meteorite the Gaiaphage came from off the black market and gives himself the power of a CompellingVoice. After ending up in a drunk tank, he uses his power to make an inmate he got into a fight with bite his own tongue off and then makes the guards escort him out of jail. He later goes to a casino and uses a microphone to make the patrons attack each other to [[EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor entertain]] both [[ForTheEvulz himself]] and the [[GreaterScopeVillain Dark Watchers]]. After seeing the potential for conquest his power gives him, his opening act is starting a violent riot in Las Vegas, which he starts by controlling the attendees of a basketball game, gathers a few more after posting a [=YouTube=] video, and attempts to use national television when all social media is cut off. He takes a group of cheerleaders to be his personal bodyguards and [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil harem]], the latter of which disgusts one of his slaves enough to nearly break control. With Las Vegas now a war zone under his control, the military intervenes, but he manages to control the commanding officer to order a missile assault on the city. [[DirtyCoward To ensure his own safety]], he drenches the streets of Vegas in gasoline and has a sparky windup toy active to set his slaves on fire if anybody attacks him, which works after Peaks intervenes. His actions lead to the confirmed deaths of 409 people and thousands more left unaccounted for, all just so he can get a good laugh.

* CounterpartComparison:
** Drake in ''Light'' can be compared to [[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventure Dio Brando]]. Both are nigh-immortal sadists, they at one point [[spoiler: lose their bodies, have their severed heads dropped in a box underwater, and then later return wearing somebody else's body from below their neck]].
** The Gaiaphage can easily be compared to [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Jenova]]. Both are aliens that came to Earth from a meteor, cause mutations and grant powers, and are worshiped as gods by some of the antagonists.

** ''Villain'': [[BigBad Dillon Poe]] is a FAYZ survivor and a would-be comedian who grew envious of the fact that he never got powers. He sees an opportunity when he buys a sample of the meteorite the Gaiaphage came from off the black market and gives himself the power of a CompellingVoice. After ending up in a drunk tank, he uses his power to make an inmate he got into a fight with bite his own tongue off and then makes the guards escort him out of jail. He later goes to a casino and uses a microphone to make the patrons attack each other to [[EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor entertain]] both [[ForTheEvulz himself]] and the [[GreaterScopeVillain Dark Watchers]]. After seeing the potential for conquest his power gives him, his opening act is starting a violent riot in Las Vegas, which he starts by controlling the attendees of a basketball game, gathers a few more after posting a [=YouTube=] video, and attempts to use national television when all social media is cut off. He takes a group of cheerleaders to be his personal bodyguards and [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil harem]], the latter of which disgusts one of his slaves enough to nearly break control. With Las Vegas now a war zone under his control, the military intervenes, but he manages to control the commanding officer to order a missile assault on the city. [[DirtyCoward To ensure his own safety]], he drenches the streets of Vegas in gasoline and has a sparky windup toy active to set his slaves on fire if anybody attacks him, which works after Peaks SpannerInTheWorks intervenes. His actions lead to the confirmed deaths of 409 people and thousands more left unaccounted for, all just so he can get a good laugh.

* CompleteMonster: [[{{Jerkass}} Drake Merwin]] is a [[TeensAreMonsters monstrous fourteen-year-old]] who managed to earn [[TheDreaded the hatred and fear]] of everyone in the FAYZ. A [[AxCrazy psychopath]] even before the series began, he was sent to Coates Academy for shooting a boy with an air rifle, and was diagnosed by staff as a {{sadist}}. A few days after all the adults disappeared, Drake essentially became a PsychoForHire, first serving [[BigBad Caine Soren]] in his efforts to take over Perdido Beach, then switching his allegiance over to [[EldritchAbomination the Gaiaphage]] after it helped regrow his amputated arm into a [[WhipItGood whip-like weapon]]. Drake's many crimes include preparing to [[WouldHurtAChild feed a daycare full of little kids and infants]] to mutant coyotes if they resisted him, threatening to cause a nuclear meltdown if Sam didn't allow Drake to torture him, commanding an army of mutant bugs to massacre Perdido Beach, and whipping and slave-driving a pregnant girl across a desert. Drake was also a [[StrawMisogynist virulent misogynist]], who victim-blamed his mother for her abuse at his stepfather's hands, insults every girl who crosses his path, and expresses an intent to torture, rape and murder Astrid, Diana, and even [[spoiler:the Gaiaphage after it stole a female body as its host]]. Drake's goal wasn't power, it was pain. He admitted that he tortured and murdered his fellow children [[ForTheEvulz because he enjoyed it]], because it made him feel powerful, and he believed that despite all the diagnoses psychiatrists had tried to give him, the word that best summed him up was "[[CardCarryingVillain evil]]".

* IronWoobie: Orc, after his mutation.

* NightmareFuel: [[NightmareFuel/Gone Has its own page.]]
* MagnificentBastard:
** Caine, to fluctuating degrees. In ''Gone'', he is this full stop. In ''Hunger'', he's [[spoiler: really just a tool for the Gaiaphage.]] ''Lies'' sees him desperate, but still [[ManipulativeBastard quite]] [[{{Chessmaster}} intelligent]]. By ''Plague'', he's definitely recovered, but has a ''huge'' dose of {{Jerkass}} thrown in. By ''Fear'', though, [[spoiler: he's gotten what he's always wanted, so]] he has no reason to have any schemes in the works. In ''LIGHT'' sweet, sweet CharacterDevelopment ruins this demeanour for him.
** [[spoiler: Penny]] ''almost'' ascends to this rank in ''Fear''. [[spoiler: If only it had occurred to her to, y'know, figure out what she was going to ''do'' with Perdido Beach once she'd taken over.]]
* MemeticBadass: John Terrafino.

** ''Fear'' spoilers; [[spoiler:Is Gaia the premature corpse of Caine/Diana's daughter being possessed by the soulless gaiaphage, or is she still human somewhere deep down who is simply a victim?]]

** The Gaiaphage crossed it when he tricked Orsay into believing that death was a way out of the FAYZ, leading a few kids to kill themselves.

** Dekka and Orc, despite their IncompatibleSexuality.

* NightmareFuel: {{NightmareFuel/Gone Has its own page.}}

** Justin ([[NamesTheSame thankfully, not the Justin from the FAYZ]]) crossed it in ''Monster'' when he destroyed the Golden Gate Bridge.

* BullyingTheDisabled: '''THE WRITING'''. Little Pete is treated like a useless inhuman freak nearly every time the narration refers to him, is a blatantly inaccurate portrayal of the vast majority of autistic people, is defined by literally nothing but his diagnosis, and [[spoiler: Astrid trying to KILL HIM was depicted as understandable because he's nothing but emotionally exhausting dead weight. This happens to autistic people regularly in real life, by the way. Then when he seemingly dies and goes to a different plane, he allegedly gets "fixed" because his "broken" brain was left behind.]] Good god. All these complex characters with a variety of experiences and personalities, and then this bullshit determined to claim autistics aren't human and have no personality aside from meltdowns.

** There are only two types of people aware of Caine Soren; People who think he's a complete {{Jerkass}} and prayed he'd just drop dead in LIGHT and those who are completely obsessed with him and want his demon-babies.

* BrokenBase: Whether you ship the [[UnholyMatrimony Caine/Diana]] romance is purely a matter of taste. It is by far the most popular ship in the fandom, with a exceptionally large, vocal and dedicated fan-base. It is also by far the most critisized and refuted. Many argue that it's a beautifully-written, moving, complex, intriguing and ultimately tragic ship which brings out the best in both components. Others argue that it's romanticized abuse which undermines Diana's independence and strength, and that the two were simply manipulating each other start to finish.

** Siana gained speed in the shipping world after Sam and Diana both broke up with their significant others in ''Plauge''. Never happened, but its popularity still prevails.

** Dekka and Orc, despite thei-r IncompatibleSexuality.

* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: Astrid in ''FEAR''.
* TheScrappy:
** Albert, due to becoming a greedy DirtyCoward OnlyInItForTheMoney.
** Toto, who doesn't really contribute much and gets on the characters' nerves in-universe with his constant truth-telling.
** '''Gaia.''' Literally everyone hates her, and the reveal that the girl on the cover of LIGHT is her rather [[spoiler: than her mother,]] Diana, like it was implied it would be, stirred a lot of feelings up with the fandom.
** Astrid until ''FEAR''.
* ShockingSwerve: Everyone agrees this happened in ''LIGHT'' [[spoiler: after Brianna died]].
* TakeThatScrappy:
** Howard exists to give this to Astrid.
** '''''EVERYONE''''' exists to give this to [[HateSink Zil]].

** Is Drake Merwin a genuinely worthwhile and threatening villain, or has he become [[VillainDecay more of a joke as the books progress?]] This question became the subject of much debate in the fandom, especially after the release of ''LIGHT''.

** Edilio (likely due to being [[spoiler:BadassGay]] and a NiceGuy), and Dekka (black, lesbian, GravityMaster) own Tumblr at this point in time.

** Dekka and Orc, despite their IncompatibleSexuality.

* CompleteMonster: Jim [=LaPointe=], known as "Digger", is a SerialKiller who kidnaps women and keeps them in a pit hidden deep in the forest, photographing their struggles before murdering them. Enraged when Jill Conway wounds him and escapes, Jim kidnaps her sister, Molly, one year later, leaving her restrained to starve to death [[spoiler:under her own home]]. After Jim lures Jill to his campsite, she finds photos of his victims, including her and Molly, in his tent, before Jim tricks her into approaching his pit and tries to kill her again to avenge his embarrassment at her injuring him.

* TheUntwist: One of the biggest criticisms of the series is that the cause of the FAYZ ([[spoiler: Little Pete feeling like he was in danger]]) was too predictable, which is a shame that it came in the first book, given all the other, far more engaging reveals that came later.

** Did [[BigBad Caine]] genuinely love [[DarkChick Diana]] or was he just a [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative dick ]] who used her for sex? Who knows, as it's constantly being contradicted in [[UnreliableNarrator Caine's POVS.]] one minute he's thinking about nothing but how beautiful and smart she is and how he wants to marry her, etc, etc, and the next he's dismissing her as a object or pawn, so to speak, with no interest in her emotions or well-being. Either way, it's riled many heated fan debates, especially after the elusiveness of ''Plague''...
*** ''Light'' answers this question quite overtly. [[spoiler: It would seem, yes, he sincerely did care for and love Diana.]]
** Was [[AmbiguouslyGay Howard]] manipulating [[IronWoobie Orc]] to get him money and protection, or did he have genuine concern and understanding for [[IronWoobie Orc?]]
** ''Fear'' spoilers; [[spoiler: Is Gaia the premature corpse of Caine/Diana's daughter being possessed by the soulless gaiaphage, or is she still human somewhere deep down who is simply a victim?]]
** Was [[TeamMom Mary Terrafino]] [[spoiler: euthanized or the victim of divine intervention by the gaiaphage?]]

** Is Drake Merwin a genuinely worthwhile and threatening villain, or has he become [[VillainDecay more of a joke as the books progress?]] This question became the subject of much debate in the fandom, especially after the release of ''Light''.

* CargoShip: Drake and his whip hand.

** Don't forget Toto and [[ProductPlacement Nutella]]!

* CrackPairing: Siana gained speed in the shipping world after Sam and Diana both broke up with their significant others in ''Plauge''. Never happened, but its popularity still prevails.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Considering the series' [[LoadsAndLoadsofCharacters amount of characters,]] it shouldn't be surprising. Some examples include Lana's dog, Patrick, Cookie (who showed up a few times in ''Gone'' and ''Hunger''), The Artful Rodger and Justin, and that's only a few of them.
** Edilio and Dekka own Tumblr at this point in time.
* FunnyAneurysmMoment: ''"All we have to fear is fear itself"'' would become pretty ironic by the release of the fifth book...

* GrowingTheBeard: Plague.
* HolyShitQuotient: You'll need a paper bag to stop hyperventilating by the time you get to ''Light''.
* HoYay: Caine and Drake. Also strays into FoeYay.

* JerkassDissonance: Caine and Drake seems to have this effect. Sam too, although it's most likely accidental.
** Howard to a less irritating degree
* JerkassWoobie: Diana Ladris has this trope down in ''LIES'' ,''FEAR'' and Debatably the end of ''PLAGUE''.
** Caine also has flashes of this in ''HUNGER'' and ''FEAR'', depending on [[BaseBreakingCharacter your stance on him...]]
** A case could also be made for Astrid in ''PLAGUE'', though some fans argue that the jerkass bit overshadows the woobiedom.
* NightmareFuel: Even without getting into some of the gruesome spoiler details, the nightmare scenario of children on their own without ''any'' adults around is enough to scare the daylights out of anyone.
** ''Hunger'' puts [[spoiler: Duck]] through absolute hell, despite being a mostly innocent bystander, so when you have to read the description of this character who you've come to sympathize with being buried alive (from his perspective), it is quite disturbing.
** In ''Plague'' [[spoiler:Dekka being eaten alive by bugs from the inside. It went FromBadToWorse when the only way to save her was for Sam to cut her open while she was still alive with Lana healing her and killing the bugs that crawled out of her body.]]
** ''Fear'' provides plenty of examples of this, including Penny's visions to Cigar, [[spoiler: the [[BodyHorror fate of the]] [[AndIMustScream kids who poofed]], and the mutations. Plus, the whole idea of all of the light going out is terrifying.]]
** Poor, poor Diana in the fifth book. And holy shit.

* MagnificentBastard: Caine, to fluctuating degrees. In ''Gone'', he is this full stop. In ''Hunger'', he's [[spoiler: really just a tool for the Gaiaphage.]] ''Lies'' sees him desperate, but still [[ManipulativeBastard quite]] [[{{Chessmaster}} intelligent]]. By ''Plague'', he's definitely recovered, but has a ''huge'' dose of {{Jerkass}} thrown in. By ''Fear'', though, [[spoiler: he's gotten what he's always wanted, so]] he has no reason to have any schemes in the works. In ''LIGHT'' sweet, sweet CharacterDevelopment ruins this demeanour for him.

* MemeticMolester: Drake. In ''Gone'' and ''Hunger'', it was mostly just a couple lines he says to/about Diana, but by ''Plague'', he's talking about Brianna enjoying nonspecific torture [[spoiler: he's pretending]] she recieved from him, winking at Astrid while threatening to "come up and play" with her, and fantasizing about what a long time he'll take with Diana when he gets to her. In short, downright creepy.
** The Gaiaphage as well. Especially when you consider that he/it is entering a little child's mind and tempting him to come and play "games" with him...
* MemeticMutation: "I WHIP MY [[CombatTentacles HAND]] BACK AND FORTH"
** Also "Marry me and live on a houseboat !", commonly used by the fans to express admiration toward somebody. It was originally said by Sam to Dekka.

* {{Narm}}: the trailers are so narm-ish they should be [[IncrediblyLamePun accompanied with rice and curry.]]

* TheScrappy: Zil. It's near impossible to find anyone who likes him. Part of this most likely comes from the fact that he's based on Hitler.
** Albert and Toto are this to a lesser degree.
*** All three have been overtaken by the ultimate scrappy, '''Gaia.''' Literally everyone hates her, and the reveal that the girl on the cover of LIGHT is her rather [[spoiler: than her mother,]] Diana, like it was implied it would be, stirred a lot of feelings up with the fandom.
*** Astrid was this until Fear.
* ShockingSwerve: Everyone agrees this happened in Light [[spoiler: after Brianna died]].
* TakeThatScrappy: Howard exists to give this to Astrid.
** '''''EVERYONE''''' exists to give this to Zil.

* GrowingTheBeard: Plague. Though there are those who argue that the same book is a case of JumpingTheShark.