History YMMV / MortalEngines

* SpiritualAdaptation: The film owes a lot to the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' franchise's SwordAndGun SteamPunk ZeppelinsFromAnotherWorld mishmash. There's even "extradimensional energies" that act as MagicByAnyOtherName.

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotPolitical: The story is backdropped by an outdated and unsustainable economic system that revolves around those with an abundance of resources expending those resources so they can steal resources from those who have an ever smaller quantity of resources in a system that will inevitably result in everything collapsing due to a lack of resources and yet another apocalypse that threatens the human race. Rather like capitalism and its direct responsibility for climate change.

** In the museum archives, during the chase of Seltzberg, Pomeroy shows concern over the "[[AllHailTheGreatGodMickey American deities]]" getting tipped over. The camera pans over to rusted over statues of [[WesternAnimation/DespicableMe two Minions]].

* WTHCostumingDepartment: A number of fans were quite vocally displeased with Hesters AdaptationalAttractiveness, believing that it lessened the arc of Tom coming to love her in spite of the (much more) disfiguring scars she had in the book.

* CompleteMonster: [[BigBad Thaddeus Valentine]] is the head of the Guild of Historians and the second-in-command to the mayor of London, Magnus Crome. Introduced observing the mobile city of London devouring a small mining town, it was revealed that prior to the main story, Thaddeus personally murdered the mother of the assassin -- [[spoiler:and [[LukeIAmYourFather his own daughter]]]] -- Hester Shaw, and scarred Hester's face in order to gain an Old Technology for his own agenda. When one of the other Historians, Tom Nasworthy, found this out, Thaddeus released the dangerous criminal Shrike and sent him after Hester and Tom. It was revealed that he uses said Old Technology in order to activate a weapon known as MEDUSA that could destroy the Shield Wall that protected the static settlement known as Shan Guo so that he could make it his new hunting ground. When the mayor found out about Thaddeus's plans, Thaddeus [[TheStarscream murdered him]] in cold blood. When his plans of destroying the Shield Wall failed, he then orders his henchmen to execute London's control crew and plans to ram London into the wall. His own daughter Katherine called him out on how [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist his only goal]] was [[AmbitionIsEvil to gain more power]].

* ClicheStorm: The movie was strongly criticized for its bland story, which took many, many common plot elements from other sci-fi, post-apocalyptic, or fantasy works, in particular ''Franchise/StarWars'', without really doing anything new or unique with them.

* WTHCostumingDepartment: A number of fans were quite vocally displeased with Hesters AdaptionalAttractiveness, believing that it lessened the arc of Tom coming to love her in spite of the (much more) disfiguring scars she had in the book.

* WTHCostumingDepartment: A number of fans were quite vocally displeased with Hesters AdaptionalAttractivenessUpgrade, believing that it lessened the arc of Tom coming to love her in spite of the disfiguring scars.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Many, considering the [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters large cast]]:

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: ''Scrivener's Moon'' falls perilously close to this, seeing as everyone who hasn't [[AnyoneCanDie died]] or been PutOnABus has, with the exception of Fever Crumb, [[TookALevelInJerkass has taken quite a few levels in jerkass]] (and a good number of them weren't very pleasant people to start with). Additionally, being a prequel series means that the story is a ForegoneConclusion.

* SugarWiki/CrowningMomentOfFunny:
** In the museum archives, during the chase of Seltzberg, Pomeroy shows concern over the "[[AllHailTheGreatGodMickey American deities]]" getting tipped over. The camera pans over to rusted over statues of [[WesternAnimation/DespicableMe two Minions]].
** While showing Kate around the museum, Tom briefly explains to her the Screen Age, AKA, our current modern age. Tom mentions to her that their tech was considered advanced enough that they might've forgotten how to read and write... [[TakeThat while the camera pans to some iPhones in the display]].

* Mst3kMantra: The idea of a mobile city-eating cities is absolutely ridiculous and [[FridgeLogic raises so many logical questions that are realistically unanswerable]] (and this isn't even getting into the idea of floating cities, tiny airships, and other more fantastical elements), but it ''is'' the basic premise of the series, so you have to accept it.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: ''Scrivener's Moon'' falls perilously close to this, seeing as everyone who hasn't [[AnyoneCanDie died]] or been PutOnABus has, with the exception of [[TheSpock Fever]] [[HollywoodAtheist Crumb]], [[TookALevelInJerkass has taken quite a few levels in jerkass]] (and a good number of them weren't very pleasant people to start with). Additionally, being a prequel series means that the story is a ForegoneConclusion.
** Averted by the main series, however. Despite the [[AxCrazy depraved psychopaths]], {{Karma Houdini}}s and GreyAndGreyMorality, the books remain entertaining.