History YMMV / NapoleonDynamite

* ShrinkingViolet: Deb is constantly on high alert, glancing around like a prey animal in an open field, and is inexperienced at handling any kind of conflict. She flees from an offhand "your mom" joke, accepts Pedro's prom invitation despite already having feelings for Napoleon, and later takes Rico at his word that Napoleon wants her to change her body for him.

** Deb may be invoking this intentionally. Wearing her hair in a totally asymmetrical ponytail and crafting an anachronistically poofy prom dress read like the bright colors of a poisonous frog to most of her student peers, but she effortlessly catches Napoleon and Pedro's eyes - successfully filtering for people who socialize at a pace close to her own.

* SignatureScene: Napoleon's dance scene during the high school election, accompanied by the song "Canned Heat" by Music/{{Jamiroquai}}.

* {{Adorkable}}: Napoleon is a dorky highschooler with no social skills or talents, who nonetheless gets flashes of awesomeness.

* ToiletHumor: A running joke in "Ligertown" is Napoleon and the others trying to figure out if you could explode when you sneeze, fart, burp, and yawn at the same time. They decide to test it on Napoleon, but he forgot to yawn, so all it did was [[{{Fartillery}} blast him 30-50 feet into the air]].

* After using the Rack-U-Tane, Napoleons sweat becomes so acidic that he melts a hole in the floor, and you can see Pedro through it

** In "Thundercone", there's a flashback to when Napoleon was a baby and Kip stole his pacifier. This causes Baby!Napoleon to cry ''with his signature Creator/JonHeder''

** The fact that Kip thought [[SuckECheese Goof Nutz Pizza]] was an appropriate place for a [[ManChild 32-year-old man to have a date]].

** Napoleon had to deliver a liger cub into an old 12-piece bucket in "Ligertown". even Napoleon finds it disgusting.

* ToiletHumor: A running joke in "Ligertown" is Napoleon and the others trying to figure out if you could explode when you sneeze, fart, burp, and yawn at the same time. They decide to test it on Napoleon, but he forgot to yawn, so all it did was {{Fartilleryblast him 30-50 feet into the air}}.

* SoOkayItsAverage: Consensus is mixed like the movie it was based on. Also it didn't stand out much between the much revered ''WesternAnimation/BobsBurgers'' and the much reviled ''WesternAnimation/AllenGregory'' both airing around the time it debuted, and the series was quietly cancelled after six episodes.

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: Napoleon's awkwardness goes ''way'' beyond the level of your average unpopular kid, and is just packed full of odd quirks and tics. Many fans and critics of the film believe he has [[UsefulNotes/AspergerSyndrome autism spectrum disorder]].

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: Napoleon's awkwardness goes ''way'' beyond the level of your average unpopular kid, and is just packed full of odd quirks and tics. Many fans and critics of the film believe he has [[UsefulNotes/AspergerSyndrome Asperger's syndrome]].
* EpilepticTrees: Napoleon has been armchair diagnosed with autism, Aspergers, compulsive lying, and just about every personality disorder under the sun. While a lot of his behavior may suggest ''some'' kind of condition, his habits could just as easily be ascribed to regular quirky behavior, offbeat small town dynamics, and RuleOfFunny. Nonetheless, some viewers persist in finding a deeply disturbing meaning behind Napoleon's weirdness.

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: Napoleon's awkwardness goes ''way'' beyond the level of your average unpopular kid, and is just packed full of odd quirks and ticks. Many fans and critics of the film believe he has [[UsefulNotes/AspergerSyndrome Asperger's syndrome]].

* AluminumChristmasTrees: The liger is a real animal but not bred for its skills with magic. In fact, since lion and tiger genes aren't exactly compatible with one another, ligers tend to have genetic defects which lead experts to discourage trying to breed for ligers.

* SpiritualAdaptation: Some fans of Music/WeirdAlYankovic are convinced that ''Napoleon Dynamite'' is an AdaptationExpansion of "That Boy Could Dance" (from ''Music/WeirdAlYankovicIn3D''). After all, both involve a clumsy, geekish outcast who dazzles everyone at school with his amazing dance skills. [[https://youtu.be/8VWbuDYpMC0?t=60 Watch the video]] and decide for yourself.

* EpilepticTrees: Napoleon has been armchair diagnosed with autism, Aspergers, compulsive lying, and just about every personality disorder under the sun. While a lot of his behavior may suggest AmbiguousDisorder, his habits could just as easily be ascribed to regular quirky behavior, offbeat small town dynamics, and RuleOfFunny. Nonetheless, some viewers persist in finding a deeply disturbing meaning behind Napoleon's weirdness.

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The film features a great soundtrack filled with memorable songs from the 80's and 90's.
** Notable examples include "Canned Heat" from Music/{{Jamiroquai}} while Napoleon dances, as well as "The Promise" by When In Rome, which plays over the credits.

* JerkassWoobie: Napoleon might get beaten up less if he wasn't so rude to his bullies when they ask him simple questions. Though since they often beat him up without being provoked anyway, he probably has a right to be a jerk at them back. It's kind of a chicken-or-egg thing.