History YMMV / ScreamTheTVSeries

** Is Jake an oblivious {{jerkass}} incapable of realizing the harm and consequences of his actions, or is he just playing at being DumbMuscle to better manipulate the others, particularly Will and Brooke?
*** His 'bobcat and shark' speech to Brooke might be indicative of the latter interpretation.
*** His manipulation of Brooke as he attempts to pin the entire blackmail thing on Will is either him maliciously selling his friend down the river, or a DudeWheresMyRespect reaction for legitimately trying to help Will pay his tuition. There's also some debate as to whether or not his feelings for Brooke are genuine.

** Audrey as Piper's accomplice. While most ''Scream'' films have {{the reveal}} of two Ghostfaces working together, none of them ever had one killer get away scot-free and try to cover up their tracks, especially since the protagonists, unlike the audience, [[DramaticIrony don't know that there is a second killer in the first place]]. Furthermore, Season 2's premise of a new Ghostface blackmailing Audrey is potentially the first time in the franchise that there are two separate Ghostface factions interacting with each other. [[spoiler:However, the show abandons this idea by disclosing Kieran, the blackmailer, to be Piper's actual accomplice from the very start, and it also makes Audrey GoodAllAlong by explaining that while she wrote letters to Piper and brought Piper to Lakewood, she didn't partake in any murders.]]
** The Halloween special featured the appearance of [[spoiler:a third killer who claimed to be the [[PredecessorVillain first Ghostface]]]], but that plot point later turned out to be a RedHerring as the rest of the special was about a completely unrelated killer. The original plan was to have [[spoiler:the third Ghostface]] act as a SequelHook for Season 3, but with ''Series/ScreamResurrection'' focusing on a new story and cast, some felt that the Halloween special should have been a proper GrandFinale.

** Piper Shaw ranged between this and TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter amongst fans, simply because there seemed to be ''no reason'' for her to be around at all. She had little in common with film series counterpart [[IntrepidReporter Gale Weathers]] while also having very few distinguishing traits of her own, seeming to exist merely to remind us that Gale also existed and to add yet another suspect to the "who is the killer or killers" pool. What ''really'' solidified her scrappy status, however, was the season one finale. [[IKnewIt Besides being an incredibly obvious killer]], Piper was also essentially a [[GenderFlip gender-flipped]] copy-and-paste of ''Scream 3''[='=]s Roman, better known as the most hated character and killer in the entire film franchise. This is further solidified by Amelia Rose Blaire's heavily criticized performance, primarily for being rather lifeless pre-reveal and downright {{Narm}}-tastic post reveal. She's even given a TakeThatScrappy scene in the opening of Season 2.

*** Piper's nonlethal attack on [[spoiler:Audrey]] is logical if one assumes that both of them are in cahoots, but the retcon makes this nonsensical because Piper is now purposefully leaving an eyewitness alive, specifically an eyewitness who knows Piper's heritage as Brandon James's daughter and can easily point the police in her direction.

*** Piper's nonlethal attack on [[spoiler:Audrey]] is logical if one assumes that both of them are in cahoots, but the retcon makes this nonsensical because Piper is now purposefully leaving an eyewitness alive.
*** [[spoiler:Kieran]] decides to give Emma his gun, which allows the protagonists to defeat Ghostface. This decision made sense back when the Season 1 showrunners intended him to be innocent, but the retcon in [[spoiler:Kieran's]] alignment means that this decision comes across as [[IdiotBall self-sabotage]] in retrospect, especially when his motive in Season 2 is to avenge his partner.

** Even though some people don't like the reveal that [[spoiler: Audrey wasn't the accomplice killer]], many agree that [[spoiler: it turning out to be Kieran was the best thing that could happen to ''his'' character, since as soon as he reveals it he finally starts developing a personality]].
* RewatchBonus: There's extra layers of DramaticIrony once you know that [[spoiler: Kieran]] is in on the whole murder spree.
** Another with Eli. [[spoiler: He's actually standing up to Kieran, who's a legitimate psychopath. And he's the only one who knows how evil Kieran can be.]]
** Haley's antagonism of Emma, for which there doesn't seem to be much of a reason, makes more sense upon the revelation that [[spoiler: Kieran was the killer, and was cheating on Emma with Haley]].

* HollywoodHomely: It's a bit hard to buy Noah as having trouble finding girls when he's played by the modestly good-looking John Karna.

* NotHisSled: Downplayed but the [[spoiler:Gale Weathers]] {{Expy}} is a killer.

** Audrey being Piper's accomplice. The idea of one of the main protagonists being one of the main killers is nothing new but franchise hasn't tackled the idea of the audience being ''aware'' of who one of the killers were, and watching them attempt to cover their tracks before their friends find out, could have lent for an interesting spin on ''Scream''. [[spoiler:However, it turns out that Kieran was the accomplice, and that while Audrey was associated with Piper and wound up bringing her to Lakewood, she wasn't anything more than that.]]

** The Season 2 Finale. Specifically TheReveal that [[spoiler: Audrey was completely and totally innocent and that Kieran was Piper's one and only accomplice. Some fans found it to be a highly satisfying, if predictable, twist, while others absolutely ''despise'' it for giving Audrey countless WhatAnIdiot moments, making her TooDumbToLive, saying that it leaves Season 2 filled with [[PlotHole plot holes]], and that its a highly transparent RetCon of Season 1's ending.]] Many fans have gone so far to say they're quitting the show.

** Why, oh why, does supposed 'good girl' Emma hang out with the likes of [[AlphaBitch Nina and Brooke]]? One can easily say that she gravitated to the popular kids, but the fact of the matter is she just doesn't seem to fit. This is often pointed out as odd by Emma's [[TheScrappy many detractors]].

** Detective Lorraine Brock falls either as an EnsembleDarkhorse or as TheScrappy among fans, with no room in between. Those who dislike her criticize Brock's overall lack of professionalism, including violating various police procedures, as well as the fact that she acts like an unnecessarily abrasive {{jerkass}} for no good reason. Due to the previously mentioned issues, as well as her overall lack of success in finding a killer leading her to be PutOnABus offscreen after ''two episodes'', many fans find her to be incredibly incompetent as well. Those who like her point out that four teenagers have been brutally murdered, one of them in the very police station, so she has to be abrasive and go on the offensive to round up any possible suspects. they also argue that she has been no more incompetent than Sheriff Hudson, who found clues but followed them up the wrong trail, going after the already dead Tyler, while Brock's prime suspect Audrey has yet to be found innocent. Though it is worth noting that Detective Brock herself admitted that the primary evidence against Audrey could have very easily been tampered with or otherwise unreliable, something which the police later confirmed, though this stemmed from Emma secretly interfering with the investigation, leaving the mystery of Audrey's DNA being inside the mask as of yet unsolved.

** While she ''used'' to be a popular EnsembleDarkhorse, a large portion of the viewers consider Audrey TheScrappy as of the Season 2 finale with TheReveal that [[spoiler: she was NOT helping Piper murder anyone]], saying that this makes Audrey a [[TooDumbToLive complete moron]] and that her actions throughout Season 2 make absolutely no sense, as she had far easier ways to resolve her issues. Others still like her and are glad that [[spoiler:she's innocent and thus can still be friend with Emma and Noah]].

** The love triangle between Emma, Will, and Kieran in the first season. Besides widespread opinion that Emma [[TheScrappy isn't a very good protagonist]], it also takes time away from the actual serial killer plot and nabs screen time from other characters, all of whom tend to be more popular than these three.

* SpecialEffectsFailure: The fire from the ending of "Let The Right One In".

** While initially TheScrappy for being the resident JerkJock, Will [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap won over a lot of fans]] by the end of season 1 as his JerkWithAHeartOfGold status was emphasized. Particularly due to [[HeroicSacrifice his multiple]] [[HoldTheLine heroic]] [[BigDamnHeroes feats]] as well as his CruelAndUnusualDeath being caused by [[TheScrappy Emma's]] [[WhatAnIdiot terrible decision making]].

* FanPreferredCouple: Brooke and Jake are rapidly becoming this, largely because of the moral greyness/outright bitchiness of both characters compared to the milquetoast Emma and her rather bland love interests. Many are rooting for them to redeem themselves and make it to the end.
** "Exposed" [[AbandonShip killed the buzz for this]] after Jake's actions. Placing a knife at Brooke's father's throat to blackmail him for more money, breaking his nose, and then lying to Brooke about who is even responsible tends to kill shipping more than anything else.
** "In the Trenches" seems to make it go back on track when Jake agrees to go with Emma, Brooke, and Noah to rescue Will, while also confessing to Brooke, offscreen, that he lied about it being just Will blackmailing her dad. Jake gets stabbed in the chest and Brooke is extremely worried for him, doing her best to help him out and accompanying him to the hospital.
** Season 2 [[spoiler: kills of Jake in the premiere]], sinking the ship for good and all. Brooke's budding romance with Stavo is quickly gaining popularity, moreso than other new couples Zoe/Noah and Eli/Emma.
** [[LesYay Emma/Audrey]] is also a very popular ship, especially after [[ShipTease their relationship is explored more in season two.]]

** [[JerkJock Will]] [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Belmont]]. Initially hated for his overall douchebaggery and seeming lack of redemptive qualities, Will slowly grew into a more likable person and redeemed himself over the course of the first season, even placing his life at risk to save others three times in just two episodes -- two of which were while he was critically injured, no less. His shocking and brutal death also gained a lot of sympathy for him, especially because of the well-deserved blame fans had for Emma, due to her [[WhatAnIdiot stupidity]] getting Will killed after he'd completely redeemed himself for his past actions.

** While Emma started out as a BaseBreakingCharacter, she progressively became more and more hated as the series went on due to her [[WhatAnIdiot stupid decisions]] and getting two of the most well-liked characters killed.
** [[JerkJock Jake Fitzgerald]]. Like Emma, he began as a BaseBreakingCharacter, and while he does have a VocalMinority fanbase, most viewers found him intolerable due to his actor's very weak performance as well as his JerkAss tendencies and inconsistent characterization. It reached the point that the very first thing the new Season 2 showrunners did was [[spoiler:[[SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome kill off Jake]] as soon as it was humanly possible to do so.]]
** The two teenagers in the season 2 premiere who prank Audrey, especially the girl, who thought it was a fun idea to pull a mean spirited prank on a person who went through a traumatic experience with a serial killer, and then get indignant when Audrey injures her friend and co-conspirator in the prank in an act of self-defense and tries to get Audrey arrested.
*** The Girl (Haley Meyers) hate only skyrocketed throughout the season, as she would periodically pop up to be a stupid, irrational bitch ([[WhatAnIdiot even implying that Emma was the real murderer of S1]]) with absolutely no redeeming qualities. The fact such a loathesome HateSink felt out of place in a series based on the Scream movies didn't help.

* WhatAnIdiot:
** One must begin to question Emma's soundness of mind when she accompanies Kieran (a mysterious newcomer who she knows virtually nothing about) to a lonely field outside of town when she knows a maniac is stalking her. She proceeds to have sex with this mysterious and handsome stranger, right out there in the open and without once checking if he still has a loaded gun in his pants.
** In Episode 7, when the gang is searching the bowling alley for Will, Emma and Jake both suggest they split up in teams of two to cover more ground. Both times, Noah tries to point out what a stupid thing this is to do, but they ignore him.
** Will was stabbed, kidnapped, and ended up facing a psychotic masked killer twice to save his friends while badly injured. His kidnapping was essentially to use him as bait to make Emma go to the killer. After Will has been rescued and the police help the teens out, Sheriff Hudson and Maggie discuss putting protective detail on Emma. Putting protective detail on Will, after he was kidnapped and stabbed, never goes through their minds. Will ending up dead at the end of that very same episode comes across as rather unsurprising in that regard.
** In Episode 8, Branson and Brooke are together in the school auditorium, when they hear a suspicious noise. Branson breaks one of the cardinal horror movie rules and gets up to investigate, leaving Brooke entirely unguarded and making her easy prey for Ghostface, who comes very close to killing her.
** In Episode 9, Sheriff Hudson gets a lead on where the creepy calls that Emma's been getting have been coming from. Instead of doing the sensible thing like sending his people out in teams to knock on doors and investigate the area (Even the town's coroner who has no police or tactical training thinks of this as the logical, common sense thing to do.), he hops in his squad car alone without telling anyone and proceeds to get bludgeoned, kidnapped, tied up and killed by Ghostface.
** [[FinalGirl Emma]] is essentially a living form of this trope, particularly when it comes to dealing with the killer. It makes its first major appearance in Episode 3, where Emma inexplicably chooses to not warn Riley that the killer is about to attack her, [[PoorCommunicationKills resulting in her grisly demise.]] It continues as the show goes on, with other notable moments being in episode 7 (firstly, Emma goes off, on her own, while a serial killer is attacking her and her friends, to listen to a tape recording at the location rather than wait to find a safe location. Secondly, the killer specifically tells Emma she will be the cause of Will's death. Upon finding him tied up near some dangerous farm equipment..... Emma blindly rushes towards him without taking two seconds to even look at her surroundings. She triggers a tripwire.... and inexplicably STOPS after it's triggered rather than continue to run towards him.), and the finale (Emma has seen the killer use booby traps at least twice to kill her victims, one of which was a tripwire. Upon seeing her mother tied to a chair... Emma instantly rushes towards her without looking, showing that she learned nothing from what happened to Will. Luckily for Emma's mom, there's no trap this time.) This girl really just makes one poor decision after another, and got two innocent people killed because of that. Then there's also her habit of wanting to do everything by herself without confiding in the police and sometimes not even telling her own friends or her mother, which inevitably always ends badly and either people get hurt or killed and she has to be bailed out by others.
** In the season 2 premiere, two teenagers thought it would be cool to prank Audrey, someone who has gone up and survived a violent serial killer and even shot said killer, by pretending that the boy is a new killer. He "stabs" the girl and pretends to attack Audrey in order to make it look convincing. They're actually surprised that Audrey defends herself by non-fatally stabbing the pretend masked killer with a very real ice pick, and the girl is indignant and tries to get Audrey arrested for what was clearly an act of self-defense, which the new sheriff makes quite clear while at the same time pointing out their idiocy.
** Most of the characters are this, mainly the teens, in that in both seasons it is eventually made crystal clear that there is a violent killer loose in town, and yet people continue to go to secluded and/or deserted places in small groups or all by themselves despite the clear and obvious danger, which has resulted in actual deaths and several very close calls throughout the whole show. The town even makes big events (a school dance in season 1 and a town festival in season 2) despite the presence of a killer with at least one person (Piper in season 1 and Gustavo in season 2) [[LampshadeHanging pointing out]] how idiotic it is to hold a big event with a killer stalking the town.
** Kieran in season 2, where he takes and keeps a loaded gun in his locker at school. Granted, he wishes to keep himself, his girlfriend and his friends safe, but doing so by taking a gun to school, especially in this day and age, is genuinely baffling.
** Again in season 2, basically the entire teen population in town is this when they decide to attend a party supposedly being thrown by Emma and Audrey. A party where they get to wear masks, among them the Ghostface mask, all while a killer is loose in town, when they've seen firsthand what this killer can do and with the knowledge that last time someone threw a party with a killer on the loose (Brooke's party in season 1) people were attacked and murdered.
** Mayor Maddox in "Heavenly Creatures". Not only does he go to a barn in the middle of nowhere when a serial killer known for hijacking phones and text messages is on the loose, he decides to go into said barn without a weapon of any kind. He then tries to find the dude by texting his phone and listening for the notification, going farther into the barn until he finds the unattended phone. [[spoiler:He gets stabbed through the chest seconds later by a pitchfork.]]
** Audrey throughout all of Season 2. [[spoiler: Before the season even begins, she knows there's an accomplice as Piper had been with her while her accomplice murdered Rachel, but due to her letters with Piper, Audrey was afraid of being labeled as the accomplice. ]]
*** '''You'd Expect:''' [[spoiler: Audrey would come forward about these suspicions ''immediately'' and explain her relation to Piper (inviting her to Lakewood to do a documentary together), at least to her close friends. They could then work together to keep her safe and discover the identity of Piper's accomplice instead of hoping the person decides to retire from being a serial killer.]]
*** '''Instead:''' Audrey keeps everything to herself, [[spoiler: allowing a serial killer to go free. Not only that, but she actively stifles investigations into who this accomplice [[TooDumbToLive She is then completely blindsides when said accomplice starts murdering people in Season 2 and targets her for killing Piper, despite knowing (s)he was still out there and might seek revenge.]]]]
*** [[FromBadToWorse It gets worse]] from there. [[spoiler: Once the killings begin, the killer is very clearly tied to Piper, accuses Audrey of being a murderer, and even [[SacrificialLamb kills one of the Lakewood Six members]] to show her he means business. At this point, Audrey is the ''only'' person to know a killer is on the loose.]]
*** '''You'd Expect:''' [[spoiler: Audrey would realize that now she ''has'' to come forward to save her life, her friends lives, and the lives of an incredibly large number of the people in Lakewood. She does what she should have done after Piper's reveal and explains that she invited Piper to Lakewood, but thought she was innocent and that there ''is'' another killer out there who they desperately need to find. Fast.]]
*** '''Instead:''' Audrey, once again, covers ''everything'' up and doesn't inform anyone of what is occurring. [[spoiler: She lies to all her friends on a constant basis about exactly how involved she was with Piper, she herself doesn't come forward about any of it until forced to, and she continually allows the killer to manipulate and further incriminate her with every passing episode.]]

** Is Kieran a charming bad boy type with a good heart who wants what's best for Emma, or is he a creepy stalker developing an obsession for the girl who is vulnerable due to problems with her boyfriend and her friends being murdered? [[spoiler:Turns out to be the latter except he actually a StalkerWithoutACrush AND a HiddenVillain, as he was Piper's actual accomplice.]]

** Also applies to Rachel, who's biggest character trait is that she's insecure and views herself as ugly, despite being played by the relatively attractive Sosie Bacon. This might be intentional, though, to illustrate that Rachel's self-image is a result of her low self-confidence rather than on her physical appearance.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Audrey being Piper's accomplice. The idea of one of the main protagonists being one of the main killers is nothing new but franchise hasn't tackled the idea of the audience being ''aware'' of who one of the killers were, and watching them attempt to cover their tracks before their friends find out, could have lent for an interesting spin on ''Scream''. [[spoiler:However, it turns out that Kieran was the accomplice, and that while Audrey was associated with Piper and wound up bringing her to Lakewood, she wasn't anything more than that.]]

* {{Fanon}}: Regarding the Brandon James murders, being the series overarching mystery, which was CutShort along with the series. The common consensus was that Brandon was either framed or simply blamed for the murders of another. The two most popular suspects in these theories is Brandon's brother Troy, having committed went on the killing spree in defense of his brother and retaliation of his bullies; the other is Emma's father, Kevin, having went on the killing spree to frame Brandon, whilst proping himself up as a survivor, especially as one of Brandon's bullies. Both these suspects are potentially teased at the end of the Halloween special, with a "Mr. James" checking into a hotel, juxtaposed with Kevin visiting a grave.

* AbsenteeActor:
** Amadeus Serafini (Kieran Wilcox) in "Aftermath" and "The Vanishing"
** Kiana Ledé (Zoe Vaughn) in "Jeepers Creepers".
** Santiago Segura (Gustavo Acosta) in "Let the Right One In" and "The Vanishing".
** Carlson Young (Brooke Maddox) in "The Vanishing".

** While initially TheScrappy for being the resident JerkJock, Will [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap won over a lot of fans]] by the end of season 1 as his JerkWithAHeartOfGold status was emphasized. Particularly due to [[HeroicSacrifice his multiple]] [[HoldTheLine heroic]] [[BigDamnHeroes feats]] as well as his CruelAndUnusual death being caused by [[TheScrappy Emma's]] [[WhatAnIdiot terrible decision making]].