History YMMV / TheMartian

* HilariousInHindsight: Mark compares the stripped-down MAV to "launching me to space in a convertible". In [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_Heavy_test_flight February 2018]], [=SpaceX=] launched an ''actual'' convertible, a Tesla Roadster, into a solar orbit for the maiden launch of their Falcon Heavy rocket.

* CrazyAwesome: Most of what Mark, the Ares III crew, and the people at NASA do over the course of the book qualify for this trope, but the craziest of them all was the first proposed plan to rescue Mark: The Ares IV crew, when they reached Mars, would land their [[DropPod Mars Descent Vehicle]] (MDV) near Mark's hab, pick him up, and then [[CrazyEnoughToWork use the MDV for an overland flight to the Ares IV landing site 3,200km away]]. Rockets used for overland flights on Earth are more commonly known as ''missiles'', which have a tendency of, y'know, exploding when 'landing', and these maniacs wanted to use one like they were picking Mark up from daycare. Teddy vetoes this plan immediately (partly due to the insanity, partly because Mark would need to survive 4 years for Ares IV to reach him), which bums out the [[HotBlooded Ares IV astronauts]] and [[MadScientist JPL techies]].

** Watney can [[DeaderThanDisco bitch and moan about the disco]] that Lewis left behind, but for those who love the genre, [[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJi5On34EtnFfqtF536w94_sLy1WtNqkd it's a pretty nice selection of tunes]].

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks:
** There were a few complaints about [[spoiler: Lewis being the one to pull Mark back in]] when it was Beck who did it in the book, especially since the change turns him into TheGenericGuy. Not only that, but as anyone with any military experience can tell you, the commanding officer is almost ''never'' the one to put themselves in danger; not due to cowardice, but because they are ''the commanding officer'' and are tasked with seeing whatever mission they're on succeed.
** The film also omits what some consider to be the most intense portion of the book where [[spoiler: Watney loses contact with NASA after shorting out Pathfinder and then must make the journey to the Ares IV site with no support]] all while avoiding a massive storm that threatens to deprive him of solar power. In the film, the entire scenario is replaced with a humorous montage of Watney prepping the rover and travelling with no obstacles. Somewhat justified due to the film's time constraints.
** The crew's talks with their families being cut so short (and the omission of the suspenseful ImAHumanitarian scenario they have to let one of them survive in the event the supply intercept fails) can be disappointing.

* OlderThanTheyThink: Moviegoers often assume the "China saves the day by offering their unsolicited assistance" was original to the movie to pander to the powerful Chinese market. Nope, it was in the book.

** At one point Venkat promises another employee from ''Franchise/StarWars'' merchandise and the guy says he doesn't want anything [[TakeThat that isn't from the original trilogy]], to which Venkat says "of course." This was just a couple of years before the announcement of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, which proved even more alienating to fans of the original movies than the prequel trilogy.

*** The reason they don't immediately welcome him is because the crew have stuff they have to do as they slingshot around Mars. Also, Mark stinks to high heaven, so they don't ''want'' to be near him until he gets cleaned up. Both are ignored in the film.

*** The reason they don't immediately welcome him is because they have jobs to do as they slingshot around Mars. Also, Mark stinks to high heaven, so they don't ''want'' to be near him until he gets cleaned up. Both are ignored in the film.

*** The reason that they aren't there to welcome him in the book is because they have jobs to do as they slingshot around Mars. Also, he stinks to high heaven, so they don't ''want'' to be near him until he gets cleaned up.

**

* HilariousInHindsight: Watney going on about how "Live Another Sol" sounds like an awesome title for a ''Franchise/JamesBond'' film and if he was cast for the movie he would be a better [[MrFixit Q]] than a Bond is pretty chuckle-worthy considering that [[Creator/MattDamon the actor that portrays him in the movie]] played ''[[Franchise/TheBourneSeries Jason Bourne]]''.

** All of Mark's cremates to some extent but especially Commander Lewis.

** ''A lot'' of people (both critics and moviegoers) feel that this should have easily won for Best Visual Effects. Not that ''Film/ExMachina'''s effects aren't also stellar, but most people felt that ''The Martian'' had more going for it.

*** In addition to this, he also plays [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Lancer]], a [[Myth/CelticMythology legendary hero]] who was notorious for [[spoiler:being killed in all his routes]], eventually [[spoiler:[[Anime/CarnivalPhantasm turning it around]] to become [[MemeticMutation the most notoriously]] [[VideoGame/FateGrandOrder unkillable Servant]] in the ''Franchise/FateSeries.''

* MemeticMutation:his* "I'm going to have to science the ''shit'' out of this."

* MemeticMutation:
** "I'm going to have to science the ''shit'' out of this."

** There's also the fact that Mark references ''Iron Man'' when he and his team are figuring out how to get him back on the ship. Although he wouldn't meet Tony Stark, Matt Damon would later make his MCU debut where he would play as an actor for Loki in Film/ThorRagnarok.

** Did anyone notice that [[Film/AntMan Luis]] was part of the crew too?

* UnfortunateImplications: A single open letter from the "Media Action Network for Asian-Americans"[[http://variety.com/2015/film/news/the-martian-white-washing-asian-american-ridley-scott-1201614155/ criticized the film for it's casting of Mindy Park and Vincent Kapoor.]] It takes specific issue that Venkat/Vincent Kapoor was an Asian-Indian character who is a Hindu in the book yet embodied by black actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and renamed Vincent. It also complains that Mindy Park is Caucasian rather than Korean-American (which is how Weir envisioned her even though her ethnicity is never defined in the book). Oddly, the letter completely ignores that the movie featured Benedict Wong playing Bruce NG or Eddy Ko and Chen Shu playing the CNSA executives.

* UnfortunateImplications: [[http://variety.com/2015/film/news/the-martian-white-washing-asian-american-ridley-scott-1201614155/ The film has been criticized for not casting Asian actors]], specifically for turning Indian Venkat Kapoor into a black British man, and for making Mindy Park Caucasian rather than Korean-American (Park being a common surname for both ethnicities, many readers assumed she was Asian even though she's never given any physical description, and Weir said in interviews that he thought of her that way in the book). This became a bad one-two punch for Ridley Scott in this area, given the controversy attached to his previous film ''Film/ExodusGodsAndKings''.

--->'''Mark:''' [[PrecisionFStrike Fuck!]]

* AngstWhatAngst: Mark Watney goes though an ordeal that would leave an ordinary person on the ground in a fetal position. Him? He notes in his daily log that it's really lonely on Mars and he's probably going to die, then he keeps on trucking. He's a highly-trained astronaut (and in fact explicitly stated to have the psychological profile best suited for such an experience of all the Ares crew), but still it's a distressing experience.

* OlderThanTheyThink: Moviegoers often assume the "China saves the day by offering their unsolicited assistance" was original to the movie to pander to the powerful Chinese market. Nope, it was in the book (although in the book, China does explicitly get something out of the transaction rather than being [[WhatYouAreInTheDark purely altruistic]]).

* CrazyAwesome: Most of what Mark, the Ares III crew, and the people at NASA do over the course of the book qualify for this trope, but the craziest of them all was the first proposed plan to rescue Mark: The Ares IV crew, when they reached Mars, would land their [[DropPod Mars Descent Vehicle]] (MDV) near Mark's hab, pick him up, and then [[CrazyEnoughToWork use the MDV for an overland flight to the Ares IV landing site 3,200km away]]. Rockets used for overland flights on Earth are more commonly known as ''missiles'', which have a tendency of, y'know, exploding when 'landing', and these maniacs wanted to use one like they were picking Mark up from daycare. Teddy vetoes this plan immediately (partly due to the insanity, partly because Mark would need to survive 4 years for Ares IV to reach him), which bums out the [[HotBlooded Ares IV astronauts]] and [[BadassBookworm JPL techies]].