History YMMV / TheOriginals

** Sonja Sohn's portrayal of [[spoiler: Esther]]. Some fans love her dangerous, deranged, fanatical take on the character, while others hate that she feels nothing like the previous portrayals.

* IdiotPlot: The fourth season ends with Marcel taking away Elijah's memories of his family so he can start a new life without them. The next season reveals that this meant taking away ''all'' of his memories, leaving him with complete IdentityAmnesia. The plan also apparently never received any steps beyond "leave the confused, bloodthirsty amnesiac on a bus somewhere", which goes about as well as you might expect. Would some FakeMemories really have been that hard to arrange?

* WhatAnIdiot: A flashback reveals [[spoiler: that Dahlia killed the man Freya fell in love with and whose child she was currently carrying, right ''in the presence'' of Freya when finding out that both planned to flee with what she felt was hers (Freya's firstborn child). Even though the smart thing would have been to be more discreet and rather kill the man in front of her niece, instead staged the man's death where Freya wouldn't know it was Dahlia. This action backfired when an upset Freya then attempts suicide, and while Freya survives, the child which she carried does not. Thus, Dahlia being denied a firstborn.]]

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite [[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, has soured opinions of her. Creator/PhoebeTonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis (an argument that, given the show's cast is mostly female to begin with, is [[InsaneTrollLogic borderline nonsensical]]) has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

* TheScrappy:
** [[spoiler: Monique]] is by far the biggest one, mainly for killing [[spoiler: her own aunt, Sophie]]. While the latter wasn't a popular character, people weren't happy to see her die like that. However, her attitude after [[spoiler: coming back from the dead]] hasn't helped. She's shown no redeeming qualities and has spent most of her time antagonizing the Original family and bullying a fairly popular character. This has to be an intentional example.
** [[spoiler: Tyler]] has people wishing that he stayed in Mystic Falls. He's basically a BaseBreakingCharacter for some people who believe that he has improved or is geared for improvement since his introduction. And it gets worse when he goes ''back'' to the parent show as his Scrappified self.
** Sophie Deveraux is pretty hated too, primarily for her absolutely terrible actress who manages to overact (in terms of vocals and speech patterns) and underact (with her facial expressions and body language) at the exact same time, but [[spoiler: killing Davina]] definitely made the hate even worse.

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Kol's plan to get back at Rebekah, really came back to bite him, since doing so [[spoiler: inadvertently released an extremely witch who wants to steal his girlfriend's power and kill her.]]

* FanPreferredCouple: People really want Kol and Davina together [[spoiler: After many bumps in their relationship they're officially an married couple]].

* CompleteMonster: See [[Monster/TheVampireDiaries here]].

** Maisie Richardson-Sellers who played Eva Sinclair/Rebekah Mikaelson gained more attention after she joined the cast of Legends Of Tomorrow.

** Genevieve. To many she is an impressively skillful and shrewd witch with a deeply tragic backstory, understandable motivations and a strong character arc who is forced into becoming and enemy one last time due to understandable pressure. But to some, she is a vengeful [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder chronic backstabber]] with a cowardly streak.

* IdiotPlot: The fourth season ends with Marcel taking away Elijah's memories of his family so he can start a new life without them. The next season reveals that this meant taking away ''all'' of his memories, leaving giving him complete IdentityAmnesia. The plan also apparently never received any steps beyond "leave the confused, blodthirsty amnesiac on a bus somewhere", which goes about as well as you might expect. Would some FakeMemories really have been that hard to arrange?

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite
** Marcel: This dude ended up with the main female and had the most sexual romances of the series. What a Gary stu!
[[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, has soured opinions of her. Creator/PhoebeTonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis (an argument that, given the show's cast is mostly female to begin with, is [[InsaneTrollLogic borderline nonsensical]]) has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite [[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, has soured opinions of her. Creator/PhoebeTonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis (an argument that, given the show's cast is mostly female to begin with, is [[InsaneTrollLogic borderline nonsensical]]) has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

* MagnificentBastard: With the many {{Magnificent Bastard}}s popping up each season, one can simply call this The Magnificent Bastards Show.
** [[spoiler: Celeste]], a master of the ''very'' long game which somehow completely avoids any feeling of XanatosRoulette. [[spoiler: However, this is ultimately subverted in Episode Fifteen when she is OutGambited by Elijah and proves to be a SmugSnake bent on petty revenge against him for something he didn't even do.]]
** Between the witches and the originals it's all one big battle of who is the bigger Magnificent Bastard/Bitch.
** And as of Episode 1.21, the winner seems to be [[spoiler: Francesca Correa, the supposed leader of the human faction, who turns out to be descended from a werewolf bloodline thought to have been extinguished by Marcel in the 1920s. By the end of the episode, her family is in possession of the black kyanite stones that prevent them from turning in the full moon (at the expense of draining Klaus' strength thanks to Genevieve), every vampire in the Quarter has been poisoned with werewolf venom, and she's all but taken control of the werewolf clans to take back New Orleans. Unfortunately for her, in the Season Two premiere, the Mikaelsons take back their city and their status as Magnificent Bastards, and she, too, proves to be just a high-functioning SmugSnake with no redeeming qualities; she doesn't even get the dignity of an on-screen death]].
** The first season finale shows that the real Magnificent Bitch is [[spoiler: Esther Mikaelson, who had taken control over the ancestor witches and used her power to get the witches to go after her children and granddaughter]].

** [[spoiler: Monique]] is by far the biggest one, mainly for killing [[spoiler: her own aunt, Sophie]]. While the latter wasn't a popular character, people weren't happy to see her die like that. However, her attitude after [[spoiler: coming back from the dead]] hasn't helped. She's shown no redeeming qualities and has spent most of her time antagonizing the Original family and bullying a fairly popular character. This has to be an intentional example; see CompleteMonster for details.

* AlasPoorScrappy: [[spoiler: Oliver is painfully killed by a witch's curse just when he'd begun taking real steps toward redeeming himself.]]

--> '''Rebekah:''' "Marcel just [[Film/BrokebackMountain can't quit]] Klaus."
* HilariousInHindsight: In the short-lived vampire detective show ''Moonlight'', Jason Dohring played the hero's sire and mentor. Here he's a human detective.
** Jedidiah Goodacre first played an vampire named Henry on Supernatural who essentially that show's version of his Roman character on The Originals although unlike Henry himself. Roman wasn't a sociopath and expressed remorse for his actions and was allowed to live by whom he had wronged.

** The season finale shows that the real Magnificent Bitch is [[spoiler: Esther Mikaelson, who had taken control over the ancestor witches and used her power to get the witches to go after her children and granddaughter]].

** The show even managed to do this with The Originals, as they were {{Base Breaking Character}}s in the parent show. Now they're even eclipsing ''Series/TheVampireDiaries'' in terms of popularity and likability.
*** Pretty much anyone who was a scrappy or a base breaker on ''The Vampire Diaries'' tends to get rescued once they jump ship over to ''The Originals''.

* TheWoobie: Vincent Griffith, who wakes up one day to discover it's nine months later, and during that time someone else was controlling his body and doing all kinds of terrible things. He's left with a bunch of enemies he doesn't deserve and utterly confused about how much guilt he should be feeling.

* BadassDecay: Mikael was considered The Dreaded as far as Klaus and the rest of the originals is concerned. Upon his first appearance it took alot of effort to bring him down and now it appears that Klaus could take him on in a fight with little trouble. Even Hayley fared better against him one on one when she was trapped in a spirit realm with him. Didn't help that he was unceremoniously killed off by Finn.

** Cami. Is Rebekah lookalike. Her detractors claim she has a very bland personality and rarely contributes to anything, and being a hostage to manipulate the Mikaelsons on a frequent basis. [[DieForOurShip She also gets a lot of hate from Klayley and Klaroline shippers, for obvious reasons.]] Her fans point out that, first and foremost, Leah Pipe can actually act. They also tend to like her NiceGirl personality and feel she serves as a good moral compass for the show, and very much enjoy her counseling scenes with Klaus. They also point out that, while she was miused, it doesn't mean that the character didn't have potential, and that Season 3 seems to be using her in a much more effective capacity.

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite [[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, has soured opinions of her. Phoebe Tonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis (an argument that, given the show's cast is mostly female to begin with, is [[InsaneTrollLogic borderline nonsensical]]) has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

** Like on ''Series/TheVampireDiaries'', [[spoiler: Kol]] is proving to be one of the most popular characters of this series. He even got his own online mini series.

* FanPreferredCouple: People really want Kol and Davina together [[spoiler: and they may get their wish now that Kol's in Kaleb's body]].

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite [[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, have actually led to some declaring her a MarySue. Phoebe Tonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis (an argument that, given the show's cast is mostly female to begin with, is [[InsaneTrollLogic borderline nonsensical]]) has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

* CreatorsPet: [[TheScrappy Hayley]]. Several writers on the show (particularly, Carina [=MacKenzie=]) have called Hayley their favorite character and admitted it influences their writing. In particular, season 2 tried to demonize the main character of the show to prop up Hayley as its new hero, she is never called out for any of her mistakes, and she gains more prominence every season despite [[TooDumbToLive massive]] [[DesignatedHero fan]] [[TheScrappy backlash]]. Season 3 certainly hasn't helped in that regard. Her being able to take on vampires centuries older than her, her declaring herself a better parent than Klaus, only to immediately turn around and demand that someone look after Hope less than a day after getting her back, all topped off with the writers refusing to let the other characters even contemplate that Hayley is ever in the wrong, have actually led to some declaring her a MarySue. Phoebe Tonkin was also cast without an audition and before the part was even fully written, further supporting this notion. Especially considering fans have [[DullSurprise many]] [[OohMeAccentsSlipping different]] [[PerformanceAnxiety criticisms]] of her acting. The showrunners accusing fans who criticize Hayley of being sexist with absolutely no basis has not helped their case, or the fact that they continue to force Hayley into more storylines each year despite her backlash.

* RonTheDeathEater: The fandom has a bad habit of demonizing anyone that stands up to the Originals, especially Klause. This in spite of the fact that most of the time the Originals bring their misfortunes on themselves by being [[VillainProtagonist villain protagonists]], or how they suffer LaserGuidedKarma ''because'' of their past evils in life. More or less anyone but the worst of the worst would be justified in antagonizing them, or at the very least refusing to ally with them, but good luck telling that to these fans.

** Cami. Is Rebekah lookalike. Her detractors claim she has a very bland personality and rarely contributes to anything, and being a hostage to manipulate the Mikaelsons on a frequent basis. [[DieForOurShip She also gets a lot of hate from Klayley and Klaroline shippers, for obvious reasons.]] Her fans point out that, first and foremost, Leah Pipe can actually act (something other mains have proven incapable of, [[TheScrappy Phoebe Tonkin (Hayley)]] in particular). They also tend to like her NiceGirl personality and feel she serves as a good moral compass for the show, and very much enjoy her counseling scenes with Klaus. They also point out that, while she was miused, it doesn't mean that the character didn't have potential, and that Season 3 seems to be using her in a much more effective capacity