Line #13 YMMV/Luann


1	* AccidentalInnuendo: Brad and Toni run into each other at the grocery store and Brad mentions that he was just thinking about her. While holding a pair of melons. Toni notices and lampshades it.
2	* {{Adorkable}}: Ox is a GentleGiant prone to ComicallyMissingThePoint, with a personality that approaches IncorruptiblePurePureness and an incredibly obvious crush on Tiffany.
3	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
4	** Is Toni Daytona simply a SatelliteLoveInterest for Brad or is she a BrokenBird who has absolutely no idea what she wants (Hence her seriously mixed signals towards Brad and her dogged defense of the indefensible Dirk)? This has been rendered moot now that she and Brad have been HappilyMarried for years at this point.
5	** TJ. He is always smiling whenever we see him, he's shown to be charismatic (Talking Luann's family into letting him move in with Brad and in their house when he accidentally lit it on fire, talking Brad's dad into okaying a car trip), and has been shown to concoct disreputable schemes to get money. However; his parents were never mentioned, and a 2008 strip ''very'' heavily implies that he suffers from ParentalAbandonment. It's easy to interpret that he's an example of a StepfordSmiler who has to resort to scams or unethical business practices to get by.
6	* {{Anvilicious}}:
7	** A guy smoking marijuana isn't merely a druggie; he's a horrible, semi-abusive jerk to who tries to force his girlfriend (Bernice) to hide it for him. Also, Brad's inspired by 9/11 to become a firefighter and hero (to the point where he later tries to get married on September 11th.)
8	** Delta is sort of an in-universe example. And her friends (including Luann) find it annoying.
9	** Pretty much any arc that focuses on why Luann should choose Gunther as a boyfriend because he's nice and her mother likes him sooner or later deals out anvils about the evils of wanting a boyfriend based on infatuation/attraction.
10	* ArchivePanic: One comic a day for nearly 40 years. It's safe to say the comic is this.
11	* BaseBreakingCharacter:
12	** Depending how you feel about the increasingly Brad-centric nature of the comic, he can be one. On one hand, Brad received significant CharacterDevelopment... but on the other, this caused the CharacterDevelopment of the other cast to take a backseat.
13	** Les. Though some readers enjoy his CharacterDevelopment and feel he adds to the cast dynamics, others feel his [[NeverLiveItDown past bullying and criminal behavior]] (not to mention his constant bullying of Gunther for being a nerd, even after they've moved in together) are indicators he's still a {{Jerkass}} and getting too much page-time.
14	** Ann Eiffel. As noted below in TheScrappy, the fandom is divided between those who LoveToHate her and eagerly anticipate her next run-in with the gang, versus those who have grown tired of the character (especially her KarmaHoudini and VillainExitStageLeft tendencies) and feel that the strip never needed such an overt villain in the first place.
15	** The same can be said of Stef, who fulfills basically the same purpose.
16	** Shannon, as the fandom became increasingly divided over whether she was just a CheerfulChild with a big imagination, or an obnoxious SpoiledBrat who serves as a cautionary tale about HandsOffParenting.
17	*** [[http://www.gocomics.com/luann/2021/3/21 And then with one strip,]] reader opinion swung overwhelmingly to [[TheScrappy the latter interpretation.]]
18	** Bets is either a breath of fresh air (relentlessly positive and upbeat) or an annoying attempt at being trendy (a pushy, selfish wannabe influencer with little sense of boundaries).
19	* BrokenBase: Jack's status as TheNotLoveInterest for Luann. Some readers think it's refreshing to have a guy in her life who she isn't trying to date. Other readers think that Gunther fulfills that purpose already, and Jack would be a more refreshing love interest, as he has actual personality, and isn't just a SatelliteLoveInterest or SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute for Aaron Hill/Quill.
20	** The "Tiffany seduces Kip" storyarcs. They're either hilarious, and show that Tiffany needs more CharacterDevelopment, or excruciatingly unfunny, are never going to go anywhere, and ruin Tiffany's character. Making things worse is that it makes Tiffany seem like a {{Jerkass}}, ignoring Ox's crush on her while complaining about being single.
21	* EnsembleDarkhorse: Tiffany became a surprisingly popular character, especially with Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon, who criticized Evans for putting Tiffany in situations where she was the villain (and deserved punishment from Luann and friends) simply because she was more attractive, confident, and forward than Luann, especially for situations where he drew an oversexualized teenage girl and then [[SlutShaming implied she was responsible for her own bad luck because of it]].
22	* FanNickname:
23	** Gunther and Les's house is known as "The Gulag" by fans on [=GoComics=]. The commenters at ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'' know it as "Cockblock Cabin".
24	** Luann herself is known by ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon'' as "Inner Beauty," inspired by a comment once made by her mother.
25	** Bernice's strictness as Moony U's dorm RA got her the nickname "The Dormenführer" by readers of ''Blog/TheComicsCurmudgeon''
26	* FanPreferredCouple:
27	** When once polled with the question of who Luann should take to a dance, readers chose Aaron over Gunther. While Evans had them attend the dance together (and even had Aaron kiss Luann after she asked him to do so in order to make an overlooking Tiffany jealous) Aaron still treated Luann more as a friend than as girlfriend material. Even after this, however, many fans still wanted her to end up with Aaron, only for Evans to permanently kill the ship later by [[PutOnABus shipping Aaron off to Hawaii]]. Once the college arc began, readers began shipping her with Jock (aka Jack) as well over Gunther, who they preferred with Tiffany.
28	** Ox and Tiffany are considered this by fans.
29	* GrowingTheBeard: Almost literally with Gunther's return from Peru. Karen Evans had taken over as writer the previous year, and this seems to be the point she's hit her stride.
30	* HarsherInHindsight:
31	** As noted on the Heartwarming Moments page: Luann, Bernice and Delta were confident that their friendship would last forever. After Delta went to college, however, she was quickly forgotten completely by the other two. She called in the November of that year to ask if they had voted in the recent election, and then was never mentioned again.
32	* HilariousInHindsight:
33	** The arc where Luann runs into Clay Aiken and mistakes a note from him to mean he's in love with her is most ironic after the real life Aiken came out as gay.
34	** Same with an arc where Luann gets tickets to a Ricky Martin concert, with her and her mother [[DoubleStandard making leering, sexual remarks about him]] (with Brad [[LampshadeHanging pointing out the double standard]]) beforehand, and Luann hoping he notices her and brings her onstage.
35	** With his small stature, big hairdo, southern accent and creepy crush on the main female character, Elwood seems like a precursor to [[WesternAnimation/GravityFalls Gideon Gleeful]].
36	* JerkassWoobie:
37	** Tiffany may be a bully, but underneath the confidence and smugness, she’s really just a sad, lonely little girl. She never had a mother, her father is never around and she had to spend a whole arc being Eiffel’s slave. It gets worse when in college, she completely loses her confidence after putting on weight and realizing she can’t be the same alpha bitch anymore.
38	** Shannon is a child who frequently gets into trouble by making messes, breaking objects, and throwing tantrums. However, [[ParentalAbandonment her mother has abandoned her entirely and her father is usually absent, pursuing his own interests]]. This leads to him breaking his promises to spend time with her and instead dumping her on the nearest adults with no warning: His sister Toni and her husband and in-laws. Even they seem annoyed by Shannon's behavior, with the punchline usually being how it's an ordeal to look after her. That she is a young child who has no stable home life and is often neglected by the adults around her rarely goes acknowledged.
39	** Tara may be an authority-hating, law-breaking delinquent, but her bad family life makes her at least a little sympathetic. [[FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse It still doesn't excuse her actions, though]].
40	* {{Narm}}:
41	** Luann's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3vfyZ_O7DQ original songs]] are pretty hilariously bad.
42	*** Most of Luann's creative pursuits comes off as this, as she's ostensibly a college student struggling with writing assignments that are more befitting of a middle school.
43	** The characters' use of [[GoshDangItToHeck OHMYGAW]] can be unintentionally funny.
44	** Bets' insistence on calling Tiffany's mansion [[TotallyRadical "The Manse"]] reeks of the creators trying to seem cool.
45	** How does Luann decide to try to help Piro's mental state? A ''wacky puppet show''--while it's intended to show a clash of personality, it does trumpet that the Evans forgot that they're supposed to be young adults, not children.
46	* NightmareFuel:
47	** Tiffany and Luann's near-drowning.
48	** Bernice taking a bad fall and hitting her head during a gym class volleyball game. Thank god Luann knew CPR.
49	* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: Gunther went through major character development from dating Bets, even his jealousy towards Les and Tiffany went away.
50	* TheScrappy: Gunther's girlfriend Bets: a combination of ControlFreak, ManipulativeBitch and SelfieFiend tendencies has caused many fans to dislike her. Just as fans were starting to get used to her, they broke up and she was PutOnABus. Though her plan for reuniting with Gunther (which seemed to be exist more as a social media stunt than anything else) reminded readers why they disliked her so much in the first place.
51	* ShippingBedDeath: Speculated by fans to be the reason why no couples have gotten together since Gunther and Bets, and why Gunther and Bets have a RelationshipRevolvingDoor.
52	* {{Squick}}:
53	** Stef and Kip use Tiffany's towel (without her permission) for post sex cleanup. Stef hands it back to her with it visibly dripping.
54	** A Gunther and Les Sunday comic shows actual feces in the open toilet, complete with buzzing flies.
55	* TakeThatScrappy:
56	** During the July 2020 arc, Ann Eiffel finally gets her comeuppance and is kicked out of the house.
57	** Luann calling out Shannon for being a brat.
58	** Dez calling out Bets' SelfieFiend tendencies.
59	** Luann finally insulting [[{{Jerkass}} Bernice]] back.
60	* TearJerker: Gunther and Bets breaking up.
61	** Ox's unrequited crush on Tiffany.
62	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
63	** Shannon and Tiffany could bond over their frequently absent fathers (genuine in Tiffany's case) and disappeared mothers, but they've only interacted at the talent show in high school.
64	** Tiffany's inability to swim, brought up in a throwaway line during the dunk tank fundraiser, could lead to her being taught how to swim, but it was never brought up again, eventually being retconned in Summer 2023.
65	** The supposed break-in at Tiffany's mansion, which added a good mystery to the story, was abruptly dropped, with no sign of returning.
66	* UnintentionallySympathetic:
67	** In the early days of the comic, Brad was intended to be seen as the BigBrotherBully toward Luann, but usually he never bothered Luann unless she initiated it first, like trying to talk to him while he's sleeping or trying to extort rides from him before she could drive. Most of the time, Luann was the one picking on Brad for seemingly no real reason except that she's bored. It does get toned down thankfully when they get older and Brad gets significant CharacterDevelopment.
68	** Tiffany during the dunk tank fundraiser. The comic acts like it's her fault for bailing when all Luann and Bernice had to do was fill the tank with warm water. They didn't (but lied to her and said that they had), then put the blame solely on her for leaving. What makes it worse is that this was to support Delta, meaning they put bullying someone who had previously bullied them, even though she wasn't being mean at the moment, above helping a friend.
69	* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic:
70	** While there's good reason for Gunther to be concerned about Tiffany’s relationship with Les, many felt he crossed the line from concerned friend to entitled, condescending {{Jerkass}} when he sabotages his own dinner with her by trying to pressure her into not seeing Les anymore, particularly when it's clear [[GreenEyedMonster Gunther's motives aren't entirely pure]].
71	** Many attempts to make it seem as though Bernice is a DeadpanSnarker keeping Luann grounded just end up making her look like a complete JerkAss hell-bent on cutting down Luann's already-tenuous confidence. She also tends to meddle in and judge the lives of others, such as her fellow students at college; while her position as RA requires her to put her foot down and enforce the rules, at times she comes off as un-empathetic, such as when she tells a distraught Tiffany that if she can't downsize to a dorm she can afford then she can just move back in with Ann Eiffel -- who not only is an abusive almost-stepmother to Tiffany, but ''sexually harassed Bernice when she was her teenage employee''. It's even less reassuring given that Bernice has shown interest in the field of guidance counseling.
72	** A lot of Luann's treatment of Gunther during middle/high school has aged ''very'' poorly, particularly her StringingTheHopelessSuitorAlong. She once admitted that her dream was to have Gunther spend the rest of his life in love with her while she would continue to view them as JustFriends. She would get jealous and possessive of him if he liked another girl (especially if the girl liked him as well), declaring that Gunther was ''hers''. This is all despite the fact that she had no interest whatsoever in dating him. Fortunately [[{{Character Development}} she eventually outgrew that mindset]].
73	** Brad and Toni immediately lose sympathy with their [[HandsOffParenting terrible parenting of Shannon]]. Toni even [[{{Jerkass}} admits to Luann's face that they foist Shannon onto her simply because they don't want to deal with her]].
74	** Tiffany during Summer 2023. She's supposed to be conflicted and guilty about trying to seduce Kip. However, this doesn't stop her from continuing to try and seduce him, and deluding herself into thinking ''he's'' the one hitting on ''her''. Making things worse is she complains about being single ''after'' having found out about Ox's crush on her the previous year, making her look like an [[UngratefulBastard ungrateful bitch]].
75	* UnintentionalUncannyValley: The celebrity cameos can be seen as this, especially in the earlier art styles. The more realistic, caricature-style depictions of the celebrities can clash with the rest of the characters.
76	* ValuesDissonance:
77	** Luann asks Gunther if he might be gay, because he's interested in sewing and raised by a single mother.
78	** In one strip, Tiffany complains to Crystal that Les won't leave her alone no matter how many times she tells him no; Crystal blames [[SlutShaming the way she's dressing]] for making him see "yes."
79	** Many of Luann's crush objects were grown men while she was still a 16-year-old in high school. Stuart was old enough to be married and Ben was a Sergeant in the army (and therefore at least 21). Both of these men also met Luann’s parents, who apparently saw no issue with their daughter dating an adult (one strip even had Frank confirm that he was perfectly okay with 16-year-old Luann dating a 21-year-old man, as long as the man seemed respectable enough.)
80	* VanillaProtagonist: Luann (and to a lesser extent Bernice) is this. Given the more interesting side characters, she comes off as boring by comparison.
81	* {{Wangst}}: Stef is a master of this, acting like her roommates are so unfair for not catering to her every whim, or letting her take everything from them for her own use.

Context YMMV / Luann