These are what we call the 'YMMV items.' Things that some people find in this work. We call them 'your mileage might vary' because not everyone sees these things in the same way. This starts discussions in the trope lists, a thing we don't want. Please use the discussion page if you'd like to discuss any of these items.
Dork Age: Fans are surprisingly divided on the albums' respective degrees of quality, but Roll the Bones and Test for Echo are generally considered to be the worst.
Fridge Logic/Fridge Brilliance: The Priests of Syrinx obviously can't take "equality, our stock in trade" very seriously if they won't even let other people play guitar.
But that is equality, albeit of a Harrison Bergeron sort. Nobody is allowed to play music because the vast majority of people can't play a note. How dare musical prodigies be prodigies?
Harrison Bergeron is actually a good point of comparison, because despite the opening presented by the Unreliable Narrator, it obviously isn't an example of equality in the slightest. The Handicapper General has so much more in the way of ability than anyone else in the story that when the title character attempts a rebellion, he is defeated in the flicker of an eye despite himself being an Übermensch. A society cannot be equal if its rulers have vastly more in the way of resources and rights than the rest of the populace. The Priests of Syrinx "take care of... the songs you sing", and won't allow the same right for the rest of the populace. That is only equality if you buy into the Animal Farm dictate that "all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others". More to the point, it is exactly representative of the situation in the contemporary Soviet Union, which is no doubt what Peart had in mind while writing it. You cannot have equality by taking rights away from people, because the people that take those rights away intrinsically need to have more rights in order to take away everyone else's rights. The society will fundamentally remain unequal, no matter what platitudes the ruling class might present about equality. Or, to put it another way, the mere existence of a ruling class is proof that class distinctions have not been eliminated.
Ho Yay: Tons of it between Alex and Geddy. Tons. Especially in the Dinner with Rush segment from Beyond the Lighted Stage (the documentary on the band) and during Alex and Geddy's apperance on That Metal Show.
Of course, they have been best friends since they were about 12, so...
To read his book Roadshow, their official Twitter (Praetorianx1), and Neil's various news updates on his website, one would think Neil and his bodyguard/motorcycle riding buddy, Michael, were extremely argumentative same-sex partners. They're not, but tell me you wouldn't assume two guys clad in black leather arriving as a pair calling each other "honey" (or "slut," alternately) were a couple.
Nightmare Fuel: "Red Sector A". It is about someone trying to survive during the Holocaust. 'Nuff said. In fact, it was inspired when Geddy told the stories his own mother had told him about her time spent in concentration camps. Both of Lee's parents were Holocaust survivors from Poland.
Running the Asylum: Nick Raskulinecz, Rush's current producer, is a major fan of their '70s output and is reportedly trying to push them back towards it for their next album.
Stoic Woobie: Jesus Christ, Neil. He was awkward and frequently bullied in school (right up to physical assaults), became the third man of a three-man band where the other two members were lifelong buddies (not to mention, he replaced the original drummer who was another lifelong friend of the other two members), caught a lot of flak for his personal beliefs, lost his only child suddenly in a one-car accident as she drove to college, lost his wife less than a year later, and while recovering from those devastating losses, found out his best friend was in jail for attempting to cross the U.S. border while in possession of marijuana and his dog had to be put to sleep. He utterly refuses to speak of the period between his daughter dying and his second wedding.
Stuck In Their Shadow: Alex Lifeson, often overshadowed by Geddy's vocals and Neil's lyrics and drumming.
They Changed It, Now It Sucks: Understandably, they get this a lot, given the high amount of New Sound Albums. Particularly from the period when Lee focused more on the keyboard than bass.
What Do You Mean, It Wasn't Made on Drugs?: Averted with the 1975 album Caress of Steel. In the 2010 documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage: Geddy admits that the three of them were probably very high when they made that one.
