The Book of Life / YMMV

Abandon Shipping: After the movie's release, a lot of fans speculated that Manolo's great grandmother Anita was the wife of one of his late ancestors, Jorge. They all quickly jumped ship once Word of God revealed that they were actually siblings.
Accidental Innuendo:
- Manolo regarding Maria during "I Love You Too Much": "I live for your touch, I whisper your name night after night...".
- La Muerte when (sarcastically) speaking to Xibalba: "Aww, you're so cute when you beg."
Adorkable
- Manolo Luis Sanchez. Either when he's serenading Maria or whenever a humorous catastrophe befalls him.
- Joaquin Emilio Mondragon Jr. crosses into this territory when he's thinking about Maria or talking about his cool mustache.
Alternative Character Interpretation:
- Did General Posada truly think he was acting in Maria's best interests when he tried setting her up with Joaquin, or was he using her as a bargaining chip to buy San Angel protection that Joaquin was already willing to provide?
- Did La Muerte tell the detention kids this story to help them become better people, or was it so that the people of San Angel would continue to be remembered and thus remain in The Land of The Remembered?
- Did Manolo ask to die only to join Maria, or was he also Driven to Suicide because of all the scorn he received?
- When Pancho Rodriguez says that even his wife reacts well to one bawdy song, Pepe's reaction could indicate either surprise that Pancho is married in the first place (like their brother Pablo) or about the song's effect on Pancho's wife.
Americans Hate Tingle: Despite arriving at the start of the half-term break the movie failed to get in to the Top 3 at the U.K. box-office – debuting at fourth place^note. Then the following week it dropped to fifth place^note, despite that week being both half-term (when kids would be out of school and thus have more free time to see the movie) and the week leading up to Halloween (thematically appropriate to the film’s subject matter).
And You Thought It Would Fail: When the movie was initially announced, many thought it would be sure failure simply because it was set in Mexico and the cast were mainly Hispanic. By the end of its release, not only did the movie have mainly positive reviews, but it also made back its budget.
Angst? What Angst?:
- Carmen, while in shock for a moment, is weirdly not too upset with her son having died young, even before he tells her he's waiting to encounter his fiancée there.
- By the end of the story, Manolo's entire family, aside from his newly wedded wife, is dead. You'd think that would affect him somehow, but he doesn't seem to be bothered by it that much.
  - Perhaps it's because he knows they're alright and he'll see them again one day, but it's still going to be a long wait...
- With the exception of children who remain there indefinitely everyone's stay in the Land of the Remembered will end the moment they are forgotten in which they will be banished to the gloomy Land of the Forgotten to wither away and become Deader than Dead. No one pays much mind to this (except for the protagonists) and blissfully enjoy the party.
Anvilicious: This film makes no bones about its mission to take a sledgehammer to some of the nastier aspects of Latin American culture (bullfighting, machismo, etc.).
Award Snub: Some fans were disheartened to hear that the movie failed to secure any Oscar nominations for the 2015 ceremony.
Awesome Art: Jorge Gutierrez did a fantastic job of translating his signature artstyle into 3D. And that's not even getting into how the Land of the Remembered looks.
Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: The Lightning Reveal of Skeleton!Manolo. It's basically there to get a cool-looking shot, coming with no warning or explanation and never being mentioned afterwards.
Captain Obvious Reveal: That Mary Beth was going to be revealed at the end as La Muerte in disguise is something the viewer was surely seeing coming from a mile.
- Same could be said for Manolo being the victor of the bet given he and Maria had mutual romantic feelings while it was clear she never felt the same for Joaquin, plus Maria and Manolo were included together on promotional material released prior to the movie.
Complete Monster: The ruthless Bandit King Chakal once stole the Medal of Everlasting Life that granted him invulnerability, before leading a siege of San Angel where he killed Joaquim Mondragon's father. However, the deity Xibalba stole the Medal back, causing Chakal's eventual downfall. Now in the present, Chakal sends his army to pillage the town of its wealth and jewels or burn San Angel to the ground only to be held back by Joaquim. Once learning that the Medal is being held at the town, Chakal leads his army to destroy San Angel and reclaim the Medal—killing Manolo's father in the process—to once again become an invincible warlord. However, once defeated by Manolo and his allies, Chakal decided to blow up the whole town and himself out of nothing but pure vengeful spite.
Ensemble Dark Horse:
- Manolo's cousins, the skeleton bandita looking Adelita twins are popular for their design. Their personalities also help.
- Both La Muerte and Xibalba have gained a lot fan love for their unique and complicated designs, their own personalities, and intriguing relationship with each other. A lot of fans are interested in a movie solely focusing on the couple.
Fandom Rivalry:
- Was engaged in a minor one with Frozen, due to accusations that Tumblr was ignoring this film in favor of that one and threatening its financial success.
- Also with Big Hero 6, due to the fact that both were released in the US about a month apart but Big Hero 6 did much better at the box office. It got fueled even more when Big Hero 6 won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature where The Book Of Life wasn't even nominated.
- When Pixar announced Coco, there was a lot of hot debate about whether or not Coco is a direct ripoff of (some going so far as to claim that Pixar stole the idea from Gutierrez^note). For what it's worth, however, Gutierrez had expressed excitement for the movie and has continuously given nothing but praise for the film. There were also a number of fans equally excited.
Fanfic Fuel:
- How Chakal got the medallion from Xibalba was glossed over, so are the details of how the Lands of the Remembered and Forgotten work.
- Really, just the Land of the Forgotten itself considering how little was seen of it. Then there's the alternative version of it acting as a Fisher Kingdom...
- The reveal through Word of God, that there are a few other afterlives, like the Land Of The Unknown and the Land Of the Cursed as well as revealing that La Muerte has a twin sister, La Noche, who rules the Land of The Unknown, and that Xibalba has an older brother, who rules the Land of the Cursed, a hell like domain. Can probably fuel fics, for a long time.
- Just take a look at the Word of God section; there is enough information to fuel fics for a long time.
Fan Nickname: The first spirit Manolo encounters in the Land of the Remembered, with his list of new arrivals, has been dubbed "the Walmart Greeter of the Dead" by Tumblr fans.
Friendly Fandoms:
- The fandom boasts multiple crossover fanarts, especially with Spongebob Squarepants.
- This movie has sparked a lot more interest in the Pixar movie Coco that is also based on the Day of the Dead. The movie originally had a lot of flack from many wondering how you could even make a movie about the holiday, but The Book of Life proved you could make a good movie that wasn't just a Halloween redress. Becomes Hilarious in Hindsight after the Disney acquisition of 20th Century Fox, bringing The Book of Life and Coco under the same company, and both on the same streaming platform.
- Unsurprising, considering the mutual love for friendly, skeletal protagonists, but a lot of The Nightmare Before Christmas fans love the film. A common headcanon is that La Muerte is related to Jack Skellington, perhaps his mother or sister.
- Kubo and the Two Strings also gets a lot of love from Book of Life fans due to the films' similar themes and fledgling cult status. The friendship between Gutierrez and Kubo creator Shannon Tindle helps as well.
Genius Bonus: The character designs of the soldiers of the town militia are based on the styles of several famous Spanish painters, the most surreal-looking characters being based on Picasso and Dali.
Germans Love David Hasselhoff: Going from a couple posts on Jorge's Tumblr, the film seems to have been well received in Italy and Taipei.
Harsher in Hindsight:
- Joaquin's relationship with his Disappeared Dad became this when Jorge revealed on Twitter that pretty much the entire rest of the town thought he had gone crazy in his obsession with fighting Chakal. All that bread set around his father's monument? All made by Joaquin himself. No one else wanted to put in the effort to honor him.
- Manolo having a moral dilemma over killing bulls (and facing some definitely murderous ones) is this when the film was broadcast on Channel 4 on June 18, 2017, the same day a matador was gored to death by the bull he was fighting.
Heartwarming in Hindsight: Not long after the premiere of Maya and the Three it was revealed that Manolo and Maria are the reincarnations of Prince Zatz and Princess Maya. This makes the ultimate outcome of the film even sweeter given Maya and Zatz's love is strong enough to literally transcend lifetimes, plus they now get to have a real romantic life together given what happened to them in their series proper, complete with an eventual family.
- "I Love You Too Much" also becomes that much more adorable with the above considered.
- Mixes with Hilarious in Hindsight is that Jorge confirmed (or gave some credence to) a fan theory that Joaquin is the reincarnation of Acat. While it's hilarious that in a way Acat and Zatz are now competing for Maya's heart, it goes right back to heartwarming since Maya got her wish of being friends with Acat and all three became the Power Trio.
Ho Yay:
- Upon seeing La Muerte and Xibalba for the first time, Goth Kid's first reaction is calling them both beautiful.
- There's some between Manolo and Joaquin. For starters, the first time they were shown together as adults, they engage in a bear hug with Joaquin outright lifting the former over his head.
- Joaquin doesn't seem to be lacking in terms of both male and female admirers.
Idiosyncratic Ship Naming: The fandom has come up with quite a few:
- "Gravepainters" for La Muerte and Xibalba.
- "Tres Leches" for the friendship (or polyship) between Manolo, Maria, and Joaquin.
- "Toro Tango" for Carlos and Carmen, Manolo's parents.
- Manolo/Maria is "Musical Hearts."
Iron Woobie: Manolo can be viewed as this once he sets his course on re-obtaining his life.
Jerkass Woobie: Joaquin. On one hand he's fairly smug, has an air of Entitled to Have You towards Maria, and is a bit of a sexist. On the other hand he also had his father killed, his mother walk out on him right afterward, seems to be a predominately good person whose negative traits came from peer pressure/trying to live up to his father, and whether he knows it or not he's a Hopeless Suitor to the girl he's loved most of his life. He also lost his best friend who was like a brother to him and is being pressured to marry his other best friend when he clearly doesn't want to since they're both grieving, especially since she said she was only marrying him to get him to stay. It is worth pointing out that he moves more and more away from the "jerkass" bit as the movie goes on: when Maria calls him out of his sexism he's the only one in the room who listens, and tries to reach her through Hidden Depths, he also shows that he wants Maria to sincerely marry him, as he tries to dissuade her when she's pressured into it by her father, and Word of God confirms he would have said "no" for that reason, hadn't the marriage be suddenly interrupted, and there's his attempted Heroic Sacrifice in the end. Luckly, the fact that both him and Manolo attempt it ends up saving them both, but he still loses an eye.
Just Here for Godzilla:
- Some fans are more interested in Xibalba and La Muerte's story and relationship than that of Manolo, Joaquin, and Maria.
- Some people are also intrigued more by the gorgeous art style and animation as opposed to the story and/or the dialogue, a few even admitting to watching the movie muted.
Magnificent Bastard: Land of the Forgotten ruler Xibalba grows bored of his reign and makes a wager for their kingdoms with the Land of the Remembered ruler La Muerte, concerning a Love Triangle between Manolo, Joaquin and Maria, Xibalba betting on Joaquin winning Maria's heart and Le Muerte on Manolo. Disguising himself as a beggar, Xibalba gives Joaquin a medal to make him immortal; later causes Maria to fall into a coma during Manolo's attempt at a heartfelt confession; and leads Manolo to his death. Though outed for his cheating, Xibalba then creates a new bet with Manolo having fight against all the bulls his bull fighting family fought in the past and gracefully accepts his defeat after he does so, honoring his deal and reconciling with La Muerte.
Memetic Mutation:
- Whenever there is a discussion about the Adelita Twins, expect someone to point out their... "skeleboobs".
- Due to both being Dark Is Not Evil characters with similar designs who pull a Heel–Face Turn, Xibalba and Discord get compared to each other a lot.
Narm:
- The use of contemporary songs is jarring for many viewers, and can turn otherwise somber scenes into comedic ones. Even among those who are relatively fine with the rest of the songs, Manolo singing Radiohead's "Creep" stands out the most, though. It's just so recognizable, and exceptionally out of place considering the setting.
- Carlos' death scene happens so quickly and is almost entirely forgotten about after it happens. It could've been an effective Tear Jerker, but in the end, one is likely confused about what just happened.
Older Than They Think: There are more than a few similarities with Once on This Island; albeit with a Mexican Gender-Flip.
One True Threesome:
- Joaquin/Maria/Manolo (better known as Tres Leches) is pretty popular since all three are great people who remain good friends even after the whole Triangle thing gets resolved. Even Jorge has admitted to loving◊ the ship, occasionally posts pictures on his Tumblr, encouraged stories for it at least one, and joked about it being his original intent!
- Joaquin and The Adelita twins, due to the twins showing a lot of interest in him, mixed a bit with Pair the Spares.
The Scrappy: Despite his positive qualities, almost no one in the fandom is willing to defend General Posada due to his mistreatment of Maria.
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character:
- Manolo's cousins, the Adelita Twins who fought during the revolution and are also the only badass Sanchezes to not be bullfighters. Only got two scenes.
- Joaquin's dad is talked about a lot but never makes an appearance which leads to all sorts of Fanon.
- Xibalba is built up as the main villain... only to be quickly given a Heel–Face Turn so that the comparatively boring Chakal can take center stage.
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot:
- In the climax, several members of the Land of the Remembered come back to fight Chakal. Many viewers were disappointed that Joaquin's dad didn't come back to fight Chakal, seeing as they were Arch-Enemy to one another in life. This was eventually explained as Joaquin Sr. being in the Land of the Unknown.
- The Land of the Remembered and Land of the Forgotten are themselves practically thrown away; the Land of the Remembered at least has a lengthy sequence devoted to it, but the Land of the Forgotten is on screen for barely five minutes. For a film built around the afterlife, the actual afterlife plays a nearly negligible part in its own story. ^note
- Seeing Posada's Butt-Monkey, Lovable Coward soldiers get a brief moment of toughness when they get the Medal Of Everlasting Life could have been interesting and funny. Instead they keep running away and quickly drop it.
Trailer Joke Decay:
- "There's no one that big, man!"
- The "Just A Friend" scene.
Vanilla Protagonist: Some think of Manolo as this. While his misfortune is undeserved and his determination and talents are admirable his characterization doesn't go far beyond him being a Nice Guy with a passion for music, dislike of bullfighting and love for Maria. This has led to some finding Manolo rather boring and thus prefer the entertaining Xibalba and morally conflicted Joaquin. This is quite ironic, given that this is his movie with the potential sequels planning to focus on Joaquin and Maria respectively.
Visual Effects of Awesome: The Land of the Remembered - nay, the entire film in terms of visuals is absolutely stunning!
The Woobie: Manolo. Imagine if you were shoved into something you had no interest in or staunchly stood against, while everyone in your family AND village spat on your true ambition. And to make it worse, you're tricked into suicide because two gods placed a bet to see whether you or your best friend and love rival would marry the girl of your dreams and the Jerkass God betting against you is a Sore Loser of the highest order. At least it gets better.

YMMV / The Book of Life

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