History YMMV / PonyoOnTheCliffByTheSea

* RetroactiveRecognition: The English dub, for fans of Noah Cyrus' later pop music career.
* {{Squick}}: Ponyo occasionally engages in squicky behavior, like when she spits dirty water on Kumiko's dress and snuggling a baby's face.

** The theme song. The English version of the song segues into a rock 'n roll remix and is consequently less cute.
** Pretty much the entire movie. The ending shot will have you diving for your insulin.

* TearJerker:
** Well, not the movie itself, but the ''reason'' behind the movie. See RealitySubtext.
** The scene where Sosuke found Lisa's car, but Lisa is missing. Every time he calls her name, you can hear the worry in his voice. He is brought to tears when the calls become unanswered. Ponyo ComicallyMissingThePoint over his tears doesn't even break the moment and makes it seem more sadder, as she seems unaware how sad and worried he is. It becomes a moment of heartwarming later on when she takes his hand and suggest they find Lisa.
--> '''Ponyo:''' Here I got your boat. There's water coming from your eyes. Let's go find your mom.

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: This anime film by Hayao Miyazaki based loosely on Creator/HansChristianAndersen's TearJerker FairyTale "Literature/TheLittleMermaid" was apparently popular in Denmark enough due to the fact that Denmark simply gave it it's own [[http://www.kino.dk/film/p/po/ponyo-paa-klippen-ved-havet Official Website]].

* {{Squick}}: Ponyo occasionally engages in squicky behavior, like when she spits dirty water on a Kumiko's dress and snuggling a baby's face.

* AmericansHateTingle: Ponyo herself is pretty divisive to American Audiences, due to her occasional gross-out nature and oddities throughout.

* HarsherInHindsight: The 2011 8.9 earthquake had the ocean sweeping over elevated roads in the same fashion as the film. Nobody dying, and everyone shrugging it off as a 2.0 earthquake? ....yeeeeeeeeeaah.... not really. Makes it a FunnyAneurysmMoment in the film, too.

* AmericansHateTingle: Ponyo herself is a highly-divisive character to American Audiences, due to her gross-out nature and oddities throughout.

* {{Squick}}: Ponyo, especially when she spits dirty water on a Kumiko's dress and snuggling a baby's face.

* FetishFuel: Fujimoto, Glam-rock star of the sea. In the Finnish dub, he is voiced by Ismo Alanko, who is literally a rock star (by Finnish standards).

** Creator/MattDamon & Creator/TinaFey's characters are a married couple, although are in separate distance from each other. In the new season of ''[[Series/ThirtyRock 30 Rock]]'', Tina Fey & Matt Damon play characters who are dating each other.

* AmericansHateTingle =/= BaseBreaker: Ponyo herself is a highly-divisive character to American Audiences, due to her gross-out nature and oddities throughout.

** PainfulRhyme: "She's a little fish from the deep blue sea" / "She's a little girl with a round [[AcCENTUponTheWrongSylLAble tum-MY]]."

** [[RunningGag Or because]] he's voiced by Creator/LiamNeeson in the English dub
* [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff Danes Love Ponyo]]: This anime film by Hayao Miyazaki based loosely on Creator/HansChristianAndersen's TearJerker FairyTale "Literature/TheLittleMermaid" was apparently popular in Denmark enough due to the fact that Denmark simply gave it it's own [[http://www.kino.dk/film/p/po/ponyo-paa-klippen-ved-havet Official Website]].

* [[FetishFuel Hot Dad]]: Fujimoto, Glam-rock star of the sea. In the Finnish dub, he is voiced by Ismo Alanko, who is literally a rock star (by Finnish standards).

* TearJerker: Well, not the movie itself, but the ''reason'' behind the movie. See RealitySubtext.

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: This anime film by Hayao Miyazaki based loosely on Creator/HansChristianAndersen's TearJerker FairyTale "Literature/TheLittleMermaid" was apparently popular in Denmark enough due to the fact that Denmark simply gave it it's own [[http://www.kino.dk/film/p/po/ponyo-paa-klippen-ved-havet Official Website]].

** Or that he looks like a redheaded cross between DavidBowie and Creator/NeilGaiman.

** Pretty much the entire movie. The ending shot will have you diving for your insulin.

* AmericansHateTingle =/= BaseBreaker: Ponyo herself is a highly-divisive character to American Audiences, due to her gross-out nature throughout.

* AmericansHateTingle: Ponyo is a highly-divisive character to American Audiences, due to her gross-out nature throughout.

* {{Squick}}: Ponyo, especially when she spits dirty water on a Kumiko's dress and smuggling a baby's face.

* {{Squick}}: Ponyo, especially when she spits dirty water on a Kumiko's dress and smuggling a baby's face.
** Pretty much the entire movie. The ending shot will have you diving for your insulin.

* {{Narm}}: Ponyo assaulting The Baby's face, The Baby's voice, talking about making milk for The Baby...

** Or that he looks like a redheaded cross between DavidBowie and NeilGaiman.

** The baby that Ponyo just met has an [[AmbigiousGender unknown gender]].

** The baby that Ponyo met has an [[AmbigiousGender unknown gender]].

** The reason why she left them to go to the retirement home may have been the movie's way of reflecting the Japanese value that the young should take care of the elderly, no matter the circumstances. A strong case of ValueDissonance, especially since in Western culture it's viewed as the other way around.

** [[RunningGag Or because]] he's voiced by LiamNeeson in the English dub

** LiamNeeson playing a loving, extremely protective father in this movie...then playing an extremely violent version of the same archetype in ''Film/{{Taken}}''.

* HarsherInHindsight: The 2011 8.9 earthquake had the ocean sweeping over elevated roads in the same fashion as the film. Nobody dying, and everyone shrugging it off as a 2.0 earthquake? ....yeeeeeeeeeaah.... not really.
** Makes it a FunnyAneurysmMoment in the film, too.
* HilariousInHindsight: Creator/MattDamon & Creator/TinaFey's characters are a married couple, although are in separate distance from each other. In the new season of ''[[Series/ThirtyRock 30 Rock]]'', Tina Fey & Matt Damon play characters who are dating each other.

* MemeticMutation: "Respect your father!"

* UncannyValley: Granmanmare evokes this due to her design being slightly more realistic than the traditionally Miyazaki-esque characters that surround her.
** Also, Ponyo's inbetween human-and-fish form.
* ValuesDissonance: Leaving five-year-old children alone and unsupervised (in the middle of a typhoon, no less!) could be considered criminal neglect in some jurisdictions. Still, it can be considered as Lisa choosing the lesser of two evils -- either bring them with her where they'd all easily be swept away by a particularly bad wave, or let them stay on high ground in the comparatively safe house.

* FridgeBrilliance: Ponyo was told by her father that she can't work magic and stay human. Remember that when she casts spells, she takes on that weird appearance that looks like a tadpole or a chicken. Or a vaguely anthropomorphic [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiktaalik Tiktaalik]].

* NightmareFuel: Those [[BuffySpeak dark-water-blob-things]] Fujimoto sends to get Ponyo back from Sosuke. They practically submerge him, and those EYES...
** Also, when the sea piled up...
** Ponyo's sudden shifts from human to half goldfish form sometimes. Especially in the case where she tries to cheer up a baby by getting a little too up close and personal.