History YMMV / ProfessorLaytonAndTheMiracleMask

* MoodDissonance: The Masked Gentleman having Luke hanging at a great height and daring Layton to save him... a little of the seriousness is taken down because Luke is hanging from his shorts with his underwear clearly visible.

* HarsherInHindsight: After playing ''The Azran Legacy'', [[spoiler:it becomes pretty obvious that the men that accosted young Layton's father and drug him all the way to the Norwell Wall in chapter 2 were members of Targent. Layton's mother was telling the truth and had a right to freak out, while his father was probably lying to make sure Layton didn't worry. Considering the implication that the Laytons moved around a lot, they probably knew at least SOMETHING was after their son and didn't want to keep him in danger]].

** At least in the English version, Creator/YuriLowenthal is [[spoiler:always stuck voicing the [[RevengeBeforeReason messed up character who wants to destroy everything for revenge]].]]

* CaptainObviousReveal: The game makes it fairly obvious that the identity of the Masked Gentleman is [[spoiler:Randall, who had survived the fall in the ruins. Randall's constant presence in the narrative (despite seemingly being dead for 18 years), the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death, his connection to the Mask of Chaos, the minor character of Firth mentioning he raised a young man as his own son 18 years ago, and the Masked Gentleman's familiarity with Layton, Dalston, Angela, and Henry]] are all clues that make the Masked Gentleman extremely easy to identify well before he takes the mask off. [[spoiler: The fact that Randall and the Masked Gentleman are both voiced by Yuri Lowenthal doesn't help either.]]
* FridgeHorror: As happy as the ending is, it's hard to look past the fact that it came about because several characters refused to move on with their lives after a terrible tragedy. To the point that [[spoiler:Henry and Angela faked a loving marriage for eighteen years, and adamantly refused to [[BecomingTheMask become the mask]]. (In fact, one of the main reasons Layton suspected that Angela was being impersonated was that the impersonator didn't realize she loved Randall more than Henry.)]] Worse, it's implied that if they had moved on and chosen to [[spoiler:love each other, Randall's accusation that Henry stole his life would have been correct]]. It becomes weaker still when you factor in that [[spoiler:Randall had amnesia and didn't remember his prior life until Descole forced the issue. If not for evil scheming, he would have had no reason to return, and Henry's dedication would have been for naught]].

* CaptainObviousReveal: The game makes it fairly obvious that the identity of the Masked Gentleman is [[spoiler:Randall, who had survived the fall in the ruins. Randall's constant presence in the narrative (despite seemingly being dead for 18 years), the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death, his connection to the Mask of Chaos, the minor character of Firth mentioning he raised a young man as his own son 18 years ago, and the Masked Gentleman's familiarity with Layton, Dalston, Angela, and Henry]] are all clues that makes the Masked Gentleman extremely easy to identify well before he takes the mask off.

* FamilyUnfriendlyAesop: As happy as the ending is, it's hard to look past the fact that it came about because several characters refused to move on with their lives after a terrible tragedy. To the point that [[spoiler:Henry and Angela faked a loving marriage for eighteen years, and adamantly refused to [[BecomingTheMask become the mask]]. (In fact, one of the main reasons Layton suspected that Angela was being impersonated was that the impersonator didn't realize she loved Randall more than Henry.)]] Worse, it's implied that if they had moved on and chosen to [[spoiler:love each other, Randall's accusation that Henry stole his life would have been correct]]. It becomes weaker still when you factor in that [[spoiler:Randall had amnesia and didn't remember his prior life until Descole forced the issue. If not for evil scheming, he would have had no reason to return, and Henry's dedication would have been for naught]].

* TearJerker:
** Layton, after seeing Randall [[spoiler:fall to his apparent death, opens the door and sees a treasure trove, not the many archaeological finds he'd hoped to get, and sadly declares that ''this'' is what he gave his life to get]]. Granted, it later turns out that [[spoiler:there was one more mystery Layton and Randall hadn't uncovered]], but Layton's despair and grief are heart-rending.
** The ending of the "Snow Bunny" play- the bunny saves the boy he's friends with, at the cost of his own life.