History YMMV / TheChroniclesOfRiddick2004

* CompleteMonster: In the extended cut, [[BigBad Lord Marshal Zhylaw]] was once given a prophecy by the air elemental Aereon that a Furyan would one day kill him, so he [[NiceJobBreakingItHerod exterminated their entire race]] in a "private war" and personally strangled newborn infants. After becoming the holy half-dead Lord Marshal of the [[Characters/TheChroniclesOfRiddickNecromongers Necromongers]], Zhylaw continues their genocidal campaigns, wiping out millions of colonists and forcibly converting the survivors. When one man objects to his demands for submission, he rips out his soul to make an example. Discovering that Riddick is the one prophesied to kill him, the Lord Marshal orders his death before trying to bargain with Riddick out of fear. He has Aereon captured to provide him with further revelation, charitably promising to spare her world "for last". During his final fight with Riddick, he also kills Riddick's close friend Kyra. While Zhylaw professes to the Necromonger creed, he was still willing to throw his warrior ideals out the window as soon as he felt truly threatened, prompting [[TheStarscream Commander Vaako]] to believe that he was no longer fit to lead them.

* WTHCastingAgency: Dame Judi Dench? ''Really''? More details rescued from that page: ''Chronicles'' made some fans wonder "What the hell is Judi Dench doing in this film?" Creator/VinDiesel wanted her so much, he sent a humongous number of flowers and bouquets along with the scripts to convince her. She complied after they met and bonded over ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' ([[JustForFun/OneOfUs they both play]]).

* CompleteMonster: In the extended cut, [[BigBad Lord Marshal Zhylaw]] was once given a prophecy by the air elemental Aereon that a Furyan would one day kill him, so he [[NiceJobBreakingItHerod exterminated their entire race]] in a "private war" and personally strangled newborn infants. After becoming the holy half-dead Lord Marshal of the [[Characters/TheChroniclesOfRiddickNecromongers Necromongers]], Zhylaw continues their genocidal campaigns, wiping out millions of colonists and forcibly converting the survivors. When one man objects to his demands for submission, he rips out his soul to make an example. Discovering that [[Characters/TheChroniclesOfRiddickRiddick Riddick]] is the one prophesied to kill him, the Lord Marshal orders his death before trying to bargain with Riddick out of fear. He has Aereon captured to provide him with further revelation, charitably promising to spare her world "for last". During his final fight with Riddick, he also kills Riddick's close friend Kyra. While Zhylaw professes to the Necromonger creed, he was still willing to throw his warrior ideals out the window as soon as he felt truly threatened, prompting [[TheStarscream Commander Vaako]] to believe that he was no longer fit to lead them.

* The Lord Marshal says it's "been a long time since [he's] seen [his] own blood" when Riddick throws a knife at him. Problem is that despite the force of the blow knocking him off his feet, ''we'' [[BloodlessCarnage don't see any blood because it's a PG-13 movie]].

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: The Purifier's SecretTestOfCharacter conversation with Vaako is obviously a Loyalty test. It's not clear if he's acting on the Lord Marshall's behalf to ensure that Vaako isn't plotting against him, or, given the Purifier's later actions, if he is feeling him out to see if he'd make a potential ally. Probably the latter, as the Purifier is earlier seen subverting the Lord Marshal by setting Riddick free from the Quasi-Dead after he realized Riddick is a [[spoiler:fellow]] Furyan.

** Vasilev and Anatoly, the main prison guards, have their fans despite being rather ruthless figures, due to them having some ProperlyParanoid moments of intelligence (especially whenever Anatoly has a TheNoseKnows concern), decent combat prowess, fewer sadistic moments than some of their coworkers, and an apparent VillainousFriendship.

** [[spoiler:HuskyRuskie Anatoly]] could have just been knocked out and LeftForDead after being struck in the face and falling down a ladder during the race to the ship (especially after at least one BountyHunter survives a worse fall in the opening scene).

* HesJustHiding: [[spoiler:HuskyRuskie Anatoly]] could have just been knocked out and LeftForDead after being struck in the face and falling down a ladder during the race to the ship (especially after at least one BountyHunter survives a worse fall in the opening scene).

* BrokenBase:
** There are those who deeply disliked the changes made to Jack/Kyra in this film, going from an innocent and eager fangirl who went as far as to shave her head to look more like her idol into (in their opinion) a generic hot action girl with none of her previous traits. Those that disagree however find this to be a perfectly acceptable character development as A) she is older now and B) a lot of what we thought we knew about ''Jack'' was actually just an act.
** The massive GenreShift into SpaceOpera (compared to the relatively hard science fiction of the previous film) complete with Riddick becoming a Chosen One figure, was off-putting for many fans.

* WhatAnIdiot: Lord Marshal, you can use your astral projection ability to reach any weapon in the room, whether it's in the hands of one of your minions, or on a statue somewhere on the walls above. Why, then, when you're dodging a mortal strike, would you aim for the ''only'' weapon in the room which is down on the floor, situated right between your two opponents, which will leave you trapped between two people ready to deliver the killing blow to your head? Also, your ability includes SuperSpeed. Vaako is slooooooooowly swinging a massive halberd at you. Can't you simply evade the blow by relocating to literally anywhere else just for a second to catch your breath? It's not like your ability has a cooldown. (Although maybe the Lord Marshal's ability did weaken when he got wounded and he was indeed pressed for time, but that is not indicated at any point.)
** It could be argued that since he was caught in a damned if you do, damned if you don’t scenario he chose to be killed by Riddick, a warrior he respects even if villainously, over Vaako. You can see the look on his faces as both men are prepping the killing blow.

** Just that the villains are called "Necromongers". It's something of a miracle that all the performers managed to say that name every time without giggling. It doesn't help, either, that the Necromongers feel way too much like a ''[[Franchise/Warhammer40000 Warhammer 40k]]'' faction that got sanitized to pass muster in a PG-13 movie.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Riddick being at last captured and sent to a triple max prison on a hellhole planet where he reunites with a now jaded and cynical Jack would have made a fine enough plot on its own, without the frankly [[OutsideContextProblem out of left field]] Necros and all the SpaceOpera. Tellingly, ''Escape from Butcher Bay'' would go with a very similar plot to this, and earned a lot more acclaim than the film itself did.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: The Purifier's SecretTestOfCharacter conversation with Vaako is obviously a Loyalty test. It's not clear if he's acting on the Lord Marshall's behalf to ensure that Vaako isn't plotting against him, or, given the Purifier's later actions, if he is feeling him out to see if he'd make a potential ally. Probably the latter, as the Purifier is earlier seen subverting the Lord Marshal by setting Riddick free from the Quasi-Dead after he realized Riddick is a [[spoiler: fellow]] Furyan.
* BrokenBase: There are those who deeply disliked the changes made to Jack/Kyra in this film, going from an innocent and eager fangirl who went as far as to shave her head to look more like her idol into (in their opinion) a generic hot action girl with none of her previous traits. Those that disagree however find this to be a perfectly acceptable character development as A) she is older now and B) a lot of what we thought we knew about ''Jack'' was actually just an act.

** Kyra's "Shit! I ''hate'' not being the bad guys!" Yes, we get it. You're edgy.
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Riddick being at last captured and sent to a triple max prison on a hellhole planet where he reunites with a now jaded and cynical Jack would have made a fine enough plot on its own, without the frankly [[OutsideContextProblem out of left field]] necros. Tellingly, ''Escape from Butcher Bay'' would go with a very similar plot to this, and earned a lot more acclaim than the film itself did.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: There are those who deeply disliked the changes made to Jack/Kyra in this film, going from an innocent and eager fangirl who went as far as to shave her head to look more like her idol into (in their opinion) a generic hot action girl with none of her previous traits. Those that disagree however find this to be a perfectly acceptable character development as A) she is older now and B) a lot of what we thought we knew about ''Jack'' was actually just an act.

* BrokenBase: There are those who deeply disliked the changes made to Jack/Kyra in this film, going from an innocent and eager fangirl who went as far as to shave her head to look more like her idol into (in their opinion) a generic hot action girl with none of her previous traits. Those that disagree however find this to be a perfectly acceptable character development as A) she is older now and B) a lot of what we thought we knew about ''Jack'' was actually just an act.

* BaseBreaker: There are those who deeply disliked the changes made to Jack/Kyra in this film, going from an innocent and eager fangirl who went as far as to shave her head to look more like her idol into (in their opinion) a generic hot action girl with none of her previous traits. Those that disagree however find this to be a perfectly acceptable character development as A) she is older now and B) a lot of what we thought we knew about ''Jack'' was actually just an act.

** It could be argued that since he was caught in a damned if you damned if you don’t scenario he chose to be killed by Riddick, a warrior he respects even if villainously, over Vaako. You can see the look on his faces as both men are prepping the killing blow.

** [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] as the role was designed ''specifically for her'' by Vin Diesel and David Twohy. WordOfGod on either the DVD commentary or the "extras" subtitle track.