YMMV / American Ninja Warrior

• Base-Breaking Character: Kacy Catanzaro gained a colossal fanbase after her domination in both qualifying and finals in Season 6, being the first woman to complete a regional final. But many fans feel as though she gets talked up far too much by the announcers, and is shoehorned into episodes (such as mentioning styling James McGrath's hair). Her early eliminations in Seasons 7 and 8 have also made some fans less than impressed with her, and wish the announcers would drop the focus, especially after Jessie Graff cleared Stage 1 in the National Finals. The focus has continued into Season 9 where she got the most publicity in San Antonio qualifying despite fellow female ninja, Barclay Stockett, doing better than her.
  • On the men's side, Island Ninja Grant MacCartney is a divisive figure. Many hardcore fans see him as a Spotlight-Stealing Squad who is overexposed but many casual fans love him for his likable personality and stage presence.
• Broken Base: The new rule in Season 9 is that the top 5 females from each city qualifying will move on to city finals whether or not they made the top 30 and the top 2 females from each city finals will move on to Vegas whether or not they made it in the top 15. Some fans love it because they think it'll give female ninjas more of a chance to shine. Other people accuse the rule of being unfair because it grants women “special privileges”, especially since part of the appeal of the female ninjas was that they ran the same course as the males and still shined. However, as of season 13, it’s common for four or even all five of the advancing female competitors to qualify within the top 30 anyway, making the myriad of repetitive whining about the rule slightly die down for the first time in years.
  • Drew Dreschel - the winner of Season 11 - was arrested on sex charges relating to minors in August 2020. Most people, including the other competitors, were so shocked that they immediately renounced him. It gets especially horrific considering Flip Rodriguez's longtime friendship with Drew...
  • In 2021, Drechsel’s scandal also ended up making a base-breaker out of another veteran competitor - Brent Steffensen, who was already controversial in the community for his beliefs about COVID. He said in an Instagram video that “15-year-olds aren’t children”, and that Drechsel shouldn’t face punishment because “he wasn’t diddling 6-year-olds”. Unsurprisingly, Brent faced backlash from the other competitors and posted another video days later doubling down on his opinions and saying he was “retiring” so he would no longer have to see other ninjas, specifically name-dropping those who disagreed with him. Many fans speculate that Steffensen was asked not to return, or been told that he wouldn’t be called back due to his support for Dreschel, but claimed it was his choice to stop competing so as to save face.
• Disappointing Last Level: The Season 10 Vegas Finals for many. While it did bring some cool obstacles like En Garde and Deja Vu, most of the obstacles were just larger versions of city obstacles. A lot of fan favorites fell on Stage 1 leaving a field of virtual unknowns who got no focus. Also, the only ninjas who made it to Stage 3 had done so in the past 2 years so there were no new faces. In addition, no one made it past Ultimate Cliffhanger resulting in the worst finish for the Last Man Standing.
  • The Vegas course, period. Whether it's the First Stage becoming ridiculously stale with some of the obstacles (like the Jumping Spider not being featured on SASUKE for nearly 10 years yet returning unaltered every season on ANW), the Second Stage becoming increasingly strength-focused to the point the time limits were stretched so long that barely any tension's felt or the Final Stage still remaining the dull 25m rope (despite being beaten TWICE), the Vegas finals have been increasingly derided as an absolute chore to watch.
  • In an odd inversion of the above example, the Vegas course in Season 15 was heavily derided by some as being too easy. Due to changes in how the show would advance competitors, the competitors could theorhetically fall on both Stage 1 AND Stage 2 and STILL ADVANCE to Stage 3 anyway due to having a required amount of runners for Stage 2, and turning Stage 2 into a race where whoever outpaces their partner advances, regardless of if they finish the Stage or not. This decision guaranteed that more than a dozen atheletes would be attempting Stage 3, which itself was also heavily modified with what many called the easiest layout it has ever had, and EIGHT competitors attempting Stage 4 all but guaranteed at least one person would achieve Total Victory.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: Sean McColl of Team Europe absolutely dominated in "USA vs. The World", and he's a first timer on any Ninja Warrior competition. He's becoming a very popular person to try to come back to ANW.
  • Really, Team Europe, which mostly consisted of mountain climbers proved that they can do very well, despite most of them not competing in any Ninja Warrior competition.
  • The 2021 season lowered the eligible age for competitors; thus many former American Ninja Warrior Junior participants became this. The young dogs proved to be just as fast and powerful on the courses as long-time veterans... but one of them, Kaden Lebsack, has truly exceeded expectations. By making all the way to Stage Four. In his first year on ANW.
• Funny Moments: Competitor Reko Rivera running the course while dressed in a T. rex costume and actually doing pretty well. Made better by the commentators and editing acting as if an actual dinosaur had shown up to run the course.
  • Jake Murray is also a walking (or racing) Moment of Funny. Yes, he burns through the course like Sonic The Hedgehog, but he also does things like pull a corndog and swim goggles out of a fanny pack after hitting the buzzer and then cannonballing into the pool below.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: Matt Iseman compared Rob Moravsky to a karate movie villain from the '80s, a few years later, a famous villain from an 80's karate movie appeared in a spin-off and has a son who looks like Rob Moravsky named Robby.
• Iron Woobie: Lorin Ball, he's a great competitor and showman, but you wouldn't guess that with his performances in the past few years. In the past 3 seasons he's put up the best time in qualifiers in finals, but each year, it was different. In season 6, he fell shortly before the cutoff, though he got in as a Wildcard and made it to Stage 2. In season 7, he made the cutoff, but an injury made him miss Vegas. In season 8, he fell on only the second obstacle and didn't get a wildcard. He truly is a strong competitor, but with the string of bad luck he's had with the finals, it's not hard to feel bad for the guy. Despite all this, he still comes on with his spirit high.
• Narm: Regardless of how you feel about teenagers being on the show, their lessened life experience means the stories they have to tell come off as melodramatic when they're edited to be the equivalent of adults who have heartbreaking backstories. It's kind of hard to take the show making a spectacle of a teen having ADHD as comparable to stories like Flip Rodriguez ^note  Who was molested as a child and was clearly still immensely traumatized or Michael Stanger ^note  Whose wife and children were diagnosed with Ehler's Danlos Syndrome and he took up ninja to help take care of them. .
• Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: Wall Lift in American Ninja Warrior 4 was admonished for being a pointless obstacle due to being a time waster on a course with no time limit. American Ninja Warrior 5 saw it moved from qualifiers to the end of Stage 2, a course with a time limit. That along with making the walls heavier made it feel much more meaningful thereby improving its reputation.
• Shocking Elimination:
  • After skipping the third American Ninja Warrior, due to working on stunts for a movie, Levi Meeuwenburg returned to the competition for the fourth season, but he was jet-lagged from working in the Philippines. The result? FAILING ON THE QUAD STEPS!
  • In two subsequent years, Brent Steffensen took up this mantle, failing to complete the Venice finals in 2013 and only making it to Mt. Midoriyama as a wildcard and not even making the finals in 2014.
  • Also in 2014, David "Flip" Rodriguez took to the course and seemed to be heading for the finals... and then he slips on the Cargo Net - his butt touches the water, resulting in a disqualification. Even the spectators were shocked into silence.
  • Drew Drechsel entered the Miami finals in 2014 with the announcement that he was attempting to set a new record for the course. He ended up going out on the second obstacle.
  • In 2014, Brian Arnold was expected to get to Stage 3 and avenge it. However, he fell on the Unstable Bridge in Stage 2. He did redeem himself in "USA vs. the World" (which consisted of the exact same course, save for a tweaked "Rope Jungle") not just completing stage 2 but also completing stage 3.
  • In 2015, despite being a rookie, Nicholas Coolridge looked promising after being the only finisher in the Venice finals. On Stage 1 of the Vegas Finals, he fell on the Jumping Spider.
  • Not entirely "shocking" per se, but Geoff Britten - the first American Ninja Warrior ever - got eliminated from USA vs. The World competition due to his sickness. Fortunately, he was replaced by Joe Moravsky.
  • In international competitions, Team Japan is taking up that title.
  • Season 8 had an insane amount:
    • Abel Gonzalez, having made it all the way to Stage 3 in Season 7 had high expectations for Season 8 until he went out on the Paddle Boards in qualifying.
    • Mike Meyers was not a very well-known ninja, but having made it to Stage 2 in his rookie year, Season 7, made him seem like a Vegas hopeful... until he fell on the Wall Drop.
    • Lance Pekus, one of the most well-known ninjas who had dominated season 7, ended up failing on the third obstacle during season 8's qualifying round.
    • Sam Sann was coming off his best year finishing the finals course, but fell in qualifying after struggling with the Tire Swing.
    • Dan Yager, who nearly beat ninja killer Roulette Row, fell on the second obstacle in the City finals.
    • JJ Woods, who had been improving every season, even making it to Roulette Row in Season 7, saw his year take an early exit on the Big Dipper in the Atlanta Qualifiers.
    • Travis Rosen reached the Finals in 2016 as expected, but failed to proceed to Stage 2. What makes this especially shocking is that he went out on the first obstacle of Stage 1 (In his defense, it was a new obstacle).
    • The aforementioned Geoff Britten fell on that exact same obstacle.
    • Ian Dory came into this season with one of the best chances to win the season, which was stated in his interview, and fell on the Propeller Bar (the 2nd obstacle on Stage 1).
    • Mike Bernardo, one of the few ninjas who made it to Roulette Row, also fell on the Propeller Bar.
    • The Giant Log Grip took out numerous top ninjas expected to go further including Jo Jo Bynum, Jamie Rahn, Kevin Bull, Meaghan Martin, and Brent Steffensen (though his breakup with Kacy Catanzaro probably contributed as well).
  • In Daytona Qualifying, both Jo Jo Bynum and Mack Roesch, who put off stellar performances in Atlanta, fell on the Wingnuts.
  • Jake Murray was one of the top competitors of Season 8 even representing Team USA in USA vs. The World. While on pace to beat the fastest time in Denver Qualifying, he fell on the 3rd obstacle.
  • Grant McCartney was literally inches away from qualifying for Vegas in Season 9 when he fell on the final rung of the Salmon Ladder.
  • Ethan Swanson, Dan Polizzi, and Brandon Mears all looked like locks for Vegas, but all fell on the Broken Pipes.
  • In Seasons 8 and 9, Anthony DeFranco cleared the qualifying round in the fastest time for his region...making it all the more shocking when he fell on the Floating Steps in Season 10.
  • After winning the million-dollar prize in Season 7, Isaac Caldiero made his return to the course in Season 10, completing the qualifying course with ease. However, he proceeded to fail Block Run, the fourth obstacle in the city finals course, failing to qualify for Vegas for the first time ever.
  • Joe Moravsky was the top pick to win Season 10 after his second title of Last Man Standing... unfortunately, a slip-up on Double Dipper resulted in his first Stage 1 failure.
  • Adam Rayl started competing in Season 8, making it to Stage 2 in Vegas 6 years in a row... until ANW 14, where he shockingly failed in the semi-finals on the fifth obstacle Hopscotch, making it the first year he failed to make it to the Vegas finals entirely.
  • Even the strong contender to "win it all" for Season 15, Kaden Lebsack, suffered a shocking failure on Stage 2 course. During the Epic Air Surfer obstacle, his board slipped off the track - thus he fell into the water. In his prior two seasons, Lebsack always made it to the final rope climb of Stage 4.
• Spoiled by the Format:
  • Being pre-taped and almost at the end of airing, was how you could tell in the 2011 and 2012 editions that Brent Steffensen wouldn't complete Stage 3.
  • The same thing happens with Joe Moravsky in the 2014 and 2017 season finale.
  • And with Daniel Gil in Season 8.
  • When the show goes to commercial, it often shows clips of events to come in the show. During the Season 8 All-Stars episode, Joe Moravsky is seen successfully scaling the Mega Wall. Just before the commercial break, an observant viewer can see the height listed on the side, 18'6". Further, Moravsky is shirtless while running, whereas he is wearing his trademark yellow shirt at the beginning of the event, meaning he will succeed until he takes his shirt off.
  • During the era of the show being sponsored by pomegranate juice brand Pom Wonderful, the last run of the night’s result would typically be spoiled by the fact that Pom’s “crazy healthy run of the night” award hadn’t been awarded yet. Clearly, if they were waiting to give it to the last runner, that runner succeeds and does so in great time.
    • There was only ever one occasion in the history of the title that it went to someone who didn’t advance to the next round- amputee Artis Thompson III. Although he only got through three obstacles, he showed a better-than-expected performance from someone with a prosthetic and even finished a balance obstacle. However, even this acted as a spoiler- given that the award was given out halfway through the episode, it pretty much confirmed that the show’s face at the time Kacy Catanzaro, set to run later in the episode, was not going to do well.
• That One Level: Philadelphia City Finals featured the first course ever with no finishers thanks to the Rolling Thunder tiring everyone out and the Stair Hopper delivering the final blow.
  • The next season Kansas City Finals became this
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Many fans dislike the way the show used the wildcard in later seasons, as they would “only be granted to female contestants”.
  • However, this is objectively false. Ask Season 8 (the latest season wildcards were given) wildcard pick Jesse Cargill, and other male wildcards leading up to that point such as Brent Steffensen, Kavon Sadler, Lorin Ball, Mario Mendoza, Rob Moravsky, Evan Dollard…
• The Woobie:
  • "Flip" Rodriguez. Although all of the competitors are shown to be good sports with each other, his sunny personality still shines. And yet, he still fails on some shocking obstacles. He takes his losses pretty hard, and it's easy to want to give him a hug.
    • And then Flip gets so CLOSE to finally dominating Mt. Midoriyama, and is literally as far away as pulling himself up with his foot before his hands finally give out on the Invisible Ladder and he's sent plummeting.
    • In Los Angeles Finals, he reveals he was sexually abused as a child. While this alone solidifies his status as one, it also puts a lot about him in a new light. He explains why he used to wear the mask, and it could be part of why he takes his losses so hard.
  • In the International competitions, Team Japan is, quite frankly, this. Considering how nice and respected the members are, seeing them fall well short of the other teams is really disheartening, and you can't help but want to give them all hugs.
  • Many competitors often have difficult life stories and have suffered incredible losses to themselves or to their loved ones. "Philly Phoenix" Najee Richardson was attempting to forge a better life through a gymnastics scholarship, but a terrible injury benched him, for example.
  • Joe Moravsky after his fall on the Double Dipper. He was so disappointed in himself that he couldn't even speak to Kristine Leahy despite his best efforts.

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