History YMMV / LuckyLuke

* TearJerker: Oddly enough, not the sad kind, but because of StatusQuoIsGod, the ending of ''Daisy Town'' has Lucky Luke being a "lonesome cowboy" once more when the townsfolk decide to up and abandon the titular town for some gold that was found in the hills. The once lively Daisy Town quickly takes on the look of a {{ghost town}}. Even if Lucky Luke is as placid as always with his [[TheDrifter drifter]] status, it's still hard not to hold back tears when he rides off into the sunset while the emotionally sweeping "I'm a Poor Lonesome Cow-boy" starts playing. The slight melancholic twang in the vocals doesn't help either.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XStbIfIQFM "I'm a Poor Lonesome Cow-boy"]] in its full glory which served as the ending theme for ''Daisy Town'' (and later truncated for the 80s animated series co-produced by Creator/HannaBarbera) has become a classic tune for the title character and its franchise.

* TearJerker: Oddly enough, not the sad kind, but because of StatusQuoIsGod, the ending of ''Daisy Town'' has Lucky Luke being a "lonesome cowboy" once more when the townsfolk decide to up and abandon the titular town for some gold that was found in the hills. The once lively Daisy Town quickly takes on the look of a {{ghost town}}. Even if Lucky Luke is as placid as always with his [[TheDrifter drifter]] status, it's still hard not to hold back tears when he rides off into the sunset while the emotionally sweeping "I'm a Poor Lonesome Cow-boy" starts playing. The slightly melancholic twang in the singing doesn't help either.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7FVL_RBauc "I'm a Poor Lonesome Cow-boy"]] in its full glory which served as the ending theme for ''Daisy Town'' (and later truncated for the 80s animated series co-produced by Creator/HannaBarbera) has become a classic tune for the title character and its franchise.

* EstrogenBrigade: It's not uncommon to hear from women who grew up with this series/franchise that they had a crush on the titular character himself, mainly helped from the fact that Luke is drawn in a pretty appealing caricatured way.

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The opening from the 1983 cartoon, which starts with an electric guitar, has become almost as iconic as "I'm A Poor Lonesome Cow-boy" and it sounds awesome to every language it has been translated to.

%%* EnsembleDarkhorse: Calamity Jane.

* WeirdAlEffect: At least in Francophone Europe and in Québec, the Dalton brothers from ''Lucky Luke'' are much more recognizable than the historical Dalton gang.

!!YMMV items from the cartoons:
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: the theme song for ''Les Nouvelles Aventures de Lucky Luke'' is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5jiulc5DRQ extremely catchy]].
* FoeYay: Lucky Luke and Joe. Constantly. Not only is Joe obsessed with killing Lucky Luke, but he often postpones his original plans just to try to kill him. The title of the episode "Cuff Love" is also somewhat suggestive (seeing as it is focusing on Luke and Joe)
* Sugarwiki/HeartwarmingMoments: In the episode "Dalton Junior" the Daltons [[ParentalSubstitute start taking care of a baby]] given to them. Joe is very reluctant towards the idea of keeping the baby, but over the course of the episode he warms up to him and even goes to the doctor because he feels genuine love and cannot comprehend it. At the end of the episode the baby and Joe are separated but it's obvious that [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Joe]] can't forget him.
* TearJerker:
** The ending for "The Daltons Cow-boys" is surprisingly bittersweet, even though the character deserved it somewhat. Cynthia, a daughter of a wealthy ranch owner, is in her thirties and her father laments that she had not yet found a man...until she develops a crush on Averell and instantly becomes an AbhorrentAdmirer to the point of making Averell miserbale. When he admits that he does not return her feelings, and because it was her first crush, she is NotGoodWithRejection and becomes emotionally unstable. And when she thought she was tricked by him by trying to reconcile with her (who was actually Joe in disguise) just to steal her family's fortune, she goes after Averell (and his brothers to an extent) in an attempt to kill them. When Lucky Luke makes her see how crazy her infatuation has made her, she tearfully surrenders. The last shot of the episode is Cynthia stealing one last glance at Averell with tears in her eyes as he and his brothers are led away by Lucky Luke back to prison, implying that she's regretful at how he treated him.
** A minor one, both on account of lasting very little and being predictably an act, happens in the "Vultures in The Plain" episode. Our cowboy befriends and speaks kindly to one of the similar-faced undertakers named Barnaby who is peer-pressured by a much more sociopathic undertaker named Deadflower to raise his clientele by naturally raising the body-count. Luke decides that the best way to deal with Deadflower is to fake his death in a duel, which leads to Barnaby breaking down and crying over losing the only person who ever spoke to him as a friend. Even though he didn't really die, the genuine pain in the words of a man who got used to being avoided all his life, can be heartbreaking.

* NightmareFuel: In the movie Daisy Town the showdown between Luke and the Daltons starts of as rather sinister with ominous music playing, the Daltons ready to kill and the whole town pausing at whatever they were doing to listen to the sound of the approaching combatants.[[spoiler: And then the whole thing ventures to purely comedic NightmareRetardant thanks to Lucky Luke's plan.]]

* EnsembleDarkhorse:
** The Daltons sometimes became even more popular than Luke. In fact, in the [=XilamAnimation=] produced series ''WesternAnimation/TheDaltons'', Lucky Luke [[TheGhost doesn't even appear]], and the focus is on the Daltons as they try to escape from prison.
** Rantaplan, to the point he got his own series.
** A minor example with Calamity Jane.

** The ending for "The Daltons Cow-boys" is surprisingly bittersweet, even though the character deserved it somewhat. Cynthia, a daughter of a wealthy ranch owner, is in her thirties and her father laments that she had not yet found a man...until she develops a crush on Averell and instantly becomes an AbhorrentAdmirer to the point of making Averell miserbale. When he admits that he does not return her feelings, and because it was her first crush, she is NotGoodWithRejection and becomes emotionally unstable. And when she thought she was tricked by him by trying to reconcile with her (who was actually Joe in disguise) just to steal her family's fortune, she goes after Averell (and his brothers to an extent) in an attempt to kill them. When Lucky Luke makes her see how crazy her infatuation has made her, she tearfully surrenders. The last shot of the episode is Cynthia stealing one last glance at Averell with tears in her eyes as he and his brothers are led away by Lucky Luke back to prison, implying that she regretted her actions.

* CrazyAwesome: Calamity Jane is a [[TheLadette Ladette]] BoisterousBruiser SirSwearsALot who will shoot you if you don't show elementary gallantry toward women, constantly defies the DamselInDistress trope and generally rivals Luke in sheer badassery.

* ShipTease: With actress ''Sarah Bernhardt'' if you can believe it. After Luke worked as a bodyguard for her on her first tour of the U.S, she gives him a personal autographed photo with the following message written on it: ''To Lucky Luke, who's only lonesome because he chooses to be''.

** In "A Cowboy in High Cotton", Luke inherits a large cotton farm, including the recently-freed african-american workforce. When he arrives, one of the workers speaks up to him, demanding payment for the months they've gone unpaid since the previous owner died. Two of the workers in the crowd are utterly terrified, certain that Luke will shoot her dead any moment. It's a sober reminder of the realities of slavery. While the audience know that Luke would never harm anyone, the former slaves know all too well how cruel white men can be, and have no reason to expect Luke to be any different.

** In "A Cowboy in High Cotton", Luke inherits a large cotton farm, including the recently-freed african-american workforce. When he arrives, one of the workers speaks up to him, demanding payment for the months they've gone unpaid since the previous owner died. Two of the workers in the crowd are utterly terrified, certain that Luke will shoot her dead any moment. It's a sober reminder of the realities of slavery. While the audience know that Luke would never harm anyone, the former slaves know all to well how cruel white men can be, and have no reason to expect Luke to be any different.

* OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight: The majority of the fans refuse to acknowledge Laurent Gerra as Morris' successor.
** Technically, Laurent Gerra is the latest of the numerous Goscinny's successors, while Achdé is pretty faithful to Morris' drawing style.

* TearJerker: In ''A Cure For The Daltons'', the psychatrist's treatment actually works on Averell, who begins to regret his life of crime and his underlying good nature shines through. At one point, he actually breaks down sobbing after he steals thread from a store (the psychiatrist had gotten him interested in needlepoint).
--> '''Averell''': I know it's bad to steal, but I couldn't help myself! [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness Go ahead and eat without me, I'm not hungry...]]

** The ending for "The Daltons Cow-boys" is surprisingly bittersweet, even though the character deserved it somewhat. Cynthia, a daughter of a wealthy ranch owner, is in her thirties and her father laments that she had not yet found a man...until she develops a crush on Averell and instantly becomes and AbhorrentAdmirer to the point of making Averell miserbale. When he admits that he does not return her feelings, and because it was her first crush, she is NotGoodWithRejection and becomes emotionally unstable. And when she thought she was tricked by him by trying to reconcile with her (who was actually Joe in disguise) just to steal her family's fortune, she goes after Averell (and his brothers to an extent) in an attempt to kill them. When Lucky Luke makes her see how crazy her infatuation has made her, she tearfully surrenders. The last shot of the episode is Cynthia stealing one last glance at Averell with tears in her eyes as he and his brothers are led away by Lucky Luke back to prison, implying that she regretted her actions.

** The ending for "The Daltons Cow-boys" is surprisingly bittersweet, even though the character deserved it somewhat. Cynthia, a daughter of a wealthy ranch owner, is in her thirties and laments that she had not yet found a man...until she develops a crush on Averell and instantly becomes and AbhorrentAdmirer to the point of making Averell miserbale. When he admits that he does not return her feelings, and because it was her first crush, she is NotGoodWithRejection and becomes emotionally unstable. And when she thought she was tricked by him by trying to reconcile with her (who was actually Joe in disguise) just to steal her family's fortune, she goes after Averell (and his brothers to an extent) in an attempt to kill them. When Lucky Luke makes her see how crazy her infatuation has made her, she tearfully surrenders. The last shot of the episode is Cynthia stealing one last glance at Averell with tears in her eyes as he and his brothers are led away by Lucky Luke back to prison, implying that she regretted her actions.

* TearJerker: The episode "The Dalton Cow-boys" is rather comedic for most of the episode, but has a surprisingly BittersweetEnding. Cynthia, who despite being portrayed as an AbhorrentAdmirer and is rightfully rejected by Averell for her advances, seems to regret her actions during the last scene as she tearfully steals one last glance at Averell who was going back to jail with his brothers. It stings even more when it's mentioned throughout that it was her very first crush.
** Judging from the situation Averell is put through, he's a total {{woobie}} from start to finish with Cynthia's relentless crush and Joe forcing him to stay on her good side for the sake of revealing the location of her father's money in order for them to steal it. His smile as Luke sends them away back to jail is the "sweet" part on the aforementioned bittersweet conclusion of the episode.

* TearJerker: The episode "The Dalton Cow-boys" is rather comedic for most of the episode, but has a surprisingly BittersweetEnding for Cynthia, who, despite being portrayed as an AbhorrentAdmirer and is rightfully rejected by Averell for her advances, she seems to regret it at the last scene when she tearfully steals one last glance at Averell who was going back to jail with his brothers.

* TearJerker: Despite the original source material and any other adaptations thereof is far from being a treasure trove of emotions (given that it's a comedy, spaghetti western parody and all), there's something surprisingly poignant about [[{{Tomboy}} Cynthia's]] plight in the "The Dalton Cowboys" that makes you sympathize with her a bit as the episode goes on. Sam laments that [[ChristmasCake being in her thirties]], [[OldMaid she's not getting any younger]] but he still hopes that she will find a husband. Upon meeting the Daltons, she [[LoveAtFirstSight immediately develops a crush on Averell]] and becomes an AbhorrentAdmirer who makes Averell so miserable, he begs for her to let him go back to be with his brothers. After thinking she's been deceived (thanks to Joe's plan when he was disguised as Averell and having tricked her into opening her father's safe), she seeks vengeance on Averell during her rampage but Lucky Luke stops her just in time, and tells her that [[LoveMakesYouCrazy love has made a crazed fiend out of her]] to which she responds with tears. Her father says that it's her first love and acknowledges that it's always the worst. He reassures Luke that she'll get over it. Then we cut to the ending -- once Luke takes the Daltons back to prison, Cynthia steals one last glance. She gives way to a whimper (possibly repenting), then goes back to fixing the farm's roof, more upset than ever. It's one of the few, if not only, truly {{bittersweet ending}}s.

* A minor one, both on account of lasting very little and being predictably an act, happens in the "Vultures in The Plain" episode. Our cowboy befriends and speaks kindly to one of the similar-faced undertakers named Barnaby who is peer-pressured by a much more sociopathic undertaker named Deadflower to raise his clientele by naturally raising the body-count. Luke decides that the best way to deal with Deadflower is to fake his death in a duel, which leads to Barnaby breaking down and crying over losing the only person who ever spoke to him as a friend. Even though he didn't really die, the genuine pain in the words of a man who got used to being avoided all his life, can be heartbreaking.

* VillainDecay: The Dalton Brothers have suffered quite a bit of it over the years. In ''Les Cousins Dalton'', their 1958 debut, they get the best of Lucky Luke, forcing him to service for a time. Within the story each brother is given different character traits. Joe is the mastermind, William is obsessed with guns and using everything on sight for target practice, Jack is a master of disguise. Averell is naive but also a superb boxer. In fact he fights Luke to a standstill. Luke only wins by using his cunning, not his fists. The two combatants agree to meet for a rematch and retreat to their own rooms for sleep. Only Luke manages to releases mosquitos in Averell's room. The following day, Luke is fresh after a good night's sleep, Averell has not managed to sleep at all. He can barely walk, much less fight. Since then, several stories portray them as incompetents, and in some stories William and Jack may as well be interchangeable for all the characterization they get, if they are not relegated to background status within the group, where Joe and Averell tend to get the spotlight almost exclusively.

* ShipTease: With actress ''Sarah Bernhardt'' if you can believe it. After working as a bodyguard for her on her first tour of the U.S, she gives him a personal autographed photo with the following message written on it: ''To Lucky Luke, who's only lonesome because he chooses to be''.

* EarWorm[=/=]SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: the theme song for ''Les Nouvelles Aventures de Lucky Luke'' is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5jiulc5DRQ extremely catchy]].

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: One track in particular stands out, "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEKIlV40WxI&feature=related Train]]" from the first GB/GBC Lucky Luke game. While the series itself shows pretty good music overall, this one is [[EarWorm bound to get stuck in your head for a while]].