History YMMV / MalazanBookOfTheFallen

* FandomBerserkButton: * The ''Literature/MalazanBookOfTheFallen'' was written by Steven Erikson, not Steve Erickson, Stephen Erickson, or even Erik Stevenson. To add insult to injury, a good number of people who cannot be bothered to take a look at the cover are those who claim he cannot write worth a damn.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Cotillion and Udinaas are quite popular.

* CrazyAwesome: Karsa Orlong, Iskaral Pust, Tehol & Bugg, Second Seguleh, Bauchelain and Korbal Broach, propably all sapers...

** Sums up everyone's behaviour around Kallor. First they let the psycho into their army, then they mock and belittle him. Brilliant move, people.

* CompleteMonster: Bidithal [[EvilOldFolks an elderly member]] of the rebellious army the Whirlwind and its most powerful High Mage, Bidithal gets away with his atrocities due to his power and high position. He has a disturbing taste for [[{{Lolicon}} little girls]] that he rapes and performs female circumcision on. In his darkest act, Bidithal captures the adopted daughter of the Whirlwind's leader, Felisin the Younger, and rapes her. He tells her he will "drink all the pleasure from your precious body, leaving naught but bitterness, naught but dead places within." Even the barbarian AntiHero Karsa Orlong finds Bidithal an utter blot on humanity as a whole and relishes a chance to force Bidithal to [[KarmicDeath choke on his pleasure]].

* CultClassic: Opinions abound that it will never reach mainstream success circa ASongOfIceAndFire because its depth and complexity is alienating.

* CompleteMonster: Bauchelain and Korbal Broach.

** Pretty much sums up everyone's behaviour around Kallor. First they let the psycho into their army, then they mock and belittle him. Brilliant move, people.
** Sorry/Apsalar. Multiple people have pointed out to her that [[spoiler: abandoning Cutter wasn't a great idea. Anyone who's moderately perceptive can spot either of their broken hearts pretty much immediately.]]
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds:
** The Crippled God
** Even more so, Korabas.
** [[spoiler:Rhulad Sengar. It's hard to not to sympathise with him, after his mind starts to slowly break apart because of his deaths... and deaths of his loved ones. Also Udinaas, his only friend, betrays him - or so he thinks...]]

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Karsa, whose tribal culture considers rape and pillage as a RiteOfPassage.

* TakeThat: In ''The Crippled God'' (no spoiler) one character is having a smoke and idly wonders if there is any meaning to the habit. She recalls a scholar, no name given, who claimed it had to do with [[Creator/AynRand man's mastery of fire]] and such. She decides that the scholar was just trying really hard to justify her habit, and that tying the habit into philosophy was just really weird. The series features many similar examples; Steven Erikson has a decidedly snarky sense of humour at times.

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: ''Everything'' about the Dying God.

* BaseBreaker: Karsa Orlong.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Karsa, whose tribal culture considers rape and pillage as a RiteOfPassage.

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: ''Everything'' about the Dying God.

* TakeThat: In ''The Crippled God'' (no spoiler) one character is having a smoke and idly wonders if there is any meaning to the habit. She recalls a scholar, no name given, who claimed it had to do with [[AynRand man's mastery of fire]] and such. She decides that the scholar was just trying really hard to justify her habit, and that tying the habit into philosophy was just really weird. The series features many similar examples; Steven Erikson has a decidedly snarky sense of humour at times.

** [[spoiler:Rhulad Sengar. It's hard to not to sympathise with him, after his mind starts to slowly break apart because of his deaths... and deaths of his loved ones. Also Udinaas, his only friend, betrays him - or so he thinks...]]

* TakeThat: In ''The Crippled God'' (no spoiler) one character is having a smoke and reflects if there is any meaning to the habit. She recalls a scholar, no name given, who claimed it had to do with [[AynRand man's mastery of fire]] and such. She decides that the scholar was just trying really hard to justify her habit, and that tying the habit into philosophy was just really weird. The series features many similar examples; Steven Erikson has a decidedly snarky sense of humour at times.

* OlderThanTheyThink: The series owes a consdiderable debt to ''TheBlackCompany.''

* IKnewIt:[[spoiler:Some fan speculation held that the final book would portray the Crippled God as a sympathetic victim, and end with his liberation and healing. This is exactly what happened.]]

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Some fan speculation holds that the final book will portray BigBad [[spoiler:the Crippled God]] as a sympathetic victim, and end with his liberation and healing.
** [[spoiler: this happend more or less]]

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: ''Everything'' about the Dying God

** Even more so, Korabas.

* ArcFatigue: The Tiste Edur and Jade Giant storylines.
* BoringInvincibleHero: Arguably Karsa Orlong, in later books any fight involving him is more or less a foregone conclusion. [[spoiler:His fight with Rhulad is the most obvious example of this, with Karsa killing the unkillable warrior with little challenge]]
* CanonSue: Arguably Whiskeyjack. ''Karsa.'' And every third character.

* JerkassWoobie: Felisin Paran.
* MoralEventHorizon: A particularly obvious example, Sirryn Kanar in ''Reaper's Gale'' seems to exist solely to cross it repeatedly.

* TheScrappy: The Mhbye in ''Memories of Ice.'' [[YourMileageMayVary Depending on who you ask]] Karsa Orlong and/or Kruppe as well.

* SeasonalRot: [[YourMileageMayVary Some]] feel this way about some of or most of the books following ''Memories of Ice'', ''Toll the Hounds'' especially.

* {{Woobie Destroyer of Worlds}}: The Crippled God

* LoveItOrHateIt: The series as a whole, and ''Midnight Tides'' in particular.

* CrazyAwesome: Karsa Orlong, Iskaral Pust, Tehol & Bugg, Second Seguleh, propably all sapers...

** [[spoiler: this happend]]

* {{DarthWiki/Wallbanger}}: Pretty much every issue with timeline of books. Especially in TtH - [[spoiler:Harrlo is 6 years old. Karsa's daughters are teenagers.]] WHAT?

* {{Woobie Destroyer of Worlds}}: The Crippled God