YMMV / Doki Doki Literature Girls

• Catharsis Factor:
  • After insulting Natsuki and the others constantly, it is satisfying to watch the Perfect Yuri be on the receiving end of a Suplex Finisher by Natsuki.
• Ensemble Dark Horse:
  • The Perfect Yuri, Yuri's sort of Superpowered Evil Side. Fans loved her so much, that after Yuri returned to normal, the author brought her back a bit later as the embodiment of Yuri's insecurities.
  • Surprisingly enough, Ako. She became a huge hit due her original concept and adorable interactions with Sayori. Fans send lots of fanart of her to the blog shortly after her introduction.
• Memetic Mutation: Why Yui, why? ^Explanation Yui, as the creator of the comic, is known for the dramatic turns in several story arcs, especially when it comes to the characters learning some sort of truth.
• Narm: Many of the romantic moments can be pretty ham-fisted in how they're executed.
  • Narm Charm: However, even then, these moments are presented as being truly tender, further emphasizing the bond that the couples feel for each other.
• Nightmare Fuel: See here.
• Seasonal Rot: The Friendship arc. While Yui had teased the inclusion of a new character to the story, it was at first met with mixed reception, but proved to be an otherwise intriguing idea. However, the further the arc continued, it knowingly disregards characterization of particularly Sayori herself: given how she could read other people's emotions, it comes off as particularly stupid that she wouldn't pick up that Ako was falling in love with her until she was nearly kissed by her.
• Ugly Cute: Many have stated that they found Anthy adorable, even though she is a mix-matched character with razor sharp teeth and barely passes as "human."
• Unintentionally Sympathetic: As Yui herself noted, she had initially created Ako to be dislikeable and unpleasant. However, instead this would lead to Ako becoming one of the most popular side characters alongside the Perfect yuri, so much so, she was booted to the main cast.
• Unintentionally Unsympathetic: Monika. While she has her reasons due to her previous actions in the game, Monika comes off as needlessly clingy and contemplated deleting Sayori's friend out of jealousy.
  • Surprisingly enough, Sayori during the Friendship arc. While other characters — especially Monika — suspect Ako developing a crush on Sayori, Sayori at first appears oblivious to this. However, it is then revealed that not only did Sayori know the truth, but she pretended to play dumb about it. While she justifies it by saying she did that because she didn't want to hurt Ako, Ako is understandably angered at Sayori's deception, and rightfully accuses her of being a liar.
• Win Back the Crowd: When the author announced that a new main character would join the cast, fans were mostly skeptic of the idea for a variety of reasons. However, once Ako was introduced, fans instantly loved her, due her very original concept (an NPC learning to expand beyond her limits) as well as her likeable personality and nice synergy with Sayori.