YMMV / Drop Dead Diva

• Ass Pull: Grayson kissing Stacy in the season 3 finale. Up to that point, they had only ever be shown as friends, and even then they weren't that close. Even while Grayson was working on her case, he kept things professional when Deb's memory wasn't involved. Then suddenly, when Grayson is telling Stacy she is off the hook, she reminds him of Deb so much that he feels compelled to kiss her. What is worse is that every part of the cliffhanger the season ends on (Jane leaving, Jane still being in a relationship with Owen, Fred leaving, and Grayson finding out about the truth) all depend on Grayson suddenly doing this.
• Designated Villain:
  • Kim. Though she's not particularly villainous, she's set up as the bad guy to Jane the protagonist.
  • She recently seems to have moved on from her one-dimensional "Alpha Bitch grown up" role to a character with stories, flaws, and strengths in her own right. Though when she and Jane face off as rivals, Jane is still usually portrayed as being in the right.
  • She has, as of season four, reverted to Designated Villain status.
• Glurge: It certainly has its moments.
• Hilarious in Hindsight : Stacy invented the pake. As of Thanksgiving 2015, we have the Piecaken.
• Hollywood Homely: Brooke Elliott may be plus-sized, but she is not plain...
  • In fact, the show rarely, if ever, brings up Jane's size or appearance as an issue of any sort. Typically, it was more just Deb herself commenting on the differences (wondering why Jane picked clothing that didn't flatter her figure, for instance) rather than making some sort of statement that Deb was unequivocally prettier than Jane. By the second season, the show has seemingly dropped this aspect too and the entire cast is treated as equally attractive. Deb herself comments that Jane has great teeth, hair, and skin.
    • Granted, the original Jane was heavily implied to not care much about her appearance or even relationship romantic or otherwise in general, giving off a general air of frumpiness and only really having Teri as a friend.
  • Fred works as a male example. Jane mentions repeatedly that Fred and Stacey are in completely different leagues. It becomes a Wallbanger when, after he successfully romances her, and she forgets (long story) that Jane still says he's not her type.
    • And yet, Stacey says that Owen is good-looking.
  • The inverse of Hollywood Homely is also, sorta, toyed with. Kim is slightly below average while Stacey would be the usual 'average' in a TV show. However, Kim is presented as just as attractive as Stacey.
  • Tony works as a male example. He's not quite the hollywood handsome that Greyson and Parker are.
    • Revisited in Season 6. Deb reveals to Grayson that she's returned. Part of the reason she kept her secret was that she didn't believe Grayson could love her "in this body." After which he delivers both an Armor-Piercing Question ("Did you really think I was that shallow?") and a "The Reason You Suck" Speech. It goes about how you'd expect.
• Moment of Awesome: In the very first episode, Deb gives Jane's client a rousing speech about how thier case rides on her getting back her self-confidence. Because if she lets her cheating husband win this case, then she's lost the strong, confident woman she once was forever. At hearing this, the client gets her second wind and confidently agrees to testify against her husband, even if it means facing that her husband's lover was her younger sister. She was initially reluctant to testify out of injured pride, but she's no longer ashamed of herself. The ex-husband is left stunned, realizing he's up a creek without a paddle.
• Narm: Maddie Ziegler's cameo scene in which she falls mid-solo. Not only is the fall sort of forced (and this is even without knowing Maddie's jumping capability), but Maddie calling out her dance instructor afterwards is way too wooden to strike any sort of emotional chord. Even worse is the fact that everyone around her treats it seriously, which only adds to the hilarity.
  "Why wouldn't you change my routine? Leave me alone! You're a terrible teacher! You ruined my life!"
• Strangled by the Red String: Season 6's Owen/Stacy pairing is very forced and the source of a bunch of drama, and only comes about from the two of them acting wildly out of character to make it work.
• Tear Jerker: On her deathbed, Jane's mom, Elaine, reveals she's always known Deb wasn't the real Jane but loves her like a true daughter.
• The Woobie:
  • Fred probably qualifies. First, Deb gets him demoted from Celestial Bureaucracy when she self-resurrects herself. Then he finds the girl of his dreams only to have any memories of his existence erased from everyone, and he's forced back to heaven. He gives up heaven to become human, only to have the girl start dating someone else.
  • Not to mention when he and dream girl finally date (as he becomes a guardian angel again, but with a different contract – he can date humans- and all seems to be going real well, dream girl cheats on him, they somewhat reconcile, and dream girl cheats again (to him, since it wasn't dream girl who kissed first but dream girl may have kissed back.)
    • And to boot, even telling her just the romance stuff seems to violate his contract with heaven and causes her to forget again.
    • His replacement, Luke Daniels, seems to be in a similar situation with Kim. However, he doesn't seem willing to give anything up for her.