YMMV / Ellen

• Anvilicious:
  • In season five's "When Ellen Talks, People Listen," Ellen uses her radio show to vent about how people in L.A. are so isolated that they dismiss people in need of help.
  • Many argue that the entire series became this after the coming out episode. Even Chaz Bono, media director for GLAAD, criticized the show (a comedy) for its overly drama-heavy turn and extreme focus on gay issues.
• Arc Fatigue: The build-up to Ellen coming out. Lampshaded after she finally does, as her therapist advises her that keeping it secret from her friends will only result in a bunch of tiresome “clues”.
• Growing the Beard: Most people concur that the various retools improved the show over time, but opinions vary as to when precisely this began. Some fans feel this happened in season two with the introduction of Paige; others believe the show didn't really hit its stride until season three, when it finally settled on an ensemble that it stuck with. Others still, like guest-star Oprah Winfrey, think the controversial final season was when the series reached its peak, having finally found a definitive point of view.
• Harsher in Hindsight: Episodes featuring Anne Heche can be a little uncomfortable to watch nowadays, given her and Ellen’s very public and acrimonious breakup several years after they were produced. This is especially true following Heche’s death, as media coverage of her passing brought renewed attention to the details of their tumultuous relationship.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: In "Escape from LA" Ellen makes a joke about whales, then says "That's how whales talk."
• Moment of Awesome: Ellen saying "I'm Gay" into the loudspeaker at the airport. The entire season had been building up to that moment and the audience naturally went wild. Also manages to be a Funny Moments since you didn't expect her to come out like that.
  • Even better when her date gets a toaster oven from Melissa Etheridge, a payoff to the Brick Joke she made earlier.
• Retroactive Recognition:
  • Giovanni Ribisi played the cashier in the series pilot.
  • Paige's sister Heather was played by Connie Britton, in one of her earliest television credits.
  • Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory) portrayed Ellen as a child during flashbacks in "The Bubble-Gum Incident."
  • Jeremy Piven (Spence) went on to play Cupid and some foul-mouthed agent.
• Strangled by the Red String: Paige and Spence, who at first hated each other.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Many feel the final season was marred by becoming "too gay." Elton John even infamously told her to shut up about being gay and be funny again.
• Unintentional Period Piece:
  • "The Houseguest" featured a subplot where Adam obtains counterfeit tickets to Sunset Boulevard starring Glenn Close, which was playing in Los Angeles at the time of production.
  • Contains some contemporary film references, namely to Pulp Fiction, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Batman Forever, Sling Blade and Fly Away Home.
  • After Ellen came out, there were naturally quite a few references to gay marriage not being legal at the time.

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