Kino's Journey/YMMV

• Designated Hero: Kino may be polite and a nice person in normal situations, but (usually) won't raise a finger to save anyone. Her lack of empathy on other people's death is also a bit disturbing.
• Crowning Moment of Awesome: -> I told you not to call me "boy" and I am nobody's god.
• Family-Unfriendly Aesop: Often at the end of stories, Kino never judges anyone. Kino may like or dislike a situation or person, but won't act unless directly threatened. Kino sometimes philosophically worries about this, but loves traveling too much to give it up.
• Nightmare Fuel: Episode 4. One of the things that adults should NOT be able to do with a smile is murder their children.
• Stupid Sacrifice: The volcano episode. Ok, one could understand a few of the oldest residents of the town preferring death to adjusting to new surroundings, but parents letting their children be vaporized by lava?! All the stories have a Fairy Tale air to them so some fridge logic can be explained by narrativium, but this is heading straight into Fridge Horror.
• Tear Jerker: The prologue and epilogue of volume 6 consists of an entry of a father's diary on the date Kino is born. The father was crying with happines when he writes his diary, and vows to live for his daughter's happiness until the day he dies. Cut to ten years later, and Kino's father attempting to stab his daughter to death with a kitchen knife and can't help but feel happy about it, due to the device implanted in his head which makes him feel content on anything he does. He's forced to attack her due to the fact that Kino is against having the same device implanted in her.
  • One word: Volcano.
• What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids?: Oh, look! A story about a cute teenager traveling around on her talking motorcycle! And what softly coloured little-kiddy art! Too bad it's full of Nightmare Fuel and Mind Screw...