TV/Movie/Book Tropes You Rarely See

emuboy

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In TV Shows, movies and literature, have you ever encountered a trope that is very unusual and for that reason, sticks in the mind?

As examples:

INTERQUELS - Sequels are very common, and prequels have become more common in recent years. However, one very rarely sees an interquel, produced at a later date but set between two existing works in the same series. The only example I can name off hand is one of the CS Lewis Narnia books, "The Horse and His Boy", which is set when Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are adults in Narnia.

CHUCK CUNNINGHAM SYNDROME IN REVERSE - Chuck Cunningham Syndrome occurs when a character is removed from a TV series (less commonly a movie series or book series) without explanation and never mentioned again as if they never existed. Chuck Cunningham, the eldest brother from Happy Days is the best known example; others include Sara Spooner from The King of Queens, Cynthia from Malcolm in the Middle and Judy Winslow from Family Matters. More rarely a TV series will introduce a new character out of nowhere without introduction and directly reference them being involved in earlier events. One example I can think of is Captain Mike Yates from Dr. Who, who arrived for the 1971 series along with Jo Grant but unlike Jo it was said Yates was around during the Third Doctor's previous adventures with Liz Shaw. More recently, American sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond introduced Gianni, a friend of Raymond about halfway through the series 9 season run who is not seen or referenced in earlier series but said to have been one of Raymond's oldest friends, and appears in most flashback episodes from this point onwards.

SEEN CHARACTER BECOMES UNSEEN CHARACTER - Unseen characters are common, with some never being revealed (Maris Crane - Frasier), some only heard or partially seen or some who are eventually revealed later in the series (Morty Fine - The Nanny). Much rarer is when a seen character becomes an unseen character when the actor leaves; the character remains around but just out of sight. I can only name two examples. One was Bruno from Kingswood Country; when Lex Marinos left for the last series Bruno was still said to be around, but always just out of sight. Another was from British sitcom The Worst Week of My Life, where lead character Howard had a dramatic sister-in-law named Sophie who was a major character in the first series, but took on the characteristics of an unseen character in the next two series.

Can anyone else think of unusual tropes they have seen, or other examples of the ones I listed?
 
Another two example of the Chuck Cunningham theory are:
1. Mandy (The West Wing). She appeared in the first season as was slowly being left out of episodes. When season 2 came about, no one questioned her disappearance.
2. Santiago (Friday Night Lights). The guy that stays with Buddy for abit, and leaves during seasons without notice.
 
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