History Main / FirstFatherWins

Of course, she will have either remarried, gotten a fiancé or is seriously dating someone else. Since she has custody of the kids, the First Dad will be worried the Step Dad will win them over because he has more time with them ''and'' he's handsomer, more successful, more empathetic and an all around better dad. The kids, usually boy and girl pair, will have one of four relationships with the First Dad and Step Dad: passive aggressiveness, wary distance, civil cohabitation, or a loving and respectful rapport. For variety and contrast, they usually each have a different relationship with the dad and step dad.

* In BringingDownTheHouse, the mother's new boyfriend is perfectly nice, but he's a lot younger than her (and her ex-husband.) Presumably the age difference helps her decide to go back to her ex once he becomes less of a workaholic.

* If you see the toys-as-parents theory, then Woody of WesternAnimation/ToyStory is like this, being Andy's favourite toy, even more than "stepdad" Buzz Lightyear.

* Ray Drecker,Thomas Jane's character in ''{{Hung}}'', essentially follows this trope.

[[folder: Film ]]

* If you see the toys-as-parents theory, then Woody of ToyStory is like this, being Andy's favourite toy, even more than "stepdad" Buzz Lightyear.

* Danny "Danno" Williams and his ex-wife Rachel play this trope to the hilt in the HawaiiFiveO reimagining; however, [[spoiler: as of the season one finale, Danno stays in Hawaii while Rachel (pregnant with their child) and their daughter go back to Jersey and she begins to divorce her second husband.]] Time will tell what happens to their relationship from there.

* ''LiarLiar''

Of course, she will have either remarried, gotten a fiancé or is seriously dating someone else. Since she has custody of the kids, the First Dad will be worried the Step Dad will win them over because he has more time with them ''and'' he's handsomer, more successful, more empathetic and an all around better dad. The kids, usually boy and girl pair, will have one of four relationship with the First Dad and Step Dad: passive aggressiveness, wary distance, civil cohabitation, or a loving and respectful rapport. For variety and contrast, they usually each have a different relationship with the dad and step dad.

One quick way to establish conflict for a male lead (and it is almost always a guy used in this trope) is to make them a divorced father. The story will usually open with a first act divorce or some time after it has taken place, with the children old enough to start resenting their dad for "leaving them". For whatever reason things didn't work out with his LoveInterest and they separated, with her usually keeping near complete custody. Their relationship will never be completely civil or free of {{UST}}, because the lead thinks they should get back together which his ex wife will rebuff because "You haven't changed" the underlying character flaws that led to the divorce.

Except, of course, when it's [[SubvertedTrope subverted.]] The First Dad might not get back together with the ex and only patch up his relationship with the kids, or the family may decide the First Dad not only hasn't changed but is a jerk for manipulating them into getting back together.

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* ''Film/TheWarOfTheWorlds'' with TomCruise has this set up, and plays it to a T except for the reunited parents.

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* Earl Hickey of ''MyNameIsEarl'' is a divorced father (his first wife left him for a mutual friend while he was doped up on morphine at the hospital). His children, however, are still young enough not to resent him for leaving, and even refer to him as "old daddy," and he finds out that [[spoiler: Dodge actually is his biological child.]]

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[[AC: Western Animation]]

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* ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'' has the example of RobinWilliams cross-dressing as a nanny to spend time with his kids, while meanwhile [[JamesBond Peirce Brosnan]] romances the ex. Partially subverted when it leads to his ex-wife gaining full custody. DoubleSubverted when the ex-wife allows the dad to visit the kids anyway and RobinWilliams takes the cross-dressing professional with a motivational childrens' show.

* ''MrsDoubtfire'' has the example of RobinWilliams cross-dressing as a nanny to spend time with his kids, while meanwhile [[JamesBond Peirce Brosnan]] romances the ex. Partially subverted when it leads to his ex-wife gaining full custody. DoubleSubverted when the ex-wife allows the dad to visit the kids anyway and RobinWilliams takes the cross-dressing professional with a motivational childrens' show.

For whatever reason, it's always implied it's the dad whose flaw(s) led to the divorce; While the ex may be snarky, resentful or exhasperated in their interactions, neither the lead nor usually the children will act as if she was the problem (she's the LoveInterest after all). Still, just as often this makes us sympathise with the father more, if she comes off as seriously insensitive or unforgiving in the course of this.

* Gender swapped and subverted in ''DefinitelyMaybe''. A closer look at the movie may suggest that daughter Maya asks her father about how he met her mother to encourage him to rekindle old feelings. But when he tells her about the three major women in his life [[spoiler: he realizes that the woman he loves isn't Maya's mother, and Maya then encourages him to follow his heart, even if it doesn't lead her parents to remarry.]]

* ''WarOfTheWorlds'' with TomCruise has this set up, and plays it to a T except for the reunited parents.

For whatever reason, it's always implied that the dad whose flaw(s) led to the divorce; While the ex may be snarky, resentful or exhasperated in their interactions, neither the lead nor usually the children will act as if she was the problem (she's the LoveInterest after all). Still, just as often this makes us sympathise with the father more, if she comes off as seriously insensitive or unforgiving in the course of this.

For whatever reason, it's ''always'' the dad whose flaw(s) led to the divorce; the ex-wife is usually a complete saint who is (at worst) too DownToEarth and sensible (or sensitive) to put up with his excesses. While she may be snarky, resentful or exhasperated in their interactions, she will usually keep the emotional and moral high ground and act more mature. Still, just as often this makes us sympathise with the father more, if she comes off as seriously insensitive in the course of this.

For whatever reason, it's ''always'' the dad whose flaw(s) led to the divorce; the ex-wife is usually a complete saint who is (at worst) too DownToEarth and sensible (or sensitive) to put up with his excesses. While she may be snarky, resentful or exhasperated in their interactions, she will usually keep the emotional and moral high ground and act more mature. Still, just as often this makes us sympathise with the father more, if she comes off as an insensitive b*tch in the course of this.

For whatever reason, it's ''always'' the dad whose flaw(s) led to the divorce; the ex-wife is usually a complete saint who is (at worst) too DownToEarth and sensible (or sensitive) to put up with his excesses. While she may be snarky, resentful or exhasperated in their interactions, she will usually keep the emotional and moral high ground and act more mature.

One quick way to establish conflict for a male lead (and it is almost always a guy used in this trope) is to make them a divorced father. The story will usually open with a first act divorce or some time after it has taken place, with the children old enough to start resenting their dad for "leaving them". For whatever reason things didn't work out with his LoveInterest and they separated, with her usually keeping near complete custody. Their relationship will never be completely civil or free of {{UST}}, because the lead thinks they should get back together which his ex wife will rebuff because "You haven't changed" the underlying character flaws that led to the divorce.

Of course, she will have either remarried, has a fiancé or is seriously dating someone else. Since she has custody of the kids, the First Dad will be worried the Step Dad will win them over because he has more time with them ''and'' he's handsomer, more successful, more empathetic and an all around better dad. The kids, usually boy and girl pair, will have one of four relationship with the First Dad and Step Dad: passive aggressiveness, wary distance, civil cohabitation, or a loving and respectful rapport. For variety and contrast, they usually each a different relationship with the dad.

* The father in ''UnhappilyEverAfter'' reluctantly does this. After they divorce in the first scene of the first episode he moves into a bachelor apartment; then eventually moves into the basement of his former home; and finally back upstairs with his wife. Then his wife is killed off so they could give more screen time to TheHotChick, SoYeah.

* ''{{Weatherman}}'' with Nicolas Cage has this set up... which [[spoiler:[[StatusQuoIsGod remains largely unchanged]] by movie's end, save for a slight repair in his relationship with his kids as he works out some personal issued. ]]

* "TheFullMonty" has Gaz trying to raise the money so that he can keep seeing his son on weekends. He goes about this by... unconventional means, which backfires [[spoiler: when the police see him and his friends practicing their strip tease in front of the kid and arrest him]].

Of course, she will have either remarried, has a fiancé or is seriously dating someone else. Since she has custody of the kids, the First Dad will be worried the Step Dad will win them over because he has more time with them ''and'' he's handsomer, more successful, more empathetic and an all around better dad. The kids, usually boy/girl, will have one of four relationship with the First Dad and Step Dad: passive aggressiveness, wary distance, civil cohabitation, or a loving and respectful rapport.

* OBrotherWhereArtThou has the wife of the protagonist (a convicted felon) attempt to marry a man with an honest living, whose worst fault appears to be that of being boring.

* ''[[TwentyTwelve 2012]]'' mixes it up a bit. Step Dad Gordon is a NiceGuy, saves their lives twice, and has honestly won the love and respect of his kids. Of course, [[spoiler: the ex-wife loves him imperfectly, not as much as her old husband who she has a flame for, but enough to not leave him. And of course he dies at the end.]]