History Main / GreenRooming

* ''GIJoe'' had a habit of doing this, with its [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters ridiculously large number of characters]] and all.

The trope is named after the "Green Room," a backstage area in a theatre where actors who are not required on stage can wait and prepare[[note]]Although there are older green rooms which are actually green in colour, this is not a requisite. The etimology is not certain, and may have nothing to do with the colour[[/note]], the idea being that the ignored characters are just hanging out there. [[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with shows ''shot'' [[ChromaKey in a green room]], and ''[[NamesTheSame absolutely not]]'' to be confused with the film ''Film/GreenRoom''.

* In the first episode of the reworked ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited'', Green Arrow and Black Canary. Particularly, much is made of the League's interest in recruiting Green Arrow and how important he is, only to have him not show up again for thirteen episodes.

The trope is named after the "Green Room," a backstage area in a theatre where actors who are not required on stage can wait and prepare, the idea being that the ignored characters are just hanging out there. [[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with shows ''shot'' [[ChromaKey in a green room]], and ''[[NamesTheSame absolutely not]]'' to be confused with the film ''Film/GreenRoom''.

The trope is named after the "Green Room," a backstage area in a theatre where actors who are not required on stage can wait and prepare, the idea being that the ignored characters are just hanging out there. [[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with shows ''shot'' [[ChromaKey in a green room]].

* In ''Series/DoctorWho'', RobotBuddy K-9 is introduced in "The Invisible Enemy", then promptly breaks down for the duration of "The Image of the Fendahl", whose script was written before K-9 was added to the cast.

* In the first episode of the reworked ''JusticeLeagueUnlimited,'' Green Arrow and Black Canary. Particularly, much is made of the League's interest in recruiting Green Arrow and how important he is, only to have him not show up again for thirteen episodes.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Mixels}}, being filled with tons of new characters every series, will often shift focus onto the new characters for a long while, ignoring the previously-created ones, and then the cycle continues when a new series is added.

* A skillful usage of this technique is in ''LoveHina'', where Motoko (along with her "groupies") is introduced in the first minutes of the first episode, but she immediately leaves on a training excursion, thus freeing up screen time for introductions of the other characters before she gets her turn to take center stage in the third episode. Shinobu is also seen in the first episode, but not really introduced until the second.

[[folder: Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' has this to a large degree thanks in part to LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, as well as TheRashomon endings to most games, where characters like Ruukoto, whose mere presence would [[CuttingOffTheBranches deny the canon status of all the other endings]]. Stage 5 characters are almost guaranteed to become {{Recurring Character}}s, but any EX-boss not named "Yakumo" will probably never be heard from again in canon, aside from a page referring to them in side works like ''Perfect Memento In Strict Sense''.
[[/folder]]

* In the first episode of the reworked JusticeLeagueUnlimited, Green Arrow and Black Canary. Particularly, much is made of the League's interest in recruiting Green Arrow and how important he is, only to have him not show up again for thirteen episodes.

* GIJoe had a habit of doing this, with its [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters ridiculously large number of characters]] and all.
* {{Transformers}} suffered from the same thing, some characters only appeared for one episode!

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Adam is introduced in the Black trailer but didn't appear again until the end of Volume 2, despite the heavy use of White Fang faunus. Similarly, Junior and the Malachite twins are introduced in the Yellow trailer but don't appear until Volume 2, despite their club being associated with Roman Torchwick from the outset.

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Adam is introduced in the Black trailer but has yet to be introduced despite the heavy use of White Fang faunus. Junior and the Malachite twins are introduced in the Yellow trailer but don't appear until Volume 2, despite their club being associated with Roman Torchwick from the outset.

* Goo was introduced in a third season episode of ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'', but doesn't appear again until the fourth season, where she was almost a member of the main cast.

* In ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'', Roman Torchwick appeared as a villain in the first episode proper, and wasn't seen again until TheStinger at the end of episode eight, where he comments that [[GonnaNeedMoreX he's going to need more men.]] Similarly, Adam hasn't been seen at all since the Black trailer, nor have Junior or the Malachite twins been seen since the Yellow trailer. Given how later episodes in the former case and WordOfGod in both is that the trailers are canon, it can leave one wondering when those three will reappear.

* [[WesternAnimation/RegularShow Thomas]] was shunned to the green room having only appeared with a speaking role in the three episodes that introduce him at the start of season four. He made his re-appearance late on in season four though, ''twenty-four'' episodes later.

* In season 3 of the anime adaptation for ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'', Kanon [[spoiler:is taken out of commission right away in the first episode, and ends up causing Keima to undertake the conquest of the goddesses after witnessing Lune stabbing her. She doesn't appear again until around episode 8, and even then just as a brief cameo to let Keima know she's still doing okay for the most part.]] This conveniently allows other girls to have more screentime with him, some whom he conquered in earlier seasons, and some who only appeared in brief scenes due to the anime skipping many chapters in the manga between season 2 and 3.

* In the anime for ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'', Kanon is first seen in an OVA. She appears again in the first episode of season 3 which covers the goddesses arc. [[spoiler:She is promptly taken out of commission by Lune, who [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice stabs her]] and causes her to fall into a coma. As a result, she is conveniently left out of the story for much of season 3 while Keima finds and conquers the other goddesses first to help rescue her.]]

* [[WesternAnimation/RegularShow Thomas]] has been shunned to the green room having only appeared with a speaking role in the three episodes that introduce him at the start of season four.