History Main / InSpiteOfaNail

* In ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', a late-game sidequest has Lucca travel back in time to the moment her mother was crippled by a large machine. As a child, Lucca could do nothing to stop this accident, and dedicated her life to science and machinery to prevent future accidents. If Future Lucca succeeds in stopping the machine (and thus saving her mother from being crippled), her child self still dedicates her life to science, this time so that she never feels so helpless again around machines. Given that Lucca's Telepod invention is itself responsible for the existence of the Gates (or at least the main factor in their creation) that Lucca then uses to travel through time and save her mother, if saving her mother would result in Lucca not having interest in science, it would result in a paradox.

* In ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', a late-game sidequest has Lucca travel back in time to the moment her mother was crippled by a large machine. As a child, Lucca could do nothing to stop this accident, and dedicated her life to science to prevent future accidents. If Future!Lucca succeeds in stopping the machine (and thus saving her mother from being crippled), her child self still dedicates her life to science, for almost the same reason. Given that Lucca's Telepod invention is itself responsible for the existence of the Gates (or at least the main factor in their creation) that Lucca then uses to travel through time and save her mother, if saving her mother would result in Lucca not having interest in science it would result in a paradox.

In fanfiction, this is often a result of TheStationsOfTheCanon, where a fanfic still has many of the same relationships, events, and setpieces happen even when the rest of the story should be well off-track, especially in a PeggySue fic. For instance, a story where the protagonist ends up being given [[AdaptationalBadass a massive powerboost]] might still have villains throwing the same challenges at them, even when they know they should easily defeat them.

* ''ComicBook/AllStarSuperman'' has Superman trying to create a pocket universe without a Superman. Cue a certain comic book artist drawing the Golden Age Superman saying, "Third time's the charm..." This, in combination with ''ComicBook/DoomsdayClock'', shows that regardless of the parallel universe, there is always a Superman in some form. (Heck, even Marvel supplied one for their universe with ComicBook/SquadronSupreme.)
* In ''ComicBook/ElseworldsFinestSupergirlAndBatgirl'', ''ComicBook/LexLuthor'' finds Kal-El's rocket instead of the Kents and kills the baby before he grows into Franchise/{{Superman}}, and later hires a hitman to assassinate the [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Waynes]]. The hitman fails and murders the Gordons instead, prompting Barbara Gordon to become ComicBook/{{Batgirl}}. Several years later Kara Zor-El's parents send her to Earth because, even though they don't know their nephew's fate, they know about the Earth's heroes. Kara is mentored by Franchise/WonderWoman, becomes ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, joins a super-team and makes friends with Barbara, just like in the mainstream universe.
* In a special story written for the 500th issue of ''Detective Comics,'' Franchise/{{Batman}} is offered the chance to save Bruce Wayne's parents in an alternate universe, knowing that doing so could mean that world never has a Batman to protect Gotham. He does so anyway, and it is later revealed that the deed inspired the alternate Bruce to become Batman as a tribute to the costumed man who saved his parents.
** This is echoed in the CrisisCrossover series ''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'', where there is still a Batman, but with a twist: [[spoiler:He's really ''Thomas'' Wayne, who took up the cowl after Bruce was murdered.]] The Joker, by extension, is also an example: [[spoiler: what reason other than this trope would cause philanthropist socialite Martha Wayne to respond to her son's death by turning into a psychopathic clown?]]
*** Elseworlds stories that have Bruce Wayne becoming a different hero (or a different hero becoming Batman) will generally have the other hero's ArchEnemy becoming the Joker one way or another. In ''Speeding Bullets'' (in which [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Kal-El]] is adopted by the Waynes) has this happen to Lex Luthor, while ''In Darkest Knight'' (where Bruce Wayne gets Abin Sur's Franchise/GreenLantern ring) does it to Sinestro. The latter is especially notable because Bruce prevented [[ComicBook/TheKillingJoke Red Hood (Jack the comedian) from falling into a vat of chemicals]] earlier in the story.
* In ''ComicBook/AstroCity'', one of the powers of Samaritan (and his arch-enemy Infidel) is immunity to RetGone. Samaritan was originally sent back in time to prevent the Challenger explosion, and because of his meddling undoes his world's past, he was never born. No matter what happens to the timeline, Samaritan and Infidel will still exist. In fact, Infidel once destroyed all of space-time, and they ''still'' existed.

* The Creator/DonRosa 60th anniversary WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck story does this with a [[ItsAWonderfulPlot Wonderful Life]] scenario. Most everybody is miserable and worse off for Duck never existing...except for Gladstone Gander, whose ridiculous luck keeps him the same well-off SmugSnake he always was.

* In ''ComicBook/StrontiumDog'', it is explained that since time is so vast, time travellers usually only exert minor changes which smooth out over time. It takes a truly catastrophic event to alter history noticeably.
** One ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' storyline espouses the same idea, with Johnny Storm explaining it as "Saving Lincoln just means that everybody will remember how Lincoln was ''almost'' assassinated, only to die of a heart attack one day later." Dr. Doom claims that the "for want of a nail" theory of time travel is a lie spread throughout the timestream by Kang to prevent the emergence of rival time-travelers.
* Bishop of the ''Franchise/XMen'' comics is a "chronal anomaly" who has been involved in so much time travel that he himself is never affected by it.
* An ''Elseworlds'' story in the DC Universe, ''JLA: ComicBook/TheNail'', shows what would happen if the Kents had not been out driving their truck as baby Kal-El's ship crash-landed, due to a nail puncturing one of their tires. Instead he was raised by an Amish family and thus never ventured out into the world and never became Superman. Aside from that, not much had changed. All the other heroes still existed, but the public was just more afraid and suspicious of them without Superman as a rallying symbol, inspiring debates as to whether they could be trusted, as well as Jimmy Olsen becoming the subject of a gene-splicing experiment that gave him Kryptonian powers while transforming him psychologically into a Kryptonian. In the end however, evil Jimmy ends up killing the now-adult Kal-El's Amish parents, giving him the HeroicResolve to fight and defeat Jimmy, Kal-El subsequently becoming Superman and moving in with the Kents (who had been offering superpowered individuals shelter).
* The ''Batman: Dark Knight Dynasty'' trilogy looks at Vandal Savage developing a long-term interest in and vendetta against the Wayne family; while he admires their resolve and personal strength, his ambition to acquire the meteor that gave him his immortality inevitably leads to the Waynes opposing his efforts due to the collateral damage he causes in his efforts. The "Dark Present" timeline depicts a world where 'Valentin Sinclair' scares Joe Chill away from the Waynes during the confrontation in Crime Alley, but despite lacking the same incentive, Bruce apparently still underwent at least some of the training he experienced in canon over the next few years, with Martha explicitly wishing that Bruce could find what he had been looking for all his life. As a result, after Savage kills Thomas and Martha to stop them interfering with his plan, Bruce is able to become Batman and at least be a suitable physical threat to Savage's minions, even if he doesn't show the incentive to go after any of Gotham's more standard criminals.
* In ''ComicBook/DetectiveComicsRebirth'', Tim Drake from a BadFuture argues that Damian should be killed on sight for [[NoodleIncident what he does in the future]]. Even after that timeline is averted, it's shown in ''ComicBook/BatmanBeyondRebirth'' that Damian becomes a villain ''anyway'', [[Characters/BatmanRasAlGhul following in his grandfather's footsteps]].
* In one [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' story, Supes asks the supercomputer in his fortress to extrapolate what his life might have been like if Krypton had never exploded. The extrapolated story finally ends with an odd circumstance where this alternate Kal-El acquires super-powers, loses his family, and becomes Superman ''on Krypton'', full costume with the cape and insignia and all. Supes and Batman turn away from the screen with just priceless expressions of astonishment.
* ''ComicBook/WhatIf'' occasionally switches into this trope.

* ''ComicBook/MajorBummer'' has an alternate reality where dinosaurs evolved into intelligent lifeforms...and somehow they still managed to create a [[http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/comicsalliance.com/files/2011/05/reich01.jpg Nazi society, complete with understandable German language.]]
* ''ComicBook/TheAdventuresOfBarryWeenBoyGenius'' used this during one time travel story. When Barry and Jeremy got stuck in the Wild West, Jeremy was worried that they might change history or cause a TimeParadox. Barry dismissed his concerns, saying that humans overestimate their own significance. He claims that they could kill everyone in the town they are currently in without affecting history one iota.
* In one ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'' storyline, ComicBook/LexLuthor brought a team of evil Future Titans to kill Jaime Reyes aka ComicBook/BlueBeetle because no matter what he did to the timeline, [[IncorruptiblePurePureness Jaime refused to turn evil]].
* In ''ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica'' #31 (Part 3 of "The Bad Seed"), Obsidian gets turned into a black egg, as part of the Fourth Reich's evil plot. After two unrelated storylines (and a [[ComicBook/BlackestNight crossover miniseries]]), #36-39 are set in a BadFuture, in which the Fourth Reich rule America. In #40, Mr Terrific of the future sends his knowledge of the Reich's plans back in time, and Mr Terrific from the end of "The Bad Seed" frees Obsidian, and the Society takes the fight to the Reich and defeats them. And then a two page coda assures us that the storylines since "The Bad Seed" happened ''exactly the same way'', only Obsidian was also there.
* ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'' has one defining feature. [[http://www.eeriecuties.com/strips-ec/Archie_636_promo 636]] got the population of Riverdale magically made [[GenderBender the opposite sex]]. But [[BettyAndVeronica one thing]] never, ever, changes -- and the cover doesn't even try kidding readers about this anymore:
-->'''female Archie''': (sitting between now-male Betty and Veronica) I still can't choose!
* One of the few things that remains true throughout the DCU's Multiverse is that Franchise/{{Superman}} and ComicBook/LexLuthor will always be enemies.
* Issue 50 of ''ComicBook/{{WITCH}}'' answered the question of "What if Will never accepted the Heart of Kandrakar that day?" [[spoiler:The answer? She'd get it a little bit later on and W.I.T.C.H. is still formed. The damn thing's persistent.]]
* In the X-Men storyline ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse, where Charles Xavier died young, Magneto founded the X-Men and the supervillain Apocalypse rules much of the world, there are a whole lot of characters who were villains in the "normal" timeline but heroes in the new one, or vice versa, but darn near everybody still has the same code names, and if they're not wearing the same costume as before they've at least got the same color scheme.
* The ''ComicBook/StarTrekIDW'' comic has a two-part story about a GenderBentAlternateUniverse. Jane Kirk comments that Starfleet Command distrust her "emotional" decisions, suggesting that gender stereotypes are the same in this universe, and that a woman captain is a rarity. Despite this, the main crew of the ''Enterprise'' is (of course) almost entirely female, except Uhuro, Jason Rand, and Carl Marcus. (Also, Jane's mother was captain of the ''Kelvin'' for eight minutes. Presumably, the parallelism didn't extend quite as far as this happening'' while she was giving birth''.)
* In ''ComicBook/Seconds2014'', [[spoiler:at the end, Katie is returned to the original timeline, reversing the entire story, even Katie preventing Hazel's burns. The one thing that remained constant through all the revisions, even this one, is that Katie still had that first conversation with Hazel about Lis, and they're still great friends in the present]].
* In ''ComicBook/{{Convergence}}'' #8, [[spoiler:''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' is altered so that all the alternate Earths weren't destroyed]]. The end result is... [[spoiler: that the post-''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'' multiverse of 52 Earths is still there. Whether they developed from existing worlds in the multiverse or came into existence on their own is unclear, but the 52 end up happening one way or the other]].
* In IDW's "Deviations" event, we're shown heavy deviations from canon for five continuities: ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'', ''ComicBook/{{Ghostbusters}}'', ''ComicBook/GIJoeIDW'', ''ComicBook/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesIDW'' and ''Series/TheXFiles''. In three of them - ''Transformers, Ghostbusters'' and ''G.I. Joe'' -- we see that even though [[spoiler:Optimus Prime lives, the Ghostbusters chicken out in crossing the streams and Cobra successfully take over the world with the M.A.S.S. Device]], canon sorts itself out and the original endings happen.
* In Mirror Broken, we see whats going on with the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' counterparts in the mirror universe. Picard is in command of the I.S.S. Stargazer (The Cardassian Klingon Alliance almost wiped out the Terran Empire, but they manage to hold on to Earth and the rest of the Solar System), but most of the prominent members of his crew are aboard. Later on, he finds that they are building a warship called the Enterprise, and plans to steal it. He picks up the mirror counterparts of the missing members of his crew along the way.
* The French comic series "Jour J" are a series of {{What If}}s concerning {{Alternate Histor|y}}ies that works hard to avert this.
** There's one where the Titanic doesn't sink in 1912, preventing Prohibition (the kid with the telescope who gave the alarm ends up working for a newspaper and revealing that Prohibition would be a godsend to gangsters). It does, however, sink a few years later because of an iceberg, preventing UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo as Hitler and Einstein were aboard.
** Spain is still Muslim territory when Columbus sets off for his voyage, landing further north than in reality. It turns out the Vikings' descendants had colonized and spread further south. The expedition's SoleSurvivor marries a native princess named Pocahontas and does what he can to prepare the natives for the inevitable European invasion.
* In ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'', nearly all fictional stories you can think of are treated as true in some form, with the stated ethos being "what if all fiction occupied a comic book-style SharedUniverse?" This even extends to real-life historical figures being swapped out for NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed versions, such as Adolf Hitler's role in history being fulfilled by [[Film/TheGreatDictator Adenoid Hynkel]]. This includes Britain being invaded by aliens in ''Literature/WarOfTheWorlds'' and taken over by a totalitarian state and renamed "Airstrip One" in ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour.'' Despite this, the world is broadly the same as ours, with most historical events being shared in some form.
* ''ComicBook/StarTrekEarlyVoyages'': In the AlternateTimeline story arc "Futures", Sulu, Uhura and Saavik were still assigned to the ''Enterprise'' in spite of the fact that Kirk never became its captain. Spock still became the first officer, though this time under Captain Pike.
* In ''[[ComicBook/XMen2019 House of X]]'' #2, we learn that [[spoiler:some of Moira [=MacTaggert=]'s attempts to change mutantkind's fate ended thanks to Sentinels. When she attempts to murder the entire Trask lineage to prevent the Sentinels from being built, she learns that they end up ''still'' being built as robotics and artificial intelligence are like fire to man.]]
* ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}'s inability to control his optic blasts is canonically due to a childhood brain injury (or possibly psychological block) caused by jumping out of his parents' plane. However, his PowerIncontinence and the visor are such iconic traits of him that he still has them in {{Alternate Universe}}s where he didn’t, or couldn’t possibly have suffered a similar accident.
* ''ComicBook/BulletPoints'' presents a scenario in which after Dr. Erskine and his guard are murdered before Steve Rogers can get the super serum, many of the Franchise/MarvelUniverse's iconic heroes either don't get powers or end up with different powers, or note Steve becomes Iron Man, Peter Parker becomes Hulk, and Bruce Banner becomes Spider Man. Despite this, by the end of the 5-issue run, Tony Stark becomes Iron Man, albeit as a LegacyCharacter to Steve, instead of creating the mantle himself.
* ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' #0 reveals that there's one event that, across the entirety of the Marvel multiverse, never changes or is prevented in any form: [[spoiler:Uatu the Watcher's father, Ikor, swearing the Watchers to eternal noninterference after returning to a planet their species tried to help only to discover the inhabitants had wiped each other out with the technology they were gifted]].
* In ''ComicBook/{{Chronin}}'', changes made due to the actions of the BigBad do legitimately change the timeline, so much so that the time travelers who've become TrappedInThePast are unable to return to the future even when they get a working time travel device because their future is literally ''gone'', the changes that have been made are so great that it's simply no longer the same future. However, once they [[spoiler:talk the BigBad into changing sides and trying to correct the worst flaws of the Meiji Revolution instead of thwarting it entirely]], the timeline heals and settles into something more like a CloseEnoughTimeline, and towards the end of the story [[spoiler:Kuji, who stayed behind in the past and essentially took the place of key leaders of the revolution who were killed]], laments that even with knowledge of the future there were so many mistakes and things that simply could not be changed or undone.
* ''ComicBook/SinsOfSinister'': In the year +100, Sinister creates a version of Rasputin IV who's identical to the one from the X^2 timeline of ''ComicBook/HouseAndPowersOfX'', even though they were created for different purposes.
* ''ComicBook/SecretWarps:'' Ghost Panther helps prevent the Martian invasion of 2099 because he believes if he does so Erik Killraven will never travel back in time to try and kill him, and he'll never become the Ghost Panther. However, when he does prevent the invasion, he finds that while a few details change, Killraven still tries to kill him anyway.
* ''ComicBook/UltimateInvasion:'' Despite the Maker playing interference with a time machine, he finds some things still happening despite his best efforts, like Bruce Banner becoming the Hulk, though just because he can't prevent those events doesn't mean he can't interfere afterward.
* ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'': Guy Gardner's debut had Hal Jordan shown a simulation of what might have happened had Abin Sur picked Guy as his successor instead of Hal. Guy's career as Green Lantern has him facing the same villains as Hal Jordan and comes to an end after an adventure where he convinced a planet of children to stop fighting and found that he was infected with the yellow plague that wiped out the planet's adult population (as the plague [[OnlyFatalToAdults had no effect on children]]), forcing him to appoint a successor before he dies. The result is Hal Jordan becoming a Green Lantern by being given the power ring of his dying predecessor anyway.

** Elsewhere, Gwen Stacey mentions that in "every other universe" where she exists, she's wound up with Spider-Man, and in all those universes it ends ''badly''. On a lighter side, apparently many universes have a J. Jonah Jameson being his usual cantankerous self, even in a universe [[spoiler:which doesn't ''have'' a Spider-Man]], and they all sound like Creator/JKSimmons.

* In ''Manga/TokyoRevengers'', no matter how many times [[MentalTimeTravel Takemichi travels back to the past]] and [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong alters events in the timeline]] to prevent the [[JapaneseDelinquents Tokyo Manji Gang]] from becoming [[TheSyndicate the worst criminal organization in Japan]], 12 years later [[TheLostLenore his girlfriend Hina still ends up murdered]], [[TheLeader Mikey]] is nowhere to be found, [[TheLancer Draken]] is either dead or on death row, and [[BigBad Kisaki Tetta]] has [[TheCorrupter corrupted]] Toman with his influence, before Toman eventually calls a hit on Hina. {{Justified|Trope}}, since it turns out that [[spoiler:Kisaki has climbed his way through the ranks of Toman and turned it into what it is in the modern day, removing Mikey's closest friends and loved ones in the process and leaving no one to [[MoralityChain rein in]] his [[TheDarkSide darker impulses]], in order to become the greatest delinquent in history and show up Takemichi, who was a delinquent in middle school when he dated Hina, Kisaki's [[ChildhoodFriendRomance childhood crush]], and [[OldFlame remains the object of her affection in modern times]] even after they [[BreakHerHeartToSaveHer break up]]. [[IfICantHaveYou Kisaki pulls strings to have Akkun assassinate Hina]] because [[NotGoodWithRejection she turns down his love confession in every timeline]]]].

** In a more heartwarming example, there is the episode "Forget-Me-Not," in which Peter, Brian, Joe, and Quagmire wake up after a car crash, with no memory of themselves or each other. This trope comes into play when it is revealed that [[spoiler: the entire situation was fabricated by Stewie, who wanted to challenge Brian's claim that he and Peter would be friends regardless of how they met. Turns out Brian was right, as the two end up defending each other in the end of the scenario. Stewie even admits that the two are destined to be friends.]] D'aww.
*** Also, the sensation of a cutaway exists despite the fact that none of them have memories to cutaway to.
** The episode "Life of Brian" had Brian and Stewie alternating history where everyone in the present are Native Americans after they gave them guns before the whites settle and establish Jamestown. Everything is the same, but made up of Native Americans including an alternate Stewie who also built a time machine.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Seconds}}'', [[spoiler:at the end, Katie is returned to the original timeline, reversing the entire story, even Katie preventing Hazel's burns. The one thing that remained constant through all the revisions, even this one, is that Katie still had that first conversation with Hazel about Lis, and they're still great friends in the present]].

* ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'': Guy Gardner's debut had Hal Jordan shown a simulation of what might have happened had Abin Sur picked Guy as his successor instead of Hal. Guy's career as Green Lantern comes to an end after an adventure where he convinced a planet of children to stop fighting and found that he was infected with the yellow plague that wiped out the planet's adult population (as the plague [[OnlyFatalToAdults had no effect on children]]), forcing him to appoint a successor before he dies. The result is Hal Jordan becoming a Green Lantern by being given the power ring of his dying predecessor anyway.

* In one [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] Franchise/{{Superman}} story, Supes asked the supercomputer in his fortress to extrapolate what his life might have been like if Krypton had never exploded. The extrapolated story finally ends with an odd circumstance where this alternate Kal-El acquires super-powers, loses his family, and becomes Superman ''on Krypton'', full costume with the cape and insignia and all. Supes and Batman turn away from the screen with just priceless expressions of astonishment.
* Although Marvel series ''ComicBook/WhatIf'' typically tends toward ForWantOfANail, it occasionally switches into this trope instead.

* The Marvel Comic ''ComicBook/BulletPoints'' presents a massive ForWantOfANail in which after Dr Erskine and his guard are murdered before Steve Rogers can get the super serum, many of Marvel's iconic heroes either don't get powers or end up with different powers, or note Steve becomes Iron Man, Peter Parker becomes Hulk, and Bruce Banner becomes Spider Man. Despite this, by the end of the 5 issue run, Tony Stark becomes Iron Man, albeit as a LegacyCharacter to Steve, instead of creating the mantle himself.
* ''ComicBook/OriginalSin'' #0 reveals that there's one event that, across the entirety of the Marvel multiverse, never changes or is prevented in any form: [[spoiler: Uatu the Watcher's father, Ikor, swearing the Watchers to eternal noninterference after returning to a planet their species tried to help only to discover the inhabitants had wiped each other out with the technology they were gifted.]]

* In ''Film/TheButterflyEffect'', Evan has to convince his cellmate in prison that he actually has magical time-travel powers, which he does by going back to his childhood and stabbing his hand to make a stigmata. The scar suddenly appearing in the present day is enough to convince his cellmate. Apparently the fact Evan ''impaled his hand as a child'' didn't change anything else, which is actually a serious PlotHole since every other time he used his powers to change the past, [[ForWantOfANail it had major repercussions]] (hence [[ButterflyOfDoom the very title of the movie]]).

* In the Halloween freebie for {{TabletopGame/Battletech}}, ''Empires Aflame'', the story is essentially a ForWantOfANail plot that brings us into a radically different Inner Sphere. [[spoiler: In effect, the Exodus never happens, and Aleksandr Kerensky is assassinated, prompting his second in command to call off the SLDF fleeing to parts unknown and instead has them take charge of the old Terran Hegemony.]] This makes for a radically shifted balance of power for the 300-odd years of post-Amaris War history. However, most, if not all of the famous names still take their appointed spaces in the metaplot, the Kentares IV massacre still happens, and Hanse Davion is still First Prince of the Federated Suns in 3025. [[spoiler: However, he then allys with the Capellan Confederation, and the combined state gets its ass handed to it by the Draconis Combine.]] Oddly enough, though, even though [[spoiler: The Clans never existed in this universe, as the Exodus never occurred, nor Operation Klondike which can be seen as the official starting point for the Clans proper]], many [[spoiler: Clan]] figures from the main universe still find positions of power and authority in the Terran Supremacy, even if they probably shouldn't have existed to begin with, given how they were actually conceived. [[spoiler: Devlin Stone himself is also a key player in the Supremacy as of the 3090s.]]

** The Delta Episode of ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire]]'' implies this of the ''Pokémon'' timelines: the mechanic of Mega Evolution, discovered in the ancient past by [[BigDamnHeroes Rayquaza putting a stop to the end of the world]], is a well-hidden secret, though numerous Trainers of varying degrees of skill and plot importance have access to it. The Delta Episode implies the existence of [[AlternateUniverse another world, almost identical]], where Mega Evolution wasn't discovered -- this world being the setting for all games prior to Generation VI (with ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' showing that [[ForWantOfANail the catalyst]] for Mega Evolution itself was [[spoiler:the firing of AZ's ultimate weapon 3,000 years earlier]]). Aside from a few details, the same Trainers exist and operate in almost the same capacity without the [[SuperMode Mega Evolved Pokémon]], many of which are drastically different or have [[OlympusMons world-ending power]].

* ''ARG/CrystoreInc'': The Red and Green Bridges are nearly identical, except for some small cosmetic variances (such as the colour of their respective Golden Gate Bridge, [[ColourCodedForYourConvenience which is used to define them).]] Blue Bridge, [[ForWantOfANail not so much.]]

** A quick study of Marvel's ''What If...'' series will confirm that, in the multiverse of Creator/MarvelComics, there's really only two circumstances in which Peter Parker doesn't ever become Spider-Man. One of them has no superhumans at all, and the other has no Peter Parker at all. In every other MarvelUniverse variant, Peter Parker exists, and he '''''will''''' become Spider-Man at some point.

* In ''Manga/TokyoRevengers'', no matter how many times [[MentalTimeTravel Takemichi travels back to the past]] and [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong alters events in the timeline]] to prevent the [[JapaneseDelinquents Tokyo Manji Gang]] from becoming [[TheSyndicate the worst criminal organization in Japan]], 12 years later [[TheLostLenore his girlfriend Hina still ends up murdered]], [[TheLeader Mikey]] is nowhere to be found, [[TheLancer Draken]] is either dead or on death row, [[BigBad Kisaki Tetta]] has [[TheCorrupter corrupted]] Toman with his influence and eventually calls a hit on Hina. {{Justified|Trope}}, since it turns out that [[spoiler:Kisaki has climbed his way through the ranks of Toman and turned it into what it is in the modern day, removing Mikey's closest friends and loved ones in the process and leaving no one to [[MoralityChain rein in]] his [[TheDarkSide darker impulses]], in order to become the greatest delinquent in history and show up Takemichi, who was a delinquent in middle school when he dated Hina, Kisaki's [[ChildhoodFriendRomance childhood crush]], and [[OldFlame remains the object of her affection in modern times]] even after they [[BreakHerHeartToSaveHer break up]]. [[IfICantHaveYou Kisaki pulls strings to have Akkun assassinate Hina]] because [[NotGoodWithRejection she turns down his love confession in every timeline]]]].

* In the first ''Manga/{{Doraemon}}'' manga, Nobita's great grandson explains to him that even though the future will be changed he will still exist, despite the fact Nobita marries Shizuka instead of Jaiko.

* In ''Manga/TokyoRevengers'', no matter how many times [[MentalTimeTravel Takemichi travels back to the past]] and [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong alters events in the timeline]] to prevent the [[JapaneseDelinquents Tokyo Manji Gang]] from becoming [[TheSyndicate the worst criminal organization in Japan]], 12 years later [[TheLostLenore his girlfriend Hina still ends up murdered.]] The only thing consistent across every timeline is that [[TheLeader Mikey]] is nowhere to be found, [[TheLancer Draken]] is either dead or on death row, [[BigBad Kisaki Tetta]] has [[TheCorrupter corrupted]] Toman with his influence and eventually calls a hit on Hina. {{Justified|Trope}}, since it turns out that [[spoiler:Kisaki has climbed his way through the ranks of Toman and turned it into what it is in the modern day in order to become the greatest delinquent in history and show up Takemichi, who was a delinquent when he was dating Hina during his childhood and [[OldFlame remains the object of her affection in modern times]] even after they [[BreakHerHeartToSaveHer break up]]. [[IfICantHaveYou Kisaki has Hina assassinated]] because [[NotGoodWithRejection she turns his love confession down in every timeline]]]].

** ''Film/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines'' shows us that no matter what, Judgment Day will still transpire circa the TurnOfTheMillennium.
** In a way, the climax of ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' made things ''worse'', since the new version of Skynet designed in ''T3'' wasn't a [[MasterComputer supercomputer]], but software which was able to infiltrate the Internet, which is decentralized and much harder to destroy.
** ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'' shows us that John is not a constant, but his role is. If there is ever a machine led apocalypse, there will always be someone who will rise up and resist, and they will lead a resistance and inspire others. In that film, this is showcased with [[spoiler: Dani]].

** Then, in ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartII'', you have 1985-A. In this timeline, a lot more has changed: Biff becomes insanely wealthy and George gets murdered by Biff, this timeline's Doc Brown is put into a mental institution, the Vietnam War is still going on in the 1980s thanks to UsefulNotes/RichardNixon surviving the Watergate scandal and being elected to at least a fourth term as president (seeking a fifth term in the 1984-A election!). Yet Music/MichaelJackson still becomes a famous pop star, ''Film/AFistfulOfDollars'' is still made, the Wounded Knee occupation still takes place, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and Lorraine's brother Joey still turns out to be a jailbird]].
** ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII'' had Marty embarrass Biff's WildWest ancestor and get him arrested, and Marty and Doc rob a train to drive it off a cliff. This didn't change anything at all, except that now Clayton Ravine is called [[Creator/ClintEastwood Eastwood]] Ravine (named for Marty's [[ImMrFuturePopCultureReference alias]] instead of the schoolteacher who "originally" died there). Additionally, for a very brief moment because they saved Clara, the ravine retained its original name of Shionash Ravine, which Doc becomes horrified with changing local history ''again'', but Marty reassures him that it's only just a name, and they saved someone in the process, so maybe it's for the best.
*** WordOfGod said that Clara might have got depressed and jumped into the ravine in the timeline where Doc was shot by Mad Dog Tannen.
** They actually discussed this in the commentary for ''Part II'' when Biff goes back from 2015, with Marty and the Doc still there. They discussed why it never changed, and decided it'd be better if [[DelayedRippleEffect things remained the same at that moment]].

** And, y'know, [[EarthShatteringKaboom Vulcan]].
** And y'know, despite that they never have a history, [[spoiler: Kirk and Khan will ALWAYS be at each other's throat, and Khan will always make one of the main cast die in a radiation-filled engine room]].

* ''VisualNovel/SteinsGate'': No matter how the timeline changes, no matter how different everyone's lives and circumstances have been because of the change (even to the point of [[spoiler:a whole district of the city developing differently]]), as long as the world line is within the 1% barrier, everyone still has the same personalities, relationships, pastimes, addresses, and careers, [[spoiler:Mayuri still dies]], and her watch still stops immediately before it happens, no matter when it happens.%%This example is in this section instead of Video Games because I am basing the information in this example on the anime; I have not played the game, and some of the details of this example might not apply to it.%%

** It is actually stated, in an issue of ''Exiles'', by the character Morph, in one of the early issues, that he has noticed that a key component missing on a lot of the worlds is the presence of the Norse Gods (Thor, Loki, Odin, etc). He then goes on to say that he thinks that if the Norse Gods were present, many of the worlds would have turned out much more positively.

** One ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' storyline espouses the same idea, with Johnny Storm explaining it as "Saving Lincoln just means that everybody will remember how Lincoln was ''almost'' assassinated, only to die of a heart attack one day later." Dr. Doom mentions that the "for want of a nail" theory of time travel is a lie spread throughout the timestream by Kang to prevent the emergence of rival time-travelers.

** A quick study of Marvel's ''What If...'' series will confirm that, in the multiverse of Creator/MarvelComics, there's only two universes in which Peter Parker doesn't ever become Spider-Man. One of them has no superhumans at all, and the other has no Peter Parker at all. In every other MarvelUniverse variant, Peter Parker exists, and he '''''will''''' become Spider-Man at some point.

* The Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse was mostly the real world with superpowered people, aliens and such, in spite of amazing technology [[ReedRichardsIsUseless that didn't change society at large, in true comic book tradition]]. That is, until ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' had in 2018 [[spoiler:half the life in the universe being wiped out]], something only fixed after a five year time skip in follow-up ''Film/AvengersEndgame''. Yet in ''Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings'', set after ''Endgame'', the title character and his friend Katy are shown singing Music/LilNasX's "Old Town Road", released in 2019 - which means that in spite of Earth going through its worse possible days, [[https://twitter.com/LilNasX/status/1435373681866280960 the rapper was still there, still wrote his cowboy rap, and it still became an enduring hit.]] Another case happened in ''Series/MsMarvel2022'', where Kamala Khan hears Music/TheWeeknd's "Blinding Lights", also released in 2019.

* ''VideoGame/Persona3 Portable'' has a female option to see what would happen if the quiet and introverted male protagonist were a bright and optimistic girl instead. [[spoiler:The answer? Possibly aside from Shinji's life being extended some (he would still die shortly thanks to the suppressants), not much of anything.]]

* In ''VisualNovel/SteinsGate'', the main characters are successfully able to alter the circumstances of Ruka's birth so that she is born as a normal female. However, literally every single other thing about her--appearance, behavior, relationship to other characters--is exactly the same. The only real change is a minor event earlier in her life that results in an artifact important to the plot being broken in the new timeline.

We all know that in an AlternateHistory or AlternateUniverse, tiny changes ("ForWantOfANail, the shoe was lost...") can lead to massive changes, where everything is different.

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'': In the episode "Trial," Gotham's new District Attorney, Janet van Dorn, blames Batman for the city's problems; she believes that Batman [[SuperheroParadox created each of the city's villains]] and wants to put him on trial. The inmates of Arkham kidnap her and Batman and put Batman on trial, accusing him of creating them, and Janet is given the task of defending him. By the end of the trial, Janet realizes she was wrong; Batman may have inspired some of their gimmicks, but even without him, they would have become criminals and caused trouble for Gotham regardless.

** ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' is a good example -- Marty accidentally prevents his parents from meeting in 1955, so has to get them together in order to protect his existence. Marty's actions change a lot in regards to his family; when he returns to 1985, his father George is a much more confident man and successful author, his mother Lorraine is slimmer and no longer an alcoholic, his siblings are no longer dead-end losers, Biff is now a somewhat goofy car waxer that looks up to George, and Marty now owns a spiffy pick-up truck, one that he had been eyeing longingly in the original timeline. However, the only change beyond his family and Biff is that [[BrickJoke Twin Pines Mall is called Lone Pine Mall]]; ''everything else'' is exactly the same. Marty and his siblings still exist and were still born on the same days, they still live in the same house, his room is exactly the same as in the "old" timeline, Marty is still dating Jennifer, and was planning the exact same trip to the lake as "before".

* In ''Manga/TokyoRevengers'', no matter how many times [[MentalTimeTravel Takemichi travels back to the past]] and [[SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong alters events in the timeline]] to prevent the [[JapaneseDelinquents Tokyo Manji Gang]] from becoming [[TheSyndicate the worst criminal organization in Japan]], 12 years later [[TheLostLenore his girlfriend Hina still ends up murdered.]] The only thing consistent across every timeline is that [[TheLeader Mikey]] is nowhere to be found, [[TheLancer Draken]] is either dead or on death row, [[BigBad Kisaki Tetta]] has [[TheCorrupter corrupted]] Toman with his influence and eventually calls a hit on Hina. {{Justified|Trope}}, since it turns out that [[spoiler:Kisaki has climbed his way through the ranks of Toman and turned it into what it is in the modern day in order to become the greates delinquent in history and show up Takemichi, who was a delinquent when he was dating Hina during his childhood and [[OldFlame remains the object of her affection in modern times]] even after they [[BreakHerHeartToSaveHer break up]]. [[IfICantHaveYou Kisaki has Hina assassinated]] because [[NotGoodWithRejection she turns his love confession down in every timeline]]]].

* In ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'', three Ancients manipulated Pious Augustus into becoming their champion, but the parallel realities created by choosing one artifact instead of the two others differ very little from each other: you still end up fighting an undead Roman centurion, while his patron deity still gets his ass kicked and horribly mutilated by the opposite one you summoned earlier. [[spoiler:It then still proceeds to [[NiceJobBreakingItHero try and destroy the world and enslave humanity]], while your dead grandpa still fixes it for you]].

* In the [[DownerEnding Dark Side ending]] of ''VideoGame/TheForceUnleashed'', Starkiller kills Darth Vader and is [[KlingonPromotion forced into becoming his replacement by Sidious]] while the leaders of the Rebel Alliance are killed. However, the events of ''Film/ANewHope'' go mostly unchanged as the Rebels are still active, Obi-Wan Kenobi still mentors Luke Skywalker (but is killed before they even get off Tatooine), and Luke still destroys the Death Star. It isn't until the Battle of Hoth that things truly diverge, as [[spoiler: Starkiller reveals the truth of Luke's heritage to him and [[WeCanRuleTogether takes him on as his Sith apprentice]].]]
** In the sequel, things play out similarly (except Vader is alive). This time, Starkiller's DiabolusExMachina clone takes his place on Hoth and instead [[ThePurge kills Luke before going on to do the same to the rest of the Rebellion on Endor's moon]].

** Speaking of ''Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire'', a small-scale example of this trope comes in the form the Battle Frontier seen in ''Emerald''. This facility, which was a replacement for/expansion of the Battle Tower from ''Ruby/Sapphire'', does not exist in the remakes' timeline, instead having been "replaced" by the Battle Resort. However, the Battle Resort itself is suggested to be the predecessor to the Battle Frontier, as a man at the Battle Maison located within the Resort appears to be recruiting for Scott, the Battle Frontier's owner, and mentions that the position of Pike Queen has been scouted, most likely referring to Lucy, the Frontier Brain of the same title in ''Emerald''. ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' confirms this even further, as it features [[spoiler:Anabel, who is implied to be the very one from ''Emerald'' instead of the one in the Mega Evolution timeline; she mentions being from Hoenn and having a tower to guard despite having lost her memories -- but as noted above, the Battle Frontier ''hasn't yet been built at the time of OR/AS''. Interpol refers to her as a "Faller," someone who has explicitly traveled between dimensions via [[OurWormholesAreDifferent Ultra Wormholes]].]]

* A major frustration to Homura Akemi in ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica''; no matter what she does in her indeterminate number of attempts to [[spoiler:rewind the events of the series and start them over differently,]] the outcome is always the same. She refers to it herself as an "endless maze".
** As well as the finale; [[spoiler: Madoka's wish {{Ret Con}}s all witches out of existence, meaning every death at the hands of a witch (MagicalGirl ''or'' {{Muggle}}) didn't happen, saving countless numbers of lives who could then do more things and impact the world. Needless to say, this should radically change the course of human history, as witches and magical girls had been shown to have been around for hundreds of years... yet Mitakihara, at least, looks more or less the same. And Magical Girls still risk life and limb to fight despair, only in the form of 'Wraiths' instead of Witches]].
* ''Anime/ReadOrDie'' takes place in a history where the British Empire remains the most powerful force on Earth and cloning is a viable science, yet George W. Bush is still the (at the time) President of the United States, and Creator/StephenKing still wrote ''Literature/{{Misery}}''. Some or all of this may be a result of [[spoiler:Gentleman screwing with the Book of Truth]].
** Technically it's not Bush. [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed Just someone who looks and sounds an awful lot like him.]]

* ''TabletopGame/{{Chrononauts}}'' has a card called "Your Parents Never Met" which forces a player to pick a new "character" card (thus altering the win conditions for said player).
** Since players and characters are separate in ''Chrononauts'', this would be logical: the original character [[FridgeHorror ceased to exist]] and the player takes on a new one. But the new character has the same Artifacts and Mission...

** One ''Infinite Worlds'' article in ''Pyramid'' describes a town in the Vinland of Midgard a world based on "what if the Norse colonies actually stuck, and it was now the 15th century?" Despite the massively divergent history and the fact it appears to be three centuries too early, the town is home to a man named Beinir Folkmarsson who, in addition to having a name that looks like Creator/BenjaminFranklin, also has a backstory that comprises being apprenticed at a print-shop in another town, jumping his indenture and setting up shop as a printer and natural philosopher in Fimhálsar, while also writing anonymous satires. Homeline researchers used to study him as the best example of a "personal echo" in a highly divergent timeline, but stopped because an alternate Benjamin Franklin is the sort of person who ''notices'' weird outsiders taking an interest in him.