History Main / NewNeighboursAsThePlotDemands

* ''Series/LittleHouseOnThePraire'' did this a lot, most noticeable during the first season with students. An episode would center around a student who couldn't read or was disabled or whatever lesson of the week required. Every other child would know who they were and what their problem was, as if that student had always been there. Yet, we'd never seen them before and never saw them since.

* ''Series/LittleHouseonthePraire'' did this a lot in the first season, most noticeable during the first season with students. An episode would center around a student who couldn't read or was disabled or whatever lesson of the week required. Every other child would know who they were and what their problem was, as if that student had always been there. Yet, we'd never seen them before and never saw them since.

* ''Little House on the Praire'' did this a lot in the first season, most noticeable during the first season with students. An episode would center around a student who couldn't read or was disabled or whatever lesson of the week required. Every other child would know who they were and what their problem was, as if that student had always been there. Yet, we'd never seen them before and never saw them since.

* This happens in the Mary Minor, Mrs. Murphy and Tee Tucker mystery series written by Rita Mae Brown. The series is set in a small town in Virginia and there are always at least a few new characters introduced with each novel.

* ''Everwood'', including the flavor of the week patients.

* Cardale in ''Peak Practice'', another medical show example. Possibly lampshaded in one episode:

* [[TheSimpsons Springfield]] started out this way, until all the side characters were cemented as a part of the LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters cast.

* ''StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' did this a few times, most notably in the episode "Lower Decks" which introduced a set of brand-new Starfleet officer characters ... only for them to never be seen nor referenced again. One of these one-off characters is shown to be Ten-Forward's secondary bartender (in lieu of Guinan) who is well-known enough to be a confidante, but had never been referenced before or since.

A SubTrope of GeographicFlexibility, when writing a small town setting for long enough, you start introducing [[RememberTheNewGuy new characters everyone apparently knows, but has never mentioned before]]. In PoliceProcedural and medical shows, new neighbours are handy for RippedFromTheHeadlines and SickSadSubcultureOfTheWeek plots.

A SubTrope of GeographicFlexibility, when writing a small town setting for long enough, you start introducing [[RememberTheNewGuy new characters everyone apparently knows, but has never mentioned before]]. In PoliceProcedural and medical shows, new neighbours are handy for RippedFromTheHeadlines and FreaksOfTheWeek plots.

* R.L. Stine's ''Ghosts of Fear Street'' series. It must be one long street...

* ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' and related media. Handwaved in that the Hellmouth the town is on attracts the monsters and scaries.

* WarioWare series. Not explicitly stated how big Diamond City is as a place, but each game adds new characters apparently just living a few houses away from each other that have never been seen before in the entire series.

* ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and related media. Handwaved in that the Hellmouth the town is on attracts the monsters and scaries.

* ''{{Smallville}}'' has a new meteor rock freak every week.

* Cardale in ''Peak Practise'', another medical show example. Possibly lampshaded in one episode:

* In the first few days of playing ''AnimalCrossing'', a new neighbour moves in every day.

* [[TheSimpsons Springfield]] started out this way, until all the sidecharacters were cemented as a part of the LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters cast.

* ''{{Filmore}}'' reuses the faces of previous episodes' characters, but they never speak or do anything of importance. Outside the safety patrol itself, no character features in more than one episode, [[RememberTheNewGuy even those who have a history with the regulars]].

* British police show ''{{Heartbeat}}'' takes place in a small town of Ashfordly, which seems to have a ready supply of people commiting various crimes, and in later seasons [[WriterOnBoard suffering from alcoholism and needing]] AnAesop.