History Main / TheMissusAndTheEx

* In ''Fanfic/LuckyNumberThirteen'', Christian's ex-submissive Sharon intentionally seeks out Ana, the woman he's currently trying to seduce, to warn her about what Christian can be like. Sharon says she knows this is a weird situation, but she feels she has to tell Ana about how Christian treated her before she gets hurt. Ana is initially a bit wary and jealous, but agrees to hear Sharon out. [[spoiler:They end up becoming quite friendly with each other and Sharon agrees to help Ana break up with Christian.]]

* ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsHonorAmongThieves'': Holga Kilgore visits her ex Marlamine in the name of closure, only for his current girlfriend to enter the home while they're talking. Gwen happens to be a barbarian woman too, even bigger than Holga, showing Marlamine HasAType. They stay civil to each other, although Holga is clearly distraught.

* ''Film/FatherOfTheBride2022'': There's apparent tension between Hernan's first wife Marcela and his much-younger second wife Julieta. {{Subverted}} in that they get along swimmingly at Sofia's bachelorette party. When Ingrid says she thought they hated each other, Marcela and Julieta say they just pretend to hate each other for Hernan's benefit.

* The initial dynamic between Erin, Abby and Holtzmann in ''Film/Ghostbusters2016'' plays like a ([[LesYay mostly]]) non-romantic example of this trope. Although not (explicitly identified as) girlfriends, Erin and Abby were friends and research partners until Erin 'dumped' Abby to develop her own career, which led to initial awkwardness when Erin later re-entered Abby's life only to discover that she'd found a new, younger, cooler partner in Holtzmann, who she even seemed to get on better with. Played with in that, outside of the initial bad feelings, Erin and Abby rather quickly manage to rekindle their old friendship and, outside of some initial protectiveness and teasing, Holtzmann never seems that hostile to Erin and ''actually'' seems much fonder of [[ShipTease flirting incessantly with her]].

* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** In ''Film/IronMan3'', Pepper Potts gets along quite well with Maya Hansen, whom Tony had a one night stand with.

** Done [[HeterosexualLifePartners platonically]] (and hilariously) in the [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger Captain America]] films, with Sam Wilson (the Falcon) as the Missus, and Bucky Barnes (the Winter Soldier) as the ex.
** ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder'' gives a hilarious twist in that the missus is Stormbreaker, a massive-battle axe, and the ex is Mjolnir, a war hammer. Stormbreaker is clearly jealous that Thor is trying to get Mjolnir back and even throws tamtrums, forcing Thor to try and comfort his weapon as if it were a jealous lover. [[spoiler: In fact, it's implied that the reason Thor can't stop the Bifrost in the climax is because Stormbreaker is refusing to cooperate out of spite.]]

* ''Film/Venom2018'': They're not friends, but Eddie is on civil terms with his ex-fiancée's new boyfriend Dan, and Dan turns out to be a NiceGuy doctor who tries to take care of Eddie when the Venom symbiote appears to be damaging his health.

* In ''Literature/TheLostFleet'', Black Jack Geary has to deal with having his former lover as his political advisor and ally and his present lover as the captain of his flagship - which they all live aboard. Basically he keeps his head down barring the occasional plaintive plea for civility... which is basically what he'd been doing from day one anyway, because the two of them hated each other long before he'd even ''met'' either one, much less started any kind of relationship.

* ''Series/BabylonFive'': This becomes an issue at the end of the third season when Captain Sheridan's wife ([[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated who everyone thought was dead]]) shows up at his quarters while he's spending the night with Delenn. [[spoiler: As it turns out, Anna was changed by the Shadows, and Sheridan knew it, and both of them were dead by the end of the season. Sheridan [[UnexplainedRecovery would get better]] in the next season, but Anna was gone for good.]]

--->''(after Ace has stormed off in a huff)''\\

* On ''Series/{{Rush 2014}}'', Dr. William Rush goes to a medical conference where he encounters his ex-girlfriend Dr. Sarah Peterson. Sarah is there with her new boyfriend Dr. Griffin Wagner. Rush still has strong feelings for Sarah but is trying to let her go so he makes a token attempt to befriend Griffin. Griffin is a great guy and a splendid doctor but he is very insecure about his relationship with Sarah because he heard so many things about the wild and exciting William Rush and knows that Sarah is not yet fully over Rush. After a few drinks Griffin tries to show that he can be as spontaneous and unpredictable as Rush and performs a dangerous stunt that almost gets him killed. Rush saves his life but the two men get arrested. Much to Sarah's chagrin, they end up bonding over the experience.

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* WesternAnimation/KimPossible refused to admit that she was jealous when she first met Yori, a girl Ron made friends with while attending the Yamanouchi Ninja School. This despite Ron being oblivious to Yori's obvious attraction to him. Later, after Ron and Kim became a couple, Ron broke the news to Yori, who seemed to take it in stride. Later, when Kim and Yori were working together to retrieve a mystic monkey artifact from a temple, they bonded.

* ''Anime/{{Godannar}}'': Late in season 1, Go Saruwatari's ex-lover Mira recovers from a coma after being presumed dead for many years. His wife Anna doesn't recognize the amnesiac woman, so she takes Mira into their home and treats her somewhere between a sister and a daughter. Go's situation only gets stickier when Mira starts regaining her memories and the three aren't fully comfortable with each other until near the end of season 2.

* In Kyle Rayner's ComicBook/GreenLantern run, his ex-girlfriend, Donna Troy, showed up at his art gallery showing, leading to tensions between Kyle and then-girlfriend Jade. (Donna and Jade, when they both became Kyle's exes, eventually went on to be teammates in the Outsiders and the Justice League... with further ramifications whenever Kyle enters the mix.)
* In ''ComicBook/JourneyIntoMysteryImmonen'', Lady Sif comes to Jane Foster for medical advice regarding Lady Gaea. They easily get along and crack a few puns at Thor's expense.
-->'''Sif:''' [Thor] is bold, but you and I in the same room would scare him half to death. And rightly so.

* ''ComicBook/ScottPilgrim'' is pretty much entirely about this, as Scott gets in a relationship with Ramona and then has to deal with her seven exes, who have formed the League of Evil Exes.
** As the above is not complicated enough, right before starting to go out with Ramona Scott is dating recurring character Knives Chau, his earlier ex Kim Pine plays in the same band as Scott, and Envy Adams, [[TheOneThatGotAway the one whose break-up with Scott left him devastated]], [[TheExsNewJerkass is now dating one of the Evil Exes]] [[spoiler:and was just as devastated as Scott by the break-up, she just hid it better and got OnTheRebound faster]].

* ''Fanfic/TheManyDatesOfDannyFenton'': During his date with Violet, Danny meets her ex-boyfriend, Tony Rydinger. Despite the awkwardness, Danny still treats Violet well enough that she soon opens up to him.

* In ''Fanfic/LuckyNumberThirteen'', Christian's ex-submissive Sharon intentionally seeks out Ana, the woman he's currently trying to seduce, to warn her about what Christian can be like. Sharon says she knows this is a weird situation, but she feels she has to tell Ana about how Christian treated her before she gets hurt. Ana is initially a bit wary and jealous, but agrees to hear Sharon out [[spoiler:They end up becoming quite friendly with each other and Sharon agrees to help Ana break up with Christian]].

-->'''Helen:''' I don't understand you. No matter what you say. If Kane was my man, I'd never leave him like this. I'd get a gun. I'd fight. \\
'''Amy:''' Why don't you? \\

* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:

* In ''Film/TheGravedancers'', Allison is uncomfortable around her husband Harris's former girlfriend Kira, whom Harris is still good friends with. The situation becomes even more tense when Allison learns that Harris and Kira kissed during the alcohol-fueled wake in the cemetery.
* In ''Film/TheConIsOn'', Peter is married to Harry, but their desperate financial situation forces him to undertake a con on his ex-wife Jackie, which ultimately involves him moving into her mansion. This then puts Jackie in the same situation: living with her ex Peter, and her current husband, egotistical film director Gabriel.
* In ''Film/{{Stepmom}}'', while the title character and her husband's ex-wife initially don't get along, things get better bit by bit. And when the ex-wife learns she's terminally ill, she realizes that she really needs to improve her attitude so as to teach the new wife to be a good mother to her kids.
* In ''Film/DisasterOnTheCoastliner'', Stuart tells Paula that the police are after him because he punched out his ex-wife's new man in a fight.
* In ''Film/GodToldMeTo'', Pete's girlfriend Casey meets his soon-to-be-ex-wife Martha, who tells her things Pete never did, like the fact that she had three miscarriages [[spoiler:due to Pete's reality warping powers and his desire to not be a father]].

* ''Literature/StarWarsTatooineGhost'': Kitser's wife Tamora helps Han and Leia in their quest and is chagrined when she has to meet with Kitser's ex-wife Ulda in the process. Tamora met Kitser while working for Ulda as a waitress, and there's no lost love between them.

* Another Christie example comes in the Literature/MissMarple short story "The Case of the Caretaker": Harry Laxton introduces his wife Louise to his "old flame" Bella, now married to the village chemist. [[spoiler: Also, the friendship between Louise and Clarice Vane may qualify: Harry is in love with Clarice and murders Louise in hopes of marrying Clarice after she's dead]].

* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''

--->''[after Ace has stormed off in a huff]''\\

* Played with in ''{{Series/Eureka}}''. Sheriff Carter enters the diner and sees (or rather the audience sees) Allison Blake (the missus), Tess Fontana (the ex and the missus' best friend), and Nathan Stark (the missus' ex-husband, and bane of Carter's existence) all sitting at a table waiting for him. Amazingly, he doesn't instantly run. In a subversion however, [[spoiler: only Carter and Allison are real. Allison can see Tess, and Carter can see Stark, but neither of them can see both]].

* In an episode of ''Series/WithoutATrace'' when a mobster's mistress and son disappear, the agents are surprised that his wife not only knew about her, but that the two of them were friends, with the wife being a second mother to the boy.
* ''Series/WandaVision'': Agnes [[spoiler:(in reality, Agatha Harkness)]] lampshades it in the finale when [[spoiler:Wanda is saved from White Vision's attempt on her life by her Hex recreation of Vision.]]

* Music/RebaMcEntire's "And Still" is about a chance meeting with an ex, reconnecting, discovering that she still loves him as they talk... and then his wife walks up and the two head off together, leaving her alone with [[TearJerker "this aching in my heart, saying I loved him still."]]

* Happens in ''VideoGame/Uncharted2AmongThieves'' when Nathan and Chloe unexpectedly run into Elena in war torn Nepal, causing the latter to introduce herself to Chloe as 'last year's model'. However, Nathan and Chloe aren't in a relationship per se (they seem to be more "friends with benefits" than anything).

** Dorothy starts dating Douglas, also known as D.B. Cooper. When he's found out and jailed for the crimes they can prosecute for (many had passed the statute of limitations) his jail cell roommate is none other than Dorothy's criminal ex-husband, Bentley, who strikes up a friendship with Douglas. [[spoiler: It's later revealed that Bentley arranged for that to happen so he can make sure Douglas is good enough for Dorothy. Their son Kevin is actually ''surprised''.]]
--->'''Bentley:''' [[spoiler: That I'm a better ex-husband than a husband? ''Why?'']]

* ''Webcomic/GirlsNextDoor'' (spin-off to ''Roommates''), James' meet as FunnyBackgroundEvent [[http://pika-la-cynique.deviantart.com/art/GND173-Kablooie-Part-I-281495579 here]]... they won't get along well.

* In a flashback in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', Lucrezia is well aware of this trope, and deliberately subverts it. After announcing to [[FriendsWithBenefits Klaus]] that she intends to marry his best friend, who has proposed to her, she ''[[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20041210#.VvQvNeKLTIV drugs him]]'' and sends him away to make sure he can't mess up her future marriage. [[spoiler:Since WordOfGod says he ends up in Skifander, which is a ''lost city'', she wanted to be very sure indeed.]]
-->'''Lucrezia:''' I'm afraid I simply ''can't'' have you around ''complicating'' things. If only by being ''such'' a temptation... I'm afraid you really ''will'' have to go.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', in the episode "Fry and Leela's big fling" Leela's often mentioned ex-boyfriend Sean makes an appearance while Leela is on vacation with her current boyfriend Fry and he with his wife Darlene. The catfight ensues with him and Fry after Fry misunderstands about him stealing Leela (not entirely unfounded due to their rather rocky relationship) and Sean after Fry breaks his reed and won't give him the dollar for a new one. His wife, though stated she wouldn't be against fighting with Leela if they had enough time to do so, simply insults her, remembering how Sean had told her that Leela was crazy and he dumped her. [[spoiler: Turns out their "vacation spot" was actually a zoo in a planet inhabited by sentient apes and it's revealed later that this altercation was the whole reason Leela had been invited there as she and Sean had been there when they were together. When Sean arrived with a different woman, they decided to invite Leela back, knowing that she was also in a relationship with someone else, and have the results on display in order to make the exhibit more popular. It worked extremely well to the point where they even sold wigs of Fry's hair]]

* Ginger from ''WesternAnimation/AsToldByGinger'' invokes this trope in the Thanksgiving episode "Ten Chairs" where she invites Jonas (her mother's ex-husband) to the Thanksgiving dinner where Lois's fiancee Dave will also attend.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'' had Juandissimo Magnifico, Wanda's ex-boyfriend, as a recurring character. Needless to say, when he and Cosmo were in the same scene, tensions went high.
* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'': In "You Can't Handle the Booth!", while the Griffins [[AnimatedActors record a DVD commentary for an episode]], Lois finds out that Peter had been married to Creator/SarahPaulson before her, and to make things worse, Paulson herself joins them in the booth because she was in a cutaway gag for that very episode.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': In "Galaxy's Child", Geordi has a truly unique case as both the Missus and the Ex are the same person; one is the holographic counterpart of Dr. Leah Brahms from the earlier episode "Booby Trap", the other is the actual Leah. Things get very tense [[OtherMeAnnoysMe when the real Leah finds the holographic Leah]] repeating the earlier episode's closing lines "[[AccidentalInnuendo Every time you look at this engine, you're looking at me. Every time you touch it, it's me.]]", and accuses Geordi of being a StalkerWithACrush.
** GenderFlipped in "Second Chances" between Troi and the two Will Rikers. Similar to "Galaxy's Child", both the Mister and the Ex are technically the same person; one is the Riker we've come to know over 6 seasons on TNG and had given up on his relationship with Troi to further his career. The other is the Riker who was created by a [[TeleporterAccident transporter glitch]], stranded on Nervala VI for 8 years and still has strong feelings for Troi.

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* More or less the dynamic in ''LightNovel/{{Maoyu}}''. The Demon Queen is the Hero's Missus (since their contract is pretty much a marriage in all but name) and the Lady Knight is his Ex (though technically they never were in a relationship, he seems to be somewhat aware of her feelings for him). Much to his horror, the two quickly become friends with each other.

*** LaserGuidedKarma if you ask me given Delenn's history of withholding information.

* ''Series/{{Succession}}'': Marcia may have been estranged from her husband Logan, but she is quick to humiliate his current mistress Kerry [[spoiler:at Logan's funeral]].

* In at least one episode of ''Cheaters'', the girl being cheated on and the other girl became friends, much to the horror of the cheating boyfriend.

** Mary Jane always got along well with Peter's ex-girlfriends Betty Brant and Liz Allan (later Liz Osborn). Peter also eventually became friends with Betty's fiancé Ned Leeds (though not too close) and he and MJ served as Best Man and Maid of Honor at the Brant-Leeds wedding.
** Betty Brant Leeds had an affair with Peter Parker shortly after Mary Jane rejected his first wedding proposal, but on MJ's return to New York (ASM #242), Betty set up a date between MJ and Peter in order to bring the two back together. (Another matchmaker for Peter and MJ at the time was Liz Osborn).

** As Mary Jane was re-established as Peter's love interest after his painful break-up with the Black Cat, relations between MJ and Felicia Hardy were very prickly and competitive, especially during the run-up to the Watson-Parker wedding. However, the two eventually became friends during ComicBook/TheCloneSaga after MJ asked the Black Cat for help because she had nobody else to turn to. However, things did not always run smoothly because on some occasions MJ suspected, not without justification, that Felicia still wanted Peter.

* ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'': If you romanced Ashley in ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'', then romanced Tali in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' and bring them both along on the Geth Dreadnought mission, things get, um... [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYhG3AjMthU tense]]. Alternately, if you commit to Tali beforehand, both women quickly realize it's a fight that neither wants and instead share eager anticipation in fighting Geth. If you romanced Liara then Tali, Liara mentions that Tali's suit has [[ADateWithRosiePalms a built-in vibrator]] if you bring Liara along (Tali being required if she's alive).

* ''Film/TicketTOParadise'': Paul, Georgia's current boyfriend, is the pilot who flies her and her ex-husband David to Bali, leading to awkwardness on the plane. Paul returns to Bali in the third act, leading to even more awkwardness... [[spoiler:especially because Paul proposes, to David and eventually Georgia's distate.]]

* ''[[ComicBook/DCPride2022 DC Pride: Tim Drake Special]]'': Tim is hesitant to introduce his boyfriend Bernard to his ex Stephanie, at first because he's adjusting to knowing he's bi and unsure if his relationship with Bernard will be more than a couple of dates and later because he knows they're likely to be rather excitable together. In the end he does bring Steph to meet Bernard, which Steph is quite excited about.
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* In ''Series/MadMen'', Betty can't stand the idea of Don Draper rebuilding his life with another woman, and she is particularly mean and malignant whenever his new wife Megan is involved or crosses her path.

* ''[[ComicBook/DCPride2022 DC Pride: Tim Drake Special]]'': Tim is hesitant to introduce his boyfriend Bernard to his ex Stephanie, at first because he's adjusting to knowing he's bi and unsure if his relationship with Bernard will be more than a couple of dates and later because he knows they're likely to be rather excitable together. In the end he does bring Steph to meet Bernard, which Steph is quite excited about.

* ''Series/WandaVision'': Agatha Harkness lampshades it in the finale when Wanda is saved from White Vision's attempt on her life by her Hex recreation of Vision.