History Main / YoyoPlotPoint

* ''Series/{{Friends}}'', goddamnit, ''Friends''. In particular, Ross and Rachel's WillTheyOrWontThey, MakeUpOrBreakUp, Off-Again-On-Again relationship.

* This plagues the elongated conclusion of the 4th World War arc in ''{{Naruto}}''. At this point, most readers have lost count of how many times during the climactic battle Naruto's allies have come to doubt their usefulness, and then overcome their doubt by resolving to do their best regardless; how many times the BigBad has wavered towards doubt in his philosophy, then back to absolute faith in it and trying to make Naruto doubt ''his'' philosophy, and then back again; how many times, conversely, Naruto himself has felt the need to go through a revelation of [[RightMakesMight why his ideals are worth believing in and fighting for]], prompted by him relating to his possibly-LoveInterest, ActionDad and RivalTurnedEvil each in turn; and how many reveals of either the good guys' or bad guys' seemingly unbeatable "True Power" there have been only for that power to be beaten soundly, trumped and superseded.

* This plagues the elongated conclusion of the 4th World War arc in ''{{Naruto}}''. At this point, most readers have lost count of how many times during the climactic battle Naruto's allies have come to doubt their usefulness, and then overcome their doubt by resolving to do their best regardless; how many times the BigBad has wavered towards doubt in his philosophy, then back to absolute faith in it and trying to make Naruto doubt ''His'' philosophy, and then back again; how many times, conversely, Naruto himself has felt the need to go through a revelation of [[RightMakesMight why his ideals are worth believing in and fighting for]], prompted by him relating to his possibly-LoveInterest, ActionDad and RivalTurnedEvil each in turn; and how many reveals of either the good guys' or bad guys' seemingly unbeatable "True Power" there have been only for that power to be beaten soundly, trumped and superseded.

* Many video games fall into this trap, as sequels use the [[CapcomSequelStagnation same characters and same plot]] [[MissionPackSequel but with new maps.]] Most are protected by the RuleOfFun (see ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'') But when they aren't good enough the repetitive plot sticks out like a sore thumb.

** Another example would be how there always has to be something wrong with Sam. It started with his PsychicPowers in the first couple seasons, then his increasingly JerkAss behavior in the third season. In the fourth and fifth seasons, his drinking demon blood and the effects it had on him. In the sixth season, he was a SoullessShell for the first half and had his Hell-wall for the second half. In the seventh season, he had the fallout from the Hell-wall coming down (mostly limited to [[ImaginaryEnemy hallucinations of Lucifer]]). And finally in the eighth season he started getting sick as part of his trials to close the gates of Hell. Most of the time these events are only marginally connected to the main plot, and most were either solved with a DeusExMachina or just quietly forgotten about once the arc was over. This is infuriating because it both implies Sam is not inherently interesting as a character and must always have something wrong in order for the audience to care about him, and because Dean has never gotten such an arc (minus a few self-contained MonsterOfTheWeek episodes) leading to accusations that Sam is [[SpotlightStealingSquad favored by the writers]].

* Cussed ''Series/RoyalPains'' and that idiotic point with Jill and Hank...

* Raven of ''Comicbook/TeenTitans'' seemed to have found peace after she defeated her father in the "Terror of Trigon" arc, but she wound up infected by his influence again in the early '90s. After her corrupted body was destroyed, she seemed to be free of evil (even if she was stuck in a golden spirit form). Flash forward to Teen Titans volume 3 and on, where the resurrected Raven had to fear being corrupted ''yet again'' by her father, who was inexplicably resurrected himself in Judd Winick's run of "Titans". The plot point of Raven going missing and having to be found or rescued was also recycled twice within volume 3. In the {{New 52}} reboot, Raven's back to trying to fight her father's influence. Writers also seemed to constantly recycle the "will they or won't they?" question about her relationship with Beast Boy, seeming to settle on the two getting together before everything was rendered moot by ''Comicbook/{{Flashpoint}}''.

* Series/VeronicaMars. She ping-ponged between Logan and Duncan for most of the show, with other love interests thrown in the mix on occasion. There's a reason this show reruns on the Soap Opera Network.

** ''Series/LoisAndClark'' had it bad too, marrying the eponymous characters twice before they finally married for real. (To the point where the actual marriage episode was entitled "Swear to God, This Time We're Not Kidding.") At least one of the marriages involved the Frog eating clone of Lois Lane. Yeah...

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has major yo-yo-ing going on, although it manages to keep it from wrecking the rest of the show. The cycle is as follows: Sam (or Dean) has an issue but won't talk about it. Dean (or Sam) knows something is wrong and keeps pushing Sam (or Dean) on it, only to be frozen out. Tension builds. Sam (or Dean) keeps secrets. Dean (or Sam) finds out about them. Finally there is a huge fight and Sam (or Dean) walks out. An episode follows where the two of them are seen going their separate ways. Then they realize the importance of family and get back together, and the cycle is renewed. (Notice how the original issue that caused the whole thing never actually gets addressed...)

** Addressed in the movie where Marge ''does'' leave Homer after being unable to put up with his selfishness, ignorance, and shenanigans. Naturally, [{StatusQuoIsGod they do reconcile at the end.]]

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has major yo-yo-ing going on, although it manages to keep it from wrecking the rest of the show. The cycle is as follows: Sam has an issue but won't talk about it. Dean knows something is wrong and keeps pushing Sam on it, only to be frozen out. Tension builds. Sam keeps secrets. Dean finds out about them. Finally there is a huge fight and Sam walks out. An episode follows where the two of them are seen going their separate ways. Then they realize the importance of family and get back together, and the cycle is renewed. (Notice how the original issue that caused the whole thing never actually gets addressed...)

This trope is when a plot point, story element, character arc, or relationship arc is methodically taken apart, reset back to something resembling the status quo ante, and advanced over and over again. It can seem like the writers have realized that they cannot successfully take a series past its basic premise, so rather than provide any long-term resolutions or adapt the plot, they keep putting the characters back where they were before and forcing them to [[AnAesop learn the same lessons]], go through the same {{UST}}, or fight the same TournamentArc that they did last season.

* The ''BloodyJack'' novels have this in a ''bad'' way. Since Book ''Two'', every single book has Jackie wind up in trouble with the law, be separated from her ''[[OfficialCouple true love]]'', Jaimy, land in some kind of AttemptedRape/VirginTension scene, and [[YourCheatingHeart flirt and make out with at ''least'' one attractive young man (or, on occasion, an attractive young ''[[LesYay woman]].'' Usually, by the end of the book, the troubles are sorted out and Jackie and Jaimy are/are on the brink of being reunited--and then a new problem tears them apart.

* The ''BloodyJack'' novels have this in a ''bad'' way. Since Book ''Two'', every single book has Jackie wind up in trouble with the law, be separated from her ''[[OfficialCouple true love]]'', Jaimy, land in some kind of AttemptedRape/VirginTension scene, and [[YourCheatingHeart flirt and make out with at ''least'' one attractive young man. Usually, by the end of the book, the troubles are sorted out and Jackie and Jaimy are/are on the brink of being reunited--and then a new problem tears them apart.

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Who the hell is [[spoiler:Tobi]] anyway?
** He's a good boy, that's who! Also, [[spoiler:Obito Uchiha]].

Some writers just don't realize there's such a thing as "flogging a dead horse." Very often, there will be an aspect of the plot that can only be effective as a source of tension for as long as it is not resolved. WillTheyOrWontThey is probably the best known example, but other possibilities include psychological issues that are a handy source of ({{w|angst}}){{angst}}, a long-term goal that the protagonist has set him or herself, or simply character development as a whole since, with the exception of certain genres that favour the ResetButton, personal identity is something that evolves over time.

Here's the difficulty: If you spin out this plot point for too long, you risk [[EndingFatigue annoying the fans and stretching believability beyond its limits]]. If you do resolve it, you need to rethink your story formula: an actual romantic relationship is a very different beast from a will-they-won't-they relationship. It's generally accepted that one of the hallmarks of a good writer is the ability to cope with such transitions and depict them appropriately.

Unfortunately, some writers can't make the jump effectively. Faced with ShippingBedDeath, they decide that maybe getting the characters together wasn't such a good idea, and separate them again. Alternatively, perhaps writing a character attending university isn't as much fun as writing about their attempts to get into university. In the case of comics, a former writer might have resolved a plot that an incoming writer really, really wanted to tackle, so the newcomer undoes his predecessor's work in order to put his own spin on things.

Which could actually have worked, had the writer left it there. It might be a bit of a downer, thwarting the audience's expectations and putting a melancholy slant on things: having the characters enter into a love affair, only to have they realize that [[BetterAsFriends while they're great friends, they don't work as lovers]], or having the earnest Ronin realize that he just isn't clever enough to keep pace with university work. However, it'd be an entirely valid plot development and would still contribute to the character's "[[CharacterDevelopment evolution]]."

So it's a pity that few writers opt to do that. Instead, they devolve their characters back into the way they were before the plot point was resolved. It's not quite a ResetButton job -- the scenario will be methodically taken apart -- but the characters don't seem to have learned anything. The instant the couple breaks up, one half will decide that they really want their partner back, and will set off in pursuit, turning the will-they-won't-they into its more annoying cousin: the on-again-off-again relationship. TheHero is demoted out of his position as Commander, but rather than look for a new career, he rounds up his FiveManBand and sets about working his way up the ranks again. The product of BreakTheCutie visits a psychologist and leaves the office to a more mentally healthy life... only to remember on her way into the house that her parents liked her big brother better and descend back into her messed-up state, blowing up a few buildings for good measure.

What's worse, however, is that they will repeat this process over and over again. Periodically. To the point that the fans don't even care any more, and would happily consent to having the participants executed just for a change of pace and so that they don't have to watch this train wreck of a plot any more.

The yoyo plot point is symptomatic of a story that has simply gone on for too long. The first "resolution" of this point is often cited by fans as the show's JumpingTheShark moment, where it's agreed that the writer may have been better to cut the tale short and end it there.

This trope is sort of the {{inver|tedTrope}}se of JustEatGilligan. That's where the plot point is drawn out by ''not'' doing one relatively simple action. The yo-yo plot point is where they ''did'' eat Gilligan, but [[{{Squick}} regurgitate him and eat him again... and again.]]

The PostScriptSeason is a close relative of this trope, but in those circumstances the dilemma faced by the writers is at least understandable... and it only really "breaks the plot" once rather than repeatedly. This trope is often the reason a LastMinuteHookup will be employed. The writers know damn well that they don't really want to write [[TrueLoveIsBoring an established romantic relationship]], and so they end the story on a romantic high without having to deal with the practicalities of the situation. The ExpansionPackPast can become a YoyoPlotPoint if it's added to and retconned past the point of credibility. But it's constantly coming BackFromTheDead that is acknowledged as the least likely, and most eyeroll-inducing, variation of this trope. And finally, the FlipFlopOfGod is this when it happens in WordOfGod only.

See also: StatusQuoIsGod, FailureIsTheOnlyOption, SequelReset, HeelFaceRevolvingDoor, AesopAmnesia, OnceAnEpisode. In comics, JokerImmunity and a CardboardPrison are often employed so that villains may be defeated many times over.

May involve an IdiotPlot or a character grabbing the IdiotBall, although neither of those are strictly required.

Some writers just don't realize there's such a thing as "flogging a dead horse." Very often, there will be an aspect of the plot that can only be effective as a source of tension for as long as it is not resolved. WillTheyOrWontThey is probably the best known example, but other possibilities include psychological issues that are a handy source of ({{w|angst}})angst, a long-term goal that the protagonist has set him or herself, or simply character development as a whole since, with the exception of certain genres that favour the ResetButton, personal identity is something that evolves over time.

* Ken Akamatsu, writer of ''Manga/LoveHina'', should really have known when to cut a long story short. Most readers figured out pretty quickly just who Keitaro's "promise girl" was, and the plot itself answered the question in the 10th of 14 volumes. So throwing in umpteen further "complications" to spin out the romantic tension ("Is she really the Promise Girl?!!") for its 14-volume run wasn't really effective, especially since he and Naru outright admit that they no longer care if she really is the girl in volume 12 and finally kiss. The same thing happened with Keitaro's TokyoU career: he was accepted after the second year of the story, but in order to keep the protagonist's educational prospects as a source of tension, Akamatsu had a large bell fall on top of him, preventing him from taking up his place there, though it did result in him [[TookALevelInBadass taking a level in badass]] in the meantime. Considering that Akamatsu is obviously a Creator/RumikoTakahashi fan, we should be thankful that he ended the manga after 14 volumes instead of 45.

** Duncan and Courtney's relationship is a particularly bad case. After spending half of Season 1 in WillTheyOrWontThey, the season ends with them ([[SlapSlapKiss somewhat]]) happily together. Then Season 2 comes along and Courtney, suffering from CharacterDerailment, breaks up with Duncan, but they get back together in the finale. ''Then'' they break up again in the reunion special only for them to get back together in the ''same freaking episode''. Finally, they seem to have broken up for good in Season 3, but, as mentioned above, we can't be certain.

** Duncan and Courtney's relationship is a particularly bad case. After spending half of Season 1 in WillTheyOrWontThey, the season ends with them ([[SlapSlapKiss somewhat]]) happily together. Then Season 2 comes along and Courtney, suffering from CharacterDerailment, breaks up with Duncan, but they get back together in the finale. ''Then'' they break up again in the reunion special only for them to get back together in the ''same freaking episode''. Finally, they seem to have broken up for good in Season 3 but, as mentioned above, we can't be certain.

** Duncan and Courtney's relationship is a particularly bad case. After spending half of Season 1 in WillTheyOrWontThey, the season ends with them ([[SlapSlapKiss somewhat]]) happily together. Then Season 2 comes along and Courtney, suffering from CharcaterDerailment, breaks up with Duncan, but they get back together in the finale. ''Then'' they break up again in the reunion special only for them to get back together in the ''same freaking episode''. Finally, they seem to have broken up for good in Season 3 but, as mentioned above, we can't be certain.

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