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** Season 7 has a lot of wasted [[JustForPun potential]]:
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** Season 7 has a lot of wasted [[JustForPun potential]]:potential:
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As per TRS
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* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Considering the amount of characters who are [[{{Foil}} Foils]] to each other (E.G. [[GrumpyBear Mr. Grumpy]] to [[ThePollyanna Mr. Happy and Little Miss Sunshine]]), you'd think that there'd be a story showing [[ScienceHero Little Miss Inventor]] and [[MagicalGirl Little Miss Magic]] having such a relationship but so far, such a storyline hasn't come to light.
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* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Considering the amount of characters who are [[{{Foil}} Foils]] to each other (E.G. [[GrumpyBear Mr. Grumpy]] Grumpy to [[ThePollyanna Mr. Happy and Little Miss Sunshine]]), you'd think that there'd be a story showing [[ScienceHero Little Miss Inventor]] and [[MagicalGirl Little Miss Magic]] having such a relationship but so far, such a storyline hasn't come to light.
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Up To Eleven is a defunct trope
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** In general, Phoebe's character derailment in the later seasons is a result of the show failing to acknowledge her TraumaCongaLine in Season Four. Her behaviour includes: distancing herself from her sisters and magical heritage, [[TookALevelInJerkass becoming increasingly self-centered, jaded]] and [[BrokenBird less bubbly]], being obsessed with her sister's baby first and having her own baby at all costs later, and [[MurderArsonAndJaywalking becoming disillusioned about love]]. This is pretty consistent with depression over losing her sister, her love/husband and her unborn baby in a short span, as well as her guilt over betraying her family and frustration over her dead husband trying to force his way back into her life. Jason breaking up with her because of magic not long after was the final straw, seeing how [[UpToEleven faster and further]] her derailment went afterwards. Had the show truly addressed her mental state, Phoebe would have come off as more sympathetic and could have had a character arc about healing, redeeming herself, reconnecting with her sisters and magic, and balancing her new-found maturity with her earlier optimism and carefreeness, rather than just focussing on solving her "love block" by [[StrangledByTheRedString shoehorning a love interest at the eleventh hour]] as if ''that'' were the solution to everything.
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** In general, Phoebe's character derailment in the later seasons is a result of the show failing to acknowledge her TraumaCongaLine in Season Four. Her behaviour includes: distancing herself from her sisters and magical heritage, [[TookALevelInJerkass becoming increasingly self-centered, jaded]] and [[BrokenBird less bubbly]], being obsessed with her sister's baby first and having her own baby at all costs later, and [[MurderArsonAndJaywalking becoming disillusioned about love]]. This is pretty consistent with depression over losing her sister, her love/husband and her unborn baby in a short span, as well as her guilt over betraying her family and frustration over her dead husband trying to force his way back into her life. Jason breaking up with her because of magic not long after was the final straw, seeing how [[UpToEleven faster and further]] further her derailment went afterwards. Had the show truly addressed her mental state, Phoebe would have come off as more sympathetic and could have had a character arc about healing, redeeming herself, reconnecting with her sisters and magic, and balancing her new-found maturity with her earlier optimism and carefreeness, rather than just focussing on solving her "love block" by [[StrangledByTheRedString shoehorning a love interest at the eleventh hour]] as if ''that'' were the solution to everything.
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** A complaint brought up by several reviewers is that, while the film has big ideas and themes that are interesting on their own, the movie tries to cram them all into the one narrative given with LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, not allowing any single potential plot element to be given the focus needed to develop properly. It's a common belief that a Disney+ series would have allowed for more breathing room.
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** A complaint brought up by several reviewers is that, while the film has big ideas and themes that are interesting on their own, the movie tries to cram them all into the one narrative given with LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, a huge cast, not allowing any single potential plot element to be given the focus needed to develop properly. It's a common belief that a Disney+ series would have allowed for more breathing room.
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Dewicked trope
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** Again, how awesome would it be to see Ripley working together ''with'' the small Hicks-Bishop-Newt family unit she developed in the previous film inside the hellhole that is Fiorina Prison? Considering that said group of characters is 1) an attractive woman, 2) a military authority figure, 3) an android, and 4) a [[AdultFear little girl]], watching those four fight for their lives in a prison full of violent rapists and criminals would arguably be ''[[AdultFear scarier]]'', in some ways, than having Ripley on her own hunted down by the Xenomorph, not to mention that their presence would make [[spoiler:Ripley's eventual HeroicSacrifice]] that much more moving, meaningful, and a satisfying conclusion to her story.
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** Again, how awesome would it be to see Ripley working together ''with'' the small Hicks-Bishop-Newt family unit she developed in the previous film inside the hellhole that is Fiorina Prison? Considering that said group of characters is 1) an attractive woman, 2) a military authority figure, 3) an android, and 4) a [[AdultFear little girl]], girl, watching those four fight for their lives in a prison full of violent rapists and criminals would arguably be ''[[AdultFear scarier]]'', ''scarier'', in some ways, than having Ripley on her own hunted down by the Xenomorph, not to mention that their presence would make [[spoiler:Ripley's eventual HeroicSacrifice]] that much more moving, meaningful, and a satisfying conclusion to her story.
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!!!Seems OK: 71/357 (19.9%)
Anime.{{Transformers Energon}}:
* BodyBackupDrive: After Demolisher is blown up, Megatron builds him a new body and sticks his spark into it, but not before reformatting it to remove Demolisher's pesky morality. Which leads to a ''[[TookALevelInDumbass very stupid]]'' reincarnation of the Decepticon, and one of many TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot complaints.
BoxOfficeBomb.{{D}}
* ''Film/{{Downsizing}}'' (2017) — Budget, $68 million. Box office, $52,694,653. Creator/AlexanderPayne's sci-fi satire debuted to a packed holiday season and [[{{Pun}} came up short]]. Critics didn't greet this as warmly as his other films, citing [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot the wasted potential of the premise]] as their biggest concern.
Characters/GameOfThronesOtherNorthernHouses
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: When Ramsay proudly recounts how he flayed Lord Cerwyn alive in Season 5, Roose berates him for his stupidity, pointing out that while it ensured their submission for the moment, in the long term he just gained the Cerwyn's lasting enmity and they will jump at the next chance to rebel against the Boltons. Then when the actual uprising against Ramsay occurred in Season 6, the Cerwyns were nowhere to be seen -- ''even when'' Jon Snow points out that Ramsay's men only follow Ramsay out of fear and will turn on him when he is weak.
FranchiseOriginalSin/TheSimpsons
* One of the show's favorite tactics since the earliest seasons is to start off the first act with an unrelated plot. For instance, "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E9HomerBadman Homer Badman]]"'s first act is about Homer and Marge going to a candy convention, while the rest of the story deals with Homer being falsely accused of sexual harassment and dealing with the fallout. It worked in earlier episodes because the opening plot always leads into the main plot (Homer is accused by the babysitter after he tries to pull a piece of candy he stole from the convention off of her butt). As time went on, though, the transitions between plots became increasingly abrupt and threadbare, to the point that these first-act plots could probably be cut from the episode entirely, and are used as little more than padding because the main plot can't stand up on its own. Worse, if the main plot is too weak, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot the audience ends up wishing they had settled for the first-act plot]]. For example, one common criticism of [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS12E17SimpsonSafari "Simpson Safari"]] is that the initial plot about the strike is an interesting story that deserved a whole episode, while the main plot is just the typical "The Simpsons travel to X" story.
GrowingTheBeard/LiveActionTV
* ''Series/TheLastManOnEarth'' started out strong as a [[AfterTheEnd post-apocalyptic comedy]] with an [[MinimalistCast intriguing]] [[TheLastManHeardAKnock concept]], but began to go downhill in the middle of Season 1. It cast aside its original premise for [[ArcFatigue bog-standard sex-comedy]] plots, and its main character grew into an UnsympatheticComedyProtagonist. The show returned for its second season noticeably improved and it started to gain critical notice for its [[{{Retool}} increased focus]] on its post-apocalyptic setting, its strong EnsembleCast and previously unlikeable characters undergoing significant CharacterDevelopment. The show may not [[GenreShift resemble the idea that was originally pitched]], but it has long since shorn its TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot reputation.
SeasonalRot.WesternAnimation
* Each entry in the ''Franchise/Ben10'' franchise has its own seasonal rot:
** For [[WesternAnimation/Ben10 the original series]], it was the third season; while it ''does'' have its fans thanks to bringing back fan-favorite villain [[EnemyWithout Ghostfreak]] as the BigBad and introducing three horror-themed alien forms who all became {{Ensemble Dark Horse}}s, its episodes and story arc were considered overall weaker than the previous ones and [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter the three previously mentioned new aliens were only used once each and didn't really come back until]] ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse Omniverse]]''[[note]]except for Benmummy[=/=]Snare-Oh who did a very short cameo in "Ken 10"[[/note]]. Also, this season had the misfortune to introduce [[LoveInterests Kai Green]], [[TheScrappy who the fans already weren't fond of back then]] and who later became even more reviled in ''Omniverse''.
TheScrappy.VideoGames
*** Lily, [[spoiler:aka Yasuko Saejima]], is hated by fans for being a FauxActionGirl in a series where legitimate {{Action Girl}}s are few and far between, as well as her [[spoiler:relationship with her brother Saejima that culminates in her tragically [[DiedInYourArmsTonight dying in his arms]]]] being seen as [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot wasted potential]] due to a lack of actual onscreen development.
YMMV.{{A Feast for Crows}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Arianne's "Queenmaker" story would have been an interesting arc [[spoiler:if it wasn't foiled so abruptly.]]
YMMV/{{Antz}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The worker revolution that starts up once word begins to spread that Z went against the ant colony's system pretty much disappears completely after General Mandible's speech wins back the workers.
YMMV/{{Casper}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Some people hold this reaction towards the film, feeling that it could've been much better if it had cut out all of the other sub-plots and focused solely on the relationship between Casper and Kat, with Dr. Harvey's interactions with the Ghostly Trio being the main source of comic relief.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The "Euphinator incident" is despised by many, mainly because they feel that having Euphie's plan actually go into action and horribly collapse would have been a lot more interesting than [[spoiler:having an absurd DiabolusExMachina crush it before it starts and cause Euphie to be killed, as having it happen and fail with Euphie still alive would give her some interesting CharacterDevelopment to go through, potentially pushing her to becoming someone who, while not dark and cynical, would be a lot less cheerful and optimistic, and forced to look at things more realistically.]]
YMMV.{{Command and Conquer Tiberian series}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: ''Tiberium Wars'' ended with the Scrin planning on sending a real invasion to earth, but EA decided to just drop the whole plot for ''Tiberium Twilight'' -- which itself ends on [[GainaxEnding a rather confusing note]].
YMMV.{{Cowboys and Aliens}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Creator/RogerEbert and others felt that the cowboy story was more interesting ''without'' aliens being involved.
-->'''Roger Ebert:''' Yet I feel a certain small sadness. I wish this had been a Western. You know, the old-fashioned kind, without spaceships. Daniel Craig, cold-eyed and lean, plays a character familiar in the genre; think of the Ringo Kid or Doc Holliday, bad guys who rise to goodness.\\
Harrison Ford, as the rancher, embodies the kind of man who comes riding into town at the head of his private posse and issues orders to everyone. Sam Rockwell's Doc is the kind of small businessman who has come West while seeking his fortune among hard men. All the elements are here.
YMMV.{{Doom}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Not only were the resources to make this movie wasted on a plot that had nothing to do with the actual game, but even the movie completely fails to take advantage of its Mars setting or give a proper explanation as to ''why'' a Martian retrovirus would change some people into superhumans but others into monsters based on how "good" or "evil" they are. And even though teleporters are established ''and'' used prominently in the movie, they aren't even what bring the creatures to Mars.
YMMV.{{Drawn Together}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The idea of a ''Series/BigBrother''-style reality show that features family-unfriendly parodies of popular cartoon characters from across various media opens up a lot of potential to both [[{{Deconstruction}} de]]- and [[{{Reconstruction}} reconstruct]] not only of those characters' common tropes, but those of reality television. Unfortunately, the stigma that animation is either for [[AnimationAgeGhetto children]] or childish by design reared its ugly head, so rather than familiar types of characters playing off one another for comedy, we instead got your typical, ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy''-esque AnimatedShockComedy that [[CrossesTheLineTwice tries way too hard to be deliberately offensive]].
YMMV.{{Elfen Lied}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Kouta's lack of memories of his time with Yuka puts a damper on their potential of reaching a decent relationship, though Kouta has [[TraumaInducedAmnesia good reasons for it]]. Yet, when he eventually regains his memories of Lucy [[spoiler: killing his sister and father in front of him]], he focuses more on snapping at Lucy and simply telling her that he 'can't forgive her', when this could have been a great opportunity to also have Kouta remember his moments with Yuka, how he loved her since childhood and get the two of them to start something up. Perhaps the deadline of 108 chapters was closing in too fast, leaving no time...?
YMMV.{{Freakazoid}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The show never focused on the relationship between Dexter and Freakazoid, and it was unclear whether Freakazoid was Dexter unhinged or an entirely separate character (Freakazoid himself acted like Dexter was a different person, but still considered Dexter's family his family). Likewise nothing ever came of Stephanie learning that Dexter and Freakazoid shared the same body.
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** After the film builds a nice amount of tension over who the killer is, he turns out to be [[spoiler:someone we've never heard of]].
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The premise in general. An ordinary girl from Earth finds out she’s queen of the Earth, which is threatened by her evil… previous incarnation’s children? However, rather than having her stepping up and trying to defend her realm, she spends most of her time [[DamselInDistress getting rescued]] by her LoveInterest before ''going back home to her crappy cleaning job'' despite the fact there are still two villains out there murdering ''billions'' of lifeforms to make a profit and live forever.
YMMV.{{Ozzy and Drix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Allergies are biologically described, as what happens when the white blood cells become overprotective towards a specific thing (allergens). Knowing this fact, the episode with allergens could've been the perfect opportunity to make fun of the way governments [[PoliceBrutality (and cops)]] go to ridiculous lengths in fighting crime and terror. Instead, the allergen is just as antagonistic as every other germ in the series and the closest we get is an innocent being mistaken for the allergen.
YMMV.{{Prometheus}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The concept is we apparently get to contact the aliens who created humanity and the xenomorphs but then the movie explains next to nothing.
YMMV.{{Scrubs}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** J.D. having vasovagal syncope. It could have lead to many possibilities for a character arc for J.D. that would have been a continuation of his time in Sacred Heart for his appendectomy back in Season 1. Instead it's played for laughs, mentioned less then half a dozen times and then is forgotten.
** Keith. While most remember Keith as Elliot's SatelliteLoveInterest, a look at the "My Intern's Eyes" episode where he and his "generation" of interns are introduced, has him being the POV character whose goal in the episode was to "Find the courage to talk". Had they stuck with that shyness, he probably would have made a more interesting character even if events unfolded the same way during his arc.
YMMV.{{Sky High 2005}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The extremely flawed Hero-Sidekick program causes the entire conflict of the film but is never resolved or even questioned. It gives terrible results in the form of heroes who become egocentric bullies who prey on the weak and sidekicks who become object of mockery and resent heroes. It is the opposite of what the school aims to achieve, and the root cause of almost all the movie's conflict, and yet the audience never learns whether or not it was abolished at the end.
** Will's subplot in dealing with being a superhero without super powers would have been an interesting character arc for him.
** Layla is established as a TechnicalPacifist; she says she'll only use her powers nonviolently and in a situation that demands it. [[spoiler:The one time that she nearly breaks that rule is when Royal Pain seems to have killed Will, and she marches forward with ''murder'' in her eyes. Will shows up right then, revealing that he can fly, but it would have been interesting to see Layla's plant powers go toe-to-toe with Royal Pain]].
YMMV.{{Stargate SG-1}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** When Daniel was replaced for Season 6, the writers admitted both that they hadn't initially planned on using the originally one-off Jonas character and that the character could never recover from his fandom-unfriendly original role. As a result, Jonas ended up being a fandom-controversial, Daniel-lite, politically-exiled alien whose planet struggled with inter-continental wars. However, they already had a Daniel-lite, politically-exiled alien whose planet struggled with inter-continental wars and who'd had a much friendlier, more fandom-accepted one-off episode: Nyan, who was granted asylum in Season 3, would have been Daniel's SGC research assistant for two years by the time Daniel's replacement was needed.
** In the later seasons, the NID's investigation into the Goa'uld-controlled Trust sounds ripe for episode fodder. A cloak-and-dagger war fought behind the scenes across the entire planet? Sounds awesome. Too bad it's only ever referenced and for some strange reason the SGC just doesn't seem to care. It's also weirdly out of step with the early seasons, when even a single Goa'uld on Earth was considered a disaster. But the Trust manage to infiltrate most world governments and international corporations and General Landry acts indifferent to the NID's needs.
YMMV.{{The Dark Knight Rises}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Some watchers were more interested in how the rest of the country/world was taking an entire large metropolitan area being completely cut off from everything. Despite Bruce being outside of Gotham during it, it isn't really explored much.
** Despite all the time spent setting up the cover up of Harvey Dent's crimes, after the climactic moment where Bane reveals the truth to the world...nothing really comes of it. After Blake chews Gordon out about it, it is never mentioned again. Admittingly, they had bigger issues to deal with that quickly overshadowed it, but it was disappointing that so little came of all of that build up.
YMMV.{{The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Many feel that the AmnesiacHero approach could have been a good opportunity for a JigsawPuzzlePlot. The Memories could have been used as a way to tell this story by slowly revealing the events of what happened in the past, using AnachronicOrder to allow the audience to piece the story together. However, [[spoiler:King Rhoam]] spells the whole ordeal out by the end of the tutorial instead of letting the player figure out the plot on their own. As a result, the Memories never reveal any major events and only serve to showcase the characterizations of Zelda and the Champions.
YMMV.{{Totally Spies}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot
** The introduction of LAMOS (League Aiming to Menace and Overthrow Spies) in Season 4 can be considered this. Only five out of the hundreds of villains the spies faced are part of it, and LAMOS only appears in 5 episodes out of 26.
!!!This plot thread was poorly executed: 45/357 (12.6%)
Arcfatigue.{{Game of Thrones}}:
* Arya spends ''all'' of Season 4 just walking to the Vale with the Hound, doing nothing plot relevant. Then she spends the majority of Season 5 either sweeping floors, washing corpses, getting smacked, or yelling, "Oysters, clams, and cockles!" Then the first half of her Season 6 story is filled by basically an extended TrainingMontage and watching the same Braavosi play several times before she decides she doesn't want to be a Faceless Man after all. She gets a few neat character moments through all of this, but her overall CharacterDevelopment just makes a big loop back around to "I want to go home" and except for the TrainingMontage in Season 6, every cool skill she learns (especially how to [[VoluntaryShapeshifter change faces]]) is learned ''[[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot off-screen]]'' to make room for {{Filler}}, which hardly justifies three seasons away from any central story arc. Especially compared to the first three seasons when she was often on a tangent but was at least still connected with a variety of other characters (serving Tywin, meeting the Brotherhood, searching for Cat and Robb, befriending Gendry, etc.).
SeasonalRot.LiveActionTV
** [Series/{{Doctor Who}}] Conversely, Season 18 is often considered an overreaction that went too far the other way. New production team producer Creator/JohnNathanTurner and script editor Creator/ChristopherHBidmead declared their intention to make the show "less silly" and produced a season rather dour and humourless, more interested in technical and philosophical matters than [[JustHereForGodzilla an eccentric hero fighting monsters]]. Creator/TomBaker often looked a shadow of his former self, forced to play the role in a way he disliked, and popular companions Romana and K9 were replaced with [[TheScrappy Adric]]. Of the seven stories, only "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E3FullCircle Full Circle]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E4StateOfDecay State of Decay]]" really felt like ''Doctor Who''. Of the others, three ("[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E1TheLeisureHive The Leisure Hive]]", "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E2Meglos Meglos]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E6TheKeeperOfTraken The Keeper of Traken]]") were [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot good ideas]] realised in an esoteric, poorly paced and rather flat manner by the direction and script editing, and the other two ("[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E5WarriorsGate Warriors' Gate]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E7Logopolis Logopolis]]") were esoteric and poorly paced to start with. Bidmead only lasted one season, after which the show largely reverted to a more familiar action-adventure style.
YMMV/{Blackadder}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: There is really nothing wrong with the premise of the first season. In fact it can certainly be argued it had more potential than other seasons, since it's actually rather ingenious. The execution left much to be desired; plot elements with potential (the ghost of Richard III following Edmund around and taunting him) were thrown out, while others were sorely underdeveloped (Brian Bloody Blessed as king Richard IV!).
YMMV.{{Doom II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: While considered a great game, ''Doom II'' really doesn't take advantage of its Earth-based setting, aside from having a few levels near the middle portion that vaguely resemble cities and residential areas; since the opening act follows a "starbase" theme that could have been set on any planet, if it wasn't for the title and intermission text you wouldn't even know you're on Earth, and even the few levels that are supposed to be city areas look nothing like they're supposed to be (e.g. Suburbs just has a few wooden structures that do not look like actual houses, in a large open brown area with a large puddle of lava). One would think a game like this would have large epic battles between the Earth's military and the legions of Hell, or Doomguy going out into the wilderness every once in a while. Sadly this wasn't the case, likely due to the limitations of the original [=idTech=] engine. The 2011 version of ''[[VideoGame/Doom2016 Doom 4]]'' was [[WhatCouldHaveBeen seemingly going to]] explore at least the former concept, before it was cancelled and re-built from the ground up. Thankfully, ''VideoGame/DoomEternal'' gives the HellOnEarth formula another, more successful, try.
YMMV.{{Eternals}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** A complaint brought up by several reviewers is that, while the film has big ideas and themes that are interesting on their own, the movie tries to cram them all into the one narrative given with LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, not allowing any single potential plot element to be given the focus needed to develop properly. It's a common belief that a Disney+ series would have allowed for more breathing room.
** The controversial usage of Hiroshima is brought up to introduce the idea that Phastos, having been responsible for giving humanity many of its greater inventions, introduced the concept of nuclear power to humans and became dismayed when they weaponized it, to the point of giving up on humanity and their mission of protecting it. Come the next scene in the present day, he's moved on completely. Aside from attracting controversy before the film's release, some viewers were disappointed that the idea wasn't expanded upon.
** The Eternals having lived on Earth for thousands of years. The scenes in the past are used to provide exposition or establish the characters (and, admittedly, most of them doing it successfully), but the actual plot and character development all takes part in the present.
YMMV.{{Evil Con Carne}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: "Tiptoe Through The Tulips" was about Hector and his allies were getting prepared for invading New Zealand as Operation Z-Day but Boskov stayed for hibernation. About nine minutes of the two-part segment consisted of being boring.
YMMV.{{Famicom Detective Club}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Some fans were upset over the fact that at the end of ''The Missing Heir'', you don't get to see the reaction of characters like Zenzou, Akane or the villagers to TheReveal that [[spoiler: the protagonist is actually a member of the Ayashiro family.]]
YMMV.{{Ghostbusters}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Between the Ghostbusters' first job at the Sedgewick Hotel and the final act where they confront Gozer's plan, there's very little ghostbusting. Plenty of scenes where they're about to 'bust or just finished 'busting, but no actual 'busting. Presumably this was to limit the number of (costly) special effects shots, but it still feels like there are a few setpieces missing from the middle of the film.
YMMV.{{Godzilla 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Some critics feel that the GreenAesop and the nuclear geopolitics allegory that Gareth Edwards talked so much about in interviews leading up to the film's release were not as fleshed out as they should have been in the final product.
** In one interview, he specifically characterized this film as portraying Godzilla as GaiasVengeance out to punish humanity. His portrayal here is a complete 180 from that.
YMMV.{{Half Life Opposing Force}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The idea of playing as Marines trying to stop the Xen invasion and hunt down Gordon Freeman is awesome, but that gets thrown in the bin as soon as the game starts. In fact, Shepard arrives during the height of the Marines' losing battle at Black Mesa, but gets knocked unconscious and by the he awakens the war is over and Shepard is forced to work with the Black Mesa personnel to survive. Functionally, there's little difference between Freeman and Shepard, which is a pity.
YMMV.{{Johnny Bravo}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The episode concept of "[[GenderBender Witch-ay Woman]]" where Johnny is turned into a woman to put him in the shoes of all the women that he is always harassing is not only a great way to give him a cathartic reality check how uncomfortable women get when men like him bothers them, it would also come off as a great aesop about treating women with respect like respecting their boundaries and treating them like human beings. But sadly, it comes off as another one of those {{Anvilicious}} episodes with a misguided portrayal of feminism by making women portrayed as smart and mature while men are portrayed as dumb and immature, which ends up as Johnny not being able to understand how much of a jerk he is to women since his behavior towards them is not touched upon at all in the episode, and the only thing he seems to learn from it in the end is just that "women are smart and men are dumb."
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The conflict between Jupiter and her mother is only hinted at. The opening narration states that Aleksa became bitter and cynical after her husband was murdered, implying that Jupiter grew up distant from her. Mother and daughter learning to reconnect through the events of the film could have made a good plot. Instead Aleksa is barely featured.
[YMMV.{{Ms Marvel 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The book has teased a romance between Kamala and Bruno several times. This would be interesting, given Kamala's complete lack of romantic experience and the possibly conflicts between Bruno and her family. They even established [[RomanticFalseLead Romantic False Leads]] for the both of them, and they still chose each other in the end. But even when there's nothing standing in the way of their romance, and after learning multiple lessons about how they can't just expect the other to wait for them, they don't get together or even tease the idea.
** Originally, Kamala was often caught between her conservative upbringing and faith, and the fast life of an American teenager. She loves and respects her religion, but it also causes problems and conflicts that she must reconcile. We only get this in the first volume; after that, anything potentially problematic or difficult about her religion is unaddressed or outright defied. Her being a Muslim is no longer an issue, she receives no real bullying or hatred for it anymore, and the different cultures don't clash.
YMMV.{{Super Mario Odyssey}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Believe it or not, the wedding itself. [[spoiler:When we finally get to see the wedding in the final stage of the game, it's mostly just Bowser trying to put a humongous ring on Peach than won't fit her finger at all, as well as the noticeable lack of a minister. All this to say that, despite all the work he went through, Bowser still isn't quite as close to marrying Peach as he was in other Mario adaptations before Mario's inevitable intervention, most notably ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario.'']]
** Both the "boss-only" levels in the game (Cloud Kingdom and [[spoiler:Ruined Kingdom]]) are among the most visually interesting ones in the whole game. Too bad they're not as full-fledged and explorative as the other levels.
** The Brooklyn Bridge equivalent in New Donk City is inaccessible.
YMMV.{{The Matrix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: [[spoiler:Cypher's FaceHeelTurn arguably comes a bit out of left field and feels as though it could have been built up a lot more. An earlier draft would explain that Morpheus has been so dead set on finding "The One" that Neo is the sixth candidate he's freed and the previous ones all died -- thus giving Cypher more reason to become disillusioned with Morpheus and to betray him and want to re-join the Matrix.]]
YMMV.{{The Voyage of the Dawn Treader}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The subplot of Lucy being jealous of Susan is nonsensical and unneeded, but it does include a good message about being herself. However, when she uses Susan's bow and arrow rather than her own knife against the sea serpent during the climax, that message is ruined.
YMMV.{The Witches 1966}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The film goes off the rails in its third act for some, ruining the great atmosphere it had spent time working on.
!!!Random complaining: 75/357 (21.0%)
ArtisticLicenseHistory.LiveActionTV
** [''Series/{{Reign}}] The writers evidently got their ideas about Bohemia from Shakespeare. It never had a seacoast, much less merchant vessels and at the time was not even an independent nation, but merely one part of the vast [[{{UsefulNotes/HolyRomanEmpire}} Holy Roman Empire]]-which ''was'' an old enemy of France. Why they didn't just use them is [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot a mystery]].
AwesomeButImpractical/YuGiOhCardGame
** [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Checkmate Checkmate]], their intended FinishingMove card, is particularly baffling: it allows Terrorking Archfiend to attack directly. While this certainly isn't ''terrible'', it's only 2000 damage, since Terrorking's effects are battle-destruction related. It also requires the sacrifice of another monster, which is a cost Archfiends aren't very good at paying. Mostly, the card is notable for [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot spending an awesome name]] on an effect that doesn't even come close to winning you the game. Sure, you can still boost Terrorking until it has respectable enough ATK, but by then your opponent will catch on to what you're up to and make all your efforts moot with either [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Mirror_Force Mirror Force]] or [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Negate_Attack Negate Attack]].
BigBad.AnimeAndManga
** ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'' playing again with the ArcVillain, but it is revealed to be Yukio Oikawa behind the schemes of turning [[spoiler:Ken Ichijouji]] into Digimon Emperor (who created [[DemonicPossession the Devimon-possessed]] [[TurnedAgainstTheirMasters Kimeramon]]), creating [[CoDragons Arukenimon and Mummymon]] (who in turn created [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds BlackWarGreymon]]) as well as the Dark Spores which caused the Digimon Emperor persona and wants to implant them into other children. Though [[spoiler:it's part of a plan made by Myotismon's spirit to come back into a more powerful form: [[OneWingedAngel MaloMyotismon]]]]. There's also Daemon/Creepymon [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot who appears to be interesting and then is completely vanished]].
Film.TheHobbitTheBattleOfTheFiveArmies
* IdiotBall: Also, the orcs after the initial assault. Thorin Oakenshield is charging his army at the tip of a wedge, [[HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic without headgear]], keeping his shield as far away from himself as he can, and no single orc is ordered to shoot him? Where are Bolg's Morgul arrows when orcs really need them? Also, the eagles can just swoop in and fell the majority of Bolg's army without getting shot at. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot Bolg taking out one or two of them would have been awesome]]. The eagles did fear "great bows of yew" after all.
HilariousInHindsight.VideoGames
** Brazilian people have always interpreted Guile's Sonic Boom special move as [[FanNickname Alex Full.]] Then in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a character named Alex was created, and he likes military fashion. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot He can't shoot any Alex Fulls, though.]]
* Literature.{{Carrie}}
* Lawrence D. Cohen (the writer of the 1976 movie) put together the [[Theatre/{{Carrie}} musical adaptation]] in TheEighties. After a limited run at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in England that got a mixed reception, it debuted on Broadway on May 12, 1988 -- where it met with scathing reviews. The $7+ million production quickly became one of the biggest flops in Broadway history, as the musical closed after only sixteen previews and five shows. It became infamous enough to inspire a book written about Broadway's worst to carry the title ''Not Since Carrie''. A number of people, however, saw a lot of [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot potential]] beneath the poor production and feel that it could've worked out if it had received some polish. A heavily overhauled, off-Broadway revival [[http://www.carrieinla.com/history.html eventually happened]]. Fun fact - the original Broadway run had Margaret White played by Creator/BettyBuckley - who had starred in the 1976 film as the gym teacher.
Sequelitis/{{Disney}}
* ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' was an average game at worst, suffering mostly from CameraScrew, janky controls, and [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot not living up to the (admittedly impressive) hype]]. ''VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo'' took all the problems the original had and left them basically unchanged (if anything, they got worse), and added co-op play with a broken AI, grating voices and song sections, and boring puzzles. The resulting game collapsed with a quarter of the original's sales and [[CreatorKiller took its developer with it.]]
TheProblemWithLicensedGames/WesternAnimation
** While ''VideoGame/NickelodeonKartRacers'' for the Xbox One, [=PS4=], and Nintendo Switch isn't considered to be nearly as heinous as the above (it's at least free of any truly severe glitches), it's still very lacking. By far the worst part about the game is the bafflingly small number of Nickelodeon licenses used; it only includes characters, tracks, and music based on ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'', ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'', and ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'', a paltry ''four'' Nicktoons. By comparison, ''VideoGame/NicktoonsRacing'' for the [=PS1=] and PC back in the day had eight shows out of the then 12 Nicktoons represented in 2001 whereas this game chose to represent only four out of the now ''30+'' Nicktoons in 2018. Not even Nicktoons that were incredibly popular and/or still running at the time the game was released such as ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'' were included. The gameplay is nothing to write home about either; despite having a number of unique mechanics (such as slime boosts and character-specific power-ups) the game doesn't really do anything that other kart racers like ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe'' weren't already doing, and the track list is padded out with tracks that are merely variations on other ones. Making matters worse is that there is no online multiplayer, no vocal clips from the characters whatsoever, and the music and sound effects are mediocre at best and absolutely grating at worst. All in all, ''Nickelodeon Kart Racers'' is a sub-par kart racer that [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot wastes the near endless potential that an eighth-gen Nickelodeon crossover video game could have]] and just ends up feeling like a demo for its own sequel, ''Racers 2: Grand Prix'', which, while still not getting spectacularly high marks from critics and retaining several of the original game's flaws like no voice acting, [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel was still considered a marked improvement over the first game overall]] due to adding online multiplayer, new modes, and a good deal more playable characters from 12 Nicktoons[[note]]The aforementioned four, as well as ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'', ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Catdog}}'', ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'', ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'', ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra''[[/note]] [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg and [=JoJo=] Siwa]], plus many others through the [[AssistCharacter Pit Crew mechanic]].
TheScrappy.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/SixFeetUnder'': Lisa. The [[{{ClingyJealousGirl}} Clingy Jealous]] GranolaGirl {{Housewife}} and tedious RomanticFalseLead. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot A waste of perfectly good Lili Taylor.]]
YMMV/{{Bayonetta}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Isla del Sol looks impressive... from the very few views you get of it. Chapter 14 is spent zooming towards the city across the sea with the skyline in the background, and then a cutscene puts Bayonetta on a roof and later the side of a building as she fights a boss there, Chapter 15 is set entirely in and on top of a skyscraper, Chapter 16 is a boss fight set around said skyscraper, and the epilogue is spent ascending beyond the planet's atmosphere. There's no chance to actually explore the very beautiful metropolis and see how it all relates to [[spoiler:the angels' plan to resurrect Jubileus]], whereas Vigrid is explored in comparatively ample detail, along with Noatun in ''VideoGame/Bayonetta2''.
YMMV/{{Captain Planet and the Planeteers}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The two episodes centering on overpopulation ("Population Bomb" and "Numbers Game") fail to mention adoption in any way.
YMMV.{{Charmed 1998}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The AssimilationPlot / TheEvilsOfFreeWill storyline with the Avatars [[spoiler:was abandoned after an episode and a half of Utopia with the Avatars letting go of their perfect world on the Charmed Ones' say-so]]. Might count as a case of PragmaticVillainy considering [[spoiler:they live to try again]], but almost makes you wonder if they could ever truly get it to last.
** Witches are a rare species with magic that expresses itself as unique inherited abilities. Despite the potential for a wide array of interesting powers, most witches we see besides the Charmed Ones either have telekinesis or fire-throwing powers.
** In regards to Phoebe's powers in later seasons. While she wasn't as strong as Prue or Piper, the early seasons did at least put in the effort to showcase Phoebe was strong in her own right. For instance Phoebe would use martial art skills and did her best in the spell and intuition department. She'd use her intuition to at least try and help prevent the outcomes of her premonitions, her powers would always make sure they tried to do something. (In fact the Season 2 episode "The Painted World" is a good example of this) In fact in Season 3 Phoebe and Prue were the two sisters who did most of the fighting while Piper mainly froze things until getting her Molecular Combustion power. After Season 4 however Phoebe's powers stop being as active, only happening once in a while and occasionally kicking an enemy. Then after Season 6 she stops being proactive in general having to rely on Potions or hide behind Paige or Piper as they did all the work. The key difference is the early episodes used other ways to make Phoebe involved with fighting demons, even proving herself useful, in later seasons it's like she doesn't have powers at all. She never regains her levitation powers or empathy either, although some feel that's actually a fitting consequence for her repeated selfishness in Seasons 5 and 6.
** In general, Phoebe's character derailment in the later seasons is a result of the show failing to acknowledge her TraumaCongaLine in Season Four. Her behaviour includes: distancing herself from her sisters and magical heritage, [[TookALevelInJerkass becoming increasingly self-centered, jaded]] and [[BrokenBird less bubbly]], being obsessed with her sister's baby first and having her own baby at all costs later, and [[MurderArsonAndJaywalking becoming disillusioned about love]]. This is pretty consistent with depression over losing her sister, her love/husband and her unborn baby in a short span, as well as her guilt over betraying her family and frustration over her dead husband trying to force his way back into her life. Jason breaking up with her because of magic not long after was the final straw, seeing how [[UpToEleven faster and further]] her derailment went afterwards. Had the show truly addressed her mental state, Phoebe would have come off as more sympathetic and could have had a character arc about healing, redeeming herself, reconnecting with her sisters and magic, and balancing her new-found maturity with her earlier optimism and carefreeness, rather than just focussing on solving her "love block" by [[StrangledByTheRedString shoehorning a love interest at the eleventh hour]] as if ''that'' were the solution to everything.
** The sisters struggle to keep friends throughout the series, which is especially an issue for Piper continuously in later seasons, but the series never really resolves it. It's just Piper complaining about it over and over again, which becomes annoying as the show brings it up without doing anything about it. It also would have been interesting in of itself to see the sisters have to deal with lying to their friends or becoming more involved in the magical community if they became friends with witches. Instead, the series ends with the sisters' only friends as their family, husbands, the Morris family, Elise, and Billie with the Morris family being on the other side of the country, Elise unaware of magic, and Billie having just tried killing the sisters.
** The series really dropped the ball when it came to the fallout from Cole becoming the Source. While Cole returning after the Source was vanquished at least meant he didn't have to die because of being manipulated by others, the result is Phoebe and the others blaming him entirely for his actions as the Source - even when the Seer outright told Phoebe that Cole's love for her helped him fight the Source's possession for longer than she expected. They do seem to be setting up ''Phoebe'' being the one who has to learn not to blame Cole for her own actions - "A Witch's Tail" is only resolved when she admits she still loves him, "Happily Ever After" has her grudgingly apologising, "Siren Song" frames her as bringing out the worst in him - "I Am Sam" does an about face to have Cole being framed as a complete villain and Phoebe as a complete victim, forcing Cole into the DesignatedVillain to make Paige and Phoebe look justified in their pursuit of him. Cole is essentially a victim of everyone from the Seer to the Source to eventually his wife and in-laws, with everyone else shunning him for actions that were not his fault. His return in Season 7 doesn't real make things better either, since he's given a VillainsDyingGrace which still treats him as a willing villain rather than a victim of emotional abuse.
YMMV.{{Cho Ren Sha 68k}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The transition from Stage ''x''—0 to Stage (''x''+1)—1[[note]]Where ''x'' is an odd number[[/note]] ([[spoiler:where an explosion takes place and it turns out to be the exact same one from the start of the game]]) sounds like it could make for a great plot twist...[[NoPlotNoProblem if the game even HAD a plot to begin with]].
YMMV.{{Clerks II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot. Becky's speech attacking the concept of romantic love is an intriguing point of view that she argues quite cogently; by the end of the film (within hours, in fact), she's tossed this philosophy over the side and acceded to a thoroughly conventional romantic relationship while effectively implying what she'd said earlier was all just rationalization to avoid admitting her attraction to Dante.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The worst is (possibly) the subplot involving [[spoiler:Marianne's death. She's revealed to be inside Anya and is killed in the very next episode, even though her murder had been one of Lelouch's main motivations since the very beginning of the first season. What's more, Empress Marianne herself was part of [[EvilPlan an arguably "evil" plan]] and [[KnightTemplarParent abandoned her children to build a new world for them]], which flies in the face of how other characters previously viewed her as admirable and near-perfect]]. This really should have been better explained in order to properly reconcile both sides of her portrayal.
YMMV.{{Codename Kids Next Door}}
** As revealed in Operation Z.E.R.O. [[spoiler: Nigel Uno is the nephew of the KND's greatest enemy, Father.]] However this relationship dynamic between them is never explored or touched upon again for the rest of the series and considering Father was aware of this, it is odd it was never brought up before.
** Despite learning that [[spoiler:Chad never betrayed the Kids Next Door]], Numbuh 1's thoughts on remaining a KND operative after turning 13 was never discussed upon. His hatred towards [[spoiler:Chad]] was so personal that he refused to believe that [[spoiler:he was a FakeDefector the whole time]]. He never discussed about the Teens Next Door in the GrandFinale.
YMMV.{{Dude Wheres My Car}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Where Jesse and Chester's car eventually ended up after it was stolen from the French ostrich owner is left a complete mystery.
YMMV.{{FaceOff}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Many Nicolas Cage fans have wondered why ''he'' didn't play Archer in the beginning instead, so when they get their faces swapped we see Nic Cage be a crazy bastard for the other 80% of the movie.
YMMV.{{Father Ted}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In "Cigarettes and Alcohol and Rollerblading" Father Jack becomes sober for the first time in the entire series. He flees the house when Sister Assumpta arrives and isn't seen again for the rest of the episode.
YMMV.{{Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** All of Radiant Dawn's four parts are essentially different plots; Part 1 is Daein's rebellion and independence, Part 2 is Elincia's political troubles, Part 3 is the Laguz vs. Begnion war, and Part 4 is the fight against the BigBad. All of these loosely interconnect except Part 2; in the longest Fire Emblem game to date, it is by far the shortest arc, spanning a mere 5 chapters from prologue to endgame, and simply works to show returning characters from the first game and what they're doing, including giving them a FillerVillain disconnected from the other plots. Sure, Radiant Dawn could've been a lot shorter without it, but it also could've been a much more involved plot. Only a third or so of its returning characters get to be active through the rest of the game instead of just at the end, and the rest are doomed to be junked unless you happen to have a lot of BEXP to spare.
** The [[HalfHumanHybrid Branded]], their place in the world, and their relationship to the Gods are not examined nearly as much as they could have been. Furthermore, a conversation between Stefan and [[spoiler:Yune]] reveals a major twist about the Branded that never gets brought up or discussed beyond the conversation, namely that [[spoiler: the Branded were not originally seen as an unholy mistake until after Ashera had Yune sealed]], meaning a large chunk of the world's hatred was formed on a lie. Yet it doesn't go anywhere.
** In the first game, there's an offhand mention that the reason that the Beorc oppress the Laguz is that, once upon a time, [[CycleOfRevenge the Laguz oppressed the Beorc]]. Both when this happened and the nature of this oppression are never revealed.
** Nothing is done with the fact that [[spoiler:all three of Ashera's champions [[{{Irony}} have Branded descendants]]]]. In particular, [[spoiler:Lehran and Dheginsea]] both have interesting stories about how their bloodlines became mixed that play a significant role in the current state of the world, but nothing of the sort is revealed about [[spoiler: Soan]]; no explanation is given for how his bloodline was mixed into the beorc population or how that event affected the larger history of Tellius.
YMMV.{{Goosebumps}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: There were many books for the TV series to adapt and many fans were disappointed that certain books (i.e., ''Curse of the Mummy's Tomb'', The first ''Night of the Living Dummy'' book, ''Why I'm Afraid of Bees'', ''The Haunted School'', etc.) weren't adapted into episodes of the show. A reboot of the TV series is coming up though.
YMMV.{{I Know What You Did Last Summer}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** While the film is thought to be a good one, there are some who feel that an adaptation of the book's plot would still have been good. Though admittedly hard to pull off [[spoiler: with the double-identity twist]].
** By not having [[spoiler: Helen ]] pull a NotQuiteDead in the climax due the freezer having slowed [[spoiler: her]] bleeding, with a ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' ShoutOut.
YMMV.{{Iron Man}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** As discussed in the StrawmanPolitical section, they could have had an interesting plot in which Tony is forced to go to more and more extreme measures to enforce an act that would hold responsibility over all other things, something he believes in due to his own shortcomings. Instead, they decided in some books to turn Tony into a power hungry fascist and decided accountability = slavery. Also he's a war criminal now. Apparently believing in responsibility is akin to amorality.
** Crosses into TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter, but the general concept of Riri Williams is ''not'' a bad idea, Tony having a teenage protege who ends up becoming something of a LegacyCharacter for him when he's taken out of action. However, Riri was introduced rather awkwardly mere issues before it was announced she was going to take over, ''before'' she even met Tony, which naturally created an AudienceAlienatingPremise, so there was really no way to develop and explore the idea of her as Tony's protege and successor in a convincing, acceptable manner. When Tony came back, Riri was PutOnTheBus from his book, getting her own and appearing in some teen team books, but otherwise severing her connection with Tony, thus robbing her of the opportunity to develop as his protege, something that could have RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap her for much of her hatedom.
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The conflict between Jupiter and her mother is only hinted at. The opening narration states that Aleksa became bitter and cynical after her husband was murdered, implying that Jupiter grew up distant from her. Mother and daughter learning to reconnect through the events of the film could have made a good plot. Instead Aleksa is barely featured.
YMMV.{{Luigis Mansion 3}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Many fans wish that there was a [[NonStandardGameOver special cutscene]] [[spoiler:when you ran out of time during the FinalBoss fight, since King Boo was trying to absorb the entire hotel into the one group painting during the final stage of the boss fight. However, the player just loses all of their health and the game runs a typical GameOver screen when you run out of time, which caused some disappointment]].
** Many players would have liked to see some kind of additional scene or alternate ending that involved Morty if the player chose to spare him.
YMMV.The Incredible Hulk 2008}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: A fair amount of attention is given to Betty's necklace, which is a TragicKeepsake from her deceased mother. She thinks of selling it when she and Bruce go on the run, he convinces her not to, and at the end of the film she sends it to him as a symbol of her love for him. This memento never re-occurs throughout the MCU, despite the fact it probably could be very useful in calming the Hulk down, and as a symbol of all Bruce has lost in his life, a point of contention when Ross reappears in Civil War, or even a memento of Earth to the Hulk during his time on Sakaar. However, partially due the the movie mostly being forgotten ,the impracticality of the Hulk carrying jewelry with him at all times, and the fact that the necklace's design is utterly generic and forgettable, it's never mentioned again.
YMMV.{{The Naked Gun}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Quentin Hapsburg says he plans to hunt rhino in Botswana and moments later gets killed by a lion. It would have been a great example of LaserGuidedKarma if he had been killed by a rhino instead.
YMMV.{{The Powerpuff Girls 1998}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Who else wanted the villains to sing a Beatles cover in "Meet the Beat-Alls?"
** Some fans were likely disappointed that the best they could come up with for Buttercup's special power was [[spoiler: to curl her tongue]], especially as in that episode, the girls [[NewPowersAsThePlotDemands exhibited completely new powers they'd never used before.]] Doubles as an InUniverse example, since even ''the Narrator'' though Buttercup's special power was lame.
!!!Hey, look at this cool fanfic idea I had!: 134/357 (37.6%)
GenderBender.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'': In the first season , it happened to Kimberly and Billy when his machine went haywire, subjecting them to a FreakyFridayFlip. (Billy fixed it before the situation at the end of the episode, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot although some fans thought the plot could have been explored much further.]])
NeverLiveItDown.StarWars
* Some people (Tumblr, predominately) aren't so quick to forgive Kallus after his [[DarkAndTroubledPast char]][[NobleDemon act]][[JustFollowingOrders eriz]][[NothingPersonal ation]] [[HeelRealization in]] "The Honorable Ones," never mind accept a possible redemption arc from him, mostly due to [[spoiler:practically escorting [[HeelFaceDoorSlam Tua]] to her assassination while [[{{Jerkass}} taunting]] [[KickTheDog her]] back in "The Siege of Lothal"]] (also not forgetting that he's burnt down Tarkintown, blockaded Ibaar, etc.). Most of the same people also think that the [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot arc should've]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter belonged to Tua]] or someone else that hasn't been already depicted as villainous as Kallus, [[BrokenBase although]] some have pointed out that this trope and arguments will likely be applied and addressed in-universe later on in Kallus's character arc.
Series.{{Married With Children}}
* GameBetweenHeirs: There's an episode in which Al's Uncle Stymie, the only male Bundy to be a success in life (Al credits this to the fact Stymie was the only one who never married), left his $500,000 estate to the first male Bundy to have a legitimate son named after him. Considering that the lawyer who read the will would later marry a male Bundy and give birth to Stymie Junior to get the money, Al and the other Bundys who didn't get the money [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot could have challenged the will under claims of undue influence]].
YMMV.{{Aliens}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Not the movie itself, but there are a few easily missed allusions to there being other alien life in the universe aside from the xenomorphs and [[Franchise/{{Predator}} Yautja]]. The ExpandedUniverse has made use of this in novels like ''Literature/AliensBugHunt''.
YMMV.{{Alien 3}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Again, how awesome would it be to see Ripley working together ''with'' the small Hicks-Bishop-Newt family unit she developed in the previous film inside the hellhole that is Fiorina Prison? Considering that said group of characters is 1) an attractive woman, 2) a military authority figure, 3) an android, and 4) a [[AdultFear little girl]], watching those four fight for their lives in a prison full of violent rapists and criminals would arguably be ''[[AdultFear scarier]]'', in some ways, than having Ripley on her own hunted down by the Xenomorph, not to mention that their presence would make [[spoiler:Ripley's eventual HeroicSacrifice]] that much more moving, meaningful, and a satisfying conclusion to her story.
** The fact the Xenomorph came from a non-human host and the intriguing revelation that they take on attributes of their hosts doesn't matter at all to the overall story, and aside from being somewhat skinner and running on all-fours more often than prior aliens, it's hardly noticeable in a movie so visually dark. This is especially so with the version that has it emerging from an ox, since the alien, rather disappointingly, doesn't look anything like an ox. A lot of supplementary ''Alien'' franchise media like comics, novels, and ''Film/AliensVsPredatorRequiem'' did further expand on this concept, however.[[note]]Though some of those expansions are pure, gimmicky NarmCharm, like Bull, Shark, Bat, and Snake Aliens that just look silly.[[/note]]
YMMV.{{Angel}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** "[[Recap/AngelS01E14IveGotYouUnderMySkin I've Got You Under My Skin]]" implies the Catholic Church is aware of the supernatural, with one of their nuns being able to instantly recognize Angel as a vampire just by looking at him, and for a moment it seems the series lore might include similar ideas to ''Film/{{Constantine}}'' or ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''. One wonders what sorts of stories could be told if members of the Christian faith were involved in Angel's quest for redemption, or if the Catholic Church could have made a formidable adversary to Angel's branch of Wolfram & Hart in Season 5. Naturally the Church's involvement with the supernatural is never brought up again.
** During Buffy's last appearance, she doesn't have a scene with Cordelia. It would have been nice to them part ways on good terms and have Buffy see how her former rival has grown as a person (and Wesley, for that matter).
** More a case of 'a good plot was planned and cancellation ruined it'. Willow would have shown up in Season 6 to separate Fred and Illyria - allowing Amy Acker to play both characters. Given how good she showed herself to be in "[[Recap/AngelS05E20TheGirlInQuestion The Girl in Question]]", that could have been quite exciting to see.
** The lack of guest appearances of Xander (who could have received closure with Cordelia) and Anya (just imagine her and Fred sharing a scene) can be cause for mourning.
YMMV/{{Asterix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: ''Recap/AsterixAndTheChariotRace'' had Asterix and Obelix take part to a race all around Italy, visiting the places, meeting the various peoples... And completely missing to mention Cremona, the oldest recorded example of UndefeatableLittleVillage... As a Roman outpost besieged by Gauls.
YMMV/{{Avatar the Last Airbender}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Iroh's entire past, including his journey to the Spirit World, has left fans with many questions, yet has never been touched upon in the show itself (although some of it was alluded to in supplementary books).
** Before Season 3 aired, it was said that Zuko would begin searching for his mother in the season. Guess what never happened. (Thankfully, it was covered in the graphic novels.)
** Koh ominously told Aang that they would meet again. This never happened onscreen.
** The whole mistaken-kidnapping plot around Toph was resolved off-screen, including the revelation to the Gaang that she had lied about joining them.
** Everything involving [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique bloodbending]]. Despite only being the focus of a single episode, its horrific nature and backstory make it one of the most memorable plot points of Book 3. It wasn't until ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' that the concept was explored to its true potential.
YMMV/AvengersAgeOfUltron
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Even though [[Film/TheAvengers2012 the first Avengers film]] ended with the team splitting up and the different members going their separate ways, with [[Film/IronMan3 the]] [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld following]] [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier films]] showing them having their own adventures on their own side, this film starts with the Avengers already assembled. It could have been interesting to see the circumstances in which the team finally reunited after all that time, but nope.
** The first post-credit scene of ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' had Baron Strucker revealing that HYDRA is still very much active and has several bases all over the world that should keep Captain America and his friends busy. At the beginning of this movie, it's mentioned that the Avengers have spent the last few months fighting HYDRA and took care of all those bases off-screen. The war against HYDRA could have easily filled an entire movie on its own, unfortunately all we get to see of it is the assault of Strucker's base in the opening scene.
** The film is very vague about whether the other Avengers besides Cap and Black Widow knew that Fury was still alive. Tony certainly doesn't seem too surprised to see him, and then it simply cuts to his briefing.
** The film sketches out the barest hint of an arc for Captain America. At the end, he seems to view Kosovo-style interventionism as a affirmation of SHIELD/America's place in the world and redemption for SHIELD's actions during ''Captain America: The Winter Soldier''. But it's majorly glossed over in the film, left mostly to incidental details like the Sokovian murals with dollar signs over the Avengers' faces and Captain America's vision of bloodshed after Ultron remarks he can't live in a world without war. As a result of this dearth of dramatic material, he has little to do other than be the StandardizedLeader. Although it's known there exists a longer cut of the film and that Joss Whedon was unhappy with the Marvel Creative Committee's ExecutiveMeddling, so perhaps it was a victim of editing.
YMMV.{{Blade II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The Blood Pack was created to hunt and kill Blade, but the only time we see them, they have to team up with Blade against the Reavers. An entire movie featuring Blade being hunted instead of being the hunter would have been an interesting plot.
** It's also a shame that Jared and Nyssa never really get to talk to each other except at the end, given that [[spoiler: they're siblings.]]
YMMV/{{Breaking Bad}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Mike has a granddaughter, Kaylee. Mike mentors Jesse. Jesse loves kids, having a strong BigBrotherInstinct. It would have been cool to see the two develop a bond, [[spoiler:especially after Mike's death]].
** Gus' mysterious past. First, the DEA is unable to find any information about his past in Chile. Second, in the flashback when the cartel kills his business partner, Don Eladio specifically says that Gus is only alive because "I know who you are." Considering how Gus is in no way a kingpin at this point, this implies ''something'' significant about his past. Creator Vince Gilligan has said that he deliberately left Gus' background mysterious, likening it to the contents of the briefcase in ''Film/PulpFiction''.
** Surprisingly, Jesse and Walter Jr. never share a scene together during the series. Given that Walter Jr. is Walter's son and Jesse could be seen as Heisenberg's son, it surely would have been interesting for the two to meet.
** A frequently noted missed opportunity is that Walter White never interacted with his customers. If he did, Walter would have to confront the real life consequences that comes with supplying a highly damaging & addictive substance to vulnerable individuals for his benefit.
YMMV/{{Buffy the Vampire Slayer}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Xander had all the puzzle pieces to have a character arc regarding his vampire hatred; with what happened to Jesse being the catalyst for it and close proximity to two "reformed" vampires being obvious places of growth. Instead Jesse is never brought up after the pilot, the potential trauma Jesse's death may have caused goes unexamined and Xander continues indiscriminately hating Angel and Spike right to the end, regardless of the status of their souls and their actions. The comics ''somewhat'' fix this, as it does have Xander briefly admit to having some trauma over Jesse, and he later ''does'' seem to get over his vampire hatred by starting an OddFriendship with Dracula and becoming VitriolicBestBuds with Spike. It is, however, still mostly an implied arc that isn't examined too in-depth.
** While Angel would make the occasional guest appearance after getting his own show, none of his crew ever appeared. Imagine Buffy and co. seeing how Cordelia and Wesley have grown as people since they knew them, or meeting Gunn, Fred and Lorne.
** Season 7 has a lot of wasted [[JustForPun potential]]:
*** Many fans still argue that the big redemption story of Season 7 was given to the wrong character. Jonathan had been part of the show from the beginning, so it would have been great to see him repent for his being part of the Trio and finally become a hero in his own right. But instead he's abruptly killed off, and the redemption story goes to Andrew, who we'd only just met last season and hadn't done nearly as much to earn it.
*** Unfortunately the writers' hands were forced by the actors not being available, but "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E7ConversationsWithDeadPeople Conversations With Dead People]]" was originally intended to feature the First Evil taking the forms of Halfrek and Jesse to taunt Anya and Xander respectively. [[spoiler:Creator/AmberBenson]] also declined to return for an actual [[spoiler:Willow/Tara]] conversation, not wanting fans' last memories of the character to be of an evil doppleganger.
*** Several moments in Season 7 implied that at some point, Buffy would again be forced to choose between saving Dawn and the world, and this time would choose differently, most notably Joyce telling Dawn "Buffy won't choose you" in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E7ConversationsWithDeadPeople Conversations With Dead People]]". In the end, nothing of the sort ever happens.
*** Faith's return happens too late for any questions surrounding her redemption to be properly resolved. The Scoobies almost immediately accept it and trust her, even mutinying against Buffy in favor of Faith one episode after her return. Her AttemptedRape of Xander in Season 3 is also never addressed, although it's not like most shows of the time (or even today) [[DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale ever acknowledge that for what it is.]]
*** The idea of a split between the Scoobies and the Potentials, with the Potentials preferring Faith's leadership, could have made an interesting arc, but the mutiny is resolved and Buffy ends up back in charge after just two episodes.
*** Angel's return in the GrandFinale is nothing more than a cameo, as he doesn't interact with anyone except Buffy and doesn't participate in the FinalBattle, despite his history with the First Evil. Once again, the writers' hands were forced by the network limiting crossovers with ''Series/{{Angel}}''.
YMMV/{{Captain America Civil War}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** ''Age of Ultron'' ended with the Avengers forming an almost entirely new team, consisting of Cap, Black Widow, Vision, Scarlet Witch, War Machine, and the Falcon. Their next appearance here only has Cap, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, and Falcon participating in the opening mission before the team splits up onto opposing sides which disbands the new Avengers, meaning we never get to see the full new lineup fight together as a team before breaking up.
** TheReveal that Bucky Barnes is [[spoiler:not the only product of HYDRA's SuperSoldier program, but there are five more elite enhanced soldiers who are described by [[RedBaron The Winter Soldier]] himself as even stronger than he is, and that all of them together possess abilities that would allow them to ''take over a country'' within a day if given the order. These soldiers could've turned out to be Captain America and The Winter Soldier's toughest opponents yet and provide a convenient means for Iron Man and Captain America to drop their hostilities to team up and fight them, but instead Baron Zemo kills them all off while they are in stasis, effectively eliminating them as a threat. Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad in this case, since they were deliberately set up as a RedHerring, it enhanced Zemo's better qualities and helped deliver the NothingIsTheSameAnymore premise of Phase 3]].
** Multiple characters warn Tony that Ross will turn on him, constantly telling him to "watch his back", with the implication that Ross may start imprisoning all the Avengers and not just the ones who sided with Steve, but while Ross does refuse to listen to Tony [[spoiler:when he discovers proof that Bucky was set up]], he still allows Tony to leave unhindered and unfollowed [[spoiler:(by Ross's men anyway)]] and tries to call him [[spoiler:when Steve shows up to break out his team from their prison]].
** The movie does a rather good job at adapting the debate between Tony and Steve over how superheroes should be handled, [[PragmaticAdaptation removing many of the things that didn't work in the comic]] and making sure BothSidesHaveAPoint...[[spoiler:but the debate is never really resolved; in fact, it's more or less forgotten after the airport battle so we can focus on the Bucky subplot, and isn't even the reason Cap and Iron Man fight in the climax.]] One could make the argument that the Sokovia Accords are actually superfluous to the movie as a whole, as ultimately [[ExcusePlot they have little to do with why the characters end up fighting each other]]. The plotline surrounding Bucky and Zemo drives the majority of the film, and it could easily exist without the Accords.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Remember when C.C. entered in contact with Suzaku during the first season, which caused the two to black out several times and C.C. realized something important about him? It's never brought up again within the story but, according to the staff, Suzaku was apparently meant to either have a Geass power that gave him increased physical abilities or at least the potential for acquiring one.
** The faction of Britannian nobles who wished to turn traitor and join the Black Knights. The only thing we get out of them is a conversation between Zero and Diethard. We then get a scene where Darlton arrests them and that's it, and they are never mentioned again.
YMMV.{{Codename Kids Next Door}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The KND "Splinter Cell" arc foreshadowed an internal civil war in the KND between the extremist Splinter Cell that believes all adults must be destroyed vs. the more moderate faction that believes only the evil adults should be stopped. It is also revealed that the Splinter Cell had been kidnapping KND scientists for unknown reasons. However, near the end of the series, it turns out that the Splinter Cell is just an front for the KND scientists, who fake their kidnappings so they have more free time to watch their favorite science fiction shows as well as manage "the Galactic Kids Next Door", the workings of which were left very vague in the end. However, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_2aDok_CcQ a teaser animatic]] featuring the original cast and produced by Mr. Warburton suggests that a civil war plot expanding upon the working of the GKND may be on the way. Still, many fans would've preferred this plot without the GKND.
** There's also the matter of the 1/362 ShipTease. Despite ''Operation: I.T.'' showing how close they were and ''Operation: G.I.R.L.F.R.I.E.N.D.'' all-but-confirming that Rachel has feeling for Nigel beyond friendship, it was never resolved. The trope comes in with after [[spoiler: Lizzie dumped Nigel,]] which looked like it was foreshadowing that he would end up with Rachel. You can imagine how many fanfics have centered around them getting together.
** Some fans were hoping that more would've came from Numbuh 1's report in "Operation: A.R.C.H.I.V.E.S.", especially since the ending indicated that there was at least ''some'' level of truth in it.
** In most fiction, adults hate teenagers far more then they do small children and teenagers hate being bossed around by adults. Instead of being complete allies to the adults, it would have been interesting if the teenagers were a more independent group that battled both adults and kids.
YMMV.{{Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In ''Deadpool Killustrated'', Sherlock Holmes gathers a team of characters from classic literature to fight Dreadpool just seemed like it would have been a good opportunity for Deadpool vs. Comicbook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen.
YMMV.{{Death Note}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Due to the uniqueness of the Japanese justice system (described under ValuesDissonance), the idea that any of Light's victims were wrongfully convicted doesn't ever get mentioned. If it did, it would've thrown an extra layer of grey onto Light's actions.
** Light defends his usage of the Death Note by citing how wars have ceased entirely since the rise of Kira. Aside from this one comment, the intriguing prospect of Light using the note to end global wars is never elaborated upon.
** During his incarceration, Light theorizes that another Kira might be controlling him. This is actually a very interesting concept and would've turned the entire series on its head if it had been true.
** The rivalry between Mello and Near is only slightly touched upon.
** The whole idea of [[spoiler:Mello being Near's split personality in the drama.]]
** Light becoming a [[AGodAmI megalomaniac]] after [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope just his first couple of kills]] robbed the story of a potential drama from seeing a more nuanced ProtagonistJourneyToVillain as he steadily rationalizes his increasingly heinous actions.
YMMV.{{Frankenstein}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Oh, come on, a race spawned from the Creature and a man-made Bride would have been ''awesome''. But, alas, Frankenstein [[spoiler:had to destroy her body before she could be awakened.]] Though Shelley was probably more concerned with [[AnAesop her story's message]] than a rad story.
YMMV.{{Jurassic Park}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The SequelHook about [[spoiler:the dinosaurs who have somehow escaped Isla Nublar and are going on a reign in terror across Costa Rica. Crichton abandoned this when he wrote ''The Lost World'', having Marty briefly mention them being wiped out, and the filmmakers of the sequel movies contented themselves with the characters going back to the islands.]]
** Becomes HilariousInHindsight when [[spoiler: ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' adapts this exact plot point by destroying the island and having masses of dinosaurs escaping onto the mainland.]]
YMMV.{{Mighty Morphin Power Rangers}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Tommy, the team's SixthRanger, started out as evil but eventually turned to the side of good. Later on, Lord Zedd would recruit an entire team of Dark Rangers, who eventually turned good. Yet Zordon never recruits them as a second-team (either a back-up or a team to protect Stone Canyon) that would use the suits from ''Series/GoseiSentaiDairanger''.
*** Some fans felt that giving Tommy more angst at being forced into evil and making him TheAtoner could've given his character a bit more depth and made both occasions of him losing his powers all the more impactful. It is brought up on occasion a few times whenever Tommy gets brainwashed for the plot of the day or when an evil clone is made at one point but not for anything longterm and things are always back to the feel-good by the next episode.
** Many fans feel this way about the aforementioned Dark Rangers never actually fighting the Power Rangers.
** "Switching Places" is pretty disappointing as a FreakyFridayFlip story, not least because Billy and Kimberly switching bodies has no impact at all on the fight scenes later. At the very least, they could have messed with the TransformationSequence to have one or both of them say the wrong animal at first, [[HilariousInHindsight Like Gokaiger did years later.]]
** If they had kept Scorpina around, she would have been in "The Wedding" 3-parter, happy to see Rita return and becoming her Maid of (Dis)honor, and have a dance with the reluctant Goldar. With that said, the two would have developed a relationship together not unlike their ''Zyuranger'' counterparts.
** Also, they could have reused the Power Eggs plot, which would configure into Rita's revenge on Zedd.
** In Season 3, the Rangers gain armor, and at the end of said season, the Command Center is destroyed, but rebuilt at the start of ''Zeo''. This would've been a ''perfect'' time to use the suits and updated Command Center from [[Film/MightyMorphinPowerRangersTheMovie the movie]] to replace each respective one...but unfortunately, due to the decision to film the movie in Australia, they had to be left behind, meaning that not only was the chance to include them in canon lost[[note]]as MMPR The Movie cannot take place in the main continuity, due to the Ninja Zords and powers being obtained differently from how they were obtained in the show; while one ''could'' view the movie as an alternate to ''A Friend In Need'' and ''Ninja Quest'' to explain those differences, there's still the fact that the Command Center and Zordon look so different from how they appear in the TV series[[/note]], but we also had to deal with the glitter instead[[note]]in case anyone's wondering why the ''Dairanger'' suits weren't used: while the rangers changing into different outfits could've been explained away, as ''Dairanger'' did not have the same color scheme as ''Zyuranger'', using them would've resulted in the team having its black ranger become a green ranger. Of course, Zordon could easily have come up with [[Series/PowerRangersMegaforce a simple explanation for that.]][[/note]].
** If Austin, Walter, and Thuy stayed a little longer, then Jason, Zack, and Trini would have been given a proper send-off like they've done with Kimberly in season 3. We would have also seen them interact with their future replacements and not suffer from being DemotedToExtra. Lastly, Tommy would officially be promoted to leader after the power transfer.
YMMV.{{Mr Men}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Considering the amount of characters who are [[{{Foil}} Foils]] to each other (E.G. [[GrumpyBear Mr. Grumpy]] to [[ThePollyanna Mr. Happy and Little Miss Sunshine]]), you'd think that there'd be a story showing [[ScienceHero Little Miss Inventor]] and [[MagicalGirl Little Miss Magic]] having such a relationship but so far, such a storyline hasn't come to light.
YMMV.{{Ms Marvel 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: At Kamala's defeat of the Inventor, a cop warns Kamala to be careful because there's things lurking on Jersey City's street worse than a half bird man. However, we never see any of these home grown threats, and instead, Kamala is always fighting external villains, who are often times connected to some greater event happening in the Marvel universe.
YMMV.{{Ouran High School Host Club}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The very first episode demonstrates that the Host Club doesn't mind flirting with boys as well as girls (when they first believe Haruhi is one), though this is never brought up again as the Host Club is never visited by homosexual boys, which could have made for some fun moments. That is, apart from Episode 23 which plays with this as the customers believes Kasanoda to be gay for requesting Haruhi.
YMMV.{{Ozzy and Drix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The fact that Hector was a relatively normal boy left a lot of unanswered questions as to how the body and mind, and their respective characters, would be different if the host had a chronic condition or mental disorder. Doubly jarring since Ozzy ''did'' travel to Christine's body at one point, where we saw how the lifestyles of those inside bodies differed depending on the biological sex of their host, meaning examining other bodies while still having Hector as the main hub would have been possible. And of course, it being for younger audiences, the onset of sexual maturity and [[{{Squick}} everything it entails]] wasn't explored (though Hector does experience a small growth spurt and some G-rated side effects of puberty).
YMMV.{{Pacific Rim}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** There's enough room to do a film or two on those first four attacks and on the Golden Age of Jaeger combat. Of course, given that the Golden Age stock footage resembles scenes from ''Film/ItCameFromBeneathTheSea'' (attacking San Francisco, arguing about toxic blood disposal) you could argue that that movie has already been made.
** The cult of Kaiju worshipers, who could have made very good secondary villains. Imagine an entire subplot following a different division of the Jaeger program dedicated to stopping terrorist members of the Kaiju cult from attacking Shatterdomes from the inside. It's tangentially addressed, at least -- there seem to be a lot of troops around inside the Hong Kong Shatterdome carrying small arms that don't seem to do much on-screen, but considering that there is a definite Kaiju cult around, it's possible that's what they're there for.
YMMV.{{Ready Player One}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The book is famous for its heavy focus on properties from the 1980s and 1990s despite in taking place in 2044. It could've had commentary about effects of reboot culture, the current obsession with nostalgia and how future society is [[CreativeSterility still focused on the same entertainments from over half a century prior]], but instead it only talks how awesome old shows and movies are. It also could have talked about the shallow nature of nostalgia, that the only reason old properties remain popular in 2044 isn't because people naturally like it but because its the key to winning Halliday's fortune and control of the OASIS.
YMMV.{{Resident Evil 2}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: With an outbreak of the T-Virus infecting just about the entire population of Raccoon City, the game initially looks like it'll be about exploring a city overrun with zombies. Instead, the action swiftly moves to the police station, which looks more like a creepy art museum, and feels like a rehash of the Spencer Mansion from the previous game. It wouldn't be until ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3Nemesis'' before players got the opportunity to run around the city's zombie-filled streets in greater depth.
YMMV.{{Richie Rich}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The business school for rich kids only appears for [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZlL0LLfjKY one scene]] in the film. Overall, the only purpose the scene serves is to make it clear to the viewers that Richie is unable to properly hang out with other rich kids as friends after school. One does have to wonder though how different this movie would have turned out if the film focused more on the business school setting of Richie's life rather than going the "rich kid befriends normal kids" route.
YMMV.{{Sayonara Zetsubou-sensei}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Kaere's YamatoNadeshiko SplitPersonality is pretty much never used despite the comedic potential.
YMMV.{{Super Mario Odyssey}}
** [[spoiler:Peach denying the chance to marry Mario, as this could have been an opportunity to explore Mario and Peach's relationship past it being simply the [[ImpliedLoveInterest implied romance]] it's always been.]]
YMMV.{{The Legend of Korra}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Fans generally agree that keeping the Fire Nation OutOfFocus in ''Korra'', after a whole [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender series]] of being the EvilEmpire, was a smart decision. Notably, none of the four main villains is a firebender. Otherwise, however, many fans argue that the OutOfFocus was so excessive it turned into a waste of potential. Korra sets foot on the Fire Nation only ''once'' during the entire series, that is at the island of the Fire Sages. Zuko is the former member of the Gaang still alive who gets the least screen time. His daughter Izumi is the new Fire Lord but talks only ''once'' to express her refusal to mobilize her armies in a preemptive attack. General Iroh II, Izumi's son, gets some screen time as leading TheCavalry on two occasions, but he isn't really fleshed out as a character. Even worse, none of them appears on screen at the same time (except a scene where Zuko and Izumi are sitting together as background characters and don't talk). It's ''implied'' that the Fire Nation reformed to a peaceful and isolationist country, or that Zuko overgrew his trauma caused by [[AbusiveParents Ozai]] and became a good father, but the series doesn't really ''show'' how exactly the CharacterDevelopment of the Fire Nation and its inhabitants went.
** One interesting bit of lore that was never developed is the implication that as nations become more industrial and more distant from nature, the birth rate of benders drops. This was shown in the Original Series with the Fire Nation having the lowest ratio of benders of the Four Nations, while the deeply spiritual Air Nomads were all airbenders. This could've been a source of conflict for characters like Tenzin, the White Lotus, Unalaq, or even the Red Lotus that modernization and mechanization of the Physical World were robbing it of its connection to the Spirit World.
** Some people have pointed out one idea that was underdeveloped was that Republic City is essentially the architectural equivalent of the Avatar--just as the Avatar is the Four Nations distilled into one person, the city performs the same function just on a larger scale. While there is division within the city as can be expected in any place where large groups of people live, the citizens of Republic City all chose to live there, and proudly continue to do so. Making the city a Melting Pot of cultures a proper plot point could've been used to make statements about assimilation and diaspora. It could've also been used to cast Korra as a kind of {{Superhero}} who must constantly protect Republic City--and what it stands for--from ever-constant calamities.
YMMV.{{The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** While it's understandable that Ganon would be too far gone from humanity to be any more than a GenericDoomsdayVillain, his backstory doesn't go anywhere beyond mentioning that he's a continuously reincarnating AncientEvil. There's absolutely no explanation as to how Ganondorf degenerated into a smoky mass of evil energy, and [[spoiler:the resemblance of Ganon's cyborg form to Ganondorf has no impact on the story nor is touched upon]].
** Despite the game offering several monster masks at Kilton's shop that make the corresponding enemies not notice you and each Hyrule culture and faction having a signature outfit, Sheikah included, the game does not have any kind of Yiga outfit that can be found, in their hideout or otherwise. In addition to being a visually appealing outfit option, it would be nice to have another stealth outfit that had a Yiga-proof effect, which could either make the hideout segment of the DLC easier or just keep Yiga from spawning on the overworld and prevent disguised Yiga assassins from attacking you. Besides, it'd be pretty funny for the Yiga to be so secretive that they don't even know each other's identities, and that's why they buy costumed Link being a member.
** The Champions' Ballad DLC seemed determined to make bosses repeatable content within the player's save file, finding a way to allow Link to rematch the Blight Ganons and making the new boss at the end available for rematches as well. Doing so not only allows the player to fight them again for fun and challenge, but also to get another chance to take Compendium photos of them. It's a nice fix... but they didn't invent a way to rematch Master Kohga, despite one trial taking you back to the Yiga hideout. As it is, Kohga is now the only boss who cannot be rematched or photographed after the initial fight, and since the DLC otherwise seemed determined to correct this problem, it stands out more that they still left one boss as a one-time thing.
** The ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' sidequest has very little to do with the game that it was meant to advertise, with the only real ties being Rex's Salvager Set as a reward (which is [[PromotionalPowerlessPieceOfGarbage actually very weak]]) and its very loose ties to salvaging as seen in ''[=XC2=]''. As such, the quest doesn't do much to make the game seem attractive to the uninitiated. It could have easily been an opportunity for more {{Mythology Gag}}s to give new players a better "feel" for ''[=XC2=]'' and advertise it more effectively, such as providing Pyra's Aegis Sword as a reward along with the Salvager Set, or cameo appearances from various characters and enemies (for example, having [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere a random Nopon]] or even Azurda as the quest-giver).
YMMV.{{The Nanny}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Given how the show ends as [[spoiler:Niles and C.C. get married and C.C. finds out that she's expecting their baby]], it probably would've made more sense to make [[spoiler:Niles and C.C. an expectant couple]] both as a way to write Creator/LaurenLane's pregnancy into season 5 and as a way to show Niles and C.C. relationship as parents with them possibly falling in love later. This, in turn, could also have been used to spur Fran and Maxwell into acknowledging their feelings for one another and officially become a couple.
YMMV.{{Third Rock from the Sun}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In Season 1, the Solomons discover that their last name means that they can easily pass for a Jewish family. They never wind up committing to Jewish culture, however, and they abandon it by Season 2, beginning to celebrate Christmas.
YMMV.{{Totally Spies}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot
** In "Totally Busted!", we learn about the spy gene, meaning the girls' parents used to be spies. It would've been the perfect opportunity to explore the mothers' past as spies; doing so would have given them a reason to put an end to the girls' spy careers as well as some much-needed CharacterDevelopment throughout the course of the special.
*** Hell, we barely get to see the spies' families. If the show devoted more time to showing and fleshing them out, "Totally Busted!" wouldn't have been needlessly forced and mean-spirited.
!!!I can't believe the writers completely disregard everything that was already set up in the trailer: 2/357 (0.6%)
NeverTrustATrailer.LiveActionFilms
** [Film/{{Inglourious Basterds}}] A ''much'' bigger example is how the trailer makes the film out to be a World War II-themed spaghetti western following a [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits a ragtag bunch of Jewish-American soldiers led by a loose-cannon hillbilly]] on a mission to assassinate Hitler. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot You may be somewhat disappointed to find that the film is actually]] a very character and dialogue driven cat-and-mouse game between a [[BestServedCold vengeful]] French-Jewish woman and an AffablyEvil MagnificentBastard Waffen SS guy, with the crazy US soldiers in the back as a comic relief B-plot and the action sequences both few and far between and very short.
* ''Film/SilentHillRevelation3D''. The trailer has many misleading bits, including the implication that the Seal of Metatron causes reality shifts, the careful editing to make Pyramid Head look like a threat (it's not a spoiler to point out he's an ally of the protagonist in this film), and a trailer-exclusive line where Dahlia tells Heather "You were chosen to destroy the demon," which is not the plot of the movie - though [[VoodooShark the confusion]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot is understandable]].
!!!Poor examples that need elaboration: 1/357 (0.3%)
From YMMV.{{Malcolm in the Middle}}
[[quoteblock]]
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Having an episode introducing Piama in some capacity would've gone over well (while still maintaining a surprise with them being married), given how she suddenly appeared out of nowhere and was already married to Francis.
[[/quoteblock]]
When I first saw it, I was sure I'd missed an episode. I felt the same when I rewatched it, but it turns out that this really was Piama's first appearance. Looking back on it, however, I'm pretty sure this was completely intentional. Piama's very first appearance is when Francis comes home for Hal's birthday, and surprises everybody by announcing he's been married for an entire month. The family responds with a resounding "What the heck?!"
And the thing is, this is also exactly how the audience reacts. Our introduction to Piama is precisely the same as how the family reacts to her. So yeah, this was an {{intended audience reaction}}.
Anime.{{Transformers Energon}}:
* BodyBackupDrive: After Demolisher is blown up, Megatron builds him a new body and sticks his spark into it, but not before reformatting it to remove Demolisher's pesky morality. Which leads to a ''[[TookALevelInDumbass very stupid]]'' reincarnation of the Decepticon, and one of many TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot complaints.
BoxOfficeBomb.{{D}}
* ''Film/{{Downsizing}}'' (2017) — Budget, $68 million. Box office, $52,694,653. Creator/AlexanderPayne's sci-fi satire debuted to a packed holiday season and [[{{Pun}} came up short]]. Critics didn't greet this as warmly as his other films, citing [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot the wasted potential of the premise]] as their biggest concern.
Characters/GameOfThronesOtherNorthernHouses
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: When Ramsay proudly recounts how he flayed Lord Cerwyn alive in Season 5, Roose berates him for his stupidity, pointing out that while it ensured their submission for the moment, in the long term he just gained the Cerwyn's lasting enmity and they will jump at the next chance to rebel against the Boltons. Then when the actual uprising against Ramsay occurred in Season 6, the Cerwyns were nowhere to be seen -- ''even when'' Jon Snow points out that Ramsay's men only follow Ramsay out of fear and will turn on him when he is weak.
FranchiseOriginalSin/TheSimpsons
* One of the show's favorite tactics since the earliest seasons is to start off the first act with an unrelated plot. For instance, "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E9HomerBadman Homer Badman]]"'s first act is about Homer and Marge going to a candy convention, while the rest of the story deals with Homer being falsely accused of sexual harassment and dealing with the fallout. It worked in earlier episodes because the opening plot always leads into the main plot (Homer is accused by the babysitter after he tries to pull a piece of candy he stole from the convention off of her butt). As time went on, though, the transitions between plots became increasingly abrupt and threadbare, to the point that these first-act plots could probably be cut from the episode entirely, and are used as little more than padding because the main plot can't stand up on its own. Worse, if the main plot is too weak, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot the audience ends up wishing they had settled for the first-act plot]]. For example, one common criticism of [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS12E17SimpsonSafari "Simpson Safari"]] is that the initial plot about the strike is an interesting story that deserved a whole episode, while the main plot is just the typical "The Simpsons travel to X" story.
GrowingTheBeard/LiveActionTV
* ''Series/TheLastManOnEarth'' started out strong as a [[AfterTheEnd post-apocalyptic comedy]] with an [[MinimalistCast intriguing]] [[TheLastManHeardAKnock concept]], but began to go downhill in the middle of Season 1. It cast aside its original premise for [[ArcFatigue bog-standard sex-comedy]] plots, and its main character grew into an UnsympatheticComedyProtagonist. The show returned for its second season noticeably improved and it started to gain critical notice for its [[{{Retool}} increased focus]] on its post-apocalyptic setting, its strong EnsembleCast and previously unlikeable characters undergoing significant CharacterDevelopment. The show may not [[GenreShift resemble the idea that was originally pitched]], but it has long since shorn its TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot reputation.
SeasonalRot.WesternAnimation
* Each entry in the ''Franchise/Ben10'' franchise has its own seasonal rot:
** For [[WesternAnimation/Ben10 the original series]], it was the third season; while it ''does'' have its fans thanks to bringing back fan-favorite villain [[EnemyWithout Ghostfreak]] as the BigBad and introducing three horror-themed alien forms who all became {{Ensemble Dark Horse}}s, its episodes and story arc were considered overall weaker than the previous ones and [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter the three previously mentioned new aliens were only used once each and didn't really come back until]] ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse Omniverse]]''[[note]]except for Benmummy[=/=]Snare-Oh who did a very short cameo in "Ken 10"[[/note]]. Also, this season had the misfortune to introduce [[LoveInterests Kai Green]], [[TheScrappy who the fans already weren't fond of back then]] and who later became even more reviled in ''Omniverse''.
TheScrappy.VideoGames
*** Lily, [[spoiler:aka Yasuko Saejima]], is hated by fans for being a FauxActionGirl in a series where legitimate {{Action Girl}}s are few and far between, as well as her [[spoiler:relationship with her brother Saejima that culminates in her tragically [[DiedInYourArmsTonight dying in his arms]]]] being seen as [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot wasted potential]] due to a lack of actual onscreen development.
YMMV.{{A Feast for Crows}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Arianne's "Queenmaker" story would have been an interesting arc [[spoiler:if it wasn't foiled so abruptly.]]
YMMV/{{Antz}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The worker revolution that starts up once word begins to spread that Z went against the ant colony's system pretty much disappears completely after General Mandible's speech wins back the workers.
YMMV/{{Casper}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Some people hold this reaction towards the film, feeling that it could've been much better if it had cut out all of the other sub-plots and focused solely on the relationship between Casper and Kat, with Dr. Harvey's interactions with the Ghostly Trio being the main source of comic relief.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The "Euphinator incident" is despised by many, mainly because they feel that having Euphie's plan actually go into action and horribly collapse would have been a lot more interesting than [[spoiler:having an absurd DiabolusExMachina crush it before it starts and cause Euphie to be killed, as having it happen and fail with Euphie still alive would give her some interesting CharacterDevelopment to go through, potentially pushing her to becoming someone who, while not dark and cynical, would be a lot less cheerful and optimistic, and forced to look at things more realistically.]]
YMMV.{{Command and Conquer Tiberian series}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: ''Tiberium Wars'' ended with the Scrin planning on sending a real invasion to earth, but EA decided to just drop the whole plot for ''Tiberium Twilight'' -- which itself ends on [[GainaxEnding a rather confusing note]].
YMMV.{{Cowboys and Aliens}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Creator/RogerEbert and others felt that the cowboy story was more interesting ''without'' aliens being involved.
-->'''Roger Ebert:''' Yet I feel a certain small sadness. I wish this had been a Western. You know, the old-fashioned kind, without spaceships. Daniel Craig, cold-eyed and lean, plays a character familiar in the genre; think of the Ringo Kid or Doc Holliday, bad guys who rise to goodness.\\
Harrison Ford, as the rancher, embodies the kind of man who comes riding into town at the head of his private posse and issues orders to everyone. Sam Rockwell's Doc is the kind of small businessman who has come West while seeking his fortune among hard men. All the elements are here.
YMMV.{{Doom}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Not only were the resources to make this movie wasted on a plot that had nothing to do with the actual game, but even the movie completely fails to take advantage of its Mars setting or give a proper explanation as to ''why'' a Martian retrovirus would change some people into superhumans but others into monsters based on how "good" or "evil" they are. And even though teleporters are established ''and'' used prominently in the movie, they aren't even what bring the creatures to Mars.
YMMV.{{Drawn Together}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The idea of a ''Series/BigBrother''-style reality show that features family-unfriendly parodies of popular cartoon characters from across various media opens up a lot of potential to both [[{{Deconstruction}} de]]- and [[{{Reconstruction}} reconstruct]] not only of those characters' common tropes, but those of reality television. Unfortunately, the stigma that animation is either for [[AnimationAgeGhetto children]] or childish by design reared its ugly head, so rather than familiar types of characters playing off one another for comedy, we instead got your typical, ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy''-esque AnimatedShockComedy that [[CrossesTheLineTwice tries way too hard to be deliberately offensive]].
YMMV.{{Elfen Lied}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Kouta's lack of memories of his time with Yuka puts a damper on their potential of reaching a decent relationship, though Kouta has [[TraumaInducedAmnesia good reasons for it]]. Yet, when he eventually regains his memories of Lucy [[spoiler: killing his sister and father in front of him]], he focuses more on snapping at Lucy and simply telling her that he 'can't forgive her', when this could have been a great opportunity to also have Kouta remember his moments with Yuka, how he loved her since childhood and get the two of them to start something up. Perhaps the deadline of 108 chapters was closing in too fast, leaving no time...?
YMMV.{{Freakazoid}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The show never focused on the relationship between Dexter and Freakazoid, and it was unclear whether Freakazoid was Dexter unhinged or an entirely separate character (Freakazoid himself acted like Dexter was a different person, but still considered Dexter's family his family). Likewise nothing ever came of Stephanie learning that Dexter and Freakazoid shared the same body.
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** After the film builds a nice amount of tension over who the killer is, he turns out to be [[spoiler:someone we've never heard of]].
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The premise in general. An ordinary girl from Earth finds out she’s queen of the Earth, which is threatened by her evil… previous incarnation’s children? However, rather than having her stepping up and trying to defend her realm, she spends most of her time [[DamselInDistress getting rescued]] by her LoveInterest before ''going back home to her crappy cleaning job'' despite the fact there are still two villains out there murdering ''billions'' of lifeforms to make a profit and live forever.
YMMV.{{Ozzy and Drix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Allergies are biologically described, as what happens when the white blood cells become overprotective towards a specific thing (allergens). Knowing this fact, the episode with allergens could've been the perfect opportunity to make fun of the way governments [[PoliceBrutality (and cops)]] go to ridiculous lengths in fighting crime and terror. Instead, the allergen is just as antagonistic as every other germ in the series and the closest we get is an innocent being mistaken for the allergen.
YMMV.{{Prometheus}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The concept is we apparently get to contact the aliens who created humanity and the xenomorphs but then the movie explains next to nothing.
YMMV.{{Scrubs}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** J.D. having vasovagal syncope. It could have lead to many possibilities for a character arc for J.D. that would have been a continuation of his time in Sacred Heart for his appendectomy back in Season 1. Instead it's played for laughs, mentioned less then half a dozen times and then is forgotten.
** Keith. While most remember Keith as Elliot's SatelliteLoveInterest, a look at the "My Intern's Eyes" episode where he and his "generation" of interns are introduced, has him being the POV character whose goal in the episode was to "Find the courage to talk". Had they stuck with that shyness, he probably would have made a more interesting character even if events unfolded the same way during his arc.
YMMV.{{Sky High 2005}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The extremely flawed Hero-Sidekick program causes the entire conflict of the film but is never resolved or even questioned. It gives terrible results in the form of heroes who become egocentric bullies who prey on the weak and sidekicks who become object of mockery and resent heroes. It is the opposite of what the school aims to achieve, and the root cause of almost all the movie's conflict, and yet the audience never learns whether or not it was abolished at the end.
** Will's subplot in dealing with being a superhero without super powers would have been an interesting character arc for him.
** Layla is established as a TechnicalPacifist; she says she'll only use her powers nonviolently and in a situation that demands it. [[spoiler:The one time that she nearly breaks that rule is when Royal Pain seems to have killed Will, and she marches forward with ''murder'' in her eyes. Will shows up right then, revealing that he can fly, but it would have been interesting to see Layla's plant powers go toe-to-toe with Royal Pain]].
YMMV.{{Stargate SG-1}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** When Daniel was replaced for Season 6, the writers admitted both that they hadn't initially planned on using the originally one-off Jonas character and that the character could never recover from his fandom-unfriendly original role. As a result, Jonas ended up being a fandom-controversial, Daniel-lite, politically-exiled alien whose planet struggled with inter-continental wars. However, they already had a Daniel-lite, politically-exiled alien whose planet struggled with inter-continental wars and who'd had a much friendlier, more fandom-accepted one-off episode: Nyan, who was granted asylum in Season 3, would have been Daniel's SGC research assistant for two years by the time Daniel's replacement was needed.
** In the later seasons, the NID's investigation into the Goa'uld-controlled Trust sounds ripe for episode fodder. A cloak-and-dagger war fought behind the scenes across the entire planet? Sounds awesome. Too bad it's only ever referenced and for some strange reason the SGC just doesn't seem to care. It's also weirdly out of step with the early seasons, when even a single Goa'uld on Earth was considered a disaster. But the Trust manage to infiltrate most world governments and international corporations and General Landry acts indifferent to the NID's needs.
YMMV.{{The Dark Knight Rises}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Some watchers were more interested in how the rest of the country/world was taking an entire large metropolitan area being completely cut off from everything. Despite Bruce being outside of Gotham during it, it isn't really explored much.
** Despite all the time spent setting up the cover up of Harvey Dent's crimes, after the climactic moment where Bane reveals the truth to the world...nothing really comes of it. After Blake chews Gordon out about it, it is never mentioned again. Admittingly, they had bigger issues to deal with that quickly overshadowed it, but it was disappointing that so little came of all of that build up.
YMMV.{{The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Many feel that the AmnesiacHero approach could have been a good opportunity for a JigsawPuzzlePlot. The Memories could have been used as a way to tell this story by slowly revealing the events of what happened in the past, using AnachronicOrder to allow the audience to piece the story together. However, [[spoiler:King Rhoam]] spells the whole ordeal out by the end of the tutorial instead of letting the player figure out the plot on their own. As a result, the Memories never reveal any major events and only serve to showcase the characterizations of Zelda and the Champions.
YMMV.{{Totally Spies}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot
** The introduction of LAMOS (League Aiming to Menace and Overthrow Spies) in Season 4 can be considered this. Only five out of the hundreds of villains the spies faced are part of it, and LAMOS only appears in 5 episodes out of 26.
!!!This plot thread was poorly executed: 45/357 (12.6%)
Arcfatigue.{{Game of Thrones}}:
* Arya spends ''all'' of Season 4 just walking to the Vale with the Hound, doing nothing plot relevant. Then she spends the majority of Season 5 either sweeping floors, washing corpses, getting smacked, or yelling, "Oysters, clams, and cockles!" Then the first half of her Season 6 story is filled by basically an extended TrainingMontage and watching the same Braavosi play several times before she decides she doesn't want to be a Faceless Man after all. She gets a few neat character moments through all of this, but her overall CharacterDevelopment just makes a big loop back around to "I want to go home" and except for the TrainingMontage in Season 6, every cool skill she learns (especially how to [[VoluntaryShapeshifter change faces]]) is learned ''[[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot off-screen]]'' to make room for {{Filler}}, which hardly justifies three seasons away from any central story arc. Especially compared to the first three seasons when she was often on a tangent but was at least still connected with a variety of other characters (serving Tywin, meeting the Brotherhood, searching for Cat and Robb, befriending Gendry, etc.).
SeasonalRot.LiveActionTV
** [Series/{{Doctor Who}}] Conversely, Season 18 is often considered an overreaction that went too far the other way. New production team producer Creator/JohnNathanTurner and script editor Creator/ChristopherHBidmead declared their intention to make the show "less silly" and produced a season rather dour and humourless, more interested in technical and philosophical matters than [[JustHereForGodzilla an eccentric hero fighting monsters]]. Creator/TomBaker often looked a shadow of his former self, forced to play the role in a way he disliked, and popular companions Romana and K9 were replaced with [[TheScrappy Adric]]. Of the seven stories, only "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E3FullCircle Full Circle]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E4StateOfDecay State of Decay]]" really felt like ''Doctor Who''. Of the others, three ("[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E1TheLeisureHive The Leisure Hive]]", "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E2Meglos Meglos]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E6TheKeeperOfTraken The Keeper of Traken]]") were [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot good ideas]] realised in an esoteric, poorly paced and rather flat manner by the direction and script editing, and the other two ("[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E5WarriorsGate Warriors' Gate]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E7Logopolis Logopolis]]") were esoteric and poorly paced to start with. Bidmead only lasted one season, after which the show largely reverted to a more familiar action-adventure style.
YMMV/{Blackadder}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: There is really nothing wrong with the premise of the first season. In fact it can certainly be argued it had more potential than other seasons, since it's actually rather ingenious. The execution left much to be desired; plot elements with potential (the ghost of Richard III following Edmund around and taunting him) were thrown out, while others were sorely underdeveloped (Brian Bloody Blessed as king Richard IV!).
YMMV.{{Doom II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: While considered a great game, ''Doom II'' really doesn't take advantage of its Earth-based setting, aside from having a few levels near the middle portion that vaguely resemble cities and residential areas; since the opening act follows a "starbase" theme that could have been set on any planet, if it wasn't for the title and intermission text you wouldn't even know you're on Earth, and even the few levels that are supposed to be city areas look nothing like they're supposed to be (e.g. Suburbs just has a few wooden structures that do not look like actual houses, in a large open brown area with a large puddle of lava). One would think a game like this would have large epic battles between the Earth's military and the legions of Hell, or Doomguy going out into the wilderness every once in a while. Sadly this wasn't the case, likely due to the limitations of the original [=idTech=] engine. The 2011 version of ''[[VideoGame/Doom2016 Doom 4]]'' was [[WhatCouldHaveBeen seemingly going to]] explore at least the former concept, before it was cancelled and re-built from the ground up. Thankfully, ''VideoGame/DoomEternal'' gives the HellOnEarth formula another, more successful, try.
YMMV.{{Eternals}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** A complaint brought up by several reviewers is that, while the film has big ideas and themes that are interesting on their own, the movie tries to cram them all into the one narrative given with LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters, not allowing any single potential plot element to be given the focus needed to develop properly. It's a common belief that a Disney+ series would have allowed for more breathing room.
** The controversial usage of Hiroshima is brought up to introduce the idea that Phastos, having been responsible for giving humanity many of its greater inventions, introduced the concept of nuclear power to humans and became dismayed when they weaponized it, to the point of giving up on humanity and their mission of protecting it. Come the next scene in the present day, he's moved on completely. Aside from attracting controversy before the film's release, some viewers were disappointed that the idea wasn't expanded upon.
** The Eternals having lived on Earth for thousands of years. The scenes in the past are used to provide exposition or establish the characters (and, admittedly, most of them doing it successfully), but the actual plot and character development all takes part in the present.
YMMV.{{Evil Con Carne}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: "Tiptoe Through The Tulips" was about Hector and his allies were getting prepared for invading New Zealand as Operation Z-Day but Boskov stayed for hibernation. About nine minutes of the two-part segment consisted of being boring.
YMMV.{{Famicom Detective Club}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Some fans were upset over the fact that at the end of ''The Missing Heir'', you don't get to see the reaction of characters like Zenzou, Akane or the villagers to TheReveal that [[spoiler: the protagonist is actually a member of the Ayashiro family.]]
YMMV.{{Ghostbusters}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Between the Ghostbusters' first job at the Sedgewick Hotel and the final act where they confront Gozer's plan, there's very little ghostbusting. Plenty of scenes where they're about to 'bust or just finished 'busting, but no actual 'busting. Presumably this was to limit the number of (costly) special effects shots, but it still feels like there are a few setpieces missing from the middle of the film.
YMMV.{{Godzilla 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Some critics feel that the GreenAesop and the nuclear geopolitics allegory that Gareth Edwards talked so much about in interviews leading up to the film's release were not as fleshed out as they should have been in the final product.
** In one interview, he specifically characterized this film as portraying Godzilla as GaiasVengeance out to punish humanity. His portrayal here is a complete 180 from that.
YMMV.{{Half Life Opposing Force}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The idea of playing as Marines trying to stop the Xen invasion and hunt down Gordon Freeman is awesome, but that gets thrown in the bin as soon as the game starts. In fact, Shepard arrives during the height of the Marines' losing battle at Black Mesa, but gets knocked unconscious and by the he awakens the war is over and Shepard is forced to work with the Black Mesa personnel to survive. Functionally, there's little difference between Freeman and Shepard, which is a pity.
YMMV.{{Johnny Bravo}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The episode concept of "[[GenderBender Witch-ay Woman]]" where Johnny is turned into a woman to put him in the shoes of all the women that he is always harassing is not only a great way to give him a cathartic reality check how uncomfortable women get when men like him bothers them, it would also come off as a great aesop about treating women with respect like respecting their boundaries and treating them like human beings. But sadly, it comes off as another one of those {{Anvilicious}} episodes with a misguided portrayal of feminism by making women portrayed as smart and mature while men are portrayed as dumb and immature, which ends up as Johnny not being able to understand how much of a jerk he is to women since his behavior towards them is not touched upon at all in the episode, and the only thing he seems to learn from it in the end is just that "women are smart and men are dumb."
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The conflict between Jupiter and her mother is only hinted at. The opening narration states that Aleksa became bitter and cynical after her husband was murdered, implying that Jupiter grew up distant from her. Mother and daughter learning to reconnect through the events of the film could have made a good plot. Instead Aleksa is barely featured.
[YMMV.{{Ms Marvel 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The book has teased a romance between Kamala and Bruno several times. This would be interesting, given Kamala's complete lack of romantic experience and the possibly conflicts between Bruno and her family. They even established [[RomanticFalseLead Romantic False Leads]] for the both of them, and they still chose each other in the end. But even when there's nothing standing in the way of their romance, and after learning multiple lessons about how they can't just expect the other to wait for them, they don't get together or even tease the idea.
** Originally, Kamala was often caught between her conservative upbringing and faith, and the fast life of an American teenager. She loves and respects her religion, but it also causes problems and conflicts that she must reconcile. We only get this in the first volume; after that, anything potentially problematic or difficult about her religion is unaddressed or outright defied. Her being a Muslim is no longer an issue, she receives no real bullying or hatred for it anymore, and the different cultures don't clash.
YMMV.{{Super Mario Odyssey}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Believe it or not, the wedding itself. [[spoiler:When we finally get to see the wedding in the final stage of the game, it's mostly just Bowser trying to put a humongous ring on Peach than won't fit her finger at all, as well as the noticeable lack of a minister. All this to say that, despite all the work he went through, Bowser still isn't quite as close to marrying Peach as he was in other Mario adaptations before Mario's inevitable intervention, most notably ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario.'']]
** Both the "boss-only" levels in the game (Cloud Kingdom and [[spoiler:Ruined Kingdom]]) are among the most visually interesting ones in the whole game. Too bad they're not as full-fledged and explorative as the other levels.
** The Brooklyn Bridge equivalent in New Donk City is inaccessible.
YMMV.{{The Matrix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: [[spoiler:Cypher's FaceHeelTurn arguably comes a bit out of left field and feels as though it could have been built up a lot more. An earlier draft would explain that Morpheus has been so dead set on finding "The One" that Neo is the sixth candidate he's freed and the previous ones all died -- thus giving Cypher more reason to become disillusioned with Morpheus and to betray him and want to re-join the Matrix.]]
YMMV.{{The Voyage of the Dawn Treader}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The subplot of Lucy being jealous of Susan is nonsensical and unneeded, but it does include a good message about being herself. However, when she uses Susan's bow and arrow rather than her own knife against the sea serpent during the climax, that message is ruined.
YMMV.{The Witches 1966}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The film goes off the rails in its third act for some, ruining the great atmosphere it had spent time working on.
!!!Random complaining: 75/357 (21.0%)
ArtisticLicenseHistory.LiveActionTV
** [''Series/{{Reign}}] The writers evidently got their ideas about Bohemia from Shakespeare. It never had a seacoast, much less merchant vessels and at the time was not even an independent nation, but merely one part of the vast [[{{UsefulNotes/HolyRomanEmpire}} Holy Roman Empire]]-which ''was'' an old enemy of France. Why they didn't just use them is [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot a mystery]].
AwesomeButImpractical/YuGiOhCardGame
** [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Checkmate Checkmate]], their intended FinishingMove card, is particularly baffling: it allows Terrorking Archfiend to attack directly. While this certainly isn't ''terrible'', it's only 2000 damage, since Terrorking's effects are battle-destruction related. It also requires the sacrifice of another monster, which is a cost Archfiends aren't very good at paying. Mostly, the card is notable for [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot spending an awesome name]] on an effect that doesn't even come close to winning you the game. Sure, you can still boost Terrorking until it has respectable enough ATK, but by then your opponent will catch on to what you're up to and make all your efforts moot with either [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Mirror_Force Mirror Force]] or [[https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Negate_Attack Negate Attack]].
BigBad.AnimeAndManga
** ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'' playing again with the ArcVillain, but it is revealed to be Yukio Oikawa behind the schemes of turning [[spoiler:Ken Ichijouji]] into Digimon Emperor (who created [[DemonicPossession the Devimon-possessed]] [[TurnedAgainstTheirMasters Kimeramon]]), creating [[CoDragons Arukenimon and Mummymon]] (who in turn created [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds BlackWarGreymon]]) as well as the Dark Spores which caused the Digimon Emperor persona and wants to implant them into other children. Though [[spoiler:it's part of a plan made by Myotismon's spirit to come back into a more powerful form: [[OneWingedAngel MaloMyotismon]]]]. There's also Daemon/Creepymon [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot who appears to be interesting and then is completely vanished]].
Film.TheHobbitTheBattleOfTheFiveArmies
* IdiotBall: Also, the orcs after the initial assault. Thorin Oakenshield is charging his army at the tip of a wedge, [[HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic without headgear]], keeping his shield as far away from himself as he can, and no single orc is ordered to shoot him? Where are Bolg's Morgul arrows when orcs really need them? Also, the eagles can just swoop in and fell the majority of Bolg's army without getting shot at. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot Bolg taking out one or two of them would have been awesome]]. The eagles did fear "great bows of yew" after all.
HilariousInHindsight.VideoGames
** Brazilian people have always interpreted Guile's Sonic Boom special move as [[FanNickname Alex Full.]] Then in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a character named Alex was created, and he likes military fashion. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot He can't shoot any Alex Fulls, though.]]
* Literature.{{Carrie}}
* Lawrence D. Cohen (the writer of the 1976 movie) put together the [[Theatre/{{Carrie}} musical adaptation]] in TheEighties. After a limited run at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in England that got a mixed reception, it debuted on Broadway on May 12, 1988 -- where it met with scathing reviews. The $7+ million production quickly became one of the biggest flops in Broadway history, as the musical closed after only sixteen previews and five shows. It became infamous enough to inspire a book written about Broadway's worst to carry the title ''Not Since Carrie''. A number of people, however, saw a lot of [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot potential]] beneath the poor production and feel that it could've worked out if it had received some polish. A heavily overhauled, off-Broadway revival [[http://www.carrieinla.com/history.html eventually happened]]. Fun fact - the original Broadway run had Margaret White played by Creator/BettyBuckley - who had starred in the 1976 film as the gym teacher.
Sequelitis/{{Disney}}
* ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' was an average game at worst, suffering mostly from CameraScrew, janky controls, and [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot not living up to the (admittedly impressive) hype]]. ''VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo'' took all the problems the original had and left them basically unchanged (if anything, they got worse), and added co-op play with a broken AI, grating voices and song sections, and boring puzzles. The resulting game collapsed with a quarter of the original's sales and [[CreatorKiller took its developer with it.]]
TheProblemWithLicensedGames/WesternAnimation
** While ''VideoGame/NickelodeonKartRacers'' for the Xbox One, [=PS4=], and Nintendo Switch isn't considered to be nearly as heinous as the above (it's at least free of any truly severe glitches), it's still very lacking. By far the worst part about the game is the bafflingly small number of Nickelodeon licenses used; it only includes characters, tracks, and music based on ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'', ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'', and ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'', a paltry ''four'' Nicktoons. By comparison, ''VideoGame/NicktoonsRacing'' for the [=PS1=] and PC back in the day had eight shows out of the then 12 Nicktoons represented in 2001 whereas this game chose to represent only four out of the now ''30+'' Nicktoons in 2018. Not even Nicktoons that were incredibly popular and/or still running at the time the game was released such as ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'' were included. The gameplay is nothing to write home about either; despite having a number of unique mechanics (such as slime boosts and character-specific power-ups) the game doesn't really do anything that other kart racers like ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe'' weren't already doing, and the track list is padded out with tracks that are merely variations on other ones. Making matters worse is that there is no online multiplayer, no vocal clips from the characters whatsoever, and the music and sound effects are mediocre at best and absolutely grating at worst. All in all, ''Nickelodeon Kart Racers'' is a sub-par kart racer that [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot wastes the near endless potential that an eighth-gen Nickelodeon crossover video game could have]] and just ends up feeling like a demo for its own sequel, ''Racers 2: Grand Prix'', which, while still not getting spectacularly high marks from critics and retaining several of the original game's flaws like no voice acting, [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel was still considered a marked improvement over the first game overall]] due to adding online multiplayer, new modes, and a good deal more playable characters from 12 Nicktoons[[note]]The aforementioned four, as well as ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'', ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Catdog}}'', ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'', ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'', ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra''[[/note]] [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg and [=JoJo=] Siwa]], plus many others through the [[AssistCharacter Pit Crew mechanic]].
TheScrappy.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/SixFeetUnder'': Lisa. The [[{{ClingyJealousGirl}} Clingy Jealous]] GranolaGirl {{Housewife}} and tedious RomanticFalseLead. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot A waste of perfectly good Lili Taylor.]]
YMMV/{{Bayonetta}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Isla del Sol looks impressive... from the very few views you get of it. Chapter 14 is spent zooming towards the city across the sea with the skyline in the background, and then a cutscene puts Bayonetta on a roof and later the side of a building as she fights a boss there, Chapter 15 is set entirely in and on top of a skyscraper, Chapter 16 is a boss fight set around said skyscraper, and the epilogue is spent ascending beyond the planet's atmosphere. There's no chance to actually explore the very beautiful metropolis and see how it all relates to [[spoiler:the angels' plan to resurrect Jubileus]], whereas Vigrid is explored in comparatively ample detail, along with Noatun in ''VideoGame/Bayonetta2''.
YMMV/{{Captain Planet and the Planeteers}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The two episodes centering on overpopulation ("Population Bomb" and "Numbers Game") fail to mention adoption in any way.
YMMV.{{Charmed 1998}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The AssimilationPlot / TheEvilsOfFreeWill storyline with the Avatars [[spoiler:was abandoned after an episode and a half of Utopia with the Avatars letting go of their perfect world on the Charmed Ones' say-so]]. Might count as a case of PragmaticVillainy considering [[spoiler:they live to try again]], but almost makes you wonder if they could ever truly get it to last.
** Witches are a rare species with magic that expresses itself as unique inherited abilities. Despite the potential for a wide array of interesting powers, most witches we see besides the Charmed Ones either have telekinesis or fire-throwing powers.
** In regards to Phoebe's powers in later seasons. While she wasn't as strong as Prue or Piper, the early seasons did at least put in the effort to showcase Phoebe was strong in her own right. For instance Phoebe would use martial art skills and did her best in the spell and intuition department. She'd use her intuition to at least try and help prevent the outcomes of her premonitions, her powers would always make sure they tried to do something. (In fact the Season 2 episode "The Painted World" is a good example of this) In fact in Season 3 Phoebe and Prue were the two sisters who did most of the fighting while Piper mainly froze things until getting her Molecular Combustion power. After Season 4 however Phoebe's powers stop being as active, only happening once in a while and occasionally kicking an enemy. Then after Season 6 she stops being proactive in general having to rely on Potions or hide behind Paige or Piper as they did all the work. The key difference is the early episodes used other ways to make Phoebe involved with fighting demons, even proving herself useful, in later seasons it's like she doesn't have powers at all. She never regains her levitation powers or empathy either, although some feel that's actually a fitting consequence for her repeated selfishness in Seasons 5 and 6.
** In general, Phoebe's character derailment in the later seasons is a result of the show failing to acknowledge her TraumaCongaLine in Season Four. Her behaviour includes: distancing herself from her sisters and magical heritage, [[TookALevelInJerkass becoming increasingly self-centered, jaded]] and [[BrokenBird less bubbly]], being obsessed with her sister's baby first and having her own baby at all costs later, and [[MurderArsonAndJaywalking becoming disillusioned about love]]. This is pretty consistent with depression over losing her sister, her love/husband and her unborn baby in a short span, as well as her guilt over betraying her family and frustration over her dead husband trying to force his way back into her life. Jason breaking up with her because of magic not long after was the final straw, seeing how [[UpToEleven faster and further]] her derailment went afterwards. Had the show truly addressed her mental state, Phoebe would have come off as more sympathetic and could have had a character arc about healing, redeeming herself, reconnecting with her sisters and magic, and balancing her new-found maturity with her earlier optimism and carefreeness, rather than just focussing on solving her "love block" by [[StrangledByTheRedString shoehorning a love interest at the eleventh hour]] as if ''that'' were the solution to everything.
** The sisters struggle to keep friends throughout the series, which is especially an issue for Piper continuously in later seasons, but the series never really resolves it. It's just Piper complaining about it over and over again, which becomes annoying as the show brings it up without doing anything about it. It also would have been interesting in of itself to see the sisters have to deal with lying to their friends or becoming more involved in the magical community if they became friends with witches. Instead, the series ends with the sisters' only friends as their family, husbands, the Morris family, Elise, and Billie with the Morris family being on the other side of the country, Elise unaware of magic, and Billie having just tried killing the sisters.
** The series really dropped the ball when it came to the fallout from Cole becoming the Source. While Cole returning after the Source was vanquished at least meant he didn't have to die because of being manipulated by others, the result is Phoebe and the others blaming him entirely for his actions as the Source - even when the Seer outright told Phoebe that Cole's love for her helped him fight the Source's possession for longer than she expected. They do seem to be setting up ''Phoebe'' being the one who has to learn not to blame Cole for her own actions - "A Witch's Tail" is only resolved when she admits she still loves him, "Happily Ever After" has her grudgingly apologising, "Siren Song" frames her as bringing out the worst in him - "I Am Sam" does an about face to have Cole being framed as a complete villain and Phoebe as a complete victim, forcing Cole into the DesignatedVillain to make Paige and Phoebe look justified in their pursuit of him. Cole is essentially a victim of everyone from the Seer to the Source to eventually his wife and in-laws, with everyone else shunning him for actions that were not his fault. His return in Season 7 doesn't real make things better either, since he's given a VillainsDyingGrace which still treats him as a willing villain rather than a victim of emotional abuse.
YMMV.{{Cho Ren Sha 68k}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The transition from Stage ''x''—0 to Stage (''x''+1)—1[[note]]Where ''x'' is an odd number[[/note]] ([[spoiler:where an explosion takes place and it turns out to be the exact same one from the start of the game]]) sounds like it could make for a great plot twist...[[NoPlotNoProblem if the game even HAD a plot to begin with]].
YMMV.{{Clerks II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot. Becky's speech attacking the concept of romantic love is an intriguing point of view that she argues quite cogently; by the end of the film (within hours, in fact), she's tossed this philosophy over the side and acceded to a thoroughly conventional romantic relationship while effectively implying what she'd said earlier was all just rationalization to avoid admitting her attraction to Dante.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The worst is (possibly) the subplot involving [[spoiler:Marianne's death. She's revealed to be inside Anya and is killed in the very next episode, even though her murder had been one of Lelouch's main motivations since the very beginning of the first season. What's more, Empress Marianne herself was part of [[EvilPlan an arguably "evil" plan]] and [[KnightTemplarParent abandoned her children to build a new world for them]], which flies in the face of how other characters previously viewed her as admirable and near-perfect]]. This really should have been better explained in order to properly reconcile both sides of her portrayal.
YMMV.{{Codename Kids Next Door}}
** As revealed in Operation Z.E.R.O. [[spoiler: Nigel Uno is the nephew of the KND's greatest enemy, Father.]] However this relationship dynamic between them is never explored or touched upon again for the rest of the series and considering Father was aware of this, it is odd it was never brought up before.
** Despite learning that [[spoiler:Chad never betrayed the Kids Next Door]], Numbuh 1's thoughts on remaining a KND operative after turning 13 was never discussed upon. His hatred towards [[spoiler:Chad]] was so personal that he refused to believe that [[spoiler:he was a FakeDefector the whole time]]. He never discussed about the Teens Next Door in the GrandFinale.
YMMV.{{Dude Wheres My Car}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Where Jesse and Chester's car eventually ended up after it was stolen from the French ostrich owner is left a complete mystery.
YMMV.{{FaceOff}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Many Nicolas Cage fans have wondered why ''he'' didn't play Archer in the beginning instead, so when they get their faces swapped we see Nic Cage be a crazy bastard for the other 80% of the movie.
YMMV.{{Father Ted}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In "Cigarettes and Alcohol and Rollerblading" Father Jack becomes sober for the first time in the entire series. He flees the house when Sister Assumpta arrives and isn't seen again for the rest of the episode.
YMMV.{{Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** All of Radiant Dawn's four parts are essentially different plots; Part 1 is Daein's rebellion and independence, Part 2 is Elincia's political troubles, Part 3 is the Laguz vs. Begnion war, and Part 4 is the fight against the BigBad. All of these loosely interconnect except Part 2; in the longest Fire Emblem game to date, it is by far the shortest arc, spanning a mere 5 chapters from prologue to endgame, and simply works to show returning characters from the first game and what they're doing, including giving them a FillerVillain disconnected from the other plots. Sure, Radiant Dawn could've been a lot shorter without it, but it also could've been a much more involved plot. Only a third or so of its returning characters get to be active through the rest of the game instead of just at the end, and the rest are doomed to be junked unless you happen to have a lot of BEXP to spare.
** The [[HalfHumanHybrid Branded]], their place in the world, and their relationship to the Gods are not examined nearly as much as they could have been. Furthermore, a conversation between Stefan and [[spoiler:Yune]] reveals a major twist about the Branded that never gets brought up or discussed beyond the conversation, namely that [[spoiler: the Branded were not originally seen as an unholy mistake until after Ashera had Yune sealed]], meaning a large chunk of the world's hatred was formed on a lie. Yet it doesn't go anywhere.
** In the first game, there's an offhand mention that the reason that the Beorc oppress the Laguz is that, once upon a time, [[CycleOfRevenge the Laguz oppressed the Beorc]]. Both when this happened and the nature of this oppression are never revealed.
** Nothing is done with the fact that [[spoiler:all three of Ashera's champions [[{{Irony}} have Branded descendants]]]]. In particular, [[spoiler:Lehran and Dheginsea]] both have interesting stories about how their bloodlines became mixed that play a significant role in the current state of the world, but nothing of the sort is revealed about [[spoiler: Soan]]; no explanation is given for how his bloodline was mixed into the beorc population or how that event affected the larger history of Tellius.
YMMV.{{Goosebumps}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: There were many books for the TV series to adapt and many fans were disappointed that certain books (i.e., ''Curse of the Mummy's Tomb'', The first ''Night of the Living Dummy'' book, ''Why I'm Afraid of Bees'', ''The Haunted School'', etc.) weren't adapted into episodes of the show. A reboot of the TV series is coming up though.
YMMV.{{I Know What You Did Last Summer}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** While the film is thought to be a good one, there are some who feel that an adaptation of the book's plot would still have been good. Though admittedly hard to pull off [[spoiler: with the double-identity twist]].
** By not having [[spoiler: Helen ]] pull a NotQuiteDead in the climax due the freezer having slowed [[spoiler: her]] bleeding, with a ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' ShoutOut.
YMMV.{{Iron Man}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** As discussed in the StrawmanPolitical section, they could have had an interesting plot in which Tony is forced to go to more and more extreme measures to enforce an act that would hold responsibility over all other things, something he believes in due to his own shortcomings. Instead, they decided in some books to turn Tony into a power hungry fascist and decided accountability = slavery. Also he's a war criminal now. Apparently believing in responsibility is akin to amorality.
** Crosses into TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter, but the general concept of Riri Williams is ''not'' a bad idea, Tony having a teenage protege who ends up becoming something of a LegacyCharacter for him when he's taken out of action. However, Riri was introduced rather awkwardly mere issues before it was announced she was going to take over, ''before'' she even met Tony, which naturally created an AudienceAlienatingPremise, so there was really no way to develop and explore the idea of her as Tony's protege and successor in a convincing, acceptable manner. When Tony came back, Riri was PutOnTheBus from his book, getting her own and appearing in some teen team books, but otherwise severing her connection with Tony, thus robbing her of the opportunity to develop as his protege, something that could have RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap her for much of her hatedom.
YMMV.{{Jupiter Ascending}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The conflict between Jupiter and her mother is only hinted at. The opening narration states that Aleksa became bitter and cynical after her husband was murdered, implying that Jupiter grew up distant from her. Mother and daughter learning to reconnect through the events of the film could have made a good plot. Instead Aleksa is barely featured.
YMMV.{{Luigis Mansion 3}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Many fans wish that there was a [[NonStandardGameOver special cutscene]] [[spoiler:when you ran out of time during the FinalBoss fight, since King Boo was trying to absorb the entire hotel into the one group painting during the final stage of the boss fight. However, the player just loses all of their health and the game runs a typical GameOver screen when you run out of time, which caused some disappointment]].
** Many players would have liked to see some kind of additional scene or alternate ending that involved Morty if the player chose to spare him.
YMMV.The Incredible Hulk 2008}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: A fair amount of attention is given to Betty's necklace, which is a TragicKeepsake from her deceased mother. She thinks of selling it when she and Bruce go on the run, he convinces her not to, and at the end of the film she sends it to him as a symbol of her love for him. This memento never re-occurs throughout the MCU, despite the fact it probably could be very useful in calming the Hulk down, and as a symbol of all Bruce has lost in his life, a point of contention when Ross reappears in Civil War, or even a memento of Earth to the Hulk during his time on Sakaar. However, partially due the the movie mostly being forgotten ,the impracticality of the Hulk carrying jewelry with him at all times, and the fact that the necklace's design is utterly generic and forgettable, it's never mentioned again.
YMMV.{{The Naked Gun}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Quentin Hapsburg says he plans to hunt rhino in Botswana and moments later gets killed by a lion. It would have been a great example of LaserGuidedKarma if he had been killed by a rhino instead.
YMMV.{{The Powerpuff Girls 1998}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Who else wanted the villains to sing a Beatles cover in "Meet the Beat-Alls?"
** Some fans were likely disappointed that the best they could come up with for Buttercup's special power was [[spoiler: to curl her tongue]], especially as in that episode, the girls [[NewPowersAsThePlotDemands exhibited completely new powers they'd never used before.]] Doubles as an InUniverse example, since even ''the Narrator'' though Buttercup's special power was lame.
!!!Hey, look at this cool fanfic idea I had!: 134/357 (37.6%)
GenderBender.LiveActionTV
* ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'': In the first season , it happened to Kimberly and Billy when his machine went haywire, subjecting them to a FreakyFridayFlip. (Billy fixed it before the situation at the end of the episode, [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot although some fans thought the plot could have been explored much further.]])
NeverLiveItDown.StarWars
* Some people (Tumblr, predominately) aren't so quick to forgive Kallus after his [[DarkAndTroubledPast char]][[NobleDemon act]][[JustFollowingOrders eriz]][[NothingPersonal ation]] [[HeelRealization in]] "The Honorable Ones," never mind accept a possible redemption arc from him, mostly due to [[spoiler:practically escorting [[HeelFaceDoorSlam Tua]] to her assassination while [[{{Jerkass}} taunting]] [[KickTheDog her]] back in "The Siege of Lothal"]] (also not forgetting that he's burnt down Tarkintown, blockaded Ibaar, etc.). Most of the same people also think that the [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot arc should've]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter belonged to Tua]] or someone else that hasn't been already depicted as villainous as Kallus, [[BrokenBase although]] some have pointed out that this trope and arguments will likely be applied and addressed in-universe later on in Kallus's character arc.
Series.{{Married With Children}}
* GameBetweenHeirs: There's an episode in which Al's Uncle Stymie, the only male Bundy to be a success in life (Al credits this to the fact Stymie was the only one who never married), left his $500,000 estate to the first male Bundy to have a legitimate son named after him. Considering that the lawyer who read the will would later marry a male Bundy and give birth to Stymie Junior to get the money, Al and the other Bundys who didn't get the money [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot could have challenged the will under claims of undue influence]].
YMMV.{{Aliens}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Not the movie itself, but there are a few easily missed allusions to there being other alien life in the universe aside from the xenomorphs and [[Franchise/{{Predator}} Yautja]]. The ExpandedUniverse has made use of this in novels like ''Literature/AliensBugHunt''.
YMMV.{{Alien 3}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Again, how awesome would it be to see Ripley working together ''with'' the small Hicks-Bishop-Newt family unit she developed in the previous film inside the hellhole that is Fiorina Prison? Considering that said group of characters is 1) an attractive woman, 2) a military authority figure, 3) an android, and 4) a [[AdultFear little girl]], watching those four fight for their lives in a prison full of violent rapists and criminals would arguably be ''[[AdultFear scarier]]'', in some ways, than having Ripley on her own hunted down by the Xenomorph, not to mention that their presence would make [[spoiler:Ripley's eventual HeroicSacrifice]] that much more moving, meaningful, and a satisfying conclusion to her story.
** The fact the Xenomorph came from a non-human host and the intriguing revelation that they take on attributes of their hosts doesn't matter at all to the overall story, and aside from being somewhat skinner and running on all-fours more often than prior aliens, it's hardly noticeable in a movie so visually dark. This is especially so with the version that has it emerging from an ox, since the alien, rather disappointingly, doesn't look anything like an ox. A lot of supplementary ''Alien'' franchise media like comics, novels, and ''Film/AliensVsPredatorRequiem'' did further expand on this concept, however.[[note]]Though some of those expansions are pure, gimmicky NarmCharm, like Bull, Shark, Bat, and Snake Aliens that just look silly.[[/note]]
YMMV.{{Angel}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** "[[Recap/AngelS01E14IveGotYouUnderMySkin I've Got You Under My Skin]]" implies the Catholic Church is aware of the supernatural, with one of their nuns being able to instantly recognize Angel as a vampire just by looking at him, and for a moment it seems the series lore might include similar ideas to ''Film/{{Constantine}}'' or ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''. One wonders what sorts of stories could be told if members of the Christian faith were involved in Angel's quest for redemption, or if the Catholic Church could have made a formidable adversary to Angel's branch of Wolfram & Hart in Season 5. Naturally the Church's involvement with the supernatural is never brought up again.
** During Buffy's last appearance, she doesn't have a scene with Cordelia. It would have been nice to them part ways on good terms and have Buffy see how her former rival has grown as a person (and Wesley, for that matter).
** More a case of 'a good plot was planned and cancellation ruined it'. Willow would have shown up in Season 6 to separate Fred and Illyria - allowing Amy Acker to play both characters. Given how good she showed herself to be in "[[Recap/AngelS05E20TheGirlInQuestion The Girl in Question]]", that could have been quite exciting to see.
** The lack of guest appearances of Xander (who could have received closure with Cordelia) and Anya (just imagine her and Fred sharing a scene) can be cause for mourning.
YMMV/{{Asterix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: ''Recap/AsterixAndTheChariotRace'' had Asterix and Obelix take part to a race all around Italy, visiting the places, meeting the various peoples... And completely missing to mention Cremona, the oldest recorded example of UndefeatableLittleVillage... As a Roman outpost besieged by Gauls.
YMMV/{{Avatar the Last Airbender}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Iroh's entire past, including his journey to the Spirit World, has left fans with many questions, yet has never been touched upon in the show itself (although some of it was alluded to in supplementary books).
** Before Season 3 aired, it was said that Zuko would begin searching for his mother in the season. Guess what never happened. (Thankfully, it was covered in the graphic novels.)
** Koh ominously told Aang that they would meet again. This never happened onscreen.
** The whole mistaken-kidnapping plot around Toph was resolved off-screen, including the revelation to the Gaang that she had lied about joining them.
** Everything involving [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique bloodbending]]. Despite only being the focus of a single episode, its horrific nature and backstory make it one of the most memorable plot points of Book 3. It wasn't until ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' that the concept was explored to its true potential.
YMMV/AvengersAgeOfUltron
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Even though [[Film/TheAvengers2012 the first Avengers film]] ended with the team splitting up and the different members going their separate ways, with [[Film/IronMan3 the]] [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld following]] [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier films]] showing them having their own adventures on their own side, this film starts with the Avengers already assembled. It could have been interesting to see the circumstances in which the team finally reunited after all that time, but nope.
** The first post-credit scene of ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' had Baron Strucker revealing that HYDRA is still very much active and has several bases all over the world that should keep Captain America and his friends busy. At the beginning of this movie, it's mentioned that the Avengers have spent the last few months fighting HYDRA and took care of all those bases off-screen. The war against HYDRA could have easily filled an entire movie on its own, unfortunately all we get to see of it is the assault of Strucker's base in the opening scene.
** The film is very vague about whether the other Avengers besides Cap and Black Widow knew that Fury was still alive. Tony certainly doesn't seem too surprised to see him, and then it simply cuts to his briefing.
** The film sketches out the barest hint of an arc for Captain America. At the end, he seems to view Kosovo-style interventionism as a affirmation of SHIELD/America's place in the world and redemption for SHIELD's actions during ''Captain America: The Winter Soldier''. But it's majorly glossed over in the film, left mostly to incidental details like the Sokovian murals with dollar signs over the Avengers' faces and Captain America's vision of bloodshed after Ultron remarks he can't live in a world without war. As a result of this dearth of dramatic material, he has little to do other than be the StandardizedLeader. Although it's known there exists a longer cut of the film and that Joss Whedon was unhappy with the Marvel Creative Committee's ExecutiveMeddling, so perhaps it was a victim of editing.
YMMV.{{Blade II}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The Blood Pack was created to hunt and kill Blade, but the only time we see them, they have to team up with Blade against the Reavers. An entire movie featuring Blade being hunted instead of being the hunter would have been an interesting plot.
** It's also a shame that Jared and Nyssa never really get to talk to each other except at the end, given that [[spoiler: they're siblings.]]
YMMV/{{Breaking Bad}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Mike has a granddaughter, Kaylee. Mike mentors Jesse. Jesse loves kids, having a strong BigBrotherInstinct. It would have been cool to see the two develop a bond, [[spoiler:especially after Mike's death]].
** Gus' mysterious past. First, the DEA is unable to find any information about his past in Chile. Second, in the flashback when the cartel kills his business partner, Don Eladio specifically says that Gus is only alive because "I know who you are." Considering how Gus is in no way a kingpin at this point, this implies ''something'' significant about his past. Creator Vince Gilligan has said that he deliberately left Gus' background mysterious, likening it to the contents of the briefcase in ''Film/PulpFiction''.
** Surprisingly, Jesse and Walter Jr. never share a scene together during the series. Given that Walter Jr. is Walter's son and Jesse could be seen as Heisenberg's son, it surely would have been interesting for the two to meet.
** A frequently noted missed opportunity is that Walter White never interacted with his customers. If he did, Walter would have to confront the real life consequences that comes with supplying a highly damaging & addictive substance to vulnerable individuals for his benefit.
YMMV/{{Buffy the Vampire Slayer}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Xander had all the puzzle pieces to have a character arc regarding his vampire hatred; with what happened to Jesse being the catalyst for it and close proximity to two "reformed" vampires being obvious places of growth. Instead Jesse is never brought up after the pilot, the potential trauma Jesse's death may have caused goes unexamined and Xander continues indiscriminately hating Angel and Spike right to the end, regardless of the status of their souls and their actions. The comics ''somewhat'' fix this, as it does have Xander briefly admit to having some trauma over Jesse, and he later ''does'' seem to get over his vampire hatred by starting an OddFriendship with Dracula and becoming VitriolicBestBuds with Spike. It is, however, still mostly an implied arc that isn't examined too in-depth.
** While Angel would make the occasional guest appearance after getting his own show, none of his crew ever appeared. Imagine Buffy and co. seeing how Cordelia and Wesley have grown as people since they knew them, or meeting Gunn, Fred and Lorne.
** Season 7 has a lot of wasted [[JustForPun potential]]:
*** Many fans still argue that the big redemption story of Season 7 was given to the wrong character. Jonathan had been part of the show from the beginning, so it would have been great to see him repent for his being part of the Trio and finally become a hero in his own right. But instead he's abruptly killed off, and the redemption story goes to Andrew, who we'd only just met last season and hadn't done nearly as much to earn it.
*** Unfortunately the writers' hands were forced by the actors not being available, but "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E7ConversationsWithDeadPeople Conversations With Dead People]]" was originally intended to feature the First Evil taking the forms of Halfrek and Jesse to taunt Anya and Xander respectively. [[spoiler:Creator/AmberBenson]] also declined to return for an actual [[spoiler:Willow/Tara]] conversation, not wanting fans' last memories of the character to be of an evil doppleganger.
*** Several moments in Season 7 implied that at some point, Buffy would again be forced to choose between saving Dawn and the world, and this time would choose differently, most notably Joyce telling Dawn "Buffy won't choose you" in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E7ConversationsWithDeadPeople Conversations With Dead People]]". In the end, nothing of the sort ever happens.
*** Faith's return happens too late for any questions surrounding her redemption to be properly resolved. The Scoobies almost immediately accept it and trust her, even mutinying against Buffy in favor of Faith one episode after her return. Her AttemptedRape of Xander in Season 3 is also never addressed, although it's not like most shows of the time (or even today) [[DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale ever acknowledge that for what it is.]]
*** The idea of a split between the Scoobies and the Potentials, with the Potentials preferring Faith's leadership, could have made an interesting arc, but the mutiny is resolved and Buffy ends up back in charge after just two episodes.
*** Angel's return in the GrandFinale is nothing more than a cameo, as he doesn't interact with anyone except Buffy and doesn't participate in the FinalBattle, despite his history with the First Evil. Once again, the writers' hands were forced by the network limiting crossovers with ''Series/{{Angel}}''.
YMMV/{{Captain America Civil War}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** ''Age of Ultron'' ended with the Avengers forming an almost entirely new team, consisting of Cap, Black Widow, Vision, Scarlet Witch, War Machine, and the Falcon. Their next appearance here only has Cap, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, and Falcon participating in the opening mission before the team splits up onto opposing sides which disbands the new Avengers, meaning we never get to see the full new lineup fight together as a team before breaking up.
** TheReveal that Bucky Barnes is [[spoiler:not the only product of HYDRA's SuperSoldier program, but there are five more elite enhanced soldiers who are described by [[RedBaron The Winter Soldier]] himself as even stronger than he is, and that all of them together possess abilities that would allow them to ''take over a country'' within a day if given the order. These soldiers could've turned out to be Captain America and The Winter Soldier's toughest opponents yet and provide a convenient means for Iron Man and Captain America to drop their hostilities to team up and fight them, but instead Baron Zemo kills them all off while they are in stasis, effectively eliminating them as a threat. Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad in this case, since they were deliberately set up as a RedHerring, it enhanced Zemo's better qualities and helped deliver the NothingIsTheSameAnymore premise of Phase 3]].
** Multiple characters warn Tony that Ross will turn on him, constantly telling him to "watch his back", with the implication that Ross may start imprisoning all the Avengers and not just the ones who sided with Steve, but while Ross does refuse to listen to Tony [[spoiler:when he discovers proof that Bucky was set up]], he still allows Tony to leave unhindered and unfollowed [[spoiler:(by Ross's men anyway)]] and tries to call him [[spoiler:when Steve shows up to break out his team from their prison]].
** The movie does a rather good job at adapting the debate between Tony and Steve over how superheroes should be handled, [[PragmaticAdaptation removing many of the things that didn't work in the comic]] and making sure BothSidesHaveAPoint...[[spoiler:but the debate is never really resolved; in fact, it's more or less forgotten after the airport battle so we can focus on the Bucky subplot, and isn't even the reason Cap and Iron Man fight in the climax.]] One could make the argument that the Sokovia Accords are actually superfluous to the movie as a whole, as ultimately [[ExcusePlot they have little to do with why the characters end up fighting each other]]. The plotline surrounding Bucky and Zemo drives the majority of the film, and it could easily exist without the Accords.
YMMV.{{Code Geass}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Remember when C.C. entered in contact with Suzaku during the first season, which caused the two to black out several times and C.C. realized something important about him? It's never brought up again within the story but, according to the staff, Suzaku was apparently meant to either have a Geass power that gave him increased physical abilities or at least the potential for acquiring one.
** The faction of Britannian nobles who wished to turn traitor and join the Black Knights. The only thing we get out of them is a conversation between Zero and Diethard. We then get a scene where Darlton arrests them and that's it, and they are never mentioned again.
YMMV.{{Codename Kids Next Door}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The KND "Splinter Cell" arc foreshadowed an internal civil war in the KND between the extremist Splinter Cell that believes all adults must be destroyed vs. the more moderate faction that believes only the evil adults should be stopped. It is also revealed that the Splinter Cell had been kidnapping KND scientists for unknown reasons. However, near the end of the series, it turns out that the Splinter Cell is just an front for the KND scientists, who fake their kidnappings so they have more free time to watch their favorite science fiction shows as well as manage "the Galactic Kids Next Door", the workings of which were left very vague in the end. However, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_2aDok_CcQ a teaser animatic]] featuring the original cast and produced by Mr. Warburton suggests that a civil war plot expanding upon the working of the GKND may be on the way. Still, many fans would've preferred this plot without the GKND.
** There's also the matter of the 1/362 ShipTease. Despite ''Operation: I.T.'' showing how close they were and ''Operation: G.I.R.L.F.R.I.E.N.D.'' all-but-confirming that Rachel has feeling for Nigel beyond friendship, it was never resolved. The trope comes in with after [[spoiler: Lizzie dumped Nigel,]] which looked like it was foreshadowing that he would end up with Rachel. You can imagine how many fanfics have centered around them getting together.
** Some fans were hoping that more would've came from Numbuh 1's report in "Operation: A.R.C.H.I.V.E.S.", especially since the ending indicated that there was at least ''some'' level of truth in it.
** In most fiction, adults hate teenagers far more then they do small children and teenagers hate being bossed around by adults. Instead of being complete allies to the adults, it would have been interesting if the teenagers were a more independent group that battled both adults and kids.
YMMV.{{Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In ''Deadpool Killustrated'', Sherlock Holmes gathers a team of characters from classic literature to fight Dreadpool just seemed like it would have been a good opportunity for Deadpool vs. Comicbook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen.
YMMV.{{Death Note}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Due to the uniqueness of the Japanese justice system (described under ValuesDissonance), the idea that any of Light's victims were wrongfully convicted doesn't ever get mentioned. If it did, it would've thrown an extra layer of grey onto Light's actions.
** Light defends his usage of the Death Note by citing how wars have ceased entirely since the rise of Kira. Aside from this one comment, the intriguing prospect of Light using the note to end global wars is never elaborated upon.
** During his incarceration, Light theorizes that another Kira might be controlling him. This is actually a very interesting concept and would've turned the entire series on its head if it had been true.
** The rivalry between Mello and Near is only slightly touched upon.
** The whole idea of [[spoiler:Mello being Near's split personality in the drama.]]
** Light becoming a [[AGodAmI megalomaniac]] after [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope just his first couple of kills]] robbed the story of a potential drama from seeing a more nuanced ProtagonistJourneyToVillain as he steadily rationalizes his increasingly heinous actions.
YMMV.{{Frankenstein}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Oh, come on, a race spawned from the Creature and a man-made Bride would have been ''awesome''. But, alas, Frankenstein [[spoiler:had to destroy her body before she could be awakened.]] Though Shelley was probably more concerned with [[AnAesop her story's message]] than a rad story.
YMMV.{{Jurassic Park}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The SequelHook about [[spoiler:the dinosaurs who have somehow escaped Isla Nublar and are going on a reign in terror across Costa Rica. Crichton abandoned this when he wrote ''The Lost World'', having Marty briefly mention them being wiped out, and the filmmakers of the sequel movies contented themselves with the characters going back to the islands.]]
** Becomes HilariousInHindsight when [[spoiler: ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' adapts this exact plot point by destroying the island and having masses of dinosaurs escaping onto the mainland.]]
YMMV.{{Mighty Morphin Power Rangers}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** Tommy, the team's SixthRanger, started out as evil but eventually turned to the side of good. Later on, Lord Zedd would recruit an entire team of Dark Rangers, who eventually turned good. Yet Zordon never recruits them as a second-team (either a back-up or a team to protect Stone Canyon) that would use the suits from ''Series/GoseiSentaiDairanger''.
*** Some fans felt that giving Tommy more angst at being forced into evil and making him TheAtoner could've given his character a bit more depth and made both occasions of him losing his powers all the more impactful. It is brought up on occasion a few times whenever Tommy gets brainwashed for the plot of the day or when an evil clone is made at one point but not for anything longterm and things are always back to the feel-good by the next episode.
** Many fans feel this way about the aforementioned Dark Rangers never actually fighting the Power Rangers.
** "Switching Places" is pretty disappointing as a FreakyFridayFlip story, not least because Billy and Kimberly switching bodies has no impact at all on the fight scenes later. At the very least, they could have messed with the TransformationSequence to have one or both of them say the wrong animal at first, [[HilariousInHindsight Like Gokaiger did years later.]]
** If they had kept Scorpina around, she would have been in "The Wedding" 3-parter, happy to see Rita return and becoming her Maid of (Dis)honor, and have a dance with the reluctant Goldar. With that said, the two would have developed a relationship together not unlike their ''Zyuranger'' counterparts.
** Also, they could have reused the Power Eggs plot, which would configure into Rita's revenge on Zedd.
** In Season 3, the Rangers gain armor, and at the end of said season, the Command Center is destroyed, but rebuilt at the start of ''Zeo''. This would've been a ''perfect'' time to use the suits and updated Command Center from [[Film/MightyMorphinPowerRangersTheMovie the movie]] to replace each respective one...but unfortunately, due to the decision to film the movie in Australia, they had to be left behind, meaning that not only was the chance to include them in canon lost[[note]]as MMPR The Movie cannot take place in the main continuity, due to the Ninja Zords and powers being obtained differently from how they were obtained in the show; while one ''could'' view the movie as an alternate to ''A Friend In Need'' and ''Ninja Quest'' to explain those differences, there's still the fact that the Command Center and Zordon look so different from how they appear in the TV series[[/note]], but we also had to deal with the glitter instead[[note]]in case anyone's wondering why the ''Dairanger'' suits weren't used: while the rangers changing into different outfits could've been explained away, as ''Dairanger'' did not have the same color scheme as ''Zyuranger'', using them would've resulted in the team having its black ranger become a green ranger. Of course, Zordon could easily have come up with [[Series/PowerRangersMegaforce a simple explanation for that.]][[/note]].
** If Austin, Walter, and Thuy stayed a little longer, then Jason, Zack, and Trini would have been given a proper send-off like they've done with Kimberly in season 3. We would have also seen them interact with their future replacements and not suffer from being DemotedToExtra. Lastly, Tommy would officially be promoted to leader after the power transfer.
YMMV.{{Mr Men}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Considering the amount of characters who are [[{{Foil}} Foils]] to each other (E.G. [[GrumpyBear Mr. Grumpy]] to [[ThePollyanna Mr. Happy and Little Miss Sunshine]]), you'd think that there'd be a story showing [[ScienceHero Little Miss Inventor]] and [[MagicalGirl Little Miss Magic]] having such a relationship but so far, such a storyline hasn't come to light.
YMMV.{{Ms Marvel 2014}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: At Kamala's defeat of the Inventor, a cop warns Kamala to be careful because there's things lurking on Jersey City's street worse than a half bird man. However, we never see any of these home grown threats, and instead, Kamala is always fighting external villains, who are often times connected to some greater event happening in the Marvel universe.
YMMV.{{Ouran High School Host Club}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The very first episode demonstrates that the Host Club doesn't mind flirting with boys as well as girls (when they first believe Haruhi is one), though this is never brought up again as the Host Club is never visited by homosexual boys, which could have made for some fun moments. That is, apart from Episode 23 which plays with this as the customers believes Kasanoda to be gay for requesting Haruhi.
YMMV.{{Ozzy and Drix}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** The fact that Hector was a relatively normal boy left a lot of unanswered questions as to how the body and mind, and their respective characters, would be different if the host had a chronic condition or mental disorder. Doubly jarring since Ozzy ''did'' travel to Christine's body at one point, where we saw how the lifestyles of those inside bodies differed depending on the biological sex of their host, meaning examining other bodies while still having Hector as the main hub would have been possible. And of course, it being for younger audiences, the onset of sexual maturity and [[{{Squick}} everything it entails]] wasn't explored (though Hector does experience a small growth spurt and some G-rated side effects of puberty).
YMMV.{{Pacific Rim}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** There's enough room to do a film or two on those first four attacks and on the Golden Age of Jaeger combat. Of course, given that the Golden Age stock footage resembles scenes from ''Film/ItCameFromBeneathTheSea'' (attacking San Francisco, arguing about toxic blood disposal) you could argue that that movie has already been made.
** The cult of Kaiju worshipers, who could have made very good secondary villains. Imagine an entire subplot following a different division of the Jaeger program dedicated to stopping terrorist members of the Kaiju cult from attacking Shatterdomes from the inside. It's tangentially addressed, at least -- there seem to be a lot of troops around inside the Hong Kong Shatterdome carrying small arms that don't seem to do much on-screen, but considering that there is a definite Kaiju cult around, it's possible that's what they're there for.
YMMV.{{Ready Player One}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The book is famous for its heavy focus on properties from the 1980s and 1990s despite in taking place in 2044. It could've had commentary about effects of reboot culture, the current obsession with nostalgia and how future society is [[CreativeSterility still focused on the same entertainments from over half a century prior]], but instead it only talks how awesome old shows and movies are. It also could have talked about the shallow nature of nostalgia, that the only reason old properties remain popular in 2044 isn't because people naturally like it but because its the key to winning Halliday's fortune and control of the OASIS.
YMMV.{{Resident Evil 2}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: With an outbreak of the T-Virus infecting just about the entire population of Raccoon City, the game initially looks like it'll be about exploring a city overrun with zombies. Instead, the action swiftly moves to the police station, which looks more like a creepy art museum, and feels like a rehash of the Spencer Mansion from the previous game. It wouldn't be until ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3Nemesis'' before players got the opportunity to run around the city's zombie-filled streets in greater depth.
YMMV.{{Richie Rich}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The business school for rich kids only appears for [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZlL0LLfjKY one scene]] in the film. Overall, the only purpose the scene serves is to make it clear to the viewers that Richie is unable to properly hang out with other rich kids as friends after school. One does have to wonder though how different this movie would have turned out if the film focused more on the business school setting of Richie's life rather than going the "rich kid befriends normal kids" route.
YMMV.{{Sayonara Zetsubou-sensei}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Kaere's YamatoNadeshiko SplitPersonality is pretty much never used despite the comedic potential.
YMMV.{{Super Mario Odyssey}}
** [[spoiler:Peach denying the chance to marry Mario, as this could have been an opportunity to explore Mario and Peach's relationship past it being simply the [[ImpliedLoveInterest implied romance]] it's always been.]]
YMMV.{{The Legend of Korra}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Fans generally agree that keeping the Fire Nation OutOfFocus in ''Korra'', after a whole [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender series]] of being the EvilEmpire, was a smart decision. Notably, none of the four main villains is a firebender. Otherwise, however, many fans argue that the OutOfFocus was so excessive it turned into a waste of potential. Korra sets foot on the Fire Nation only ''once'' during the entire series, that is at the island of the Fire Sages. Zuko is the former member of the Gaang still alive who gets the least screen time. His daughter Izumi is the new Fire Lord but talks only ''once'' to express her refusal to mobilize her armies in a preemptive attack. General Iroh II, Izumi's son, gets some screen time as leading TheCavalry on two occasions, but he isn't really fleshed out as a character. Even worse, none of them appears on screen at the same time (except a scene where Zuko and Izumi are sitting together as background characters and don't talk). It's ''implied'' that the Fire Nation reformed to a peaceful and isolationist country, or that Zuko overgrew his trauma caused by [[AbusiveParents Ozai]] and became a good father, but the series doesn't really ''show'' how exactly the CharacterDevelopment of the Fire Nation and its inhabitants went.
** One interesting bit of lore that was never developed is the implication that as nations become more industrial and more distant from nature, the birth rate of benders drops. This was shown in the Original Series with the Fire Nation having the lowest ratio of benders of the Four Nations, while the deeply spiritual Air Nomads were all airbenders. This could've been a source of conflict for characters like Tenzin, the White Lotus, Unalaq, or even the Red Lotus that modernization and mechanization of the Physical World were robbing it of its connection to the Spirit World.
** Some people have pointed out one idea that was underdeveloped was that Republic City is essentially the architectural equivalent of the Avatar--just as the Avatar is the Four Nations distilled into one person, the city performs the same function just on a larger scale. While there is division within the city as can be expected in any place where large groups of people live, the citizens of Republic City all chose to live there, and proudly continue to do so. Making the city a Melting Pot of cultures a proper plot point could've been used to make statements about assimilation and diaspora. It could've also been used to cast Korra as a kind of {{Superhero}} who must constantly protect Republic City--and what it stands for--from ever-constant calamities.
YMMV.{{The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot:
** While it's understandable that Ganon would be too far gone from humanity to be any more than a GenericDoomsdayVillain, his backstory doesn't go anywhere beyond mentioning that he's a continuously reincarnating AncientEvil. There's absolutely no explanation as to how Ganondorf degenerated into a smoky mass of evil energy, and [[spoiler:the resemblance of Ganon's cyborg form to Ganondorf has no impact on the story nor is touched upon]].
** Despite the game offering several monster masks at Kilton's shop that make the corresponding enemies not notice you and each Hyrule culture and faction having a signature outfit, Sheikah included, the game does not have any kind of Yiga outfit that can be found, in their hideout or otherwise. In addition to being a visually appealing outfit option, it would be nice to have another stealth outfit that had a Yiga-proof effect, which could either make the hideout segment of the DLC easier or just keep Yiga from spawning on the overworld and prevent disguised Yiga assassins from attacking you. Besides, it'd be pretty funny for the Yiga to be so secretive that they don't even know each other's identities, and that's why they buy costumed Link being a member.
** The Champions' Ballad DLC seemed determined to make bosses repeatable content within the player's save file, finding a way to allow Link to rematch the Blight Ganons and making the new boss at the end available for rematches as well. Doing so not only allows the player to fight them again for fun and challenge, but also to get another chance to take Compendium photos of them. It's a nice fix... but they didn't invent a way to rematch Master Kohga, despite one trial taking you back to the Yiga hideout. As it is, Kohga is now the only boss who cannot be rematched or photographed after the initial fight, and since the DLC otherwise seemed determined to correct this problem, it stands out more that they still left one boss as a one-time thing.
** The ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' sidequest has very little to do with the game that it was meant to advertise, with the only real ties being Rex's Salvager Set as a reward (which is [[PromotionalPowerlessPieceOfGarbage actually very weak]]) and its very loose ties to salvaging as seen in ''[=XC2=]''. As such, the quest doesn't do much to make the game seem attractive to the uninitiated. It could have easily been an opportunity for more {{Mythology Gag}}s to give new players a better "feel" for ''[=XC2=]'' and advertise it more effectively, such as providing Pyra's Aegis Sword as a reward along with the Salvager Set, or cameo appearances from various characters and enemies (for example, having [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere a random Nopon]] or even Azurda as the quest-giver).
YMMV.{{The Nanny}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Given how the show ends as [[spoiler:Niles and C.C. get married and C.C. finds out that she's expecting their baby]], it probably would've made more sense to make [[spoiler:Niles and C.C. an expectant couple]] both as a way to write Creator/LaurenLane's pregnancy into season 5 and as a way to show Niles and C.C. relationship as parents with them possibly falling in love later. This, in turn, could also have been used to spur Fran and Maxwell into acknowledging their feelings for one another and officially become a couple.
YMMV.{{Third Rock from the Sun}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: In Season 1, the Solomons discover that their last name means that they can easily pass for a Jewish family. They never wind up committing to Jewish culture, however, and they abandon it by Season 2, beginning to celebrate Christmas.
YMMV.{{Totally Spies}}
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot
** In "Totally Busted!", we learn about the spy gene, meaning the girls' parents used to be spies. It would've been the perfect opportunity to explore the mothers' past as spies; doing so would have given them a reason to put an end to the girls' spy careers as well as some much-needed CharacterDevelopment throughout the course of the special.
*** Hell, we barely get to see the spies' families. If the show devoted more time to showing and fleshing them out, "Totally Busted!" wouldn't have been needlessly forced and mean-spirited.
!!!I can't believe the writers completely disregard everything that was already set up in the trailer: 2/357 (0.6%)
NeverTrustATrailer.LiveActionFilms
** [Film/{{Inglourious Basterds}}] A ''much'' bigger example is how the trailer makes the film out to be a World War II-themed spaghetti western following a [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits a ragtag bunch of Jewish-American soldiers led by a loose-cannon hillbilly]] on a mission to assassinate Hitler. [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot You may be somewhat disappointed to find that the film is actually]] a very character and dialogue driven cat-and-mouse game between a [[BestServedCold vengeful]] French-Jewish woman and an AffablyEvil MagnificentBastard Waffen SS guy, with the crazy US soldiers in the back as a comic relief B-plot and the action sequences both few and far between and very short.
* ''Film/SilentHillRevelation3D''. The trailer has many misleading bits, including the implication that the Seal of Metatron causes reality shifts, the careful editing to make Pyramid Head look like a threat (it's not a spoiler to point out he's an ally of the protagonist in this film), and a trailer-exclusive line where Dahlia tells Heather "You were chosen to destroy the demon," which is not the plot of the movie - though [[VoodooShark the confusion]] [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot is understandable]].
!!!Poor examples that need elaboration: 1/357 (0.3%)
From YMMV.{{Malcolm in the Middle}}
[[quoteblock]]
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: Having an episode introducing Piama in some capacity would've gone over well (while still maintaining a surprise with them being married), given how she suddenly appeared out of nowhere and was already married to Francis.
[[/quoteblock]]
When I first saw it, I was sure I'd missed an episode. I felt the same when I rewatched it, but it turns out that this really was Piama's first appearance. Looking back on it, however, I'm pretty sure this was completely intentional. Piama's very first appearance is when Francis comes home for Hal's birthday, and surprises everybody by announcing he's been married for an entire month. The family responds with a resounding "What the heck?!"
And the thing is, this is also exactly how the audience reacts. Our introduction to Piama is precisely the same as how the family reacts to her. So yeah, this was an {{intended audience reaction}}.
