Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Main / BackForTheFinale

Go To

1%%
2%%
3%%
4%% Image removed per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1608192521052991900
5%% Due to the nature of this trope, finding a proper image will be very tricky.
6%% DO NOT add an image to this page without discussing it in Image Pickin' first.
7%%
8%%
9->''"Ha ha ha! Final episode stunt casting!"''
10-->-- '''Phil Ken Sebben''', ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw''
11
12When a character from a serial work who hasn't appeared for some time returns for the GrandFinale.
13
14Writers want to end on a high note, and to really make that GrandFinale impactful, it helps to make it encapsulate all the best parts of their work. So it's only natural that the finales bring back all types of character, minor or major, for the sake of a [[ContinuityNod rewarding viewers for keeping up with the continuity]], [[BrickJoke paying off a joke set up long ago]], or [[WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue show what those characters have done with their lives]].
15
16In more dramatic works, this can often overlap with BackForTheDead, since if it's the last time we're ever going to see these characters, the writer has no reason to keep them alive, so [[SecondLawOfMetafictionalThermodynamics Metafictional Thermodynamics]] tell us the writer will surely kill them.
17
18Often a SubTrope of TheBusCameBack, where a character returns to the show after there was a reason given for their absence.
19
20Not to be confused with LastEpisodeNewCharacter, where character appears for the first time in the finale. When ''everybody'' comes back, it's a ContinuityCavalcade. Can overlap with ChekhovsGunman, if the returning character previously had a very minor role in the plot but ends up playing a large part in the climax of the story, EleventhHourRanger, if they join the main ensemble right before the finale, or ClimacticBattleResurrection, if they not only return to the story, but also return to life.
21
22!!As this is an {{Ending Trope|s}}, [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff unmarked spoilers abound]]. [[Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned Beware]].
23----
24!!Example subpages:
25
26[[index]]
27* BackForTheFinale/LiveActionTV
28[[/index]]
29
30!!Other examples:
31
32[[foldercontrol]]
33
34[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
35* In the last few chapters of ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' [[spoiler:Chao Lingshen returns from the future]].
36* ''Anime/GreatMazinger'': Nearly all ''Anime/MazingerZ'' characters were PutOnABus in the end of the last episode of the series. However, three of them -- TheHero Kouji Kabuto, ActionGirl Sayaka Yumi and TheProfessor Yumi -- returned during the final arc of the sequel to help to take down the Mykene Empire.
37* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'':
38** Many of [[TheHero Ash's]] pre-Sinnoh Pokémon show up for the Sinnoh League, [[spoiler:including his newly-evolved Quilava.]] Gliscor also returns to the main team after spending some time away training.
39** Earlier, Ash calling upon his original Pokémon team (apart from Pikachu, Butterfree and Pidgeot[[note]]Pikachu was right there from the start, while [[PutOnABus the other two were released in the original series and never mentioned again]][[/note]]) for the ''Battle Frontier'' finale.
40** During the Kalos League, Ash calls back his Goodra to have his full Kalos team.
41** After spending a good amount of time in Ultra Space during ''Sun and Moon'', Ash's Poipole returns as a Naganadel during the last stretch of the Alola League ready to fight off [[spoiler:one of the escaped Guzzlord]] and becoming Ash's sixth teammate for [[spoiler:his exhibition battle against Prof. Kukui]].
42** At some point in the World Coronation Series in ''Journeys'', all of Ash's major companions made at least a cameo appearance.
43** During Ash's final major battle in ''Journeys'', [[spoiler:''all'' of the Pokémon who traveled with Ash appear in a vision to cheer for Pikachu, including released Pokémon[[note]]Butterfree, Pidgeot, Lapras, Goodra, Greninja and Naganadel[[/note]], Pokémon they haven't seen for ages[[note]]Squirtle and Primeape[[/note]], Pokémon Ash traded away[[note]]Ambipom[[/note]], and even Pokémon that weren't caught[[note]]Larvitar and Solgaleo[[/note]]. The only major exceptions were the Haunter that stayed with Sabrina, and the Beedrill he caught for Casey]].
44** In their final major appearance following Ash, Team Rocket are reunited with [[spoiler: all of their Pokemon stationed at Team Rocket HQ. This results in the first time either Jessie or James have a full team of their own six Pokemon, and their most successful scheme to capture Pikachu, only being foiled by [[DidntSeeThatComing an unknown Latias]]]].
45** By the GrandFinale of Ash's journey in ''To be a Pokémon Master'', [[spoiler: all of Ash's released Pokemon except Primeape return, with the very last episode featuring the return of Pidgeot]]. Additionally, Misty, Brock, Cilan, and Gary all reunite with Ash, with the former two traveling with him for most of the miniseries, marking the first time since Johto that they have been the main team together.
46* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
47** During the final chapters of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', virtually ''every single character'' who ever appeared in the entire series is shown giving Goku their energy for the final [[CombinedEnergyAttack Genkidama]]. Except Lunch, because Akira Toriyama had replaced her with No. 17 in the last second. The anime rectifies this by giving Lunch a cameo.
48** In the finale of ''Anime/DragonBallGT'', everyone in the ''universe'' contributed to the [[CombinedEnergyAttack Genkidama]].
49* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' plays with it - [[spoiler:Kamina comes BackFromTheDead]] late into the series to give some encouraging words to Simon, but he doesn't stick around after he leaves the Multi-Dimensional Labyrinth. However, in TheMovie, he's reincarnated in the form of the team's ultimate mecha, the Super Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.
50* ''Manga/HoshinEngi'': In the final battle, Genshi Tenson does a ritual to open up the Hounshindai and release all of the souls of the characters who were sent there [[GondorCallsForAid to lend their soul energy]] to Taikobo[[spoiler:/Fukki]] and confront [[spoiler:Joka.]]
51* ''Manga/TheDisastrousLifeOfSaikiK'' takes it to a [[ContinuityCavalcade ridiculous]] degree in the second season finale. Many minor and oneshot characters (such as the baseball team, Kaidou's mother and siblings, the kid who lost his prized signed baseball, etc.) show up throughout the episode (including characters whose [[AdaptedOut stories weren't adapted]]). Saiki hangs a lampshade on it.
52* Fran's dream in the final chapter of ''Manga/FrankenFran'' has every single character (even the whale girl and the Flying Spaghetti Monster) attending a party.
53* The final chapter of ''Manga/{{Is}}'' has Itsuki appear, who left [[PutOnABus for America]] around the series' first-third climax, via a video message she recorded for Ichitaka.
54* The final episode of the ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'' anime has all the characters at one of the main characters' concerts. While looking around with his SeeThruSpecs, Geo sees all of the [=FMians=] from the first season of the show in the background, watching along with their former hosts. This would make much more sense if ''they weren't all dead, already.''
55** Even more mind-boggling is that one of the characters, a GHOST ([[EpilepticTrees who may or may not have been reanimated by one of the [=FM-ians=] cross-fusing with his corpse]], only to plummet to the bottom of the sea), appears. This is so weird because the only appearance the character actually makes prior to this is actually that same [=FM-ian=] in disguise. In short, the character ''comes out of nowhere.''
56* Yugi (from ''Anime/YuGiOh Duel Monsters'') shows up to play Judai for the last duel of ''Anime/YuGiOhGX''.
57** For that matter, in the original manga, Kaiba, who'd been written out after Battle City, returned for a cameo in the final chapter.
58* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' Part 2 has Speedwagon (who was recovering after his unfortunate run-in with ThoseWackyNazis), Smokey Brown (who was caring for Joseph Joestar's grandmother while he was away), and Stroheim (who got badly damaged during an earlier fight with Kars) appear to help Joseph fend off an army of vampires while he fights [[BigBad Kars]].
59** In the final episode of ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable'', the artists behind ''every single OP in the entire franchise'' all return for a special version of ''Diamond Is Unbreakable'''s final OP. Additionally, we're given anime-only scenes of the various characters going about their lives in Morioh, one last time.
60* ''Manga/{{Toriko}}'': Just about every character attend Toriko and Rin's wedding in the penultimate chapter.
61* Toward the end of ''Anime/CowboyBebop'', Faye sees one of the hosts of the recurring ShowWithinAShow ''Big Shot'' (which had announced its cancellation in an earlier episode) in an airport.
62* Kaiba shows up at the last page of the ''Manga/YuGiOh'' manga, after he had not appeared since the end of the Battle City arc.
63* The human cast of ''Anime/TransformersArmada'' appeared in the last episode of ''Anime/TransformersCybertron''...
64* ''Literature/{{Slayers}} Next'' ends with, among other things, the wedding of Martina and Zangulus. Vrumugun, one of a set of sorcerer copies who aided Zangulus in battle in the original series, can be seen in the audience. Without a gem on his forehead, suggesting that he may be the original.
65* The final episode of ''Anime/PrincessTutu'' features several cameos from some of the one-shot character--mostly as hapless victims for the Raven.
66* ''Manga/RaveMaster'': Almost all of the allies the Rave Warriors made along the way come back to aid them on the final battle.
67* ''Manga/BlackButler'': After the battle of London is over: Prince Soma, Agni and the cook who accidentally poisoned people with Kali Mah, all return to hand out Curry to the survivors.
68* In the final episode of ''Anime/JungleKingTarChan'', the entire Corgan family shows up for Tar-chan's wedding as well as Zhou, Renhou, Li Gong, Blue Clan, Helen and Alice. Impressive, considering Pedro had only a day or two to send out invitations.
69* Kuwabara returns for the final episode of ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'' after being written out early on in the final arc.
70* Almost every ally and former bad guy in ''Anime/AkazukinChacha'' showed up at Seravy and Dorothy's wedding. The only one who didn’t was the main villain, Daimao, but that’s to be expected.
71* In ''Manga/Brave10'', [[TheDragon Hanzo]] vanishes and is practically never mentioned after Kamanosuke joins, but he's back once [[spoiler:Anastasia betrays the team]]. It turns out HesJustHiding.
72* ''Manga/UshioAndTora'': Pretty much every single ally and neutral character that Ushio and Tora met throughout their adventures and is still alive ends up helping in the final war against Hakumen. [[spoiler:Then Saya invokes BackupfromOtherworld and invokes pretty much all the ''dead'' allies and neutral characters (and even a few ex-villains) that Ushio and Tora met or avenged throughout their adventures]].
73* The [[GrandFinale Silver Soul Arc]] of ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'' involves the return of all of Edo residents in defending Earth from the Liberation Army and Utsuro, and among those include Kyuubei and the rest of the Yagyuu Clan, Sacchan and Zenzou, The Shinsengumi after the absence following Farewell Shinsengumi Arc along with Matsudaira, [[spoiler:Gintoki's robot-double Kintoki, Pirako and Jirocho, Onmyoji and Shikigami, Hedoro, and even the Miko Sisters.]] Even Prince Hata and Jii makes a return after a long absence in the series apart from the anime.
74* ''Anime/LastPeriod'''s final episode has all of the five-stars summoned by Wiseman and all of the one-stars summoned by Haru return to help the heroes in the final battle.
75* ''Anime/ArabianNightsAdventuresOfSinbad'': Many past characters make a surprise comeback in the final episode to help Sinbad track down his long-time enemy.
76* Episode 50 of ''GO-GO Anime/{{Tamagotchi}}!'' (episode 271 of the series overall), while it only features the characters as brief cameos, has a bunch of previously-seen characters looking on as [[spoiler:the Tama-Friends are cheering up Tamagotchi Planet to stop it from crying and end the Tamagottsun]]. Mametchi's mentor Ikaritchi from ''Yume Kira Dream'' and Kizunatchi and Hatokamitchi from the final episodes of the original installment are just two examples of these cameos.
77* ''Manga/FairyTail'': Many old allies of the Fairy Tail guild make their return during the war against the Alvarez Empire, [[spoiler:with a couple of cameos all over Fiore as their magic is brought together to defeat Acnologia]]. Taken even further in the anime, where many anime-original characters appear as additional cameos [[spoiler:during said sequence]].
78* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'' has Annie Leonhart AKA the Female Titan, encases herself in a crystal prison and remain there for the rest of the series. [[spoiler: Until Eren commences the Rumbling and destroys the walls, in turn destroying her crystal. Allowing Annie to participate in the series' final arc.]]
79* The 139th episode of ''Anime/KamisamaMinaraiHimitsuNoCocotama'', which was the last episode aside from eight three-minute shorts that served to set up the SequelSeries ''Anime/KiraKiraHappyHirakeCocotama'', brought back pretty much every side character in the series for at least a brief cameo.
80* ''Manga/BakiTheGrappler'': The childhood arc ends with every single of [[DefeatMeansFriendship Baki's previous opponents]] coming back to cheer on him during his fight with Yuujiro. It is also given a dark turn: [[spoiler:after wiping the floor with Baki and killing Baki's mother, Yuujiro proceeds to beat the shit out of the assembled onlookers as well, apparently just for the hell of it.]]
81* ''Manga/GTOTheEarlyYears'': Nearly every villain, rival, and friend the Oni-Baku have encountered returns to see their climactic final battle, or tells the camera about them in the final chapter.
82* ''Manga/ShamanKing'': in the penultimate chapter of the extended ending, while the heroes are fighting against [[PhysicalGod Hao]] inside the Great Spirit, almost every single ally, enemy and secondary character (including [[spoiler: Ohachiyo and Hao's mother]]) shows up aboard a spiritual train to save Yoh and friends. This proves essential to Hao's defeat, as [[spoiler: after witnessing their arrival [[MeaninglessVillainVictory he loses his will to destroy humanity]]]].
83[[/folder]]
84
85[[folder:Audio Plays]]
86* ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'' features the return of the Valeyard in the Sixth Doctor's final set of stories, given the umbrella title of [[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWhoSpecialTheLastAdventure "The Last Adventure"]].
87[[/folder]]
88
89[[folder:Comic Books]]
90* ''ComicBook/GlobalFrequency'' concerns a trouble-shooting organization with agents worldwide, and for most of its run each issue features new characters in a new place, with the organization's leader and its head of communications as the only recurring characters. The final issue features a planetary-scale threat, and agents from earlier issues are shown helping deal with it.
91* ''ComicBook/MilestoneForever'', a two-issue miniseries that served as a belated conclusion to the original Creator/MilestoneComics continuity, brings back some characters who hadn't appeared in a while, most notably Rift from the ''ComicBook/{{Worlds Collide|1994}}'' crossover event (who was forgotten after that event reached its conclusion) and ComicBook/{{Static}}'s enemy Hotstreak, who changes his codename to Firewheel and hadn't been seen since getting shot by Rick Stone in the "What Are Little Boys Mad Of?" arc.
92* The final issue of ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'' vol. 3 (fittingly enough, issue #100) has a large number of former Titans showing up for the GrandFinale battle against Superboy-Prime. A number of characters who'd been written out of the book such as ComicBook/BlueBeetle, Miss Martian, Aquagirl, Bombshell and Damian Wayne were among those who showed up for the battle.
93* Every season finale of ''ComicBook/TransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye'' brings back as many major and minor characters as possible, even if it's just for bit cameos. For instance, issue 50 goes out of it's way to give all the recurring characters brief appearances before the big showdown between the Lost Light crew and the DJD. This is done partly as a preventative measure, so that the comic could still end with a degree of closure/satisfaction if it didn't get picked up for more issues.
94* Taken to the highest possible extreme in ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'', where [[spoiler:Dream's funeral]] is attended by ''every single being that lives or has ever lived''. In practice this means almost every character to have played a role in the series, ''plus'' cameos by many members of the Franchise/DCUniverse, ''plus'' [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou the reader]].
95* The penultimate arc of ''ComicBook/RedSonja'': ''The Forgiving of Monsters'' has all of Sonja's allies from the previous dozen issues (the six artisans, Ayla and Nias, uncountable representatives of unnamed villages, and even [[spoiler:Annisia]]) show up at her sickbed.
96* ComicBook/UltimateMarvel:
97** ''ComicBook/{{Ultimatum}}'' was initially meant to end the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe, and follow it with a reboot. The story included the return of Ultimate Nick Fury.
98** Fury had also been absent in the aftermath of ''Cataclysm'', but returned for ComicBook/SecretWars2015 and ComicBook/UltimateEnd.
99[[/folder]]
100
101[[folder:Comic Strips]]
102* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': Calvin's babysitter Rosalyn returned for one final story arc three months before the strip ended after being absent for the second half of its life.
103[[/folder]]
104
105[[folder:Fan Works]]
106* ''Fanfic/{{Ancienverse}}'': Almost every character that was in ''Teamwork and Turbulence'' comes back once more in ''Tribulations'' for the final battle.
107* ''Fanfic/DanganronpaParadiseLost'': The final Class Trial of [[GrandFinale the final entry]] of the ''K.R.D. Chronicles'' SeriesFic sees the return of the protagonists of its prior two entries, [[Fanfic/DanganronpaMementoMori Kaori Hotaru]] and [[Fanfic/DanganronpaKommSusserTod Reiji Suzuki]], as they [[BigDamnHeroes burst in to help stop the mastermind]].
108* In ''Fanfic/PaperMarioX'', all of the old partners from the other ''Paper Mario X'' series return for Link and Zelda's wedding.
109* In ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' fanfic ''Fanfic/EverybodysGottaLeaveSometime'', Shermy, a character who was present in the early years of the strip but vanished after 1969, reappears to say his last goodbye to Charlie Brown, at the same time lamenting the fact that he'll never be featured in a canon story again.
110* ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionGenocide'': After being absent from the story proper, Toji Suzuhara returns for the epilogue.
111* In ''Fanfic/ZeldasHonor'', Ingo Gorman returns for the last chapter after being absent for the entirety of Act 3.
112* ''VideoGame/FridayNightFunkinCorruption'': In the final video for Week 7, Daddy Dearest faces off against not only Boyfriend, but also every character he had corrupted. Subverted when it turns out to [[SeriesFauxnale not actually be the finale]].
113* In ''Fanfic/SoLongFarewellAufWiedersehenADoh'', Hank Scorpio returns to take over the nuclear power plant.
114[[/folder]]
115
116[[folder:Films — Animated]]
117* Disney's ''WesternAnimation/AliceInWonderland'' features a climactic trial with characters from throughout the movie appear as witnesses at Alice's trial for [[FelonyMisdemeanor "making the Queen lose her temper"]]; this being Wonderland, of course, none of the testimonies are particularly helpful. The scene ends with all of these characters forming a huge mob and [[ChasedByAngryNatives chasing Alice out of Wonderland]].
118* ''Anime/PatlaborTheMovie'': Kanuka Clancy went back to the NYPD during the TimeSkip between the ''Franchise/{{Patlabor}}'' OVA and this film, but she returns at the start of the third act to help Special Vehicles deal with the villain's plot. She makes no appearances in the sequels.
119[[/folder]]
120
121[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
122* Just about every former teen character in the ''Film/AmericanPie'' movies returned in ''American Reunion''.
123* George (Jeffrey Weisman) and Lorraine [=McFly=] (Creator/LeaThompson), and Biff Tannen (Creator/ThomasFWilson), all return for one of the final scenes of ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII'', although Thompson and Wilson had played their characters' ancestors in 1885 for most of the film.
124* The Creator/AdamSandler comedy ''Film/BigDaddy'' ends with a celebration at a restaurant for Sonny Koufax's birthday party attended (or at least visited by) no fewer than nine of Sonny's friends and foes throughout the course of the movie; this includes a surprise final appearance by Vanessa and Sid, who have not appeared on screen for about an hour and have been barely even referred to in the film's dialogue since. There had also been a slightly earlier scene set in a courtroom featuring even more minor characters appearing as witnesses in Sonny's trial after he defrauds the New York social services department, with the prosecuting attorney [[LampshadeHanging pointing out]] that Sonny is "parading his buddies" through the courtroom instead of summoning credible witnesses.
125* Spoofed (and [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded by the creators in the DVD commentary]]) at the end of ''Film/BubbleBoy'' when almost every single human and animal character from the movie's entire running time gets shoehorned into the final scene, including a random vulture.
126* Fredericks from ''Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy'' fits the description. In [[Film/BatmanBegins the first movie]], he was a minor supporting character played by John Nolan (Creator/ChristopherNolan's uncle), notable for remarking that "The apple has fallen very far from the tree, Mr. Wayne." While he appeared in one of the viral "Gotham Tonight" videos, he was absent from [[Film/TheDarkKnight the second movie]]. He returns for [[Film/TheDarkKnightRises the final part of the trilogy]], though, and his role is a bit more pivotal than before.
127* Lampshaded in ''Film/FlagsOfOurFathers'', one of the generals complains about how everyone in the army wants to get to Tokyo for the "big finish".
128* ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3'': Yondu is seen in a vision by Kraglin, and Pete's grandfather appears at the end (reading a newspaper with a story about Creator/KevinBacon being [[Film/TheGuardiansOfTheGalaxyHolidaySpecial abducted by aliens]]), while Cosmo's poker game features the Broker (from the first film), Bzermikitokolok (from the Christmas Special) and ComicBook/HowardTheDuck. In addition, the Ravagers Stakar, Martinex, Krugarr and Mainframe return, and both Thor and Stan Lee are seen in the scrapbook photos over the end credits.
129* ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' did this with ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion''. The characters from the original film did appear in the original trilogy sequels (Malcolm in ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'' and Ellie and Alan in ''Film/JurassicParkIII'' )but had been absent in the second trilogy save Malcolm’s appearance in a few minutes of ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom''. And this was the first time since the beginning that they were all together again. Also Lewis Dodgson, who last appeared in the first film. Then there’s a dinosaur version in ''Dilophosaurus'' which didn’t appear onscreen after the first film except as a hologram in ''Film/JurassicWorld''. The Buck and Doe ''Tyrannosaurs'' from ''The Lost World'' also appear briefly.
130* ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'': Lawrence Gordon comes back for ''Film/Saw3D'', which was planned to be the series' original finale. Up until this point, he hasn't been seen since the original ''Film/SawI'', six movies ago.
131* The final battle of ''Film/SpyKids3DGameOver'' brings back virtually all the characters who appeared in the last two movies.
132* [[CreatorsPet Wesley Crusher]] reappears in ''Film/StarTrekNemesis''. Albeit only briefly, and only in the widescreen version. He was originally supposed to have a short scene with Picard and Dr. Crusher explaining how he's going to serve on a new ship (the Titan), but it was cut very early in the editing process. Creator/WilWheaton has the full explanation on his blog.
133* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Creator/BillyDeeWilliams and Creator/IanMcDiarmid return as Lando Calrissian and Palpatine/Darth Sidious, respectively, in ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', the final film of the Skywalker Saga.
134* ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' is full of this, as expected of the climax and ending to the Infinity Saga.
135** Time Travel allows the main characters to visit previous movies revisiting previously dead or absent characters including [[Film/TheAvengers2012 Loki]], [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier Brock Rumlow, Agent Sitwell, Alexander Pierce,]] [[Film/DoctorStrange2016 the Ancient One]], [[Film/{{Thor}} Frigga, Jane,]] [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger Peggy Carter, Howard Stark,]] and [[Series/AgentCarter Edwin Jarvis]].
136** The climatic final battle assembles almost every hero and ally the Avengers have ever made include the [[Film/DoctorStrange2016 Sorcerers]], [[Film/{{Thor}} Asgardians]], [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2 Ravagers]], and [[Film/BlackPanther2018 Wakandan warriors]], on top of individual superheroes.
137** Tony's funeral, in addition to his close friends and family and the other heroes who fought in the climax, also features Happy Hogan, Aunt May, Hank Pym, Janet Van Dyne, Thaddeus Ross, Maria Hill, Nick Fury, and even Harley from ''Film/IronMan3'' in attendance, most of whom hadn't appeared earlier in the film. Ned Leeds and Queen Ramonda also appear during a montage near the end of the film.
138[[/folder]]
139
140[[folder:Literature]]
141* ''Literature/AngelsOfMusic'' is a collection of novellas about a detective agency specialising in weird cases, with agents coming and going from story to story. In the final novella, written specially for the collection, the agency itself is under threat, and all the agents from the preceding stories return to help. The conspiracy threatening the agency also turns out to involve most of the surviving villains from the earlier stories.
142* ''Literature/AlexRider: Scorpia Rising'' sees the return of [[spoiler:Julius Grief, Alex's clone introduced in ''Point Blanc'']].
143* [[spoiler:Gally]] reappears in ''The Death Cure'', the final book of ''[[Literature/TheMazeRunner The Maze Runner Trilogy]]'', as part of the Right Arm.
144* ''Literature/HarryPotter'':
145** Near the end of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', many of Harry's allies gather at Hogwarts just before the final battle with Voldemort and the Death Eaters.
146** The whole book itself would qualify: it's easier to list the characters that ''don't'' come back to make an appearance in this book. [[spoiler: Even if they're dead.]]
147* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': In a morbid example, the Muttations sent to attack the last of the tributes in the final battle of the Games are made to resemble the tributes who had already fallen.
148* ''Literature/TheLastBattle'', the final book in the Narnia series, sees just about every character ever mentioned in the entire series showing up for the climax.
149* ''{{Literature/Discworld}}'' is so long that it essentially has three finale books tying up the various sub-series, and all three feature characters returning for one final appearance.
150** ''Literature/RaisingSteam'' is the big one for the Ankh-Morpork casts. Notable returnees include [[Literature/ThiefOfTime Lu-Tze]], who visits Ridcully for tea, and Queen Kelirehenna I of Sto Lat in her first appearance since ''{{Literature/Mort}}''.
151** ''[[Literature/TheScienceOfDiscworld Judgement Day]]'' wraps up ''Literature/TheScienceOfDiscworld'', with [[Literature/UnseenAcademicals the former Dean]] returning to help defend the universe he accidentally created, and later on a couple of BigDamnHeroes moments courtesy of [[Literature/CarpeJugulum the Quite Reverend Mightily Oats]] and [[spoiler:the Great God Om himself, manifesting in person for the first time since ''Literature/SmallGods'']].
152** And lastly, ''Literature/TheShepherdsCrown'' has almost every living witch (and several others) reacting to [[spoiler:the death of Granny Weatherwax]], most notably Agnes Nitt, who hadn't been seen since ''Literature/CarpeJugulum'', and later most of them return for the final showdown with the elves.
153* Rose appears in the first two chapters of ''Literature/TheMentalState''. In the second, she is viciously raped by street thugs and then horrified by the sight of her enraged boyfriend, Zack, stabbing several of them with a knife (one fatally). She runs away in terror and is not seen again until [[spoiler:Zack is released from prison in the final chapter. She has just about recovered from her ordeal, although she is a little quieter than she once was]].
154* ''Literature/WarriorCats'':
155** Stormfur and Brook appear in the last paragraph of ''Twilight'', just in time to be important characters again in ''Sunset'', the finale of ''The New Prophecy''.
156** For the then-GrandFinale of the series, ''The Last Hope'', the Erins brought back [[spoiler:most of the cast of the Original Series, along with several minor characters who hadn't appeared for a while, and a ton of other characters from the backstory of the series, all as BackupFromOtherworld.]]
157* ''Literature/UniversalMonsters'': All the previously captured monsters (Dracula, Larry Talbot's Wolf Man, Frankenstein's monster, Ardeth Bey and the Gill Man) are re-released in book 6. The book also features several other returning characters, including Angela Chavarria, her sister Devin, Deputy Chad Barnes, Wilma Winokea, Francisco "Trey" Trejo and Gayle Braddock.
158
159[[/folder]]
160
161[[folder:Music]]
162* In the PV for "master of the heavenly yard", the GrandFinale to ''Music/EvilliousChronicles'', [[CourtMage Elluka Clockworker]], who had up to this point been completely absent due to very complicated plot issues, makes a cameo as [[spoiler:one of Levia's incarnations]].
163* When Music/{{Sentenced}} played their final concert at the Club Teatria in their home-town Oulu in 2005 (which was later released as the GrandFinale live album ''Buried Alive''), Taneli Jarva, the original singer and bassist who had quit the band ten years prior, came to the stage to sing five songs from the bands' early years.
164-->'''Taneli''': Good evening! So nice to see an old friend die!
165[[/folder]]
166
167[[folder:Video Games]]
168* A villainous example in ''VideoGame/AbomiNation'': All of the previous bosses you defeated return for a BossRush during the FinalBattle, as do [[spoiler:every one of your teammates who fell in battle]]. Also an example of [[spoiler:BackForTheDead, as Furcifume [[YouHaveFailedMe kills them all after you beat them again]].]]
169* ''VideoGame/ArabianMagic'' have you defeating it's first three bosses, where they acknowledge your powers and agrees to help you fight Baruantess, the BigBad. Come by the final stage, they do follow their promise and appears one at a time to your aid.
170* ''VideoGame/EXTRAPOWERAttackOfDarkforce'': At the climax of the game, as the heroes desperately need just a little more power to teleport to the enemy mothership, Liu Jei of the Kanedama-kan appears with an army of warrior monks to give them the final boost they need! Also counts as BackFromTheDead as Liu Jei and the Kanedama-kan were last seen being destroyed, with Liu himself torn in half. [[spoiler:Good thing about a secretive organization of spiritualists is having the sheer force of will to sustain yourself as a zombie long enough to help out.]]
171* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
172** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyII'': All the ghosts of the dead characters appear briefly at the end in the castle. In the bonus "Dawn of Souls" mode in the GBA and PSP rereleases, you control all the dead people on a quest through the afterlife to defeat the game's BigBad one last time.
173** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'': Every party member and ally you've met in the game reappears to wish you well [[spoiler:and heal you from Zeromus's TotalPartyKill attack]]. Even the dead ones.
174** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'':
175*** The GrandFinale of ''A Realm Reborn's'' quest chains featuring CluelessDetective Hildibrand features everyone you met during the prior quests appearing to assist in some form. From the initial quests comes Humphrey, the man who posed as a Warrior of Light, who has since joined the Sultansworn and introduces you to Phillice. Collector Durilda, thankful for helping mend her relationship with her daughter during the Treaty-Blade segment, gets a reluctant witness to give you information. Gladiator Avila from the Coliseum segment and Arabella, the lapis maiden of Costa del Sol, help you procure ingredients needed to save Hildibrand after he's been poisoned, only for it to turn out that his time among the zombies at the very start of the quest chain gave him AcquiredPoisonImmunity. Last, but not least, Hildibrand's BigDamnHeroes moment in the climax, in which he commands the loyalty of the zombies otherwise under the main antagonist's control, is backdropped by light shining from the bald head of old man Eleazar, just as it did at the end of the first questline.
176*** Happens in the Main Scenario Quest for ''Endwalker''. To gather materials for Sharlayan's starship to reach the BigBad of the decade-long storyline, Meteion, Alphinaud calls in every favor from every ally from every corner of the world. An incomplete list of allies include the C-list Scions from Mor Dhona, Garlond Ironworks, the Redbill Sky Pirates, the Majestic Theater Company, Hancock and the expedition crew from Eureka, and the tribes. Later, to power said starship with the aether needed to reach Meteion's nest, the Loporrits summon the tribes' respective primals, free from Ascian influence. Lastly, after previously having been scolded by Alisaie over his obsession of a rematch with the Warrior of Light, an enlightened Zenos strikes a deal with Krile to absorb the remains of the Mothercrystal to reassume Shinryu's form and aid the Warrior against the Endsinger, so that he may have his long-awaited rematch.
177* Larax, the player hero of ''VideoGame/{{Imperivm}}'', returns at the third installment of the saga (the last one in terms of gameplay) to assist Viriathus in his fight against the city of Saetabis. Subverted, however, in that history-wise, ''III'' happens a century before the first game, meaning they are not the same character.
178* ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters2002'' was the DreamMatchGame serving as the wrap-up for the NESTS Chronicles story arc of [[Franchise/TheKingOfFighters the franchise]]. To coincide with the return back to the Orochi Saga's trademark "3-on-3" format, several characters that had never been playable in any of the NESTS Chronicles trilogy (more specifically, [[VideoGame/FatalFury Geese Howard, Billy Kane and Ryuji Yamazaki]], [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Goenitz, Yashiro, Chris and Shermie]], [[LovelyAngels Mature and Vice]], and perhaps the biggest name of all, [[SNKBoss Rugal Bernstein]]) all returned to the roster of ''2002''.
179* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'':
180** Donald and Goofy have steadily had smaller and smaller roles as the series has gone on, to the point that ''3D'' lampshades it with Goofy asking "Do ya think we'll ever get to do something important?" In ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'' they once again join Sora as the main party members; the last time the three of them worked together was ''II'' in 2006.
181** Master Eraqus appears in the epilogue of ''III''. Aside from a younger version of him commenting in the GreekChorus, this is the first time he shows up in any capacity since [[spoiler:his death in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'']]. Naminé also cameos in the CG ending, though at least she makes a non-physical appearance earlier in the game.
182* ''VideoGame/LANoire'': Rusty Galloway, one of Cole's partners from way earlier in game, shows up briefly in the final case.
183* ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' lets you re-recruit Liara and Ashley / Kaidan, who were in the second game but either had their own stuff to do or refused to work with Cerberus. Kirrahe, Dr Michel, Jenna (the undercover C-Sec agent), Engineer Adams, Balak, the Rachni Queen and other [=NPCs=] also make reappearances (assuming [[AnyoneCanDie they're still alive]]).
184* The last Game Boy ''[[VideoGame/MegaManClassic Mega Man]]'' game, ''VideoGame/MegaManV'', had the original bosses from the previous four games (Enker, Quint, Punk and Ballade) return as bosses in the final level.
185* Almost everyone who hasn't died in one of the previous games, [[spoiler:and several who have,]] return for the GrandFinale of the ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series: ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots''.
186** This aspect of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' deserves a specific mention: [[spoiler: Big Boss]] is back. The credits begin to roll on a decidedly [[DownerEnding somber note]] and then they pause on [[spoiler:"Richard Doyle - Big Boss".]] The player is given about three seconds to think, "Wait, I don't recall seeing him in -" and then bam, [[spoiler: he's standing in the graveyard with Snake.]] He comes back for the finale of the finale and [[spoiler:turns Snake's specific downer ending into more of a [[BittersweetEnding bittersweet one]]]].
187** There is only one notable surviving character from the previous ''MGS'' games who never shows up: [[spoiler:Nastasha Romanenko]].
188* Many characters from previous ''VideoGame/QuestForGlory'' games return for the finale ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryV'' these include, but are not limited to:
189** [[spoiler:Bruno]], Erasmus, Fenris, Sam[[note]]the beggar in part 1, the banker in part 5.[[/note]] Elsa and Toro from ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryI''.
190** Nadar, Budar, Senor Ferrari, Ugarte and Julannar from ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryII''.
191** Rakeesh[[note]]who was also in the second game[[/note]] and Salim from ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryIII''. Rakeesh's son, who was first mentioned there, makes his first appearance in ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryV''.
192** [[spoiler:Katrina]] and [[spoiler:Erana]] from ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryIV''. Both are seen, but only one can be brought BackFromTheDead.
193** Also, certain items lost in earlier games return, such as the Katta's Pin you get in the middle of ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryII'' and Soul Forge, the [[InfinityPlusOneSword Paladin's Sword from the 2nd and third game]]. If you found a replacement for Soul Forge in the 4th game, Rakeesh will keep it.
194* ''VideoGame/TheReconstruction'' has this, though it's done in a rather depressing manner. [[spoiler:Yacatec]] appears in the final dungeon as [[LaserGuidedKarma a slave]], and helps you get through said dungeon after you free him.
195* Telltale's ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'':
196** "Bright Side of the Moon", the finale of season 1, features returning characters from every earlier episode.
197** "What's New Beelzebub", the finale of season 2, features the return of everybody from the last two seasons.
198** "The City that Dares Not Sleep", the season 3 finale, features the season's only appearance of [[spoiler:Sybil, Abe, Mr. Featherly, and Satan.]]
199* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' has [[spoiler:Joshua coming back after having ''[[BackFromTheDead been dead]]''. He's ''God'']], so it's okay.
200** As well as [[spoiler:Shiki]] for the final battle.
201** [[VideoGame/NeoTheWorldEndsWithYou The sequel]] amps this up further. [[spoiler:With the exception of Beat, who's a main party member starting from week 2, the entire main cast from the first game returns for the finale. Neku joins the party as an EleventhHourRanger while Rhyme, Shiki, and Joshua play key roles on the final day.]]
202* ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' sees many characters from past ''Saints Row'' games return, including Benjamin King, former leader of the Vice Kings from ''VideoGame/SaintsRow 1'', the ''VideoGame/SaintsRow2'' version of Shaundi, Creator/KeithDavid (the voice of Julius Little, who was last seen in ''VideoGame/SaintsRow2''), and various others. In addition, Dane Vogel makes a return appearance in the standalone expansion ''VideoGame/SaintsRowGatOutOfHell'' that serves as the GrandFinale to the original timeline.
203* All of the deceased {{Player Character}}s in ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' make a return in the FinalBoss fight, each one possessing Alex so that they can get a hit in on Augustus' ArtifactOfDoom (while Edward works to seal the Ancient that Alex summoned to fight Augustus' Ancient so it can't run amok afterwards.)
204* At the end of ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIVApocalypse'' on the Bonds route, [[spoiler:Jonathan and Walter]], who were both killed off late in ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'', come BackFromTheDead to help you out against the FinalBoss.
205* Every single party member and completed Social Link cheers the main character on before and during the TrueFinalBoss battle of ''VideoGame/Persona3'' and ''[[VideoGame/Persona4 4]]''. [[spoiler: Even the dead ones like Shinjiro and Akinari.]]
206* In ''VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga 2'', every character except [[spoiler:Fred]] ends up dead, only to reunite in the afterlife in a last-ditch effort to save the world. These characters include [[spoiler:Jinana and Lupa]] from the first game. However, [[spoiler:Harley, Bat, Mick, Varin/Beck, and Meganada]] also show up, but as bosses. And even after all that, [[spoiler:Fred]] shows up one last time in the epilogue. By the end, the only character to not get closure is [[spoiler:Tribhvana: Earth]], who is implied by his last appearance to live bearing his karma.
207* In ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', [[spoiler:Porky Minch]] drops out of the plot after the Eagleland arc, only leaving behind a few taunts to the party showing that he's one step ahead [[spoiler:until his helicopter crashes in a swamp]]. Sure enough, he comes back at the very end of the game [[spoiler:as one of the Final Bosses and quite possibly the true Big Bad]]. And after that, [[spoiler:he's revealed at the end of ''Mother 3'' to be that game's Big Bad and Final Boss, as well]].
208* ''VideoGame/SpyroYearOfTheDragon'' is the end of the original Creator/InsomniacGames ''Franchise/SpyroTheDragon'' trilogy. Elora from the previous game was absent the entire game except for in the final cutscenes.
209* ''VideoGame/TheBattleForMiddleEarth'', in the evil campaign, the nazgul on fellbeasts that helped you in some special missions through the campaign, come back in the last mission on Minas Tirith to be playable again.
210** The last mission of the good campaign, the black gate, give you the opportunity to play both as Rohan and Gondor, using all of their heroes. Unlike the books and the films, you can bring to the battle characters that should have been absent like Eowin, Faramir, [[SparedByTheAdaptation Boromir or Theoden]].
211** The final level of the evil campaign of the sequel, all hero units you've played through the campaign return to attack [[spoiler:Rivendel]]. The list included [[TheDragon The Mouth of Sauron]], some black riders, Shelob (who only appeared in the Black Forest mission), [[CanonForeigner Drogoth]] (who only appeared as an NPC on the Withered Heath mission), [[CanonForeigner Gorkil]] (absent in the previous three missions), as well as some fellbeast, the Witch King and eventually[[spoiler: [[BigBad Sauron]] himself]]. Tellingly, the level also features nearly all the good heroes left alive, including Elrond, the Fellowship, the Army of the Dead, Tom Bombadil, and the eagles.
212** Also applicable to the final mission of the good campaign where you have to attack [[spoiler:Dol Guldur]]. The mission starts with Elrond , who only appeared in the first mission. Eventually, the elven army of Arwen, Glorfindel and Glon, and the dwarf army of king Dain will reappear to help you as soon as the player activates two signal fires on the map.
213* In ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'', the game was largely disconnected from the first entry, with a few items and descriptions showing it to be the same world but not much in the way of returns. This was very much ''not'' the case for the series finale in ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'': you get your weapons upgraded by Andre of Astora, visit Anor Londo, find Dusk of Oolacile's clothes in a chest, get Solaire's armour from the trading crow, get tricked by Patches, fight Havel the Rock, dress up as Lautrec of Carim, be carried to and from places by Batwing Demons, kill Black and Silver Knights, run around a DLC Painted World that was originally based on Ariamis, fight demons in the ruins of the first game's Firelink Shrine in the DLC, and even build a full Knight Artorias cosplay - including his shield. Naturally, this being ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' most of those returns end badly; for example, the Darkmoon Knightess and Laddersmith Gilligan from ''II'' can be found lying dead, the mushroom people famous for their {{Megaton Punch}}es have been wiped out by the Abyss, and [[spoiler:Gwyndolin gets eaten by Aldrich]]. [[spoiler:Even the FinalBoss features returns of sorts: the Soul of Cinder's first phase includes a form that clearly uses the Wood Grain Ring from the first game, and its second phase is a souped-up, no-longer-parriable Gwyn, Lord of Cinder.]]
214* In ''VideoGame/SakuraWars4FallInLoveMaidens'', which serves as the final part of Ichiro Ogami's story arc, the Paris Combat Revue returns to help Ogami and the Imperial Combat Revue fight [[spoiler:Ōkubo Nagayasu and stop his rampage on Tokyo]].
215* Tian from ''VideoGame/UnboundSaga'' is introduced partway through as an AssistCharacter, before leaving. He then comes back in the last stage, just in time to help fight the FinalBoss.
216* In ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDead'', Lee returns briefly in Clementine's dream in Season 2 Episode 5 after she's shot, and once again in a dream sequence in Season 4 Episode 3, where Clementine seeks Lee's help before she attempts to rescue her friends who are being held captive by the Delta.
217* ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngelII'': Most of the Elsior's crew from the original ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngel'' trilogy remains unseen during ''Zettai Ryouiki no Tobira'' and ''Mugen Kairou no Kagi''. They all return for ''Eigou Kaiki no Toki'', and Kazuya can meet them during the free-roam segments in the second chapter.
218[[/folder]]
219
220[[folder:Visual Novels]]
221* Happens at the end of many ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' games:
222** The second has Lotta Hart, Will Powers and Miles Edgeworth (all gone since the previous game). Edgeworth is notorious because he was considered dead until the very last minute of the episode previous to the finale.
223** The third has Franziska von Karma and Miles Edgeworth (both gone since the previous game, though a younger Edgeworth appeared in a flashback).
224** The [[VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney fourth]] has Mike Meekins through a flashback case (gone since the very first game of the series).
225** The [[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies fifth]] has Pearl Fey and Miles Edgeworth, both gone since the third game. Technically Pearl reappears before the finale (in the DLC case "Turnabout Reclaimed", which happens midgame) but the DLC case is bonus content and was released after the main game.
226** The [[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneySpiritOfJustice sixth]] again has Pearl and Edgeworth turn up at the end for their one appearance in the main game (they also appear in DLC content).
227** ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth'' has Larry Butz (gone since the end of the third game).
228** In the credits montage for every game, each character talks to Phoenix/Apollo in turn. For example, Wendy Oldbag from the ''Phoenix Wright'' games 1 and 2 appears in a brief [[TheStinger stinger]] at the end of ''T&T''.
229* In ''VisualNovel/FleuretBlanc'', [[spoiler:Kant]] is PutOnABus early on, with implications that they have ties to the central mystery. They show up again on the final day [[spoiler:when Florentine infiltrates the Lounge, as, in a subversion, he never actually left but was in fact imprisoned]].
230* After being absent for most of ''VisualNovel/KokoroBakaMonogatari'', [[spoiler:Sensei]] returns at the end to tell the main characters about their new [[spoiler:mission]] depending on the route.
231[[/folder]]
232
233[[folder:Webcomics]]
234* ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'':
235** [[SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl Evan Edroch and Yuri Jahad]] for the first season finale.
236** Team Shibisu, Hansung Yu (the real one at least), and Kaiser for the second season finale.
237* In ''Webcomic/{{Wonderlab}}'', pretty much every Abnormality that was introduced throughout the series returns for the final arc, "A Party Everlasting", to wreak havoc on the now-defunct Branch O-5681 alongside the [[spoiler:Distorted Catt]].
238[[/folder]]
239
240[[folder:Web Original]]
241* [[spoiler:Cinema Snob]] is banished in part 4 of ''WebVideo/{{Kickassia}}'', but comes back two parts later to confront a defeated [[WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic Nostalgia Critic]].
242* In the finale of ''WebVideo/{{lonelygirl15}}'', Spencer shows up after over a season's absence to help Taylor.
243* ''Series/{{Noob}}'' bought Dark Avenger back in Season 5 finale to have fight with Sparadrap.
244* The final ''WebVideo/DontHugMeImScared'' short contains cameos from one-shot characters that contributed to the five prior lessons.
245* A variant occurred in ''Roleplay/TheMassiveMultiFandomRPG'' Season One, where the final boss assumed the appearance, in succession, of every single {{GMPC}} up to that point (and because the roleplay had quite a GM turnover, there were a lot of them.)
246* ''Podcast/TheAdventureZoneBalance'' had [[spoiler: almost every single living character return for the finale.]]
247* ''WebVideo/FuturoExPorta'': All 7 eliminated participants return in the finale, making brief comments and even participating in the first sketch as background characters. They're also all together when the winner is announced.
248[[/folder]]
249
250[[folder:Western Animation]]
251* ''WesternAnimation/{{Baymax}}'': Everybody Baymax helps throughout the series bands together in the season finale to look for Baymax after he goes missing.
252* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse'': In the final episode, Ben undergoes a ShapeshifterSwanSong that goes through every single alien he'd ever unlocked, allowing almost all of them to be shown off one last time. The exceptions were Jetray, Chamalien, Fasttrack, and Spitter, though there was a brief point in the sequence when Ben was offscreen but was still heard changing forms where he could have turned into them.
253* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987'':
254** The last episode of the first season of Duck Tales, had pratically everybody who appeared up to that point show up as guests at the Scrooge [=McDuck=] and Millionaira Vanderbucks wedding - such disparate persons as the members of the Explorers Club ("The Lost Crown Of Genghis Khan"), Launchpad's family ("Top Duck") and . Donald Duck made his last appearance with his cameo as Best Man. Even Scrooge's enemies like Flintheart Glomgold, Magica Despell and Ma Beagle and the Beagle Boys were on hand . . . albeit, in Ma Beagle's case, she and her boys and only come to rob the bank where the wedding was being held. And, of course, who could forget Glittering Goldie's surprise appearance...
255** To a much lesser extent, the "Golden Goose" two-parter GrandFinale. All the major characters of the first season of the show are on hand, including Scrooge's entire household, Launchpad and Gyro Gearloose.
256* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'':
257** The SeriesFauxnale episode "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueUnlimitedS2E13Epilogue Epilogue]]" [[FullyAbsorbedFinale serves as the finale to]] ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' and features the return of several characters from throughout the timeline of both Batmen: the fictional hero "The Grey Ghost", Andrea Beaumont/the Phantasm, Amanda Waller, the Royal Flush Gang, Inque, Shriek, Stalker, Terry's parents Warren and Mary, and Dana Tan.
258** Darkseid's return set up the two-part series finale "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueUnlimitedS3E12Alive Alive!]]"/"[[Recap/JusticeLeagueUnlimitedS3E13Destroyer Destroyer]]", which had Martian Manhunter's return in the final episode. Many more characters had cameos throughout the two-parter.
259* This happened in the last season of ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw''. After Stephen Colbert (who voiced Phil Ken Sebben and Reducto) left ''Harvey Birdman'' after ''Series/TheColbertReport'' started growing in popularity, Sebben was [[PutOnABus hit by a bus]] in one of the first episodes of the final season... only to spend most of the final episode driving said bus backwards to Sebben & Sebben.
260** Reducto was hit by a bus an episode after Phil. He... didn't make it.
261* In ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'''s first four season finales, all the eliminated contestants return, as well as any non-competing panelists. In ''Total Drama [[NewSeasonNewName All-Stars]]'', only four losers return; and in ''Total Drama Pahkitew Island'', only two losers return. Come ''Island (2023)'', everybody is back for the finale once again
262* Like its parent series, in the spin-off ''WesternAnimation/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace'', everybody comes back for the finale.
263* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' Many C-list characters or characters who had been written out are brought back for the GrandFinale, even if it's just to make a brief cameo at [[spoiler: Varrick and Zhu Li's]] wedding.
264* In ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' during Luann's wedding ceremony, characters that only appeared in one or two episodes throughout all the seasons showed up to attend. This would make a good example of the trope, except for Fox then gave them another season, and then cancelled them halfway through it, so they never got a chance to play this trope right.
265* The final episode of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'' has all of the Turtles' friends show up for [[RelationshipUpgrade Casey and April's wedding]]. They come in mighty handy when [[WeddingSmashers Cyber-Shredder decides to crash the party]].
266* Rita and Runt of ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'', who had disappeared after the show's second season, reappeared in the series' last new segment, "The Scoring Session" (albeit with Rita being silent), and in the movie ''WesternAnimation/WakkosWish''.
267* The final episode of ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' ends with the Xiaolin Dragons being surrounded by [[VillainTeamUp every single villain they faced in the entire show.]] This isn't explained, but no one cares.
268* ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'' has a number of characters (such as Jubilee, who had been PutOnABus in the previous season) show up in cameos during the GrandFinale.
269* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'':
270** The final episodes bring back virtually every villain and honorary world Titan for a gigantic brawl.
271** "Things Change", the very last episode, features a girl who may-or-may-not-be Terra. Beast Boy tries to jog her memory of her life as a Titan, but she insists that she just wants to be a normal kid and, eventually, that "things were never the way you remember". Oh, [[spoiler:and ''Slade'' makes his one and only season 5 appearance via one of his [[ActuallyADoombot Slade-bots]]]].
272* ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}'':
273** The episode, "Lawson and His Crew", which was intended to be the series finale (along with ''WesternAnimation/RecessSchoolsOut'') until the show was UnCancelled due to the success of the movie, featured almost every character who appeared in the series, even those who only appeared once.
274** For the 2003 DTV GrandFinale movie, ''WesternAnimation/RecessTakingTheFifthGrade'', Miss Grotke returns after having ChuckCunninghamSyndrome in the final season, as well as Principal Prickly, Butch, and Hustler Kid.
275* Several one-shot ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'' characters returned for the [[SavedFromDevelopmentHell revived]] GrandFinale known as ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnoldTheJungleMovie'' such as Pigeon Man and Stoop Kid.
276* Several ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'' characters invoked the trope in the finale: Shendu, Valmont, Finn, Ratso, Chow, Hak Foo and that's just counting the villains. Fortunately none of them was working for Drago in the episode.
277* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'': Kim's Nana and her Uncle Slim, Felix Renton, Zita Flores (Ron ex-girlfriend), and, unfortunately, Warmonga as villain appear in the final episode. All the villains appear in the epilogue, including Monkey Fist, who was turned to stone in a previous episode, and is STILL stone in the finale.
278* The 1970s animated ''WesternAnimation/{{Flash Gordon|1979}}'' ends its first season with most of the allies Flash has made in all the previous episodes gathering together for a big final battle with Ming the Merciless.
279* Numerous characters from various ''WesternAnimation/{{Duckman}}'' episodes briefly turn up in the finale as [[spoiler: guests at the wedding.]]
280* Numerous villains (Outside of supervillain meetings) and secondary characters from WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor appeared at the final episode "Operation: I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.W.S.", such as Laura Limpin aka the Big Badolescent, Potty Mouth, and Robin Food.
281* Unicron returns for GrandFinale movie of ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime''.
282* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
283** [[EnsembleDarkHorse Derpy Hooves]] makes a few cameo appearances in the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E13MagicalMysteryCure Season 3 finale]] after practically an entire season of being absent.
284** In ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 Twilight's Kingdom Part 2]]'', we briefly see the other key givers -- Coco, Spitfire with the Wonderbolts, Cheese Sandwich, Seabreeze, and Silver Shill.
285** Each of the BadFuture scenarios in the Season 5 finale bring back one of the previous {{Arc Villain}}s, except for the second-to last, which has the non-arc Flim-Flam Brothers, and the last, which is just a barren wasteland caused by an unknown catastrophe.
286** Literally ''everyone'' shows up in the SeriesFinale to aid in the battle against the Legion of Doom.
287* The last 2 minutes of the finale of ''WesternAnimation/SuperRobotMonkeyTeamHyperforceGo'' has almost every ally in the series make a cameo [[spoiler: to join the war against Skeleton King. Sadly, the episode (and series) [[OffscreenMomentofAwesome ends before we can see them all in action.]] ]]
288* "Turf Wars", the final episode of the 2006 revival of ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'', featured [[spoiler:Vinnie's old girlfriend Harley from the original 1993 series]] as the main antagonist.
289* The Misfits were barely in season 3 however they come to Ba Nee's goodbye party at the end of ''WesternAnimation/{{Jem}}''. It's odd since they're enemies of Jem and the Holograms, however both Stormer and Roxy had positive interactions with Starlight Girls at least. The Misfits make a truce with the protagonists but WordOfGod is it's only temporary.
290* In the final episode of ''WesternAnimation/CloneHigh'', all of the other clones, recurring characters (minus the fosters parents besides Abe's dad and Toots), one-time characters, and even the guest-stars (ableit in non-speaking cameos), returned, even if a majority are just seen in the background.
291* ''WesternAnimation/{{Underdog}}'''s GrandFinale, "Vacuum Gun" brings back {{Arc Villain}}s Riff Raff, Electric Eel, and Batty Man.
292* After spending most of season 2 of ''WesternAnimation/IronManTheAnimatedSeries'' being written out, ComicBook/ScarletWitch, ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}, Century, and the Mandarin's minions returned for the GrandFinale.
293* The Creator/AdultSwim revival of ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack'' brings back many characters for the GrandFinale, including the Scotsman and his daughters, Rothchild the dog archaeologist, the Spartans, and the Monkey-Man who taught Jack how to "jump good".
294* ''WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters'', a SequelSeries to ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'', had Egon Spengler as the only returning member of the original series for most of the show's run, with the series focusing on a new team of Ghostbusters consisting of college students Eduardo Rivera, Kylie Griffin, Roland Jackson, and Garrett Miller. The GrandFinale consisted of a two-part episode entitled "Back in the Saddle", which brought back the rest of the original team Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Winston Zeddemore.
295* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': A ''lot'' of characters show up for Weirdmageddon and the episode leading up to it. Pretty much every named townsfolk show up in one form or another, even Old Man [=McGucket=], who had left town to avoid the oncoming Weirdpocalypse, and Mayor Beffuftlefumpter, who [[spoiler:had died two episodes earlier - he reappears as a zombie and is poked back into his grave by]] Robbie's parents, who also reappear. Various [[MonsterOfTheWeek supernatural creatures]] show up as well: [[TimeTravel Blandin]] is [[spoiler:possessed by Bill Cipher, which kick-starts Weirdmageddon]], the time police and Time Baby show up [[spoiler:only to be destroyed by Bill]], and several gnomes (including Shmebulock and Jeff), a few Liliputtans, a Manataur, the Multibear, Rumble [[spoiler:or, Humble now]] [=McSkirmish=], Wax Larry King's head and Sev'ral Timez are among the [[spoiler:survivors with Grunkle Stanley hiding in the Mystery Shack]].
296* "Graduation Day", the final episode of ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'', brought back Magneto and Morph when they had been absent for a while.
297* ''WesternAnimation/TheHollow'': [[spoiler: Toros as one part minnotaur, one part spider-mutant due to the game's corrupted code.]]
298* ''WesternAnimation/BuzzLightyearOfStarCommand'': In the SeasonFinale episode "War and Peace and War"[[note]]Not the last in the production order, but the last one before the show [[ChannelHop moved to ABC]], and the real GrandFinale[[/note]], just about every named character shows up (without any lines) for the big musical number "Let's Make Peace", even those that don't make sense, like the Wirewolf, [[HeelFaceTurn XL]], and [[KilledOffForReal NOS-4-A2.]]
299* ''WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks'': In the final episode, Rollo Goodlove returns for the first time since its second season, with helping the Freemans once again to win against the gay rights movement by lying thinking Riley is a special needs.
300* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': A large number of previously absent characters return in the final episodes, including Kallus, Rex, Gregor and Wolfe, Ketsu Onyo, and Hondo and Melch. And the purrgil.
301** Chava and Gron get a non-speaking cameo together during the epilogue when Zeb takes Kallus to Lira San.
302* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': Just about every character who had even a token speaking appearance at some point in the series shows back up in "Watching and Dreaming", with most of them making backgroud cameos during the epilogue. And in something of a meta example, TJ Hill (the composer for the first season) returned to write the final song heard in the show.
303[[/folder]]

Top