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| 3 | %% Examples are alphabetized by the name of the work. Please add any further examples accordingly. |
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| 6 | %% Image moved to this page per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1626630543089153700 |
| 7 | %% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread. |
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| 9 | [[quoteright:350:[[Webcomic/{{xkcd}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_race_part_5vs_fillion_3.png]]]] |
| 10 | [[caption-width-right:350:"[[https://youtu.be/oxDCLckZYwo We know where u live bro...]]"]] |
| 11 | %% |
| 12 | ->'''Woody:''' Come on, let's see the next episode!\ |
| 13 | '''Stinky Pete:''' That's it.\ |
| 14 | '''Woody:''' What?\ |
| 15 | '''Stinky Pete:''' The show was cancelled after that. |
| 16 | -->-- ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'' |
| 17 | |
| 18 | The polar opposite of a GrandFinale: a series ends abruptly, without resolution of its basic premise, due to some unplanned event such as {{cancellation}}, [[SixtyFiveEpisodeCartoon the 65/40-episode limit]] or [[DiedDuringProduction the creator dying before finishing]]. The story does not end, it simply stops ''in medias res'', possibly with a {{Cliffhanger}}. In a few lucky cases, there's a ConclusionInAnotherMedium, but it's directly to DVD and Blu-ray. In even luckier cases the series will be able to WrapItUp with a miniseries, a movie, or a new season. More often than not, however, there is no final resolution. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | Even more frustratingly, often shows create {{Myth Arc}}s haphazardly, stringing viewers along and never really intending to offer any conclusion to the story {{arc}}s they tell the first 2/3s of, or answering the questions they raise. This is called TheChrisCarterEffect. Those that do care utilize the Front13Back9 episode plan in an attempt to avert ''this'' Trope, though that's no guarantee when RealLifeWritesThePlot[[note]]i.e. Any Tropes in that index plus UsefulNotes/TVStrikes[[/note]]. |
| 21 | |
| 22 | A story left in the lurch isn't necessarily ''doomed'' to permanent irresolution, but the act of dealing with one may not turn out to be so glorious. Yet, no one says that because the work is incomplete, no one will stop to contemplate what happens next. The time away from the spotlight can actually be good, as it may result in the brains behind the scenes recharging their creativity, or the torch ending up passed to another aspiring mind. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | Regardless, even the most dedicated and faithful approaches come with risks. When new blood picks up an incomplete work, a common problem is [[OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight concensus that something about the resumed version is off]], like a miscalculated attempt to revive a series that has any key factors to its original success (the premise, characters, actors, writing, etc.) aging poorly from where it last left off. In some cases, a fresh cast may avert this, but there is a risk of overpopulating a beloved cast with [[CousinOliver unwanted newbies]] to make up for the unavailability or passing of any part of the original ensemble- though this does not always apply, like in the case of a [[TheOtherDarrin recast]] or [[TheNthDoctor plot-driven change of identity.]] |
| 25 | |
| 26 | If the work has a sufficiently dedicated fanbase, this can become FanficFuel for a {{Continuation}} fic. |
| 27 | Compare NoEnding, in which there is a deliberate decision to end a work abruptly, and LeftHanging, where while the series ends, many questions are left unanswered. If it doesn't deal with the major plot issues, a GeckoEnding will include this. Can result in an AccidentalDownerEnding if the work ended on an unhappy {{Cliffhanger}} that was clearly planned to be resolved in the next season or a future installment. See also OrphanedSeries and ConclusionInAnotherMedium. Compare TooGoodToLast. |
| 28 | |
| 29 | ---- |
| 30 | !!Examples Subpages: |
| 31 | [[index]] |
| 32 | * CutShort/AnimeAndManga |
| 33 | * CutShort/LiveActionTV |
| 34 | * CutShort/WesternAnimation |
| 35 | [[/index]] |
| 36 | |
| 37 | !!Other Examples: |
| 38 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[folder:Advertising]] |
| 41 | * Eggo Waffles released a couple of commercials advertising their new Waf-full waffles. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar2HAZR96vw The commercials]] showed a giant cartoon waffle hunting and eating cartoon fillings of raspberry and blueberry. A third one featuring an apple cinnamon filling was promoted but never aired, leaving the commercials unfinished. |
| 42 | [[/folder]] |
| 43 | |
| 44 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 45 | * ''ComicBook/TheAdventuresOfDAndA'' was canceled by ''Magazine/DisneyAdventures'' after its third story, which had introduced the SWSC's RoguesGallery via an ExpositionDump. |
| 46 | * ''ComicBook/AllStarBatmanAndRobinTheBoyWonder'' simply stopped being published after issue #10. There was an announcement about a follow-up series to wrap up the story, but [[DevelopmentHell more than 11 years have passed since then with no further news.]] |
| 47 | * The second volume of ''ComicBook/TheBatmanAdventures'', which had taken comic book tie-ins to cartoons to a new level; it was set in the Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse after ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' and during(ish) ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', acting almost like a sequel series with well-written stories that averted the original [[StatusQuoIsGod status quo]] while also bringing closure to various characters and foreshadowing new ones. It was canceled after only 17 issues to make way for ''WesternAnimation/TheBatman'''s tie-in comic. Before going out, they were able to resolve some plot threads: [[spoiler:revealing the truth behind the Penguin's mayoral election, having Penguin quit as mayor, making a major revelation about Poison Ivy which acted as her exit from the series, providing closure for the stories of Clayface and Mr. Freeze, and having Batman confront Joe Chill without even knowing it]]. But that also [[LeftHanging left various plot threads unresolved]]... [[spoiler:The identity of the DCAU's new Red Hood who was only able to make one full panel appearance, the Phantasm's motivations for allying with him, the Riddler being left in a coma, Talia's reactions to being abandoned by Batman after taking a bullet for him, Eel O'Brien was introduced but never got around to becoming ComicBook/PlasticMan, and so on...]] On message boards creators Creator/DanSlott and Ty Templeton have spoken of much more awesome sounding ideas for future issues which would tie DC Animated Continuity together in new and awesome ways... they had planned for up to their 40th or so issue! |
| 48 | * ''Big Numbers'' was a 12-issue series by Creator/AlanMoore and Bill Sienkiewicz, but only the first two issues were released. |
| 49 | * ''ComicBook/DinosaursVsAliens'': The series only had a single issue which was meant to kick off a [[TheFilmOfTheBook film adaptation]]. However, there has been seemingly no progress on either the comic or film in a decade, leaving the story stuck in DevelopmentHell before it even got going. |
| 50 | * There's an interesting case with the Argentine comic book ''ComicBook/ElEternauta''. The writer Héctor Germán Oesterheld joined the Montoneros, a left-wing organization, and became a fugitive of the military junta (all this is real world stuff, not comic book plot). Yet he managed to continue writing the comic book (with an {{Anvilicious}} tone in support of the Montoneros) while being on the run, sending the scripts by mail to the artist Francisco Solano López, who made the weekly comic book and sent it to the publisher. The comic book ''is'' a finished work, but Oesterheld was captured and killed at some unknown point. To this day, it is not known if he really managed to finish the comic book before his capture, or if some other Montonero sent scripts in his name afterwards. |
| 51 | * Topps Comics started what was supposed to be a three part adaptation of ''Film/GoldenEye''. Yet only part 1 came out - [[https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zuGVBtfZ6pc/WAeM57zYOlI/AAAAAAAAlrg/WDoZn-4knIQ2ly4zvHeUCe1L7sdkB9riwCLcB/s1600/goldunpub.jpg the covers for the aborted issues still leaked,]] and it's rumored that the racy cover of the second one was part of why it got cancelled. |
| 52 | * ''Hard Time'''s second volume was canceled fairly abruptly after one story arc, leading to a DistantFinale / WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue in the final issue that attempts (and doesn't quite manage) to tie up all the plot threads. |
| 53 | * The ''WesternAnimation/{{Inhumanoids}}'' ComicBookAdaptation, which began publication a month after the animated series ended, was cancelled at issue four and ended on an unresolved cliffhanger with Sandra Shore turned into a zombie by D'Compose. This is a strong contrast with the ''[[ComicBook/TheTransformersMarvel Transformers]]'' and ''ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel'' comic books, which both predated and outlasted their [[WesternAnimation/TheTransformers respective]] [[WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero cartoons]] in addition to ending in ways that resolved the ongoing story, subsequent {{sequel series}} notwithstanding. |
| 54 | * [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]]'s 1975 series had a tenth issue that went unpublished for years and ended on a cliffhanger revolving around the Justice League supposedly dead by the Joker's hand and the Joker intending to settle the score with his father, which obviously went unresolved due to the series long being cancelled and the issue in question not being printed until 43 years after it was originally intended to be published. |
| 55 | * The ''Maggie the Cat'' mini-series, a spin-off from ''ComicBook/JonSableFreelance'', was cancelled after two issues with no resolution. |
| 56 | * In 1993, Topps Comics attempted a shared universe called the Kirbyverse, using creator-owned characters by Creator/JackKirby and consisting of both pre-existing properties Kirby created for the now defunct Pacific Comics (i.e. ''ComicBook/CaptainVictoryAndTheGalacticRangers'' and ''Silver Star'') as well as concepts that Kirby had not yet been able to get printed (such as ''Satan's Six'', ''Ninth Men'' and ''[=TeenAgents=]''). The Kirbyverse came to a premature end in 1994 after the first round of miniseries, their last entries being miniseries of ''Victory'' and ''Silver Star'' that never went beyond the first issue. To make things worse, Jack Kirby himself (who had little involvement aside from drawing some cover artwork due to his declining health) died that very same year. |
| 57 | * ''ComicBook/StreetFighterMalibuComics'' was halted after only three issues were published. Many pin the blame on the controversial decision to apparently kill off [[TheRival Ken]], which stings more considering that WordOfGod confirmed that he would have survived. |
| 58 | * Archie Comics' ''ComicBook/MegaManArchieComics'' was put on indefinite hiatus following the release of the fifty-fifth issue, with the plot having begun to set up an adaptation of ''VideoGame/MegaMan4'' (and said final issue {{foreshadowing}} the events of later games). As of October 2016, no-one (not even the creative team) knows when or if the series will return. It just seems even more unlikely now that the creative team has jumped ship to IDW. |
| 59 | * In 2018, ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'' started a section of serialized strips called ''Potzrebie Comics''. They quickly became popular, but none of them reached five installments before all the artists were fired and the mag switched to reprints. Most frustratingly, ''Lukey And Mukey'' ends with the protagonists being led to Mukey's lair, and setting up a HyperlinkStory. However, the authors have said they hope to come back to the ideas someday. |
| 60 | * The short-lived Devil's Due continuation of ''ComicBook/MicronautsImage'' ended at three issues in spite of soliciting a fourth issue, the comic ending before we'd see how the team would fare with Azura Nova as their newest member and what Baron Karza intended to do with the human-sized constructs he had a human scientist build for him. |
| 61 | * The Tokyopop "original English-language manga" ''My Dead Girlfriend'' featured a guy trying to make it work with his girlfriend, despite the setback that she was now a ghost. The book received praise from the likes of Joss Whedon and Jeph Loeb -- and also never got past the first volume. |
| 62 | * ''ComicBook/OmahaTheCatDancer'' ground to a halt with none of its plots resolved when creators Reed Waller and Kate Worley split up. With Worley's death in 2004, it looked like there was no chance it would ever be finished. However, Worley's husband James Vance began writing new scripts from her notes, and the story was finally finished in 2013. |
| 63 | * The Action Lab ''Film/PuppetMaster'' series was canceled in the middle of a story arc involving a rejuvenated Toulon infiltrating a cult with his old puppets. It's believed the license on the IP was running out or something like that, and the last two issue were canned so the creative team could focus their efforts on the PostScriptSeason GrandFinale. |
| 64 | * ''ComicBook/QuantumAndWoody'' was suspended after issue #17, then resumed eleven months later with issue #34 as a meta TimeSkip. The comic then resumed at #18, building towards the events in #34, but was canceled for good before that could be shown. |
| 65 | * While plans were made for multiple story arcs, the ''ComicBook/RainbowBrite'' comic was ultimately canceled after only 5 issues. This left the comic with the sad end of Rainbow Brite having found two of the Color Kids and the King of Shadows still ruling Rainbow Land. |
| 66 | * Marvel's ''ComicBook/RobertEHowardsDarkAgnes'' was intended as a five-issue series, but supply chain issues from the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic meant that publication halted after two issues. Marvel then lost the rights to Howard's characters, slamming the door on any potential conclusion. |
| 67 | * ''ComicBook/ScreamCurseOfCarnage'' was unceremoniously cancelled due to low sales as a result of the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic stalling the book's physical release for several months, and just as the series was entering into its second arc and introducing new plot-threads and characters. |
| 68 | * DC's 12-issue ''Sonic Disruptors'' series from the 1980s was cancelled after issue #7. |
| 69 | * ''ComicBook/SonicTheComic'': [[ExecutiveMeddling Due to cost-cutting policies, it was decided]] that the comic would stop printing new stories and become reprints only. The writers weren't notified of this until the last second. A StoryArc was midway, so they requested an extension so as to be able to finish it at least, and they were given a few more issues. But even then, the arc was never intended to be a finale, so many plot points were left hanging. |
| 70 | * ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'': Several storylines were hit with this ''bad'' due to former writer Creator/KenPenders suing Creator/{{Archie|Comics}} and Creator/{{Sega}} to regain custody of the characters he created and won. However, he was willing to let them use them again under two stipulations that both companies balked at - that the storyline "Mobius: 25 Years Later" became the comic's future canon[[note]]Which not only went against Sega's mandate of "Sonic can't have a steady relationship", but also required writers to keep certain people unaltered, including Julie-Su, Lara-Su and Locke, the last of which was KilledOffForReal years before the whole legal mess[[/note]] and that everything involving his characters had to be vetted by him[[note]]Which meant that Archie had to get approval from ''two'' groups and Sega also had to sign off to him, turning him into a second licensor.[[/note]]. During the height of the mess, Archie opted to reboot the universe during ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogMegaManWorldsCollide'', thus not only making the comic universe video game-friendly, but also forcing a lot of stories to be stopped abruptly - the King Naugus storyline ends with Naugus having a major freakout and running away when he's hit with visions of the old universe, Antoine no longer comatose, Bunnie back to being a cyborg and Sally no longer roboticized. And in 2017 the comic was abruptly put on indefinite hiatus, subscribers refunded, and [[ComicBook/SonicMegaDrive the Mega Drive miniseries]] and a few plot threads from the main series left hanging. In July 2017, it was confirmed to be cancelled, meaning there will likely never be any resolution to the aforementioned miniseries and plot threads. |
| 71 | * The ''WesternAnimation/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil'' tie-in mini-series ''Deep Trouble'' was meant to be eight issues. But it didn't sell well and ended at issue four, leaving on a cliff hanger of Star and Marco managing to find Pony Head's compact needed for proof of her innocence of stealing a crown in an underwater kingdom. Only to find out she'd gotten an upgrade and transferred her data onto it (meaning the whole escapade to retrieve it was a ShaggyDogStory) and the photos on it not helping her case. It even ends with a "Next Time..." blur on the side but wasn't meant to be. |
| 72 | * Several ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' comics by Creator/DarkHorseComics met this fate. There was ''Star Wars: Rebellion'' revolving around BadassNormal Darca Nyl, which was cancelled to make room for a ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' tie-in comic which was cancelled for low sales. After that there was ''ComicBook/StarWarsInvasion'', an {{interquel}} to ''Literature/NewJediOrder'' that was ''also'' cancelled right before Creator/{{Disney}} took over. |
| 73 | * ''ComicBook/{{Swordquest}}'' was a series of pack-in comic books created by Creator/DCComics for Creator/{{Atari}}'s ''VideoGame/{{Swordquest}}'' adventure game series. MediaNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 prevented the last game from being released, and only the first three issues exist. |
| 74 | * The collapse of Dreamwave Comics cut several ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' comics short; none of the titles were picked up by IDW, due to Pat Lee not paying his employees. This is a particularly bad example, since when Dreamwave collapsed, the comics were right square in the middle of resolving the epic MythArc that had been set up. Dreamwave's bankruptcy left numerous plotlines hanging, ended the series on a cliffhanger, and made several scenes that were important foreshadowing look like a BigLippedAlligatorMoment. The bankruptcy of Dreamwave also had a bad effect on ''Transformers/G.I. Joe: Divided Front'', which was intended to be a SequelSeries to ''ComicBook/TransformersGIJoe'' and last six issues like its predecessor, but only released one issue before Dreamwave went out of business. |
| 75 | * The Creator/ValiantComics ''Unity 2000'' mini-series was going to cross over and merge the [=VH1=] and [=VH2=] universes, and a third universe would be introduced and destroyed, showing potential ideas from before the [=VH2=] era. The mini-series was cancelled before its resolution. |
| 76 | * ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}'': |
| 77 | ** Daniel Way's run was canceled on an extremely bleak BolivianArmyCliffhanger, seeing Venom captured and forced to become a living doomsday device to facilitate an alien invasion of Earth. Several characters introduced in the run have since reappeared, but it's never been revealed how Venom escaped the villains' clutches or what happened to them. |
| 78 | ** [[ComicBook/VenomRemenderAndBunn Agent Venom's]] ongoing got cancelled right as it was beginning to resolve its overarching plot. However, some unresolved plots, such as Mania and the hellmarks, have been included in ''ComicBook/VenomMikeCosta'' and ''ComicBook/VenomDonnyCates'' series; and Rick Remender revealed what the Spawning arc would have entailed in 2020. |
| 79 | * Similar to the aforementioned ''Inhumanoids'' comic, the ''WesternAnimation/{{Visionaries}}'' comic book tie-in began publication after the cartoon it was based on had started airing, but ended abruptly due to cancellation. The comic came to a halt in the sixth issue with an arc involving Merklynn tasking the Spectral Knights and Darkling Lords with finding four enchanted jewels themed after the four elements of nature (while withholding from both groups that he needs the jewels to prevent his own death) only halfway finished. The end of the issue even [[EndOfSeriesAwareness addressed that the arc would never get a proper conclusion because of the comic being cancelled]]. |
| 80 | * In 1998 ''ComicBook/WerewolfByNight'' volume 2 was published, intended to be a continuing series, but was canceled after 6 issues due to poor sales. It was decided to move the storyline to the ''Strange Tales'' anthology, of which four issues were solicited with the specific intention of wrapping up plot lines that the first cancellation left hanging. Ironically, ''Strange Tales'' was canceled as well after two issues, killing the chances of seeing those nagging questions answered. |
| 81 | * ''ComicBook/XMenForever'' was intended to be an ongoing series that was cut short due to lackluster sales. It was an attempt for Creator/ChrisClaremont to wrap up long simmering plot points from his original legendary run with X-Men from '74-'91. While some of the plot points were wrapped up, the comic was cancelled just as a ''whole new set of plot points had been introduced.'' However, while for most comic writers, this is a severe annoyance, for [[KudzuPlot Chris]], [[ButForMeItWasTuesday it was just Tuesday]]. |
| 82 | * ''ComicBook/Zatanna2010'': When the series was canceled in the lead-up to the Post-ComicBook/{{Flashpoint|DCComics}} DC Universe, Creator/PaulDini left the series and was replaced by other writers for the final issues. These issues did not follow the ongoing plot of the series, leaving several threads dangling, such as the entire Brother Night arc and Zatanna's predicted conflict with ComicBook/TheSpectre. |
| 83 | * The 1980s UK ''Franchise/{{Zoids}}'' comic (written by Creator/GrantMorrison) was canceled just as the story started to become really interesting. |
| 84 | * ''Image United'' was intended as a 10th anniversary project by the Creator/ImageComics founders with their characters teaming up against an incoming threat but due to creative conflicts, delays and scheduling conflicts the project is officially cancelled leaving the story unfinished with only 3 issues published. |
| 85 | [[/folder]] |
| 86 | |
| 87 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 88 | * ''ComicStrip/LittleOrphanAnnie'' ran as a serial strip in newspapers for 86 years until it was unceremoniously cancelled in 2010. The final strip inexplicably did not resolve the ongoing plotline, but instead [[http://www.comicsalliance.com/2010/06/14/little-orphan-annie-ending/ ended on Annie being held in South America by a serial murderer and Daddy Warbucks staring hopelessly into the distance believing his beloved daughter to be murdered by gangsters.]] 4 years later, the plotline was wrapped up in ''ComicStrip/DickTracy'' after hints were dropped in a few 2013 strips. |
| 89 | * Unlike his other ended strips ''Gnorm Gnat'' and ''ComicStrip/USAcres'', the ''ComicStrip/MrPotatoHead'' comic strip by Jim Davis did not get a proper send-off and abruptly concluded with a strip where Mr. Potato Head was mocked by a fly he was trying to swat. |
| 90 | [[/folder]] |
| 91 | |
| 92 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 93 | * ''WesternAnimation/DinosaurIsland'' ends with the three main characters about to escape the titular island and heading to sea, only to be stopped by the BigBad, complete with a “ToBeContinued…” Spoiler alert: it never continued. |
| 94 | * Creator/RalphBakshi's [[WesternAnimation/TheLordOfTheRings animated adaptation]] of ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' was originally intended to be three films but was later forced to be shortened to two. The first part was originally titled ''The Lord of the Rings Part I'', but executive meddling forced a title changed to just ''The Lord of the Rings'', which confused many viewers when the film ended without concluding the story. While the original film made back its money at the box office, it was not the runaway success hoped for and the originally intended second part was canceled, leaving the story unfinished (at least by Bakshi, though Creator/RankinBassProductions did produce an unconnected [[WesternAnimation/TheReturnOfTheKing animated adaption]] of ''The Return of the King'', the third book in the series). |
| 95 | * InUniverse example: The [[Administrivia/RenamedTropes former]] {{Trope Namer|s}} is ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'', where Woody watches an episode of the TV show he was based on, ''Woody's Roundup'', that ends in a cliffhanger, only for Stinky Pete to inform him that the show was cancelled [[FandomRivalry due to the rising popularity of space toys]]. [[spoiler:A blink-and-you'll-miss-it MeaningfulBackgroundEvent shows that Pete was lying, and the cliffhanger was properly resolved. Unsurprisingly, this is the very same scene where Pete's [[EvilAllAlong true colors]] are revealed.]] |
| 96 | [[/folder]] |
| 97 | |
| 98 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 99 | * ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan2'' fell victim to this. The ending very unsubtly set up a plot thread involving the Sinister Six and the mysterious Gustav Fiers, which will now never be resolved thanks to the series being cancelled and rebooted with ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming''. However, as a silver lining there was an IntraFranchiseCrossover in ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome''. |
| 100 | * The ''Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse'' experienced a ContinuityReboot after the release of ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'', leaving the overarching plot unresolved right when it was getting started with [[BigBad Darkseid]] [[SequelHook planning to invade Earth]]. Not wanting to leave the fans hanging, Creator/ZackSnyder later released [[WhatCouldHaveBeen outlines of his plans for later films]] so people could at least know how it would've ended. |
| 101 | * The adaptation of the ''{{Literature/Divergent}}'' trilogy. Following the then-current trend of a MovieMultipack, it was decided to split the last novel ''Allegiant'' into two films, first titled ''Allegiant - Part 1'' and ''Allegiant - Part 2'', before changing to ''Allegiant'' and ''Ascendant'', respectively. However, ''Allegiant'' bombed at the box office, leaving the studio scrambling to conclude the series either as a MadeForTVMovie or a TV series. None of the original cast were contracted for that (and lead star Creator/ShaileneWoodley outright declined to return) and as negotiations dragged on, Lionsgate's rights to the franchise expired, leaving the series without an ending. |
| 102 | * ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' contains an InUniverse example with the ShowWithinAShow, whose final filmed episode shows Cmdr. Taggart enigmatically preparing to use the [[MacGuffin Omega-13]] to overcome some threat. Because its follow-up was never written or filmed, the cast has no idea what the Omega-13 is supposed to do, which then spills over into real life when aliens who [[AchievementsInIgnorance successfully built the NSEA]] ''[[AchievementsInIgnorance Protector]]'' also included the Omega-13. |
| 103 | * ''Film/TheLastAirbender'': There were plans to make an entire trilogy, with each movie retelling the events of each of the three seasons of [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender the cartoon series that it is based on]]. There was even a [[TheStinger stinger]] at the end that showed [[spoiler: [[TheDragon Azula]], one of the shows most iconic villains]]. Unfortunately, since the film was a colossal failure both critically and financially, these plans would never end up coming into fruition. |
| 104 | * ''Film/TheWeddingMarch'' was not supposed to be this. It ends with Nicki going through with his ArrangedMarriage to Cecilia, on a day full of ominous foreboding, while his lover Mitzi promises to marry the jealous Schani. It was followed up with an immediate sequel, ''The Honeymoon'', in which the messy LoveDodecahedron was pursued to a full DownerEnding--but the only known print of ''The Honeymoon'' was lost to a fire in 1959. Consequently ''The Wedding March'' is left hanging. |
| 105 | [[/folder]] |
| 106 | |
| 107 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 108 | * The original publication of ''Literature/TheGoldenDemon'' ran in ''Yomiuri Shimbun'' newspaper until May 1902, then was left unfinished when the author Ozaki Kōyō died the following year, 1903. |
| 109 | * ''[[Franchise/DotHack .Hack//Zero]]'': a series of novels set in the main .hack canon that tells the story of a (female) Heavy Axmen named [[GenderBlenderName Carl]] and her encounters with Aura and Skeith/Sora. The series abruptly ended with no real resolution after its first volume relegating Carl's story to side materials (She ends up Data Drained by Skeith apparently) and since the .hack series as a whole has moved on a good number of years in the timeline (being on the 3rd version of The World now) it shows no signs of ever being finished. It's also a case of NoExportForYou, likely due to its unfinished nature. |
| 110 | * The ''Literature/EdgarAndEllen'' book series ends partway through its second arc. |
| 111 | * This appears to be the fate of the ''Literature/ErastFandorin'' series of Russian mystery novels, at least for English-speaking readers. Thirteen books have been published in Russia but book #10, ''The Diamond Chariot'', is the last to be translated into English. |
| 112 | * The famed SoBadItsGood fantasy novella ''Literature/TheEyeOfArgon'' suffered this problem for a long time: the most-distributed copy was a xerox that had accidentally misplaced the final pages. Copies of the original fanzine in which it was published, including the ending, were eventually found; but given the nature of the work, most didn't mind the presence of this trope, and indeed some ''prefer'' it. |
| 113 | * In-universe in ''Literature/TheFaultInOurStars'' by Creator/JohnGreen. The main characters love a book called ''An Imperial Affliction''; "the books ends right in the middle of a" |
| 114 | * ''Literature/TheMysteryOfEdwinDrood'', Creator/CharlesDickens's last novel, was ended abruptly when Dickens died halfway through writing. What made it even worse was that ''Drood'' was published serially, like all of Dickens' novels, thus frustrating his readers. |
| 115 | * ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'' ended due to [[DiedDuringProduction Brian Jacques' death]], with the final novel "The Rogue Crew" being posthumously released. Since Jacques never intended to stop writing, one wonders what he was planning next. In addition, a [[OfficialFanSubmittedContent fan-created character]] named Reisa Kartwell was to be added into the series, thus implying she was going to be in the book after "The Rogue Crew". |
| 116 | * The ''Literature/ResidentEvil'' novelizations by S.D. Perry end with Code Veronica. [[spoiler:All the gaping plot holes between games have been tied up nicely thanks to [[OriginalCharacter Trent]] and a couple of original novels, and the entire plot as a whole has built up to a final stand against the NebulousEvilOrganisation Umbrella that we'll never get to read.]] |
| 117 | * Also in-universe: This is the premise of ''Rodrigo y el libro sin final'' (''Rodrigo and the unfinished book''), where the child protagonist borrows a book from the library and reads it only to find that it lacks an ending, which sets up the whole plot. |
| 118 | * ''Literature/TheSalmonOfDoubt'' was the novel Douglas Adams was working on at the time of his death and remains, as yet, unfinished with no indication of plans to create a completion. |
| 119 | * ''Literature/{{Spartan}}'' ends with [[spoiler: Talos disappearing and leaving his weapons behind]]. It was not received very well from the readers. |
| 120 | * ''The Spellcoats'' by Creator/DianaWynneJones contains an in-universe example. The narrator tells the story as she goes along by weaving it into the eponymous coats in a form of textile writing. Over the course of the story, the coats themselves become plot-significant items, such that the plot cannot be resolved until the coats are complete. This means the narrator cannot weave the ending. We are left to deduce what happened from a museum curator's note written hundreds of years later. |
| 121 | * The ''Literature/StarDarlings'' books were canceled in January 2017 with three planned books being shelved, the webseries last aired in late 2016, and Jakks Pacific has ceased producing the toys. The books that were canceled would have continued dangling plot threads from ''Stealing Starlight'', which ends on a cliffhanger. |
| 122 | * [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]] by ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends''. The Legends timeline in general reached a satisfying conclusion before the Creator/{{Disney}} ContinuityReboot with the ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'' series, however the {{interquel}} series ''Literature/FateOfTheJedi'' and its follow-up ''Literature/StarWarsCrucible'' revolving around Luke Skywalker's son Ben and his Sith girlfriend Vestara Khai was forced to end without a satisfying conclusion to Vestara's storyline and left her ultimate fate unclear. |
| 123 | * ''Literature/StuartLittle'' never found Margalo and never returned home. |
| 124 | * ''Literature/TheTimeTraders'' ends its book run just as it's portraying a long time series of enemies as good guys. Though Andre Norton had lived a long life, the new books were made [[DiedDuringProduction fairly late in it]], and her co-authors on ''Firehand'', ''Echoes in Time'', and ''Atlantis Endgame'' only received permission to write those specific books. |
| 125 | * Creator/RobertSilverberg's ''Literature/UpTheLine'' ends in the middle of a sentence. |
| 126 | * Averted with ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime''--many fans feared this would happen due to author Robert Jordan dying, but enough notes were left behind that the series could come to a conclusion, with the final volumes put together by fantasy writer Creator/BrandonSanderson. |
| 127 | [[/folder]] |
| 128 | |
| 129 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 130 | * Music/DanielJohnston: He recorded most of his early songs on home made cassette recordings. As a result a lot of songs end quite abruptly or with audible cuts. Especially as the final track of each album also has its ending cut off without warning. |
| 131 | * Music/ElvisPresley: Arguably the most infamous live album in his career is ''Music/HavingFunWithElvisOnStage'', a 35-minute collection of nothing but Elvis cracking jokes with the audience, without any music or context explaining what is going on. All of it is quickly edited together as a collection of bits from various concerts, often being edited in a way that conversations are just cut short halfway through with another one starting out of nowhere. |
| 132 | * Phase 3 of the {{Music/Gorillaz}} storyline had been building up to a supernatural confrontation involving a 50-foot drummer and a demon-man living on an island made of plastic with a hostage. There was also a subplot involving a young supersoldier and their robotic doppelganger. Sadly, it was never completed, and a lot of fans are upset about it. |
| 133 | [[/folder]] |
| 134 | |
| 135 | [[folder:Myths & Religion]] |
| 136 | * The Myth/NorseMythology tale "Rigsthula" abruptly breaks off after introducing two named characters who may be Rig's adversaries, because its only source is a manuscript whose final pages have been lost. |
| 137 | [[/folder]] |
| 138 | |
| 139 | [[folder:Podcasts]] |
| 140 | * The five-year plan of ''Podcast/EightiesAllOver'' was to cover the entire decade in U.S.-released cinema month by month. However, creators/presenters Drew [=McWeeney=] and Scott Weinberg could not keep up the pace of weekly episode releases (regular episodes alternating with Patreon supporter bonus shows) and the April 1985 episode ended up being the last one. Because this decision was made after the episode aired, it ends with an OnTheNext for May 1985. This meant a lot of marquee movies of the decade (''Film/BackToTheFuture1'', ''Film/TheGoonies'', ''Film/TheFly1986'', etc.) were never covered in full, even though previous episodes teased that they would be ''major'' discussions when their release months rolled along. |
| 141 | [[/folder]] |
| 142 | |
| 143 | [[folder:Pro Wrestling]] |
| 144 | * Given the open-ended nature of professional wrestling, it wouldn't be a surprise if numerous storylines from defunct promotions would be halted when those companies went out of business. |
| 145 | * Wrestling/EricBischoff knew from looking at the Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation and Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling that an invasion of Wrestling/{{WCW}} could ultimately be best for business, but killed an invasion angle already in progress dead because he didn't want that company to be [[Wrestling/{{SMW}} Smoky Mountain Wrestling]]. |
| 146 | * Internacional Wrestling Revolucion Group simply stopped recognizing its Intercontinental Super Welterweight and Intercontinental Women's divisions in 2007, as the title belts were being held by Wrestling/{{Mistico}} and La Amapola, who were contracted by Wrestling/{{CMLL}}, whom IWRG was no longer working with. |
| 147 | * A 2001 WCW storyline involving Wrestling/RicFlair and Wrestling/JeffJarrett being forced to kiss [[Wrestling/{{Goldust}} Dustin Rhodes]]' ass continued up to the second-to-last ''[[Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro Nitro]]'' (where they ended up [[ExactWords kissing a donkey]] supposedly owned by [[Wrestling/DustyRhodes Dusty]]) and was abandoned when the Wrestling/{{WW|E}}F buyout was announced, with Stamford booking the final ''Nitro'' (which dealt with the in-universe repercussions of the buyout). |
| 148 | * ''Wrestling/LuchaUnderground'' was once seen as the hottest thing in wrestling, with its telenovela/mystical approach to a wrestling show earning acclaim from many. However, the drop in viewership and reception of Season 4 compared to the previous seasons, in large part due to the XPacHeat surrounding [[Wrestling/JackSwagger Jake Strong's]] push and subsequent championship win, put the chances of it continuing in jeopardy. Despite setting up Season 5 with a possible conspiracy revolving around Strong and a debuting Stu Bennett (aka [[Wrestling/WadeBarrett Wade "Bad News" Barrett]]) as well as Dario Cueto being BackFromTheDead, small viewership that only got lower, various lawsuits from wrestlers, along with majority of talent finding work elsewhere, have all but ensured that SequelHook would end up unresolved. |
| 149 | * WWE Magazine held a contest for what the fans believed the best US city to host an event was. Sadly, the contest came to a quick and abrupt stop when the magazine was canceled a few issues later, which also prevented the final mystery slot for a fan selected city from being revealed. |
| 150 | [[/folder]] |
| 151 | |
| 152 | [[folder:Puppet Shows]] |
| 153 | * ''Series/AllegrasWindow'' abruptly ended after three seasons after production company Jumbo Pictures was bought by Disney. Being a preschool series, there were no overarching plot points to wrap up, but the shorter third season (which was also notable as most Nick Jr. shows at the time ran for at least four to five seasons) combined with the sudden cancellation implies there would've been more to come. |
| 154 | * ''Series/LomaxTheHoundOfMusic'' was cancelled after 13 episodes due to financial problems, causing it to fall into obscurity. However, the ending in the last episode implies that more was to come. This left one to wonder what the creators were planning to do next. |
| 155 | * ''Series/RiminiRiddle'' was cancelled before it could wrap up the story. |
| 156 | * The WrapUpSong "Just Shout Hooray", sung by the Cat in the Hat in ''Series/TheWubbulousWorldOfDrSeuss'', has the lyrics "So come back soon, and when you do, I'll have some new surprises in my hat for you". It's even sung in the final episode with the implication that there is more to come, despite the show being cancelled afterwards and falling into obscurity. |
| 157 | [[/folder]] |
| 158 | |
| 159 | [[folder:Roleplay]] |
| 160 | * Many roleplays on ''Roleplay/TheGunganCouncil'' end short of the planned climatic grand finale. |
| 161 | [[/folder]] |
| 162 | |
| 163 | [[folder:Sports]] |
| 164 | * The World Series, the championship of [[UsefulNotes/{{Baseball}} Major League Baseball]], has been canceled on two occasions in history, leaving that year's MLB season cut short without any champion. |
| 165 | ** The first time, in 1904, it was because John [=McGraw=], the owner of the National League championship team, the UsefulNotes/{{New York|City}} Giants (now the UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco Giants), refused to have his team face the American League champions, the UsefulNotes/{{Boston}} Americans (now the Boston Red Sox). His reasons were petty: he felt that the American League was inferior to the National League, and that his Giants, having won the National League championship, had already proven themselves to be the best. Therefore, in his eyes, the World Series was little more than an exhibition series. |
| 166 | ** The second time, in 1994, the entire MLB postseason was canceled due to a players' strike. Perhaps the hardest-hit team was the UsefulNotes/{{Montreal}} Expos, who had been racking up a "dream season" that year; they had won more games than any other team that year, and were among the favorites to win the World Series [[ICouldaBeenAContender (which would've been their first)]]. The Expos [[CreatorKiller never recovered from the strike-shortened season]]; they fell into an AudienceAlienatingEra in the second half of the '90s, and they eventually moved to UsefulNotes/WashingtonDC and became the Nationals in 2004. |
| 167 | * A Number of televised football leagues have suspended operations during a season. |
| 168 | ** The first was the World Football League, which ended in the middle of her 2nd season in 1975. |
| 169 | ** The United Football League suspended 2 seasons early. The first was in 2011 after 4 weeks, though a Championship and Consolation Games were played. The second time was in 2012 again after 4 weeks, but no games were held. |
| 170 | ** The Alliance of American Football ended during its first and only season after week 8 with no resolution. While the league was losing money, this was not the primary reason for the cancellation and was instead based on a dispute of the owner and the league founders with the NFL Player Association. |
| 171 | * Due to a flu epidemic that led to the death of Montreal Canadians defenseman Joe Hall, the 1919 Stanley Cup Final was cancelled with 1 game to go in the series. |
| 172 | * The attacks of September 11th, 2001 caused the cancellation of a number of sports events and seasons. |
| 173 | ** The 2001 Women's US Cup Soccer was cancelled half-way through the event. |
| 174 | ** All Minor League Games were cancelled for the remainder of the Regular and Post-Seasons with each league declaring a champion with the team with the best regular season record to that point (or co-champions if there would be a playoff). |
| 175 | ** Major League Soccer cancelled the remaining two weeks of the regular season. While the playoffs did take place, the Tampa Bay Mutiny, who failed to make the playoffs, were contracted at the end without having an official final game. |
| 176 | ** The 2001 Ryder Cup, a biennial US vs Europe golf event, was cancelled. The tournament restarted in 2002 and was held in even-numbered years until the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic caused it to be shifted back to odd-numbered years. The Presidents Cup, a men's event in which a US team takes on an "International" team of non-Europeans, and the Ryder Cup's {{distaff counterpart}} of the Solheim Cup were also rescheduled to take place in odd-numbered years starting in 2003. ''Those'' events would return to their original schedules of even-numbered years in the post-COVID era. |
| 177 | * While withdrawals are always a possibility in any heads-up individual events, it is fairly common in doubles tennis (especially mixed doubles) during a major event. One of the 4 contestants withdraws "due to injury" in the semifinal or final to concentrate on an individual major, resulting in the winning team never taking the court. |
| 178 | * As a result of COVID-19, a number of seasons in numerous sports - too many to list here - were finished earlier than planned; some leagues decided to declare the standings at the time final, others decided to use a points-per-game system for the standings, still others declared the season null and void. An obviously incomplete list of these seasons can be found in the "Sports" folder of ReleaseDateChange.COVID19PandemicRelatedExamples. |
| 179 | * The American Basketball Association's (ABA) shambolic final 1975–76 season began with ten teams, many in financial trouble. The Baltimore Claws folded before the season started, the San Diego Sails suspended operations after 11 games, and the Utah Stars only made it 16 games before folding. At season's end the league merged with the NBA, but teams that wanted to join the NBA had to pay an entry fee, while teams who didn't received a generous buyout package. The Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, New York Nets and San Antonio Spurs joined the NBA, while the Kentucky Colonels, Spirits of St. Louis and Virginia Squires took the money and faded into history. |
| 180 | * The cycling Tour of Britain in 2022 finished on 8 September, three days earlier than planned, with the standings at the time used for the final results, following the death of UsefulNotes/ElizabethII. |
| 181 | [[/folder]] |
| 182 | |
| 183 | [[folder:Toys]] |
| 184 | * Many Franchise/{{LEGO}} lines ended [[NoEnding without concluding their stories]], but nothing got hit harder than ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}''. Beginning from the 2009 line, the creative team attempted a drastic {{Retool}}, taking the story away from the Matoran Universe onto other planets. They eagerly planned the story ahead for at least 3 years, there is evidence to believe that some sets were also partially designed, they contracted voice actors and made a trilogy-starter movie, wrote a draft for the sequel, the story writer was covered up to his glasses in all the [[KudzuPlot potential plot threads he set up]], and fan interaction hiked... then, Mr. LEGO called that they're canceling the line. In 2010, 6 meager little figures ''were'' released (though reluctantly, and under the guise of a 10th year MilestoneCelebration commemorative line, in place of the sets they originally wanted to make) and the main storyline was quickly wrapped up in a GrandFinale. However, although the writer was allowed to continue the myraid of side stories through online serials, RealLife soon forced him to just abandon the whole thing, [[LeftHanging leaving a tremendous amount of plotlines unresolved]]. Despite how tragic this may sound, the line still lasted for an impressive decade and did receive a proper ending, while most other LEGO themes only go for just a couple years. |
| 185 | * ''Toys/Bionicle2015'' was launched with an intended 3 year lifespan, with the possibility to extend its run if the toys sold well. It got abruptly canceled in less than two years, with the last wave of toys [[NoExportForYou not reaching Asian and Pacific markets]]. Much like its predecessor, its main story was quickly wrapped up with a conclusion while many secrets were left unanswered. |
| 186 | * ''Toys/EverAfterHigh'' was a CashCowFranchise for several years, but a change in the market towards smaller toys (amongst other issues) led to decreased toy sales by the mid-2010s. [[ScrewedByTheMerchandise As a result]] the series was quietly put on "hiatus" circa 2017. The problem is that ''Ever After High'' was a ''story-centric'' toyline and yet the story wasn't even close to ending. The whole "Royals vs Rebels" issue was never resolved. Blatantly, 2016's ''Dragon Games'' special had a [[AmbiguousSituation potential]] game-changer with [[spoiler:Daring failing to wake up Apple with TrueLovesKiss, only for his ''sister'' Darling to give Apple {{CPR|CleanPrettyReliable}}. What this could mean for Apple and Darling is never discussed, though the subsequent special does reveal Daring is Beauty's Beast, not Apple's Prince Charming]]. |
| 187 | [[/folder]] |
| 188 | |
| 189 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 190 | * ''Anime/AfroSamurai 2: Revenge of Kuma'' had three episodes planned only to be cancelled after the first one received negative reviews. |
| 191 | * ''VideoGame/AngryBirds Stella'' ends with BigBad Gale going into a mine and Stella and her friends following her. Unfortunately, due the failure of the ''Angry Birds Stella'' brand, the story ended there, with Gale never being fightable, and the app getting removed from the Play Store. |
| 192 | * ''[[VideoGame/BraveNineStory BraveNine Story]]'' was initially planned to have at least 15 books worth of battles and story, the planned shut down on the game snuffed that out, leaving it at book seven. |
| 193 | * ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyGhosts'' ends with Rorke surviving the heroes' final attempt to kill him and abducting Logan with the intention of torturing him until he joins his cause. Due to poor sales, the next game in the series abandoned this universe, meaning Rorke will never truly die and Logan will never be saved. |
| 194 | * ''VideoGame/Conduit2'' ended with the protagonist accidentally drawing the attention of an alien ship out in deep space, causing it to travel towards Earth, followed by several former Presidents of the USA (decked out in power armour) showing up to help him save the world. The chances of the series getting a third and final game to round out the trilogy, however, were dashed following the game's mediocre critical reception and awful sales (coming in at just over a fifth of the sales of the original ''Conduit''). Aside from a mobile port of the original game in 2013, the series fell off the face of the earth following the second game's release in 2011, with not even a hint of it being in development for the entirety of the following console generation. |
| 195 | * The episodic ''VideoGame/{{D4}}'' remains incomplete at one season due to director Swery starting his own company -- and his previous company won't sell him the rights to his games. |
| 196 | * ''VideoGame/DeadSpace3'': ''Awakened'' ends with large cliffhanger BolivianArmyEnding. Brethren Moons have reached the Earth and are likely to destroy it and Isaac. Since the developer company is defunct now, this could never be resolved. |
| 197 | * ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'' suddenly shut down its servers in 2022 after four years. Although it had a satisfying finale, it’s clear that there were more plans with the story and lore, with several plot threads being left unresolved, such as [[spoiler: {{The Syndicate}}‘s true leader, the Agito’s redemption, more info about [[FishPeople the Abyssians]], etc]]. |
| 198 | * ''[[VideoGame/DrownedGod Drowned God: Conspiracy of the Ages]]'' ends abruptly, due to time and memory constraints that meant the full story couldn't be told, with the [[TheMenInBlack Man In Black]] who's been stalking you the whole game randomly knocking you out and preventing you from getting the last relic you've been searching for. Kether and Malchut, the ones who sent you to search for the relics, tell you that you'll have to try again soon. A sequel was planned called "CULT" that would have tied everything up, but with [[DiedDuringProduction the creator Harry Horse's death]] in 2007, that is most likely never going to happen. |
| 199 | * ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' was supposed to have a third entry, with Warren Spector stating that he already had ideas for its story, with the second game even having a post-credits scene depicting the many counterparts of Pete planning something. However, [[VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo the second game's]] poor sales and mixed reception ([[CreatorKiller causing the closure of Junction Point Studios]]) prevented these plans from coming into fruition. |
| 200 | * The post-release updates to ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'' that would have expanded on the storyline, including the addition of at least one new playable monster, and explained more about the characters and world were abruptly cut off when the developers, Turtle Rock Studios, lost their contract with their publisher 2K, who declined to continue supporting the game (likely due to its underwhelming sales and dwindling player base). The developers just barely had enough time to go over the lengthy amounts of content that were cut or planned from the game before their license for developing ''Evolve'' was taken. |
| 201 | * The MMORPG ''{{VideoGame/Feral}}'' was shut down while the [[DarkWorld Betwixt's]] pull on Feral was growing and the Queens were still trapped in their nightmares. |
| 202 | * ''VideoGame/FreedomForce 2'' ends with the Jean Grey {{expy}} Alchemiss encountering an entity calling itself ''Energy X''. Unfortunately, [[https://web.archive.org/web/20140219143601/http://irrationalgames.com/new-featured/a-message-from-ken-levine-2/ we'll never see a third game]]. |
| 203 | * Episode 1 of the ''Half-Life 2'' GameMod ''[[https://www.moddb.com/mods/half-life-2-short-stories Human Error]]'', in which the player takes control of a Civil Protection officer, ends after [[spoiler:the player and his companions enter a portal to Xen]], and the developer has said another episode is very unlikely, with them instead working on a new mod called ''From Earth''. |
| 204 | * As video games go, there isn't a more notorious example than ''VideoGame/HalfLife2''. The ending of ''Episode Two'' establishes that Gordon will most likely next be visiting an Aperture ship called the Borealis, which was just established the Combine are also interested in; and also, [[spoiler:Dog is somehow immune to the Combine Advisors' psychic abilities, which given that the Advisors are now concerned about Freeman enough to intervene personally, is likely to play a major role. It was also revealed that Alyx is ''also'' one of the G-Man's hirelings, and Eli has some kind of contract with the G-Man.]] All in all, one hell of a setup for the next chapter. But, Episode 3 never materialized, and Valve has by all appearances abandoned the ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' franchise entirely. Valve eventually did announce a new game in the series, ''VideoGame/HalfLifeAlyx'', an {{interquel}} set between ''Half-Life'' and ''Half-Life 2'', [[spoiler:which ended with a change in the timeline where Eli survived the events of ''Episode Two'' but with Alyx under the G-Man's "employment",]] which means the story may continue in the future. |
| 205 | * The ''Franchise/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' puzzle game ''[=JoJo=]'s Pitter-Patter Pop!'' was shuttered not only [[NoExportForYou before it could see an overseas release]], but before it could add any characters from after [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Part 5]]. |
| 206 | * The ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'' series. The last game does give a glorious send off (of a sort) to one of its two main protagonists and does end on a hopeful note but the BigBad is still at large and there's plenty of dangling story strings to be resolved. A final game to wrap the series up will almost certainly not be made due to the main writer departing and the death of Creator/TonyJay. |
| 207 | * ''Franchise/MegaMan'': |
| 208 | ** ''VideoGame/MegaManLegends'' series falls under this trope, in light of the ''Legends 3'' cancellation by Creator/{{Capcom}}. Two series of remakes were also Cut Short by Capcom. The ''[[VideoGame/MegaManPoweredUp Powered Up]]'' series and the ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX Maverick Hunter X]]'' series would have continued on from being remakes of their respective source series if not for the fact that both remakes were commercially unsuccessful. |
| 209 | ** ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'' 4 was already half-done before Capcom decided to stop with the 3 and, so, got cancelled. |
| 210 | ** ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' ends in a high note in Advent, opening up the way for a third game that has still yet to come... |
| 211 | * ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVThePhantomPain'' suffers from this; even though the game has a complete storyline and a fair amount of content, the game's plot was implied to be only a third or even a fifth of what Creator/HideoKojima had planned for the GrandFinale to the ''Metal Gear'' series. Unfortunately, after Kojima left Creator/{{Konami}} following [[ScrewedByTheNetwork an incredible amount of mismanagement on Konami's part]], the game's final arc [[NoEnding was left unfinished]], leaving fans with nothing but a rough storyboard in the game's special edition to wrap everything up. |
| 212 | * It would be easier to list multi-part modules for ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights''/''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2'' that managed to finish their plot than ones that don't. |
| 213 | * The 1999 PC SurvivalHorror game ''VideoGame/{{Nocturne|1999}}'' ended on a positively agonizing cliffhanger, which over a decade later has yet to be revisited thanks to the game's storyline morphing into ''VideoGame/{{Bloodrayne}}''. All is not lost, though: an interview with the developers stated that ''Nocturne'' is not CanonDiscontinuity, and that they created ''Bloodrayne'' specifically to have an intellectual property they could relinquish to Majesco if and when they severed ties with the company. They still hope to release a true sequel to ''Nocturne'' someday. |
| 214 | * ''VideoGame/ObsCure II'' ends with the surviving protagonists facing down a giant monster, after learning about the GreaterScopeVillain that was secretly behind the events of the two games. However, the sequel fell into DevelopmentHell, and by the time it finally came out, it was a DivorcedInstallment known as ''Final Exam''. As a result, the cliffhanger at the end of ''[=ObsCure=] II'' becomes a BolivianArmyEnding, even with the hopeful note it goes out on. |
| 215 | * When the first ''VideoGame/{{Oddworld}}'' game, Abe's Oddysee, was released in 1997 it was said to be the first title in a "Quintology." A second game came out in 2001, but the series effectively ended after that due to the poor sales of spinoff game ''VideoGame/OddworldStrangersWrath'', despite critical acclaim — though a ContinuityReboot so far consisting of ''VideoGame/OddworldNewNTasty'' and ''VideoGame/OddworldSoulstorm'' has been released. |
| 216 | * ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia2008'' ends after the prince removes the seal from the Temple releasing Ahriman to bring Elika back to life, where he carries her in his arms as Ahriman flies over them. This ending made people pitch for a resolution, and a few months later Ubisoft released the DLC "Epilogue" that adds few more hours after the first ending. The heroes go in a ruined temple overrun by the recent corruption to seek refuge, and Elika is extremely angry (slapping him) at the Prince for releasing the god of darkness; but they work together to get out of the temple while fighting Elika's father, now one of Ahriman's corrupted. For the whole DLC, Elika keeps a grudge to the prince, despite him explaining that he did that because Ahriman, upon being freed, could not have been stopped with Elika dead, while saying that she is capable of stopping him and that Ahriman fears her. Elika instead scolds the prince for having doomed the world for her sake, saying that she's incapable of stopping him. When the two manage to get to the end, Elika simply abandons the prince to his fate, while saying that she needs to find her people, and leaves without a single goodbye, with the prince calling out at her, ending with Ahriman saying that the prince was now alone, a clear "to be continued" message. |
| 217 | ** ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaTheFallenKing'': This DS game follows the ending of the first game. The prince having found a way to get out of the temple after being abandoned by Elika, tries to seek aid to fight Ahriman in the city of New Dawn, now under siege, where he finds a new ally, the Magus King Zal, who helps him drive off Ahriman from the city, but dies in the process due to the corruption. The prince then, after cleansing the city from the corruption, is left to seek aid from the God of light and a new ally would have showed up, effectively ending the game with a new cliffhanger. |
| 218 | * The AllegedlyFreeGame ''Return to Tuntown'', which was a sequel to the video game ''Tuntown'', was discontinued seven months after its release while its story had many loose ends that aren't wrapped up due to [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks fandom backlash about how it wasn't as fun as the original game.]] |
| 219 | * ''VideoGame/{{Richman}}'''s ninth main title was an AllegedlyFreeGame cancelled in late 2020, making its premise of "destroying a giant robot planning to take over the entire world's fortune" unresolved. |
| 220 | * ''VideoGame/{{Shenmue}}''. The second installment ended with Ryo finally meeting Shenhua and discovering that the mirror he's been carrying does indeed have some sort of supernatural power. Then Yu Suzuki got the plug pulled on his series due to poor sales, so we'll never know the significance of this, nor Lan Di's ultimate role in the story. Then Suzuki quit at Sega, guaranteeing that we'll ''really'' never know how it all would have turned out. Well, until ''VideoGame/ShenmueIII''... is what we would say, if that game didn't also end on another SequelHook that has fans continuing to wait for what once again seems like a very unlikely proper conclusion. |
| 221 | * Much like the [[VideoGame/BendyAndTheInkMachine game before it]], ''VideoGame/ShowdownBandit'' was meant to be an episodic series with more chapters. Due to poor marketing and sales, the game only had one chapter with no conclusion before it was pulled from Steam. |
| 222 | * ''[[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4 Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II]]'' ended with Death Egg Mk.II shutting down but with it still being around Little Planet. A third episode was planned as a way to round out ''Sonic 4'' as a trilogy much like the original 16-bit games -- provided one considers ''VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles'' to be one full game instead of two separate ones. Lower than expected sales and critical reception of the first two episodes caused Sega to cancel ''Episode III''. |
| 223 | * ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburV'''s Story Mode, as production time was running out. It actually caused the ''entire'' storyline of [[VideoGame/SoulSeries the series]] up to that point to be abandoned, since the game, despite its success, had such [[BrokenBase a massive backlash]], Bandai Namco had to do a soft reboot with the next installment, ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'', which explores an alternate timeline (albeit with references to the original). |
| 224 | * Creator/{{Atari}} announced a series of four games for its Platform/Atari2600 system collectively called ''VideoGame/{{Swordquest}}'', which offered real world prizes to the first players to solve the puzzles in the games/comic books that came with them (the books contained the clues to the puzzle, but you needed to beat the game to know which pages had ''real'' clues and which were just {{red herring}}s). Due to MediaNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, only the first two games in the series received wide release; the third had a limited release and the fourth was never completed, though it would eventually appear in the compilation game ''Atari 50'. |
| 225 | * ''VideoGame/TransformersUniverse'' lasted only six months in open beta-testing before the plug was pulled. It's estimated that only 10% of the planned story content made it online during its short lifespan. |
| 226 | * Namco's ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}'' franchise was also Cut Short after Episodes ''I'' and ''II'' fell short of sales expectations. Originally intended to be six games produced over a decade and spread out across the Platform/PlayStation2 and what was to become the Platform/PlayStation3, it was wrapped up after only three games, with the final one ending on a non-commital SequelHook just in case it somehow sold well enough to warrant an actual ''Episode IV''. [[DownerEnding It didn't]]. ''Episode II'' is derided as a FranchiseKiller, and for good measure (it was not a very good game), but it wasn't the only factor fans like to single out. With all of that said, the series would eventually get a SpiritualSuccessor in the form of the incredibly popular ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles'' series. |
| 227 | * After Creator/TelltaleGames declared bankruptcy in September of 2018, all of their upcoming games such as ''VideoGame/TheWolfAmongUs'' Season 2 were cancelled and the majority of their staff was laid off. Although at the 2019 Game Awards, a trailer for ''The Wolf Among Us'' Season 2 unexpectedly made an appearance, with many of the original staff and voice actors returning. |
| 228 | [[/folder]] |
| 229 | |
| 230 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 231 | * ''Daddy Spider'' was made in response to the success of ''WebAnimation/LucasTheSpider'', and followed Lucas' father as he looked for his son. However, due to copyright violations, the shorts were removed and the account was deleted, leaving his situation unresolved. |
| 232 | * ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YWoB9jFoVc Hero]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYFOGkqiR1Y High]]'', a ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' HighSchoolAU, ended on [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPWkb-XVEEw episode 3]] once production company Creator/{{Machinima}} went under. Sister company Creator/RoosterTeeth has featured it in the anthology ''Neon Konbini''. |
| 233 | * Creator/JustinRoiland's short-lived series ''WebAnimation/HouseOfCosbys'' was cancelled because of a cease and desist from one of Creator/BillCosby's attorneys. As a result, a lot of plot threads were left unresolved, such as Cosby 10 and Mitchell finding out why aliens attacked the compound, Evil Cosby's intentions, and Cosbyette giving birth to Mitchell's child. |
| 234 | * Has happened to many, ''many'' ObjectShows, to the point that it is considered the exception, not the norm, for a show to complete its run. A few noteworthy examples: |
| 235 | ** Perhaps the biggest name was ''WebAnimation/BattleForDreamIsland'': while it was able to wrap up both its first and fourth seasons, the second came to an abrupt halt (well, more like a ten year hiatus) after five episodes, and the third did likewise after only ''one''. |
| 236 | ** ''WebAnimation/BattleForObjectDestination'' was cut short in the middle of a MultiPartEpisode. While it attempted to continue as the spin-off show ''Earthquake'', that ended up being canned as well once [[RoleEndingMisdemeanor creator Maxwell Hall was caught attempting to groom a minor]]. |
| 237 | ** Averted with season 2 of ''WebAnimation/InanimateInsanity'': while it appeared at first to have been cut short in favor of ''WebAnimation/InanimateInsanityInvitational'', WordOfGod [[https://www.youtube.com/shorts/qWw4Olz7cPw confirmed]] that season 3 chronologically takes place in the middle of season 2, and that season will eventually have a proper conclusion. |
| 238 | ** ''WebAnimation/ObjectHavoc'' only lasted two episodes before the creator lost interest and cancelled the third. |
| 239 | ** A similar trajectory befell the RuderAndCruder ''WebAnimation/ObjectRedundancy'' - two episodes, and a third in production before the plug was pulled. |
| 240 | ** ''WebAnimation/ObjectOverload'''s original run sputtered out after six episodes. An attempted ContinuityReboot failed to follow up with a second. |
| 241 | * The WebAnimation/SockSeries was planned to be a quadrilogy, but development on ''Rictus of Sock'' was unfortunately halted when the creator chose to pursue another project. |
| 242 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' Volume 9 ends with Team RWBY and Jaune returning from the Ever After to find that the various countries had gathered at Vacuo, meaning Ruby's call for unity in Volume 8 didn't go unheeded. An animatic epilogue showed the five reuniting with their friends while Ruby is hoisted as a hero and Weiss a villain by the populace. Volume 10 was planned, but put into DevelopmentHell due to financial concerns before Creator/RoosterTeeth as a whole was shut down by Creator/WarnerBrosDiscovery. |
| 243 | * The ''Franchise/DragonAge'' machinima series ''WebAnimation/WardensFall'' ends just after Kristoff tracks down Cyril, who had been bringing human sacrifices to the Mother's servants to feed her hunger. Cyril kills himself by jumping off a building and Kristoff stalks off having reached a dead end in his investigation. Apparently a sixth episode was planned but was never made. |
| 244 | * Due to the abrupt shutdown of Rooster Teeth by Warner Discovery, ''WebAnimation/CampCamp'' ended only 4 episodes into its fifth season. |
| 245 | [[/folder]] |
| 246 | |
| 247 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 248 | * ''Webcomic/AbstractGender'' died before most of the ongoing storylines (including the MythArc) could be ultimately resolved. |
| 249 | * ''Webcomic/AntiHEROES'', already infamous for its sporadic release schedule, stopped receiving updates entirely after May 8th, 2015, with no warning from its creators. While the comic is still being hosted, it's safe to assume that it will never receive a proper conclusion. |
| 250 | * ''Webcomic/{{Consolers}}'' abruptly ceased updates on 23rd June 2018, after the second part of a mini-arc about Creator/SquareEnix's stint as Game Designers Studio. |
| 251 | * ''Webcomic/CriticalMiss'', as well as its spinoff/reboot series ''Webcomic/ErinDiesAlone'' and ''Critical Mix'' all met this fate in the span of a few years. ''Miss'' ended near the beginning of an arc where the protagonist was deported from the United States back to Canada (due to the creators being laid off by ''The Escapist'', who held onto the IP rights), ''Erin Dies Alone'' abruptly stopped during the fight against the FinalBoss of their ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' parody arc, and ''Mix''[[note]]again hosted by ''The Escapist'' after the creators were rehired during a relaunch of the site[[/note]] ended near the beginning of an arc about one of the protagonists trying to find healthcare after [[{{Kneecapping}} having his legs broken]] by [[VideoGame/AnimalCrossing Tom Nook's]] hired muscle for being behind on his rent (due to the creators being laid off again). |
| 252 | * ''Webcomic/CucumberQuest'' is still supposed to conclude, but in illustrated script format rather than as a fully illustrated comic. However, this means that the physical release ''was'' cut short, and there are no plans so far to release a physical copy of Chapter 5, which has been completed. |
| 253 | %% * ''Webcomic/ElfOnlyInn'', twice. |
| 254 | * Both ''WebComic/FairyTaleRejects'' and its spinoff ''Freelance Good Guys'' ended mid-storyline due to the creator's health issues preventing her from drawing full comics. They have since been rebooted into the online literature series ''Literature/LoomingGaia''. |
| 255 | * ''Webcomic/HannaIsNotABoysName'' last updated in 2011 when every major character was in mortal peril. [[spoiler:Zombie, Hanna, and Toni are locked with a questionably sane Ples (who just whipped out a gun and fired it), and Conrad's trapped with Lamont, Worth, and Adelaide trying to get to Hanna and escape Abner. Oh, and Veser ran out a while ago, and we never found out where he went.]] Now the comic site's domain has expired, and creator Tess Stone has moved on to a new webcomic called ''Webcomic/NotDrunkEnough''. |
| 256 | * ''Webcomic/LifeOfWily'''s author promised he would only stop updating once the comic stopped being enjoyable, and in May 2003, that moment came - the final strip showed Wily's [[spoiler: GrandTheftMe plan soundly succeeding, leading to the murder of Doctor Light and Wily being in a position to wreak havoc against our heroes, who believe him to BE Doctor Light]]. A pretty dire place to end the story in. |
| 257 | * ''Webcomic/OddballFancomics'': The last strip has Rick using a dimensional transporter to try and reach his home dimension, now having been taken over by [[spoiler: Rick X]], who has been murdering everyone he finds. Since he has no idea what his dimension's coordinates are, the reader is left with the implication [[TheBadGuyWins that he'll never succeed]]. The blow was [[AuthorsSavingThrow lessened a bit]] when Rick appeared in [[Webcomic/BobAndGeorge the main comic]], and he explained that the reason he hasn't updated the comic is [[{{Bathos}} he found a dimension of nothing but beer and no longer wants to leave]]. |
| 258 | * ''Webcomic/PicturesForSadChildren'' is an odd example of a webcomic doing this ''deliberately''. The story of Paul and Gary just ended without any resolution; since this, John Campbell has continued writing comics in [[MagicRealism the same style]], just with no overarching plot or recurring characters. |
| 259 | * ''Webcomic/{{QUILTBAG}}'' ended after just two of the planned eight chapters (one for every [[LetterMotif letter]] in the title acronym) because writer Creator/TCampbell felt unsatisfied with the project's direction. |
| 260 | * ''Webcomic/ReBootCodeOfHonor'': Ironically, like its [[WesternAnimation/ReBoot parent series]], ''Code of Honor'' was also cut short and had to drop at least one subplot. Unlike the original series, however, ''Code of Honor did'' have a resolution. |
| 261 | * ''Webcomic/RPGWorld'' was infamously cancelled in 2007 due to a severe case of ArtistDisillusionment just as the heroes invade Galgarion's headquarters and make it to him for a final battle. What's more there was a subplot going on that Rika's robots had stumbled upon a time machine [[spoiler:meaning there could possibly be a way to prevent her from being killed by Galgarion]]. With the author moving onto a professional animation career, it seemed unlikely that it'd ever get a formal conclusion from the original creator, Ian Jones-Quartey. A fan-based attempt to pick up where the original series left off ([[ApprovalOfGod with the author's blessing]]) launched in 2016, but went on a hiatus of more than year and a half after just a few months. After over a decade, however, and before the fan project returned from hiatus, the series was given an official, if informal (most of the comic's dangling plot threads were LeftHanging), conclusion via a crossover with one of Ian's more recent works, ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'', with Ian himself [[https://ianjq.tumblr.com/post/166049167579/here-it-is-the-final-rpg-world-comic-a-recent inking a final page]] as a proper ending. |
| 262 | * In 2015, the heroes of ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'' had just reached big final showdown with Mary Lee Walsh; after her defeat they release the most powerful evil being in the comic, Count Graduon, at which point... the creator angrily announced she hated her greedy fanbase, swore off the internet, and abandoned her website. Chris wouldn't release comics regularly again until June 2017. |
| 263 | * All of the series available on Platform/ShiftyLook were abruptly cancelled when Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment announced its closure in March of 2014. Some handled the transition better than others. The animated series based on ''VideoGame/{{Bravoman}}'' and ''WebAnimation/{{Mappy}}'' received proper endings due to theirs being planned out from the start; ''Webcomic/LegendOfTheValkyrie'' and the ''VideoGame/WonderMomo'' webcomic cut off ongoing arcs to scramble for a decent ending, while ''[[VideoGame/{{Klonoa}} Klonoa: Dream Traveler of Noctis Sol]]'' infamously was LeftHanging right before its climactic battle. |
| 264 | * ''Webcomic/SixGunMage'': Chris Hazelton decided to end the comic after 10 year, citing dissatisfaction with the comic and wanting to move on to a different project alongside ''Webcomic/{{Misfile}}: Hell High''. So he wrapped things up abruptly after the final showdown with recurring foe, The White Witch. Every other plot line not directly tied to her was left unresolved (with a couple of new mysteries thrown in at the end for variety[[note]]Specifically: "Did Ravena Starling sacrifice her magic eyesight to bring Savana back from the dead (and if so, how)" and "What is the nature of the child that emerged from the White Witch's remains: Truly Kylie's daughter, a demon or something in between?"[[/note]]). |
| 265 | * The webcomic for ''Webcomic/TeamFortress2'' has never been officially cancelled, but there have been no updates since Issue #6 came out in January of 2017, leading to an infamous cliffhanger that might never be resolved. |
| 266 | * ''Webcomic/TheTrenches'' abruptly stopped receiving updates after January 5, 2016 in the middle of its fifth "season", while its supplementary "Tales From the Trenches" (real life horror stories of the working conditions in the game development industry provided from anonymous developers) stopped posting updates on September 10, 2015. No official reason for either closure was ever provided. |
| 267 | %% * ''Webcomic/VenusEnvy''. Seems to be back, if sporadically, as of September 2009. |
| 268 | * ''Webcomic/YaoiTales'', a comic that puts a YaoiGenre spin on classic fairy tales and Disney movies, went on prolonged hiatus in 2014, right before the climax to their adaptation of ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'', due to the author dealing with an overload of work in college. The author promised to return to it and complete it someday. As of this writing, she hasn't, but it hardly matters at this point as Smackjeeves, the site it was hosted on, shut down in 2020 and while many comics have been archived from the site, ''Yaoi Tales'' was not one of those titles. |
| 269 | * ''Webcomic/YehudaMoonAndTheKickstandCyclery'' ended in the middle of two story arcs because the artist couldn't fit it in between commitments. |
| 270 | [[/folder]] |
| 271 | |
| 272 | ---- |
| 273 | !!!Examples of translated works: |
| 274 | [[folder:Into English]] |
| 275 | * ''Manga/CaseClosed'' is a notorious example, with its English dub covering 130 episodes and 6 movies before Creator/FUNimation decided not to license future episodes, leaving the series off on a cliffhanger with no resolution. |
| 276 | * ''Anime/TokyoMewMew'''s English dub "Mew Mew Power" only covered the first 26 out of 52 episodes due to Creator/FourKidsEntertainment not reaching a merchandise deal for the show. Only 23 episodes aired in the US, finishing with a pretty standard episode and nothing resembling a conclusion. All 26 English dub episodes aired in some parts of the world (namely the Anglophone countries, Latin America, and certain European countries), ending the series on a really sharp cliffhanger complete with a "To be continued..." message. To make matters worse, the English dub was the source of many foreign dubs like the Spanish, Dutch, Hungarian, Danish, and Greek dubs, which all ended on the same cliffhanger, while the French, Hebrew, Serbian, and Portuguese dubs were UnCanceled and got their own local dubs of the second half of ''Tokyo Mew Mew''. |
| 277 | * ''Anime/FZeroGPLegend'''s English dub from Creator/FourKidsEntertainment (which was surprisingly pretty accurate) only covered the first 15 episodes out of 51 due to the show's dwindling reception in its home country. That means viewers of that dub will never get to hear how that memetic final episode would sound like. |
| 278 | * Was originally the case with ''Manga/DGrayMan'' (until 2016). The English Dub initially ended when Allen Walker and co. were leaving on a ship still on the search for General Cross with the Millennium Earl and Road Kamelot looking at a large amount of Akuma (that are clearly meant for the exorcists). Then...nothing. The English Dub ended at that point halfway through the series with no plans at the time to dub the other half due to the Japanese licensors asking for more money than Creator/FUNimation was willing to pay. However, this changed, due to the fact that Creator/FUNimation did in fact license the 2016 series, ''Hallow'', as part of the 2016 Summer Simulcast season, along with licensing the second half of the series a week later on June 30th, 2016. |
| 279 | * ''Anime/FullMoon'' only had 28 episodes released to DVD in the US, but apparently all 52 episodes were dubbed, though the last batch have never been released. |
| 280 | * ''Manga/HikaruNoGo'' also got an English dub that covered the whole series, but only the first 50 episodes out of 75 were released to DVD, while the first 72 eps were streamed on ''Toonami Jetstream''. The remaining 3 episodes were never released in the US until several years later when the series was made available for download through iTunes. However, the New Years Eve special (which itself didn't have an ending) has never been dubbed. |
| 281 | * ''Manga/KaitouSaintTail'''s English dub covered the first 15 episodes before it was canceled due to low sales. The remaining 28 episodes were released to DVD subtitled-only. |
| 282 | * Creator/FUNimation's English dub of ''Manga/{{Kodocha}}'' only reached half the series (episode 51 out of 102) before it was canceled due to low sales. |
| 283 | * ''Anime/SailorMoon'''s [=DiC=] English dub was originally cut short in the middle of R (the second season) with only 65 episodes dubbed (covering the first 72 Japanese episodes) before it was UnCanceled after YTV and Irwin Toy in Canada offered to fund more episodes to wrap up the storyline, which resulted in the last 17 episodes of R being dubbed and labeled "The Lost Episodes." It was another three years before YTV and Creator/CartoonNetwork funded episodes of the ''S'' and ''[=SuperS=]'' seasons (with [[Creator/{{Geneon}} Pioneer]] funding dubs of the movies) without [=DiC=] and instead with Toei's US branch "Cloverway." Unfortunately, they were never able to dub the final season ''Sailor Stars'' (the first arc of which directly continued on from the end of ''[=SuperS=]''). It wasn't until Viz Media picked up the series and commissioned an entire redub that an English dub of that season was finally announced, or indeed for there to be an official English release of ''Sailor Stars'' (a subtitled version of which was posted on Creator/{{Hulu}} once subs of the rest of the series' run had been re-released there, beginning immediately after Viz had announced the license). They also plan to dub the special shorts that were attached to the movies, as well as the mini specials that were part of the [=SuperS=] season. |
| 284 | * ''Manga/DragonBall'''s English dub from Creator/FUNimation and BLT Productions was cut short after the first 13 episodes and first movie. It wasn't until ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' found success in the US was Creator/FUNimation able to give the show a second try and produce an all-new English dub from scratch. |
| 285 | ** The late-1980s Harmony Gold dub of ''Dragon Ball'' was also abandoned after one movie and a couple of episodes. |
| 286 | ** The original [=FUNimation=] produced, Saban distributed, Ocean voiced version of ''Dragon Ball Z'' ended after 53 episodes (or 56 episodes if the butchered ''[[Anime/DragonBallZTheTreeOfMight The Tree of Might]]'' three-parter is counted). This led to these 53 episodes being rerun '''countless''' times on Cartoon Network until [=FUNimation=] finally dubbed new episodes. There is a common misconception that the "Ocean dub" continued in Canada only, however this dub (which covered the Cell-Buu arcs) was a completely separate production with drastically different music and many recasts. |
| 287 | ** The infamous "Big Green" dub of the ''Dragon Ball Z'' movies ended at the ninth one (''[[Anime/DragonBallZBojackUnbound Bojack Unbound]]'') for some unknown reason. |
| 288 | * ''Anime/FistOfTheNorthStar'''s English dub from Creator/MangaEntertainment and Showtime Beyond covered only 36 out of 152 episodes (not including Creator/StreamlinePictures' dub of the movie). However Creator/DiscotekMedia picked up the series and released it in its entirety subtitled-only (with only the first 36 eps bilingual). |
| 289 | * Creator/MediaBlasters' dub of ''Anime/GaoGaiGar'' only lasted for 25 episodes due to low sales. The remaining 24 episodes were released in a box set sub-only. |
| 290 | * Creator/TheOceanGroup's English dub of the 1999 ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' anime only covered its TV episodes, stopping at the point in the Yorknew arc where [[spoiler:Hisoka texts Kurapika, telling him that the corpses of the Phantom Troupe aren't real]]. Low DVD sales kept the [=OVAs=] covering the rest of the arc as well as the Greed Island Arc from ever reaching the Anglosphere. |
| 291 | * ''Anime/LupinIIIPartII'''s English dub from [[Creator/{{Geneon}} Pioneer]] and Phuuz was cut short after 80 episodes. This discounts an unrelated English dub of eps. 145 and 155 from Creator/StreamlinePictures. Only 25 of those episodes (skipping episode 3) aired on Creator/AdultSwim due to low ratings with more episodes released to DVD and broadcast on G4. The DVD releases were canceled due to low sales. There was a rumor that more episodes or even ''all'' the episodes were dubbed by Phuuz, but this has never been proven true. All 82 English dub episodes (including 145 and 155) were uploaded to Creator/{{Hulu}}, but nothing else seemed to come until December 2015 when Platform/{{Crunchyroll}} posted episodes 81-155 subbed in North America, to be followed with Creator/DiscotekMedia announcing that they were going to release the entire series on DVD starting in 2016. |
| 292 | * ''Manga/MaisonIkkoku'''s English dub was initially canceled after episode 36 due to low VHS sales, but was UnCanceled, and the remaining 60 episodes were dubbed and released years later with a mostly different cast. |
| 293 | * ''Manga/SaintSeiya'''s edited English dub from [=DiC=] entitled ''Knights of the Zodiac'' was canceled after 40 episodes, though only 32 aired on Creator/CartoonNetwork. Then Creator/ADVFilms (who was releasing the [=DVDs=]) was allowed to produce their own uncut English dub, which ended at episode 60 because [=DiC=] refused to license anymore episodes. After [=DiC=]'s license expired, the series remained in limbo for many years before it was rescued by Flatiron Films/Cinedigm, who released a sub-only boxset of the first 73 episodes. |
| 294 | * ''Anime/ScienceNinjaTeamGatchaman'''s second English dub entitled ''Anime/GForceGuardiansOfSpace'' was cut short at episode 80 (covering the first 82 episodes) before a straight uncut English dub of the whole series was done in 2003. |
| 295 | ** Also, the two sequel series ''Gatchaman II'' and ''Gatchaman Fighter'' weren't included in ADV's dub and were later released by their successor company, Sentai Filmworks, subtitled-only. |
| 296 | * ''Manga/SgtFrog'''s English dub originally only covered the initial 51 episodes before it was UnCanceled. Creator/FUNimation licensed the first 104 episodes, but put their dub on hold after episode 78. Their dub hasn't continued since, and the remaining 290+ episodes have never been localized. |
| 297 | * ''Literature/TheFamiliarOfZero'''s English dub only covered the first season before Creator/{{Geneon}} went under. The series was later rescued by Creator/SentaiFilmworks, who chose not to dub the remaining three seasons. |
| 298 | * ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'''s English dub also only covered the first season before Creator/{{Geneon}} went under. The sequel series, which explains the plot of the first season, has never been licensed or dubbed (though it got a sub-only release in Australia). Both seasons have been rescued by Creator/SentaiFilmworks, but unfortunately, like ''[=FoZ=]'', these seasons will not dubbed. |
| 299 | * The English dub of the 1999 adaptation of ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' only covers the original 62 episode run of the television series. Creator/VizMedia [[NoDubForYou never bothered dubbing the OVAs]], ''which continue the story''. |
| 300 | * The ''Manga/{{MAR}}'' dub fell victim to this due to Cartoon Network making it an online exclusive, their attempts to broadcast it being stifled when they did it out of order and their attempts to do it properly pretty much wrecking any chances of it. Due to this, Viz decided to cut their losses and discontinued the dub, which ended at the Zonnen filler arc. |
| 301 | * The dubs of ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'' and ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'' ended in medias res. ''GX'' got up to the third season but [=4Kids=] never dubbed the fourth, making the show end on a DownerEnding. ''5Ds''[='=] dub stopped right in the middle of the last season just as the villains were putting their endgame into motion. |
| 302 | * The Creator/FourKidsEntertainment dub of ''Anime/OjamajoDoremi'' (''Magical [=DoReMi=]'') only covered (most of, barring [[MissingEpisode episode 30]]) the first season of the show. Even then, only twenty-six episodes aired on television, with the remaining episodes all premiering online a year later. |
| 303 | * The English release of ''Manga/Life2002'' was cut short only a few volumes in due to legal issues. |
| 304 | * The Philippine English dub of ''Anime/ZettaiMutekiRaijinOh'' ends up until the episode of the 2nd appearance of God Raijin-Oh. They never got to the ending. |
| 305 | * This was the case for the original Philippine English dub of ''Anime/VoltesV'', due to the Marcos regime banning the show near the series' end. They wouldn't get the last few episodes until a CompilationMovie of the said episodes came out in theaters in 1999. |
| 306 | * None of the English dubs of ''Manga/{{Doraemon}}'' and ''Manga/CrayonShinChan'' cover the whole series. |
| 307 | * The British re-versioning of ''Series/TheNoddyShop'' that aired outside of North America, ''Noddy In Toyland'', where ''WesternAnimation/NoddysToylandAdventures'' segments were changed into their original British versions, never aired the second season of the show. This is despite the fact that this is the season that contains Truman gaining the ability to talk to the toys and Johnny, as well as Noddy finally interacting with other characters rather than just being a prop used for stories, and the GrandFinale, likely because the segments where Noddy talked would all have to be redubbed by Susan Sheridan, his British voice actor. This season did air dubbed in non-English speaking countries. |
| 308 | * Creator/VIZMedia only translated the first 5 out of 11 volumes of ''Manga/ChocoMimi'' into English. |
| 309 | * Tokyopop had released three volumes of a ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED'' novelization out of five, but never got around to releasing the last two. |
| 310 | ** In the same vein, Tokyopop released the initial ''Manga/MobileSuitGundamSEEDAstray'', its sequel series ''X Astray'' and only ''one'' of the initial side-stories ''Astray R'', but they never released ''Astray B''. |
| 311 | * The official translation of the ''VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}}'' manga, ''Lunar Legend Tsukihime'', only made it through 6 volumes out of 10, although fan translations managed to complete it. |
| 312 | [[/folder]] |
| 313 | |
| 314 | [[folder:Into Greek]] |
| 315 | * Psichogios Editions' Greek translation of the ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'' novels stopped after two books. |
| 316 | * The Greek dub of ''Manga/TokyoMewMew'' was based off the [=4Kids=] dub, and thus stopped after Episode 26. |
| 317 | [[/folder]] |
| 318 | |
| 319 | [[folder:Into Tagalog]] |
| 320 | * ''Series/KamenRiderBlack'' only got up to the penultimate episode, and the finale never aired or got dubbed, leaving Pinoy viewers to wait years until an English fansub of the last episode to see the end of the series. |
| 321 | * ''Series/KousokuSentaiTurboranger'' only got until the first appearance of Super Turbo Robo. After that it started airing again on ''episode 2'' (As episode 1 (The episode looking back from ''Battle Fever J'' to ''Liveman'') ''[[NoDubForYou didn't get dubbed and aired]]''). |
| 322 | [[/folder]] |
| 323 |
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