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19
20->''"Watching John with the machine, it was suddenly so clear. The Terminator would never stop. It would never leave him, and it would never hurt him, never shout at him, or get drunk and hit him, or say it was too busy to spend time with him. It would always be there. And it would die to protect him. Of all the would-be fathers who came and went over the years, this thing, this machine, was the only one who measured up. In an insane world, it was the sanest choice."''
21-->-- '''Sarah Connor''', ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay''
22
23An amazingly large number of children in fiction suffer from ParentalAbandonment or parental death. Other children are "lucky enough" to have both parents, but unfortunately live in worlds where there are no HappilyMarried families. For most such children, life is an endless series of disappointments and let-downs. A lucky few, though, manage to find a Parental Substitute.
24
25A Parental Substitute is an adult friend who fills the children's lonely life with [[GoodParents guidance and (often) love]]. They guide the child and teach them how to stand on their own feet, how to have fun, and how to not be so bothered by the fact that Mommy or Daddy are never around (or ignore them). If the parents in question are [[DeceasedParentsAreTheBest dead]], the substitute may have known them and be able to answer when the child says TellMeAboutMyFather. They often tell the kid they are SoProudOfYou. Usually, by the end of the story, the Parental Substitute leaves as well, but at that point the kid is able to stand on their own two feet.
26
27This trope is often a feature of {{Tear Jerker}}s, especially if it follows TakeCareOfTheKids. If it's an older sibling who's taken over the parental role, that's PromotionToParent. The OldRetainer may take over this role in event that his employer's children are suffering from ParentalAbandonment. If an entire society has teens become parental substitutes, that's a TeenageWasteland. If the child gets into a big argument with the substitute, expect to hear "YoureNotMyFather" by the time things get really heated.
28
29ImaginaryFriend is often involved. If the Parental Substitute decides to make their status official, as it were, the kid becomes HappilyAdopted.
30
31Compare and closely related to PromotionToParent (when it's a sibling), HonoraryUncle, {{Nephewism}}, RaisedByGrandparents, and AdoptivePeerParent (for non-relatives), LikeASonToMe, TeamMom, and TeamDad. Not to be confused with MyRealDaddy.
32
33!!Example subpages:
34
35[[index]]
36* ParentalSubstitute/AnimeAndManga
37* ParentalSubstitute/ComicBooks
38* ParentalSubstitute/FanWorks
39* [[ParentalSubstitute/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
40* ParentalSubstitute/{{Literature}}
41* ParentalSubstitute/LiveActionTV
42* ParentalSubstitute/VideoGames
43* ParentalSubstitute/{{Webcomics}}
44* ParentalSubstitute/WesternAnimation
45[[/index]]
46
47!!Other examples:
48
49[[foldercontrol]]
50
51[[folder:Asian Animation]]
52* Technically, the Supermen from ''Animation/HappyHeroes'' don't have proper parents, being RidiculouslyHumanRobots that were revived from Mech Stones. With that said, Doctor H., the mechanic who revived them, acts as their father figure and takes care of them to make sure they're functioning properly.
53[[/folder]]
54
55[[folder:Fairy Tales]]
56* In "Literature/TheDancingWaterTheSingingAppleAndTheSpeakingBird", the princes and princess are raised by a deer, which oddly enough does not produce RaisedByWolves. Then again, kind-hearted fairies provided her, so perhaps it was magic.
57* "Literature/{{Tattercoats}}": The main character's mother dies in childbirth, her father's fate is unknown, and her grandfather refuses to take care of her. An old nurse is the only person who makes the effort to raise Tattercoats to the best of her ability.
58[[/folder]]
59
60[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
61* ''WesternAnimation/TheBoxtrolls'': Fish, for Eggs. Eggs indirectly calls the boxtroll his father at one point.
62%%* ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'': Ronin to Nod, in a way.
63* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': Dean [=McCoppin's=] a father-figure/mentor to Hogarth, whose actual father was a pilot in the American Airforce (and was presumably killed in the Korean War). [[spoiler: He presumably gets promoted to a real parent by the end of the film as he ends up in a relationship with Hogarth's mother.]] Hogarth himself has a [[KidWithTheLeash fatherly/big-brother relationship to the giant robot in the title]], who has the mentality of a very young child.
64* ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook'':
65** Baloo acts as this to Mowgli for the brief time they are together. Prior to him, he was RaisedByWolves, his adoptive father Rama even referring to him as being "like a real son".
66** Bagheera also takes on a fatherly role with Mowgli; in the live action [[Film/TheJungleBook2016 remake]], it's pretty much established Mowgli cares for him as a father, maybe even more than Akela or his biological father.
67** The Village Leader (the ruler of the Man Village) becomes this to Mowgli in the [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook2 2003 sequel]] after adopting him; even trying to show him the ways of responsibility that humans do.
68* ''WesternAnimation/{{How to Train Your Dragon|2010}}'': Although Hiccup's father is alive and well, it's Hiccup's boss Gobber the Belch who, despite being frustrated with the boy's overall clumsiness and uselessness, is nevertheless supportive and protective of him. He urges Hiccup to be happy with who he is, pressures Hiccup's father to let the boy train to fight dragons when it's clear that's what he wants to do, and even defends the boy from the bullies. He's harsh and InnocentlyInsensitive with his encouragement, but he genuinely means well.
69* ''Franchise/KungFuPanda''
70** Shifu is to Tai Lung and later Tigress, and Mr. Ping to Po.
71** The Soothsayer to Shen in ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda2''. AllThereInTheManual, though some of her interactions with Shen imply this. You get the feeling that if ''anyone'' else tried to take a bite out of his robes, they would get a knife to the throat.
72* ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch'':
73** Nani tries to be this for Lilo after [[PromotionToParent their parents' deaths]]. It's hard for both of them.
74** In [[Franchise/LiloAndStitch the sequels and]] [[WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries TV show]], [[MadScientist Jumba]] and [[WholesomeCrossdresser Pleakley]] end up as this too in a weird sort of way; Nani has no problems leaving Lilo and Stitch with "Uncle Jumba" and "Aunt Pleakley" when she's busy. David could end up as this (or at least a BigBrotherMentor) since he hangs out with them a lot as well and has ShipTease with Nani.
75* ''WesternAnimation/TitanAE'': The Parental Substitute relationship between Kale and Korso is made even more complicated by the fact that Korso is TheMole.
76* ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'': Silver is a mentor and father-figure to Jim. Considering how the story goes, it's one of the more turbulent examples, but it all works out in the most satisfying way possible.
77* ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty'': Flora, Fauna and Merryweather are the mother figures to Princess Aurora. While Aurora's mother never died, the princess did grow up without her mother close to her, so it fell on the fairies' hand to raise the child well. Aurora calls the three her aunts, though.
78* In ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet'': Ralph is a mix of both a big brother figure and a fatherly figure to Vanellope. They generally have the bond of siblings but there are also several aspects of their relationship, especially with regards to Ralph learning to let Vanellope be independent, that lean more towards a paternal relationship.
79* ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'': Over the course of the film, Sulley becomes a father figure to Boo. At one point, while Boo is disguised as a young monster, she gets separated from Mike and Sulley and ends up joining a group of young monster children being supervised by a babysitter. Eventually, Sulley finds her, and because of how relieved he is to see that she's safe, the babysitter mistakes Sulley for Boo's father.
80-->'''Sulley:''' ''[to Boo]'' Don't you ''ever'' run away from me again, young lady! I'm so glad you're safe.\
81'''Babysitter:''' Oh, my. What an affectionate father!
82* ''WesternAnimation/TheSeaBeast'':
83** Captain Crow has been a father figure to Jacob since he rescued the latter. He even regards Jacob as a son.
84** Over their adventures together, Jacob becomes a father figure to Maisie, [[spoiler:ending with her being HappilyAdopted by him]].
85[[/folder]]
86
87[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
88* Myth/GreekMythology:
89** Zeus fathered a number of sons, none of which he actually helped raise. Some of them were lucky enough to find substitute father figures who took care of them: Heracles was raised by Amphitryon, his mother's mortal husband, while Perseus was raised by the fisherman Dictys, who took his mother Danae in when she was abandoned by her own father, and Dionysus was raised by his maternal aunt Ino and her husband Athamas, who Zeus gave to them to take care of so his jealous wife Hera wouldn't find out about his affair.
90** Zeus himself was raised on a secluded island by nymphs, a goat, and his grandmother Gaia. He liked the goat best--enough to make it the constellation Capricorn after its death.
91** Achilles spent most of his childhood being taught by Chiron with no contact from his birth parents, so he treats Chiron more as a mother and father than either parent. This is best demonstrated in ''Literature/TheAchilleid'', when Achilles falls asleep after reuniting with his mother and ends up snuggling to sleep with the old centaur, more comfortable with him than his own mother.
92* ''Literature/TheFourGospels'': John the Apostle was likely the TagalongKid among Jesus' disciples. Apart from being "significantly younger" than his brother James (and the rest of the Twelve), it's unclear just how old John was at the point where he JumpedAtTheCall; but "the disciple whom He loved" (as John refers to himself when writing his gospel) might well mean ''parental'' love for a de facto HappilyAdopted son - making UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} John's parental substitute. In a DyingMomentOfAwesome Jesus also instructs Mary to [[TakeCareOfTheKids take care]] of John as if he were ''her'' son; and John later cares for Mary as if she were his mother, too.
93[[/folder]]
94
95[[folder:Pinballs]]
96* In ''Pinball/WhoDunnit1995'', Trixie sees her father's business partner, Tony, as a substitute dad after her real father disappears in an auto accident.
97[[/folder]]
98
99[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
100* On the 2016 ''[[Wrestling/RingOfHonor Road To Best In The World]]'' Silas Young took it upon himself to act as ACH's father after coming to the conclusion his seven year old son was more of a man than ACH. ACH was offended, already having a good relationship with his biological father.
101[[/folder]]
102
103[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
104* For Big Bird on ''Series/SesameStreet'', being only six years old, and living on his own, several of the adults on the show act as a parental figure for him, notably Gordon, Susan, and Maria. This gets lampshaded in one episode when Big Bird has to check into the hospital, and the receptionist asks Maria if she's his mother. She replies, "Not exactly... kind of... yes."
105* Eureeka in ''Series/EureekasCastle'' acts like a mother to Magellan the dragon, [[TeamMom and to a lesser extent, everyone else.]]
106[[/folder]]
107
108[[folder:Roleplay]]
109* ''Roleplay/DinoAttackRPG'':
110** Pierce filled this role for troubled teenager Kate Bishop, at least until [[spoiler:it turns out he actually ''is'' her father]].
111** Over the years, [[TheBartender Bartholomew Enderson]] became a father figure to Silencia Venomosa, or at least the closest she had to a father since the murder of her parents.
112** Greybeard inadvertently became a ''Grand''parental Substitute to Mary Rose, especially because she was too young to realize that he is not actually her grandfather.
113* In the ''Roleplay/LeagueOfIntergalacticCosmicChampions'' Artsy-Fartsy became the substitute mom to MysteriousWaif Quito Power.
114* In ''Roleplay/WarhammerFantasyDividedLoyalties'', Magister Regimand Speiseschrank became this for Mathilde Weber, after [[ParentalAbandonment Mathilde's biological parents and her entire hometown]] tried to [[WitchHunt burn her at the stake]] for being "cursed" with magic.
115[[/folder]]
116
117[[folder:Theater]]
118* In ''Theatre/HenryIV'' Falstaff likes to think that he is this to Hal. If anything, it is the other way round, at least in ''Theatre/HenryIVPart1'', where Hal is usually the one deciding what they're going to do, protecting Falstaff when he's in danger from the police, and telling him off when he behaves inappropriately. This makes Hal's rejection of Falstaff at the end of ''Theatre/HenryIVPart2'' a devastating example of ParentalAbandonment.
119* ''Theatre/IntoTheWoods'': Cinderella becomes one for Little Red Riding Hood and probably for Jack too.
120* In ''Theatre/{{Philoctetes}}'', Neoptolemus is mostly a good guy who is lacking in guidance. While Odysseus first takes on this role for him, Philoctetes becomes a more sincere parental figure to him by the end.
121* ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}''
122** George Washington is this for the protagonist, which causes no small amount of taunts from Hamilton's enemies. (It should be noted that, historically, Washington was also a father figure to Lafayette and John Laurens.) Hamilton actually resents Washington's paternal feelings since he's got a lot of DaddyIssues, and it causes a major rift in "Meet Me Inside.". Although it is played a lot more straight in the later part of the play where the last time we see Washington alive is during the "the Reynolds Papers" number where Washington get the paper thrust into his face, and he answer with a silent look of pure disgust at Hamilton who until then stoicly stood perfectly still while people threw his letter at his face finally turned away in shame. And just before getting shot he glimpsed "the other Side" and he saw his dead Son, his dead Mother and the now dead Washington waiting on the Other Side—Washington taking the place of the actual father that he never knew.
123** The older Mulligan also says that he stands ''in loco parentis'' for Hamilton, Laurens, and Lafayette.
124[[/folder]]
125
126[[folder:Visual Novels]]
127* [[LoveableSexManiac Miu Iruma]] from ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'' becomes this completely by accident, courtesy of an amnesiac Monotaro dubbing her his "mommy". Miu plays along with it and acts very tender and loving towards her "son", and this dynamic returns in ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaSUltimateSummerCamp''.
128* ''VisualNovel/DoubleHomework'': Johanna is this for the protagonist after the deaths of their parents. She cooks for him and pushes him to succeed. And according to Tamara, Johanna’s influence does more to make him into a better person than her own does.
129* ''VisualNovel/{{Melody}}'': Amy has been the title character's primary mother figure since the death of her biological mother.
130* ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney'': Several cases take place in the series:
131** ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyJusticeForAll'': It's revealed that Phoenix's mentor Mia Fey left her little sister Maya in their aunt Morgan's care when she left the village to [[spoiler:search for her and Maya's mother Misty]]. The sisters were unaware of [[spoiler:Morgan's jealousy toward Misty and her daughters]], and were ''very'' upset to find out that [[spoiler:[[BrokenPedestal their beloved aunt would try to frame Maya for murder]], so [[StageMom her own]] ChildProdigy daughter Pearl would be the heir.]]
132%%** ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyTrialsAndTribulations'': Bikini is this for Iris.
133** ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'': [[spoiler: Phoenix]] becomes the substitute parent to Trucy after the girl's father flees from the courthouse and had effectively vanished from her life. Despite missing her biological father, Trucy still sees [[spoiler: Phoenix]] as a loving father.
134** ''VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth'': [[spoiler:Hakari Mikagami]] becomes [[spoiler:Shimon Aizawa's adoptive mother]] after the death of his mother, Ami. His father, [[spoiler:the ''real'' president of Zheng Fa]], [[DisappearedDad is already dead.]]
135[[/folder]]
136
137[[folder:Web Animation]]
138* ''WebAnimation/EpithetErased'': Depending on perspective, Giovanni is either this or a sort of adoptive big brother to Molly after the Museum Arc. Either way, though, [[AbusiveParents he's a hell of a lot better at caring for her than Martin Blyndeff is]].
139* ''WebAnimation/EtraChanSawIt'': A lot of stories involve the protagonist being a better parent to a child than the kid's actual parents.
140** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XSNFikfF3w Kuroki]] is neglected by his stepmother Akane, and his father does nothing to help. His stepbrothers Tachibana, Hiiragi, and Akamatsu, who were just as neglected by Akane as Kuroki was, decide to take matters into their own hands to make sure he has a happy childhood.
141* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'':
142** Weiss Schnee's mother Willow is a neglectful alcoholic and her father Jacques is a self-absorbed businessman who is only concerned with maximizing profits and his own image. On the other hand, Klein Sieben is an approachable man who can shift personalities to cheer up Weiss when she's feeling low. He provides her with coffee after she's been in a cold room, uses his rude and grumpy personality to make her laugh by mocking Jacques' behaviour, and has a motherly personality that fusses over her well-being. Once Jacques detains Weiss for her insolence in Volume 4, Klein doesn't hesitate to secretly help her escape the family mansion and flee Atlas. Thus, Weiss considers Winter and Klein as the only family she has left.
143** In Volume 6, Emerald's unwavering belief that [[Characters/RWBYCinderFall Cinder Fall]] will look after them, even when she's estranged from Salem, leads to a confrontation with Mercury. Mercury implies Emerald's blind faith in Cinder comes from a desperate need to have a mother-figure in her life, and he states she's deluded if she thinks Cinder cares about either of them. Emerald doesn't listen, but Cinder has a sadistic craving for power and has physically hit Emerald for questioning her decisions.
144** [[Characters/RWBYSalem Salem's]] presented as a maternal figure to Cinder, but nowhere near a healthy one. Salem speaks to her in the same quasi-motherly treatment she gives others, but her and Cinder's dynamic is much more intimate because of it. Volume 8 makes it clear that Salem is an abusive mother figure to her, with Cinder repeating the lines her abusive adoptive mother would teach her, and Salem harshly scolds or reprimands Cinder on at least two occasions in a manner similar to how a parent would ground a teenager, while taking condescending jabs at Cinder's 'wants and thoughts'. By the time the show directly compares Salem torturing Cinder with the Grimm arm to how The Madame would shock her, subtlety is out the window.
145* In ''WebAnimation/TrueTail'', a giant brute bear named Brutus looks after a small young kitten named Caleb. Caleb is also an orphan, so in this series, a bear is the closet thing the kitten has to a protective father.
146[[/folder]]
147
148[[folder:Web Comics]]
149* Manet for Quinn in ''Webcomic/CirqueRoyale''. While the Mills children all had two parents growing up (and their mother Louise is still alive), Manet was brought on initially in part because George and Louise were struggling with Quinn from infancy, and he took on the role as another parent to her. He took care of her and taught her sign language when she was non-verbal, and while she was being forced through ABA therapy, he was the one she found comfort in before and after her training. He also expected her [[https://www.tumblr.com/cirqueduroyale/693860358421692416/will-we-get-to-see-manets-reaction-to-the not to come back to Clowny Island]] after she left.
150[[/folder]]
151
152[[folder:Web Original]]
153* By the end of the first ''Series/CobraKai'' season, and well into the second, two examples stand out: Johnny for Miguel, and Daniel for Robby (who just happens to be Johnny's estranged son).
154* ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'': Exaggerated with Gohan and Piccolo due to Goku's ditziness being equally inflated, to the point where Gohan once greets the two of them with "Hi Dad! Hi Goku!"
155* ''Literature/{{Mirrorfall}}'': Ryan for Stef, starts referring to her as his daughter in the third book.
156[[/folder]]
157
158[[folder:Web Videos]]
159* ''WebVideo/{{Oxventure}}'': In the ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' campaign, Prudence - who was abandoned by her birth parents, and raised by a sinister warlock that she ended up justifiably murdering - has developed this sort of relationship with her warlock patron, who has become universally known as "[[Franchise/CthulhuMythos Daddy Cthulhu]]".
160* ''WebVideo/SuperMarioLogan'':
161** Because Bowser is usually in the other room watching his favorite ShowWithinAShow, ''[[ProtagonistAndFriends Charleyyy and Friends]]'', Chef Pee Pee is usually the one watching his son, Junior.
162** Mario becomes this to Jeffy in all of Jeffy's appearances (excluding "Bowser Junior's Playtime 4", "Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Part 6", "Bowser Junior's Game Night 4", and "The Dog Show!"), because Jeffy's mother, [[spoiler: Nancy, abandoned him on Mario and Rosalina's doorstep]].
163* DD from ''WebVideo/CreamHeroes'' takes on something of a fatherly role to the younger cats. It becomes the most noticeable when he's introduced to Nana, Toto and Dodo. He immediately takes it upon himself to be a father figure to the latter two, much to Nana's delight.
164* WebVideo/TheRealJims: {{Discussed|Trope}} during the "Simpsons Mysteries" video [[https://youtu.be/_LPBSlALZuc?si=ll6v8aL8_sUMewJh "Nelson's Dads"]], presenting cases for and against Mr. Burns, Ned Flanders, Homer Simpson, and Moe Szyslak being potential father figures for Nelson Muntz. Jims argues Moe had [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS34E11TopGoon the strongest case for the role]], with the only thing setting him back being [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS33E4TheWayzWeWere his engagement to Maya]].
165[[/folder]]

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