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1->''"Every time I watch a show, I get hooked on one particular character who ''isn't'' a main character. He or she only gets about one or two scenes per episode, and I watch while slowly and unconsciously ripping a hole out of the sofa pillow with my teeth, because it seems like only I can see the potential in this person that ISN'T being exploited!"''
2-->-- '''[[Website/PlatypusComix Peter Paltridge]]''', [[http://www.platypuscomix.net/fpo/survival/parker.html "Oops! All Parker!"]][[note]]Parker from ''Series/{{Leverage}}''.[[/note]]
3
4This character is brilliant. They might serve any role in the story, but no matter what trope they fall under, whether it be a single trope or many, they all have one thing in common: you love them with a passion, but the writer doesn't. At least not to the same extent. For whatever reason, the work has gifted the audience with what you think is a fantastic new addition to the cast, but they just never seem to get the screentime you think they deserve. That [[ADayInTheLimelight Day in the Limelight]] isn't forthcoming, nor are any more hints about their mysterious past getting dropped. You never get to hear their snarky remarks on a situation that just calls for it, and after five pages of teasing they get PutOnABus to Nowhereville or get a [[DroppedABridgeOnHim bridge dropped on them]].
5
6Often happens with characters that are introduced for only a single episode or two, or have mere supporting roles in a work that already has a large cast. These are characters that have an interesting backstory or interact with the main cast in intriguing new ways, setting the stage for compelling future plots or new dynamics if made a permanent fixture, or at ''least'' a recurring character -- but those things never happen because the character in question ended up underdeveloped or underutilized by the narrative. This also happens to characters who only turn up within [[AllThereInTheManual supplementary materials]] or, in a video game, through sidequests (which are [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory very likely to be skipped and ignored]]). This can be especially annoying if [[NoExportForYou these supplementary materials were never made available in your country]].
7
8Please note that this trope is about ignored characters with good potential who never receive the spotlight (or do so just once and then get removed or forgotten). It is '''not''' about leading characters who are not used the way you would like; there are ''infinite'' alternative ways any given character could have been used. It is not either about characters who have a limited or supporting role in one work but have leading roles elsewhere in the franchise, that's a HeroOfAnotherStory.
9
10Contrast CreatorsPet, this trope's exact opposite, where a character ''isn't'' considered good by many viewers but keeps getting exposure anyway. A subtrope of TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot, supertrope of TooCoolToLive. Nearly always an EnsembleDarkHorse. FanFic writers are especially drawn to these characters, as the FanficFuel they generate can be prompts for many stories.
11
12----
13!!Examples:
14
15[[index]]
16* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/AnimeAndManga
17** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Bleach}}''
18** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba''
19** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/DragonBall''
20** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/FairyTail''
21** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/MyHeroAcademia''
22** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Naruto}}''
23** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/OnePiece''
24** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/PokemonTheSeries''
25** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/PrettyCure''
26** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/SwordArtOnline''
27* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/ComicBooks
28** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Crossed}}''
29* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Literature}}
30** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Animorphs}}''
31** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Redwall}}''
32* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/AnimatedFilms
33* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/LiveActionFilms
34** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/StarWars''
35* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/LiveActionTV
36** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/GameOfThrones''
37** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Gotham}}''
38** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Jeremiah}}''
39** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Lost}}''
40** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/NoOrdinaryFamily''
41** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/StrangerThings''
42** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Supernatural}}''
43** ''{{TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/The Walking Dead|2010}}''
44* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/VideoGames
45** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/FireEmblemHeroes''
46** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/FireEmblemThreeHouses''
47** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/FiveNightsAtFreddys''
48** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/WorldOfWarcraft''
49* Web Video
50** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/HonestTrailers''
51* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/WesternAnimation
52** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/BatmanBeyond''
53** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/CodenameKidsNextDoor''
54** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/DannyPhantom''
55** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/DuckTales2017''
56** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/TheFairlyOddParents''
57** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/{{Fillmore}}''
58** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/HeyArnold''
59** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/MiraculousLadybug''
60** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/TheLoudHouse''
61** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''
62** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower''
63** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/TheSimpsons''
64** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil''
65** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/StarWarsRebels''
66** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012''
67** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/TotalDrama''
68** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/UltimateSpiderMan2012''
69** ''TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter/VoltronLegendaryDefender''
70[[/index]]
71
72[[foldercontrol]]
73
74
75[[folder:Comic Strips]]
76* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes''
77** Galaxoid and Nebular, the two aliens Calvin sells the Earth to, could've been fun characters. Problem is, they were introduced ''extremely'' late into the strip (two months before it ended), and thus were only featured in two arcs.
78** Bill Watterson regards Uncle Max as [[CreatorsPest a bad idea of a character]] who failed to open new avenues in the writing. A number of fans disagree with this, citing Uncle Max being a coolheaded guy and [[CoolUncle the only adult who regularly interacts with Calvin at his own level]], bringing angles that rarely if ever appeared in the rest of the strip's run. Despite this, [[PutOnABus Max gets on an airplane]] at the end of his arc and leaves both town and the comic strip for good.
79** Calvin's doctor is considered by many to be a very funny and sarcastic character (like when he tells Calvin his ear light is a cattle prod and that "it hurts a little less than a branding iron"). Sadly, he disappeared after the chicken pox storyline, and never became as major as [[BadlyBatteredBabysitter Rosalyn]] or [[SternTeacher Miss Wormwood]].
80[[/folder]]
81
82[[folder:Fan Works]]
83* ''Fanfic/TheChoicesThatMakeUs'': Lucius's older brother Arvis is Draco's godfather, is sorted into Ravenclaw, and is uncomfortable with a lot of things about Voldemort, but he only has one or two scenes and is absent from moments like the older Black Cousins' school days and Draco's life after the war when visits from his godfather might have meant a lot.
84* ''Fanfic/CodePrime'': The Glaston Knights have even less time here than they did in the original series, being totally wiped out after only two battles. At least some fans have expressed annoyance that they died without any character development at all. Special mention goes to Claudio, who was the SoleSurvivor in canon, yet here is one of the ''first'' to die.
85* ''Fanfic/JohannaMasonTheyWillNeverSeeMeCry'': District 5 Victor Cassio is the only confirmed non-Career Victor in the last ten Games besides Johanna, Byte, Katniss, Peeta, and possibly the Victor of the 72nd Hunger Games. He could have had interesting scenes mentoring alongside Johanna (especially when Foxface/Merade is a contender), but he is only mentioned once or twice in passing.
86* Smaug in ''Fanfic/LayDownYourSweetAndWearyHead''. Thorin spends all his time worrying about the dragon's inevitable appearance. Then when he finally appears, Thorin shoots him and kills him in the space of a few paragraphs. We scarcely get to see Smaug at all. Even his attack on Dale is off-screen.
87* Cerise from ''[[Fanfic/MyBravePonyStarfleetMagic My Brave Pony: Star Fleet Magic II]]'' is a major in Starfleet, can stand toe-to-toe with Lightning and can use the Uniforce. She is a one-shot character.
88* ''Fanfic/OfState'': Grimmel the Grisly could have made for an interesting antagonist for Hiccup and his kingdom to face. Additionally, there was potential for an interaction between him and ''[[Franchise/{{Frozen}} Frozen's]]'' characters. [[spoiler: Many readers were disappointed at his treatment as a one-off villain who served little more than a plot device to show Hiccup's status as an AdaptationalBadass.]]
89* In ''Fanfic/ThePrayerWarriors'': ''[[Franchise/HarryPotter Battle With the Witches]]'', Voldemort appears in a single scene, establishing himself as an enemy to both the Prayer Warriors and Hogwarts, and blackmailing Draco into killing Michael with the threat of killing Ebony so that he will be able to continue to fight against Dumbledore. It would have been more interesting to have an additional opposing faction, but Voldemort is never seen again.
90* This happens pretty often in [[Webcomic/NuzlockeComics Nuzlocke]] stories due to RealLifeWritesThePlot. A writer can come up with an interesting and complex personality for a Pokemon... only for it to die to a fluke critical hit before they can fully develop. One notable example is Vinny the Magneton in Petty's Nuzlocke Challenge, who developed a huge fan following when he was introduced due to his interesting personality and good performance in battle... and he unceremoniously died to a critical in the next chapter.
91* A few cases in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9928169/1/Panzer-und-uni Panzer und uni]]''
92** [[LastEpisodeNewCharacter In the last chapter]], Emi Nakasuga is introduced. For context, Emi and Miho had parted ways at the end of the prequel manga, Little Army, promising to see each other again once Miho found her own way of tankery. Unfortunately, Emi doesn't serve any role other than as Miho's final opponent in this fic.
93** Similar to Emi, there's also Chihiro Yusa, an old friend of Miho's who ended up going to a different middle school. She rejoins Miho's university team in the first chapter, but hardly has any role in the fic. Interestingly enough, Hitomi, the other member of their group, doesn't appear at all.
94* ''Fanfic/UniverseFalls'': You'd think Ronaldo, a walking ConspiracyTheorist stereotype, would fit in a ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' fanfic like a glove with its various mysteries, conspiracies, and cryptids, yet his presence is [[DemotedToExtra scaled back considerably]] compared to his various episodes from ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' proper.
95[[/folder]]
96
97[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
98* In the Wrestling/{{WWE}}, Wrestling/MuhammadHassan was original portrayed as an Arab-American [[MistakenForTerrorist suffering from racism in a post-9/11 world]]. Judging by his character alone, he had the potential of becoming one of the biggest [[TheWoobie woobies]] ever. However, he was treated as a typical ForeignWrestlingHeel by racist fans despite being billed from ''Detroit, Michigan'' to the point where he eventually became the very thing he was stereotyped as. Eventually, due to outcry following an incident where men in ski masks assisted him on the same day as the 2005 bombings in London, Hassan was written off when Wrestling/TheUndertaker dropped him through the stage.
99* Paul Burchill's pirate gimmick, in which the wrestler discovered one of his distant ancestors was a pirate so he began to model himself as one, swinging onto the ramp from a rope and brandishing a cutlass, was much beloved by the fans. It even came about at the height of the popularity of ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean''. But, the gimmick was axed prematurely because Wrestling/VinceMcMahon couldn't understand why a pirate would be a Face.
100* Hade Vansen, a mysterious British wrestler who was supposed to feud with the Undertaker, was released before he debuted. Most fans feel it was a waste
101* When [[Wrestling/{{Goldust}} Dustin Rhodes]] returned to WCW in 1999, it was originally supposed to be in the guise of "Seven," a ghoulish, pail-skinned character in a long coat and wide-brimmed hat. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWtXAtGJ4JQ One vignette]] for the character features him staring at a child through the child's bedroom window, and then the child's eyes turn into empty black pits. When the character actually debuted, he floated to the ring (with assistance from some wires) and then Rhodes broke character and cut a worked shoot promo verbally bashing this gimmick, as well as the Goldust gimmick. The next time he was seen, he had a completely different gimmick, and the Seven character never even wrestled a match. The gimmick was actually the brainchild of Rhodes and his father Wrestling/{{Dusty|Rhodes}}, but the character was dropped after [[ExecutiveMeddling the network executives feared that he would be misinterpreted as a child abductor]].[[note]]The gimmick resembled the main character from the movie ''Film/{{Powder}}'', whose director ''had'' been convicted of child molestation, and people mixed up the character and the director.[[/note]]
102* [[Wrestling/KarleePerez Maxine]] was an EnsembleDarkhorse for Diva fans on NXT Redemption. As well as having a solid character, she was quite good in the ring too. When NXT Redemption was cancelled, she could have made for a good top heel in the women's division - or at least a character role on TV. She spent a couple of months barely being used, and opted to ask for her release.
103* Wrestling/{{Layla}} returned to WWE after a year off (due to a torn ACL) fresh off a HeelFaceTurn - and ''very'' improved in the ring. As Wrestling/KellyKelly was on her way out, WWE were in need of a new top babyface Diva - and Layla had gotten decent reactions from crowds beforehand. However she was barely on TV and got no mic time to herself at all. Despite wowing people in the ring, nothing was done with her at all. It happened again a year later when she turned heel on her friend {{Wrestling/Kaitlyn}} - seemingly forming an alliance with AJ. This was dropped after a couple of weeks and Layla was PutOnABus for months for unknown reasons.
104* The Beautiful Fierce Females on NXT, mostly due to RealLifeWritesThePlot. Wrestling/SummerRae and Wrestling/SashaBanks formed a PowerStable hoping to take control of NXT - later recruiting Charlotte to make it a villainous version of TheThreeFacesOfEve[[note]]Sasha as the Child, Charlotte as the Wife and Summer the Seductress[[/note]]. However Charlotte left for a few months to get breast implants. The feud between Paige and Emma also took centre stage and Bayley also needed people to feud with - so the [=BFFs=] never got much of a chance to get pushed as a top heel faction. What's more is that Summer Rae's main roster career took off, meaning that she had to stop appearing at NXT. When she returned, the group was quickly broken up. Put it this way: the first time the three of them wrestled in a 6-Diva tag together - it was the start of their break-up.
105* Wrestling/{{CHIKARA}} simply announced that Wani would be on Juan Francisco de Coronado's squad for the Torneo Cibernetico at the 2015 SeasonFinale ''Top Banana'' and never developed a character or backstory for him. He didn't do much of note during 2016. Then he defeated Space Monkey for the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pa/e/chikara/chikara-yl.html Young Lions Cup]] and, once he lost it to Sylverhawk, he left and was completely forgotten. The reason behind this was that Kai Katana, who played him, didn't like being under a mask.
106* WWE signed [[Wrestling/RubyRiott Heidi Lovelace]], who had been a Champion and main eventer in many promotions, changed her name to Ruby Riot(t), made her the leader of [[Wrestling/TheRiottSquad a team]]...and jobbed her out nonstop.
107* WWE also signed Ruby's longtime friend/rival Wrestling/{{Kimber Lee}}, changed her name to "Abbey Laith," and jobbed her out endlessly and released her. As Princess Kimberlee, she had made history by becoming the first female [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/us/pa/e/chikara/chikara-g.html CHIKARA Grand Champion]], and all WWE could think to do with her is have her lose to [[Wrestling/RusevAndLana Lana]], who isn't even a wrestler. In this case though, it's been said that Kimber had severe attitude issues while in developmental, to the point that she went through six roommates and Ruby cut ties with her. It wouldn't be the first time that Kimberlee had behavior issues either - just ask Absolute Intense Wrestling.
108* WWE gave [[Wrestling/SinnBodhi Kizarny]] a big buildup and then did nothing with him. He beat MVP, appeared in a battle royal, and was never seen again. Critics point out that [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZWfyyUvgFw his vignettes]] consisted of Kizarny talking in Pig Latin, informing everyone that he was Kizarny, and other carnival people doing actually interesting things.
109 [[/folder]]
110
111[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
112* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'':
113** Few characters have been wasted worse than Ajani Goldmane. Introduced in the first batch of "neo-walkers" in 2007's ''Lorwyn'', he was a primary protagonist in the following year's ''Shards of Alara''. And...that was the extent of his use as a major character. He occasionally showed up in a supporting role after, such as in 2013's ''Theros'', but never again took on a starring role. This came to a head after the soft reboot in 2015's ''Magic Origins'' - he officially becomes a member of the "main" hero team in ''Aether Revolt'', only to vanish again in the ''very next set''. His next appearance was in ''War of the Spark'', where he plays very little role beyond being another planeswalker for the planeswalker-heavy set. This would be his last appearance until 2022's ''Dominaria United''...where he was promptly assimilated by the villains. Ajani fans were drawn in by his likable personality, sympathetic backstory, unique power suite, and cool design, and seeing him spend year after year being completely ignored before returning only to be villainised for shock value...was frustrating, to say the least.
114** Ugin also got a raw deal. Initially revealed as a mysterious figure in the flavour text of a single ''Future Sight'' card, we got a bit more info on him years later in ''Zendikar'', which revealed he was one of the three ancient planeswalkers who sealed the cosmic entities called the Eldrazi away to stop them from destroying more planes. When the Eldrazi are released, Sorin tries to track him down again to stop them, only to learn he's been dead for centuries. This leads to Sarkhan travelling through time and changing history to save Ugin. Finally, we see the Spirit Dragon in all his glory, ready to reprise his ancient role and save the multiverse from the Eldrazi once more! Except, after all these years of buildup, his only role is to tell the Gatewatch ''not'' to destroy the Eldrazi because there might be some vague consequences at some undefined future point maybe. They completely ignore him, destroy the Eldrazi anyway, nothing comes of his pointlessly vague warnings, then a few years later he seals himself away again. Leaving the audience to wonder, the hell was the point of ''any'' of that buildup?
115[[/folder]]
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117[[folder:Toys]]
118* ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'':
119** [[CodeName Dark Hunter Ancient]]. He's a unique case: started out as a decent character (evil but not outright malicious, and a founding member of the Dark Hunters), but was overall plain and unimportant. Not many would've missed him. Then, with no foreshadowing, he's revealed to be a DoubleAgent for the good guys. He's become interesting! He is then abruptly killed off and forgotten completely, rendering this reveal pointless (because no other character found out). Worse, the plot which led him to be killed was [[AbortedArc abandoned after that chapter]].
120** Other Dark Hunters might also count, such as Guardian, who only ever appeared in ''one scene'' before being killed by the BigBad ForTheEvulz, even though they had an [[AllThereInTheManual in-depth backstory written for him]]. {{Toyless Toyline Character}}s are prone to this, as a lot of them come off as more interesting than the main characters, but are always forced to the back because there's too many of them.
121** Some might think they wasted Tren Krom too. Sure, he had a great impact on the story already, and was an interestingly developed character (some sort of a benevolent but still mean-spirited EldritchAbomination who's terrified to see what the world he was once appointed to rule had come to), but he was bound to his island prison, which limited his use greatly. Then, he became free, and when we next see him... [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu his pieces are all over the scenery]]. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in that killing off powerful characters was the ''point'' of this story, but still. There was great potential in the guy.
122** Telluris. A crazed and evil GadgeteerGenius who does have a good side, but this is usually overshadowed by his mighty mechanical scorpion-war machine, the Skopio XV-1. The Skopio only ever appeared in [[OneSceneWonder one scene]] (not counting its animation model appearing in ''The Legend Reborn''), in a difficult-to-get side story, and got trashed. Thus, the most defining aspect of Telluris' character was gone. Telluris also received an in-depth history, and even seemed like an actual likable character, only to be killed off later for no reason whatsoever, before he could do anything that had an impact on the plot.
123** Alternate-Teridax, the benevolent AlternateUniverse-self of the story's BigBad. He is brought to the main universe, but only appears for a short action scene where he brutally demolishes some {{Mooks}}, and is then forgotten. He doesn't even play a part in defeating the original Teridax, and nobody seems to care that he's there.
124*** In both of the last two cases, it's quite possible that more would have been done with them if not for the ExecutiveMeddling that shut down BIONICLE and left some stories half-written.
125** The Vahki made a huge impact on fans in the 2004 web animations and tv commercial, which portrayed them as merciless, extremely efficient and creepy law enforcers that keep the city in a constant ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour''-esque state. They had powerful abilities, could show up everywhere, attacked in swarms, and being fully robotic, had no reason to care about their lives. This depiction never came up elsewhere; the comics, books and movie turned them into disposable {{Mooks}} easily beaten though convenient circumstances and barely ever using their powers. The writer [[CreatorsPest hated them so much]], he wrote them out of the story.
126[[/folder]]
127
128[[folder:Web Animation]]
129* ''WebAnimation/LoboWebseries'': Some DC fans were bothered that Superman (a common rival of Lobo) didn't make a cameo. Others were relieved since Lobo generally isn't a family friendly character.
130* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' had Grif's Sister, Kaikaina. Once introduced in season 5, she was quickly well-liked and deemed a hilarious character, but still ends up having barely any effect on the story. Come the next season, Sister appears to show the other characters moved to other places and left her behind, despite all the fun gags or plot complications that could be built off Grif having a sibling on the other side. It would take seven seasons for Sister to appear again in a cameo, and after brief appearances in the following two, she was finally back in the main cast for season 16, which while divisive among fans, had Sister's reintroduction and usage being one of the few things no one complained about.
131* ''WebAnimation/SBBBrothers'':
132** Presumably; this was what the producer thought about Kristen and Roscoe. Before he canceled the original ''Sims Big Brother 7'', the two were brought back as the guest star players. Both were evicted second and didn't have a chance to develop (That and SRN admits that he had almost ''no'' creativity while working on ''Sims Big Brother 4'' anyways and it shows.) However when the viewers chose the cast of ''All stars'', Roscoe sadly didn't make the cut (He ''did'' have several amusing moments; though, more than can be said for Kristen) but Kristen was one of two people from season 4 that made it in - the other was Johnny. Kristen wasn't even a ''producer's choice''!
133** Unfortunately, the same could be said about a lot of the big brother 4 cast. CJ seemed almost a background prop despite being popular enough to win (Viewers voted on the winner). Brian and Sam seemed to be in control of the game, heck, Sam is the only player who was ''never nominated''.
134** The viewers also thought this about Dana, too. Dana was another early boot from Big Brother season 2 but was voted in as well.
135[[/folder]]
136
137[[folder:Webcomics]]
138* ''Webcomic/CheckPlease'':
139** Downplayed case, but some believe it happens to Bittle. The first 2 years of the comic heavily focus on Jack's issues, his past and his plans for the future, leaving Bittle to have focus only during his coming out, his [[spoiler: concussion]] and his [[spoiler: crush on Jack]] during year 2. Bittle is heavily implied to be a rather complex character, and things about him never got explored, such as his relationship with his father and his conservative family, his bullying-filled childhood, his fear of checking that seems to expand to most forms of physical contact and his romantic life.
140** Kent's implied narrative is very compelling, dramatic and got a lot of fans interested in it after [[spoiler:Jack's comments about their relationship brushing off Kent as a physical thing, while Kent is still in love with him]]. That added to the rise in popularity of Kent/Tater made a lot of people interested in his side of the story, but since the plot takes place from Bitty's point of view, and he can't stand Kent, he doesn't really get any focus.
141* The "To Thine Own Self" arc of ''Webcomic/GeneralProtectionFault'' introduced some side characters who would have been interesting in their own right as counterparts to the main cast, but got killed off before long. Examples include a version of [[InsufferableGenius Yoshi]] who is a savant at engineering but otherwise mentally retarded, Wong Li, a diminutive yet extremely powerful operative and a ShrinkingViolet version of [[FieryRedhead Sharon]]. Unfortunately, most of the resistance characters are implied to have been killed off when the resistance hideout is raided, and Nega-Sharon [[spoiler:is TheMole for the Emperor, and gets killed when an explosion causes the roof to collapse on her]].
142* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
143** The [[InsectoidAliens trolls]] of ''Hivebent'' hover somewhere around 'deuteragonist' level, but are still this. They're introduced in Act 5, [[spoiler:almost half of them are dead]] by Act 6, and they're the [[RagtagBunchOfMisfits protagonists]] of a [[ComingOfAgeStory compelling]], highly abridged StoryWithinAStory that ''Hivebent'' gives us [[FanficFuel only an idea]] of. They each have their own distinct personalities and [[DysfunctionJunction methods of coping]] with the FantasticCasteSystem and their species' truly messed up culture. They have an alien system of romance that the author created ''specifically'' to bait shippers with. It should come as no surprise that they're also EnsembleDarkhorse[=s=] ''par excellence''.
144** Jade is by far the [[OutOfFocus least-seen]] of the original four main kids, an issue that only grows as the comic goes on. She is introduced with a unique life -- the first of the four players to have her dream self awake and under control, living on an island with a superpowered teleporting dog as a guardian, and has plenty of HiddenDepths that could work well with other characters. As a hero of Space, she also has one of the two "required" aspects to a session (along with Time, [[TheLancer Dave's]] aspect) and plays a crucial role in the endgame of Sburb. Then Act 5 ends with her becoming one of the most powerful characters in the entire story... then her screentime plumets. While John, Rose, and Dave all undergo their own personal adventures and storylines, Jade spends more time than any of them either "just" left to piloting a ship, asleep, or [[spoiler:mind-controlled by the Condesce]]. She barely even interacts with Rose that much, with their total number of on-screen conversations being in the single digits.
145* ''Webcomic/Rain2010'': Brett, a character introduced in the ''January Girls'' chapter was a tall, quiet kid who seemed to served no purpose in the story besides annoy Chanel. Some thought the comic was setting him to be a highly closeted queer person who was too socially anxious and distant to come out. Sadly, nothing was done with his character.
146* ''Webcomic/{{Starfighter}}'': Encke and Keeler, the [[TeamDad lea]][[TeamMom ders]] of the Sleipnir ship. They are so far the ones to show to be the sanest and most level headed members of the cast, but some fans feel that their romantic tension needed more screen time, specially because, aside from a flashback implying that Keeler was Encke's ClosetKey, there isn't much to their relationship outside of friendly and professional.
147* ''Webcomic/VGCats'': To say the least, Ramsoomair's style was good back in the day. He made a number of jokes about ''VideoGame/StarFox'', but the only time anyone actually got to see how he would draw any of the characters aside from Slippy Toad was in the strip where [[YaoiFangirl Aeris]] imagines Fox & Falco having sex while making bad in-jokes... with Wolf presumably joining in later.
148[[/folder]]
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150[[folder:Web Original]]
151* ''Roleplay/SurvivalOfTheFittest'' has tons of characters, each with detailed backstories, characterizations, and other information [[AllThereInTheManual inside their profiles]]. It also happens to be a DeadlyGame in which characters die regularly. As you might expect, many characters die early on, or without reaching their full potential.
152* In WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic's review of ''Film/OsmosisJones'' had a parody of ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut'' with other actors as his emotions. But instead of any character references, they mostly just fight about whether they ripped off the former movie or not, even though they're focused on two completely different aspects of the body.
153* ''WebVideo/SuperMarioLogan'':
154** Name any student character that appears in the "Bowser Junior's Summer School" or "First Grade" story arcs that isn't Junior, Toad, Cody, or Joseph. Almost all of them never show up in any other videos besides those story arcs. [[ShowWithinAShow Charleyyy]], Black Yoshi, Franchise/{{Shrek}}, and Logan are in the "Summer School" story arc, but they don't really count, due to the former three being recurring characters, and the latter being [[AuthorAvatar the series' creator]].
155** The Strongbottom Family, all of whom are royalty from the Iron Asses of Wales and are related to Chef Pee Pee. Naturally, this would raise a lot of possibilities. What sort of antics would Junior get up to with the sisters? What sort of development would Chef Pee Pee go through with his father? Where did Stacy learn [[PerfectlyCromulentWord "Queef?"]] What sort of struggles would Chef Pee Pee and Benjamin go through taking care of BOTH the Strongbottoms and Bowser's family? What sort of relationship would Bowser and the King have? Where is Queen Strongbottom? How did Chef Pee Pee go from royalty to a common house chef? There was a lot that could be done with this family and could have added a lot of characterization, depth, character development and even an interesting backstory to Chef Pee Pee. [[spoiler:But instead, King Strongbottom gets killed by his servant Benjamin (Even more baffling because Strongbottom says that Stacy would take the throne if he died, yet we never see Stacy again), [[FlatCharacter Stacy never goes beyond being a cheerleader who keeps saying "Queef"]] and Chef Pee Pee's big sister [[NoNameGiven is not even named]].]]
156* In ''WebAnimation/OverlySarcasticProductions'' trope talk on {{Plot Twist}}s, Red lists this and its [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot counterpart]] as a hallmark of a bad twist; The story would be more interesting if the twist hadn't happened. As an example, she asks what would have happened if Quicksilver had survived ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron''.
157** In ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'', Petrov might have sided with Tony, truly believing that Tony was atoning for his actions through the Sokovian Accords. This would have put him on opposing sides of Wanda, the first time the twins truly conflict, and leading to some great drama.
158** Petrov could have survived the Snap, leaving him as the sole surviving twin and spent the five ensuing years doing for earth what Captain Marvel did for the universe; running around and being a hero to the survivors. When Wanda returns in Endgame, there is suddenly a five year age difference between these twins and, while Petrov had five years to come to term with his loss, and has grown as a person, Wanda lost the love of her life a few minutes ago from her perspective, leaving the two at completely different places in life.
159* WebVideo/TheUnluckyTug discusses this concept in a couple of Sodor's Finest episodes. In the Skarloey video, Tug says he's glad that ''WesternAnimation/BlueMountainMystery'' [[CharacterRerailment fixed him]], but was disappointed that the narrow-gauge engines gradually faded out of relevance in the CGI seasons following. In the Duck video, he says that he used to hate Duck in the Brenner Era (season 17 to 21 of ''WesternAnimation/ThomasAndFriends'') because his appearances felt like shoehorned PanderingToTheBase, but now thinks the only problem was the writers making him talk about the "Great Western way" too much instead of focusing on his other traits. %% InUniverse
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