Legacy Characters in live-action TV.
- In The Amazing Extraordinary Friends, Ben is the latest of a long line of heroes to bear the name Captain Extraordinary, due to the powers being bestowed by the X insignia. Unbeknownst to him, this includes his father.
- Unlike most superhero adaptations, the Arrowverse doesn't avert this trope. It has indeed become part of the original show's DNA to introduce a character who serves as a precursor to the later, more iconic version of the character, while later shows handle it their own way:
- In the show's continuity, Yao Fei was the first "Green Arrow" (though he doesn't go by the name). Oliver inherits the mantle (literally, with the green hood) and develops the "Hood/Arrow" persona in honor of him.
- Subverted by Oliver, who as "Green Arrow" claims to be the legacy character of his own Arrow persona. In Season 3, Oliver had been arrested under suspicion of being the Arrow, so Roy Harper surrendered to police while dressed in the Arrow costume, then faked his death in prison and went into hiding. At the start of Season 4, Oliver claims to be a new vigilante inspired by the Arrow.
- For a time, John Diggle becomes the Green Arrow, before Oliver returns.
- During the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Oliver hands over the mantle to his daughter Mia.
- Sara Lance was the original (Black) Canary, and she symbolically passed on the mantle to Laurel by giving her the Canary jacket. After Sara's death at the start of Season 3, Laurel starts down the path to becoming the new Canary, to honor her dead sister. Sara is then resurrected as the White Canary, and Laurel is eventually murdered. Following her death, Evelyn Sharp briefly acts as the Black Canary...but is little more than a murderer. Laurel's actual successor is Dinah Drake. Laurel's Earth-2 double Black Siren eventually makes a Heel–Face Turn and becomes Black Canary. Laurel-2 and Dinah eventually form a vigilante group known as the Canaries.
- The original Count Vertigo, who appeared in the first two seasons, was a drug-dealing psychopath known simply as "the Count" who was eventually Killed Off for Real by the Arrow. At the start of Season 3, he is replaced by a crime boss named Werner Zytle (who is the one and only "Count Vertigo" in the comics). This trope is specifically invoked when the new Vertigo tells Arrow "There will always be a Vertigo".
- Combining this with Age Lift and Decomposite Character, Ra's al Ghul is this: while this incarnation does use the Lazarus Pit to extend his life as in other non-Nolan incarnations, Ra's al Ghul is only a title and unlike the 500-700+ year old man in the comics, each Ra's only rules the League of Assassins for 200 years.
- Played straight with Oliver himself in the Bad Future depicted in Legends of Tomorrow with Connor Hawke (born John Diggle, Jr.) taking up the bow and hood after Oliver Queen's supposed death. Even after Oliver returns, he allows Hawke to keep the title, claiming that he has earned it. The same episode also reveals that Slade Wilson's son Grant has inherited his father's armor, sword, and the name Deathstroke.
- Also played straight with the Trickster in The Flash (2014). James Jesse has terrorized Central City decades ago, but has been locked up in Iron Heights since then. Then Axel Walker, calling himself "the Trickster" appears and starts terrorizing the city again. Jesse appears angry at the upstart taking up his moniker without permission, but it turns out that he was Walker's secret mentor... and father. There are also the names Weather Wizard (given first to Clyde Mardon and then his brother Mark due to their similar powers) and Firestorm (the original Firestorm consisted of Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein; the next Firestorm has Jefferson Jackson replacing Ronnie). There are also several characters called "Flash", but they're all from different worlds/realities.
- The Flash plays it straight again, in a downright horrifying and heartbreaking way, in Season 5: it's eventually revealed that the Cicada active in Nora's time isn't Orlin Dwyer, but his niece Grace, who has grown up to take up his mantle and anti-metahuman vendetta.
- In the show's continuity, Yao Fei was the first "Green Arrow" (though he doesn't go by the name). Oliver inherits the mantle (literally, with the green hood) and develops the "Hood/Arrow" persona in honor of him.
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer:
- Buffy is but one of generations of Slayers stretching back probably to the Stone Age. Each time a slayer is killed, a new one's power is awakened and she replaces the one before her.
- After Buffy was revived by CPR, which counted as a temporary death, a new slayer (Kendra) was called, and the cycle continued with her, with another slayer (Faith) taking Kendra's place after her death. This resulted in 2 slayers existing at the same time (aside from Buffy's temporary death at the end of season 5/beginning of season 6) for most of the series.
- This cycle ends at the end of the season 7 finale, where many potential slayers were activated around the world all at once.
- In the Season 8 comics, other slayers continued to be called activated at different times, though this stopped at the end of that series when magic disappeared from that dimension, and only the current slayers were left. Fray, which takes place centuries later, has the protagonist become a "half" slayer, as she shared her power with her twin brother.
- In Dead Like Me, each Reaper has a quota (unknown to themselves); when they collect enough souls, they go on to the real afterlife, and the last person collected becomes a Reaper.
- Doctor Who:
- The main character is probably the most famous Meta example, with the regeneration Plot Device being used to carry the same in-universe characters (the Doctor and other Time Lords) across multiple real life actors. The show has been running for half a century and is on its 15th Doctornote . Being chosen to portray the Doctor is, in some circles, akin to being chosen Pope.
- Invoked in the first episode of the revived series, "Rose", where the Conspiracy Theorist that Rose meets for information about the Doctor is under the mistaken belief that the various appearances of the Ninth Doctor in various time periods and references to him throughout history make "the Doctor" an inherited title that is passed on from one generation to the next, likely from father to son. Amusingly, the part of his theory that convinces Rose that he's nuts, that the Doctor is an alien from another world, is the one part that he's actually correct about.
- Harriet Jones makes a similar assumption about the Tenth Doctor, having previously met the Ninth. When Ten brings up something only the Doctor would know, she's astonished to realise they're actually the same man.
- In a more straight example, there's also Kate Stewart, who takes over her father, long time reoccurring companion and Vitriolic Best Buds to the Doctor, The Brigadier's role as "no nonsense Lethbridge-Stewart that keeps the zany alien scientific advisor in line". Technically her title isn't "Brigadier", but she fills the role right down to commanding the troops, and her modus operandi is a lesson the Doctor taught her father, "science leads".
- In The Flash (1990), Deadly Nightshade styles himself as a retired vigilante called Nightshade, except Deadly Nightshade doesn't follow the original's Thou Shalt Not Kill rule. He has also built himself an exoskeleton that allows him to move as fast as the Flash.
- GARO has a lot of this. Every Makai Knight inherited the title and armor they wear from someone else, usually a family member; specifically forming generations of badasses, and Madou Items that die are usually replaced with identical copies with none of their original memories.
- In Help! I'm a Teenage Outlaw, Tom inherited the role of The Highwayman Swiftnick from his mother, who inherited it from her father (who might have been intended as the historic Swift Nick).
- On Human Target, the identity of Christopher Chance seems to be a Dread Pirate Roberts sort of deal; in the first season finale we meet the previous holder of the name (played by Lee Majors) and he explains that he picked it up from another guy. The current Christopher Chance used to be an assassin, and it's implied that the one before him was one as well.
- Kamen Rider avoided having legacy characters until the franchise's revival in the 2000's, when each season was set in a self-contained continuity:
- Kamen Rider Kuuga: Godai Yusuke is actually the second Kuuga, with the original having been active only 2000 years ago.
- Kamen Rider Agito: There are many potential candidates for Agito but only one can hold the title at any given time, with any other candidate who gains superpowers gaining a similar but lesser version. If the current Agito were to die, one of the others would become the true Agito: the main Agito during the show is the second to hold the title.
- Kamen Rider Ryuki: All the Riders were chosen by Kanzaki Shiro except for Shinji and Miyuki - both of them got their Rider Decks after the original Ryuki and Raia died respectively.
- Kamen Rider 555: All three of the Faiz, Kaixa, and Delta Drivers pass through many hands throughout the series.
- Kamen Rider Hibiki: It's common for new Riders to take the name of their retiring mentors, though it's just as common for them to create their own name.
- Kamen Rider Kabuto: Four different characters hold the title of Kamen Rider TheBee at various points, with all four of them eventually discarding it in favor of other powers.
- Kamen Rider Den-O: The third movie introduces Ryotaro's Grandkid from the Future Kotaro, who becomes the Den-O of his era (usually called "New Den-O" by promotional materials and fans, just to keep things from getting confusing).
- Kamen Rider Kiva: The mantle of Kamen Rider Ixa is held by several different characters throughout the show, as is Dark Kiva. The final episode has the protagonist's son come back from the future to warn of a new threat and transform into New Kiva.
- Kamen Rider Decade: Every previous Rider qualifies, as Decade typically interacts with Alternate Universe versions of the previous Riders who share the same suits and powers, but have radically different civilian identities played by different actors. In one such universe, Hibiki passes his powers onto his young protegee Asumu when his own Oni powers go berserk, making Asumu the second Hibiki of that world.
- Kamen Rider Double: When she loses her former Taboo powers, Saeko becomes the second Nazca Dopant and proves much more compatible with its powers than the previous wielder ever was.
- Kamen Rider OOO: Shintaro Goto inherits the mantle of Kamen Rider Birth after the first one, Akira Date, retires from the post. Eiji himself is the second OOO, with the first being the show's Greater-Scope Villain.
- Kamen Rider Wizard: The mantle of Kamen Rider Wiseman is held by Koyomi's father during the show, and a clone of Koyomi herself takes the suit during the movie.
- Kamen Rider Gaim: After helping kill his brother, Micchy takes Takatora's belt and becomes the second Kamen Rider Zangetsu Shin. Because Micchy has none of his brother's combat skills, he's almost immediately outed as an impostor.
- Kamen Rider Drive: The mantle of Drive was worn by the prototype Roidmude, Proto-Zero, before being given to Shinnosuke. The Movie reveals that in the future, Shinnosuke in turn passes the title on to his son Eiji.
- Kamen Rider Zi-O: The title of Kamen Rider Woz gets passed from White Woz to Black Woz through theft, while Zi-O himself is a collective legacy character for the entire Rider franchise. The show also briefly gives Kagami and Kyosuke the opportunity to inherit the mantles of Kabuto and Hibiki before passing them to Zi-O, who in turn returns all of the legacies back to their original owners at the end of the series.
- Kamen Rider Saber: As the Sword of Logos organization and its ten holy swords have been around since the dawn of history, virtually every Rider has had dozens if not hundreds of predecessors. The only one who isn't a legacy character is Yuri, who became immortal by directly merging with the Sword of Light, the Super Prototype for the others, and thus is the only Kamen Rider Saikou there's ever been.
- Kamen Rider Revice has a few titles changing hands: The mantle of Kamen Rider Demons passes from Hiromi to Olteca, after the actual demon within the Driver finishes sucking Hiromi's life force. Once the demon escapes the Driver, George takes it and fights as Demons once before giving it back to a (somewhat) recovered Hiromi. Hikaru also passes his title of Kamen Rider Over Demons to Tamaki; and one of the movie Riders, Kamen Rider Chimera, is actually the second — a web series shows that Nozomu became Chimera after the first, his friend Ryu, was killed in action.
- Kamen Rider Geats: The in-universe production staff share their Rider titles, though each one tends to have their own minor variations. Game Masters become Kamen Rider Glare, first Girori then his replacement Chirami. Niramu the producer becomes Kamen Rider Gazer, which is then used by his boss Suel. Downplayed with Kamen Rider Regad, as two people do technically use the powers, but the first is a kind of Remote Body puppet for the second. Beroba once stole Chirami's Glare2 powers, but ultimately gave them up by the next story arc.
- The single example in Kamen Rider Gotchard is Kamen Rider Dread, which was first used unwillingly before being used willingly by the villains. The power set has been used by at least six users, and most of them rarely wear it for more than a single episode.
- In Legend of the Seeker, the titular title is given by a powerful wizard to the person he believes can solve the current crisis. The Seeker is given the Sword of Truth for the job. In one episode, Richard is reading the story of his predecessor, who defeated his enemies before dying from the wounds by his Confessor's side. He later finds out that the story is a lie. The previous Seeker gave in to his temptation and slept with his Confessor, becoming hopelessly devoted to her. At his wizard's urging, the Confessor committed suicide to free the Seeker from her spell (the only way to un-Confess someone), but the Seeker went berserk and slaughtered innocents. His wizard then killed him and falsified the story in order to keep the title pure. In later episodes, two others are named Seeker, although it always goes back to Richard in the end. A Bad Future hallucination has Richard find out that there have been at least three Seekers after him.
- Buster, the MythBusters' long-suffering Companion Cube and mascot, had his crash-test-dummy body rebuilt or replaced on multiple occasions, but always retained the name. At least once, Adam insisted on incorporating parts from the previous dummy's demolished carcass so as to justify this trope.
- In an episode of NCIS, a forger is discovered to have passed his title onto another man. Complete with a Lampshade Hanging/Shout-Out to The Princess Bride!
- A non-genre example from The Newsroom: It's mentioned a few times that Elliot Hirsch, the new 10 PM anchor, is Will's heir apparent as the lead anchor and face of ACN.
- Once Upon a Time:
- Technically, The Big Bad Wolf of all characters is this. Red's grandmother was turned into a werewolf by Red's grandfather, and both Red and her mother were passed the lycanthropy curse.
- Also, Aurora's mother was the original Sleeping Beauty.
- The title of Dark One is passed down through generations, though these generations can get quite long since the Dark Ones are all immortal, and the only way to inherit the title is to kill the current Dark One. The lineage ends when Rumplestiltskin sacrifices himself in the series finale, having been stripped of his immortality and leaving his Wish Realm counterpart as the last Dark One. Since the two are linked, the original's sacrifice takes the Wish Realm version with him, erasing the Darkness once and for all.
- The Onion News Network features Tucker Hope, which is actually a position on the news crew filled by various men who go through Tucker training in order to fill their role. One Tucker Hope was even fired on the air after having a breakdown and declaring that his name was Peter. When the episode came back from the commercial break, a new Tucker Hope was already present.
- There was an interesting twist in Padre Coraje, a telenovela about a Non-Powered Costumed Hero who moved into the village of La Cruz posing as the new priest Juan. He was not, the real priest was killed in the countryside and Coraje could not save him, and replaced him instead to have a Secret Identity in the village. The problem was when he was shot and forgot everything. The people told him that he was the priest (because that was what they thought), and he believed that. The whereabouts of Coraje were unknown for everyone: he must have died, or left, or gave up, or whatever. And one day, after a conflict with the mayor, an union leader told him:Man: The people need a leader, a hero. They need Coraje.
Juan: But Coraje is gone. Nobody knows what has happened to him, or heard about him in months.
Man: That is not important. The people does not know who is behind the cloak. If Coraje is gone, he won't mind for someone else to put on a similar cloak and be the new Coraje.- And so, the priest became a Legacy Character... of himself.
- Many of the Power Rangers series have used this trope; the powers (and suits) can usually be passed from person to person. This became rarer in the subsequent seasons, once they adapted Super Sentai's tradition of changing characters and costumes every year.
- Jason, Zack and Trini making way for Rocky, Adam and Aisha in Mighty Morphin, with Kimberly passing her powers on to Katherine the next year. Then, 30 years later in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always when Robo-Rita manages to kill Trini, Trini's daughter wishes to become the Yellow Ranger in her mother's stead she has some soul-searching to do but achieves this when her motive goes from vengeance against Rita to true selfless heroism.
- Jason briefly inheriting the mantle of the Gold Ranger from Trey in Power Rangers Zeo.
- The entire Turbo team (except for Justin) swapping out mid-season
- Kendrix and the Magna Defender passing their powers to Karone and Mike upon their deaths in Lost Galaxy.
- A few of the SPD morphers changed hands as characters got promoted, though this only happened post-season.
- While it's a bit unclear if the main team on Mystic Force is this or notnote , it's played straight with Clare, who inherits the mantle of Gatekeeper from her mother Niella.
- The Samurai Rangers inherited their powers from their parents, in a Heroic Lineage going back generations.
- In Powers, Calista takes the name of Retro Girl after Retro Girl's murder.
- Done in the Red Dwarf episode "Stoke Me a Clipper" when the main universe's Rimmer was passed on the torch of "Ace" Rimmer, one of many parallel universe counterparts of Rimmer, one of whom the crew first met in the episode "Dimension Jump". Each Ace donned the wig and flight jacket and took on the mantle after the previous Ace died or had their post-mortem hologram's projector destroyed.
- Both the BBC Robin Hood and the 1980s ITV Robin of Sherwood feature the death of the real Robin Hood and a new figure taking up the name and tasks of Robin to continue the legend. In one of the Spitefulpuppet's Robin of Sherwood audiodramas, it's implied that Robin's father was also Herne's Son and The Hooded Man before Robin, although Robin made The Hooded Man figure known as Robin Hood.
- Spoofed on Saturday Night Live, when Mike Myers' not-so-superhero character Middle-Aged Man reveals himself to be this in one sketch. He explains that long ago, he was Young Man and his father, currently Retired Man, was Middle-Aged Man, while his father's father was Retired Man.Citizen: Who is your grandfather now?
Middle-Aged Man: Dead Man. - Star Trek: The various incarnations of the Enterprise (NCC-1701). In fact, many ships in Star Trek: The Original Series have counterparts in Star Trek: The Next Generation, though not all are similar to the originals in design. The Enterprise NCC-1701 is widely assumed to be the only ship in Starfleet to have its serial number recycled consistently, which is a testament to the importance of Kirk's five-year mission and subsequent voyages in Federation history. At least one possible future - and probably all of them - has a ship named Enterprise with the serial number NCC-1701-J (in this particular future, a ''Universe''-class ship in operation in the 26th century
), which means the serial number has been carried on for three hundred years and borne by eleven different vessels. Holy shit.- Directly referenced in an episode of Star Trek: Enterprise where Captain Archer and Shran look at his office wall with images of past vessels named Enterprise, with Shran mentioning his ship was named after the first ice-breaking ship to travel around Andoria. They then go on to wonder if future ships would be inspired by their adventures. It is implied that the NCC-1701 Enterprise was inspired by the NX-01 Enterprise, and that is part of the reason the name has been the traditional Federation Flagship.
- Lampshaded at the end of Star Trek: Generations where Picard remarks that he doubts that the wrecked Enterprise-D will be the last ship to bear the name Enterprise.
- And again in Star Trek: First Contact when the Enterprise's Self-Destruct Mechanism has been activated:
Crusher: So much for the Enterprise-E.
Picard: We barely knew her.
Crusher: Think they'll build another one?
Picard: There are plenty of letters left in the alphabet.- While most Enterprises tend to pop up really quickly, at least a year between the lost/decommissioning of the last, there's a 19 year gap between the sinking of the C and the launch of the D while, canonically, we don't know the fate of the B or when it was brought to its end. Nor is what became of the E entirely clear, only that "something" happened to it on its final mission while under Worf's command (for which he takes NO responsibility) and its fate is officially listed simply as "classified". Whatever happened, it precipitated the accelerated rollout of the Enterprise-F that same year. The Enterprise-G was also rolled out within a year of the retirement and/or loss of the F.
- There's also the USS Defiant. The first Defiant we see is a Constitution class (same as the TOS Enterprise). After it's disappearance (it was actually sucked into the Mirror Universe and about 100 years into the past), the name isn't really mentioned until DS9, when a new dedicated warship is introduced with the same name. After that Defiant's destruction in battle, another Defiant-class ship (the USS Sao Paolo) is renamed Defiant. However, unlike the Enterprise, the serial numbers are different.
- The USS Voyager and USS Titan have also joined the club as well alongside the Enterprise. Star Trek: Discovery introduces the USS Voyager NCC-74656-J when the USS Discovery arrives in the 32nd century. A shuttlecraft bearing the registry NCC-74656-A is seen at the end of the first season of Star Trek: Prodigy, implying that a Voyager-A is in service at that time, and technical readout for the USS Voyager NCC-74656-B is seen during Star Trek: Picard. Meanwhile, the hero ship of Picard's third season is the Constitution III-class USS Titan NCC-80102-A, taking over from the original Luna-class USS Titan and the Shangri-La-class USS Titan NCC-1777 commanded by Captain Saavik. The Titan-A is later renamed the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-G, making a double-decker Legacy Character, with a USS Titan NCC-80102-B stated to be in development to replace her in the near future.
- Weyoun in Deep Space 9 is continuously cloned to be the right-hand man of the head Founder. Five "different" Weyouns appeared over the course of the series.
- Star Trek: Discovery has Cleveland "Book" Booker, a courier in the 32nd century. His birth name was Tareckx, but he took the name Cleveland Booker from his mentor — who took the name from his mentor. The current Cleveland Booker is the fifth link in a Master-Apprentice Chain.
- Subverted: when the USS Discovery NCC-1031 emerges in the 32nd century, Starfleet gives it an extensive refit and recommissions it USS Discovery NCC-1031-A to cover up the fact that it has traveled through time, though it is functionally the same vessel as the original Discovery.
- In Stargirl, the main characters take up the mantles of four of the deceased Justice Society of America characters. Only one of them is actually related to the originals, Rick Tyler, who becomes the new Hourman like his father Rex. Courtney becomes Stargirl, the Distaff Counterpart to Starman (whom she erroneously believes to have been her father). Ditto for Yolanda and Beth, who become the new Wildcat and Dr. Mid-Nite, respectively, although neither has any relation to the original. Among the villains, the new Fiddler is a woman who took up the instrument and the monicker after the death of her husband, the first Fiddler.
- In the Sukeban Deka live action series, Saki Asamiya is replaced by Yoko Godai, who is in turn replaced by Yui Kazama. "Saki Asamiya" is used as a codename for Yoko and Yui.
- The Super Sentai franchise also replaced a few of its warriors during its early seasons, as a result of some of the actors leaving mid-series:
- The Ki Ranger identity was transferred from Daita Ōiwa to Daigorō Kumano in Himitsu Sentai Gorenger. However, Daigorō was only added so that the actor playing Daita the character could participate in a play he was asked to do. Daigorō's spot on the team only lasted ten episodes before he was Killed Off for Real, allowing Daita to return.
- In Battle Fever J, two of its members were replaced. The actor who played Gensaku Shiraishi, the original Battle Cossack, wanted to leave the series to spent more time with his new wife, so his character was killed off and replaced by Gensaku's friend Makoto Jin. A few episodes earlier, Diana Martin, the original Miss America, was injured in combat and was replaced by Maria Nagisa.
- In Taiyou Sentai Sun Vulcan, the actor who played Ryūsuke Ōwashi, the original Vul Eagle, could only do the first 25 episodes of the series due to a previous contract he had on another project which conflicted with his work on Sun Vulcan. His character was sent away to the US to work for NASA and replaced by Takayuki Hiba.
- In Choudenshi Bioman, Mika Koizumi, the original Yellow Four, was killed off ten episodes into the series after the actress playing her abruptly left the series, necessitating the need of her replacement, Jun Yabuki.
- A more traditional example occurs in the finale of Gosei Sentai Dairanger: 50 years after the defeat of Gohma, the grandchildren of the original Dairangers inherit their powers when Gohma returns.
- The main characters of Ninja Sentai Kakuranger are implied to have inherited their powers from their ancestors as well.
- Like its Power Rangers counterpart, Hyūga inherited the identity of the Black Knight in Seijuu Sentai Gingaman once BullBlack was killed off. Unlike the above examples, BullBlack's death was actually a planned event in the story.
- In the direct-to-video movie of Kyūkyū Sentai GoGoV, the new character named Beast-Demon Hunter Zeek came to Earth to stop a monstrous alien, but was killed in action and transferred his power to Kyoko Hayase, the one of recurring allies of Tatsumi brothers. Kyoko transformed into an one-off Sixth Ranger and help the heroes win the battle.
- The Samurai Sentai Shinkenger are another team that inherited their powers from their ancestors (which was then pretty much copied whole into the above-mentioned Power Rangers Samurai). Specifically, the current Five-Man Band is the eighteenth generation of Shinkenger, with the Sixth Ranger being a totally new element. The first generation is glimpsed in flashbacks, with their Red appearing as a spirit in The Movie, while the seventeenth generation are the parents of the current Shinkengers, with only Yellow's predecessor not appearing substantially. Things become shaken up when it is revealed that Shinken Red, Takeru Shiba is a decoy for the true head of the Shiba House, Kaoru Shiba, daughter of the last Shinken Red. When Kaoru adopts Takeru as her son, he officially becomes the ninteenth Shinken Red.
- In the Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger Special ''Ten Years After'', Tenkai becomes the new Shurikenger after finally deciding to become good.
- Played with in Shuriken Sentai Ninninger, where the Five-Man Band are all grandchildren of Yoshitaka Igasaki, the Last Ninja. He was not a Ninninger himself, and the five Ninningers compete along with the unrelated Sixth Ranger to inherit the title of Last Ninja, which Yoshitaka himself inherited from his father. This trope is inverted in the endgame when Yoshitaka finally transforms into a version of AkaNinger along with his son, the father of the current AkaNinger who was passed over. Played straight in Zyuohger vs. Ninninger, which has Takaharu's Kid from the Future becoming the fourth incarnation of AkaNinger.
- Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger has Yamato Kazakiri, already Zyuoh Eagle/Gorilla, inheriting the power of Cetus to become the second Zyuoh Whale, which serves as a Super Mode for him.
- In the Titans, Dick, who's technically retired as Robin, meets his replacement, Jason Todd. On the villainous side, after Kory kills the "Dad" of the Nuclear Family, the Organistion simply have him replaced.
- The Twilight Zone (1985): In "Paladin of the Lost Hour", Gaspar tells Billy Kinetta that when Pope Gregory XIII adopted the Gregorian calendar and advanced time by eleven days in 1582, he miscalculated by one hour. The lost hour slipped free and bounced through eternity. Gaspar is the latest paladin of the lost hour in a line going back 400 years. If he dies without passing on his watch, the entire universe will be engulfed in darkness. In order to prevent this from happening, Gaspar passes on the watch to Billy, whom he has come to trust implicitly in the time that they have known each other.
