To-do list:
- Move examples that fit one of the tropes on the Absentee Actor disambiguation page and remove ones that don't. For reference purposes, here's a list of the tropes on the disambiguation page:
- Adapted Out: A character with some significance to the original story is written out of an adaptation.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: A character disappears suddenly from a work with no in-universe explanation and subsequent installments act as though they never existed in the first place.
- A Day in the Limelight: A secondary character gets featured in an episode where they are the main focus.
- Demoted to Extra: When a character gets a less important role in a sequel or in an adaptation of the original work.
- Deus Exit Machina: When the most powerful character is written out for a portion of the story as to prolong it.
- Green Rooming: Introducing a new character who is then inexplicably ignored for a few episodes.
- Not Important To This Episode Camp: The plot of the episode does not include kid characters who are important to the plot, so their absence is quickly explained.
- Out of Focus: When certain characters are given significantly less spotlight than others.
- Put on a Bus: A character is written out of a work in a way that makes it easy for them to return later on.
- Ret-Gone: When all signs of a character's existence have been wiped out in-universe.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: When a minor plot element or character is dropped from the story with no explanation.
- Written-In Absence: When a character should be in the events of the story, but a few lines give a quick explanation of their absence.
On Absentee Actor Wick Check, only 8 out of 61 examples are correctly used. Perhaps this could be split into one trope for the original definition, and another one for any episode where one of the main protagonists is absent (whether or not there's an explanation, since the protagonist being absent is noteworthy).
Edited by GastonRabbit on May 16th 2022 at 6:18:06 AM
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Suggested disambiguation text:
- Shoo Out the Clowns: The usually comedic and lighthearted characters disappear before the more serious parts of a work.
the Retromancer
Yeah, probably.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Sure.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Anyway, we're at 2995.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
2790
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
2650 (2649 if you count a page I had to cutlist)
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Sounds good on paper (he/him)
It's cut.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Down to 2220
Right now I'm basically just hopping randomly around the Recap section.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Why don't put Absentee Actor as a downplayed variant of Chuck Cunningham Syndrome? At least we can still save the examples.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
...Because they're two entirely different concepts, one requiring the character be forgotten completely, and also literally every example is just "Bob doesn't appear in this episode"?
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Went on a spree. 1898 left. I need to sleep.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
1735
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
1397, now that the cutlist updated. (So many pages had to be cut last night...)
Of that 1397, we have 649 recap pages left. ![[lol]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lol2v12_4863.png "[lol]"){kind=small}
Edited by WarJay77 on Jun 18th 2022 at 2:57:06 PM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
1098
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
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950
At my current pace I'll be done in early July.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Double checking real quick; it's not an edit war if I have to re-delete an example that got re-added to a page I already cleaned, right? I believe it falls into the "just upholding the rules" clause, but since these wicks keep coming back I want to ask before I get yeeted into Edit Banned.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Just stoic wisdom.
Are a lot of wicks getting readded for this one??
Vehicle-Based Characterization | Grief-Induced Split | Locker Mail
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
It's happened a few times. I wouldn't say the re-adds are intentional, just people noticing the lack of an example and adding it without realizing. Mostly they get re-added to cases where the absence is particularly noteworthy, like if it's the only episode lacking a particular character.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
(she/her)
It's been said before that it's fine to re-remove edits that are rule breaking or against policy in some way Absentee Actor isn't a trope anymore so it shouldn't be on trope lists as one. I'd send the person who added the trope a "not a trope" notifier and then remove the entry if the person doesn't fix it themselves
Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 27th 2022 at 1:24:13 PM
Macron's notes
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Alright, cool. I always send a notifier but I usually just delete the example beforehand. I'll start waiting to see if they take action first and just focus on other wicks in the meantime.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
586. Might've gone a bit overboard today. Recap/ is done.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
315, counting the two cutlisted pages. I'll probably be done by Monday.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Sounds good on paper (he/him)
I handled the cut requests.
Patiently awaiting the release of Paper Luigi and the Marvelous Compass.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
187, just Wester Animation and YMMV left.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
And we're done. We can lock up.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Crown Description:
What should be done with Absentee Actor?