History Main / MandatoryUnretirement

* Slughorn in ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheHalfBloodPrince''.

* ''Film/InvisibleInvaders'': Act One of the film has Dr. Adam Penner retiring from the Atomic Commission because he's distressed at the fact his friend and fellow colleague Dr. Karol Noymann was blown up in an atomic experiment gone wrong and the U.S. Government cares little about the fact a huge chunk of countryside got irradiated and doesn't cares about using atomic energy to help mankind, instead continuing to focus on making nuclear weapons. He swears on his friend's grave that he will no longer use science to harm others. Act Two of the film is him going back to the Atomic Commission and being assigned to research some way to destroy the titular alien invaders, who are well on their way to accomplish their promised goal of exterminating all of mankind within three days.

** ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' has Han Solo and Chewbacca get roped into the new crisis soon after they find their old ship, the ''Millennium Falcon'', which was recently stolen (not from Han) by Rey and Finn. Before they have a chance to part ways, the planet they are visiting is attacked by the First Order, who are promptly fought off by The Resistance, which is revealed to be lead by Princess Leia. [[spoiler: She convinces Han not only to help destroy Starkiller Base, but also to try and convince their son Ben to come back from the Dark Side.]]

** ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' has Han Solo and Chewbacca get roped into the new crisis soon after they find their old ship, The ''Millennium Falcon'', which was recently stolen (not from Han) by Rey and Finn. Before they have a chance to part ways, the planet they are visiting is attacked by the First Order, who are promptly fought off by The Resistance, which is revealed to be lead by Princess Leia. [[spoiler: She convinces Han not only to help destroy Starkiller Base, but also to try and convince their son Ben to come back from the Dark Side.]]

* In the ''PennyArcade'' story [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2008/6/25/ "Paint The Line,"]] Tycho and Gabe are forced out of retirement by the government. They're retired [[SeriousBusiness ping-pong players]].

* Happens again and again to Wedge Antilles in the Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse. As early as the first-set issue of the ComicBook/XWingSeries he's been contemplating retirement and believing that there was too much he still needed to contribute. In the ''Literature/NewJediOrder'', ''Literature/LegacyOfTheForce'', and ''FateOfTheJedi'' he's been pulled out of retirement, because not only is he pretty much [[ImprobablePilotingSkills the greatest pilot alive]], he's a skilled and inventive tactician.

* ''Film/BladeRunner'', Rick Deckard. Although [[spoiler:it's possible [[FakeMemories he never was a police officer in the first place]], and was only "born" shortly before the movie starts.]]

* Retired Scout Edin Dan from ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'' had enough of this tower-climbing nonsense… until [[MagnificentBastard Koon]] baited him into a bet, trying to win him for his ascension team. Edin tried to trick Koon, but got quickly OutGambitted.

* [[JohnLeCarre George Smiley]] has retired at least three times and been brought back, albeit in an informal or advisory capacity, to clean up various messses made by his former colleagues in the security services. He does it enough that one character at the begining of ''[[TheQuestForKarla Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy]]'' insists, much to Smiley's chagrin, that his retirement (Smiley's second at that point) is merely cover.

* That's how Mackenzie Calhoun is pulled back into Starfleet (at least, the ''official'' Starfleet) in ''StarTrekNewFrontier''. That, plus that fourth pip, plus Jean-Luc Picard saying "Get the ''[[UnusualEuphemism groz]]'' in that Captain's chair, you idiot!" gets him fully back.

* In the PennyArcade story [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2008/6/25/ "Paint The Line"]], Tycho and Gabe are forced out of retirement by the government. They're retired [[SeriousBusiness ping-pong players]].

* ComicBook/{{Red}}: They should have left him alone.

* ''Film/GameOdDeath'': In the original version, Hai Tien (Bruce Lee) is a retired full contact world champion and initially refuses to take part in the "game of death" and only does so after his family is kidnapped by the Korean mafia.

* Garcia the warrior in ''FireEmblemTheSacredStones''. Garcia gave up being a warrior to raise his son after his wife died, but Ross makes him realize that the battlefield is where he belongs after the two help Eirika and her crew drive off some bandits.

* [[NazisWithGnarlyWeapons Gerd von Rundstedt]] was one of Germany's top field marshals during World War II. He had retired in 1938 after over forty years of service, only for Hitler to reinstate him to lead the Heer into Poland, France, and Ukraine. Despite having acquitted himself very well (though committing the usual spate of War Crimes, of course) during ''Operation Barbarossa'', during ''Operation Typhoon'' he was fired from his position as the commander of Army Group South for ordering a 'cowardly and unnecessary retreat'. In fact a severely-depleted force under his command (First Panzer Army) had accidentally attacked a Soviet force more than five times stronger than it by trying to take the Donbass, and was then threatened with encirclement and annihilation by it [[note]] Runstedt had been told by German military intelligence (FHO) that the Soviets could offer 'no significant resistance' to such an operation (due to them supposedly having run out of trained reserves and weapons) [[/note]]. In the summer of 1944 he was fired ''again'', this time because he was "difficult to work with" [[note]] He had a 'too old for this shit' attitude that caused him to mouth off whenever he felt like. But his cardinal sin was insisting too hard that the Normandy landings were probably the real deal and Calais a diversion, something that German military intelligence contradicted [[/note]], and was then brought back again as the Germans were forced to withdraw from France altogether and had to quickly re-form a new defensive line on the Franco-German border.

** In fact, this is a case of AllInTheManual. The enlistment papers that you sign to join indicate that there is a period of time where you agree to be called back into duty according to the needs of the service. Usually your total commitment comes out to something like eight years total, including Active Duty, the Reserves, and the "Inactive Reserves" (the guys who get rudely yoinked back into duty.)

* Imran Khan was called out of retirement to play for Pakistan in the 1992 {{Cricket}} world cup - Pakistan's president even compared it to [[InternationalShowdownByProxy a soldier being called on to fight for his country]].

Often will be a police officer, soldier, or mercenary, but can be any job. RetiredGunfighter is a common starting point for this character, before they are forced into Mandatory Unretirement. Often set up as an extended TenMinuteRetirement or crossover with a ScrapHeapHero.

* Happens again and again to Wedge Antilles in the Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse. As early as the first-set issue of the XWingSeries he's been contemplating retirement and believing that there was too much he still needed to contribute. In the ''Literature/NewJediOrder'', ''Literature/LegacyOfTheForce'', and ''FateOfTheJedi'' he's been pulled out of retirement, because not only is he pretty much [[ImprobablePilotingSkills the greatest pilot alive]], he's a skilled and inventive tactician.

* Happens again and again to Wedge Antilles in the Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse. As early as the first-set issue of the XWingSeries he's been contemplating retirement and believing that there was too much he still needed to contribute. In the ''NewJediOrder'', ''Literature/LegacyOfTheForce'', and ''FateOfTheJedi'' he's been pulled out of retirement, because not only is he pretty much [[ImprobablePilotingSkills the greatest pilot alive]], he's a skilled and inventive tactician.
** Illustrative example from ''[[NewJediOrder Rebel Dream]]'':

* Retired Scout Edin Dan from ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'' had enough of this tower-climbing nonsense… until [[MagnificentBastard Koon]] baited him into a bet, trying to win him for his ascension team. Edin tried to trick Koon, but got quickly out-gambitted.

* A recurring theme in ''GetterRobo'' is that if you piloted Getter at some point, no matter how far you run from it, destiny keeps throwing you in the cockpit.

* K in ''MenInBlackII'' is yanked from his peaceful life as a mailman to join the MIB again due to knowledge even he doesn't know he possesses.