History Main / MookCarryover

* The mooks of the ''ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}'' are just guys in cool armor with guns. When Swordsman bribes/hires a bunch of them for himself, while staging a coup against ComicBook/NormanOsborn, he spraypaints them in his colors. They don't last long, but they are mooks who get a palette swap and a new boss.
* In ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'', when Darth Krayt dies, the entire Sith Empire works for Darth Wyyrlok for a while [[spoiler: until Krayt comes BackFromTheDead]].
* Manute of ''ComicBook/SinCity'' goes to work for Wallenquist after Ava Lord's death.
* ''Comicbook/SuperiorSpiderMan'': After Franchise/SpiderMan [[spoiler: who is actually ComicBook/DoctorOctopus in Peter Parker's body]] kills members of his RoguesGallery, their surviving mooks seek protection and employment from [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn the Green Goblin]].

Whether they are still effective or not depends on whether they [[VillainForgotToLevelGrind remembered to keep their skills sharp,]] [[JokeCharacter assuming they were very skilled in the first place.]]

* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'': [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI The first game]] ends with the heroes defeating the BigBad Ansem, sealing the Door to Darkness, and restoring the worlds devoured by the Heartless. The next game, ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsChainOfMemories Chain of Memories]]'', leaves it ambiguous as to whether the Heartless are still around (the Heartless that appear here are implied to have been created from memories), but ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' definitively explains that 1) the Heartless exist AsLongAsThereIsEvil and can still invade the Realm of Light and 2) that [[IFightForTheStrongestSide they instinctively obey whoever is the strongest]], which in this case means the new villains.

Mook Carrryover is when Mooks of the previous BigBad (TheDragon, TheEvilGenius, TheDarkChick, or just the GoldFishPoopGang) end up working for the new guy. How they managed to avoid death by either the hand of TheHero or their new boss varies: [[TheStarscream they may have betrayed their own boss,]] [[NotQuiteDead or were only mostly killed by the hero, and pitched their resume to the new guy.]] [[TheMole Or they may have been always working for the new blood, and just pretending to be loyal to the other one.]] Whatever the case, they are a familiar face among a bunch of new villains. This trope can be considered the Inversion of ReplacementMooks.

-->-- '''Gustavo Fring''' to [[spoiler:'''Nacho Varga''']], ''Series/BetterCallSaul''

* Discussed in ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower''. Morgoth created the Orcs be enslaving and twisting Elves from Beleriand into an EvilCounterpartRace. After his defeat, Sauron made sure they still multiplied in great numbers.

* At the end of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' Season 1, she kills TheMaster, but the Annointed One is still around to be the BigBad of Season 2 -- except early in Season 2, Spike comes along and kills ''him'', taking over his operation.
* Officer Braca (later Lieutenant) in ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' was second-in-command to most of the series' {{Big Bad}}s, in order. He just kept trading up.
* ''Series/TwentyFour'' after Erwich is killed by his superior, his remaining goons turn to him.

* In the Series/ArrowVerse, Laurel Lance's Earth-2 doppelgäanger Black Siren has been TheDragon for a number of {{Big Bad}}s -- first Zoom on ''Series/TheFlash2014'' before she was transferred to ''Series/{{Arrow}}'' where she served that same role for Prometheus, Cayden James, and Ricardo Diaz, before her HeelFaceTurn and becoming a semi-ally to Team Arrow.

-->-- '''Gustavo Fring''' to [[spoiler:Nacho Varga]], ''Series/BetterCallSaul''

->''"I know what you've done. The Salamancas... they do not. Do you understand what I'm saying? Look at me. From now on: [[PunctuatedForEmphasis You. Are. Mine]]."''

* ''Fanfic/JWITCHSeason1'':

-->-- '''Gustavo Fring''' to [[spoiler:'''Nacho Varga''']], ''Series/BetterCallSaul''

* Various RPGS like ''Franchise/DragonQuest'' and ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' have some recurring Mooks such as Goblins and Slimes go from working for the [[VideoGame/DragonQuestI Dragonlord]], and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Garland/[[spoiler:Chaos]]]] to working for [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyII Emperor Mateus]] and [[VideoGame/DragonQuestII Hargon/Malroth]], whose Minions like Bubble Slimes, Hawk Men, Iron Giants, Lamias, and Malboros go on to work for other villains, such as [[VideoGame/DragonQuestIII Baramos and Zoma]], [[VideoGame/DragonQuestV Bishop Ladja and Nimzo]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII the Cloud of Darkness]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV Golbez and [[spoiler:Zemus]]]], and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyV Exdeath]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

** ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'' revealed that by the time of the original trilogy the clones had all retired and been replaced by conventional soldiers with relatively poor training; the armor style is just similar.
** In ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', the First Order also uses stormtroopers but they're specified not to be clones.

* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'': [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI The first game]] ends with the heroes defeating the BigBad Ansem, sealing the Door to Darkness, and restoring the worlds devoured by the Heartless. The next game, ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsChainOfMemories Chain of Memories]]'', leaves it ambiguous as to whether the Heartless are still around (the Heartless that appear here are implied to have been created from memories), but ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' definitively explains that 1)the Heartless exist AsLongAsThereIsEvil and can still invade the Realm of Light and 2)that they instinctively obey whoever is the strongest, which in this case means the new villains.

MookCarryover is when Mooks of the previous BigBad (TheDragon, TheEvilGenius, TheDarkChick, or just the GoldFishPoopGang) end up working for the new guy. How they managed to avoid death by either the hand of TheHero or their new boss varies: [[TheStarscream they may have betrayed their own boss,]] [[NotQuiteDead or were only mostly killed by the hero, and pitched their resume to the new guy.]] [[TheMole Or they may have been always working for the new blood, and just pretending to be loyal to the other one.]] Whatever the case, they are a familiar face among a bunch of new villains. This trope can be considered the Inversion of ReplacementMooks.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' does this retroactively, wherein Ganon's usual Moblins and Bokoblins serve as Ghirahim and [[spoiler:Demise]]'s minions instead. [[spoiler:Given that Ganon the living incarnation of Demise's hatred, this makes sense]].

* ''VideoGame/MiddleEarthShadowOfWar'' still uses the same example as Middle-Earth mentioned above, with the Balrog summoned by Zog The Eternal not following the will of him or his followers and almost immediately leaving to destroy the land for its own reasons. However, ''[[DownloadableContent Blade of Galadriel]]'' features a direct [[AvertedTrope aversion]] in the form of Ogg The Bow Of Morgoth, who outright refused to serve Sauron and considers Morgoth the only ''true'' Dark Lord. Luckily, since Morgoth is DeaderThanDead, he's perfectly fine with helping Eltariel fight Sauron.

* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'': Tarquin and Malack are the general and high priest of the Empire of Blood, but they have served these roles many times under previous countries and rulers. [[spoiler:Secretly invoked and subverted: they and four others all work in shifting pairs to appoint puppet leaders that keep them out of the spotlight, kill them, find a new puppet, and change country names so people don't realize. By this method they are now the de facto rulers of a third of the continent. Only a few people have noticed that amid the general chaos of conquest increasingly large amounts of territory belong to three countries, and the same six people keep showing up as advisers to their rulers.]]

** The Enforcers; Finn, Ratso, and Chow (and sometimes Hak Foo), who were always brought in by the current season's BigBad. Valmont, Shendu (possessing Valmont), Daolon Wong, Tarakudo, and finally Shendu's son Drago. The latter ends up firing them not long after.

* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'': [[VideoGame/KingdomHearts The first game]] ends with the heroes defeating the BigBad Ansem, sealing the Door to Darkness, and restoring the worlds devoured by the Heartless. The next game, ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsChainOfMemories Chain of Memories]]'', leaves it ambiguous as to whether the Heartless are still around (the Heartless that appear here are implied to have been created from memories), but ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' definitively explains that 1)the Heartless exist AsLongAsThereIsEvil and can still invade the Realm of Light and 2)that they instinctively obey whoever is the strongest, which in this case means the new villains.

* Jaws somehow survives being dropped into a shark tank in the middle of the ocean at the end of ''Film/TheSpyWhoLovedMe''. When the original [[TheDragon Dragon]] is killed in ''Film/{{Moonraker}}'', Jaws is hired as his replacement. Justified by the vague implication he was a freelance ProfessionalKiller rather than a loyal minion of Stromberg's.

* Axel Gear is Sparkster's rival and ArchEnemy in the ''VideoGame/RocketKnight'' series but he was never the BigBad, instead serving whichever army was attacking Zebulos in the game.