History Main / PresentAbsence

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

A character who does not appear for much of or possibly all of the plot, but whose presence is nevertheless felt. More accurately, the absence of the character is most significant. These works show what effect their absence has on the world and the characters. The character, in his absence, pulls strings or drives action, becoming a sort of MacGuffin or shadowy influence.

In short, the character drives the plot despite his or her absence either directly or through the minds and hearts of the characters. This is usually done in a few ways:

** In the original trilogy, Emperor Palpatine is spoken about in all three films and is responsible for almost everything that happens, but he doesn't appear at all in the first film and has only a brief appearance in the second, via hologram. He finally becomes a major on-screen character in the third film.
** The first line of the OpeningCrawl of ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' is "Luke Skywalker has vanished." The search for him is a major factor in the motives of the heroes and villains. [[spoiler:He finally appears in the very last scene, and is completely silent, when Rey finds him on Ahch-To.]]

* ''Film/NoTimeToDie''. [[spoiler: Despite his death, James Bond haunts the final scenes of the [=MI6=] crew paying tribute to him as well of as his wife and daughter driving along.]]

* ''Manga/OshiNoKo'': Overlapping with DeathByOriginStory, [[spoiler:Ai Hoshino's murder in front of her own twins very early on in the story (Chapter 9 of the manga, Episode 1 of the anime adaptation) serves to drive both of their character arcs as both seek to honor their late mother's wishes in their own ways. Aqua seeks to uncover the real mastermind behind their mother's murder, causing him to become an actor as a means for him to navigate the world of showbiz and find the culprit. Ruby on the other hand seeks to become an idol and revitalizes B-Komachi after its dissolution following Ai's death. Throughout the story, Ai's posthumous legacy is frequently brought up and heavily felt by many other characters]].

* ''Manga/OshiNoKo'': Overlapping with DeathByOriginStory, [[spoiler:Ai Hoshino's murder in front of her own twins in the first episode serves to drive both of their character arcs as both seek to honor their late mother's wishes in their own ways. Aqua seeks to uncover the real mastermind behind their mother's murder, causing him to become an actor as a means for him to navigate the world of showbiz and find the culprit. Ruby on the other hand seeks to become an idol and revitalizes B-Komachi after its dissolution following Ai's death. Throughout the story, Ai's posthumous legacy is frequently brought up and heavily felt by many other characters]].

* On ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Iroh's son Lu Ten's death drives much of the backstory of Zuko and the Fire Nation. His death is what causes Iroh to abandon the siege of Ba Sing Se, meaning that the Fire Nation hasn't won the war by the time Aang is discovered by Katara and Sokka. In addition, Lu Ten's death is what spurs Ozai to ask to be named heir instead of Iroh, which indirectly is what leads to Zuko's mother's disappearance and Ozai's ascension to Fire Lord. [[spoiler: Fire Lord Azulon is disgusted by Ozai's request and orders him to sacrifice his son like Iroh lost his. To save her son, Zuko's mother Ursa poisons Azulon, and it is claimed that his last wish was to make Ozai Fire Lord.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/MastersOfTheUniverseRevelation'', the very first episode of the first season kills off [[spoiler:He-Man/Prince Adam]]. Over the course of the next few years, his absence is felt keenly by everyone who knew and loved him - and even by those who didn't know him personally, because as a result of the tragedy, [[spoiler:Eternia itself is dying]].

** After being the GreaterScopeVillain in the first movie, Thanos is completely absent in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2''. He's still a factor in the movie, as Gamora and Nebula both have [[JustForPun entire subscriptions' worth of issues]] thanks to his screwed-up "parenting".

* ''Manga/OshiNoKo'': Overlapping with DeathByOriginStory, [[spoiler:Ai Hoshino's murder in front of her own twins in the first episode serves to drive both of their character arcs as both seek to honor their late mother's wishes in their own ways. Aqua seeks to uncover the real mastermind behind their mother's murder, causing him to become an actor as a means for him to navigate the world of showbiz and find the culprit. Ruby on the other hand seeks to become an idol and revitalizes B-Komachi after its dissolution following Ai's death]].

* Nagi Springfield in ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi''. He's only seen in flashbacks[[note]] and in a magical hologram/personality copying thing[[/note]], but is Negi's primary motivation for doing just about everything.
* [[spoiler:Kamina]] in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. Gets killed off only eight episodes in, but everything else accomplished in the rest of the series is largely accomplished thanks to the fighting spirit he inspires in the rest of the main characters. He (or at least the character's memory of him) even [[NotTooDeadToSaveTheDay pops up during the final battle]] to bring everyone to their senses after getting trapped in a LotusEaterMachine.
* [[spoiler:Siegfried Kircheis]] in ''Literature/LegendOfTheGalacticHeroes''. After his death, his absence has as much of an influence on the characters, particularly [[spoiler:Reinhard]], as his presence did. In fact, the phrase "If only [[spoiler:Kircheis]] was here/still alive." is uttered by several characters, repeatedly, over the course of the story, and has even become a meme to fans.
* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'':
** Dio Brando is only the BigBad of Parts 1 and 3, but every plot device that drives every other story up to Part 6 is always directly or indirectly related to him, as the heroes keep chasing after all the loose ends he left behind.
** Appropriately, his heroic counterpart in this is Jonathan Joestar. While Jonathan [[spoiler:dies at the end of Part 1]], his bloodline and friends use him as an example of how to live their lives, and are able to gain enough power to fight the world’s evil because of the path he started them on.
* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion''
** Yui Ikari died years before the series began, with her absence having huge ramifications on the actions and motivations of her son Shinji and husband Gendo.
** [[spoiler:The second]] Rei Ayanami in the third ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'' movie. She is not physically present except for perhaps in a single ghostly apparition, but the protagonist's [[NiceJobBreakingItHero ill-fated attempt to save her]] played a major part in the events that turned the setting into a post-apocalyptic wasteland, and she gets mentioned in every other scene, mostly by the aforementioned protagonist who is trying to reunite with her, much to the confusion of her unfortunate Clone.
* ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'':
** [[spoiler:Maes Hughes]] may not have been able to reveal what he discovered prior to his death, but his presence was felt throughout the story. His family is still learning to cope with their loss by the end of the story while [[spoiler:Mustang]]'s primary motivation is avenging his friend.
** The specters of [[spoiler:Nina and her dog Alexander]] hang over the Elric brothers for a long time as well. Ed even references her in his final confrontation with [[spoiler:Truth]].

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Sasuke flees to Orochimaru at the end of Part 1; in Part 2, he does not appear at all in the first story arc, the second arc is about finding him but he hardly appears in it, does not appear again in the third arc, and only takes centre stage in the fourth story arc, after which the story switches focus between him and Naruto as normal. Despite this, even in the arcs he is not present, Naruto and the other characters are constantly thinking or talking about him, some wanting to save him from the dark path he is travelling down, some fear he is beyond redemption and want him killed, and ''everyone'' wants to deal with him once he unintentionally helps kick off the Fourth Great Ninja War.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[spoiler:The death of Portgas D. Ace marked a significant shift in the tone of the story and was one of the direct causes for the TimeSkip. Even after it, however, Ace continues to influence plot, either through his devil fruit, which reincarnated into a new fruit after his death, or through the people he met on his journey prior to his untimely passing. Most notably, it was his death that caused Sabo to regain his memories; afterwards, Sabo made it his specific goal to find Ace's devil fruit and inherit his will. He eventually succeeds, and along the way, reunites with their mutual protectorate: their younger brother, the protagonist Luffy, who Sabo swears to protect in Ace's stead]].

** Much of Gemma's [[BelovedSmother behavior]] throughout the series is due to never getting over the death of her younger son Thomas who died as a child of a congenital heart defect. This makes her scarily protective of Jax, her only surviving child. Gemma's MamaBear tendencies exponentially increase when Jax marries and has children with Tara, a law-abiding doctor who disapproves of the club and encourages Jax to move away. This leads to Gemma murdering Tara, triggering the tragic downfall of SAMCRO and the Teller family in season 7.

* Thomas and Martha Wayne in any ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' media. They're the UrExample of DeathByOriginStory, but in death, they're the driving force in their son's life, and indirectly, those of everyone inspired or affected by the Batman. Because of their deaths in that alleyway, Thomas and Martha Wayne manage to have a major impact on Batman, every Robin, every Batgirl, everyone in Gotham City, and, through Batman's membership in the Justice League, virtually the entire DC Universe.
* Like the Waynes above, Uncle Ben in ''Franchise/SpiderMan''. His death is what makes his nephew abandon any intentions of cashing in on his superpowers, and Ben's [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility iconic philosophy]] becomes a defining element of Peter's life.
* The Comedian in ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}''. The investigation into his murder drives the story in the early issues, and from there, [[MinorCrimeRevealsMajorPlot it expands to reveal the greater plot]]. He's also mentioned throughout the comic, with the other characters reflecting on their experiences with him, the impact he had on their lives, and the relevance of his twisted belief system in an increasingly insane world.

* [[spoiler:The second]] Rei Ayanami in the third ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'' movie. She is not physically present except for perhaps in a single ghostly apparition, but the protagonist's [[NiceJobBreakingItHero ill-fated attempt to save her]] played a major part in the events that turned the setting into a post-apocalyptic wasteland, and she gets mentioned in every other scene, mostly by the aforementioned protagonist who is trying to reunite with her, much to the confusion of her [[CloningBlues unfortunate Clone.]]
** In the [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion original series]] Yui Ikari was this, with her absence having huge ramifications on the actions and motivations of her son Shinji and husband Gendo.

** In the original trilogy, Emperor Palpatine is spoken about in all three films, though he doesn't appear at all in the first film and has only a brief appearance in the second, via hologram. He finally becomes a major on-screen character in the third film.

** In the original trilogy, Emperor Palpatine is spoken about in all three films, though he doesn't appear at all in the first film and has only a brief appearance in the second. He finally becomes a major on-screen character in the third film.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': The first line of the OpeningCrawl of ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' is "Luke Skywalker has vanished." The search for him is a major factor in the motives of the heroes and villains. [[spoiler:He finally appears in the very last scene, and is completely silent, when Rey finds him on Ahch-To.]]

** King Aerys II, the Mad King. Being dead he only appears in memories and visions, yet his paranoia and sadism resulted in the unstable mess that was Westeros, leading to him murdering Brandon and Rickard Stark after Lyanna disappeared with Rhaegar. That act of tyranny along with wanting Ned and Robert killed led to the civil war that saw him killed and his family driven from power. Additionally his fear of his son Rhaegar betraying him led to hiring Varys to be his spymaster, which meant that almost twenty years later [[spoiler: Varys was able to do a lot to send Westeros into another civil war so his own preferred figure could take the throne]].

* Lily Kane in ''Series/VeronicaMars'' was Veronica's best friend, her boyfriend's sister and the daughter of the richest man in town. She appears as a PosthumousCharacter in half the episodes of season 1. Her murder not only forms the first season's ongoing mystery, but has already had a profound effect on the small town of Neptune, including Veronica's dad Keith losing his job as Sheriff for accusing Lily's parents of knowing more than they let on, which led to Veronica losing her social status, which in turn led to her friendship with [[BlackBestFriend Wallace Fennell]]. Following her killer's reveal in the season finale, her presence continues to be felt in season 2 as the killer is put on trial.

* Queen Ygraine in ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}'', whose death prior to the series is a PlotTriggeringDeath. After a spell is cast to ensure Prince's Arthur conception, she [[DeathByChildbirth dies in childbirth]] in order to [[BalancingDeathsBooks balance out the magical birth]]. This leads to her husband, King Uther, waging war on all of those who possess magic, thus leading to the lead character having to hide his magic when arriving in Camelot, and the show's TagLine: "keep the magic secret." Her absence also lends heavily to Uther's FreudianExcuse and Arthur's OedipusComplex.