Line #28 Main/StatusQuoIsGod


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9
10	->''"Looks like everything's back the way it was! Which is the only way it should ever be..."''
11	-->-- '''Marge Simpson,''' ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS15E8MargeVsSSCCATAG S15 E8 Marge Versus Singles, Seniors, Childless Couples and Teens and Gays]]
12
13	Within a work, particularly long-running series and franchises, almost ''nothing'' changes. If something does change, it's generally reset back to the way it was before very quickly.
14
15	This usually happens in a series with no overarching conflict or plot, although it is also the final stage of ExponentialPlotDelay, the phenomenon in which the plot of a serial story has totally ground to a halt. In either case, each installment of the series will open under virtually identical circumstances to the installment that came before.
16
17	Why create a static situation? The creators want the audience to be familiar with the characters and situation, without having to bother with such things as "what happened last episode".
18
19	This trope is especially true for cartoons, where networks want to be free to broadcast reruns in any convenient order or lack thereof. It's also very common in sitcoms and comics, and as a result, there is a lot of AesopAmnesia created. Although characters have learned their lessons or attempted to improve their predicaments, nothing ever really changes.
20
21	While this trope can be used to help avoid ContinuityLockout, it also can be very difficult to juggle an unchanging status quo without gradually turning off your audience; characters and situations which never change tend to get stale after a while, and audiences can get a bit tired of seeing the ResetButton being pushed every time it looks like something might happen to change things.
22
23	Status Quo Is God can easily collide with HappilyEverAfter. Sometimes, a story simply can't have an ending that is both happy and maintains the status quo--thus, these two powerful tropes are in conflict with each other. When this conflict occurs, it's likely that the status quo will be maintained, and the ending will be less happy than it might have been if not for Status Quo Is God. For example, if a main character gains a significant other at the beginning of the episode, it is almost certain that they will break up by the end, for [[ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies one reason]] or [[MinorFlawMajorBreakup another]]. And if the entire series is specifically about the UnresolvedSexualTension between two characters, or a LoveTriangle of some sort, expect any potential romantic resolution to be squashed or reversed by the end of the episode so the leads can go back to pining for each other. (On the other hand, if the entire ''series'' is due to end and the creators feel confident that they'll never do a sequel, they may decide to break this trope with a GrandFinale that permanently fixes everything; the LastMinuteHookup being a frequent example.)
24
25	Status Quo Is God is usually the justification for a YoYoPlotPoint or an AgelessBirthdayEpisode. It has nothing to do with [[Music/StatusQuo the divinity of a certain rock band]], however.
26
27	NegativeContinuity is what happens when this trope is exaggerated--not only does nothing ever change, it doesn't even require an explanation InUniverse, the world just resets at the end of every episode. See also, AlternateUniverseReedRichardsIsAwesome, in which characters get a glimpse of an alternative universe where things have, in fact, changed.
28
29	Related to JustEatGilligan and UnConfession. UnlikelySpare may also be used to this effect. For the opposite, in which a work changes dramatically over the course of its run, see NothingIsTheSameAnymore.
30
31	[[noreallife]]
32	----
33	!!Sub-tropes:
34	[[index]]
35	* AesopAmnesia: No one learns from their mistakes or remembers any lessons.
36	* AgelessBirthdayEpisode: A character has a birthday, but their age doesn't change.
37	* AntiSchoolUniformsPlot: {{Sudden School Uniform}}s is made the rule for one episode before being abolished.
38	* BrokenSystemDogmatist: A system is broken and corrupt beyond redemption, but this person wants to keep it in place regardless.
39	* CardboardPrison: Related to JokerImmunity described below; when not even a long prison sentence will last for a criminal.
40	* CartwrightCurse: Relationships that might change a character's romantic status quo don't last.
41	* ComicBookTime: Time stands still in-universe, despite the long progression of time in the real world. Gets extra confusing when real years and events are mentioned.
42	* ContractualImmortality: When the actor's contract is still in effect so their character's presumed death gets refused.
43	* DidNotGetTheGirl: No matter what they do or how hard they try, the character will never get the girl/boy.
44	* DivorceIsTemporary: When a married couple will not be separated forever.
45	* DudeWheresMyRespect: No matter how many times the heroes thwart villains and save the world, bystanders will act like it's the heroes' first time, and civilians won't display any admiration for them or give them any special treatment.
46	* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: If the success of the character implies a drastic alteration of the status quo of the series and/or the character itself.
47	* TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin: The near-universal rule that the bad guys must always lose. [[note]]Well, ''almost'' always; there are [[TheBadGuyWins rare exceptions]].[[/note]]
48	* IgnoredEpiphany: Whenever a character intentionally maintains their status quo.
49	* ItsAlwaysSpring: Perpetual sunshine and blue skies, because anything else would be inconvenient.
50	* JokerImmunity: When villains have the privilege of immunity from death as well.
51	* KeepingTheHandicap: A disabled character decides against [[ThrowingOffTheDisability "fixing" the disability]] because it makes them what they are.
52	* LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt: When the viewer can easily predict that someone won't die due to their importance to the story.
53	* NegativeContinuity: Taken to its logical extreme, drastic changes happen but are quickly reverted by next time, without any explanation. Common in surrealistic works.
54	* NoOntologicalInertia: For some reason, destroying the source of something (like magic) will instantly negate any changes it made.
55	* PlotArmor: Main characters (usually main protagonists, but also main antagonists) are deemed too important to die.
56	* ReedRichardsIsUseless: Fantastic technology is only used as a plot device, and barely affects the lives of the unnamed masses.
57	* ResetButton: The status quo is reinforced by reverting any changes with a {{handwave}}.
58	* ShootTheShaggyDog: The same as above but not only actively tragic but rendering any-and-all accomplishments meaningless.
59	* SnapBack: Something happens to the character or the story, but it is somehow undone by the next episode without any explanation.
60	* StaticCharacter: Anyone who doesn't go through character development.
61	* StatusQuoGameShow: Sometimes winning a game show might affect the character's status quo, AndThatsTerrible.
62	* StayingAlive: A character ''never'' stays dead.
63	* StrictlyFormula: When a series rarely (if ever) deviates from a standard plot formula.
64	* ThouShaltNotKill: Because the heroes refuse to permanently eliminate them.
65	* TooGoodForExploiters: We're not scrapping the old system for a new one because we're too happy exploiting the old system to our benefit!
66	* TrueLoveIsBoring: If the status quo of the character forces them to remain single or without a couple.
67	* UnprocessedResignation: A character quits their job, but manages to get it back by the end of the episode due to the boss refusing to process the necessary paperwork.
68	* UnstableEquilibrium: Competitors will always end with their same results if ContinuingIsPainful for the losers. [[note]] The winners always win, and the losers always lose [[/note]]
69	* VegetarianForADay: The diet of a character changes due to an event however they'll always go back by the next episode.
70	* VillainousPlanInertia: You've defeated the villain, and expect NoOntologicalInertia to take care of his plan/missiles/evil empire... But wait! Everything's still proceeding... um... according to plan! Looks like the heroes are still on the clock for a little bit longer....
71	* WeWantOurIdiotBack: An idiotic character becomes smarter, but goes back to their old intelligence level because other character want them to remain that way.
72	* WeWantOurJerkBack: A mean character becomes nicer but goes back to normal because the other characters ''wanted'' it.
73	* WorldHealingWave: A magical force that restores damage on a global or universal scale.
74
75	!!Not quite a sub-trope but often overlaps with it:
76	* BaitTheDog: Sometimes, when a bad character showing their likeable side would modify the status quo, the writers would make that disappear, but this is not always the reason they do so.
77	* ButtMonkey: Sometimes, when a character's unchanging status quo makes them unlucky, however, this is not the only reason for a character to be unlucky.
78	* ConvenientMiscarriage: If the reason it's convenient is because the baby would change the status quo, but not an example if it's convenient to the ''characters''.
79	* DeathIsCheap: When mortality can easily be [[BackFromTheDead reversed]]. This is not always because of this rule, however, and may be played for other reasons.
80	* DisneyDeath: Fake deaths are used in place of real deaths. Not always a sub-trope because this is only one of many reasons for a fake death.
81	* FissionMailed: When losing a game sometimes modifies the status quo, it would subvert it into the game being continued, though it's not always the case.
82	* AFoolAndHisNewMoneyAreSoonParted: A character suddenly comes into wealth and it is quickly lost, spent, or stolen, especially if the character is established as [[PerpetualPoverty always hard-up for money]].
83	* IronButtMonkey: A ButtMonkey is exposed to extreme physical abuse, yet [[NighInvulnerability it never dies or gets hurt at all]]. Very common in {{Slapstick}} comedies.
84	* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: When the story suggests that a {{jerkass}} might have a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold nicer side]] but then [[SubvertedTrope doesn’t]]. Sometimes this is because of the status quo, but other times it's played purely [[PlayedForLaughs for comedy]] or to cement a character as a jerkass.
85	* MayItNeverHappenAgain: If the reason the effort is made not to repeat the story is because repeating the story would change the status quo. On the other hand, this is sometimes an '''inversion''' of Status Quo is God, since other times, people ''try'' to change the status quo by ensuring the conflict doesn't repeat.
86	* ShaggyDogStory: A story's buildup has no payoff. The lack of payoff is sometimes done because of the status quo, but other times for drama or comedy.
87	* ShooOutTheNewGuy: A new character joins the main cast but is then promptly written out. However, this is often due to the [[TheScrappy negative reception]] of the character.
88	* TheyKilledKennyAgain: A comedic sub-trope of DeathIsCheap and NegativeContinuity. Sometimes done to maintain the status quo but other times it's played purely for BlackComedy.
89	* UnsuccessfulPetAdoption: Someone adopts a pet, but it runs away or has to go. Maintaining the status quo is one of the reasons to play this trope, but not the only one.
90	* VillainsActHeroesReact: If the hero were the one with a plan to change the world, a happy ending would involve the status quo changing. So instead, the villain is the one who wants to change the world, and the hero stops him to make sure nothing has to change.
91	* YankTheDogsChain: Sometimes, the reason for an unlucky character's luck disappearing is because having it stick around would shake up the status quo, but not always.
92	[[/index]]
93	----
94	!!Examples that have their own pages:
95	[[index]]
96	* StatusQuoIsGod/AnimeAndManga
97	* StatusQuoIsGod/ComicBooks
98	* StatusQuoIsGod/LiveActionTV
99	* StatusQuoIsGod/VideoGames
100	* StatusQuoIsGod/WesternAnimation
101	** ''StatusQuoIsGod/TheSimpsons''
102	[[/index]]
103
104	!!Other examples:
105
106	[[foldercontrol]]
107
108	[[folder:Asian Animation]]
109	* In the ''Animation/{{Lamput}}'' episode "Fracture", the docs, who normally chase after Lamput, outright ''help'' him for once when he gets a fracture and can't shapeshift properly. Any compassion the docs have for him is gone by the end of the episode and they go back to chasing him.
110	[[/folder]]
111
112	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
113	* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' plays with this: on a broad scale, Calvin's life remains the same; he's [[NotAllowedToGrowUp always 6-years-old]], regardless of how many Christmases we see him celebrate. If Hobbes gets lost or stolen or they have a falling out, they'll be reunited by the end of the story arc. If Calvin gets in particularly bad trouble with his parents, it'll all be smoothed over and reset to the base level of tension between them. However, specific recurring story arcs evolve and refer back to each other: when Calvin puts on his Stupendous Man costume, he or Hobbes will mention what happened the last time he wore it. Eventually he causes enough trouble with it that his mom takes it away and we never see it again. Likewise, his relationship with Rosalyn gets more complex (and generally more antagonistic) with each babysitting incident, but in her last arc, the two have fun together and part amicably. These gradual changes are only possible in a strip that has a finite, if large, lifespan, so it makes sense that Watterson ended the strip after 10 years, and probably had that ending in mind when he brought these arcs to their resolution.
114	** The strips that most call attention to this trope are ones in which Calvin pointedly fails to learn, whether a moral lesson or academics. In one arc, he gets tutored in math by his dad and seems to be making progress, to the point that he bets Susie money that he'll get the higher grade on a test, but it becomes immediately obvious that he's forgotten everything.
115	* Possibly the most brutal example of this trope in action was in ''ComicStrip/{{Curtis}}''. Curtis' mom got pregnant with a third child, only to have [[WhamEpisode a miscarriage due to gang violence]]. After a few days of mourning, [[AngstWhatAngst no family member ever mentioned it again]].
116	** WordOfGod said in an interview that this was planned from the start. He never intended to introduce the third child in the strip.
117	* ''ComicStrip/DennisTheMenaceUS'' celebrated his fifth birthday every year.
118	* ''ComicStrip/FoxTrot'' slipped into this -- at first it actually ''did'' have a bit of continuity (Jason's teacher retiring, Andy's hairstyle changing, Andy's job being established as a columnist, the Summer Camp arc, Peter and Denise getting together) but it quickly fell into this, as with every story arc the status quo would be reset. This made the time when Phoebe and Eugene visited seem somewhat odd.
119	** [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in [[https://www.gocomics.com/foxtrot/2024/02/04 this strip]]. Peter is excited for ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoVI'', which he'll be old enough to play when it comes out next year. Jason points out that the same thing happened when [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV the last game]] came out a decade prior (when Peter was, of course, still 16). They ultimately agree not to think too hard about it.
120	* ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' slipped into this some time after Odie was introduced and Lyman got hit with ChuckCunninghamSyndrome as all the major characters and plots were set up. However, after twenty-five years, Jon and Liz got together, promoting Liz to a main character and creating a new status quo.
121	* ''ComicStrip/MadamAndEve'' plays this rigidly straight; aside from the early introduction of [[GrumpyOldWoman Mother Anderson]] and [[CheerfulChild Thandi Sisulu]] to the comic, there have been no major permanent changes since the strip first started in 1993. Even the [[RememberTheNewGuy introduction of Gwen's son Eric]] was [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome quietly ignored]] afterward (twice!).
122	* Invoked in an ''ComicStrip/OverTheHedge'' story arc in which Verne is made over by RJ in an attempt to humiliate him, but ends up making him popular with the ladies (or as RJ puts it, turned him into Hugh Heffner). [[spoiler: This somehow upsets nature, and the Nature Police arrest him, but he gives Hammy an energy drink, enabling him to go back and stop the makeover from happening, but it not only has the present day have two Hammys, but also has them, Verne, and RJ speak backwards (represented by backwards text).]]
123	* ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'':
124	** Charlie Brown never succeeded in kicking that football. Schulz refused to break the status quo even when requests were made after he announced his retirement.
125	** It looked like Charlie Brown would never truly win a baseball game for the same reason. (One time, he ''did'' win, and it seemed such a big event that Walter Cronkite himself congratulated Charlie Brown on the CBS Evening News; unfortunately, Charlie Brown had to forfeit the game because Rerun had gambled on it, so Cronkite regrettably rescinded what he said.) However, Schulz broke the status quo in 1993, by having him win ''two'' games fairly (against the ''same team'', no less, a team run by [[CloudCuckooLander a spacy girl]] who believed she was [[Literature/TheNatural Roy Hobbs]] granddaughter.) [[spoiler: And even ''this'' was subverted as she eventually says she let him win.]]
126	[[/folder]]
127
128	[[folder:Fan Works]]
129	[[AC:''Crossovers'']]
130	* "[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/3330539 0-8-4 at the Museum]]" features a version of this when [[Series/AgentsOfSHIELD Coulson's team]] discover the secret of [[Film/NightAtTheMuseum the Golden Tablet of Pharaoh Ahkmenrah]] when it reanimates a set of Chitauri armor on display. While SHIELD policy would require Coulson to take such a powerful artefact into his own custody, Roosevelt points out to Coulson that the Tablet is safer where it is due to the risk of how its power might interact with other such artefacts SHIELD may have in their custody.
131	* At the conclusion of ''Fanfic/DoctorWhoAndTheRambaldiEnigma'', the Third Doctor acquires the Master’s TARDIS to take Sydney Bristow back to her time, but explicitly states that he will return to 1496 to reacquire his own ship because he doesn’t like the atmosphere of the Master’s TARDIS, even if his old ship is still virtually immobilised by the Time Lords so that he would have to return to his exile in the 1970s.
132	* Interestingly played with in ''FanFic/TheInfiniteLoops''. Since the whole plot is an episodic collection of [[GroundhogDayLoop time loops]] that various universes are forced into while the Admins repair the Multiverse, a lot of things are constantly reset to "normal" and there is no end in sight for the repairs. But the characters that are aware of the time loops grow and develop....
133	* ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'' [[PlayedForDrama plays an]] [[AvertedTrope Aversion]] [[PlayedForDrama for drama]]: After Chloe runs away and boards the Train, Goh becomes determined to track her down and bring her back home safely... while clinging to the idea that once he does, everything can go back to precisely the way it was before. He refuses to acknowledge that the argument they got into before she left was the result of ''years''' worth of resentment [[RageBreakingPoint boiling over]], clinging to the delusion that she'll be fine with things reverting back to normal. When Chloe finally spells out for him that she has no intention of giving up [[CharacterDevelopment everything she's gained]] during her adventures, [[SanitySlippage he doesn't]] [[TookALevelInJerkass take it well]].
134
135	[[AC:''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'']]
136	* Averted in the rewrite of ''FanFic/CalvinAndHobbesIILostAtSea''.
137
138	[[AC:''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'']]
139	* The ''Fanfic/DannyPhantomLostEpisodesSeries'' are set during season 3, and don't make any big changes to the canonical events.
140
141	[[AC:''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'']]
142	* Subverted in ''Fanfic/TheSpellbook'' quite often: Meg and Matt got married, and had a kid, Meg, Matt and Lois didn't lose their powers after the chapter they gained them was over and Brian and Jillian got two children.
143	* Subverted in ''Website/FamilyGuyFanon'': Quagmire has a permanent wife Kimi (until they divorce in Season 19), Peter returns to his old job as a fisherman, Chris and Meg find true girlfriend and boyfriends in Anna and Anthony Fargus and [[spoiler:Meg's biological father Stan Thompson doesn't disappear after his big three-parter and becomes a main character on the cast]].
144
145	[[AC:''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'']]
146	* Explicitly defied in ''Fanfic/TheWebOfTheSpiderMan''. The author has explicitly stated that he does not want to use "Parker luck" as a HandWave for keeping Peter in PerpetualPoverty. He'll instead be at the mercy of the choices he ([[{{Gamebooks}} and the readers]]) make and however the dice roll.
147
148	[[AC:''Franchise/MegaMan'']]
149	* In ''FanFic/MegaManDefenderOfTheHumanRace'', this is PlayedForDrama. In episodes 5 and 9, [=ProtoMan's=] HeelFaceTurn and promotion are temporary, but have lasting effects on him and other characters. [=ProtoMan=] even leaves episode 9 in worse shape than when he started.
150
151	[[AC:''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'']]
152	* ''Fanfic/TheKarmaOfLies'' [[DeconstructionFic deconstructs this]]:
153	** Adrien's primary reason for [[BetrayalByInaction refusing to expose]] [[ManipulativeBitch Lila]] is because he's far too comfortable with the current status quo. The fact that Lila is [[ConArtist scamming his classmates]] and hurting Marinette ''does not matter'' to him, so long as ''he's'' [[ItsAllAboutMe not personally impacted]]. When the status quo ''[[NothingIsTheSameAnymore does change]]'' and his KarmaHoudiniWarranty expires, he's completely unable to handle it, [[NotHelpingYourCase digging himself ever deeper]] with his stubborn insistence that things ''must'' go back to the way they were before.
154	** Alya and most of Marinette's ''[[WeUsedToBeFriends former]]'' friends and classmates fall into the same trap. Having [[TakingAdvantageOfGenerosity taken Marinette's kindness and helpfulness completely for granted]], they expect to be EasilyForgiven once the truth about Lila comes out, without acknowledging how they hurt her or [[NeverMyFault that they did anything wrong]]. Only the ones who [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone recognize their mistakes]] and work to improve themselves are able to start repairing their relationship with her.
155
156	[[AC:''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'']]
157	* ''[[http://alexwarlorn.deviantart.com/art/Stick-To-Foaluma-385994737 Stick to the Foaluma]]'' is this trope PlayedForDrama in a terrifying fashion. Silver Spoon begins to realize how her and Diamond's lives seem to revolve around torturing the CMC and tries to change it...[[spoiler:only for the computer controlling the show to ''literally'' press the ResetButton and {{Ret Gone}} it completely]].
158
159	[[AC:''Franchise/{{Naruto}}'']]
160	* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/5012103/1/That-Look That Look]]'': Every time Naruto appears to be a DumbassNoMore, he does something mind-numbingly stupid (such as not understanding the point of attacking a reservoir that supplies seventy percent of Suna's water, despite knowing Suna is in a desert). Furthermore, characters will comment on his growth only to insist he's still just a dumb kid a few chapters later. Combined with this is the fact his relationship with Anko never either moves forward or actually ends.
161
162	[[AC:''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'']]
163	* InUniverse example in ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines''. In their first encounter, [[EldritchAbomination [=MissingNo=]]] basically suggests to Ash this was the case in the old timeline, saying he and his friends lived in near eternal joy and happiness, yet no matter how hard they tried, their dreams were always above them as if through an impenetrable glass ceiling. Apparently it's because Cyrus decided to screw with Ash as a test of his power, for no reason [[EvilIsPetty other than he could]], while he built up enough strength to remake the universe, leading to the events of the story.
164	** The story also [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructs]] the idea of breaking Ash and the others from this trope. While Ash is frustrated by not being able to win a league, [=MissingNo=] points out that the Status Quo prevents things from getting too dark, and now that things have changed, all of them paid an EquivalentExchange for the chance to fulfill their dreams, even though none of them chose to. In short, breaking the Status Quo means they have to face issues none of them ever had to deal with, none of which are pretty. Ash is stronger and more powerful, but his Dad [[spoiler:is the most vile being in the universe.]] Misty has achieved a stronger connection to Water Pokémon, at the cost of being under a horribly abusive family for so long. Iris is able to connect with Dragon Types, but her adoptive family has been kidnapped by Hunter J, and her birth family abandoned her to die. Brock has a loving girlfriend, but his parents both died in this timeline. And [[spoiler:Anabelle]] has a connection to Ash she never got in the original reality, but [[spoiler:she's been rendered mute as a result of a car crash that killed her parents, and isn't a Frontier Brain in this story.]]
165
166	[[AC:''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'']]
167	* A major theme of ''FanFic/SonicXDarkChaos''. Sure Sonic and his friends stopped Dark Tails and saved the galaxy... but the endless conflict between Maledict and Allysion continues, [[TheBadGuyWins they both got what they wanted in the end]], and there's nothing anyone can do to stop them. [[spoiler:Until the CruelTwistEnding.]]
168
169	[[AC:''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarePants'']]
170	* {{Deconstructed}} in ''FanFic/SomeThingsNeverChange''. The status quo is maintained from the series, but it's shown that everyone is much worse off than before. Bikini Bottom's denizens have become increasingly meaner, ruder, and more selfish, causing the town to stagnate. [=SpongeBob=] himself still acts like a {{Manchild}} despite being old, which is more off-putting to everyone than appealing, being the result of [[spoiler:a coping mechanism to deal with the deaths of his family members, his heroes, and his beloved Gary]]. Sandy's more adventurous hobbies have worn her down quite a bit, and she can't handle them nearly as well in her older age. Plankton's drive to steal the Krabby Patty Secret Formula ends [[spoiler:with his death in a failed synthetic body]], which became AllForNothing when it turns out that Mr. Krabs [[spoiler:made up the whole formula as part of a marketing ploy]]. Krabs himself is [[spoiler:revealed to be a Really700YearsOld scoundrel who kept using the FountainOfYouth to make himself younger, but it dries up and leaves him ripe for the Flying Dutchman's taking.]] Patrick...is still [[TheDitz Patrick]]. And Squidward himself has been stuck in an endless feud with Squilliam for so long, it's left him miserable, depressed, and flat out feeling like a failure. Only when he stops pursuing this pointless rivalry does he begin to finally move forward, as do the rest of the cast.
171
172	[[AC:''Anime/YuGiOh'']]
173	* ''[[WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries Yu-Gi-Oh: The Abridged Movie]]'' plays with this trope, the characters mention how many powerful cards they have that they will never use again, and how they will never mention the events that happened in the film again.
174	[[/folder]]
175
176	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
177	* Explored in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManAcrossTheSpiderverse'', where it's established as a theoretical law of physics that the status quo will be kept up in each universe for each Spider-person. Spider-society, as such, frowns upon anybody trying to intervene with these "canon events" regardless of how bad they are or if they can be averted in the first place under the assumption that the universe will unravel as a result. The main conflict begins when Miles is targeted by the society for being in violation of one of those "canon events".
178	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongebobMovieSpongeOutOfWater'', Plankton goes back to his villainous ways at the end, with him basically admitting that stealing the Krabby Patty formula is just what he's supposed to do. Alas, this does require him to toss out some awesome CharacterDevelopment that had Plankton pull off a BigDamnHeroes moment, finally obtain the formula, and then willingly hand it back to Mr. Krabs, but as the whole franchise runs on NegativeContinuity, it was pretty much inevitable that setting everything back to normal would mean returning him to his usual role.
179	* ''WesternAnimation/TopCatAndTheBeverlyHillsCats'': In the end, Top Cat and his pals are back to being penniless and Officer Dibble comes out of retirement.
180	* This is at the heart of ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph''. [[spoiler: By the end of the movie, Ralph accepts this, but everything he's gone through by that point helps him understand the importance of his particular status and even earns him the respect he truly deserved. After all, plainly put, a video game like his ''literally'' can't function without him. Having finally gained a real true friend after it all helps too.]]
181	[[/folder]]
182
183	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
184	* Used frequently in any SlasherMovie series, as the villain always comes back, one way or another. ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' is probably the worst offender, with Jason Voorhees being the most prolific despite having two movies whose ''title'' [[SeriesFauxnale said he would be dead for good.]] In a more realistic horror movie series like ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'' or ''Film/{{Scream}}'', even if the villain does stay dead, it will continue with him being a LegacyCharacter.
185	* The premise for ''Film/BatmanTheMovie'' and ''Series/{{Batman\|1966}}'' TV series is that that incarnation of Batman only is useful to fight supervillains (and nothing more). [[ReedRichardsIsUseless He cannot change anything more in his world]]. Robin's idea to better the world by making a FreakyFridayFlip with the bickering United World Organization security council is quickly rejected by Batman. [[ZigZaggingTrope Then when this happens]]... the security council is still bickering between themselves, but each one of them is bickering in a different idiom. Batman realizes this and he and Robin going out inconspicuously through the window.
186	* Before ''Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy'', you could expect all ''Batman'' movies to have the main villain dead, with Gotham saved. And Bruce Wayne would always [[GirlOfTheWeek get a new girlfriend]], only to end up single again for the next movie. The notable exception is ''Film/BatmanAndRobin''; both villains are alive at the end although both are incarcerated and one has reformed.
187	* In ''Film/DoctorInDistress1963'', Sir Lancelot becomes a lot nicer once he falls in love with Iris. This doesn't last however, and by the end of the film he's back to his old grumpy self.
188	* Count {{Dracula}} always comes back.
189	* Franchise/{{Godzilla}} will always come back to either: A) fight other (possibly EvilerThanThou) monsters; B) destroy a major city ([[TokyoIsTheCenterOfTheUniverse usually Tokyo]]), or C) both. No matter how many times the [[FunWithAcronyms JSDF]] tries to stop him.
190	** For the first sequel, it was another Godzilla, [[GratuitousJapanese just according to keikaku]] and predicted by Dr. Yamane in the first Godzilla film. For the rest of the Showa series, he was never permanently defeated, but merely came back throughout one loose but traceable continuity. Other times (like the Return of Godzilla and most of the Millennium films) it was an alternate continuity, sometimes even altering the in-universe events of the films they included. This case could be more StrictlyFormula than Status Quo Is God.
191	** Comic book writers like to subvert this. In ''ComicBook/{{Planetary}}'' the Four kill off the Kaiju in their crusade against weird, and in ''Marvel ComicBook/{{Civil War\|2006}} '' it was explained that the arrival of Japanese Superheroes allowed Japan to put an end to its Kaiju attacks. Moral of the Story: the way to kill off a status quo is with another status quo.
192	* ''Film/HighSchoolMusical'' has a song all about this called "Stick to the Status Quo". [[http://www.agonybooth.com/recaps/High_School_Musical_2006.aspx?Page=7 As described]] by ''Website/TheAgonyBooth''. This results in Sharpay becoming ''more'' empty-headed and bitchy by the second movie and ''again'' in the third one.
193	* Even though Blakey was demoted down to a conductor and Jack was taken off Stan's route at the end of ''Film/MutinyOnTheBuses'', the two are back to their old positions in ''Film/HolidayOnTheBuses''.
194	* Franchise/IndianaJones: see Film/JamesBond. He finds lost treasures, and they're never heard from again. [[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk The Lost Ark]]? After its display of power, TheGovernment packs it away and nothing bad happens despite the biblical prophecy that anyone who kept the Ark from the rightful Israelites would suffer God's wrath. [[Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom The Shankara Stones]]? It's just a rock without the others (and, uh, no one ever will go down to that river). [[Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade The Holy Grail]]? Trapped behind a cursed barrier. [[Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull The Crystal Skull]]? Reunites with its body, and flies off to space... and another dimension.
195	* ''Film/ItsAWonderfulLife'' is an in-universe case: while George has the opportunity to leave town for college and "see the world", the fact that Potter will take over his father's business and shut it down if he doesn't stay forces him to stay and run the building-and-loan himself. While it is later revealed that he made the wiser choice by staying instead of leaving, his only apparent motivation to make this choice in the first place was a desire to keep the town the same.
196	* Film/JamesBond never changed his name or call number, even after 40 years of the original (''Film/DrNo''-''Film/DieAnotherDay'') continuity, countless adventures, and five different actors. Never received any permanent scars or disabilities from battle wounds. Never married (for long), fathered children, caught a disease, or even gets a morning-after call from the Bond Girls he slept with in previous movies. Any new techno-toys Q gave him would [[BagOfSpilling vanish]] before the next movie.
197	** This only really started with the Roger Moore films. The Connery films (and Lazenby's sole outing) had a loose story arc revolving around Bond taking on Blofeld and [=SPECTRE=].
198	** In ''Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService'' Bond falls in love with Tracy Draco, [[spoiler: eventually deciding to marry her and possibly leave the secret service. However, in the finale of the film, Tracy is murdered by Blofeld right after their wedding, and everything is undone.]]
199	** One fanon explanation is that "007" is "James Bond" ... that is, James Bond is a codename, so whether the current agent with designation 007 looks like Sean Connery, Roger Moore, or Pierce Brosnan, his identity documents still say "James Bond." This was actually given a shout-out in ''ComicBook/SecretAvengers'', with Hawkeye wondering if the new Nick Fury (the African-American son of the original Nick Fury, introduced to coincide with the popularity of the RaceLift Fury gets in adaptations nowadays) is the same deal, and they 'just pretend its the same guy with no fuss'. The two then actually debate this idea concerning Bond, but both seem to accept it as their own Headcanon.
200	* The Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, like the original Marvel comics, occasionally dabbles in this with a few characters.
201	** After ''Film/IronMan3'' ended with Iron Man destroying most of his suits, even finally getting his shrapnel out, ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' sees him [[TenMinuteRetirement resume active duty]] as Iron Man.
202	** After several changes happened with Thor in ''Film/ThorRagnarok'' (Hela destroys Thor's hammer Mjolnir and [[EyeScream stabs out his eye]], but he becomes King of Asgard and learns how to use his [[ShockAndAwe lightning powers]] ''without'' Mjolnir), subsequent films undo these changes. This first happens in ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', where Thor gets a glass eye and [[ForgotAboutHisPowers once again needs a weapon to use his lightning powers]], albeit this time Stormbreaker. ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' then sees Thor abdicate the throne to Valkyrie after [[spoiler:becoming a shut-in alcoholic following his initial failure to defeat Thanos]], leaving to join the Guardians of the Galaxy. Afterwards, ''Film/ThorLoveAndThunder'' shows him leaving the team early on in the film and then [[spoiler:regaining a reconstructed Mjolnir at the end of the film]].
203	* An in-story example: In ''Franchise/TheMatrix'' trilogy, it's revealed that the humans and machines have gone through several cycles of rebellion and war, always returning to the status quo in between.
204	* ''Franchise/StarTrek'':
205	** ''Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan'' features this; in the original episode "Space Seed," the evil Khan learns his lesson, and goes away with a happy ending; meanwhile in the ''first'' Star Trek movie, many developments are made to characters and technology. However in this sequel, thanks to a neighboring planet's explosion killing his wife, Khan is back to his evil old self for revenge, and likewise most other things are back the way they were before.
206	** This goes double for ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock''; in Star Trek II, Spock died, and Kirk's son was introduced, along with his terraforming "Genesis Device;" however at the end of the movie, all of these are undone by the plot: Spock is brought back to life, Kirk's son is killed by Klingons, and the unstable Genesis Device is no more thanks to the planet's destruction.
207	** ''Star Trek III'' also introduced "trans-warp drive," and destroys the ''Enterprise.'' In Star Trek IV... well, you get the picture.
208	** ''Film/StarTrekIVTheVoyageHome''
209	*** [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Dr. [=McCoy=] when he asks Kirk if it's such a good idea to have Spock back working as a science officer once again after his death and resurrection. Kirk responds that "it'll come back to" Spock over the course of time.
210	*** At the end of the film Kirk is demoted to Captain, and given command of the ''Enterprise''-A, which looks identical to its predecessor, self-destroyed in the previous movie. The crew is together again, bound for new adventures on board a new-old ''Enterprise''.
211	* ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'':
212	** ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'' seemed like this. During the movie, several characters died (including [[spoiler: Professor X!]]) and many more were "cured" of their powers. Two scenes at the end hint that [[spoiler: 1. Xavier downloaded his mind into a catatonic body and 2. Magneto and the others are recovering their powers, meaning the only changes that stick are Scott and Phoenix's deaths. And since Phoenix came back once..]].
213	** Pleasantly and surprisingly averted in ''Film/TheWolverine''. [[spoiler:Taking quite a bit of adamantium from Wolverine's claws right before a major installment coming up takes some balls from the creators.]] However the movie also plays this straight. [[spoiler: Magneto is confirmed to have regained his powers, while Professor X is back. And in the wheelchair. The [[Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast next movie]] hits a ResetButton for the entire continuity.]].
214	[[/folder]]
215
216	[[folder:Literature]]
217	* In ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'', O'Brien says In-Universe that the Party will never be brought down and the book ends with Winston Smith, the protagonist, being brainwashed into loving Big Brother like everyone else. Interestingly enough, there ''is'' an appendix at the end of the book, which seems to imply that the Party ''did'' eventually fall.
218	* ''Literature/AnnaAndElsa'', the books canonically set after ''WesternAnimation/Frozen2013'', are meant to expand the world, but everytime something happens that may seem life changing, it doesn't happen. Anna doesn't regain the memories of Elsa's powers before the accident, there is no queen with fire magic, Elsa doesn't enter a romantic relationship and Kristoff doesn't lose his job.
219	* Justified in ''{{Literature/Carpe Jugulum}}'', where a vampire manages to make his family immune to most ClassicalMovieVampire weaknesses. In the end, it's explained that it's actually better for vampires to get staked by an angry mob once in a while, as trying to get around their many weaknesses leads to their victims looking for a more permanent solution (such as taking the ashes, sealing them in a bottle, and sending it over the Rim).
220	* ''Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKid'':
221	** No matter what happens by the end of a book (ex. Greg meets a pretty girl neighbor wanting to be friends with him and Rowley), it's always negated by the events of the next book (ex. she doesn't have any romantic interest in him at all and he immediately forgets about her).
222	** In ''Dog Days'', the Heffleys get a pet dog named Sweetie. He annoys them too much, so, they end up giving him away to Grandma.
223	** In the last act of ''No Brainer'', the middle school is closed due to bad test scores and lack of funding and the students are sent to other schools (splitting up Greg and Rowley). Rowley ends up in a prestigious academy with lots of luxury stuff like massage tables, while Greg is sent to a school in the rival town of Slacksville but becomes the smartest and most popular student in school (it’s not a high bar to beat) and starts dating Sophie, the daughter of the local millionaire. Within a few pages, [[spoiler:the old middle school gets a new stream of funding and reopens, getting all of the students sent back there (something few of them appreciate), and causing Sophie to dump Greg due to the difficulties of long-distance relationships.
224	* The ''Literature/RedDwarf'' novel ''Backwards'', written by Rob Grant ''(who co-wrote the original six seasons of the television show)''. In this book, the "best end" Grant could come up with was [[spoiler:having everything revert to as it is in the TV series, in spite of two of the cast dying and the other two being reverted in age by 10 years]].
225	* In ''Literature/SpaceMarineBattles'' novel ''Death of Integrity'', the plot centers on retrieving a data core containing all pre-Heresy weapon designs, the reintroduction of which would spell death to all mankind's enemies. Given how it's ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', infamous for upholding its status quo, you can guess how well that goes.
226	* The ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' trilogy "Black Fleet Crisis" seemed to toy with the idea of replacing the New Republic's (formerly the Rebel Alliance) iconic X-wings with a new starfighter: the E-wing. It didn't last, as all subsequent books mostly went back to X-wings whenever there was a space battle to be had. They were upgraded X-wing models to be sure, but the important thing is that they were still the same familiar ship we saw in the movies.
227	* ''Literature/WetDesertTrackingDownATerroristOnTheColoradoRiver'': The President is planning to rebuild the dams that were destroyed during the flood.
228	* Completely averted, and possibly subverted, in the ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse''. While it is played with using Jade, by later in the series, [[spoiler: Don Sebastaino of the Alphas is in the hospital, Tansy is running the Alphas, and Jade now has breasts and gender reconstructive surgery that works]]!
229	* The entire point of ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' series is that this trope is almost literal truth. The Creator made the Wheel of Time and, by design, it makes time cyclical and all major events will eventually happen again and again in some fashion, without end. The BigBad seeks to destroy the Wheel of Time, which would upset the status quo. The good guys seek to prevent this, so maintenance of the status quo is the Good Guy Prime Directive.
230	** It should be noted that destroying the Wheel of Time will upset the status quo in the sense that it will [[OmnicidalManiac destroy the universe]]. The good guys are primarily worried about the status quo because they would like to continue existing.
231	* The novels of Creator/PGWodehouse, which typically begin with a disruption of the status quo -- an engagement broken off, a cook threatening to resign, Bertie growing a moustache -- and end with its restoration. Literature/{{Jeeves\|AndWooster}} is the archetypal status quo-restorer.
232	* Utterly and thoroughly averted in ''Literature/{{Worm}}''. Over the course of the narrative, the main character goes from being a scared, bullied teenager, to [[spoiler: a superpowered warlord running half the city]], to [[spoiler: a superhero, just like she always wanted to be]], to ... well, just read the story.
233	** Partially played straight on the macro-scale, in that the status quo is actively encouraged by most major parahuman organisations in the interests of keeping society at least moderately stable. As long as most heroes and villains can agree to stick to the vague, unwritten rules of cape life (no targeting families or civilian [=IDs=], no raping or killing other capes, etc.) then society manages to remain largely functional without collapsing into anarchy.
234	** Heavily deconstructed in that everybody, heroes and villains alike, will make a show of following the rules until they think they can get away with it. By the end of the story there isn't a single group or organisation that hasn't broken the rules at some point, and then it is revealed that society has been slowly collapsing for years and the comic book status quo was deliberately implemented as a stop-gap measure to keep society from collapsing for as long as possible. To be fair, it did work for a number of years.
235	[[/folder]]
236
237	[[folder:Music]]
238	* "Merry Go 'Round" by Kacey Musgraves is about this {{Trope}} in [[FlyoverCountry small town America]].
239	[[/folder]]
240
241	[[folder:Podcast]]
242	* ''Podcast/PlumbingTheDeathStar'': One of the reasons Duscher can get away with picking Soapland Christmas (now merged into TwistedChristmas) in "Exploiting Television Tropes for Financial and Personal Gain" is by pointing out because the writers will want to get back to a comfortable status quo by the next season, so they'll just write him out of whatever trouble he finds during his holiday horrors.
243	[[/folder]]
244
245	[[folder:Radio]]
246	* Mentioned and subverted in an episode of ''Radio/HamishAndDougal'', in which Mrs. Naughtie tries to get her old job back after handing in her resignation.
247	-->'''Mrs. Naughtie:''' Oh, Mr. Hamish, Mr. Dougal! Can't I go back to being your housekeeper again?
248	-->'''Hamish:''' Ah, yes...and it'd be just like old times.
249	-->'''Dougal:''' Yes... ...but the position has already been filled. Goodbye!
250	** Thanks to NegativeContinuity, nothing changes anyway.
251	[[/folder]]
252
253	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
254	* TabletopGame/BattleTech seems to avert this with the different eras (Star League, Clan Invasion, Jihad, etc...), but plays one constant straight: Don't expect anything that threatens to seriously shift the overall deadlock to last for very long. In fact, it's usually the point where everybody goes back to shooting each other that begins and/or ends each Era.
255	* In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons:''
256	** ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'''s mysterious [[PowersThatBe Dark Powers]] explicitly apply LaserGuidedAmnesia and PhlebotinumInducedStupidity to the populations and even darklords of the various domains in order to preserve the general theme of each domain. Hence, for example, Vlad Drakov will never incorporate firearms into his Medieval-style army, even though surrounding domains have them, [[JustifiedTrope firmly believing]] that magic and guns are "coward's weapons." Likewise, many supposedly-human darklords are centuries old, and the residents of their domains don't seem to notice.
257	** In the CD&D ''HollowWorld'' setting, the quasi-divine Immortals slapped an extremely powerful spell on the place to ensure that cultures preserved within it wouldn't change.
258	** Taken almost literally in ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}''. Among the many strange things about Sigil is the fact that no gods can enter it or have any power there. The only thing similar to a god within the city is the Lady of Pain, who is both completely silent and very hands off with her rule. Her only active involvement in the city is to annihilate anyone who tries to cause any real change to it.
259	* ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'' makes a solid effort at aversion, rare among board games. The expansions flow in chronological order, and new promo cards show character growth for heroes like Ra and Fanatic, Haka being the last surviving human, and a VillainousBreakdown for Baron Blade. Teasers for upcoming sets hint at greater changes to come, including the death of Legacy. This last is subverted, per ''Sentinels Tactics'' -- because both Legacy and Young Legacy were fighting Iron Legacy, neither of them was killed by Baron Blade. Young Legacy instead takes up the name Beacon, presumably to avoid confusing names.
260	* The new edition of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' states that mankind has entered the Time of Ending, with the long-awaited fall of the Imperium imminent. Fans weren't fooled, since the in-universe calendar was actually ''rewound'' by about 4 decades in order to make the "Time of Ending" take place before year 41000. As always, TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is still very, very unlikely.
261	** The whole point of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' and ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' was that the [[CrapsackWorld world]] is ''[[TheWorldIsAlwaysDoomed always]]'' [[TheWorldIsAlwaysDoomed almost about to end]]. Of course this is also part of the reason that most of the factions operation on such incredibly large scale. Literally billions of Orks or Humans can die without it so much as touching the overall populations or status quo, as long as all the named character (inevitably) survive.
262	** On the other hand, the series has seen the introduction of new races, as well as major changes and the complete removal of old ones. The Tyranids, for example, are a vastly different force from the Genestealer infiltrators that first attacked the Imperium, the Tau didn't exist for several editions and some of the more direct fantasy ports like Squats have disappeared.
263	** The rules of both systems avert this to some extent. New editions generally involve some major shakeups to the rules, although obviously a good deal transfers over as well.
264	** In a shocking (and not necessarily popular) aversion Warhammer actually DID have the end of the world in an event called ''TabletopGame/WarhammerTheEndTimes''. TheBadGuyWins, although the series was promptly given a soft-reboot into ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar''.
265	** Quite recently averted with the brand new 7th Edition codexes, and the Gathering Storm plotline which inflicts lasting consequences for multiple factions. Abaddon has finally conquered and destroyed Cadia, leaving the Cadian regiments as TheRemnant, the Eldar have managed to partially summon Ynnead and a new movement is opening up the possibility of the reunification of the Craftworld and Dark Eldar, and Primarch Roboute Guilliman has returned.
266	* Creator/WhiteWolf is not fond of this trope.
267	** In the ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'', any apocalypse foretold in a gameline would come to pass when that game went out of print, ending with the Time of Fire when the [=oWoD=] ended. The TabletopGame/NewWorldOfDarkness is designed as a more static universe, and there are several forces that keep it that way:
268	*** In ''TabletopGame/DemonTheDescent'' the God Machine spends it's existence maintaining the status quo.
269	*** In ''TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening'' the Exarchs also work to keep the status quo, to keep from anyone threatening their reign.
270	** While ''TabletopGame/{{Scion}}'' 1E [[AvertedTrope has the Overworld War take noticeable steps between the three main books]], 2E plays it straight--the current cold war ''might'' go hot in an individual game, but InUniverse it always stays as just a Cold War.
271	** ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'' is even more blunt about shooting this trope in the face. In the second book they ever published, they made it abundantly clear that the metaplot would not be moving forward canonically from the Day 0 of Realm Year 768, as the characters are intended to deform and reshape the setting around them in their image. More detail has been given about the setting as it stands--mostly to provide new and interesting ways for Creation to go to Hell in one way or another, or for players to fight against it--but nothing has definitively gone forward and progressed information on the inside of the core book. Actually, in Exalted, Status Quo may well be God. On the other hand, starting characters can start off with a power suite to murder the gods.
272	*** 3e ''does'' project what could happen in the years following Day 0, showing how Creation changes over time, but again the characters are fully expected to crash in and shake things up.
273	[[/folder]]
274
275	[[folder:Webcomics]]
276	%%* ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge'': [[http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/050418c X gets George to help restore it.]]
277	* ''Webcomic/EveryoneIsHome'' : Some comics somewhat revert to a status quo when wrapped up, with a possible allusion to another comic every now and then. However, there were two instances where the status quo is changed.
278	** When there is a new character introduced. They are now a resident at the Smash Mansion.
279	** [[WhamEpisode Dinner Despair]] is a shocking subversion. You'd think everyone could come back alive and well in the next strip or [[Franchise/{{Tekken}} Kazuya]] could spend one comic reviving everyone by throwing them off the cliff? You're sorely mistaken when you read the words, [[WhamLine "Wooden Plank Studios presents Everyone is Home: The "Everyone got Murdered by]] [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Sephiroth]] [[WhamLine so now Kazuya has to Bring Everyone Back" arc]].
280	* In ''Webcomic/TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob'': Bob's roof will ''always,'' somehow, get repaired after having been destroyed earlier in the story. {{Lampshade\|Hanging}}d by the fact that it is unapologetically a RunningGag.
281	* ''Webcomic/{{Insecticomics}}'' goes out of its way to show that it won't do this, particularly in the areas of Thrust's [[GenderBender change to female]] and the disbanding of [[spoiler: the Brigade]].
282	* ''Webcomic/MenageA3'' looked like an example of this trope, with (among other things) Gary the [[NerdsAreVirgins geeky virgin]], who never even had a girlfriend, being repeatedly sexually frustrated. But then, Gary got laid (despite the increasingly clear evidence that his problem wasn't being in this comic, it was being Gary), various other characters lost their supposed "KarmaHoudini" statuses or underwent character development, and the story sailed on regardless. It wasn't so much that the trope was subverted as that the writers turned out to be playing a long game.
283	* {{Lampshade\|Hanging}}d and {{averted\|Trope}} in ''Webcomic/{{PvP}}'' when Robbie wins the lottery.
284	--> '''Cole''': Trust me, Robbie is going to walk through that door and inform us that everything has returned to the status quo.
285	--> * {{beat\|Panel}}*
286	--> '''Cole''': Any minute now...
287	%%** Also {{lampshade\|Hanging}}d in [[http://www.pvponline.com/comic/2005/02/27/feb-27-2005 this strip]].
288	* Averted in ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'', where the company's fortunes have shifted up and down, their having gone through multiple ships, and having lost and gained secondary characters on many occasions. On the other hand, they remain essentially the same mid-sized mercenary company, despite their intermittent involvement in galactic politics and engineering megaprojects on the same scale.
289	* ''Webcomic/SexyLosers'' had a rule, declared early on by its creator in his annotations: "Everyone is locked into their sexual perversion of choice." This meant, unfortunately, that his characters had little wiggle room -- the storyline quickly "[[Art/PortraitOfMadameX The Seduction of Madame X]]" cuts off; by the 17th time he's recycling jokes. Eventually, the series came to an abrupt halt, which may have been the writer realizing he was out of things he could do with the characters without breaking his rule.
290	%%* ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'' often does this.
291	* The cast of ''Webcomic/SoreThumbs'' was missing Cecania's [[IHaveBoobsYouMustObey special ability to sell games]] when she went off to Romania, so Harmony got a ridiculous boob job. Once they brought Cecania back, Harmony had them removed.
292	* ''Webcomic/TreadingGround'': In 2003, [[http://www.treadingground.com/?p=44 strip #6]] establishes the main plot: Rose has the hots for Nate, but the 21-year-old guy doesn't want to have sex with the 16 year-old-girl until she's of legal age. After eight years (about one year in ComicBookTime), in which both characters have plenty of sex (just [[SleepsWithEveryoneButYou not with each other]]), they finally realise they are victims of [[HollywoodProvincialism SoCalization]]; 16 is legal age in their state. So in 2011, [[http://www.treadingground.com/?p=1594 strip #251]] concludes the series with them holding hands... [[LeftHanging And still not having had sex together yet.]]
293	%%* Played straight with ''Webcomic/WelcomeToTheConvenienceStore''. There isn't a story-line.
294	[[/folder]]
295
296	[[folder:Website]]
297	* The ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' comic "[[https://www.cracked.com/article_18741_the-evolution-fictional-characters-by-medium-5Bcomic5D.html The Evolution of Fictional Characters by Medium]]" has the evolution of the superhero go SupermanSubstitute -> NinetiesAntiHero -> TooManyBelts -> SupermanSubstitute But With More Subdued Coloring.
298	* Platform/{{GoAnimate}}: The troublemakers in the "X Gets Grounded" videos ''never'' stop doing things that will inevitably get them into trouble, even if they receive more than one [[HumiliationConga Punishment Day]].
299	** Likewise, in 'X Gets Ungrounded' videos, expect the protagonist to become ungrounded at the end of the video, only for them to be inexplicably grounded (or already ungrounded) again by the start of the new video, so they can get ungrounded ''again''.
300	* The end of [[Website/GaiaOnline H2K9]].
301	[[/folder]]
302
303	[[folder:Web Videos]]
304	* At the end of the ''WebVideo/AngryVideoGameNerd'' [[YetAnotherChristmasCarol Christmas Carol]], the Nerd decides to only play good games after what he saw of the future... [[spoiler:and not ten seconds later, decides to keep on playing shitty games.]]
305	* James of WebVideo/TVTropesWillRuinYourLife holds this belief. For the most part, he's wrong.
306	[[/folder]]

Context Main / StatusQuoIsGod