Flashback (trope): Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

 

 

A narrative technique in which we're shown events that took place before the episode's main action.

* [[Whole-Episode Flashback]]: A flashback that [[Shaped Like Itself|takes up the whole episode]]. (in literary works, this would be an example of a "frame story").

 

 

When a ''character'' is having a flashback, it can be because of [[Seers|psychic/magical powers]], Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or simply resurfacing memories. In either case, it's a common justification for a movie to show the audience a Flashback.

----

{{examples}}

* In ''[[Digimon]]'', after [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold|Impmon]] does his [[Heel Face Turn]] after {{spoiler|killing leomon}}, there are constant flashbacks by Jeri and Impmon of him (As Beelzemon) {{spoiler|killing him}} over and over again. Impmon and Jeri have other flashbacks to show how they became what they are. Jeri's mother died when she was little, her father became distant and she could never really connect with her step-mom, and Impmon gained a hatred of humans because of his abuse at the hands of his young Tamers.

** Series one and two also had flashbacks. Most of the Digidestined have flashbacks of family deaths, such as Izzy and Cody, who have flashbacks about their parents' deaths, Ken has his brother Sam's death, and Tai has the time that he almost was responsible for his sister Kari's demise. Owikowa also had flashbacks, to show how and Hiroki (Cody's dad) were friends, and how alone he felt after Hiroki died. TK often has flashbacks about Angemon's sacrifice to stop Devimon, and Ken has flashbacks of his time as the Digimon Emperor.

* ''[[Bleach]]'': Happens a lot in the manga. They often happen during a significant fight in which one character is going to lose or die or if the fight helps defines a character that's won. The anime, via [[Adaptation Expansion]], can go to town with this making episodes out of what's sometimes nothing more than a few panels in the manga.

* ''[[Naruto]]'' has an insane number of flashbacks. Protagonists, antagonists, and bystanders alike will go into flashback after flashback, explaining their tragic back-stories, lives, and motives. Any and all emotional scenes that were reasonably short in the manga will be severely lengthened by montages of flashbacks. Entire episodes will consist two characters talking while they exchange flashbacks. An example: Hinata's confession to Naruto during the Pein arc took a couple pages in the manga, while in the anime it took AN EPISODE because roughly 3/4 of the episode was a montage of flashbacks going through her childhood and her interactions with Naruto. To be fair, Naruto does not use flashbacks to the point where they're boring or overdone; many times these flashbacks really accentuate a moment or decision by a character. Example: Sasuke's Tragic Backstory at the Valley of the End, to which we get new meanings of hundreds of chapters later. In the case of Hinata's flashbacks in the anime episode of the Pain arc, the flashbacks were not mere filler but an elaboration of Naruto and Hinata's characters, or an expansion on what is canon.

* ''[[Cluster Edge]]'' uses this ''constantly'', to the point it conquers the series.

* ''[[Ninin ga Shinobuden]] parodies this.'' When asked to explain how he got stuck on Miyabi's chest, Onsokumaru promptly goes into a flashback covering various events from the previous week, even though the only ''relevant'' event (Miyabi tripping and falling on top of him) occurred about five minutes earlier. The ninja are quick to [[Lampshade Hanging|point this out]].

* [[Axis Powers Hetalia]]: America admits to always getting these when he begins to clean his storage room, and never being able to finish or throw anything out. Might overlap with [[It Was a Gift]] since two of the three objects he gets flashbacks over (a house with a set of wooden soldiers and a 3-piece suit) were in fact presents from England. Might overlap with [[Troubled Backstory Flashback]] several times- both the soldiers and the suit bring back bittersweet memories, which he lampshades by exclaiming there HAS to be something cool that doesn't bring bad memories with itself. Cue him finding a scratched musket from the Revolutionary War, bringing one of the biggest [[Tear Jerker]] moments in the entire series.

 

* Flashbacks were abused in early issues of the Marvel ''[[Transformers Generation 1]]'' comic, with a page or more of some issues used to recreate scenes from previous issues an an apparent [[Padding|attempt to fill space]].

 

* The ''[[Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater]]'' [[Fanfic]] ''[[The Joy of Battle]]'' uses flashbacks in the same way that ''[[Lost]]'' does to tell [[How We Got Here|how the characters ended up at the point of the story's beginning]] and also to reveal [[Backstory]] through characterizing scenes.

** Vaticus when explaining his [[Backstory]].

** Sir Loin has flashbacked to his and Adelle's history together, and his history from before that.

** Bowen had a flashback showing his memories of his wife.

* True to the series, the ''[[Calvin at Camp]]'' [[Lost]] parody features some...troubling...flashbacks for the kids.

 

* Used to death in the B-movie ''[[Boggy Creek 2 The Legend Continues|Boggy Creek 2: The Legend Continues]]''.

* In another ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' alumnus, ''[[Future War]]'', a character in a jail cell flashbacks while exercising, covering all the fight scenes in the film thus far, ''[[Viewers Are Goldfish|including one that happened before the cut to the cell]]''. "Soon he'll be flashing back to the start of his ''flashbacks''."

* ''[[Mission to Mars]]'' ends with [[Gary Sinise]]'s character having rapid flashbacks of his late wife and all his friends, as he is preparing to {{spoiler|leave for another galaxy to meet the progenitors of humans}}.

 

* In ''[[The Dark Tower]], Book One: The Gunslinger'', the first quarter of the novel is devoted to flashbacks to events just prior to the beginning of the novel, and flashbacks to Roland's childhood within those. In ''Book Four: Wizard and Glass'', [[Whole-Episode Flashback|the bulk of the story]] is a flashback to a formative event in Roland's early adulthood.

* K.J Parker's ''[[The Scavenger Trilogy|Scavenger Trilogy]]''. In places there's more flashback than straight narrative.

 

* ''[[Angel]]'': The series makes extensive use of this trope, often to detail events in Angel's past and sometimes other characters too. Many episodes have at least a few minutes of flashbacks and many episodes will feature extensive use of flashbacks that alternate with events of the present time that are somehow connected to what the flashback is detailing. Examples of episodes include "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been", "The Prodigal", "Five by Five", "Darla", "Lullaby", "The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco", "Destiny", "Why We Fight", and "The Girl in Question".

* Virtually every episode of ''[[Highlander (TV series)|Highlander]]'' has an extensive flashback; since the series protagonist is four centuries old, there's plenty of available plotlines to choose from. Usually, the flashback shows the hero's first meeting with the guest Immortal of the week.

* ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' used flashbacks frequently to establish the backstories of characters like Angel, Drusilla, and Spike.

* While the new series of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' does not use flashbacks often, it has received some stick for using them to flash back to extremely obvious, memorable scenes from previous episodes. This is to help children understand what's going on as - despite its morbidly high body count - the show is aimed at families.

** And another starts at the end of the story, does a [[How We Got Here]] flashback to the beginning, proceeds to use several more flashbacks as events of the mystery are unraveled, and when it reaches the end again, it turns out it was [[All Just a Dream]]. Surreal, to say the least.

* Subversion: in the first season finale of ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'', two lines that seem to provoke flashbacks ("Your father promised [the company] to me on the day he went to prison.", "We've had some great times.") are followed by blank screens captioned "Footage Not Found."

** There are many jokes amongst fans over the fact that Nick would frequently have his flashbacks ''while driving'' or mid-conversation. This was [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] once or twice by other cars beeping at him at stoplights and characters noticing every once in a while and staring at him.

* ''[[Psych]]'' begins every single episode with a flashback to Shawn's childhood, usually vaguely related to the plot in some way.

* ''[[The IT Crowd]]'' does this a couple of times in one episode regarding how one character became a Goth and subsequently lost his high position and was forced to work in a room in the basement. Contains a lot of [[Flashback Stares]].

* ''[[Firefly]]'': The episode "Out of Gas" which jumps between three time periods: the current time frame (the actions of a dying Mal), a short time in the past (the events that led to Mal's current situation) and a more distant past (how Mal's crew was recruited, including the ship itself).

{{quote|[[Crowning Moment of Funny|"That's NOT the same thing. What's wrong with you?"]]}}

** Every episode has short flashbacks, usually at the end, when some hidden scene is revealed that explains how the Leverage team outwitted their opponent-of-the-week. The pilot also had flashbacks describing each team member. There was also an episode that was done in ''[[Rashomon]]''-style flashbacks.

* Used heavily through ''[[Homeland]]'' to explore what happened to Brody during his time in captivity and tease whether his [[Heel Face Turn]] actually occurred or noth.

* The short-lived show ''[[New Amsterdam]]'' has John do flashbacks occasionally, starting with the pilot, where he remembers how he was mortally wounded defending a [[Magical Native American]] woman, who repaid him by making him immortal until he found his soulmate. Oftentimes, he remembers past lovers (each time, he thought she was "the one"), children, and dogs.

 

* ''[[Sally Forth]]:'' In an arc for Feb. 12, 2010, Sally remembered the first time she met her boss, Ralph. She eventually snaps out of it.

{{quote|'''Ted:''' You seemed zoned out for days! I almost called the hospital.

'''Sally:''' Don't worry. [[Lampshade Hanging|No one's ever died from a flashback.]] }}

 

* The first act of ''Nine'' ends with a series of flashbacks to Guido's youth.

* ''[[Miss Saigon]]'' goes back to "The Fall of Saigon" midway through the second act

* In David Auburn's ''Proof'', there are several scenes that flashback to when Robert was alive.

* The original version of ''[[Merrily We Roll Along]]'' had the story told in flashback, framed by Frank speaking at a graduation ceremony.

* ''[[The Phantom of the Opera]]'' is told in one giant flashback, as the show's opening scene is of the aged Raoul attending an auction selling off items from the opera house.

 

* In Minori's route in ''[[Brass Restoration]]'', flashbacks are used much more frequently than needed, often to recap something that happened half a scene ago. Thankfully not as prevalent in other routes.

* In ''[[Valkyrie Profile]]'', flashbacks are often used to show the events leading up to the Einherjar's deaths.

* ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]'' makes extensive use of this, though technically, it's actually Rookie going through camera recordings, not flashbacks ''per se,'' but it still counts.

* All of the interludes in ''[[The Reconstruction]]''. Subverted in that all but one of them are flashbacks to [[And Now for Someone Completely Different|the prologue's cast]].

 

* ''[[Concerned]]'' has an mini-arc when Frohman flashes back to his days at Black Mesa, providing arguably the best [[Lampshade Hanging]] of this trope ever as the quote for this page.

* [[Van Von Hunter]] plays with this. [http://www.vanvonhunter.com/vvh8.html "You have exceeded the maximum number of flashbacks allowed by the courtroom."]

* Lampshaded with sarcasm in [http://guildedage.net/webcomic/chapter-1/chapter-1-page-15/ here] in ''[[Guilded Age]]''.

* Crop up at random intervals as "Reg's Lost Years" in ''[[Regular Guy]]''

* Lampshaded in [http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2004-03-05 this] ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'' strip.

* In ''Unforgettable'', the female lead is in the habit of replaying events that she witnessed earlier in the episode, often finding a clue from something she saw that didn't seem important at the time.

* [http://wapsisquare.com/comic/10232002/ This] ''[[Wapsi Square]]'' strip uses a single panel flashback to show what happened last time Fermented Banana played at a wedding.

 

* In ''[[The Gamers Alliance]]'', various characters have flashbacks which often explain their past and their relationship with other characters.

* Unusually for the series, ''[[Lonelygirl15]]'' episode "Comfort Food" included flashbacks to Daniel's grandmother's funeral. Flashbacks were again used in the series 3 episode "I Miss Her".

* ''[[LG15: the resistance]]'' makes frequent use of these to show Maggie's past.

* Frequently used in ''[[The Gungan Council]]'' in order to explain why a character has or does something. "It's Not That I Keep Hanging On, I'm Never Letting Go" uses it in spades.

{{quote|'''Reggie''': Oh great, he's having one of his little flashback things.

...

'''Samson''' (after half a minute of Trigger staring vacantly into space): ... how long does it take? }}

 

* ''[[Invader Zim]]'' also lampshades a common problem with this trope: In "The Fry Cook What Came From All That Space", Zim recalls a flashback of being demoted to fry cook under fry lord Sizz-Lorr, and then escaping. After Zim escapes, it shows Sizz-Lorr alone, shouting at the top of his lungs:

{{quote|'''Sizz-Lorr:''' I will find you Zim, so help me, I will search the entire universe, and I! WILL! FIND YOOOOOOOOU!

''(Cut back to present time with Zim and Sizz-Lorr)''

'''Sizz-Lorr:''' How did you remember what I said if you weren't there?

* On ''[[Jimmy Two-Shoes]]'', there have been a few flashbacks about Lucius' life under [[Royally Screwed-Up|his father]], including the one that made him a [[Self-Made Orphan]].

* Used a lot in ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'' by the character Dr. Doofenshmirtz, since almost all of his inventions have a backstory and he uses flashbacks to let Perry and the audience know the purpose for it. However, there have been some occasions where he'll skip over a flashback since Perry already knows the story, and on one occasion he had a horrible headache and said it hurt too much to do a flashback.

** In a Time Skip/Alternate Universe episode set in ancient China, this discussion occurs about "Master Perry".

{{quote|'''Phineas''': What's he doing?

'''Phineas''':...does he know we can't see it? Should we give him some privacy? I don't know the protocol for flash-backs. }}

* Used frequently in ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]],'' usually in the form of someone in the present narrating something that happened in the past (like the flashbacks in "The Storm," "The Avatar and the Firelord," and "The Southern Raiders"). "Zuko Alone" and "Appa's Lost Days" have characters who [[Dark and Troubled Past|don't]] or [[Team Pet|can't]] talk about their pasts quietly remembering them in the form of flashbacks.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Lit Class Tropes]]

[[Category:Fate and Prophecy Tropes]]

[[Category:Flashbacks and Chronology]]