Forgotten Fallen Friend/Playing With

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Basic Trope: The hero forgets about one of his fallen friends.

  • Straight: Frank is killed by the Evil Overlord's Dragon. By the time Bob and his new Nakama face off against The Dragon, Frank has been long forgotten and isn't even mentioned anymore.
  • Exaggerated:
    • Frank is killed by The Dragon, and Bob forgets about him the second he meets his new Lancer, Alice.
    • Bob and the others make comments about what they've never seen before, etc. that could only really match up with their experience if Frank had never existed.
  • Justified:
    • Bob uses amnesia inducing drugs to forget Frank died.
    • Bob is emotionally sensitive, and has a hard time coping with things other than battle and politics. Frank's death death was hard to take, so Bob just pushed Frank out of his memory to cope. The rest of the Nakama decided it was best not to mention it, and eventually forgot about Frank from lack of mention.
  • Inverted:
    • Frank's memory is a major motivating force for Bob.
    • Frank was the first villain/The Dragon.
  • Subverted: When they face off with The Dragon, Bob launches into a And This Is For speech...
  • Double Subverted: ...But forgets to mention Frank.
  • Parodied: Bob didn't just forget Frank died, but he forgets about the existence of everyone who dies. He doesn't even remember he had grandparents.
  • Deconstructed: The stress of losing someone so dear lead Bob to use coping mechanisms that minimize or erase Frank from his memory. This eventually leads to a full psychotic break when the villain taunts him about purposely forgetting Frank.
  • Reconstructed: Bob purposely makes "busywork" or immerses himself in the adventure to forget Frank, but ultimately realizes that doing that is hurting him and disrespecting Frank. While he can't forever mourn the dead, ignoring they died won't help him heal.
  • Zig Zagged: It looks like Bob completely forgot about Frank, except he wears Frank's scarf all the time, but it turns out he didn't even know it was Frank's.
  • Averted:
    • Bob regularly remembers his fallen friend Frank, and how he copes with the loss is a cornerstone of his Character Development.
    • No one (close to The Hero) dies.
  • Enforced: "We can't have a mopey hero, so lets have him forget until that Very Special Episode rolls around."
  • Lampshaded:
    • "I wish I had a dead friend, then I could be all dark and edgy!" "You do. His name was Frank. You loved him dearly."
    • Also, when saying the And This Is For speech, Bob could also say, "Did I forget anyone important?"
  • Invoked: Bob is devastated by Frank's death, so he pretends he doesn't remember Frank to try and actually forget.
  • Defied: Bob keeps a memento of Frank on his person at all times to avoid this.
  • Discussed: "If I didn't forget he was dead, there's no way I could keep fighting."
  • Conversed: "If life were like these stories, no one would ever have to cope with death."
  • Plotted A Good Waste: Bob forgetting about Frank is a sign of Motive Decay; the endless fighting wears down on Bob so much that he eventually can't even remember what he was fighting for in the first place, as part of a running theme of the horrors of war.
  • Played For Laughs:
    • Frank gets better, but Bob doesn't even know who he is.
    • Alternatively, Frank turns out to still be alive, and...

Alice: So that's why you didn't mention him when you were listing all our fallen allies!
Bob: Uh... yeah. Yeah, that's it.

"Hey Friend!" "Hehhhhhhhhhhhhhhuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrggggg" "FRIEND!!!!! Oh, hi Forgotten Fallen Friend, why was I just yelling?"

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