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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|''"And the good guy doesn't have a mommy, 'cause his mommy died."''
|'''Zoe''', ''[[Baby Blues]]''}}
A subtrope of [[Parental Abandonment]]: The mother of a character or characters is missing or absent.
Perhaps she died. Perhaps she left and there's bitterness involved. Perhaps she's a [[
Missing Moms are often considered more unusual than a missing father, and may be more likely to have their absence explicitly explained. This might be because a man can technically leave his babymamma at any time after knocking her up (or she can leave him), but a woman carrying a child to term and giving birth, then disappearing, is rarer, especially if it was by her own choice, since it contradicts the [[Closer to Earth]] image most cultures have of women. If it was [[Death by Childbirth]] that disposed of the mother, this is usually mentioned because it adds an extra touch of tragedy to the character's life.
However, the flipside is that if both parents are absent, the character is ''far'' more likely to be obsessed with her/his
Missing Moms are almost always remembered in a positive light, unlike Disappeared Dads. Expect the father to wax poetic about the times they shared, and to tell a female hero "You look so much like your mother." [[Death by Childbirth]] can be a cause of this. The exception to this sympathetic view is the rare cases where the
{{examples}}▼
▲{{examples}}
== Anime
* ''[[Slayers]]'': The queen of Seyruun and the mother of [[Genki Girl|Amelia]] and her older sister Gracia was murdered by an assassin that was after the latter princess. {{spoiler|Gracia killed said assassin ''[[Bloody Murder|very messily]]'', [[Break the Cutie|was extremely traumatised due to that]], and left to learn of the world the next day under a ''nom de guerre,'' "Naga the Serpent," and would eventually meet [[Redheaded Hero|Lina]] among other things.}} From the scant amount of times this is mentioned, Amelia is still rather sensitive about it.
* ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]'': Radical Edward/Françoise has no mother. She's nearly a case of [[Parental Abandonment]] as well, because her father ''forgot'' her in an orphanage for several years, and seems not entirely sure his child is a girl, or what her name is. {{spoiler|Which is why it's so sad when she leaves the Bebop, because Jet was a far better father for her than her real dad.}}
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** Also, {{spoiler|Anya's mother was turned into stone in the incident where Negi's hometown was destroyed. Alongside ''many'' other people.}}
* ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]'' has more than a few examples.
** The Elric brothers' mother, Trisha, is dead, so both boys tried to rectify the
** Winry Rockbell is raised by her grandmother Pinaco after ''both'' parents died during the Ishval War, though the exact circumstances of their death varies between the manga (killed by {{spoiler|Scar}}) and anime (killed by {{spoiler|Roy Mustang}}.)
** Scar's parents are absent in the anime, and are killed by Kimblee when he attacks the area where Scar lives in the manga.
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** Mustang's birth parents died when he was a young child.
** The homunculi in the manga have a father, but no mother. This is first addressed by Pride, when he mentions that he never knew what it was like to have a mother until he was adopted by Mrs. Bradley.
* Brock's mother Lola in ''[[Pokémon (anime)|Pokémon]]'' was said to have left their family ([[Dub
** Jessie's mom Miyamoto went missing on an expedition to find Mew.
* Quint, the mother of Subaru and Ginga Nakajima in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'', was an [[Action Mom]] who was killed during a secret mission. Her death didn't seem to affect them in a negative way, and they remember her quite fondly. ''Nanoha'' is much more notable for ''[[
* Nadeshiko in ''[[Cardcaptor Sakura]]'' died when Sakura was three years old. Like in the ''Nanoha'' example, there doesn't seem to be any negative repercussions and her presence can still be felt in the series... sometimes literally, since she visits her family every so often as a ghost.
* In ''[[Lucky Star]]'', Konata's [[Ill Girl]] mother Kanata died when Konata was very young, forcing her [[Otaku]] father to raise her on his own. An episode has her visiting her family as a ghost... which causes much terror for Konata and her father when she secretly joins in on a picture. [[Hilarity Ensues]], in a genuine way.
* In ''[[Clannad (visual novel)|Clannad]]'', Tomoya Okazaki lost his mother when he was young, and the grief caused his father to become an alcoholic bum in the process.
** In After Story, {{spoiler|the main character works to keep it from repeating with Ushio after getting a wake-up-call. That's because Nagisa, Ushio's mother, [[Death by Childbirth|died in childbirth]].}}
* ''[[Ranma ½]]'' has a boatload of missing mothers:
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** Ranma left to train with his father at such a very young age that until his [[Hot Mom]] [[Cloudcuckoolander|Nodoka]] showed up to visit he'd forgotten he ever ''had'' one.
** Shampoo's father was seen a time or two in the manga, but never her mother, and she is otherwise raised by her great-grandmother.
** Both of Ryoga Hibiki's parents are never around due to an [[No Sense of Direction|improbably bad sense of direction]] and we never meet them. Different from the ''[[Ranma ½
** Mousse's mother is
** The Kuno siblings' mother and Ukyo's mother are never seen or even mentioned.
* ''[[Inuyasha]]'' has three as well:
** Inu-Yasha himself has a prominent older brother and father, but his mother is rarely
** Miroku's mother is never mentioned, only his father, grandfather, and caretaker, Mushin.
** Sango's mother is likewise rarely (if ever) mentioned, though she apparently had a close relationship with her father and brother.
** Kagome inverts this somewhat with ''[[Disappeared Dad|an absent father]]'' who died in a car crash when she was a little girl.
* In ''[[Urusei Yatsura]]'', [[Wholesome Crossdresser|Ryuunosuke Fujinami]] is about the only main character with this. Everyone else has a mother, even if they only show up in rare occasions (Sakura's [[Gonk
* ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' has every single child (and most of the adults) motherless, even the peripheral schoolmates. We know the story behind the central characters', and we're shown enough to guess the reason (it isn't pretty).
* Sho Fukamachi's father in ''[[Guyver]]'' is a single father; Sho's mother died years before. He does a good job raising Sho and even gets in on the action until {{spoiler|he gets turned into a Zoanoid that nearly kills Sho, forcing the catatonic Guyver to kill his own father in one of the most shocking twists in anime.}}
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** Having no apparent mother relationship aside of this brief mention may have been intentionally significant to the plot. Consider the fact that Naota grew up in a totally male environment (his grandfather, father, and older brother) and most of the relationship problems he has in the show are with women.
* In ''[[Code Geass]]'', Lelouch's mother Marianne "The Flash" Lamperouge was murdered in specially messy and suspicious circumstances which also left [[Ill Girl|Lelouch's sister Nunally]] blinded and crippled. One of Lelouch's [[It's Personal|leitmotives]] for his "revolution" is to find out the truth behind Marianne's death.
** Eventually it's revealed that {{spoiler|she isn't actually dead, having [[Body Surf|body surfed]] into someone else. Turning this from a case of
** Played straight with the never-mentioned variety when it comes to Suzaku's mother, who is never touched upon. His [[Disappeared Dad|dead father]] is the main tragic plot-point behind his story, {{spoiler|because ''Suzaku killed him''.}}
* In two of the three ''[[Captain Tsubasa]]'' anime series, Roberto Hongo lost his mother very tragically. In Captain Tsubasa J, she abandoned him in a convent to work and later die of illness; in Road to 2002, she was a factory worker who died in a work accident.
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* ''[[Yes! Pretty Cure 5]]'' spent an episode on Urara's deceased mother and how Urara feels about her.
* Tenchi Masaki's mother from ''[[Tenchi Muyo!|Tenchi Muyo]]'' Both [[The Movie|the first movie]] and the third [[OVA]] series focus on his relationship with her; the [[OVA]] deconstructs the trope by revealing that she was...kind of a bitch.
** Not exactly a bitch, just a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]]
* Juri Katou from ''[[Digimon Tamers]]'': her biological mother died of illness when she was very young and she never quite got over it, after being told that it was her "destiny" by her father ([[Parents as People|who also never quite got over it]]). She has a good-hearted and caring stepmother, but poor Juri is simply too screwed up to connect with the second Mrs. Katou emotionally, despite actually trying to do so and having no ill will towards her.
* In ''[[Digimon Savers]]'', Touma's mother {{spoiler|was hit by a truck on their way to a summer festival and died. Oddly enough, the mother of Touma's [[Ill Girl]] half-sister Relena also died, apparently [[Death by Childbirth|in childbirth]].}}
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* In ''[[Tokyo Mew Mew]]'', Bu-ling's mother died some time before the start of the show; her father is alive, but she and her younger siblings ended up with full [[Parental Abandonment]] because he left to practice martial arts. Zakuro is a case of [[Parental Abandonment]] from the start.
** This is only in the anime. In the manga, the only parents ever seen are Ichigo's, who have a bad case of [[Older Than They Look]], while Mint's ''mom'' is mentioned, but never seen. Ichigo's parents are seen twice in the series. [[There Are No Adults|Adults do not exist practically at all.]]
* In ''[[Prétear]]'', Himeno's mother died when Himeno was a child, leading to her being raised by her father Kaoru
** In the manga, this is expanded: {{spoiler|Mrs. Awayuki fell victim to [[Death by Childbirth]], and Kaoru keeps it from Himeno to not cause her psychological damage. She actually learns that from her ''stepmother'' Natsue.}}
* In ''[[Blood+|Blood Plus]]'', Saya and Diva's biological mother is only briefly mentioned, and only appears in corpse form. Though Saya ends up with a replacement or two for their biological father, who is never mentioned in the context of the story (though {{spoiler|Diva's chevalier Nathan makes some mysterious comments suggesting that ''he'' is their father}}), neither of the girls ends up with another mother figure (unless you count Julia).
** Actually, Nathan's comments suggest he was their mother's chevalier, not their father
** Later, {{spoiler|Diva pretty much becomes a
* Renton from ''[[Eureka Seven]]'' has no mother to speak of. In addition, Renton's replacement mother figure and older sister, Diane, is gone by the beginning of the series, which directly and indirectly causes angst for several members of the main cast.
** Holland's mother fell victim to [[Death by Childbirth]].
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* In the anime of ''[[Umineko no Naku Koro ni]]'', the reason no one's seen Battler in such a long time is because he left his family after his mother Asumu died six years ago. [[Cool Big Sis|Kyrie]]'s his stepmother.
** Actually, {{spoiler|Asumu is NOT his biological mother. Learning that sends Battler into an EPIC [[Heroic BSOD]] in both anime and games, and Ange snaps him out of it in an equally epic [[Heroic Sacrifice]].}}
* Kotoko's mother is dead at the start of ''[[Itazura na Kiss]]'' and she lives with just her
* Guts of ''[[Berserk]]'' had ''two''
* Kouji Kabuto, the original [[Idiot Hero]] of ''[[Mazinger Z]]'' and most of its related continuities has grandfather Juuzo ([[Killed Off for Real]], often in the first episode of any given series) and a father named Kenzou (who effectively abandoned him and his [[Tagalong Kid]] brother, but they later reconcile {{spoiler|and later dies, at least in ''[[Great Mazinger]]''}}). . . but it wasn't until ''[[Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen]]'' (made ''thirty years'' after the original) that we get to meet his mother, {{spoiler|[[Hot Scientist|Tsubasa]] [[Magnificent Bastard|Nishikiori]], a lady who is more or less responsible for all of the traits that make Kouji a [[Badass]].}} In the original anime, though, she died in a laboratory experiment gone wrong.
** Most of the young characters of the Mazinger trilogy are motherless: Sayaka -Kouji's [[Love Interest]]- and her father live alone, and it is often assumed her mother died -or left-; Tetsuya and Jun from ''[[Great Mazinger]]'' are both orphans and adopted by Kenzo; the parents of Duke and Maria from ''[[UFO Robo Grendizer]]'' got murdered and Hikaru and her little brother are raised by their father since their mother died.
* ''[[Hanaukyo Maid Tai]]''. Taro's mother dies in the [[Backstory]] just before the series begins. Oddly enough she's very rarely mentioned during the series itself.
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* In [[Mobile Suit Gundam 00]], Setsuna F. Seiei lost his mother when he was no older than 10. {{spoiler|More exactly, when he was a [[Brainwashed and Crazy]] [[Child Soldier]] under the name of Soran Ibrahim, he killed her under the orders of his leader, [[Complete Monster]] Ali Al-Saachez.}} One of the reasons why he gets platonically close to Princess Marina is because [[Identical Stranger|she looks a LOT]] like his dead mom.
** Similarly, the conflict between {{spoiler|Sergei and Andrei Smirnov}} comes from the death of {{spoiler|Andrei}}'s [[Action Mom]] Holly, whom he ''never'' forgave his father for. {{spoiler|It ends up in horrible tragedy, as Andrei [[Self-Made Orphan|kills Sergei]] believing him to be a traitor; once he realizes what he has done with help of his adoptive sister Marie, he becomes [[The Atoner]], and [[Redemption Equals Death]] in [[The Movie]].}}
* The death of Flit Asuno's mother happens right at the start of [[Mobile Suit Gundam
* In the [[Ace Attorney]] manga's "Turnabout From Heaven" case, the defendant, Diana Wheatley, says she was visited by the spirit of her mother, who was killed in an auto accident 16 years ago and promised to give her a necklace when she turned 20. {{spoiler|It turns out that her dead supposed birth mother was actually her stepmother, because the birth certificates were altered, and that her actual mother was working for her father in disguise}}.
* ''[[Your Name]]'': Mitsuha and Yotsuha's mother Futaba died of illness six years prior to the start of the film, but still casts a shadow on the family, especially as [[The Lost Lenore]] to widowed Toshiki. Taki's mother, meanwhile, is nowhere to be seen, with only a vague allusion late in the novel as to him having to get used to living with the father. Nothing is done with this commonality.
* ''[[Weathering with You]]'': Hina and Nagi's mother is hospitalized and bedridden at the start of the film and dies during the timeskip. This leaves them as orphans, as the father goes completely unmentioned.
== Comic Books ==
* [[Batgirl (2000 comic book)|Cassandra Cain]]'s mother passed her to her father literally at birth, who in turn shot the midwife dead and took the infant to be trained as the [[Charles Atlas Superpower|ultimate]] [[Tyke Bomb|assassin]] in isolation from spoken language. Given that said mother became known as [[Blood Knight|Lady Shiva]], it is hard to imagine that her influence would have helped... and the kid seemed to have turned out emotionally together enough to [[Street Urchin|run away from home]] [[Thou Shalt Not Kill|rather than kill...]] [[The Atoner|again]].▼
▲* [[Batgirl 2000|Cassandra Cain]]'s mother passed her to her father literally at birth, who in turn shot the midwife dead and took the infant to be trained as the [[Charles Atlas Superpower|ultimate]] [[Tyke Bomb|assassin]] in isolation from spoken language. Given that said mother became known as [[Blood Knight|Lady Shiva]], it is hard to imagine that her influence would have helped... and the kid seemed to have turned out emotionally together enough to [[Street Urchin|run away from home]] [[Thou Shalt Not Kill|rather than kill...]] [[The Atoner|again]].
* [[Batwoman]] lost her mother in a hostage situation when she was a kid. {{spoiler|She also lost her twin sister...or so she thought.}}
* Matt Murdock, aka [[Daredevil]], was raised entirely by his father (this turned into [[Parental Abandonment]] when the guy was murdered in the first issue of Matt's series). His mother went completely unmentioned for over twenty years before finally showing up out of the blue; turns out that she abandoned her child to become a nun.
** Darkdevil, Daredevil's [[Legacy Character]] in ''[[Spider-Girl]]'', also has a missing mom and a dead dad. It's implied that Mom is still in jail for killing her abusive father. At least, that's what Darkdevil hopes.
* In [[The DCU]], Roy Harper once broke an [[Lotus Eater Machine|illusory world]] by asking about his
* Since there are [[Loads and Loads of Characters]] in ''[[X-Men (Comic Book)|X-Men]]'', the following are only a few examples. Elizabeth Howlett committed suicide after [[Wolverine|her son]] killed [[Abusive Parents|Thomas Logan]]. Katherine Summers was killed by [[Evil Overlord|D'ken]] of the Shi'ar empire. Rogue's biological mother would [[Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence]] when Rogue was a small child, leaving her traumatized and in the care of her strict aunt. Edie Eisenhardt would be killed in a concentration camp, leading to [[Magneto]]'s [[Start of Darkness]]. His wife Magda fled into the wilderness after giving birth, continuing the pattern. Nightcrawler was probably better off not being raised by his real mother, [[X-Men/Characters/Villains|Mystique]].
* Peppermint Patty from ''[[Peanuts]]'' is raised only by her father, and it's hinted that her mom is dead. (When Marcie [http://www.gocomics.com/peanuts/1973/09/27 asks her] why she can't stay with her mother when her father is out of town, Patty simply says: "I don't have a mother, Marcie!")
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== Films ==
* ''[[Armageddon]]'' begins with a
* In ''As It Is In Heaven'' {{spoiler|Daniel and Lena}} both have lost their parents at a young age.
* In ''[[Pretty in Pink]]'', Andie's mom abandoned Andie and her dad sometime before the movie started. The two of them coming to terms with it is addressed.
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*** [[The Nostalgia Chick]]: "Now, if you're wondering where her mother is, don't forget that this is a Disney movie."
** See the Literature section for ''[[Peter Pan (Disney film)|Peter Pan]]''.
** ''[[The Fox and the Hound (film)]]'': Tod's mom is shot during the opening credits.
** ''[[Meet the Robinsons]]'': Lewis' mother left him in an orphanage. His desire to discover her drives most of the story.
** ''[[Pinocchio (Disney film)|Pinocchio]]'' is a [[Artificial Human|wooden puppet]] created by Gepetto BEFORE becoming a "real boy". As such, no mom ever existed. The closest to a mother would be the Blue Fairy, who gave him life with her magic.
** ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney film)|Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs]]'' is taken care of by her [[Wicked Stepmother|step-mother]]. It is unclear what happened to her parents.
*** Snow White's mother, the Good Queen, probably died during the childbirth, and her father, the King? The Evil Queen probably killed him.
** Mowgli from ''[[The Jungle Book (Disney film)|The Jungle Book]]'' is a feral child [[Raised by Wolves|raised by... wolves]]. Since he was found abandoned in a wrecked boat, it can be assumed his parents are dead.
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** Kuzco from ''[[The Emperor's New Groove|The Emperors New Groove]]'' lacks in the parental department as well.
** The female eponymous character from ''[[Lilo and Stitch (Disney film)|Liloand Stitch]]'' lives with her older sister. Apparently their parents died recently, as she remembers things they used to say. Given her explanation ("It was raining, and they went for a drive"), we can assume they died in a car accident.
** ''[[The Princess and the Frog]]'': Charlotte just lives with her father and there's no mention of a mother. Averted with Tiana, though, who has her mother... and a [[Disappeared Dad|dad who was hinted to have died in]] [[World War
** ''[[Dinosaur]]'': Aladar is separated from his mother when his egg is unexpectedly taken away from her nest by a hungry Oviraptor while his mother was trying to protect said nest from [[Big Bad|the Carnotaurus]]. The Oviraptor then takes the egg into a nearby forest where it proceeds to crack it open and eat the fetus inside, but loses the egg to another Oviraptor. While the two Oviraptors begin to fight over the egg, Aladar's egg rolls off a ledge and into a nearby river where it is then picked up by a passing Pterodactyl. The Pterodactyl then flies the egg all the way to Lemur Island (home to Aladar's eventual foster family of lemurs) and leaves it there, where he will eventually hatch and be adopted. It's implied that his biological mother was either killed by [[Big Bad|the Carnotaurus]] (who also smashed her other eggs) or was among the many dinosaurs that was killed by the meteorite.
*** Inverted with [[Last of Her Kind|Baylene]] however. She, despite being one of the oldest dinosaurs in the film, actually lost her spouse, as well of all of her siblings and her descendants to the meteorite, therefore making her the last surviving Brachiosaurus on Earth. Also, Plio, the lemur girl that adopts Aladar, despite her father being the chief of the lemur clan, actually doesn't have a mother as well. Inverted with Plio herself, where even though she already has a daughter named Suri, she actually doesn't have a husband.
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** Li Shang from ''[[Mulan]]'' has no mother, but later in the film, his father, General Li, the High Commander of the Chinese Imperial Army, is actually killed while protecting a mountain village from the Huns, which is then later burned to the ground.
** In ''[[Sleeping Beauty (Disney film)|Sleeping Beauty]]'' while Aurora's mother survives the movie, Prince Phillip's mother is never seen nor mentioned.
*** Is it just me, or does Disney have the biggest hard-on for
**** To be fair, for the most part the
* ''[[Ella Enchanted]]'': As a partial send-up of ''Cinderella'', Ella also lost her mother and ended up with an [[Wicked Stepmother]].
* ''[[Independence Day]]'': Russell Case is raising his kids alone. By a comment he makes, she probably died of a chronic illness, possibly the same one his child suffers from.
* ''Jersey Girl'': The title character's mother (played by Jennifer Lopez) dies early on in the film.
* ''[[Sleepless in Seattle]]'': Jonah's mother died more or less recently, which prompts him to find his dad a new wife and himself a new mother.
* In [[The Movie]] version of ''[[The Spiderwick Chronicles]]'', the children's mother is a rare case of a
* ''[[Stardust (film)|Stardust]]'': Tristan Thorn's mother is missing. She's a [[
* ''[[Juno]]'' has this, but the eponymous character has a stepmother, who she has a pretty close bond with, as the film continues.
* ''[[The Land Before Time]]'': Both Littlefoot and Cera's mothers are dead, though Cera gets a stepmother several movies later (and a little stepsister).
* In ''[[28 Days Later|Twenty Eight Days Later]]'', Hannah's mother is deceased, though whether this is before or after the eponymous period of devastation is unclear. Jim's parents commit suicide together some time before he wakes from his coma, realising somewhat what's happening, and though Jim is an adult this is presumably part of why he bonds so well with the much older Frank.
** According to [[Word of God]] Selena had to kill her entire family in one afternoon. No wonder she's so cold.
* ''[[Underdog (film)|Underdog]]'': Shoeshine's human family has a
* In ''[[Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film)|Charlie and The Chocolate Factory]]'', Wonka's father features prominently in flashbacks, but Wonka's mother appears to be absent. Her fate is not explored, however.
** Inverted in the first film. While Charlie had both parents in the book and his father getting laid off was a big part of the setup, they decided to ax his father from the movie to increase the tragedy.
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* ''Fly Away Home'' begins with the heroine's mother dying in car crash.
* This is the plot of ''Grace Is Gone''. The mother died in Iraq, and the father tries to explain this to kids.
* This is Hallie's fate in ''[[The Parent Trap (1961 film)|The Parent Trap]]''.
* In ''[[Spaceballs]]'', princess Vespa has (naturally) no mother.
* The heroine of ''[[Whale Rider]]'' has no mother.
* In ''[[The Sound of Music]]'' we see a von Trapp family: Father, seven children, and no mother. Captain Von Trapp is explicitly referred to as a widower.
* In ''Forward, Gardemarines'', one of the heroes is a bastard, whose mother, a poor woman, died in
* In ''[[Hounddog]]'', Lewellen also has no mother.
* [[Jackie Chan]] in ''[[Drunken Master (film)|Drunken Master]]'' also seems to have no mother.
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* In ''[[Over the Hedge (animation)|Over the Hedge]]'', the absence of Ozzie's mate and Heather's mother is never addressed.
* From the western comedy ''[[Support Your Local Sheriff]]'':
{{quote|
'''Jason McCullough:''' Mother died, huh?
'''Mayor Perkins:''' Nope, she just departed. }}
* ''[[Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs]]'': Flint's mother dies when he was young.
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** Each of the four main protagonists in ''[[Circle of Magic]]'' (and Evvy) have no mother. Every. Single. One.
*** Well, Tris has a mother. The family simply disowned her after the numerous incidents of quicksand pits and dining room hailstorms.
* The title character of ''[[Peter Pan]]'' is a runaway, but when he gets Wendy and her brothers to come with him to Neverland, he tries to fit Wendy into the role of the
* In ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]],'' [[Cloudcuckoolander|Luna]]'s mother died when she was 9 years old. She was then raised by her father alone. "She did like to experiment, and one of her spells went badly".
** And of course, Harry's mother Lily, who died along with his father in a pair of [[Heroic Sacrifice
** Also, at the end of the last book, {{spoiler|Teddy Lupin}} suffers from the trope when his parents die in battle.
** And Voldemort's mother Merope, of course, who suffered [[Death by Childbirth]]. Significantly, she ''could'' have saved herself with magic, but was apparently so distraught over her [[Disappeared Dad|husband's abandonment]] that she chose to simply leave her son in an orphanage.
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** Neville's mother (and father) are technically [[Fate Worse Than Death|still alive]], but certainly the poor woman was in no condition to raise her son {{spoiler|after having been tortured into insanity by Barty Crouch Jr. and the Lestranges}}.
* The title character of ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' lost his mother to [[Death by Childbirth]] {{spoiler|apparently; it later emerged that she was murdered when she happened to be giving birth}}. He then became a full [[Parental Abandonment]] case when his [[Disappeared Dad|father died]] some years later.
* [[Nancy Drew]] is famously being raised by her attorney father and housekeeper Hannah Grue. Mom died when Nancy was
* Pip in ''[[Great Expectations]]'' lost his mother and was left to be raised by his older sister and her husband.
* In ''[[Animorphs]]'', Marco's mom is [[Never Found the Body|presumed dead]], and his father is torn apart by grief. Initially, Marco was reluctant to get involved in the fight against the Yeerks, knowing that his father would never recover if he died as well. Unfortunately, [[The Call Knows Where You Live|The Call knew where he lived]], and his mother wasn't dead; she was a Controller.
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* Vlad Taltos of the ''[[Dragaera]]'' series was raised by his father and his paternal grandfather. He has no memories of his mother, has no idea how old he was when she disappeared and doesn't know if she died or left his father, because his father keeps changing stories and avoiding talking about her altogether.
* Brutus in Conn Iggulden's ''Emperor'' series was abandoned by his mother after his father died. However they establish some form of relationship once he's an adult.
* Elena Bothari-Jesek from [[Lois McMaster Bujold|Lois McMaster Bujold's]] ''[[Vorkosigan Saga]]'' stories is an especially tragic case: Miles and Elena go looking for Elena's
** Discussed in the later book ''A Civil Campaign''. In the context of explaining why she doesn't want to marry yet, Kareen Koudelka says:
{{quote|
*** Ironically, Kareen herself is named after Emperor Gregor's
* The heroine in ''[[The Secret Life Of Bees]]'' has what might as well be the type specimen for the realistic fiction subtrope. Her father never speaks of her missing mom, he practically ignores her, and she assumes that mommy must have been amazing. However, Lily is also wracked with angst because according to her clearest memory of her mother, Lily accidentally shot her dead.
* The heroine of ''[[To Kill a Mockingbird]]'' grows up with father (and brother), but her mother is dead.
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* In the ''[[Alice, Girl from the Future|Alisa Selezneva]]'' series by K. Bulychev, Alisa nominally has both parents, but only her father is actually present.
* In [[Diana Wynne Jones]]' [[Chrestomanci]] story ''Charmed Life'', Cat and Gwendolyn's parents are killed.
* In Chris Roberson's ''[[Warhammer
* ''[[The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time]]'': Christopher, an eccentric boy, is raised by his father because his mother has died. {{spoiler|Or so he's been told, and the fact she hadn't}} is a major plot point.
* ''[[The City of Ember]]'' by Jeanne DuPrau is a double load. Lina Mayfleet has a missing mom that died when her younger sister Poppy was born ''and'' a [[Disappeared Dad]] that died shortly after the mother. But her friend Doon Harrow has a missing mom that has no explanation whatsoever. Many fans' favorite excuse is that she died when Doon was young.
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* Lyra, the heroine of ''[[The Golden Compass]]'', has no mother and a mostly absent father-figure, Uncle Asriel ( {{spoiler|actually her father}}). Later we find out that {{spoiler|her mother is Mrs. Coulter, the main villain of the book}}.
* John Taylor, the main character of the ''[[Nightside]]'' series of [[Urban Fantasy]]/[[Film Noir|Gothic Noir]] novels, was raised by his father {{spoiler|because his mother is [[Eldritch Abomination|Lilith]].}} His mom coming back is actually a plot that spreads over several books.
* [[Discworld|Rincewind]] claims that his mother left him ''[[Artistic License: Biology|before]]'' [[Rule of Funny|he was born.]]
** The mother of Tomjon, heir to the throne of Verence I, is absent without explanation in ''Wyrd Sisters''.
* [[Alfie Atkins]] mother is never mentioned in the books. Her absence is not mentioned either. Alfie seems to have a completely normal kid's life, with friends, cousins, and a loving father. Just no mother. When [[Moral Guardians]] and other curious people wanted to know where she is, the author replied: "[[Shrug of God|Maybe she's dead. Maybe the parents are divorced. Maybe she's in the laundry room.]] [[Death of the Author|It's up to the reader.]]"
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** 2 incompetent mothers (''[[Pride and Prejudice]]'' and ''[[Sense and Sensibility (novel)|Sense and Sensibility]]'', albeit to a far lesser extent)
** 1 evil mother (''[[Lady Susan]]'')
* In ''[[The Phantom of the Opera]]'', both of Christine's parents are dead. However, the father is discussed in great detail and features in prominently in the [[Flash Back]] sequences of Raoul's and Christine's childhood; there is even a visit to his grave <ref>
* In ''[[Strange Angels]]'', Dru's mom is dead and she was left by her father with her grandmother who also died. {{spoiler|Her mother was killed by the Vampire Sergej and her Grandmother died of natural causes}}
* In ''Laura Leander'', the heroine starts the series with both parents missing: Her mother presumably drowned when she was five and her [[Disappeared Dad|dad disappeared]] about a year ago. However, rescuing her dad is relatively straightforward, (he is "only" held captive by [[Big Bad]]...) and from then on, she fits this trope... Until she manages to [[Rescued From Purgatory|rescue her mother from some realm between life and death]], {{spoiler|at a price of [[It Seemed Like a Good Idea At the Time|abandoning all her powers]] }}
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== Live Action TV ==
* ''[[The Brady Bunch]]'': There was a
* ''The Courtship of Eddie's Father'': Eddie's mother died, hence the reason for the title.
* ''[[Diff'rent Strokes|Diffrent Strokes]]'': Another dead mother.
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* ''[[Smart Guy (TV series)|Smart Guy]]'': Ditto with the above examples.
* ''[[Sanford and Son]]'': Lamont's deceased mother Elizabeth, who Fred is always claiming he's "coming to join" during his fake heart attacks.
** Also Harold's mother in the [[Trans
* ''Make Room For Daddy'': The 1956-1957 season fits this trope, as Danny Thomas' original co-star Jean Hagen, left the show after the end of the third season and her character was [[McLeaned]].
* ''[[Step by Step]]'': Frank Lambert's wife abandoned him and their three children (J.T., Al, and Brendan). Although it is implied that she is still very much alive, she disappeared to parts unknown and has no contact with her children, leaving step-mother Carol Foster to fill the void.
* ''[[Little House on the Prairie (TV series)|Little House On the Prairie]]'': In the 1981-1982 season opener, where the Olesens adopt Nancy (an orphan with a severe behavior disorder), Nancy gives a sob story about being abandoned by her mother. In truth, her mother suffered from a condition today known as preecclampsia, and died while giving birth to Nancy. (Since Nancy's biological father was
* ''[[iCarly]]'': Carly's mother has never been mentioned; the likely choices are her completely abandoning her children (as their father has been deployed in the military since before the show started), being insane, locked up, or dead. Sam's mother is something of a psychologically absent type.
* ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'':
** Hiro Nakamura's mother Ishi is absent. {{spoiler|We find out she's dead later on, and that it completely shattered Hiro's father Kaito. Further, in the novel ''Saving Charlie'', we find out that Kaito being devastated by Ishi's loss is why he's so emotionless and hard now. When the adult Hiro gets his memories reverted to that of his 10-year-old self, he visits his dead mother via [[Time Travel]]: Ishi turns out to have been [[Healing Hands|a healer]], who uses her powers to heal Hiro's memories and give him the [[MacGuffin]].}}
** Played with in the case of Claire Bennet, who had a
* ''[[Privileged]]'': Megan and Lily's mother ran out on the family when they were little, sparking the father's alcoholism and Megan's [[Promotion to Parent]] status. History repeats itself when {{spoiler|Shelby returns, only to con Megan's boyfriend out of quite a significant (to her if not to Will) sum of money and run off once again}}
* ''[[Psych]]'': Shawn Spencer's mother is absent, but we find out from a bitter remark on Henry's part that {{spoiler|she left.}}
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** Chuck: Missing... it seems that way, doesn't it? {{spoiler|Or maybe not, as Aunt Lily confesses on a [[Mushroom Samba|holistic drug trip]] that she's really Chuck's mother.}}
* ''[[Starman (TV series)|Starman]]'': We know Jenny Hayden freaked out shortly after birthing her half-alien child and ran off, leaving the title character to [[Walking the Earth|Walk The Earth]] raising his son alone. The show's premise was built on this.
* Averted in ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''. Yes, Maria's parents (Alan and Chrissie) are divorced because her Mum ran off with the judo instructor, and yes, Maria lives with her Dad, but Chrissie is a [[Drop
* ''[[Full House]]'': yet another dead mother. The reason why Jesse (said mother's younger brother) and Joey (Danny's best friend) moved in with the Tanners was to [[Has Two Mommies|help Danny with the three girls]].
** Jesse later gets married and Aunt Becky becomes [[Parental Substitute|a mother figure]] to the Tanner girls.
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* In ''[[The Tenth Kingdom]]'', this is rather masterfully pulled off. {{spoiler|Virginia finds out her mother is alive, and is actually pretty much the person responsible for her and her father getting pulled into the plot. She already knew that her mother had left, but she didn't know that she'd wound up as a wicked step-mother in a parallel fairy-tale world.}} This leads to a rather realistic rant after she finds out.
* One important motive for [[The Adventures of Shirley Holmes|Shirley Holmes]] is to solve the mystery of her Mother's disappearance. {{spoiler|And she does, eventually.}}
* In ''[[Battlestar Galactica
** Likewise, Kara Thrace's mother was so abusive that she {{spoiler|once broke all of Kara's fingers by slamming her hand repeatedly in a door. She later refused to congratulate Kara's graduation, focusing on her mistakes instead.}} This made Kara so angry that {{spoiler|she never went to see her mother as she was dying of lung cancer.}}
* ''[[Star Trek]]'' loves this:
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** Yeah, ''NCIS'' is bad about this. We know so much about Tony, Gibbs and Ziva's fathers, but where are any of their mothers?
* ''[[The Nanny]]'': Sara Sheffield died before the show started in a car accident caused by a drunk driver.
* In ''[[Castle]]'',
* In ''[[China Beach]]'', [[Hooker with a Heart of Gold|KC Koloski]] is a missing mom for most of the time as far as her daughter Karen is concerned. There are references to a few visits in infancy, but Karen was mostly raised by a Vietnamese nanny until her mother got her onto one of the last choppers out of Saigon and sent her to the U.S. to live with KC's old friend (and former john) Boonie.
* Two ''[[Ghostwriter (TV series)|Ghostwriter]]'' team members have missing moms. Lenni's mom died when she was little and Rob only lives with his dad.
* The main characters' mother in ''[[Charmed]]'' was drowned by a Warlock when they were very young. Prue saw her die, Phoebe was too young to remember her at all, and Paige never knew her since she was raised by [[Muggle Foster Parents]]. They meet her in the past and some episodes feature her as a [[Spirit Advisor]], though.
* On ''[[M*A*S*H (television)|Mash]]'', it's eventually established that Hawkeye's mother died when he was ten (although, in one of several [[Series Continuity Error|continuity error]]s on the show, an early episode has him mention her as if she were alive).
* ''[[Being Human (UK)]]'' ultimately subverts this in the second season, when {{spoiler|Annie is helping out a medium with his show and her mother attends to try to communicate with her daughter's ghost. The mother later converses with Annie, with the medium speaking on Annie's behalf, and cries because she was unable to protect her daughter. An earlier episode said that Annie and her fiancé moved away at some point, so presumably Annie's mom wasn't involved in her life very much since then.}}
* ''[[Power Rangers Turbo]]'': Justin's mother died before he debuted in [[The Movie]], and it's implied that his relationship with his father also enters [[When You Coming Home, Dad?]] and [[Parental Abandonment]] territory at times.
** The fate, as well as the identity, of Rita Repulsa's mother are a mystery to this day.
* Played hilariously on ''[[The Amanda Show]]'' in ''Moody's Point.'' Moody's mom disappeared in a hot air balloon, and it's presented as a case of [[Never Found the Body]] that was quite
* ''[[Smallville]]'' has a few. [[Lois Lane]] was 6 when Ella Lane passed away. Moira Sullivan was voluntarily institutionalized to protect Chloe. Lilian Luthor died when [[Lex Luthor]] was 13. Lana's parents were killed in the first meteor shower. Laura Queen died with her husband in a plane crash caused by Lionel Luthor. And the death of Lara-El on [[Doomed Hometown|Krypton]] should probably be mentioned.
* [[Punky Brewster]], anyone? Her mom abandoned her during a shopping trip and she wound up living alone with her dog Brandon in an empty apartment until she was discovered by Henry Warnimont.
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** April and Bianca's mother lives in Italy.
** In an odd twist, some of the fan favourites are parents who outlasted their kids' stay on the show. Miles may or may not qualify, given that Rabbit was actually a ghost.
* Samantha's mother on ''[[
* The premise of ''[[My Two Dads]]''.
* [[Frasier]] Crane's mother was dead at the start of the series but had appeared on ''[[Cheers]]''.
* Elaine's mother on ''[[Seinfeld]]'' is never mentioned and presumably dead.
* Carrie's mother on ''[[The King of Queens]]''.
* Buddy's mother/Mr. Ernst's wife on ''[[
* Sean's mother on ''[[Grounded for Life]]''.
* Tessa from ''[[Suburgatory]]''.
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* [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]] is full of missing moms: Ophelia and Laertes of ''[[Hamlet]]'', Regan, Goneril, and Cordelia of ''[[King Lear]]''; and Jessica of ''[[The Merchant of Venice]]'' all have fathers (Polonius, Lear, and Shylock respectively), but no mention is ever made of their mothers.
** In ''[[The Tempest]]'', Miranda's mother is mentioned once.
{{quote|
She said thou wast my daughter;'' }}
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** The death of {{spoiler|Joshua}}'s mother is an important plot point in Eirika's path. {{spoiler|She is Ismaire, the Queen of Jehanna, who is murdered by General Caellach when she tries to keep him from shattering the Stone of Jehanna.}}
** ''Several'' cases happen in ''[[Fire Emblem Jugdral|Seisen no Keifu and Thracia 776]]''
** Seisen Gen 1: The wives of the bad guys aren't seen, and a good part of {{spoiler|Lord Alvis}}'s backstory is centered in regards to his mother Cigyun, {{spoiler|who left him after his dad Viktor is [[Spurned Into Suicide]]... and succumbs to [[Death by Childbirth]] while giving birth to her daughter with Prince Kurth, Diadora.}} And to make things worse, {{spoiler|''Diadora'' becomes a
** Seisen Gen 2: {{spoiler|If you got the girls from Gen 1 to get married and have kids, almost all of them except for Adean become
** ''Thracia 776'': Aside of {{spoiler|Leaf and Nanna}}'s mothers, we have {{spoiler|Mareeta's mother, who fell to [[Death by Childbirth]]; Misha's mom Deet'var, who was an enemy slain by Sigurd's troops; Sara's mother, who died of grief some time after Sara's birth; and ultimately, Karin's conversation with Sety alludes to Queen Ferry's recent death.}}
* In the early 90's ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' comics published to promote the first ''[[Star Fox (series)|Star
* In ''[[Nintendo Wars|Advance Wars]]'', Sonja's mother is implied to have died before the events of the first game, and none of the other COs (save Sasha and Colin) mention their parents. Also, Sonja and her father Kanbei are the only COs with a parent/child relationship.
* In the ''[[Half-Life (series)|Half-Life]]'' series, Alyx Vance's mother, Azian, died during the Black Mesa Incident, and she was raised by her father, Eli. Eli was clearly devastated by his wife's death, and has a picture of her in whatever space is currently serving as his office. Alyx was very young when Azian died, but she still gets indignant when [[Big Bad]] Dr. Breen mentions her.
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* The three kids in ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' appear to have no parents whatsoever. I mean, at the beginning of the game, they're teenagers building a boat to sail away from their island home. Are we just supposed to assume their parents are okay with this?
** Not really correct: The voice of Sora's mother is heard in an early cutscene (she tells him to come down for dinner, and is surprised, when her son doesn't answer). And Riku mentions that he's willing to abandon his parents and home for traveling the worlds. Kairi is a true orphan, since she is living with the mayor (also mentioned in one cutscene). It's implied that the heartless or Xehanort killed her parents, when they took over Radiant Garden.
* ''[[World of Mana]] 2'', the hero has a
* Mia and Maya's mother, Misty Fey, in the ''[[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney|Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney]]'' games. Disappeared after the [[Arc Words|DL-6]] incident, leaving Maya and Mia alone. [[spoiler: She was ultimately killed in the last case of ''Trials&Tribulations'', while trying to protect poor Maya from [[The Plan|a trap prepared by Misty's sister, Morgan.]].
** Pearl's mother, Morgan, becomes a
*** From the same series, although their respective fathers are key characters to the plot and [[Backstory]], neither Franziska's nor Edgeworth's mothers are ever even mentioned. [[Fanon|The fandom's explanation for this]] is that they're either dead or were not connected to law.
*** Kay Faraday has a similar problem. After {{spoiler|her father is murdered}} she says she "went to live with her mom's family" in another town, which indicates either a death or a divorce. Someone on the writing staff had serious mom issues.
** ''[[Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney|Apollo Justice Ace Attorney]]'' also had this, although we didn't even know his mom was missing until {{spoiler|it's revealed that she's Lamiroir/Thalassa Gramarye.}} Trucy's mother Thalassa disappeared, presumed dead, when Trucy was young. {{spoiler|Also secretly Lamiroir! Yeah, that's not contrived at all...}}
* Aside from the eponymous protagonist of ''[[Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army]]'', whose past has no details (probably on purpose), Kaya Daidouji, the game's [[
* Lloyd Irving of ''[[Tales of Symphonia]]'''s mother {{spoiler|was turned into a monster and}} died long ago, killed by {{spoiler|Kratos, who turns out to be Lloyd's birth father. It was because of the aforementioned "turned into a monster" thing, a mercy killing/protecting Lloyd from the rampaging monster.}}
* In ''[[Mother 3]]'', {{spoiler|Hinawa, Lucas's mom, is found dead midway through the first chapter with a Drago fang through her heart.}}
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* Requisite ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'' example: Tedd's Mother left when he was little and is presently "somewhere in Europe", leaving poor Tedd with some serious abandonment issues.
** [http://egscomics.com/?date=2007-11-24 Serious] [http://egscomics.com/?date=2004-09-15 issues].
*** Although the second one [[Alternate Universe|isn't actually the same]] Tedd...
* Sam(antha) from ''[[Cheer]]'', implied to be [[Death by Childbirth]].
** And both of Alex's parents are pretty distant with her.
* [http://www.goldcoincomics.com/?id=11
* In ''[[Girl Genius]]'', the identity of Gilgamesh Wulfenbach's mother is unknown, although hinted at.
** Similarly, we've never met Tarvek's mother and don't know much about her beyond her connection to an illustrious family.
** The ultimate fate of Agatha's mother is also unknown (Along with the fate of her father and uncle). We only know that she used to be a moderately evil and very narcissistic [[Mad Scientist]], and then turned into an abomination incredibly dangerous and insane even by [[Mad Scientist]] standards — not even the [[God-Emperor|God-Queen]] who met both versions of her understood how, but most likely [[Professor Guinea Pig|through her own experiments]]. Either way, she remained only as some sort of [[Brain Uploading|upload]] for longer than Agatha remembers herself, and then a moderately successful body snatcher.
* In ''[[Seekers (webcomic)|Seekers]]'' Giselda's mother died when she was rather young. The reason hasn't been explained yet, just that Takchi took care of her like a brother through it.
* Sandra's mother Julie of ''[[Sandra and Woo]]'' died of an yet unknown cause several years ago.
* ''[[Wooden Rose]]'': The sisters live with only their dying father. [http://www.woodenrosecomic.com/comic/chapter2/40.html Their mother died when Nessa was only four.]
* In ''[[Strays]]'', Meela's mother never appears; she also [[Dreaming of Times Gone By|dreams]] of a boy [https://web.archive.org/web/20110830151547/http://www.straysonline.com/comic/162.htm whose mother was murdered] by her [[Stalker with a Crush]].
* [[Dreamkeepers]] Prelude [
* In ''[[Nip and Tuck]]'', [https://web.archive.org/web/20120511095655/http://www.rhjunior.com/NT/00574.html Mom ran off. So did Granma. Perhaps the man in question might ponder why they might have done that.]
* In ''[[Endstone]]'', both [http://endstone.net/2010/07/15/4-06/ Kyri] and [http://endstone.net/2010/05/24/issue-3-webpage-36/ Jon] lost their mothers.
* In ''[[Blue Yonder]]'', [https://web.archive.org/web/20150920183706/http://www.blueyondercomic.net/comics/1310311/blue-yonder-chapter-1-page-30/ Lena's motive for helping Jared with his lost family is her own lost mother].
* In ''[[The Order of the Stick]]'', Halley's mother died. Trying to live up to her injunction to be better than the [[Vice City]] they lived in has been a driving force in Halley's life.
* In ''[[Exiern]]'' Princess Peonie's mother is described as ...[http://www.exiern.com/?p=1830 significant pause]... "disappeared". The King is on the hunt for a replacement mother figure for her.
* In ''[[Sinfest]]'', Lil' E's mother has appeared, [
* In ''[[Our Little Adventure]]'', [http://danielscreations.com/ola/comics/ep0248.html Julie and Angelika's]. Angelika doesn't even remember her, and the family fell apart soon after her death.
== Web Original ==
* Both Generator and Heyoka, in the ''[[Whateley Universe]]''. Generator's mom died when she was 11, and Generator hasn't physically aged since then.
* Played for horror in the creepypasta [http://www.creepypasta.com/my-fear-of-water/ "My Fear of Water."]
* Half-sisters Ruby and Yang from ''[[RWBY]]'' get this twice over. First, Yang's mother, Raven Branwen, simply [[Parental Abandonment|ups and disappears on her and dad Taiyang]]. Then, several years later, Ruby's mom, Summer Rose, died. There's even a song from Volume One, "Red Like Roses Part II", which explores the nominally perky and chipper Ruby's well-hidden anger and grief at her mother's death.
== Western Animation ==
* ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'' could practically have its own entry!
** Aang had Monk Gyatso as father figure (and has the spirit of Roku, plus King Bumi as current day father figures), but there was no indication of a mother in his [[Backstory]] to date.
*** During the opening of his fourth chakra in "The Guru", Aang confronts his guilt about abandoning his people a century before and there is [http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep39/ep39-500.png a woman]{{Dead link}} shown sitting to the right of Monk Gyatso. She doesn't look like [http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/avatar/images/c/c8/Yangchen001.png Avatar Yengchen]{{Dead link}}, so most fans who noticed it assume she is in fact Aang's mother.
** Katara and Sokka begin with a
** Toph is a forced inversion. Her parents were both present, but emotionally and supportively absent. They were overprotective to the point of the outside world not knowing that Toph existed. And they left her caretaking to servants, so they never realized until the Avatar showed up that she was a master earthbender. Upon finding this out, seeing that their child was not only ''[[Cute Bruiser|not]]'' [[Cute Bruiser|helpless]] but able to hold her own against much bigger, older and seemingly stronger opponents, Mr. Bei Fong reacted by tightening the yoke of overprotectiveness. His wife did nothing but go along with it, which resulted in Toph abandoning them and running away.
** Teo, the son of the [[Mad Scientist]] occupying the Northern Air Temple is also missing his mother, killed in the same natural disaster that left him a paraplegic.
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** Princess Yue of the Northern Water Tribe [[Captain Obvious|had a mother once]]: we see her in [[Flash Back]]. By the time Team Avatar arrives at the North Pole, though, she is nowhere to be found.
** Iroh's wife, the mother of his son Lu Ten is never mentioned. But it's a safe assumption she's dead as Lu Ten's death is regarded as the end of Iroh's bloodline.
** The sequel, ''[[The Legend of Korra]]'', offers a new bunch of
* ''[[Winx Club]]'' has this: Stella's mom divorced with her father, Musa's mom died, and for Roxy, {{spoiler|her mother is revealed to be Morgana, the Queen of Fairies.}} That explains how she gets her powers.
* ''[[Jonny Quest]]'''s mother is absent, presumably dead.
** The first TOS episode states that Jonny's mom
** The first of the two 90's TV movies (''Jonny's Golden Quest'') that preceded ''Real Adventures'' revealed that {{spoiler|Dr. Zin killed Jonny's mom}}, although it has since been filed under the [[Canon Discontinuity]] heading.
*** According to comic-book side story (drawn and written by Wendy Pini of [[Elf Quest]] fame back in the mid 80s) she died of illness (presumably cancer).
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*** In ''[[Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures|Jonny Quest the Real Adventures]]'', Jessie's mom is an archeologist named Estelle who is estranged from Race.
* ''[[Legend of the Dragon]]'': Played with, as the twins Ang and Ling are a [[Parental Abandonment]] case. Both parents are dead, and they end up being raised by Master Chin. It then turns out that their mother, believed dead, is alive with a case of amnesia. And finally, inverted, because the twins' father really ''is'' dead.
* ''[[Oban Star-Racers]]'': Eva goes from a kid with a
* ''[[The Powerpuff Girls]]'' is an example that's pretty extreme. Their
** The Rowdy Ruff Boys are the identical example. No woman necessary! Mojo Jojo, lacking Chemical X, made his [[Applied Phlebotinum|phlebotinum]] out of... more mundane and disgusting substances.
** If you interpret it differently, it could be argued that their mother is {{spoiler|Mojo Jojo.}}
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* On ''[[Danny Phantom]],'' everyone seems to have two parents except for [[Well-Intentioned Extremist|Valerie]], who is explicitly shown living alone with her father. Her mother's whereabouts are never mentioned.
* In ''[[Tom and Jerry]]'', Spike the bulldog has a son but his mate is nowhere to be seen.
* Pretty much everyone in ''[[Defenders of the Earth]]''
* There's actually quite a few on ''[[The Fairly
* The mother of the protagonists of ''[[Street Sharks]]'' is never seen and her absence is hardly mentioned at all. All that is known is that she gave their father a watch for his birthday, which he valued greatly (implying that she was dead).
* ''[[Kid vs. Kat]]'': Coop & Molly Burtonburger's Mother is never seen or heard of, it is most likely that she is dead or divorced
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* Mr. Chan in ''[[The Amazing Chan and The Chan Clan]]'' appears to be a single father, as no mention is ever made of the childrens' mother. Popular fan theory is that he's a widower. (Not that farfetched, actually: [[Charlie Chan]] actually ''is'' a widower in the original books.)
* Sylvester the Cat and his son in the Robert McKimson-directed [[Looney Tunes|WB cartoons]] where Sylvester mistakes Hippety Hopper the kangaroo as a giant mouse. No mom seen, none mentioned.
* Reggie Bullnerd from ''[[
* [[Only Sane Man|Jeera]] and [[The Ditz|Zariah]] from ''[[Tak and the Power of Juju]]'' just only lived with their [[Fat Bastard]] of a father.
* Keo from ''[[Yakkity Yak]]'' only lived with his dad.
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* ''[[Speed Racer: The Next Generation]]'': Speed and X's mother is never seen or really brought up, though the smart money is on her being Trixie.
* In ''[[Herself The Elf]],'' the protagonist's father is mentioned (the elf king who died recently) but nothing about her mother or whether she had one at all. Similarly, on the antagonist side we have an evil King Thorn and his daughter the wicked Creeping Ivy but no mention of a mother.
* Arnold's mother Stella ''and'' his father Miles are missing on ''[[Hey Arnold!]]''.
* On ''[[American Dad]],'' Hayley mentions that Jeff's mother walked out on him [[Fridge Logic|before he was born]]. Stan is understandably confused.
* [[Averted]] partially in ''[[The Spectacular Spider-Man|The Spectacular Spider Man]]:'' Peter's parents are still dead, but Harry's mom is alive, unlike in most other continuities. [[Word of God|Word Of]] [[Greg Weisman]] says that it just seemed odd to him for all of the [[Three Amigos]] to be from single-parent families.
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