Generally speaking, I would say you'd have to wait at least a season or the conclusion of the following story arc before those tropes become applicable. If a storyline is brought back 10 years later that doesn't invalidate how long it was missing. Sequel Hooks are often never followed up on, but making such a prominent advertisement for what to expect to be happening next can understandably cause confusion.
Though I would say some examples of What Happened to the Mouse? may be a lot shorter, as an important character in the middle of the story disappearing from the resolution would still count even if they return in the next story arc. Several examples there are that they were scripted and filmed to return for the climax but got lost in the rewrites and/or editing.
Edited by EmeraldSource on May 4th 2024 at 12:48:17 PM
Do you not know that in the service one must always choose the lesser of two weevils!
I've seen an example of What Happened to the Mouse? added to a character who joined the main cast at the end of the season only to be completely absent and unmentioned next season. The issue is it's only 1/3 a year and 1/5 the planned content into the new season, so it seems too speculative to say it won't be addressed later.
Aborted Arc and Chuck Cunningham Syndrome have the same issue. When I asked "No Recent Examples Please" cleanup
about such, I got no feedback, I believe due to the thread being more about about approving waits than discussing them. Should I ask again?
Barring official confirmation the character/plot was dropped or the end of series, how long before they can be added (for series-wide examples as opposed to end of episode)? And if they appear/gets resolved in later installments, does it mean they should be removed as no longer applying or how long before being resolved would it be before it warrants keeping?