History Main / PutOnABus

** In the first season ''3rd Life'', [=BDoubleO100=] was absent on Day 6 because it was his daughter's birthday at the time. Later, [=SmallishBeans=] took his absence on Day 7 for undisclosed reasons. Neither [=BDoubleO100=] or [=SmallishBeans=] have a substitute with them.
** In the second season ''Last Life'', [=GoodTimesWithScar=] was absent on Day 7 due to hospitalization in real life. Scar didn't have a substitute.
** A double absence happened during the fourth season ''Limited Life'' where [=PearlescentMoon=] and [=ZombieCleo=] were unable to record for their respective sessions on Day 6 due to Pearl being in Japan at the time and Cleo's computer dying just hours before the session. Because of this, [=LDShadowLady=] and [=GeminiTay=] sub-in for Pearl and Cleo, respectively.
** [=TangoTek=] wasn't able to make it to the recording session on Day 6 of the fifth season ''Secret Life'' due to him going on vacation. As a result, Rendog subbed-in for him for the entirety of the recording session and the task was given to Ren to have an ImaginaryFriend that is ''exactly like Tango''.

* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'':
** After ''ComicBook/ManyHappyReturns'' ended, Post-crisis Linda Danvers, her supporting cast and her villains dropped out of the universe.
** After ''ComicBook/SupermanVsShazam'', the Sand Superman is not seen again.

* ComicBook/KittyPryde was forgotten by most writers about for majority of the 90s where [[Characters/XMen90sMembers Jubilee]] took her place. Kitty was relegated to ''ComicBook/{{Excalibur|MarvelComics}}'' until Creator/JossWhedon made Kitty popular in the main books again with ''ComicBook/AstonishingXMen''.

* The writers of ''TabletopGame/VampiretheMasquerade'' 5th Edition put most of the Elders - arguably the game's primary looming existential threat, who had been slowly awakening and usurping control of vampiric society through 4th edition - on a bus. Quite literally. They've been called off by a mysterious phenomena called "The Beckoning" that just sounds a lot like an upscaled Summoning power out of the Presence discipline tree, ''and'' they bused the Sabbat - a bunch of them got wiped out by the new Super-Hunters of the 2nd Inquisition, some got on motorcycles chasing the Elders' bus to the Middle East in what is now called the Gehenna Crusade, still others linger as clandestine terrorists, and YET OTHERS walked out and joined less rapacious factions of the Jyhad like the Church of Caine. Gehenna is at hand, but it's happening... over there. You know, off-screen. This was done to try to scale the game back to a state more akin to how it was presented in 1st edition.

** In the first season ''3rd Life'', [=BDoubleO=] was absent on Day 6 because it was his daughter's birthday at the time. Later, [=SmallishBeans=] took his absence on Day 7 for undisclosed reasons. Neither [=BDoubleO=] or [=SmallishBeans=] have a substitute with them.

** In the first season ''3rd Life'', [=SmallishBeans=] took his absence on Day 7 for undisclosed reasons. Unlike most characters, [=SmallishBeans=] didn't have a substitute with him.

** [=TangoTek=] wasn't able to make it to the recording session on Day 6 of the fifth season ''Secret Life''. As a result, Rendog subbed-in for him for the entirety of the recording session and the task was given to Ren to have an ImaginaryFriend that is ''exactly like Tango''.

* There have been 5 cases that happened throughout Life SMP where characters were absent for at least one session. Most of the times when this happens, [[PlayingWithATrope this trope gets played around]] and substitutes have to play ''very unconvincingly'' like the characters that appeared, causing shenanigans to happen.

** A double absence happened during the fourth season ''Limited Life'' where [=PearlescentMoon=] and [=ZombieCleo=] were unable to record for their respective sessions on Day 6 due to Pearl being in Japan at the time and Cleo's computer dying just hours before the session. Because of this, [=LDShadowLady=] and [=GeminiTay=] sub-in for Pearl and Cleo respectively.

* There has been 5 cases that had happened throughout ''WebVideo/LifeSMP'' where characters were absent for at least one session. Most of the time when this happens, [[PlayingWithATrope this trope gets played around]] and substitutes have to play ''very unconvincingly'' like the characters that appeared, causing shenanigans to happen.
** The first time that happened was in the first season ''3rd Life'' where [=SmallishBeans=] took his absense on Day 7 for undisclosed reasons. Unlike most characters, [=SmallishBeans=] didn't have a substitute with him.
** This also happened to [=GoodTimesWithScar=] in the second season ''Last Life'' where he was absent on Day 7 due to hospitalization in real life. Similar to [=SmallishBeans=] above, Scar didn't have a substitute.
** A double absense happened during it's fourth season ''Limited Life'' where [=PearlescentMoon=] and [=ZombieCleo=] were unable to record for their respective sessions on Day 6 due to Pearl being in Japan at the time and Cleo's computer dying just hours before the session. Because of this, [=LDShadowLady=] and [=GeminiTay=] sub-in for Pearl and Cleo respectively.
** [=TangoTek=] wasn't able to make it to the recording session on Day 6 of it's fifth season ''Secret Life''. As a result, Rendog subbed-in for him for the entirety of the recording session and the task was given to Ren to have an ImaginaryFriend that is ''exactly like Tango''.

* There has been 4 cases that had happened throughout ''WebVideo/LifeSMP'' where characters were absent for at least one session. Most of the time when this happens, [[PlayingWithATrope this trope gets played around]] and substitutes have to play ''very unconvincingly'' like the characters that appeared, causing shenanigans to happen.
** The first time that happened was in the second season ''Last Life'' where [=GoodTimesWithScar=] was absent on Day 7 due to hospitalization in real life. Unlike most characters, Scar didn't have a substitute with him.
** A double absense happened during it's fourth season ''Limited Life'' where [=PearlescentMoon=] and [=ZombieCleo=] were unable to record for their respective sessions on Day 6 due to Pearl being in Japan at the time and Cleo's computer dying hours before she was going to do so. Because of this, [=LDShadowLady=] and [=GeminiTay=] sub-in for Pearl and Cleo respectively.
** [=TangoTek=] wasn't able to make it to the recording session on Day 6 of it's fifth season ''Secret Life''. As a result, Rendog subbed-in for him for the entirety of the recording session.

* Emo 5 in ''WebVideo/MightyMoshinEmoRangers'' Season Two. Captain Emohead brings up that he had to sell him on eBay to pay the phone bill, which Ross had exhausted with phone sex. It's not like he did anything anyway.

* Bowser Junior from ''WebVideo/SuperMarioLogan'' became this after a brief appearance in a ''Mario and Luigi's Stupid and Dumb Adventures'' episode...[[TheBusCameBack before reappearing in the Bowser Juice commercial and ]][[AscendedExtra becoming a main character following an appearance in "Bowser Junior's Macaroni"]].

* In WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic, [[WesternAnimation/CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers Ma-ti]] and Douchy [=McNitpick=] have both been put on a bus. Interestingly both their departures are loosely connected. Though WebVideo/{{Ask That Guy|WithTheGlasses}} and Videogame Confessions have been so long since they were updated, one could say the same for Ask That Guy (the host) and Dominic.

* In ''Series/{{Noob}}'', [[spoiler:Dark Avenger]]'s RageQuit was this from the perspective of a story that is 90% DeepImmersionGaming.
* This happens to ''two'' characters in the season one finale of ''WebVideo/PrettyDudes'' as [[spoiler:Jay and Zario literally drive off into the night in the season one finale, so Jay's absence in the second season is inferred long before it's explained. Meanwhile, the last shot of Eagle shows her coming down the stairs with a packed bag - after coming out to her husband as a lesbian - and she is never seen again]].
* Some ''WebVideo/SMPLive'' characters went absent for a bit with no in-universe explanation. This is because [[RealLifeWritesThePlot their real life counterparts were all at TwitchCon]].

* Toucan Sam's three nephews(Puey, Susey, and Louis) were retired from appearing in Kellogg's Froot Loops ads after 2016 after years of appearing in them, when the ads instead shifted to the short-lived 'Whatever Froots Your Loops!' ad campaign phase that lasted until 2019. As of 2021 due to Toucan Sam's redesign for America and Canada, and Creator/MauriceLaMarche's departure from voicing Toucan Sam, the nephews have never been seen again since.

* In the ''Franchise/BackToTheFuture'' sequels, Marty's girlfriend Jennifer is passed out asleep and (except for an incident where she discovers something important about Marty's future and promptly passes out again from encountering her future self) stays there until the end of the [[Film/BackToTheFuturePartIII third movie]]. In the DVD commentary, the writers admit that if they'd known they were actually going to do a sequel, they wouldn't have had Jennifer get in the [=DeLorean=] at the end of the [[Film/BackToTheFuture original movie]], because they didn't know what to do with her.

* In ''Film/ThePassenger'', the girl is literally put on a bus by David Locke when the film nears its end. Soon she returns in time for the denouement.

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':
** ComicBook/TheJoker despite being a staple of Batman lore disappeared from comics for a whole decade between 1964 and 1973, not even Caesar Romero's popularity in [[Series/Batman1966 the show]] in the role convinced DC creatives to take the clown off the bus. It wasn't till Dennis O'Neil and Neal Adams decided to bring him back DarkerAndEdgier did the MonsterClown forever cement his place as Batman's ArchEnemy.
** ComicBook/TwoFace was absent for two decades during the [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] until O'Neil and Adams brought Harvey back and cemented his place in the RoguesGallery.

* Following ''ComicBook/{{Excalibur}}'' #67, half the team is Put On A Bus, though they make guest appearances in other books.
* In the Denny O'Neil[=/=]Neal Adams run of ''Franchise/GreenLantern'', Guy Gardner was hit by a bus to make way for John Stewart. After enduring several circumstances (having Hal's Power Battery explode, trapping him in the Phantom Zone, rescued from it, and rendered catatonic), he would then play a greater role in the Green Lantern comics following the ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''.
* When Geoff Johns took over ''Franchise/GreenLantern'', he started bringing back characters from the mythos. There was some fan interest in a giant canine GL named G'Nort. Johns insisted that G'Nort was dead. Then, during ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', when dead people started coming back, people asked about G'Nort... and were told that G'Nort was not coming. The implication being that G'Nort was on a bus, [[DroppedABridgeOnHim under a bridge]] which was itself on fire.

* When the Gang of Harleys made their debut in issue #16 of ComicBook/HarleyQuinn's ''[[ComicBook/TheNew52 New 52]]'' solo series, among the founding members were five teenage sisters known as the Quinntuplets. However, they only had one adventure as part of the team before Harley found out they're too young for her group and sent them home at the end of the 19th issue.
* ''Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'': Most of the JL members added to the team under Creator/DwayneMcDuffie's tenure ended up being written out once Creator/JamesRobinson took over and decided he wanted to write another characters. ComicBook/{{Zatanna}} seemingly had an emotional breakdown and quit offscreen, ComicBook/{{Vixen}} took a "leave of absence" to heal from some recent injuries and then was never seen or mentioned again in that series, Franchise/GreenLantern left without an explanation, and ComicBook/{{Firestorm|DCComics}} also quit offscreen after the death of his girlfriend. Each of those characters save for Green Lantern would later return in subsequent volumes of the franchise. Ironically enough, this happened to the majority of Robinson's new characters, who quit offscreen after his first three issues.

* Between the late 1960s and his return in the early '80s, J'onn J'onnz, the ComicBook/MartianManhunter of the Franchise/{{Justice League|OfAmerica}}, went off to find "New Mars" with the rest of the Martian people. This has since been {{retcon}}ned -- along with the existence of [[LastOfHisKind other Martians in general]].
* ComicBook/KittyPryde was forgotten by most writers about for majority of the 90s where ComicBook/{{Jubilee|MarvelComics}} took her place. Kitty was relegated to ''ComicBook/{{Excalibur}}'' until Joss Whedon made Kitty popular in the main books again with ''ComicBook/AstonishingXMen''.

** ''ComicBook/SupergirlsGreatestChallenge'': Whizzy, descendant of Streaky the Supercat in the 30th century, makes his first appearance, helps ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} out, and is never seen again.

* In ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'' the ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes and [[EvilTwin Satan]] [[ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} Girl]]'s child are put on a bus after the first arc wraps up and ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} travels back to the present day. They make their reappearance at the beginning of the third arc, thirty-five chapters later.

* ''Fanfic/NewBeginningsSmallville'': With the settlement she received from Luthorcorp and no reason to stay in Smallville, ComicBook/LanaLang relocates to Paris.

** The most notable examples are Peaches and Julian, Granny, and Shira. While the former three were written out of the series in the fifth film (Peaches and Julian moving away to live their own life, and Granny moving to Geotopia to stay young, respectively), Shira goes completely unmentioned. Sid’s girlfriend Brooke also goes unmentioned and unseen, even though it was implied she’d still have a relationship with Sid even though she needed to stay in Geotopia to stay young.

** In ''Dawn Of The Dinosaurs'', Buck chose to stay in the Lost World after learning that his nemesis, Rudy, was still alive. Despite ''Adventures Of Buck Wild'' taking place in the Lost World again, Rudy isn't seen or mentioned at all.

** The exit of [[spoiler:Scarecrow]] in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' was putting him on a bus until the director could find out if he was reusable for the next installment. He's reduced to a cameo for [[spoiler:the BatmanColdOpen]] in ''Film/TheDarkKnight'', and then sent straight to jail. [[spoiler:Then he's freed by Bane]] in ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'', [[spoiler:and becomes a HangingJudge, until disappearing offscreen.]]

** Betty Ross from ''Film/{{The Incredible Hulk|2008}}'' is the poster girl for this trope as unlike every other hero’s LoveInterest who have been at least mentioned if they're unseen, Betty completely dropped off the face of [=MCU=] after her only movie appearance. Bruce Banner also sees ComicBook/BlackWidow as his only LoveInterest despite Betty still existing, the only mention of her again was a WordOfGod [[spoiler: saying that she turned to ash along with half of the universe in ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'']]. Fans hoping for Red She-Hulk are gonna be disappointed.

** The movie ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' marks the return of four characters who have been absent from the Marvel Cinematic Universe for a while: The Collector, ComicBook/RedSkull, ComicBook/NickFury, and Maria Hill. The Collector however was actually an illusion created by Thanos's Reality Stone, so his "return" is debatable.

* [[http://girlyyy.com/go/83 Done]] in ''Webcomic/{{Girly}}'' when Officer Policeguy gets fed up with Detective Clampjaw.

* Conversed in ''Webcomic/{{Shortpacked}}'', when Robin mentions that Jacob had been [[http://www.shortpacked.com/category/comic/book-12/06-bi-partisan/ put on a bus.]]

* This happens to ''two'' characters in the season one finale of ''WebVideo/PrettyDudes'' as [[spoiler:Jay and Zario literally drive off into the night in the season one finale, so Jay's absence in the second season is inferred long before it's explained. Meanwhile, the last shot of Eagle shows her coming down the stairs with a packed bag - after coming out to her husband as a lesbian - and she is never seen again.]]

* The writers of ''TabletopGame/VampiretheMasquerade'' 5th Edition put most of the Elders - arguably the game's primary looming existential threat, who had been slowly awakening and usurping control of vampiric society through 4th edition - on a bus. Quite literally. They've been called off by a mysterious phenomena called "The Beckoning" that just sounds a lot like an upscaled Summoning power out of the Presence discipline tree, ''and'' they bused the Sabbat - a bunch of them got wiped out by the new Super-Hunters of the 2nd Inquisition, some got on motorcycles chasing the Elders' bus to the Middle East in what is now called the Gehenna Crusade, still others linger as clandestine terrorists, and YET OTHERS walked out and joined less rapacious factions of the Jyhad like the Church of Caine. Gehenna is at hand, but it's happening... over there. You know, off-screen. This was done to try to scale the game back to a state more akin to how it was presented in 1st edition. Whether you call it essentialist or reductive depends, this troper supposes, on how you feel about the parts of the game's long-term plot that got put on the bus.

** In ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'' despite all three of them having been seemingly killed off [[spoiler: Creator/AlfredMolina’s Doctor Octopus, Creator/WillemDafoe’s Green Goblin from the Creator/SamRaimi ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' along with JamieFoxx’s Electro from ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderman2'' [[TheBusCameBack all return as villains]]. An eight year bus ride for Electro and a whooping seventh and nineteen year bus ride for Ock and Goblin respectively (discounting Norman’s cameos in Harry’s hallucinations). The Lizard and Sand Man who surived their movies also return having not been seen since 2007 and 2012 respectively.]]

* Only natural for Defence Professors, whose job description includes disappearing after a year, but Professor Max and Professor Lupin in ''Fanfic/TheParselmouthOfGryffindor'' went off to Azkaban Island and America, respectively, and haven't been heard of since.
* ''Fanfic/QueenOfAllOni'': [[TheStarscream Valmont]] disappears from the story after his failed betrayal of Jade, and the last we hear he was in prison. Jade eventually [[spoiler:fires the rest of the Dark Hand after she gets the second tablet, [[BenevolentBoss but gives them severance pay and all their belongings]]. [[YankTheDogsChain And then they get arrested]].]]
* Too many characters to list in ''Fanfic/TheTaintedGrimoire''. This is because Clan Gully and many of the people they meet do a lot of traveling.
** TheBusCameBack: Some characters are rather important to the story so they get ADayInTheLimelight to show us what they have been up to. Either that or meet up with Clan Gully again.
** CommutingOnABus: Micaiah and Francesca both have long periods of absence between their multiple re-appearances.
* ''Fanfic/TheUltimateEvil'': Nothing's heard of Valmont after Shendu's exorcised from his body in the first story. In the second story, the Enforcers are incarcerated at the end of the Noble Animals arc like in canon, but the ForWantOfANail caused by [[spoiler:Daolon Wong's death]] means they're still in prison and unavailable as Drago or Tarakudo's henchmen.
* In the ''Fanfic/PonyPOVSeries'', [[SixthRanger Trixie]] leaves Ponyville after the conclusion of the Princess Gaia arc and returns home to her family. She makes a cameo appearance in the "Retcon-Struction Blues" special episode, but it doesn't become a full TheBusCameBack example until the Wedding Arc.
** [[BadFuture Dark World]]!Rainbow Dash is left at Sweet Rock Acres after her HeelFaceTurn because, due to her HeelRealization, she's [[DrivenToSuicide presently suicidal]] and needs time to get her mind in order. [[TheBusCameBack She returns later on]] just in time to [[spoiler: help the group take down [[OneWingedAngel Odyne]]![[DaddysLittleVillain Cruelty]]. She and the Princesses are put back on the bus after the latter are freed because the Princesses are presently powerless fillies, and Twilight doesn't want to put all their eggs in one basket on the off chance Discord had one last trump card up his sleeve. And then [[TheBusCameBack the bus comes back]] again when [[BigGood the Benevolent Interloper]] tips them off that Twilight and the others will need help against [[TrueFinalBoss Nightmare Paradox]] and her [[ThePsychoRangers Psycho Rangers.]]]]

* Generally averted in ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'' in regards to Ash's Pokémon. [[WordOfGod The author]] stated from the beginning that each released Pokémon will have their issues solved so they stay with Ash. While they might sometimes take temporary leaves that cause them to miss some adventures, they're not as permanent as departures in the anime.
* To be exact, ''Fanfic/LeftBehind'' has the rest of Moya's crew (and possibly their own clones/originals) get back on their usual bus, leaving Crichton and Chiana (originals or more clones) behind on Rohvu.
* ''Fanfic/TheyShookHands'' by Dethryl: When the story was first written, after ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire Goblet of Fire]]'', the character of Blaise Zabini was written as female. When the canon was complete, Dethryl revised the series and renamed the character Tracy Davis. The real Blaise was given a cameo appearance and then taken out of school after the troll incident.

** By the end of chapter 16, [[spoiler: Akuto and Junko make a cameo.]]
** Chapter 17 has [[spoiler: Korone]] returning.
* ''My Little Pony'' fanfic [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/9146423/1/ "The New Six"]] is set in an alternate universe where all of the Mane 6 members are gone. This trope applies to all of the six except Twilight (who died) and Applejack (who still lives in Ponyville). Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie moved to the alternate version of Appleloosa, Rainbow Dash left to travel the world, and we don't know what happened to Rarity yet.
* ''Fanfic/FallenKing'' has Yami Yugi, who is made to leave by Joey and the others. Pegasus lampshades that it was a dumb move soon after he disappears.

* Cookie Dough only makes one appearance in the third "season" of ''Fanfic/MyBravePonyStarfleetMagic''.
* ''Fanfic/ArtifactDatabase'': The Quantum Bus is a convenient artifact that has a habit of an appearing to run over people who need to go, erasing them from the timeline. Used on the wiki to explain the sudden absence of any banned users and their characters.

* In ''Fanfic/TalesOfAResetMind'', SCP-1370 never appears again after "wandering off" after his introduction.

* More than a few characters have been more or less written out over the course of ''Fanfic/CatTales'': Clayface, Talia, Greg Brady, etc. Characters subjected to this have been known to reappear again, though, so it's hard to tell if something will stick.
* In ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'' the ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes and [[EvilTwin Satan]] [[ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} Girl]]'s child are put on a bus after the first arc wraps up and ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} travels back to the present day. They make their reappearance at the beginning of the third arc, thirty-five chapters later.
* ''Fanfic/BloodThatFlows'': Every main character in the ''Dusk'' arc, allowing the author to explore the minor and secondary characters more.
* ''Fanfic/TheManyDatesOfDannyFenton'': Sam is said to be off on a trip with her parents in Europe, so she doesn't know about Danny's dates. [[ClingyJealousGirl Given her reaction to him dating Valerie in the show]], this might be a good thing.
* ''Fanfic/CrimsonRising'':
** Tyzonn leaves Earth and the Operation Overdrive team to defend his own planet from Ooze’s attack.
** It is revealed that Tommy gave the Red Zeo Crystal to Andros for safekeeping after "Forever Red", explaining why he never used the Zeo powers in ''Dino Thunder''.
* In ''Fanfic/MastermindStrategistForHire'', Kamui Woods is revealed to have survived being burned alive by [[VillainProtagonist Izuku/Mastermind]] during a Hero raid meant to capture him, though he is required to go through a lengthy recovery process before he can return to working as a Pro Hero.
* ''Fanfic/CodePrime'': All of the Autobots on the ''Ark'' besides Optimus, Bumblebee, Ratchet, Arcee, Bulkhead, Cliffjumper, Ironhide, and Fixit were thrown off the ship while it hurtles toward Earth in the beginning of ''R1'', leaving them stuck indefinitely in the cold void of space. [[TheBusCameBack Many of them return at the beginning of]] ''[[TheBusCameBack R2]]''.
* Zigzagged in ''Girl Genius'' story ''Fanfic/RaisedByJagers''. Ducky gets put on a bus for an entire arc, but the readers are eventually filled in on the shenanigans she's gotten up to, and in the end it almost feels like Agatha was the one put on the bus. It's used to help fill out a time-skip to great effect.
* ''Fanfic/ADiplomaticVisit'': As explained in chapter 1 of the fourth story, ''The Diplomat's Life'', Moondancer and Trixie left on an astronomy tour shortly after Twilight and her friends got home from their trip at the end of the third story, and while they write to her, she still misses having them around. TheBusCameBack in chapter 6 though, when they return in time for Luna to give birth.
* ''Fanfic/NewBeginningsSmallville'': With the settlement she received from Luthorcorp and no reason to stay in Smallville, ComicBook/LanaLang relocates to Paris.
* ''Fanfic/BoldoresandBoomsticks'': Grendel was ordered by Salem to avoid team RWBY. Not counting a couple cameos, it hasn't been seen since Chapter 13.

* ''Fanfic/AndrogyninjasADoseOfVenom'': The [[Fanfic/AndrogyninjasADropOfPoison first story]] in the series ends with Naruto and Sasuke heading to Mount Myoboku, rendering them absent during the sequel.