History Main / SavedByTheFans

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}''

* Creator/DCComics killed off the original ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} in the ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' event, believing she was diminishing Franchise/{{Superman}}'s "uniqueness", and replaced her with several non-Kryptonian substitutes. Nonetheless, Kara Zor-El fans spent eighteen years campaigning for her return until DC finally gave way and [[ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton brought her back in 2004]].

* ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney Chronicles'': According to [[WordOfGod Shu Takumi]], [[spoiler:Kazuma Asogi]] was supposed to have been killed off in ''TGAA: Adventures''. However, [[spoiler:him returning as an amnesic Masked Disciple in ''TGAA2: Resolve'' was due to his immense popularity with the fans.]]

* If he hadn't been so wildly popular, [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog Shadow]] would still be dead by now. He showed up in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' as a CriminalDoppelganger and became a DragonWithAnAgenda to [[BigBad Dr. Eggman.]] He was also a badass who pulled a HeelFaceTurn and sacrificed himself to [[HeroicSacrifice save the world.]] Then, Sega [[VideoGame/SonicHeroes brought him back]] and [[BrokenBase split the fanbase again.]]

* Once fans of ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' heard that Kazuya had been killed in the third game's backstory (the game hadn't really come out yet at this point, mind you), clamors for his restoration apparently began very quickly, very strongly. Ultimately, Namco acceded to this demand by revealing Kazuya's continued existence in Eddy's ending for the Playstation version. Then he returns full blown in ''[=Tekken=] 4'' and has been a mainstay again.

* ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' was going to be the villain of the first ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' game instead of a [[CloningBlues copy]]. This concept was scrapped during the last month before release because the developers thought X becoming a villain and being killed by Zero wouldn't sit well with the kids who played his games and thought he was a hero.

* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' featured three popular veterans as DLC: [[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndblue Mewtwo]], [[VideoGame/{{MOTHER3}} Lucas]] and [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade Roy]], as Sakurai noted the demand from the fans to be brought back. As of ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', all three are now series mainstays.

* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' has Jiub, a fellow prisoner of the [[PlayerCharacter Nerevarine]] aboard the prison ship at the beginning of ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]''. He delivers a few lines of dialogue before disappearing from the game. His friendliness combined with his badass appearance (a [[EyeScream one-eyed]] WalkingShirtlessScene) made him quite popular. He became a popular character in fan fiction and was added back into the game as a companion by quite a few {{Game Mod}}s. Bethesda took notice and gave him a shout out in ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'' as having driven the much-reviled [[GodDamnedBats Cliff Racers]] to extinction. He then makes an on-screen appearance in ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]''[='s=] ''Dawnguard'' DLC as a spirit in the Soul Cairn and gives you a notable side quest.

* Scrat was originally going to be killed off after his brief scene in the opening of the first ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' movie, but the overwhelming response to advance footage led the filmmakers to add more scenes with him, and he continued to appear throughout the franchise, becoming its de-facto mascot.

* The ''Creator/RichardDonner Cut'' of ''Film/SupermanII'' was made in part thanks to an influx of mail from fans who wanted to see the director's original vision, as the film was altered by ExecutiveMeddling for its theatrical release (Richard Lester replaced Donner in that duty when the latter had completed 75 percent of his intended shooting).
* Likewise, ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' became a reality after a long fan campaign that arose after the infamous ExecutiveMeddling-riddled [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 theatrical version]] and Creator/WarnerBros' new parent company [=AT&T=] taking note of the whole situation. A number of characters who were [[DeletedRole axed]] from the theatrical cut (such as ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}, voiced by Creator/RayPorter) as well as the scrapped backstory of some (most prominently Creator/RayFisher's Cyborg) are featured in it.

* [[CloudCuckoolander Sasha Braus]] of ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'' was planned to be a SacrificialLamb very early on in the story, but with her [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments hilarious introduction]] in the anime, she very quickly became a fan favourite. Seeing the overwhelmingly positive fan reaction she caused, the idea was scrapped in favour of keeping her on as PluckyComicRelief. [[spoiler: [[AnyoneCanDie Subverted unfortunately]] as she was killed in Chapter 105, nearly 70 chapters after her intended death and only a few chapters after her first appearance after the Time Skip]].

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' provided an interesting example of this: Fans were called on to decide the fate of a key character and voted via 1-900 number. [[spoiler: They voted 5,343-5,271 to kill off Jason Todd's Robin. Jason would later be resurrected by DC, meaning he was [[InvertedTrope saved by the Editor]]]].
** Played straight with Stephanie Brown, the Spoiler, who had multiple fan groups dedicated to having her either honored or returned. Within a few years, she was back and eventually gained the Batgirl mantle and a solo series. After getting the [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome Brother Chuck]] treatment by the ComicBook/New52 in 2011, she eventually returned to the comics in 2014.
* Similar to Stephanie Brown, [[ComicBook/SpiderMan Mary Jane Watson]] has several times been written out, killed off, and magically divorced. Each time she has returned because, to put it simply, they are ''the'' FanPreferredCouple. It also helped that the co-creator of the web-head continued to keep them married in his own Spidey project

[[folder:Fan Fic]]
* {{Fix Fic}}s in general are built around the idea of saving certain characters and plot threads that most fans felt weren't given proper respect in the original canon.
* Fan outcry is what spared Zander and Scoria from [[AbsurdlyHighStakesGame Nezumi's fatal Colony Raiders game]] in ''FanFic/NepetaQuest2011''.

** Though Abbadon was always planned to come back in season 9, after Jim Michaels announced via twitter that they were planning to [[TheOtherDarrin recast her]] due to her meatsuit's destruction in the season 8 finale, fans immediately began a campaign to get original actress Creator/AlainaHuffman back, citing her performance as the reason the character had become [[EnsembleDarkhorse unexpectedly popular]] in the first place. Eventually the writers relented and came up with a HandWave ritual that restored Abbadon's original body, allowing Alaina to continue playing the character.

But wait, what's this? The fans have begun clamouring for the character's return. The writers, either because they're moved by the dedication to the character or another reason like being moved by their producers demands and/or the byuer power, decide to grant the fans' wish and [[TheBusCameBack bring back the character]]. This is how a character gets saved by the fans.

* This is sspected to be the reason that Bunbee of ''Anime/YesPrecure5'' was not only allowed to survive the first season, but had a major role in the next. Being a middle-aged man and therefore unmarketable, he's the only member of any QuirkyMinibossSquad to survive a finale and not join the Cures (although [[Anime/FutariWaPrettyCureSplashStar the Kiryuu twins]] did both and were cute girls, and Toei [[DemotedToExtra hates them]]), but he was surprisingly popular and allowed to live, [[spoiler:and his final HeelFaceTurn is what allows Milky Rose and the mascots to save the titular heroines before the final battle. He even got to make a cameo in the CrisisCrossover two-part episode in ''Anime/HugttoPrettyCure''.]]

* ComicBook/CaptainAmerica was created during UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks, and it was a huge success back then. However, his comic book was cancelled when the whole superhero genre lost popularity after the end of WWII (a crisis that only Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman survived, out of dozens and dozens of characters and titles). Superheroes eventually returned during UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks, and Marvel started a good number of new heroes. Cap "returned" in ''Strange Tales'' #114 (by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Dick Ayers) as a villain, and fought against the Human Torch; it turned out to be just the acrobat wearing his costume. At the end of the issue Johnny wonders about the fate of the actual Cap, and the text made things explicit: "You guessed it! This story was really a test! To see if you too would want Captain America to return! As usual, your letters will give us the answer!". Let's just say that ''Avengers'' #4 was released some months later, and the rest, as the say, is history.
* ComicBook/UltimateMarvel was published for 15 years, and ceased publication after the ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'' crossover, that destroyed all alternate Marvel universes. Many fans complained about it, so almost all Ultimate characters were eventually reused in the main continuity, and the universe returned at the end of ComicBook/SpiderMen 2.

* Pinocchio from ''Literature/TheAdventuresOfPinocchio'', alongside ExecutiveMeddling. He was going to die hanged, but a lot of children sent letters to the newspaper to revive Pinocchio, and the editor of Giornale per il bambini made Collodi add more chapters and thus Pinocchio has its famous happy ending.
* Possibly the [[OlderThanTelevision oldest example]] of this is Literature/SherlockHolmes.
* ''{{Literature/Misery}}'' is one of the most known fictional examples. And surely the [[NightmareFuel scariest one]]. Paul Sheldon has been writing a series of romance novels based on the exploits of the Victorian airhead Misery Chastain for years, and loathes the character, so he wrote a final book which ended with Misery dying of childbirth. Unfortunately, he's badly injured in a car crash and left crippled and in the not-so-capable hands of the [[TheSociopath sociopathic]] BattleaxeNurse[=/=]LoonyFan Annie Wilkes, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrRSo3a1ZYU when she finds out about Misery's character death]], Annie threatens his life unless he writes a brand new novel which brings Misery back to life.

* Angel (Experiment 624), a character from ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries'', was only intended to be a one episode character. However, once the executives realized she was one of the most popular characters, they brought her back for the last episode and gave her a small scene of her kicking Leroy clone patookie in the GrandFinale ''WesternAnimation/LeroyAndStitch''. She even became a major character of the franchise thanks to [[Anime/{{Stitch}} the succeeding anime]]. Somewhat doubles as an AuthorsSavingThrow, as her episode put the character on a [[PutOnABusToHell bus to Hell]], which goes completely against the [[BrokenAesop core theme of]] ''[[TrueCompanions 'ohana]]'' [[BrokenAesop that the]] ''Franchise/LiloAndStitch'' [[BrokenAesop franchise is built on]].

** The only reason why Jun Kazama appeared in ''Tekken Tag Tournament 2'' was because fans constantly asked the series creator Katsuhiro Harada about it. She remains much beloved despite the fact the only main series game she was in was ''Tekken 2''(though she was very popular in the first ''Tekken Tag Tournament'' game.), even being replaced by her niece [[ReplacementScrappy Asuka]]

** ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'':

* According to Creator/MishaCollins, his character Castiel from ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' was only originally slated to appear in six episodes early on in season 4, before being killed off. But such was his popularity that he has remained a constant part of the show for the past five years, with Collins being promoted to series regular and developing as much of a devoted following within the fanbase as the show's actual lead actors.

* Likewise, ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' became a reality after a long fan campaign that arose after the infamous ExecutiveMeddling-riddled [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 theatrical version]] and Creator/WarnerBros' new parent company [=AT&T=] taking note of the whole situation. A number of characters who were [[DeletedRole axed]] from the theatrical cut (such as ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}, voiced by Creator/RayPorter) as well as the scrapped backstory of some (most prominently Cyborg) will be featured in ''Zack Snyder's Justice League'' when it releases on Creator/HBOMax.

* Vegeta from ''Manga/DragonBallZ'' was supposed to be killed by a rampaging Ozaru Gohan in the climax of his battle on Earth. However, he was so popular that Akira Toriyama decided to spare him up to Namek, where Freeza killed him. ''That'' death was supposed to stick, but he was brought back and survived until he died in by sacrificing himself to against Majin Buu, and ''that'' was supposed to be his [[KilledOffForReal end]]. And then he was brought back again. This last one is a big source of debate as to whether or not it was a good idea, since his previous sacrifice was so well done that bringing him back seemed to cheapen it.
* This is suspected to be the reason that Bunbee of ''Anime/YesPrecure5'' was not only allowed to survive the first season, but had a major role in the next. Being a middle-aged man and therefore unmarketable, he's the only member of any QuirkyMinibossSquad to survive a finale and not join the Cures (although [[Anime/FutariWaPrettyCureSplashStar the Kiryuu twins]] did both and were cute girls, and Toei [[DemotedToExtra hates them]]), but he was surprisingly popular and allowed to live, [[spoiler:and his final HeelFaceTurn is what allows Milky Rose and the mascots to save the titular heroines before the final battle. He even got to make a cameo in the CrisisCrossover two-part episode in ''Anime/HugttoPrettyCure''.]]

* Likewise, ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' became a reality after a long fan campaign that arose after the infamous ExecutiveMeddling-riddled [[Film/JusticeLeague2017 theatrical version]] and Creator/WarnerBros' new parent company [=AT&T=] taking note of the whole situation. A number of characters who were {{deleted|role}} in the theatrical cut as well as the scrapped backstory of some (most prominently Cyborg) will be featured in ''Zack Snyder's Justice League'' when it releases on Creator/HBOMax.

* Darth Maul from the ''Star Wars'' franchise survived [[RasputinianDeath getting cut in half and falling down a]] BottomlessPit due to how popular he was despite the little screentime he received outside of [[OneSceneWonder his duel against Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon]]. [[spoiler: Though he finally dies for good at the hands of Obi-Wan in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels''. And yet it still doesn't stop him from making more appearances after such as in ''Film/{{Solo}}'', which was released after his death, but chronologically takes place some years before ''Rebels'']].

* The end of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' had Midna return to the Twilight Realm and [[spoiler:break the mirror of Twilight so the portal can never be opened again]]. But Eiji Aonuma was surprised by the fans' love of her, and responded in an interview that if there is a sequel she may somehow come back. She eventually did came back, though only in [[VideoGame/HyruleWarriors non-canon]] [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros games]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Skullgirls}}'' may be considered an exemplary example of this. During the process of developing the first DLC character, [[CuteMonsterGirl Squigly]], the ''Skullgirls'' team was laid off by their original studio, [[DevelopmentHell meaning they no longer had the budget to pay the cost for developing her]]. Hoping not to let their work go to waste, they went to the fans for assistance, starting up an Indiegogo campaign in February 2013 to raise $150,000 in donations to fund the development of Squigly. Not only had they reached the goal amount ''in a single day'', the donations kept coming in until the end of the campaign a month later, with the total amount being ''[[UpToEleven more than five times that of the intended goal]]''. With $829,829 raised as the final number, the ''Skullgirls'' team will not only use it to fund Squigly, but also four more DLC characters (two of whom will be fan voted), story modes and stages for each of those characters, background tracks for each of those stages, and eight GagDub voice packs.

** Character-wise example; Goro Majima seemingly looked like he was dying from his injuries after his second battle with Kiryu in ''Yakuza 1'', and played a minor role overall. However, his nutty personality (as well as [[PetTheDog him sparing a hostess that had nothing to do with the conflict]]) endeared him so much to fans that he returned and gained an expanded plot role in ''2''. His popularity grew to the point that he would become playable in ''Dead Souls'' (mentioned above) and eventually the main series, with ''0'' firmly cementing him as [[{{Deuteragonist}} its second main character]].

* Scrat was originally going to be killed off after his brief scene in the opening of the first ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' movie, but the overwhelming response to advance footage led the filmmakers to add more scenes with him, and he continued to appear throughout the franchise, becoming it's de-facto mascot.

* Scrat was originally going to be killed off after his brief scene in the opening of the first ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' movie, but the overwhelming response to advance footage led the filmmakers to add more scenes with him.

** Though Abbadon was always planned to come back in season 9, after Jim Michaels announced via twitter that they were planning to [[TheOtherDarrin recast her]] due to her meatsuit's destruction in the season 8 finale, fans immediately began a campaign to get original actress Alaina Huffman back, citing her performance as the reason the character had become [[EnsembleDarkhorse unexpectedly popular]] in the first place. Eventually the writers relented and came up with a HandWave ritual that restored Abbadon's original body, allowing Alaina to continue playing the character.

* ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'': Fan reaction ended up causing the writers to change plans or reveal certain deaths as fake-outs. Most notably was Antoine's injury near the end of the pre-reboot run. The explosion was actually supposed to have killed him, but his popularity amongst fans had the author, Ian Flynn, reconsider. Nic the Weasel was a character that Flynn considered killing off, but her fans convinced him otherwise. Though Nic would ultimately never come back as Creator/KenPenders, her creator, sued Archie and had all of his characters removed.

* In ''VideoGame/BaldursGate'', Bioware originally planned for [[spoiler:Imoen to become BrainwashedAndCrazy due to Irenicus' torture in ''Shadows of Amn'', forcing CHARNAME to MercyKill her.]] When this information was leaked, fan outcry convinced them to spare [[spoiler:her]].

So there's a character in a work, but he or she ends up leaving the cast roster. Maybe he/she got killed, maybe he/she got PutOnABus, maybe the writers just lost interest in him/her.

But wait, what's this? The fans have begun clamouring for the character's return. The writers, either because they're moved by the dedication to the character or another reason, decide to grant the fans' wish and [[TheBusCameBack bring back the character]]. This is how a character gets saved by the fans.