Having a Disappeared Dad or Missing Mom (or both) can be really rough. After all, Deceased Parents Are the Best. Sometimes the parentless protagonist is Happily Adopted and thinks of the people who raised them as family, but they still might be left wondering who their birth parents were, or even searching for them.
Luckily, during their search they learn that someone who knew their father or mother (or both) is still alive. They seek them out, and through them learn more about their birth parents. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it isn't, but most of the time the protagonist is just happy to learn anything. Note: this is not a parent or relative telling the protagonist about their parents; this is when a friend/mentor/co-worker tells them about them, be it good or bad. In fact, they may seek out information from a non-relative because they want an honest answer, whether their parents were good or not.
A sub-trope of Tell Me About My Father and Gene Hunting. Sometimes, the best friend has a hand in raising the deceased's kid, making them a Parental Substitute (or it may result in Platonic Co-Parenting if one of the kid's birth parents is still alive). May lead to them learning of a Secret Legacy. May lead to Generation Xerox if a comment is made about how the kid resembles their parent, or Replacement Goldfish if the best friend treats the kid the way they would have treated the deceased. Can lead to How Dad Met Mom. Sometimes, it may even turn out that the parents' best friend is not really their friend anymore and is the reason they aren't around. May lead to an Unpleasant Parent Reveal if the friend is forced to reveal to the protagonist that their parents weren't the heroes they thought they were. Does not count if the one telling the protagonist about their parent is their other parent.
Examples:
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Anime and Manga
- Hunter × Hunter: Kite not only saves Gon's life, but is the one to reveal to Gon that his father is both alive and a Hunter (implying that he knew him, making this a downplayed example).
- Saturn Apartments: The protagonist, Mitsu, works with his dad's old workmates. He's always eager to hear anything they have to say about dear departed dad.
- The Story of Cinderella: This version of Cinderella's fairy godmother, Paulette, is an ordinary woman apart from the magic wand she possesses, and works as an artist. She eventually reveals that she and Cinderella's late mother Frances were best friends and shares her memories of Frances with Cinderella.
See Also
Here Are Five Things You Might Have Missed from the Echoes of Wisdom Trailer, & Five Questions We Still Have - Zelda DungeonZelda Breath of the Wild guide: How to find and upgrade the radiant set (the Gerudo Secret Club)Gerudo Town - Chapter 1 - IffondrelHow do I get wolf link out of jail? – HeimduoFan Works
- Played with in Alicorn. Rainbow Dash has already met her biological mother, Princess Celestia, but Twilight still wants to tell her a bit about her time as Celestia's student in the hopes of helping them reconnect. In this case, the stories only make Rainbow hate her mother more, since she was apparently too busy with Twilight to raise her own daughter.
- Many Harry Potter fan fictions feature Harry meeting Remus and Sirius and learning about his parents from them.
- In Harry Tano, Sirius and Remus meet Harry at age eight instead of thirteen and take a role in raising him alongside Ahsoka. They spend much of their time telling Harry about James and Lily, both the good and the bad. Their stories combined with his Jedi training help Harry come to terms with their death much earlier than in canon.
- In If Wishes Were Ponies, Remus Lupin becomes the new History of Magic teacher after Sweetie Belle accidentally sends Professor Binns to the afterlife. Despite his regularly interacting with Harry, he treats him as he would any other student. When Sirius (who is freed from Azkaban due to Twilight investigating the Potter Murders further) learns that Remus has been teaching Harry, he expects this trope, and is furious that it didn't happen. Twilight manages to calm him down by telling him that Lupin singling out Harry and spending extra time with him during the school year might make it seem as though he's favoring him over other students, which would hurt the productivity of the classroom.
- Riding a Sunset: A few chapters after his introduction, Charlie learns that Hot Rod lost his parents in a fire back on Cybertron before the war started. She sympathizes with him, and reveals to him that she learned about this because Ironhide knew Hot Rod's parents before they died. Hot Rod ends up spending a lot of time with Ironhide after this, trying to learn more about his parents.
Film — Animated
- Atlantis: The Lost Empire: Milo was raised by his beloved grandfather, who inspired/encouraged his love of exploration along with his fascination with Atlantis. Some time after his passing, Milo is introduced to Mr. Harcourt, the late Mr. Thatch's long-time best friend (Milo didn't know about him because he was a recluse who preferred privacy). He has Milo brought to his mansion and tells him about his grandfather, along with his plans to fund an expedition to Atlantis.
- Bambi II: Invoked; the Prince (Bambi's father) doesn't think he's qualified to be a parent, and so seeks out a doe to look after Bambi. He finds a childhood friend of Bambi's mother, who agrees to take him in. In the end, though, after he and Bambi have bonded, everyone agrees that its best if Bambi stays with his father.
- The Lion King: Simba is dismissive of Rafiki at first (believing him to be a crazy baboon) until he reveals that he knew Mufasa in life. That gets Simba to follow him, and eventually leads to Mufasa himself appearing to speak with Simba.
- Onward: While getting fast food for breakfast, Ian meets a man who recognizes the sweatshirt Ian's wearing as his late father's. Turns out, the man was a college classmate of Ian's dad. He happily tells Ian some things about his father, namely that he was bold, confident, and that he wore ugly purple socks every day. Downplayed in that, while the man knew Ian's dad back when he was alive, they weren't best friends.
Film — Live-Action
- The Amazing Spider-Man: After discovering a picture of his father with Curt Connors, Peter seeks Connors out to learn more about his father and the work that got him killed.
- Dear Evan Hansen: Much like in the theater example below, the movie has an inverted example. A teenage boy named Connor commits suicide, and a letter addressed to Evan Hansen is found in his backpack. The letter (and the fact that Connor signed Evan's cast) make Connor's parents believe that Connor and Evan were secretly friends. They reach out to Evan and begin spending time with him to hear everything he has to say about Connor. However, it's all a big misunderstanding: Evan met Connor for the first time when he signed his cast, and the letter was in Connor's backpack because he stole it; the document itself was homework from Evan's therapist.
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Professor Slughorn's fondness for Lily Potter is played up in the adaptation. His sadness and guilt over what happened to her is much more pronounced, and he reveals at Aragog's funeral that she gave him a beloved pet fish who disappeared the day she died.
- In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Steve Rogers is technically this for Tony Stark, as his father (Howard Stark) was a coworker/associate of Captain America who both worked on the Super Soldier Serum and helped Rogers rescue Bucky Barnes and his platoon from the Nazis. Downplayed in that the film makes it clear that Howard Stark and Rogers were more coworkers than friends.
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl: One of the reasons why Will agrees to work with Captain Jack Sparrow to stop Barbossa and save Elizabeth is because Jack eventually reveals that he was a close friend of "Bootstrap Bill", Will's late father. While Will doesn't want to believe that his father was a pirate, he's desperate for any information on his father, seeing as how he grew up parentless.
- Star Wars: A New Hope: Luke is thrilled to meet Ben/Obi-Wan Kenobi after learning that he was a close friend of Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars. Unfortunately, Obi-Wan doesn't have many chances to tell Luke about his father before the famous scene in the next movie.
Literature
- Belle Praters Boy: When she finally meets a friend of Woodrow's, Blind Benny, Gypsy learns that Benny was a friend of her late father's, who made sure that Benny (who's been homeless for most of his life) always had a place to stay. He tells her that he was a kind man who loved her dearly, and helps her begin coming to terms with her father's suicide.
- Harry Potter:
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone: Harry learns more about his parents from the Hogwarts staff than he ever did from his mother's sister. Hagrid, who was fond of the Potters, tells Harry his parents were wizards, and some of the best people he knew, revealing they were murdered rather than killed in a car crash, as he'd been lead to believe. At the end of the book, Hagrid gives Harry a special present: an album full of photos of James and Lily (he wrote to everyone who knew them in life and asked for the pictures). Professor McGonagall, who was their teacher and Head of House when they were at Hogwarts, tells Harry after witnessing his flying skills that his father was also a skilled Quidditch player.
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Halfway through the book, Harry learns that Remus Lupin (his then professor) and Sirius Black (and escaped prisoner and believed serial killer) were childhood friends of James Potter, to the point that James and Lily made Sirius Harry's godfather. While hostile to Sirius at first (until he learns the truth about who abandoned his parents), Harry quickly warms up to Sirius and wants to live with him, both to finally have a loving parental figure and to learn more about who his birth parents were. Peter Pettigrew, when he's caught, tries to invoke this trope by reminding Harry that he was James' friend, only for Harry to react in disgust that this "friend" of his father's sold him out to Voldemort.
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Downplayed. Harry meets Professor Slughorn, who reveals to Harry his mother was one of his best students, describing her as a skilled potion maker (though his surprise at her Muggleborn background makes Harry skeptical of the man). He's proud of Harry seeming to take after her in the potions department (unaware that Harry is using the Half-Blood Prince's book). Harry uses Slughorn's fondness for Lily to encourage him to give up the true memory of what he told Tom Riddle. It's implied that part of his shame over the memory is because of what it enabled Voldemort to later do to her.
- An interesting inversion is Severus Snape. Harry knows Snape as his father's enemy first and his mother's childhood friend last. Snape never even tells Harry about his past with Lily — Harry instead witnesses it through Snape's memories after his death. While they had a falling out due to Snape's Fantastic Racism, Snape continued to love Lily so much that after she died, due in part to his own efforts, that he became a double agent and protected Harry in secret, despite how much Harry reminded him of James. Harry later honors Snape by giving his second son Severus' name as his middle name, telling Albus he was one of the bravest men he ever knew.
- Monstrumologist: Will's father was Dr. Warthrop's assistant when he was alive, and was adored by the doctor (though the doctor would never admit it) due to his being one of the few people who could understand/appreciate the work they were doing. When he died due to exposure to one of the creatures they worked with (Will's mother died shortly after, but for unrelated reasons), the doctor took Will on as a replacement assistant. While the doctor prefers to remain emotionally distant, he will sometimes tell Will about his father and let slip that he was very fond of the man.
- Paladin of Souls: When Arhys dy Lutez learns that Ista is the dowager Royina, and thus had been a close associate of his father Arvol, he wants to take her as a sort of "spiritual stepmother." Ista finds this awkward as Arhys has a bad case of "Well Done, Son" Guy, and Ista herself feels guilty over having killed Arvol and then not being able to bring him back to life.
Live-Action TV
- In the second season of Lodge 49, Liz starts hanging out with Lenore, a temperamental flight attendant, after learning that Lenore knew her late father. She hopes that Lenore will give her some idea about why her father seemingly killed himself, but Lenore turns out to have very little insight into his state of mind, and mostly just exploits Liz's curiosity in order to lure her into a pyramid scheme.
- Obi-Wan Kenobi: Downplayed. After getting kidnapped, 10-year-old Leia is rescued by Ben/Obi-Wan, who introduces himself as "a friend of your father's" (which, while he was sent by Leia's adoptive father, works on another level since he was also a friend of her birth father Anakin). While Leia susses out that he knew her birth mother, Obi-Wan isn't able to tell her much else due to needing to keep Leia's parentage a secret from the Empirenote. But he assures her she gets her best qualities from her birth parents, and Leia doesn't push for more, because she is happy with her adoptive parents. Luke is also shown meeting "Ben" for the first time in the final episode, but will not find out Ben's connection to his father until A New Hope.
Obi-Wan: Princess Leia Organa, you are wise, discerning, kindhearted. These are qualities that came from your mother. But you are also passionate and fearless, forthright. And these are gifts from your father. Both were exceptional people who bore an exceptional daughter.
- Exaggerated in Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin: After Davie's apparent suicide, Imogen not only lives with Sidney (and Sidney's daughter Tabby) but lives close by Davie and Sidney's former friends - who are also the mothers of the other Liars and still living in Millwood. All of them play an important role in explaining Davie's legacy and why A is out to kill them.
- Star Trek: The Next Generation: Late in the series, Worf learns that his birth father, Mogh, may still be alive and in a Romulan prison camp. Despite Klingon tradition saying his father has dishonored the family name by being taken prisoner, Worf still goes to try and find his father. While infiltrating the camp, he learns that the supposed Mogh was actually his friend, and that Mogh really did die in battle. The friend proves to Worf that they knew each other by telling him about a hunt that Mogh brought Worf on when he was too young to remember it.
Theatre
- Dear Evan Hansen: Inverted. After Connor commits suicide with Evan's therapy letter in his backpack, Connor's parents believe that Evan and Connor were friends (something they further believe when they see that Connor signed Evan's cast). They begin inviting Evan over and talking to him often, wanting to hear everything he has to say about Connor. Unfortunately, it's all a big misunderstanding, as Connor and Evan didn't know each other; Evan didn't interact with him other than Connor signing his cast and later stealing his therapy letter. Evan plays along, leading to the main conflict of the story.
- A Very Potter Sequel: Much like in the third book, Harry meets his father's friends, Remus, Sirius, and Peter:
- Played for Laughs with Remus. Harry finds out much earlier in the story that Sirius Black was his father's traitor best friend, but when he meets Remus, Remus insists he was James' best friend. Multiple times
. To really lay it on thick, every time Remus brings up James, a sentimental piano tune starts playing.Lupin: ... Sirius Black.
Harry: You mean my dad's traitor best friend?
Lupin: No, NO! I am your dad's traitor best fri– I am your dad's traitor– NO! I am your dad's best friend, okay?
- Played straight with Sirius. Harry meets Sirius in person for the first time in "Those Voices", where Harry realizes Sirius is telling the truth about not being the traitor because he, like Harry, sees and hears Lily and James in the Mirror of Erised.
- Lupin reveals the existence of Peter Pettigrew late in the story as James' third friend. Harry is shocked, because he can't imagine having more than two friends (as he pushes Draco out of their group huddle).
- Played for Laughs with Remus. Harry finds out much earlier in the story that Sirius Black was his father's traitor best friend, but when he meets Remus, Remus insists he was James' best friend. Multiple times
Video Games
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Lady Urbosa, chief of the Gerudo, was the late Queen of Hyrule's closest friend and confidante. Since the Queen died when her daughter, Princess Zelda, was very young, and her father is cold and distant, Urbosa becomes a kind of surrogate maternal figure to the girl, telling her stories about her mother and providing whatever support she can. She even calls Zelda "Little Bird," the Affectionate Nickname that the Queen used for the princess.
- Road 96: Alex was Happily Adopted by Fanny who always told him she knew nothing about his parents. When she finally admitted they were Black Brigades, he was furious at her for lying and went on the road to try and learn more about them. John, who was friends with Alex's parents, has promised to tell him about them but constantly puts it off for fear that learning too much will radicalize Alex and get him killed. This in turn badly damages their relationship and can leave Alex vulnerable to Robert's manipulations.
- Tomb Raider (2013): Lara Croft is friends with Conrad Roth, an old adventurer who was friends with Lara's parents. He sees her as something of a surrogate daughter to him and tries his best to help her out through their adventure, especially since he's been trying and failing to find her parents after they disappeared. Sadly, this causes some major friction between Lara and Joslin Reyes as Roth unknowingly has a daughter with Reyes, but she's never told him, which gets worse when Roth dies.
Western Animation
- Batman: The Animated Series: "Paging the Crime Doctor" shows Bruce Wayne learning that Dr. Thorne (the sibling of crime lord Rupert Thorne) was a friend of his father's back in medical school. He ends the episode by agreeing to cover the cost of Dr. Thorne's legal team in exchange for stories about his father.
- DuckTales (2017): While trying to learn about his mother's disappearance, Dewey meets Selene, the Greek goddess of the moon, who apparently knew Della personally. She tells Dewey that his mother was a good person, and that he can be proud to be her son. She even gifts him a magical sphere full of images/memories of his mother.
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: In "The Perfect Pear", the Apple siblings go to see their father's childhood best friend Burnt Oak while trying to learn more about their parents. He happily tells them about some of the exploits he and Bright Mac got into, as well as how much he loved their mother. The same can be said for Mrs. Cake, who was Buttercup/Pear Butter's best friend. She claims that Buttercup was the one to help her get her Cutie Mark, and she tells the siblings how she found out that Buttercup and Bright Mac were secretly dating.
- Star Wars Rebels: In the series' first season, Ezra briefly reunites with Tseebo, a Rhodian who knew the Bridgers fairly well. At first, Ezra's furious with Tseebo, as he joined the Empire as a technician shortly after the Bridgers disappeared. However, it's revealed that he did so to gain one of their implants and use it to learn about the Bridgers' fate. He accidentally downloaded everything in the Empire's database and made himself the most wanted person on Lothal. Ezra finally accepts that he was never mad at Tseebo, he was simply afraid of learning what really happened to his parents. Tseebo tells him they were arrested by the Empire for their transmissions, and that he doesn't know what really happened to them. It's a year later when Ezra meets another family friend: (former) Governor Ryder Azadi, who was arrested along with Ezra's parents. He recently escaped in a mass breakout, but tells Ezra that his parents were killed.
- Steven Universe: The Crystal Gems were all close friends of Rose Quartz when she was alive, and told Steven everything they could about her (as she died to give Steven life). However, while the stories are mostly positive when Steven is young, his image of her changes as he gets older and learns she did many ethically questionable things, including shattering Pink Diamond... only to later learn she was Pink Diamond and the assassination was staged. It all culminates in Steven Universe: Future when, after Volleyball Pearl reveals that Steven's mother was the one who caused her crack, Steven breaks down and yells that he doesn't want to learn about one more bad thing she did.
