What shows had a new character added and all of a sudden that character role/job was massively important when previously that role/position was never/rarely mentioned.

The original post: /r/television by /u/2nd2last on 2025-01-06 17:42:28.

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I’m not referring to situations where a new role/job is added because it makes sense, rather “wow, this was never a thing until a new cast member arrived”

Obviously not everything that happens appears on screen, but as West Wing fan, I remember Mary McCormack joining and all of a sudden the deputy NSA advisor was in every “main cast” oval office meeting. Or Arnold Vinick being a massively prominent Republican that should have been an important character for the duration of the show.

I’m watching House and all of a sudden his ex-wife is in the legal department and now his every move needs legal clearance and needs to be in the office when decisions are made, then she’s gone again and its no longer important.

What are other examples of this?