Cold Hanger

Cliff hanger+ left out in the cold Describes a situation in a show or other episodic narrative in which it would be a "cliff hanger" but the action is "cold" so that the tension does not leave the observer/reader/ watcher feeling like they are "on the edge of their seat" but rather feeling like they have been "left hanging out in the cold." They have not had the details of the story filled in and there is a sense of building action and anticipation, as in a cliff hanger, but what they have been given leaves them feeling neglected by the author/director of the work that left them feeling as such in a cold way. "Hanger" in the phrase "Cliff Hanger" is related in the same sense as in "ive been left hung out to dry" or "He left me hanging. " when something is hanging, it has no ground to stand on, hanging is uncomfortable, you are surrounded by empty space. "cold" in the phrase "left out in the cold" refers to the cold of winter in the absence of a warm fire and room. Everyone else is eating dinner around the table with a warm fireplace beside, and you are standing outside the door, looking in the window, at everyone comfortably enjoying each others company and the meal. And its snowing, probably around -15 degrees, you don't have any gloves or a scarf, so you put your hands deep into your pockets and shrug your shoulders up around your ears. It can also mean "forgotten" but usually it has an intentional connotation. The party has left you standing out there intentionally.