The Walking Dead: 6 Things "Crossed" Got Right (And 4 It Didn't)
The Good
6. Big Story, Small Story
By now the fifth season has slotted perfectly into its new groove, where instead of feeling the need to constantly pull focus back to Rick Grimes And The Dirty Boys it feels comfortable into taking the action to other ensembles, different locations, and with it different rhythms. Whilst the effect may have been a little jarring in the last handful of episodes - as the show flitted between the man group, the Washington search party, Bethan in the hospital police state and Daryl and Carol's power hour - this week they were all woven together in a way that was jolly entertaining and a pretty smart way of storytelling at once. TV writing especially hinges on A stories and their relationship to the B stories (and C, D, even E stories if you've got the time/hubris). The A plot is the main meat of the action, with the rest being subplots to be cut away to at opportune moments. Here the main plot was Rick And The Fabulous Stains heading to rescue Carol and Beth; the church, Beth and the Washington group were the C, D and E plots. Rather than distract attention from the action, the subplots reminded audiences that all these smaller battles were happening whilst guns were blazing in the city.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
