History Main / FourLinesAllWaiting

See also KudzuPlot

[[AC: {{Western Animation}}]]

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** We still have at ''least'' two groups in Hueco Mundo we haven't heard from in ages, and a handful of characters Kubo has probably just forgotten were there to begin with (what on earth happened to Kensei?).

* Also a major criticism of the third [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/Spider-Man ''Spider-Man'']] film. Having to deal with Sandman, Venom/The Black Suit, Harry Osborn, and the romance between Peter and Mary Jane left the movie feeling more than a little cramped.

* Also a major criticism of the third ''Spider-Man'' film. Having to deal with Sandman, Venom/The Black Suit, Harry Osborn, and the romance between Peter and Mary Jane left the movie feeling more than a little cramped.

* One of the many reasons why [[CountdowntoFinalCrisis Countdown to Final Crisis]] is so reviled. Each storyline was focused on for a few pages in each issue, resulting in a disjointed and schizophrenic mess for the ages. We have Bob the Monitor's party searching for Ray Palmer, Mary Marvel, Pied Piper and Trickster, Jimmy Olsen, Harley Quinn and Holly Robinson, Karate Kid's party. All of this interspersed with scenes of Drakseid playing with his action figures and the monitors endlessly spouting [[AtoptheFourthWall "We should do something!" "Should we do something?"]]

** Even the first book, ''A Game of Thrones'', follows the POVs of at least eight major characters, switching at every chapter, and only occasionally intersecting.

* ''TroperWorks/TheMansionOfE'' has currently, after 7 years of running, the main plotline of 2 of the 3 first characters, the line of the 3rd first character, the 6 or so lines of the various side cast, one line to rotate between new characters or events, and one that shows up every Sunday and is almost totally unrelated to the rest besides being set in the same universe. So yeah, it's pretty much all waiting, even when your favored characters show up again.

* ''DesperateHousewives''.

* ''{{Homestuck}}'' focuses on one character - or, sometimes, one entire facet of the GeodesicCast - at a time. Every character has a storyline, and all the storylines are [[KudzuPlot hopelessly tangled together]] in space as well as [[TimeyWimeyBall in]] [[AnachronicOrder time]]. In no small part due to the large amount of characters and timelines, but it works out very well due to the nature of the medium.

* ''LawAndOrder'' attepted this in Season Eight, with most of the major characters getting a personal subplot (Adam Schiff's re-election battle, Van Buren's discrimination suit, Curtis' marital strife, etc.) Most L&O fans consider it the series's low point, as the episodes would come to a screeching halt every time the subplots came along. Season Nine wrapped up every single one within the first few episodes, with only Van Buren's suit and [=McCoy=]'s [[NeverLiveItDown trip before the Ethics Committee]] as lasting plot elements.

* Essentially anything Peter F. Hamilton writes, Pandora's Star in particular. It is over 900 pages of seemingly unimportant plotlines and occasionally entire chapters of flavour text. Thankfully it's to set up the second, and much more action packed book in the series.

* AgainstTheDay by ThomasPynchon manages four genres, all waiting. [[spoiler:They are boy's adventure, western revenge, geek eccentric science and spy adventuress.]] In different parts of the book, one will be become more dominant.

* There are so many concurrent plotlines in every episode of TrueBlood that, combined with their [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters fairly extensive cast]], it usually takes half a season to get anything done in any of the plotlines or any of the characters.
* DesperateHousewives.

* ''{{Homestuck}}'' focuses on one character - or, sometimes, one entire facet of the GeodesicCast - at a time. Every character has a storyline, and all the storylines are [[KudzuPlot hopelessly tangled together]] in space as well as [[TimeyWimeyBall in]] [[AnachronicOrder time]].

* Done pretty heavily in {{Homestuck}}, in no small part due to the large amount of characters and timelines, but it works out very well due to the nature of the medium.

* The point of the Futurama episode "300 Big Boys," which follows several main and supporting characters spending a tax rebate. In the conclusion, Leela remarks that "[[LampshadeHanging At least we got a few mildly interesting stories out of it]]."
* There's a reason TitanicTheLegendGoesOn was such a flop. Some plotlinnes don't even converge until the [[WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue epilogue]], and even then it doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

* There are so many concurrent plotlines in every episode of TrueBlood that, combined with their [[LotsAndLotsOfCharacters fairly extensive cast]], it usually takes half a season to get anything done in any of the plotlines or any of the characters.

* A common complaint of ''StarTrekVoyager'' Season Two. You had the Maquis vs. Starfleet plot, Kazon/Seska plots, Paris pretending to be a jerk to get thrown off, is there another Caretaker out there, yadda yadda YADDA. A key factor of BetterOnDVD.

* The last (published) book in the ''ASongOfIceAndFire'' series, ''A Feast For Crows'' is absent POV chapters from virtually all the accepted "main" series characters. Their storylines have been promised to be picked up once again in ''A Dance With Dragons''... but we're [[{{Vaporware}} still waiting]]. Worse yet, it's recently been revealed that Sansa Stark's chapters have even been excised from ''Dance'', but [[YourMileageMayVary this might not be such a bad thing]].