History Main / PlotLineCrossover

* An episode of ''Series/{{Castle}}'' has two teams of detectives (Castle and Beckett vs. Ryan and Esposito) competing over (and betting on) who is going to solve their respective case first. [[spoiler:They are forced to a draw when it turns out the two cases are related: the primary suspect in each case had committed the other murder.]]

*** "The Ripple Effect" involves one crime leading to another, and another, and another... One perp steals a bike messenger's bicycle, causing him to have to run from someone else on foot, falling down the 87th Street stairs and breaking his neck. Meanwhile, another man is found dead in Central Park with an arrow stuck in him. The arrow part was an accident from a deer hunter sneezing at just the wrong time, but the man had been running from someone who had strangled him enough that his trachea was crushed. He was supposed to have had a bribe delivered by the bike messenger & since the deadline passed, the killer assumed this victim stole the money. If the bike in the other case hadn't been stolen, this guy would still be alive.

*** In "Help," the DNA of a rape victim from eight years earlier is found on the necklace of a woman who is suspected of killing another woman in a bridal shop. Meanwhile yet another woman is found dead in her own bathtub. A certain type parasite is found in her drain; it contains the DNA of the rapist. Yes, he's back, but he didn't kill the woman in the shop, and neither did the suspect...but *she's* engaged to the guy.
*** "The Ripple Effect" involves one crime leading to another, and another, and another... One perp steals a bike messenger's bicycle, causing him to have to run from someone else on foot, falling down the 87th Street stairs and breaking his neck. Meanwhile, another man is found dead in Central Park with an arrow stuck in him. The arrow part was an accident from a deer hunter sneezing at just the wrong time, but the man had been running from someone who had strangled him enough that his trachea was crushed. He turns out to be the person who was supposed to have a bribe delivered by the bike messenger & since the deadline passed, the other person assumed this victim stole the money. If the bike in the other case hadn't been stolen, this guy would still be alive.

** ''Series/{{CSINY}}:

* ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode "The One with the Videotape": the B plot involves Monica and Chandler being given fake names by a couple they met. To illustrate that people do this, Joey introduces himself as "Ken Adams." The A plot involves a seductive story Rachel tells Ross, unaware Joey already told him the story. When questioned, Rachel sputters that she heard the story from a friend, who heard it from a guy named Ken Adams.
* The later seasons of ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'' do this often, many times a mixture of this and StrangeMindsThinkAlike?
* All versions of ''Series/{{CSI}}'' beat this trope to death in multiple episodes, such as finding a fingerprint of a suspect in the Plot B crime at the scene of the Plot A events.
* ''Series/BabylonFive'' did this a bunch. For example, "The Quality of Mercy," with Laura's clinic and the murderer Mueller.

* An episode of ''Series/{{Castle}}'' had two teams of detectives (Castle and Beckett vs. Ryan and Esposito) competing (and betting) on who was going to solve their respective cases first. [[spoiler:They were forced to a draw when it turned out the two cases were related: the primary suspect in each case had committed the other murder.]]

* An episode of ''Series/{{Castle}}'' had two teams of detectives competing (and betting) on who was going to solve their respective cases first, [[spoiler: they were forced to a draw when the two cases were related.]]

Compare to TwoLinesNoWaiting, WorkingTheSameCase, StrangeMindsThinkAlike. If Plot B is sufficiently minor as to make you wonder "What's it doing here?", then the character is ChekhovsGunman.

* Creator/NeilSimon's ''Theatre/{{Rumors}}'' had this with Carol Newman

!!Examples

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode "The One With the Videotape": the B plot involves Monica and Chandler being given fake names by a couple they met. To illustrate that people do this, Joey introduces himself as "Ken Adams." The A plot involves a seductive story Rachel tells Ross, unaware Joey already told him the story. When questioned, Rachel sputters that she heard the story from a friend, who heard it from a guy named Ken Adams.

[[AC:Other]]
* Used on regular basis in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars.''

* NeilSimon's ''{{Rumors}}'' had this with Carol Newman
* ''TheSimpsons'' episode that showed the same day from three perspectives walks the line between this and WorkingTheSameCase. There are probably many other Simpsons examples, they like to trip up the TwoLinesNoWaiting formula from time to time.

-->'''Lisa:''' I feel so terrible. I just wanted to save those animals while Bart became a drummer, but I ''never'' thought the two stories would intersect!

-->'''Captain Hero''': Outta the way! A-plot coming through!

* ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' often has it's A and B plots intersect before the end of the episode. Amusingly lampshaded by Captain Hero in one episode.

* Robert Van Gulik's [[JudgeDee The Lacquer Screen]] had several separate storylines. [[spoiler: The killer in the A plot was a character in the B plot; the character in the B plot was introduced in the C plot, and the killer in the C plot was from the D plot.]]

* ''{{Friends}}'' episode "The One With the Videotape": the B plot involves Monica and Chandler being given fake names by a couple they met. To illustrate that people do this, Joey introduces himself as "Ken Adams." The A plot involves a seductive story Rachel tells Ross, unaware Joey already told him the story. When questioned, Rachel sputters that she heard the story from a friend, who heard it from a guy named Ken Adams.

* The later seasons of ''{{Seinfeld}}'' do this often, many times a mixture of this and StrangeMindsThinkAlike?

* The play and the movie versions of ''AFunnyThingHappenedOnTheWayToTheForum'' have a lot of these.

* All versions of {{CSI}} beat this trope to death in multiple episodes, such as finding a fingerprint of a suspect in the Plot B crime at the scene of the Plot A events.

* Series/HowIMetYourMother episode "The Naked Man" has plot A with Barney and Ted trying out a new tactic called the The Naked Man (no points for guessing what they do) and plot B is Lily writing a list of 50 reasons to have sex, which she completes after trying The Naked Man tactic (2 out of 3 times people!)
* An episode of ''{{Castle}}'' had two teams of detectives competing (and betting) on who was going to solve their respective cases first, [[spoiler: they were forced to a draw when the two cases were related.]]

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* ''Drawn Together'' often has it's A and B plots intersect before the end of the episode. Amusingly lampshaded by Captain Hero in one episode.

* ''{{Babylon 5}}'' did this a bunch. For example, "The Quality of Mercy," with Laura's clinic and the murderer Mueller.

* Peter Lovesey's ''The House Sitter'': Peter Diamond investigates the murder of a profiler who was tracking a serial killer called The Mariner. Maybe The Mariner killed her, but maybe it was her jealous boyfriend. Well, [[spoiler:she was killed in a somewhat random act, not by The Mariner. And by the way, The Mariner ''is'' the boyfriend.]]

* HowIMetYourMother episode "The Naked Man" has plot A with Barney and Ted trying out a new tactic called the The Naked Man (no points for guessing what they do) and plot B is Lily writing a list of 50 reasons to have sex, which she completes after trying The Naked Man tactic (2 out of 3 times people!)

* Used on regular basis in ''SuperRobotWars.''
* The play and the movie versions of ''AFunnyThingHappenedOnTheWayToTheForum'' have a lot of these.

* Lampshaded in an episode of ''{{Futurama}}'': Amy loses a present from Kiff when it falls into a whale tank and the whale swallows it. When she mentions it to her co-workers, Leela remarks "As unlikely as it may sound, I have an in with that whale"; earlier in the episode she bought a "Swim with the Whales" pass at that same aquarium.

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* Neil Simon's ''{{Rumors}}'' had this with Carol Newman