throughline

plural throughlines · alternative through line · alternative through-line

1. human sciencesIn full through line of action: a theme that runs through the plot of a book, film, or other narrative work, or a series of such related works.First known use early 20th c.

   The Russian rockets fell on Babyn Yar, 80 years after the Nazi atrocities it commemorates; Zelenskiy’s face was enough to hammer home the gravity of the thematic throughline.

   2022 March 8, Zoe Williams, “Zelenskiy brings down the house with his speech to the Commons”, in The Guardian

   1 more example

   Produced by none other than Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, Good Boys again most closely resembles a kind of junior-varsity tryout for that duo's Superbad, down to its modestly affecting emotional through-line: an acceptance of the fact that childhood friendships, forged out of proximity and convenience, aren't always destined to last.

   2019 August 14, A. A. Dowd, “Good Boys Puts a Tween Spin on the R-rated Teen Comedy, to Mostly Funny Effect”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 04 Mar 2021

2. rail transportA railway route that passengers can take without needing to change trains.First known use mid 19th c.