It was definitely toned down. The plot focused mainly on the survivors a century after "Surprise Day" (as the crossed like to call it). It's centered around a archeological/historian/biologist as she tries to find out what caused the outbreak in the first place. The cross themselves are the intelligent ones who have created their own society hidden from the survivors so they can do a part 2. They're less impulsive and thus less prone to random acts of violence.

They're still infected, though, and the story picks up when they start a war after isolating themselves for a century.