Weirdest TV Crossovers: Always Sunny Meets Abbott, Family Guy vs. Simpsons, Nine-Nine Recruits New Girl and More
Not all small-screen crossovers are as logical and expected as, say, a #OneChicago crossover event on NBC. In fact, television history is filled with some truly bizarre and genre-defying matchups of shows.
Below, TVLine has gathered the most unexpected crossovers to ever take place on the tube, from out-there pairings like Bones and Sleepy Hollow to CSI and Two and a Half Men. Our picks also include Garry Shandling’s visit to General Hospital and, more recently, the It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia gang “volunteering” their time at Abbott Elementary.
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Now, just because these crossovers are odd upon first glance doesn’t mean they weren’t good. If you ask us, “Scoobynatural” is a classic Supernatural outing. But it’s also a pretty wild idea that happened to be extremely well-executed. (In fact, it’s also on our list of Best TV Crossovers.) However, some of the following installments didn’t quite nail it when it came to blending characters and tones.
Should you want to see for yourself just how truly unconventional these episodes were, we’ve included YouTube clips and links to where you can stream these shows in full. Scroll down to review our list of the oddest TV crossovers, then hit the comments to tell us which one takes the prize for Most Weird.
Abbott Elementary + It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
When we first heard about this crossover, we were as befuddled as Charlie looking at a newspaper. (Abbott’s humor is much gentler than Sunny’s, for one thing.) But to our delight, the two casts fit together perfectly in a crossover episode that saw the Paddy’s Pub gang volunteer to help out the Abbott teachers — mostly because it was court-mandated. We even got to see Abbott’s kindergarten teacher Barbara help Sunny’s infamously illiterate Charlie learn to read! That’s what crossovers are all about. (Abbott Elementary Season 4, Episode 9)
Ally McBeal + The Practice
Yes, David E. Kelley created both of these late-’90s courtroom series, but they had decidedly different tones (and aired on different networks to boot). So it was an odd fit when The Practice‘s Bobby Donnell and friends joined forces with Ally‘s Cage & Fish lawyers to defend a woman accused of murdering her husband. Ally rarely handled a case this gruesome, and The Practice rarely got this rom-com silly. (Ally got a crush on Bobby!) (Ally McBeal Season 1, Episode 20 and The Practice Season 2, Episode 26)
Bones + Sleepy Hollow
The news that the scientific-minded Bones would be crossing over with the supernatural drama Sleepy Hollow had us scratching our heads at the time. And although the two-hour block was amusing, we still can’t get over the logic leaps that were needed to accept this reality-defying mashup, which required that the Bones characters have no inkling of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Plus, there was the fact that Brennan, a woman of science, was conversing with a time-transplanted Revolutionary War soldier in Ichabod Crane! (Bones Season 11, Episode 5 and Sleepy Hollow Season 3, Episode 5)
Bones + Family Guy
Unlike the Bones/Sleepy Hollow crossover, this extremely unexpected pairing actually did make sense in the context of the episode, which found Booth having hallucinations of Stewie Griffin (voiced by Seth MacFarlane). The taunting cartoon character even showed up during an interrogation scene to mock Booth and Brennan’s suspect and push Booth toward a vocal epiphany. Naturally, the outburst prompted concern from Brennan, after which it was revealed that Booth was suffering from a brain tumor. (Bones Season 4, Episode 24)
Boy Meets World + Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
It was fairly commonplace for TGIF sitcoms to cross over — remember when Steve Urkel paid the Tanner family a visit? — but Sabrina took place in a supernatural world, whereas Boy Meets World (mostly) took place in our reality. Even weirder than Eric going out on a date with the titular Teenage Witch was having Salem show up the following week and transport Cory, Topanga & Co. back to the 1940s for a World War II-era adventure. (Boy Meets World Season 5, Episode 5 and Season 5, Episode 6)
Brooklyn Nine-Nine + New Girl
The Brooklyn Nine-Nine half of this misguided Fox crossover amounted to nothing more than a cameo by Zooey Deschanel. What followed was a disjointed New Girl episode that tried (but ultimately failed) to blend the comedies’ two distinct voices together in scenes that put Jess with Captain Holt and Gina, and Nick and Winston with Charles and Nikolaj. (Weird enough, New Girl ended with a surprise cameo by former series regular Damon Wayans Jr., who previously appeared in a Season 3 episode of B99 not as Coach, but as Jake’s former partner Stevie.) (Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 4, Episode 4 and New Girl Season 6, Episode 4)
Community + Cougar Town
Toward the end of Community Season 2, Abed told Jeff about how he had worked as an extra on ABC’s Cougar Town. Weeks later, Cougar Town‘s Laurie and Travis (played by Busy Philipps and Dan Byrd) showed up in the background of a Community episode — and two weeks after that, Cougar Town viewers glimpsed what ostensibly was Abed’s ill-fated appearance as an extra. (Community Season 2, Episode 24 and the cold open of Cougar Town Season 2, Episode 22)
Family Guy + The Simpsons
Despite sharing a network for more than a decade, the idea of the Griffins and the Simpsons meeting on screen always felt like a pipe dream — which is probably why their eventual crossover felt like a fever dream. From Peter and Homer teaming up for a sexy carwash sequence to Stewie showing Bart what it really means to be a rebellious kid (hint: more torture!), we still can’t believe any of this happened. Even if we loved every minute of it. (Family Guy Season 13, Episode 1)
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air + The Jeffersons
In Season 3, the great Sherman Hemsley recurred as Uncle Phil’s former mentor-turned-judicial rival Carl Robertson. Suffice it to say, it was a peculiar choice to have Hemsley return in Season 5 and reprise his former role as George Jefferson, opposite Isabel Sanford’s Louise. They returned for the series finale, along with Marla Gibbs — aka Florence — and bought the Banks’ Bel-Air mansion… only after the Drummond family from Diff’rent Strokes passed on the lavish pad. In turn, the Jeffersons also kinda got a series finale of their own, having ended its own 11-season run without a proper farewell. (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Season 5, Episode 17 and Season 6, Episode 24)
The Golden Girls + Nurses + Empty Nest
NBC brought the stars of The Golden Girls, Nurses and Empty Nest together in a series of crossovers that looks more like a conspiracy board the more you look into it. Several Empty Nest stars appeared throughout The Golden Girls’ seven-season run, including Richard Mulligan’s Dr. Harry Weston, who most notably counseled a frustrated Dorothy trying to find the cause of her mysterious illness, and Kristy McNichol’s Barbara Weston, the police officer who helped Sophia find her missing glasses. Meanwhile, the Golden Girls made their way over to Empty Nest in separate appearances that saw Barbara date Dorothy’s nephew, Rose seek love advice from Dr. Weston, Blanche vie for Dr. Weston’s affections, and Sophia barge in on Dr. Weston to make a noise complaint. It’s more mind-boggling when you consider the additional crossovers, with Nurses characters like David Rasche’s Jack Trenton and Loni Anderson’s Casey MacAfee visiting Empty Nest, while Empty Nesters like Dr. Weston and Carol and The Golden Girls‘ Sophia trekked over to Nurses. Did you get all that? (Various episodes)
Half & Half + Living Single
Crossovers usually occur when both shows are still on the air. However, Half & Half delivered a surprising Living Single update when Kyle Barker and Maxine Shaw turned up in Season 3 of the UPN sitcom seven years after Living Single wrapped. The crossover episode revealed that Barker and Shaw were divorced and share a daughter, Kyla Barker, who acts just like her mom. While we didn’t get to see Synclaire, Overton, Regine or Khadijah turn up, we still loved catching up with the dynamic pair and seeing them speak in their love language of quippy insults to each other. (Half & Half Season 3, Episode 14)
I Love Lucy + Adventures of Superman
Midway through the classic comedy’s final season, a bit of braggadocio (OK, fibbing) on Lucy’s part turned into a job for Superman, whom she claimed would appear at son Ricky’s birthday party. Adventures of Superman star George Reeves appeared first as himself/an acquaintance of Ricky Sr.’s, before suiting up as TV’s Man of Steel, to save the (birth)day… and then save ersatz Superman Lucy from the ledge outside. (I Love Lucy Season 6, Episode 12)
It’s Garry Shandling’s Show + General Hospital
When Garry’s mom realized that mentioning her pet shop on his show boosted business, he eventually had to put his foot down. Undeterred, Ruth showed up on the daytime soap opera General Hospital, as Gary and his friends watched from home, to give nurse Amy Vining and Dr. Tom Hardy the hard sell. Making the crossover super-meta, Garry himself raced to GH to take home his mom, bumping into his own co-star, Ian Buchanan, who at the time also played GH‘s Duke Lavery. (It’s Garry Shandling’s Show Season 3, Episode 11)
Legends of Tomorrow + Supernatural
In a unique prop crossover, Supernatural‘s beloved Baby (aka the Impala) played herself on another CW series. While on a mission in Vancouver, the Legends discovered that Supernatural was filming in the woods, which was where the team found the unattended car. The meta crossover then took a dark turn when Sara discovered that the show’s crew had been killed, leading her to worriedly wonder who was filming the 15th and final season. (Legends of Tomorrow Season 5, Episode 9)
Mr. Robot + ALF
Hospitalized after a severe beating, a comatose Elliot dreamed up a bizarro fantasy of his family on a road trip, in the style of a cheesy ’80s TV sitcom. That included a vintage USA Network intro, a Full House-esque credit sequence and a cameo from ALF himself, with original puppeteer Paul Fusco returning to voice the furry alien. (Mr. Robot Season 2, Episode 6)
The Simpsons + The X-Files
Homer had a close encounter with what he thought was an alien — with the eerie X-Files theme music playing! — and FBI agents Mulder and Scully headed to Springfield to check it out, with David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson voicing cartoon versions of their characters. Unfortunately, Homer and company didn’t return the favor and appear on their show. (Sure, that would be strange… but so was The X-Files.) (The Simpsons Season 8, Episode 10)
Supernatural + Scooby-Doo
An animated episode in which Dean, Sam and Castiel get transported into the cartoon classic and team up with the Scooby gang to solve a case? Sure, why not! The clever and immensely entertaining hour proved that Supernatural could make even the most bizarre concept work. And somehow, the idea of Dean wanting to protect Scooby-Doo with his life while hitting on Daphne seemed remarkably natural. (Supernatural Season 13, Episode 16)
Two and a Half Men + CSI
This unique crossover saw the writers of Two and a Half Men and CSI trade places for a week. The tradeoff resulted in the Men episode “Fish In a Drawer” (written by CSI scribes Evan Dunsky, Sarah Goldfinger, Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar) that focused on the mysterious death of Evelyn’s new husband Teddy (played by Robert Wagner); and the CSI episode “Two and a Half Deaths” (penned by Men‘s Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn), which focused on the death of a misbehaved sitcom star (played by Katey Sagal). The sitcom included a guest spot by George Eads, while the procedural included cameos by Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones. (Two and a Half Men Season 5, Episode 17 and CSI Season 8, Episode 16)
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