[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Abbott Elementary, Season 4 Episode 9, “Volunteers,” streaming on Hulu.]
The TV crossover is one of television’s most fascinating and funny traditions. It doesn’t necessarily lead to Emmy-winning content, but it does create an event that also treats fans of one or both shows involved to a whole new perspective on their favorites. And that’s exactly what we got when The Gang from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia paid a visit to Abbott Elementary in the episode “Volunteers.”
The genesis for the idea came from Sunny creator Rob McElhenney and Abbott creator Quinta Brunson connecting at the Emmys a few years ago; an idea enabled by the fact that both shows are set in the city of Philadelphia, while also shooting in Los Angeles. Sunny also happened to be in production on its upcoming 17th season from October to December 2024, meaning the cast was already assembled and ready to pay a trip to Janine and Ava’s neighborhood.
The appearance of The Gang is not a single-scene cameo, like Bradley Cooper popping by for a cold open last season; the entire episode is very much constructed around Mac (Rob McElhenney), Charlie (Charlie Day), Dennis (Glenn Howerton), Sweet Dee (Kaitlin Olson), and Frank (Danny DeVito) hanging out with the staff for an entire week, working as volunteers to make the school better. (That their volunteer work is court-ordered, due to offscreen shenanigans, hardly comes as a surprise.)
As Abbott often does, the episode splits into multiple storylines, as the casts from both shows pair off: Ava (Janelle James) claims Mac as her personal gopher, Frank teams up with Gregory (Tyler James Williams) and Mr. Johnson (William Stanford Davis) to fight off raccoons in the garden, and Dennis does his best to avoid the documentary cameras as much as possible. Meanwhile, Dee and Janine (Brunson) hit it off until Dee starts to lust after Gregory, and Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph) and Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter) teach Charlie to read at a kindergarten level.
Nearly doubling the size of the show’s typical ensemble means that there’s a lot going on, and all of it happens pretty fast. The deepest storyline probably belongs to Charlie’s newly-attained literacy, if only because it affirms that the staff of Abbott Elementary are the truest sort of teachers, incapable of standing by when they see someone struggle to learn.
For those familiar with Sunny, watching The Gang’s antics through a broadcast TV lens was pretty fascinating — for newcomers to the FX comedy series, it might be a bit more confusing. The episode operates under the assumption that you already know who the Sunny characters are, dropping in both obvious as well as deep-cut references to the long-running but still niche series.
In general, crossovers vary in impressiveness based on the disparity between the shows involved. For example, when characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer showed up on Angel, that wasn’t necessarily a huge deal, because Angel was a spinoff featuring characters originally introduced on Buffy. And at this point, it’s almost commonplace when NBC’s family of Chicago series semi-regularly find a way to bring together the firefighters and cops and doctors who all live in the same city.
By comparison, Abbott and Sunny might take place in different cities but are pretty different shows — produced for different networks (albeit within the same corporate family) and with very different vibes, not to mention intended audiences.
It’s a pairing that’s been a bit brain-melting since it was first announced — though to be clear, the Abbott/Sunny crossover is not the most ridiculous crossover in modern TV history. That honor remains firmly dedicated to the time that characters from the Fox series Sleepy Hollow, a supernatural drama, paid a visit to the very non-supernatural crime-solvers on Bones. At least Abbott and Sunny technically both belong to the same genre, you know?
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
“Volunteers” is not a perfect meshing of the two series, but it works pretty well. For one thing, crossing over with Abbott brings out some latent sweetness from the Sunny gang — however short-lived it might be. Meanwhile, we discover that Abbott, as much as it’s beloved for its good heart and charming characters, isn’t as pure-of-heart as one might assume. It was certainly a little bizarre to watch these characters meet, but the proprietors of Paddy’s Pub brought out more of this show’s inner dirtbag, as these characters connected beyond superficial bonds like “Have you ever gotten into a fight at an Eagles game?”
Yes, Melissa might have called out Paddy’s for being trash, but it’s easy to imagine her slinging back a few beers there — and Ava’s lack of scruples turn out to mesh nicely with Mac’s own amorality. Who knows? If Dee had pushed her much further, it’s easy to imagine Janine’s inner wildcat coming out to protect her relationship. It all points to the rich layers that have made Abbott such a comedy powerhouse, one that continues to evolve season by season.
What’s most exciting is that this is just part one of the fun: The events of “Volunteers” will be seen from a different perspective in an episode of the upcoming season of Sunny, set to premiere sometime in 2025. While Brunson told Rolling Stone that she’s discouraging Abbott fans who don’t already watch Sunny from tuning in, that episode will notably feature the Abbott characters outside of the confines of the mockumentary format. Which means, theoretically, we get to see Barbara cut loose.
It feels like it’s been too long since two shows have attempted a stunt as enjoyably daring as this, and hopefully we see more of it down the line. TV can be so many things, but something we need right now is fun.
Abbott Elementary airs Wednesdays on ABC and is streaming on Hulu — as is It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.