Abbott Elementary: Volunteers
January 9, 2025 12:50 PM - season 4, Episode 9 - subscribe
After returning from winter break, Ava announces that a district initiative will bring new teacher aides into Abbott's classrooms. The teachers are initially overjoyed to hear the news. Then Frank, Dennis, Dee, Mac and Charlie from Paddy's Pub show up. This is the much-anticipated first crossover episode featuring the casts of Abbott Elementary (ABC) and It's Always sunny In Philadelphia (FXX).
To get it out of the way, I am not a regular watcher of Abbott Elementary, but I do love IAsIP and have been looking forward to this episode and the eventual sunny episode featuring the Abbott cast. It was impossible not to notice the difference in production budgets between the ABC show and the FXX one. The Paddy's Pub gang looked pretty different on ABC's cameras.
I'd be interested to know how more experienced watchers of Abbott liked the episode.
To get it out of the way, I am not a regular watcher of Abbott Elementary, but I do love IAsIP and have been looking forward to this episode and the eventual sunny episode featuring the Abbott cast. It was impossible not to notice the difference in production budgets between the ABC show and the FXX one. The Paddy's Pub gang looked pretty different on ABC's cameras.
I'd be interested to know how more experienced watchers of Abbott liked the episode.
Is this something that you'd need to know about the background of Abbott to enjoy? I mean, could an IAsIP watcher just sort of jump in?
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:27 AM on January 10 [1 favorite]
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:27 AM on January 10 [1 favorite]
It seemed easy enough to jump right in. We've got a West Philly public school, underfunded, principal open to, uh, making deals. The premise that the characters all work together and care about where they work and why they're doing it is different from the general premise of sunny, but I enjoyed this episode and look forward to seeing the Abbott people on sunny. Dee seeing herself in competition with Ava was hilarious.
The only thing I didn't like was Dennis being written out of the episode, and explaining that by having him dislike being in front of the camera as opposed to being behind it.
posted by emelenjr at 8:27 AM on January 10 [1 favorite]
The only thing I didn't like was Dennis being written out of the episode, and explaining that by having him dislike being in front of the camera as opposed to being behind it.
posted by emelenjr at 8:27 AM on January 10 [1 favorite]
Funnily enough, I literally just finished reading Alan sepinwall's review of it on substack (excerpted below) when I saw this. I don't watch either show, but I've seen a few other reviews of this episode and it sounds like for fans of one or both shows it's a banger.
Last month, I spoke with the respective creator/stars of both shows, Quinta Brunson from Abbott and Rob McElhenney from sunny, about how this happened, why the characters will appear a bit different in each show based on their respective tones and formats, which characters each of them would like to steal from the other’s show, and more. You can see some of what they talked about reflected in the Abbott episode, like the way that the mockumentary format adjusts the behavior of the gang, at least a little. (And Dennis, the most obviously criminal of the group, is barely in the episode at all because he doesn’t want to be on camera.) These aren’t the full TV-MA versions of the gang, yet the episode cleverly stays true to them while fitting them into Abbott’s sensibility.
posted by Pedantzilla at 11:06 AM on January 10 [2 favorites]
Last month, I spoke with the respective creator/stars of both shows, Quinta Brunson from Abbott and Rob McElhenney from sunny, about how this happened, why the characters will appear a bit different in each show based on their respective tones and formats, which characters each of them would like to steal from the other’s show, and more. You can see some of what they talked about reflected in the Abbott episode, like the way that the mockumentary format adjusts the behavior of the gang, at least a little. (And Dennis, the most obviously criminal of the group, is barely in the episode at all because he doesn’t want to be on camera.) These aren’t the full TV-MA versions of the gang, yet the episode cleverly stays true to them while fitting them into Abbott’s sensibility.
posted by Pedantzilla at 11:06 AM on January 10 [2 favorites]
I liked the short bit where Dee/Janine seem to form a friendship based on going to Penn. And I wanted more Ava/Rob because the characters seemed to be in the same universe.
Other than that, I found this a bit disappointing. Glenn Howerton was pretty great as an awful teacher in the show AP Bio, and I would have liked to see more of him. As it was, it almost seemed like there would be a second episode where he had a role or you could see what he was doing while ducking the documentary crew, since his lack of time onscreen was very noticeable.
posted by lizard music at 11:39 AM on January 10
Other than that, I found this a bit disappointing. Glenn Howerton was pretty great as an awful teacher in the show AP Bio, and I would have liked to see more of him. As it was, it almost seemed like there would be a second episode where he had a role or you could see what he was doing while ducking the documentary crew, since his lack of time onscreen was very noticeable.
posted by lizard music at 11:39 AM on January 10
I want Janine's dress. Admittedly, I'm making something similar, albeit shorter and less tight, but it's adorable. I did find a pattern....
"I feel bad about all the compost I ate..."
I know nothing about the characters on this show, but teaching one to read sounds right on.
"Let's never ask for help again!"
"Crime is worth it, plain and simple!"
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:06 PM on January 11 [1 favorite]
"I feel bad about all the compost I ate..."
I know nothing about the characters on this show, but teaching one to read sounds right on.
"Let's never ask for help again!"
"Crime is worth it, plain and simple!"
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:06 PM on January 11 [1 favorite]
sorry but I didn't think this episode was at all funny or good in any way. You couldn't find two shows less alike in tone than Abbott and IAsIP and I think it did a disservice to both by trying to do a crossover.
posted by matcha action at 9:53 AM on January 13 [1 favorite]
posted by matcha action at 9:53 AM on January 13 [1 favorite]
sorry but I didn't think this episode was at all funny or good in any way.
Me either. The tonal disparity between the two shows is literally the opposite. You couldn't do a crossover without debasing one of the groups' overarching character.
posted by The_Vegetables at 1:39 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
Me either. The tonal disparity between the two shows is literally the opposite. You couldn't do a crossover without debasing one of the groups' overarching character.
posted by The_Vegetables at 1:39 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
As someone who has never watched It's Always sunny, I thought this episode was fine. There are better Abbott eps but this wasn't bad. I guess I'll have to watch the other crossover to see if my beloved Abbott characters are themselves on that show.
posted by cooker girl at 2:15 PM on January 13
posted by cooker girl at 2:15 PM on January 13
Yeah this episode just… didn’t need to happen.
posted by obfuscation at 3:21 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
posted by obfuscation at 3:21 PM on January 13 [1 favorite]
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posted by davidmsc at 7:46 PM on January 9