WARNING! This article contains SPOILERS for It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17, episode 1!
This article contains references to strong profanity.
The second part of Abbott Elementary and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’s crossover event has finally arrived, and it comes with some shocking differences from the ABC sitcom’s typical tone. The first episode of Abbott Elementary and It’s Always Sunny’s crossover debuted in January as part of the PG-rated sitcom’s fourth season, with the second part – told more from the It’s Always Sunny characters’ perspectives – arriving on July 9 as the MA-rated sitcom’s season 17 premiere.
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17, episode 1, “The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary,” uses Abbott’s “extra” mockumentary footage to reveal what the gang was really doing behind the scenes, such as Frank stealing copper wiring. Alongside the gang’s darker antics, Sunny’s TV-MA rating guidelines give Abbott Elementary’s characters more freedom with profanity and maturity, crossing lines that would never be permitted on the ABC sitcom.
Janine’s Profane Insult To Dee In It’s Always Sunny’s Second Crossover Episode Was Extremely Unexpected
Janine’s Strong Language Went Even Further Than Imagined
Emphasizing the differences between restrictions on PG and MA-rated TV shows, we finally get to hear Abbott Elementary’s main characters use extremely strong language, showing a darker side to them than seen on the ABC show. That includes Janine, who notoriously avoids using profanity and maintains a family-friendly demeanor, yet drops the most intense expletives of the entire Always Sunny episode.
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In a talking head with new couple Janine and Gregory after seeing the footage of Dee’s intentions to “steal” Gregory, Janine is initially hesitant to express her anger. With support from Gregory, she warns the crew that she can’t resist calling Kaitlin Olson’s character an expletive. However, what Janine ultimately says is far worse than what Gregory or audiences were expecting, calling Dee a “total f***ing c**t.”
Gregory’s shocked look after Janine’s insult simultaneously serves as a manifestation of audiences’ responses, as that intense language crosses a line that never seemed possible for Quinta Brunson’s Abbott character on-screen. Gregory, doubtlessly like viewers at home, had thought Janine was going to call Dee a “b***h,” but she took it to an unprecedented next level, with no words being bleeped out.
It’s Always Sunny fans have heard that kind of language from the main characters on countless occasions, and have even come to expect it from Dee, Dennis, Charlie, Frank, and Mac. But, casual Abbott Elementary viewers simply tuning in to finish the crossover event are in for a major shock regarding their own sitcom characters.
It’s Always Sunny’s Version Of The Crossover Episode Shows A Version Of Abbott Elementary’s Characters That Won’t Be Seen Again
Abbott Elementary’s Characters Will Return To PG Restrictions
With Abbott Elementary being a TV-PG show, strong language like that won’t be heard again from Quinta Brunson’s Janine, or any other main characters, unless they happen to appear on It’s Always Sunny or a similar TV-MA series again. Abbott Elementary’s teachers are grown adults living around Philadelphia, and some even share comparable interests and backgrounds with It’s Always Sunny’s debaucherous gang, but their on-screen behavior is typically much more tame.
In It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’s season 17 premiere, the darker, less restricted, elementary school-friendly side of those characters is stripped down. Ironically, we also see much more tame versions of the gang in the second part of the crossover episode compared to their typically dark, boundary-pushing, degenerative selves.
Abbott Elementary was officially renewed for season 5 on January 21, 2025.
In meeting each other halfway, the crossover shows sides of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Abbott Elementary’s characters that likely won’t be seen again in their respective shows. That is, unless they do yet another crossover in the future.
