990103snp

CROSSOVER EPISODES COULD BEAR VERY INTERESTING FRUIT

The Stuart News/Port St. Lucie News (Stuart,FL)
01-03-99
By TV Pastime, page 4
non-Xena graphic

Other appearances:
990103pjo. Press Journal (Vero Beach, FL). 01-03-99. TV Journal. Page 4. [Reprint of 990103snp, with no-Xena graphics]

COMMENTARY
In a massive TV cross-over fantasy, Gill has Xena working as a new boss in the sit-com Working.

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   What this TV season needs is the spirit of Luther Burbank.
   The king of plant grafting and cross-pollination did much of his best work in
Southern California. In fact, the town where NBC Studios is located is named for
him. Unfortunately, his legacy is underappreciated by the television industry,
which rarely allows characters to visit one another from show to show.  
   Besides beings ratings boosters, crossover episodes demonstrate a spirit of
playfulness. Yet the season has been free of such imaginative experimentation.
Where are the rumors of a fresh Law & Order-Homicide crossover episode? Surely
the Ally McBeal-The Practice crossover didn't exhaust all the possibilities for
mix-and-match TV.
   With network ratings low and going lower, why not take a lesson from the bees
and make a little honey? The show combinations are endless, but maybe a few
suggestions would help get the wheels turning. Or, as Mr. Roarke would say,
welcome to Fantasy Crossover Island.
   First, to take advantage of the current kick-boxing craze, Buffy the Vampire
Slayer could partner with Walker, Texas Ranger, on a very special episode of Law
& Order (Briscoe and Curtis would get the week off). They would chase down the
creators of The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer for crimes against good taste.
(Maybe Sammo Hung of Martial Law could make a cameo appearance as the proprietor
of a short-order diner called, um...never mind.) After the brawl during their
arrest, the creators of Pfeiffer would have to endure the usual legal mumbo
jumbo from McCoy and Carmichael, then be handed over to 60 Minutes for
sentencing.
   Catching another craze, how about if Buddy Faro gave swing-dancing lessons to
the casts of Felicity, Boy Meets World and Sister, Sister?
   Nudge, nudge, wink, wink: What if Carter of Spin City met Will of Will &
Grace? Say no more.
   Meanwhile on Working, it's revealed that the Upton/Webber corporation is a
military contractor when executive Tim Deale meets his new boss: Xena, warrior
princess.
   On Guys Like Us, precocious Maestro might inform his caregivers that it would
be better English to say Fellows Such as We. This would result in the show
moving from United Paramount Network to PBS.
   On a special hour-long Mad About You, documentary filmmaker Paul Buchman
might agree to take an aspiring student under his wing for one assignment - and
get Dawson Leery. After a day together, the teen's raging hormones result in six
hours of footage of Jamie, and Paul sends him packing.
   In San Francisco, Nash Bridges would answer a domestic disturbance call from
three women who are not so charmed to have Dharma Montgomery show up claiming to
be their long-lost "soul" sister. But after they bonded over a chai tea latte,
they would try to brighten Charlie Salinger's outlook once and for all, or at
least convince him to move to Seattle, where the weather is as gloomy as he is.
   The Love Boat could set a course for romance with the cast of Friends, Mike
Flaherty of Spin City, Kate and Oswald of The Drew Carey Show, Two Guys and a
Girl, brothers Niles and Frasier Crane, Dennis Finch and Carmen Electra and
Dennis Rodman. When none of them will commit to beef or chicken for dinner, let
alone an adult relationship, the captain turns the ship around, leaving them all
with Trevor Hale, a k a Cupid, who's taking target practice with Ezekiel Stone.
   On Frasier, Martin might invite a few buddies over for an evening of poker
and pro wrestling. Gum-cracking, knuckle-cracking and wisecracking Frank Barone,
Hank Hill, Arthur Spooner and Veronica Chase would drive Martin's sons crazy.
Distraught, the brothers could turn to Dr. Katz to resolve their feelings; if
their father is a boor, they might have inner boors, too.
   In a chilling ER, executive producer John Wells could rush the cast members
of Trinity in on stretchers, begging the doctors for heroic measures. But he has
to be told the truth: It's too late to save them.
   In a late-season special called The Ex-Files, Jimmy Smits, Andre Braugher and
Chris Noth would help George Clooney "cross-over" to life as a former TV actor.
   In May, a two-hour Touched By An Angel would have Andrew, the Angel of Death,
visiting the casts of Beverly Hills, 90210, Melrose Place, The Nanny, Home
Improvement, Veronica's Closet and Mad About You to let them know that they
shall not pass this way again. In a Candid Camera exclusive, Andrew makes a
surprise appearance in Dr. Jack Kevorkian's living room and says, "This network
is only big enough for one of us."

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