10 Shared TV Universes You’ve Likely Forgotten About

Shared universes are all the rage. By setting two or more stories in the same continuity, creators can maximize profits by combining multiple fan bases. They also enhance the world-building, showing how one narrative might have ramifications for another. You’re probably aware of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the MonsterVerse, and other cinematic efforts. These endeavors have the highest profiles, but they’re far from the only medium to try this tactic.

Television has dabbled in shared universes for decades. You might not even realize it, which is understandable. These efforts don’t get the same press as their blockbuster counterparts. That said, they still give fans the satisfaction of seeing their favorite characters combine. In fact, since TV affords more time with said characters, you could argue it’s more meaningful when they meet. That’s why these small-screen crossovers belong in the history books, as they often show more care in their crafting than any movie universe.

Related: The Ten Greatest Television Romances of all Time

10 Dozierverse

The 1966 Batman show holds a special place in fans’ hearts. Produced by William Dozier, this campy take on the Caped Crusader pitted him, Robin, and Batgirl against all manner of silly villains. Not only did it perfectly capture the upbeat heroism of classic comic books, but many of its cheesy tropes have become treasured parts of pop culture. Just look at the goofy sound effects during the fight scenes and Robin’s “Holy” one-liners. As iconic as it was, it wasn’t the only superhero show around.

Also produced by Dozier was The Green Hornet. This series had a similar premise: a high-class playboy and his faithful butler fought crime as masked vigilantes. The difference was that they infiltrated criminal dens to root out wrongdoing. Officially, they were crooks themselves, but that fact didn’t stop them from teaming up with Batman and Robin. A crossover episode saw the two duos duke it out while stopping a counterfeit ring. The crossover aired across two episodes and even featured Bruce Lee as Kato, making it one of the earliest superhero crossovers on television. They may be on opposite sides of the law, but they share a common thirst for justice.^[1]

9 Kelleyverse

Few writers are synonymous with legal dramas like David E. Kelley. As a former attorney himself, he created several shows dramatizing lawyers’ lives. The longest of these was The Practice. This series centered on a group of criminal defense attorneys representing Boston’s worst dregs. Resorting to increasingly underhanded measures to get their clients off, they questioned whether their efforts (and the legal system) were doing any good. Obviously, though, they’re not the only law firm in town.

This heavy work had two lighter shows attached to it. First was Ally McBeal. Also created by Kelley, the series tackled civil cases, meaning much of the grim subject matter was absent in lieu of romantic comedy. In fact, most episodes focused on the heroine’s messy personal life. Needless to say, she was in for a shock when crossing over with The Practice, but that show also had some surprises in its final season.

During its last year, the series introduced new characters like Alan Shore and Denny Crane. Liking their new dynamics, Kelley spun them off into a new show called Boston Legal. It tackled both criminal and civil cases, yet it was somehow goofier than Ally McBeal. The characters had little inhibition in their legal ethics or in their personal lives. The series was almost a sex comedy with courtroom scenes. It’s hard to believe these works were in the same universe, let alone the same city. That’s not even counting Gideon’s Crossing and Boston Public—two lesser-known, non-lawyer shows also confirmed to exist in this continuity.^[2]

8 DC Animated Universe

DC may have struggled to make a cinematic universe, but fans already had an ideal alternative in the DC Animated Universe. It all started with Batman: The Animated Series. This darkly operatic take adapted the Caped Crusader with emotional depth well beyond a kids’ cartoon. It was so beloved that the Warner Bros. Animation team followed it up with Superman: The Animated Series and Batman Beyond. The former modernized the Man of Steel without foregoing yesteryear’s joyful tone. Meanwhile, the latter presented a neo-noir future where the former Batman guided a younger successor. Characters from one show occasionally popped into another, but these one-offs were nothing compared to what came after.

The creators soon expanded the roster with three more entries. First, Justice League saw Batman and Superman team up with several other heroes like Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and the Flash. At the same time, comic writer Dwayne McDuffie crafted a show about his teen superhero, Static Shock. The strong character work prompted the mainline team to bring him onboard for Justice League Unlimited. The ambitious follow-up added a veritable army of superheroes, Static included. As a result, the adventures were grander than ever, balancing spectacle with engaging scripts. Never had so many DC shows been built so deliberately on one another.^[3]

7 Marvel Anime Universe

When picturing shared universes on the Marvel side, most people think of either the 1990s shows or the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They forget that the comic company also had a series of anime projects. Overseen by writer Warren Ellis and animated by Madhouse, these pieces presented tales about Wolverine, Iron Man, Blade, and the X-Men. Each miniseries largely functioned as its own narrative, but they weren’t entirely separate.

The four stories had small quirks loosely connecting them. The most notable was the Japanese setting, as every narrative utilized the country’s cities, wilderness, and anime trappings in the plot. Wolverine also appeared in all four shows. Specifically, the version from his solo series guest-starred in Blade and Iron Man. Released between 2010 and 2011, the project was Marvel’s attempt to expand its brand internationally without relying on a single flagship storyline. What’s truly unbelievable is that these Marvel icons weren’t meeting in New York.^[4]

6 Klasky Csupo Universe

At one point, Klasky Csupo was the biggest creative force at Nickelodeon. This studio helped put the network on the map with Rugrats—a show about the bizarre ways that babies see the world. Its success let the studio produce several more series, each with a unique angle. They tackled creepy creatures with Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, animal adventures with The Wild Thornberrys, extreme sports with Rocket Power, and teen angst with As Told by Ginger. Although these series had similar art styles, their subject matter was so different that people assumed they were unrelated. That was until the crossovers came in.

Rugrats occasionally saw visits from its fellow series. The best example was Rugrats Go Wild. This film involved the babies and their parents getting stranded on a deserted island. While there, they encountered Eliza Thornberry and her family, who were exploring the place for their safari program. On top of this exotic crossover, the Rugrats also merged with Rocket Power for a comic book story, “Power Play.” This tale saw the sports-crazed teens hired to babysit the restless toddlers, which led to predictable hijinks across the board. These crossovers confirmed that Nickelodeon’s most iconic cartoons truly shared the same animated world during the network’s golden age.^[5]

5 CBC Mystery Universe

Some crossovers transcend time itself. Murdoch Mysteries is a detective series set in Toronto during the 1890s and early twentieth century. It follows Detective William Murdoch as he uses revolutionary methods like fingerprints, blood tests, and early forensic science to solve crimes. This formula proved popular, keeping the show on the air for well over a decade and making it one of Canada’s most enduring television exports.

Running concurrently with Murdoch Mysteries was Republic of Doyle. This irreverent modern-day series took place in Newfoundland, where a wisecracking private investigator named Jake Doyle solved crimes with help from his eccentric family. Despite their radically different settings, the shows crossed paths through clever use of ancestors and descendants. Murdoch Mysteries featured an episode involving Jake’s forebear, while Republic of Doyle returned the favor by referencing Murdoch’s lineage. The real mystery is how such a strange but charming crossover ever made it to air.^[6]

4 Happy Days

A show about 1950s teens should have been simple. Happy Days portrayed the silly, wholesome exploits of high school friends in a nostalgic version of mid-century America. Throughout the series, young Richie Cunningham navigated the trials and tribulations of adolescence, fueling countless gags while offering audiences a comforting look at a bygone era. In its fifth season, however, the show tackled childhood’s most relatable issue: aliens.

One episode introduced an extraterrestrial named Mork. This bizarre visitor pestered Richie and his friends with reality-warping powers and fish-out-of-water humor. Although the initial broadcast framed the episode as a dream, Mork proved so popular that producers created the spinoff Mork & Mindy. The new show relocated the character to the 1970s, pairing him with a working-class woman named Mindy and turning him into a full-fledged sitcom lead. The tonal leap from jukebox nostalgia to sci-fi comedy remains one of television’s strangest shared-universe pivots.^[7]

3 Magnum/Fletcher Universe

Here’s another detective crossover that went to surprising lengths to unite its worlds. Magnum, P.I. centered on Thomas Magnum, a former U.S. Navy officer living in Hawaii while working as a private investigator. His cases ranged from domestic disputes to international espionage, often pulling him back into military intrigue. While his old Navy buddies frequently had his back, they were no match for a sharp-witted mystery writer.

Murder, She Wrote introduced audiences to Jessica Fletcher, a retired teacher who found unexpected success as a crime novelist. Fiction wasn’t enough for her, however, and she soon began solving real murders with uncanny efficiency. One of her many book tours brought her to Hawaii, where she crossed paths with Magnum. In the crossover episode, Jessica cleared him after he was framed for murder, uniting two wildly different investigative styles. The pairing proved that even the most unlikely sleuths could coexist in the same television universe.^[8]

2 Disney Mythverse

Disney is no stranger to crossovers, as the company has mixed its properties in games, TV specials, and visual gags for decades. One television event, however, linked two animated films more directly. After Aladdin proved successful on the big screen, an animated series continued the street thief’s Arabian adventures alongside Genie and company. Their quest to protect Agrabah pitted them against sorcerers, bandits, and mythic creatures.

At the same time, Hercules thrived on similar mythological storytelling. The animated series followed the Greek demigod during his training years, long before his cinematic feats. The two worlds collided when Aladdin and Hercules crossed paths in a crossover episode. Manipulated by their enemies into fighting each other, the heroes eventually teamed up to save the day. Never mind that their legends were separated by centuries—Disney happily ignored chronology in favor of spectacle.^[9]

1 TGIF Universe

Networks have often aired multiple sitcoms as a single block of escapist television, but few lineups were as interconnected as ABC’s TGIF. These shows were wholesome comedies centered on chaotic families during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Although they took place in different cities across the United States, they all embraced the same broad humor and sentimental tone.

The shared universe emerged through an ever-growing web of guest appearances and spinoffs. It began with Perfect Strangers, where elevator operator Harriette Winslow proved popular enough to anchor her own series, Family Matters. That show then introduced the world to the kooky Steve Urkel, who became a cultural phenomenon. Characters crossed into Full House and Step by Step, while Michelle Tanner later appeared on Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper. Decades later, the Tanner family returned in Fuller House, cementing the TGIF lineup as one of television’s most sprawling and unexpected shared universes.^[10]