When the gang from "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" entered the halls of Abbott Elementary in January, the foul-mouthed barflies had to (slightly) clean up their act for network TV.
But for the second half of the sitcom crossover, which aired Wednesday night on FX, the "Abbott" educators come to Paddy's Pub — and are on their worst behavior.
MORE: How an accidental 'Always Sunny' performance spawned a live tour of 'The Nightman Cometh'
"Always Sunny" creator-star Rob McElhenney, aka Rob Mac, promised as much earlier this year, when he teased that the ABC sitcom characters would "play bad" on cable. Just how low do Janine, Gregory, Barbara, Melissa, Jacob, Ava and Mr. Johnson go? Some of them operate about the same as they normally would. A few, however, curse freely and threaten violence. The guiltiest offender isn't who you'd expect.
Spoilers for the Season 17 premiere of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" below.
The "Always Sunny" half of the crossover, titled "The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary," delves deeper into Mac, Charlie, Dennis, Dee and Frank's week of court-mandated volunteer service at the school. Principal Ava Coleman shows viewers footage of the gang's failed schemes that the "Abbott Elementary" mockumentary crew missed the first time around. While "volunteering," the gang tries to recruit students for a boy band, remake "We Didn't Start the Fire," draft basketball prospects and steal copper pipes from the building (actually, Frank succeeds on that one).
Ava adds colorful commentary between scenes. The gleefully unprofessional principal curses the most frequently and casually of all the "Abbott" characters, freed for one episode only from their normal standards. She's not, however, the top degenerate from the school staff. That honor goes to the normally sweet people pleaser Janine.
It's a surprise, for sure, but the signs arrive early in the episode. Janine gets the most shocking line in her first interview, when she expresses her contempt for Dee. You'll remember that Dee tries to seduce Janine's boyfriend Gregory in the first part of the crossover. After seeing the new footage, Janine's hatred only grows.
She initially self-censors herself, before admitting she has to "say a bad word." Gregory encourages her, but he's clearly not prepared for what she calls Dee: "a total f---ing c---."
"I thought you was gonna call her a b----," Gregory replies.
"No, I didn't feel that was strong enough," Janine says. "B---- can be a very fine dog. That's not what this woman is."
The ire doesn't end there. Later, Dee tells the cameras she could easily win a fight against Janine if she actually tried. Janine insists she's not mad, before punching a locker.
"I'm so sorry, I saw a mosquito," she claims, convincing no one.
By the time the teachers gather at Paddy's Pub at the end of the episode, Janine seems to have quelled her rage. But the gang's depravity can apparently turn even the purest soul into an aspiring bruiser.
Catch the rest of their latest season Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on FX to see who else they corrupt.
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