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6[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheJimmyTimmyPowerHour https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jimmy_timmy_power_hour_poster.png]]]]
7[[caption-width-right:350:[-MagicVersusScience, complete with MediumBlending.-]]]
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9
10->'''Sherman:''' How could I be talking to a fictional advertising character?
11->'''Morgon Salt Girl:''' Easy. We're both fictional characters. As such, this conversation is a virtual construct in the imagination of the reader.
12->''({{Beat}})''
13->'''Sherman:''' So, did that answer my question?
14->'''Morgon Salt Girl:''' ''(turns to leave)'' Yes, it did.
15-->-- ''ComicStrip/ShermansLagoon''
16
17The classic crossover started itself off as a good way to make the best of what you've got -- so if you have two shows on your roster, it's a no-brainer to have the shows and characters cross over every once in a while, especially if one of the shows is less popular than its sibling.
18
19The popular way of doing this is the "true" crossover, in which a storyline will begin in one series and ''cross over'' into the next one, encouraging viewers to tune into a show that may be thematically similar but which they do not usually watch.
20
21For example, ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' has a handful of episodes where the characters head off at the end, only to turn up in ''{{Series/Angel}}'' straight after. This also works the other way, with a magic amulet in ''Angel'' turning out to be vitally important for the last-ever episode of ''Buffy''. This also highlights one of the dangers of crossovers; if you or a fan watched only ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', but not ''Angel'', this particular amulet appeared to come totally ''out of nowhere'' to save the day... (See RedSkiesCrossover.)
22
23Sometimes this is done to [[PoorlyDisguisedPilot provide the lead-in for a spin-off show]], as happened with both of the ''{{Series/CSI}}'' spin-offs.
24
25Alternatively, a single popular character can cross over from one show into an other for a brief guest appearance; this has the effect of attracting that character's fans from the other show without requiring the writing teams to sync up or creating DVD- and arc-unfriendly episodes. This is very common in comic books, in which most characters are part of a larger universe, such as the Franchise/MarvelUniverse or Franchise/TheDCU. It happens less often in TV and movie properties based on comic books, since they are often made by different production companies. Compare CameoCluster if the story impact of the crossover is relatively minor.
26
27{{Fanfiction}} ''loves'' doing crossovers, often of wildly different properties, helped immensely by its amateur status getting around the multiple copyrights that would otherwise be involved.
28----
29!!Examples of crossovers in media:
30[[index]]
31[floatboxright:
32'''Also see:'''
33* CrossoverWorks
34]
35* Crossover/AnimeAndManga
36* Crossover/ComicBooks
37* Crossover/FanWorks
38* {{Crossover/Film}}
39* {{Crossover/Literature}}
40* Crossover/LiveActionTV
41* {{Crossover/Music}}
42* Crossover/ProfessionalWrestling
43* Crossover/VideoGames
44* {{Crossover/Webcomics}}
45* Crossover/WebOriginal
46* Crossover/WesternAnimation
47* Crossover/OtherMedia
48[[/index]]
49----
50!!List of crossover tropes:
51[[index]]
52
53[[AC:Crossover stories (and plot devices)]]
54* AdaptationAmalgamation: A crossover that's an adaptation of both/all the stories being crossed over.
55* CommonCrossover: When two particular works have a frequent tendency to be crossed over in FanFiction.
56* CrossoverFinale: The [[GrandFinale final installment of the story]] is also a crossover with another work.
57** FullyAbsorbedFinale: When a show's finale ''isn't'' grand, because it's wrapped up in an episode of a different show set in the same universe.
58* CrossoverPunchline: A crossover that's just a brief joke.
59** CompanyCrossReferences: Two works owned by the same company [[ShoutOut reference]] one another in-story, but they don't actually make a full crossover (maybe except for a character having a brief cameo).
60* CrossoverRelatives: Characters from different works are related in a crossover between them.
61* DemographicDissonantCrossover: A crossover between franchises that are meant for different age demographics.
62* DoppelgangerCrossover: A story that crosses two works which both feature the same actor playing different characters.
63* FusionFic: A {{fanfic|tion}} where the characters in one story replace the characters in another.
64* MassiveMultiplayerCrossover: A crossover between more than two works (often ''many'' works).
65** CrossoverCosmology: A crossover between different religious mythologies (e.g. [[Myth/NorseMythology Thor]] hanging out with [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Zeus]]).
66** DeconstructionCrossover: Lots of different stories in one genre are crossed over in order to {{deconstruct|ion}} (and/or {{reconstruct|ion}}) the genre.
67** FairyTaleFreeForAll: A crossover between a lot of different {{Fairy Tale}}s.
68** MascotFighter: A FightingGame featuring iconic characters from various franchises.
69** MascotRacer: A RacingGame featuring iconic characters from various franchises.
70** MascotRPG: A RolePlayingGame featuring iconic characters from various franchises or a non-RPG video game franchise.
71** MonsterMash: Popular monsters, villains, and other characters from classic {{horror}} fiction (e.g. {{Dracula}} and FrankensteinsMonster) hanging out with one another.
72* ObviousCrossoverMethod: A story has an obvious method through which crossovers can occur.
73* PoorlyDisguisedPilot: The {{pilot}} episode of a spin-off show is technically an episode of the original show it's being spun-off from.
74** RequiredSpinoffCrossover: A spin-off show does a crossover episode with its parent show.
75* Rule50: Crossover fanfiction exists for any two different works of fiction.
76* SpiritualCrossover: A crossover that uses a bunch of CaptainErsatz characters instead of the originals.
77* TeamUpSeries: A crossover involving heroes teaming up to face their collective enemies.
78* VacationCrossover: A crossover wherein characters meet because one or both parties are on vacation, since they normally live in different places.
79* WeirdCrossover: When two ''vastly different'' works of fiction are crossed over, resulting in a very (humorously) bizarre combination.
80** StoryBreakerTeamUp: When the crossover doesn't work very well because of how the two stories are TOO different from each other.
81
82[[AC:Crossover settings (and canon/continuity)]]
83* IntercontinuityCrossover: A crossover between two different stories that are not (normally) set in the same universe.
84** CrossoverAlternateUniverse: An AlternateUniverse that exists solely for the purpose of making a crossover, without changing the original universes' respective canons.
85** FakeCrossover: An intercontinuity crossover that is not FanFiction, but is also not officially canon to either universe.
86* SharedUniverse: Multiple works of fiction are set in the same overall continuity, which allows for occasional (fully canon) crossovers.
87** BatFamilyCrossover: A crossover that only affects people in one immediate in-universe location.
88** CanonWelding: An author takes two previously-unrelated works they made and fuses them together into one universe.
89*** PublicDomainCanonWelding: When at least one of these works is PublicDomain.
90** CrisisCrossover: A crossover between all the characters and settings within a Shared Universe.
91*** CrossThrough: Similar to a Crisis Crossover, but without intra-universe character interaction; a storyline starts like an installment of one story, then switches between different settings within that universe.
92*** RedSkiesCrossover: Similar to a Crisis Crossover, but while all the ''works'' within a universe are affected, the ''characters'' don't all meet each other.
93** IntraFranchiseCrossover: A crossover between different adaptations/continuities/universes within the exact same franchise (often as part of a shared ''{{multiverse}}'').
94** ModularFranchise: Two media franchises created by the same company merge into one.
95* TheWorldAsMyth: The idea that every work of fiction ever created exists in one big {{multiverse}}, with each fictional universe making up one dimension; possibly even claiming that ''the real world'' is part of this omniverse.
96
97[[AC:Crossover characters]]
98* CharacterOverlap: When certain characters have a tendency to do the crossing over.
99* CrossoverCouple: Two characters from different works fall in love.
100** CrossoverShip: Like a CrossoverCouple but [[{{fanon}} non-canon]]; {{shipping}} two characters from different works together.
101* CrossoverExclusiveVillain: An antagonist exclusively created for a crossover, (usually) with no relation to any previous canon.
102** CrossoverComboVillain: When a crossover creates a new villain by combining elements from both stories.
103* CrossoverPowerAcquisition: When a power from one universe is used by a character in another.
104* CrossoverVillainInChief: When universes collide, one villain rises up to lead the others.
105* GuestFighter: A character from a different work shows up inexplicably in an unrelated video game, usually a FightingGame hence the title.
106* LawyerFriendlyCameo: It's legal to have a crossover without permission, if you make it so that [[{{expy}} technically they're a different character]], or you censor the character a bit.
107* OriginalGeneration: A crossover between lots of different works, with a new character as the main protagonist.
108* PublicDomainCharacter: Fictional characters who are [[PublicDomain currently owned by nobody]] often tend to freely appear in many different works of fiction.
109* SidelinedProtagonistCrossover: When crossovers don't revolve around the main hero from one or more of the involved stories, or {{demote|dToExtra}}s them to supporting characters.
110* SirCameosALot: A character who appears in more cameos and crossovers than they do in their own original works.
111* SpotlightStealingCrossover: In a MassiveMultiplayerCrossover, [[SpotlightStealingSquad one character gets more focus than the rest of them]].
112* {{Transplant}}: A character leaves one story/setting to join another.
113** LateSpinOffTransplant: A character doesn't join a spinoff until after the spinoff has been established.
114** RoguesGalleryTransplant: A villain introduced in one work crosses over with another, and is more associated with that one.
115* UltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny: An epic crossover battle which pits two or more characters originating from different stories against each other.
116** FightDracula: A duel between the famous vampire {{Dracula}} and a hero from another story.
117** HypotheticalFightDebate: People have a discussion revolving around this question: "Who would win in a fight between [these two different characters]?"
118** LetsYouAndHimFight: For some reason, crossovers often have heroes from different stories violently clashing with each other upon their first meeting.
119** PowerCreepPowerSeep: Trouble arises in a crossover battle when one character (or group of characters) is just way too powerful compared to the other side.
120** VersusTitle: Many crossover works have "versus"/"vs." in the title, which is meant to imply a fight happening between both of the titular characters/franchises.
121
122[[/index]]

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