Network television has occasionally featured different shows with episodes sharing similar or coordinated titles as a stunt or thematic link. Below, we outline notable examples – starting with CBS shows – and then broader instances across other networks. Each example includes the shows, episode titles, air dates, and context explaining whether it was an intentional crossover event or a thematic/network-driven coincidence.
CBS Examples
Elsbeth & Ghosts (2025) – Elsbeth (a CBS legal dramedy) and Ghosts (a CBS supernatural comedy) each aired an episode titled with the phrase “I Know What You Did … Summers Ago” on the same night. On April 24, 2025, Elsbeth aired “I Know What You Did Thirty-Three Summers Ago” and Ghosts aired “I Know What You Did Thirty-Seven Summers Ago” . Both titles play on the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer, referencing events decades in the past (1992 in Elsbeth, 1988 in Ghosts). This appeared to be an intentional in-joke or thematic coordination by CBS – fans even speculated about a crossover due to the matching titles – though ultimately the storylines did not actually intersect. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation & Without a Trace (2007) – CBS orchestrated a two-part crossover between CSI and Without a Trace in November 2007, with each show’s episode title forming a matching question-and-answer pattern. The CSI episode was “Who and What” (Season 8, Episode 6) and the Without a Trace episode that concluded the story was “Where and Why” (Season 6, Episode 6) . Both aired back-to-back on November 8, 2007, on the same night. The coordinated titles – both two-word questions starting with “W” – were clearly intentional to link the plot (a murder/kidnapping case that begins in Las Vegas on CSI and resolves in New York on Without a Trace ). Magnum, P.I. & Murder, She Wrote (1986) – In a crossover between these two CBS hits, Magnum, P.I. (a detective adventure) and Murder, She Wrote (a mystery series) shared a story and referenced each other in their episode titles. The crossover began with Magnum, P.I. Season 7, Episode 9 “Novel Connection” (aired November 19, 1986) and concluded on Murder, She Wrote Season 3, Episode 8 “Magnum on Ice” four days later on November 23, 1986 . Each title nods to the other show: Magnum’s episode title hints at Jessica Fletcher (an author of novels) joining the case, and Murder, She Wrote’s title directly names Magnum. This deliberate pairing signaled the crossover nature of the episodes . Magnum, P.I. & Simon & Simon (1982) – Another early CBS crossover connected Magnum, P.I. with the detective buddy series Simon & Simon. Magnum’s episode “Ki’is Don’t Lie” featured the Simon brothers in Hawaii, and the plot concluded on Simon & Simon in the episode “Emeralds Are Not a Girl’s Best Friend.” The two episodes (aired in 1982) share a thematic link in their titles, both referring to a stolen cursed artifact (a Hawaiian idol and its emeralds) central to the story . This coordinated naming (Hawaiian-themed title on Magnum and a jewel-themed pun on Simon & Simon) was an intentional indicator of the connected storyline. Hawaii Five-0 & NCIS: Los Angeles (2012) – CBS staged a two-night crossover event between Hawaii Five-0 and NCIS: LA in April–May 2012, centering on a bioterror plot. Notably, the episode titles were linguistically correlated: the Hawaii Five-0 episode was titled “Pa Make Loa”, which is Hawaiian for “Touch of Death,” and the NCIS: Los Angeles episode the next night was titled “Touch of Death.” In other words, both episodes share the exact same meaning in different languages. This deliberate title mirroring reinforced the continuity of the crossover story (about a deadly virus threat), with Part 1 airing April 30, 2012 (Five-0) and Part 2 on May 1, 2012 (NCIS: LA) . FBI Franchise Crossover – “Imminent Threat” (2023) – In a franchise event on April 4, 2023, CBS aired a three-way crossover across its FBI shows, each hour labeled as part of a unified story titled “Imminent Threat.” The storyline began on FBI: International (Season 2, Episode 16) “Imminent Threat – Part One,” continued on the flagship FBI (Season 5, Episode 17) “Imminent Threat – Part Two,” and concluded on FBI: Most Wanted (Season 4, Episode 16) “Imminent Threat – Part Three.” According to IMDb, this was a “three-part crossover event” spanning all three series . All three episodes aired the same night in sequence, and the identical titles with part numbers signaled a single interconnected plot (in this case, a terrorist threat) spread across the FBI universe.
Broader TV Examples (Other Networks)
Law & Order & Homicide: Life on the Street – “Baby, It’s You” (1997, NBC) – In a rare cross-network collaboration of the 1990s, NBC coordinated a two-part crossover between Law & Order and Homicide. Both series used the same episode title, “Baby, It’s You,” for their respective parts of the story. Law & Order (Season 8, Episode 6) aired Part 1, and Homicide: Life on the Street (Season 6, Episode 5) aired Part 2 a few days later in November 1997 . The second part is often labeled “Baby, It’s You (2)” in listings , but the core title is identical – a clear intentional choice to emphasize the crossover’s seamless narrative (a joint investigation loosely inspired by the JonBenét Ramsey case). This marked one of the first instances of two different primetime shows sharing an episode title for a connected storyline. The Flash & Arrow – “Legends of Today / Legends of Yesterday” (2015, The CW) – The CW network (co-owned by CBS/Warner) has frequently done yearly crossover events in its DC superhero shows with coordinated titles. In December 2015, The Flash and Arrow had a two-night crossover titled “Heroes Join Forces.” The Flash episode was “Legends of Today,” and the story concluded the next night on Arrow with “Legends of Yesterday.” The pairing of these titles was very much intentional – together they wink at the upcoming spin-off Legends of Tomorrow (which the crossover was setting up) and indicate one continuous narrative. According to CW press, the event started on Dec 1, 2015 with The Flash’s “Legends of Today” and finished on Dec 2 with Arrow’s “Legends of Yesterday” . Multi-Show “Arrowverse” Crossovers – e.g. Crisis on Earth-X (2017, The CW) – The CW’s Arrowverse took coordinated titles to a high art in its multiseries crossover events. For example, November 2017’s four-way crossover “Crisis on Earth-X” spanned Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash, and Legends of Tomorrow in a two-night special. Each episode on the different shows shared the same title, only differentiated by Part 1, Part 2, etc. (e.g., Supergirl S3E8 “Crisis on Earth-X, Part 1”; Arrow S6E8 “…Part 2”; Flash S4E8 “…Part 3”; Legends S3E8 “…Part 4”) . This unified titling was absolutely intentional as part of the crossover stunt – essentially functioning as a single four-hour story spread across four series. Similar title coordination was used in other Arrowverse crossovers (Invasion! in 2016, Elseworlds in 2018, Crisis on Infinite Earths in 2019, etc.), where multiple shows’ episodes carried the same event name in their titles to signal the connected narrative. Chicago Franchise “Infection” Crossover (2019, NBC) – NBC’s Chicago franchise (Fire, Med, P.D.) has also done coordinated title events. In October 2019, a three-show crossover about a bio-terror outbreak had each episode titled “Infection” with a Part I, II, or III suffix. On one night, Chicago Fire S8E4 aired “Infection, Part I,” followed by Chicago Med S5E4 “Infection, Part II,” and Chicago P.D. S7E4 “Infection, Part III.” This was a unified storyline of a deadly bacteria spreading in Chicago . The matching titles (all simply “Infection”) made it clear to viewers that the three episodes were pieces of one larger narrative (and indeed they aired sequentially as a TV movie-style event). The “Blackout Thursday” Sitcoms (1994, NBC) – A thematic example (though not identical titles) occurred on NBC’s Must-See TV lineup on November 3, 1994. Three sitcoms that night – Mad About You, Friends, and Madman of the People – all featured a shared event (a New York City blackout) as a connective gimmick. Friends famously had “The One with the Blackout” (S1E7) that night, while Mad About You’s “Pandora’s Box” (S3E7) showed how the blackout started, and Madman of the People included the blackout as well. While their episode titles were not identical, they were thematically correlated to the blackout stunt (with Friends explicitly mentioning it in the title) . This event was an intentional network stunt to link the shows, showing another way titles or content can be coordinated across a lineup (in this case through a common phrase and scenario).
Each of these cases demonstrates TV producers and networks deliberately mirroring or complementing episode titles across different series. Whether for a direct crossover storyline, a spin-off introduction, or a fun themed night, such coordinated titles are a wink to the audience that the episodes share a connection – either narratively or conceptually – beyond the usual standalone airing of each show.