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Leave it to a comic to help create one of the silliest pop-culture theories in history.
Detective John Munch helped link TV shows across genre and decade into one interconnected web of intellectual property.
McDuffie called it Six Degrees ofSt.
Elsewhere,but make no mistake: The Munchiverse belonged to Richard Belzer.
The Munch Cinematic Universe is,by far, the best MCU.
Who is Tommy Westphall?
Our story starts in 1982, whenSt.
The show was always on the brink of being canceled, writer Tom Fontana told the podcastImaginary Worlds.
When the show was entering its last season, Fontana and theSt.
Weird but not earth-shattering, right?
Elsewhere,Fontana went on to write for a little show calledHomicide: Life on the Street.
Fontana crossedHomicideover with bothSt.
Homicidealso had a crossover withLaw & Orderin the shows sixth season.
According to Fontana, Belzer took on the Munch cameo joke as a mission between the two men.
He was like, Lets see, I could be on all theLaw & Ordershows.
Slowly Fontana and Belzer constructed the Munchiverse.
How many shows are we talking about here?
According to the Tommy Westphall Universe master list, there are 419 shows floating around that snow globe.
Looking at you,A Very Brady Sequel.
Of these crossovers,The X-Filesis perhaps the most impactful.
That showcrossed over with all sorts of stuff:The Simpsons,Cops,and more.
ButThe X-Filesdidnt invent Morleys.
This post was corrected to show that Belzer guested onThe X-Filesand notThe Lone Gunman.
