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"Sabrina the Teenage Witch" was a frequent companion for millennials in the '90s who were too young to hang out at the movies on Friday nights. Instead, they hung out with Sabrina Spellman (Melissa Joan Hart) and her friends in the fantasy sitcom. The show moved networks from ABC to the WB for the college years from 2000 to 2003, avoiding cancellation. The new network and new era in Sabrina's life came with big changes, like new friends Roxie (Soleil Moon Frye) and Morgan (Elisa Donovan) and new love interests. One of those boyfriends was Aaron Jacobs (Dylan Neal), who is introduced in Season 7, Episode 13, "Sabrina in Wonderland" — an episode that includes bizarre "Happy Days" callbacks that make sense when you learn the history of the show.
In the episode — which you can watch free with ads on YouTube — Sabrina is attracted to Aaron, and the feeling is mutual, but something about him that she can't put into words causes her to flee from him every time he tries to ask her out. So, she looks for a spell to help her figure out what makes him tick. Ingredients for the spell include something from his heart. So she does some sleuthing, finds out he loves "Happy Days," and summons Richie's (Ron Howard) beloved sidekick Potsie (Anson Williams) for her potion.
Williams appears in a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo. The spell conjures up a watch that is supposed to give her the answer, but then a rabbit steals the watch, and she follows him down a rabbit hole à la "Alice in Wonderland." In the alternate universe, the rabbit is played by Danny Most, who played Ralph Malph on "Happy Days," though he is unrecognizable in a rabbit costume that includes full makeup.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch has many connections to Happy Days
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It's basically impossible for a sci-fi sitcom about a young witch to have a moment so ridiculous that it's classified as a "jump the shark" moment like Fonzie's (Henry Winkler) on "Happy Days," but there's no denying the episode concept is pretty bizarre. However, the cameos become a little less random when you consider that "Happy Days" and "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" both aired on ABC. Plus, Anson Williams was a regular director on the show, directing 10 episodes from 1999 to 2003. He directed both "Sabrina in Wonderland" and another Season 7 episode that featured a fantastical theme, "Cirque du Sabrina," in which Sabrina's room fills with circus performers when she's having trouble balancing her relationship with Aaron with work responsibilities and friendships. Winkler also directed two episodes of the show in 2000 and 2002. Sadly, Winkler didn't reprise his iconic "Happy Days" character.
Melissa Joan Hart eventually became a director and was behind the camera for nine episodes of "Sabrina" between 2000 and 2003 early in her directing journey. She told TV Insider in 2019 that legendary director Garry Marshall, the creator of "Happy Days," was a mentor of hers. Although she couldn't remember if it was Winkler or Williams who gave her Marshall's number, she said one of them made the connection.
Marshall eventually guest starred on a Season 7 episode of "Sabrina" called "Bada-Ping," which was directed by Williams. So, when considering every connection the show has to "Happy Days," it actually becomes surprising that "Sabrina in Wonderland" is the episode with the most callbacks to the iconic '70s sitcom.
