There’s nothing more fun in writing than proclaiming the death of something, and the death of the television comedy has been a favorite of journalists, critics, and bloggers alike for years. Who killed the comedy, these eulogizers ask? Networks? Reality shows? The proliferation of hour-long dramas that can easily qualify as comedies like “The Sopranos” and “Big Love”? With the cancellation of “Arrested Development,” the end of “Scrubs”, and the decline of “Curb of Enthusiasm” and “Entourage,” one can argue that in the U.S., only “The Office” and “Weeds” remain standing for adults who love their comedies fresh, intelligent, and surprising.
Enter the world of the F/X sitcom “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”
When I saw the first season two years ago, I was certain the show was doomed. Creator Rob McElhenney, who also plays Mac on the show, shot a pilot episode on a video camcorder for $85, taking Larry David’s “Seinfeld” premise (four unlikable characters who babble shrilly about “nothing”) and making it dirtier, more profane and politically incorrect than Costanza would ever dream of. F/X saw the pilot and ordered the first season, which drew under a million viewers. Based on strong word of mouth, especially among 18-35 year olds, F/X renewed the show anyway. After adding a recognizable face to the cast (Danny Devito), the ratings went up 15% in year two and now, in its third season, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” continues to deliver inspired comedy served black, the kind you don’t share at dinner parties.
Here’s what the show’s about: fraternal twins Sweet Dee (Kaitlin Olson) and Dennis (Glenn Howerton), the aforementioned Mac (McElhenney), Charlie (Charlie Day), and Frank (Devito) make up the Gang. They own a bar named Paddy’s Pub where they sit around, drink beer, and take aim at a litany of not-for-prime-time targets including the homeless, dumpster babies, transsexuals, male gigolos, the mentally disabled, North Koreans, trailer trash, and child molesters. But most importantly, like “Seinfeld,” the show’s favorite target is its stars: the self-absorbed, racist, sexist, willfully stupid members of the Gang itself.
Season Three, which ended last week, is beyond raunchy and irreverent - comedy unhinged. The episode titles speak for themselves (“The Gang Finds A Dumpster Baby,” “The Gang Solves the North Korea Situation,” “The Gang Dances Its Asses Off”). Recent episodes feature DeVito toting the bejeweled chalice and pimping out his own son, Sweet Dee and Charlie selling cocaine and getting a priest addicted, Mac and Frank opening a Korean sweatshop, and Charlie and Dennis competing in a dance-off to Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away” from Top Gun.
At last check, the show’s fate is still in doubt. F/X has not yet ordered a fourth season. I hope it happens soon. Television should be thanking God’s ass that it’s always sunny in Philadelphia.
