It’s Always Pretty Funny in Philadelphia

Well, I just finished another one of my marathon TV series watching sessions. This time it was for the much hyped It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as I was tired of people asking me why me, their friend who watches more TV than anyone they know who actually makes money, doesn’t watch it. I didn’t really have a reason, I haven’t been so much a fan of other FX shows like The Shield and Rescue Me, so I didn’t really think so much of giving an FX comedy a try.

But after two weeks and four and half seasons (right up until last night’s episode), I’ve busted out the entire series thus far, and I have to say, I am most impressed.
I’m told that the creators of the show (and subsequently the actors) set out to create a Curb Your Enthusiasm type pilot, and though that’s what they did at first. They took Curb, ringed out the awkwardness and amped up the crazy into a show that’s much, much more enjoyable to watch.

Where everybody knows your name, but most of them can’t spell it.

Curb has become practically a chore to watch these days. It’s so cringeworthy, it’s physically exhausting to watch most of the time because of how tense you have to be throughout the entire episode. Always Sunny starts out like that, but once the craziness sets in for good (right about the time Danny DeVito’s Frank Reynolds shows up) you just learn to go with the flow. The gang gets addicted to crack? Sure. The gang kidnaps a journalist? Why not? The gang declares Jihad on their Jewish neighbors? Absolutely. Outside of “The gang literally murders someone” or “Dee and Dennis commit incest” it’s hard to imagine just what they haven’t covered. And better yet, they intersperse the ridiculousness and vulgarity with current events commentary in a way very reminiscent of South Park.

So as you might imagine, a hybrid of Curb Your Enthusiasm and South Park with a little Arrested Development inside-joke-telling thrown in for good measure is certainly a show worth watching. Sure there have been some lulls, but I can’t tell if that’s because the episodes were actually less funny, or if I was just exhausted from the previous five episodes I’d already watched that day. Some shows are meant to be watched all back to back (Lost, BSG) while comedies usually are not. Too much of a good thing can grow old after awhile, but I’m happy to say after tonight’s episode which had me literally on the floor with Charlie’s “Kitten Mittons” video, Always Sunny shows no signs of slowing down. (Also, from last night, DickTowel.com is a real site, please go there).

I saw a girl dressed up as Dayman for Halloween. NOW I get it.

Another great thing about Always Sunny is that it’s a show you can jump right into without a second thought, which it’s hard to say about anything on TV these days outside of Deal or No Deal. All dramas must be started from the very beginning as to not lose any plot points, and most comedies you need to warm up to the characters for a while before laughing. Not so with Always Sunny, know a few different basic facts (Dee and Dennis are twins and the not-genetic children of Frank. Mac banged Frank’s wife and wears cut-off t-shirts. Charlie is in love with the waitress and is illiterate) and you’re good to go.

I’m a little upset that my Thursdays are now even more overloaded than they were before (Parks and Rec ,The Office, 30 Rock, Project Runway, FlashForward), but it’s nice to get into a show that I don’t have to invest a whole lot in to get into. It’s not a chore like belting out 60 hours of Oz or The Sopranos to get in on the watercooler conversations the next day, it’s only twenty minute little comedy bursts each week, packed with quotable lines and reenactable scenes without having to worry about all that “plot” and “character development” stuff.

It’s a damn good time, and I must salute all my friends who have been shoving this down my throat for years. For once, you were right.

Also: It’s entirely possible I’m in love with Sweet Dee now.