we need to talk about It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

[mcmahonfan85]

so a lot has happened this season (spoilers for people who haven't seen it):

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}- Mac came out for reals this time
- Charlie finally banged the waitress
- Maureen Ponderosa is dead
- Cricket cleaned up his act...then made out with his dad's dog
- Wolf Cola (the right cola for closure) is still going strong and is a big hit with terrorists
- Charlie's Mom and Mac's Mom stared in their own hidden camera show (in which Mac's Mom was terrible. she should've been written out)
- Old Black Man is really Scott Bakula
- Dee is still Dee

but the biggest shocker of the season is (perhaps) happening off-screen. after last night's season finale...

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}Dennis, after learning he has a son, quits the gang and Paddy's to go be a father

...and an interview with Uproxx followed by the revelation he's signed on to do a show for NBC, it looks as though Dennis (Glenn Howerton) may be leaving It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

I have to start off with a question I’m pretty sure I know the answer to, but just in case: Are you leaving the show?

So… it’s a little complicated. I may seem a little bit evasive here, and I don’t mean to. It’s not entirely certain whether I am or am not. I might be. I might be, but I might not be. That really is the truth. Just to be clear, to dispel any potential weirdness, it has nothing to do with my relationship to anyone on the show or Rob or Charlie or anyone like that. It’s partially a creative and personal decision. We may be taking an extended hiatus between season 12 and season 13. So I’m certainly staying open to the possibility of doing more, but there is a possibility that I will not.

(An hour or so after we finished speaking, clarity appeared in the form of reports in the Hollywood trade press that Howerton has signed to do an NBC comedy pilot with Patton Oswalt. These things are usually verboten to discuss before they become official, and as the Variety report suggests, this would be a slightly different situation than Kaitlin Olson pulling double duty with Sunny and The Mick, since FX and Fox are corporate siblings (and thus more amenable to share their stars than NBC would be if it had Howerton on a series regular contract), and since Howerton is a writer and executive producer on Sunny, while Olson just acts. So it sounds like his availability for future seasons will depend on whether the NBC pilot goes to series, and/or whether Sunny season 13 is delayed long enough to create a hole in Howerton’s schedule that lets him do both.)

[The Heartbreak TWERK]

What is NBC's spaghetti policy?

[fuzzywarble, squat cobbler]

I still think it's a publicity stunt. Without Dennis, the show is not nearly as good.

Also, I don't like how they have fundamentally changed the characters just to pander to the fans. Mac coming out isn't nearly as great as him being in denial. Charlie banging the Waitress is so out of character, and abrupt, that it left me disappointed.

[Perd]

Really hoping Glenn's just playing up last night's story line. I know he's got that NBC pilot, but Kaitlyn Olson is doing two shows at once, so I'm sure they can make it work.

I didn't really like the season finale. Charlie finally hanging the waitress just didn't feel right. The only part that made me laugh was Dennis faking his death and the delayed gunshot sound.

[Capt Lunatic]

What else...what else...oh yeah, ANYTHING GOES IN TERMS OF SWEARING NOW.

Best season by far.

[Lazy peon]

Mar 9, 2017 15:37:34 GMT -5 Perd said:

Really hoping Glenn's just playing up last night's story line.

IT'S A WORK, BROTHER

[Deleted]

Mar 9, 2017 15:28:22 GMT -5 fuzzywarble, squat cobbler said:

I still think it's a publicity stunt. Without Dennis, the show is not nearly as good.

Also, I don't like how they have fundamentally changed the characters just to pander to the fans. Mac coming out isn't nearly as great as him being in denial. Charlie banging the Waitress is so out of character, and abrupt, that it left me disappointed.

I actually loved Charlie banging the waitress because of the aftermath. Her trying to ensure pregnancy, then calling him constantly to the point of annoying him was great in my opinion.

I'm okay with Mac coming out too. It's certainly not as funny, but things change as shows go on. Hopefully these changes are opening the door for them to focus on different things about the characters that are funny.

[No Name is needed Bro Beans]

Very funny season this year real glad we got at least 2 more seasons

[Citizen Snips]

I thought the actual moment where Mac came out in the arbitration hearing was incredibly well-done. He just seemed so at peace to finally be out. The jokes since then have been pretty predictable but that scene was great.

[BRV]

Mar 9, 2017 15:28:22 GMT -5 fuzzywarble, squat cobbler said:

I still think it's a publicity stunt. Without Dennis, the show is not nearly as good.

Also, I don't like how they have fundamentally changed the characters just to pander to the fans. Mac coming out isn't nearly as great as him being in denial. Charlie banging the Waitress is so out of character, and abrupt, that it left me disappointed.

I thought this was a particularly lackluster season and those two moments that you mentioned, which really should have been reserved for the final season if they ever happened, really did feel like catering to fans more than actually writing new developments for the characters.

If the Dennis character truly is gone, then the show has no reason to go on. No single character carries "It's Always Sunny" but the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Dennis isn't crucial to every episode, but the show couldn't go on without him. The same can be said for Charlie, Dee, and Mac. There have been single episodes where individual characters have had little to no roles but the show couldn't exist without one of The Gang being altogether eliminated.

I do hope they take an extended sabbatical between this season and next season, not only to entice Glenn Howerton to stay on board, but also to fix the kinks in the show that have been apparent since about midway through last season. Their over-reliance on bottle episodes and pounding you over the head rather than winking and nodding at you (the show used to subtly hint at Mac being gay or Dennis being a deranged madman, now they just smash those subplots into your face) has grown tiresome. Give it some time to breathe, get some fresh ideas, and come back strong in 18 to 24 months rather than 12.

[Grand Papillon "The Banker"]

Frank's decent proposal is hysterical

Also, hero or hate crime was groundbreaking on the level of George Carlin in terms of saying everything you just can't say.

This season was solid. 12 years in to a live action comedy show, the fact that they still hit it out of the park more often than they strike out is incredible.

[fuzzywarble, squat cobbler]

The season was okay, but the show has clearly peaked.

[sfvega]

Mar 10, 2017 0:09:00 GMT -5 fuzzywarble, squat cobbler said:

The season was okay, but the show has clearly peaked.

This season has been a huge disappointment for me, mainly because last season was incredible. Chardee MacDennis 2 was as good as the show has been, Being Frank was amazing, the episode when they moved to the suburbs was fantastic.

This season has just been really flat. But that happens with South Park a lot, too. Maybe it's just something with sustained success that makes it almost a lock to follow a strong season with a stinker.

[Deleted]

Thought it was a very good season, will be so disappointed if he leaves because Dennis is probably my favorite character.