It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Recently, I’ve been binge-watching the entirety (or all the episodes available on Hulu) of the long-running comedy series, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Almost every episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, I’ve enjoyed thoroughly, but there is one standout episode that I think everyone should watch at least once. . . .

“The Gang Hits the Slopes”

The premise of this episode is amazing (in my opinion - I should make this perfectly clear. This is all my personal opinion, not a matter of fact. In fact, this entire sub-category of “My Favorite” is just my opinion. If you don’t agree, I apologize.). Anyway, the premise is based entirely on 1980s movie tropes. The Gang (Charlie (played by Charlie Day), Dennis (Glenn Howerton), Mac (Rob Mac/Rob McElhenney), Dee (Kaitlin Olson), and Frank (the legendary icon Danny DeVito)) head to the Poconos for a skiing vacation for two days. Like almost every other episode (and sitcom in existence), the main character breaks up into groups for their own little plots. Dennis and Frank team up to buy the resort that the gang is staying at, and only make the slopes for the most powerful people. Mac and Dee just want to enjoy their vacation and make sure that people who come to the resort for future skiing vacations can enjoy the slopes. And Charlie is in the middle.

The reason I love this episode is because of its satirical nature. It’s making fun of 1980s movies and their terrible tropes that, after further reflection, don’t make any sense. For example, why sexual harassment was ok and why a competition would be the end-all be-all of a place (Charlie (wanting to save the slopes) and Dennis (wanting to make money) race each other for the outcome of the slopes). The idea that the outcome of what happens to this vacation spot really doesn’t have a big impact on the main characters - “We’re here for two days!” And finally, the running gag that a random unseen voice seemingly knows absolutely everything and is narrating that to every character as it's happening in real-time.

The show has always looked at terrible people doing terrible things, but this episode is different. Yes, half of them are doing terrible things. But the other half are just being themselves outside of their bar. It is, without a doubt, the perfect standalone episode to introduce a new viewer to The Gang before they dive into the history of the series, starting with “The Gang Gets Racist.”

Season 11 Episode 3: "The Gang Hits the Slopes"

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