The 10 Greatest ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ Episodes of the Last 5 Years, Ranked
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It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has just celebrated its 20th anniversary and wrapped up its 17th season. Season 17 of the longest-running live-action sitcom saw The Gang getting up to business as usual, which, of course, meant some new schemes. They wreaked chaos at Abbott Elementary, started a two-in-one food delivery and EMT service in an ambulance, and prepared to go on television when Frank (Danny DeVito) became The Golden Bachelor.
In its 17 seasons, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has had so many iconic episodes, including “The Nightman Cometh,” “Charlie Work,” and “Mac Finds His Pride.” In the past five years, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has aired Seasons 15, 16, and 17, and the show is still just as fantastic as ever. These are the best It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia episodes of the last five years, ranked.
10
“The Gang Goes Bowling”
Season 16, Episode 7
Throughout its 17 seasons, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has both introduced and brought back a number of fantastic recurring side characters. The show takes full advantage of this in the penultimate episode of Season 16, “The Gang Goes Bowling.” In “The Gang Goes Bowling,” the rest of The Gang learns that Dee (Kaitlin Olson) is the captain of an all-women bowling team made up of The Waitress (Mary Elizabeth Ellis), Artemis (Artemis Pebdani), and Gail the Snail (Mary Lynn Rajskub).
“The Gang Goes Bowling” is a fun episode that feels like classic It’s Always Sunny, as the rest of the gang competes with Dee’s team to see who will win. It plays around with the very best dynamics among the gang and these three recurring characters, and it also does some interesting things with Dennis (Glenn Howerton) and Dee’s sibling rivalry (complete with some bizarre and hilarious bowling pins that Dee imagines to all look like Dennis).
9
“The Gang’s Still in Ireland”
Season 15, Episode 6
Season 15’s Ireland arc is one of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s rare linear seasonal storylines, and it’s done very well. Right as Dee is getting ready to go to Ireland for an audition, the rest of The Gang decide to take a trip there as well, and they all wind up there for the back half of Season 15. In “The Gang’s Still in Ireland,” Charlie (Charlie Day) finally meets his biological father, Shelley Kelly (Colm Meaney), who’s also his long-time pen pal.
“The Gang’s Still in Ireland” is a very funny episode that sees Dennis in full denial about the fact that he has COVID-19. Dennis gets sicker, and even starts having conversations with the castle in which he and Dee are staying, but he still insists that he’s perfectly healthy. Meanwhile, Mac (Rob McElhenney) decides to join the seminary, but he’s distracted by a handsome priest. The episode is absolutely hilarious, but it’s also very emotional, as Frank becomes insecure about Charlie and Shelley’s instant connection.
8
“The Golden Bachelor Live”
Season 17, Episode 7
The concept of Frank being the Golden Bachelor is already a phenomenal premise for an episode, but “The Golden Bachelor Live” also executes this perfectly. The episode is structured like the season finale of The Golden Bachelor, complete with onstage commentary from Jesse Palmer, and flashbacks to Frank’s season. Frank is an unconventional Golden Bachelor, and he ultimately had to end up choosing between three women: his perfect match, Sam (Carol Kane), a “Hawk Tuah Girl” spoof, “Chewy” (Audrey Corsa), and Bonnie Kelly (Lynne Marie Stewart, to whom the episode gives a lovely tribute).
“The Golden Bachelor Live” is the perfect blend of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and the Bachelor franchise. Frank does everything that the Golden Bachelor shouldn’t do: he tries to get rid of every woman his age, is blatantly rude to many of the women, and tells stories that are definitely not network TV-appropriate. Still, against all odds, Frank has found love with Sam, and the episode ends on a touching note.
7
“The Gang Inflates”
Season 16, Episode 1
Since Frank moved in with Charlie at the start of Season 2, the two of them have been sharing a tiny studio apartment without a bathroom. In the Season 16 premiere, “The Gang Inflates,” it’s revealed that Charlie has been hiding a secret bedroom and bathroom all this time. It’s the perfect twist for being so late in the show, and it sets off a chain of events where the gang learns about inflation and responds accordingly.
Mac and Dennis come up with a scheme to sell inflatable furniture, and give up all of their furniture in the process, and Dee almost loses her apartment when her landlord – who, of course, turns out to be Frank – plans to evict her. It’s such a fun episode that sees Mac eating nuts in spite of an obvious allergy, and the rest of The Gang struggling to make smart financial decisions.
6
“Frank vs. Russia”
Season 16, Episode 4
It’s rare for a sequel episode to be better than the original, but “Frank vs. Russia” is the perfect successor to “The D.E.N.N.I.S. System.” While Frank and Charlie focus on entering Frank into a chess tournament, Dennis tries to help Mac and Dee get boyfriends. Mac already has an online boyfriend named Johnny (who is actually Dennis catfishing him), so he’s reluctant to learn Dennis’ S.I.N.N.E.D. system, while Dee just ends up willfully misunderstanding the steps.
“Frank vs. Russia” perfectly blends its A and B plots together, as Frank ends up using an unconventional method to cheat at the chess tournament in an absolutely hilarious scene. The catfishing reveal is also the perfect twist for the episode, and it is very fitting for Mac and Dennis’ dynamic. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is at its best when it takes major risks, and “Frank vs. Russia” is full of risks that really pay off.
5
“Frank Is in a Coma”
Season 17, Episode 2
“Frank Is in a Coma“ is one of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s heavier and more darkly comedic episodes. When Frank goes into a coma, the rest of The Gang reacts pretty much as one would expect. Dennis, Mac, and Charlie go to a gala to try to franchise Paddy’s now that Frank’s out of the way, while Dee tries to claim an inheritance while left alone with Frank and his nurse (Audrey Wasilewski) at his apartment.
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia always does the perfect job of balancing intense emotional moments with dark comedy, and “Frank Is in a Coma” does this perfectly. When Dee finds an old drawing of her and Frank, she believes that he really does love her, and she bursts into tears. As Dee and the rest of the gang are grieving Frank while planning to pull the plug, it’s then revealed that he faked a coma and replaced himself with a cake to prove a point about Is it Cake?.
4
“Mac and Dennis Become EMTs”
Season 17, Episode 3
Season 17 has so many fantastic episodes that push The Gang’s schemes to even more over-the-top places than usual. In “Mac and Dennis Become EMTs,” the whole gang is suddenly obsessed with hot peppers. Frank poisons a Paddy’s customer with hot peppers and severely injures him, which The Lawyer (Brian Unger) tries to use as an opportunity to get his revenge. After this experience, Mac and Dennis try to become EMTs, and end up taking matters into their own hands.
Every plotline in “Mac and Dennis Become EMTs” is absolutely hilarious. Mac and Dennis behave poorly in their EMT class and then become EMTs without the necessary training or certification, with Charlie basically turning into Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) for the episode, and ends up running a restaurant out of his and Frank’s apartment. All three storylines come together at the end, and The Gang ends up using the ambulance to deliver food, crashing it, and blaming the whole thing on The Lawyer.
3
“Dennis Takes a Mental Health Day”
Season 16, Episode 8
In the last handful of seasons, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has been very deliberate with its season finales, and the results are always fantastic. The Season 16 finale, “Dennis Takes a Mental Health Day,” shows Dennis going to the doctor for a routine appointment. When Dennis learns that he has high blood pressure, though, he takes the day off to try to relax.
Throughout the episode, Dennis only encounters obstacle after obstacle, as technology continues to fail him. Frustrated and fed up, Dennis goes to see the CEO of the company that makes a fancy car that he’s been driving. After Dennis rips out the CEO’s heart, turns it into a diamond, and eats it, it’s revealed that the entire episode is taking place inside Dennis’ head. It’s an excellent twist, and the episode is the perfect insight into Dennis as a character.
2
“The Gang Gets Ready for Prime Time”
Season 17, Episode 7
In the penultimate episode of Season 17, “The Gang Gets Ready for Prime Time,” The Gang learns that they’ll have to go on TV for Frank’s Golden Bachelor hometown dates. Dennis is worried that the gang will embarrass both themselves and him, so he arranges for them to do a practice dinner for three focus groups. Each dinner is weirder and weirder, as The Gang struggles to act normal.
“The Gang Gets Ready for Prime Time” is an absolutely hilarious episode, both for how The Gang acts onstage, and how their audience reacts to them. Charlie creates a character for the occasion, Dee keeps cracking jokes, and Mac tries to impress the audience with backflips. Fed up with the audience’s dislike of him and their belief that he and Mac are a couple, Dennis then gives an intense monologue onstage, where he admits his fear of repeating his Family Fight humiliation.
1
“The Gang Carries a Corpse Up a Mountain”
Season 15, Episode 8
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is very sparing with its emotional moments, which is why they hit so hard. Its two most devastating and poignant scenes are definitely Mac’s coming out dance in “Mac Finds His Pride,” and Charlie’s breakdown in “The Gang Carries a Corpse Up a Mountain.” In the Season 15 finale, “The Gang Carries a Corpse Up a Mountain,” Charlie tells The Gang that his father, Shelley, has died, and he insists that The Gang help carry Shelley’s body up a mountain.
“The Gang Carries a Corpse Up a Mountain” is a brilliant episode that isolates The Gang on a mountain for most of it, where many of their issues come to the surface. Mac learns that Dennis and Charlie tricked him into thinking he didn’t have Irish heritage, and Dee learns that Dennis may have put her date at risk with some hot oil. As members of The Gang slowly drop off from the hike, the episode builds up to a moment where Charlie breaks down and expresses his hurt and anger about being abandoned by Shelley for his whole life.
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