“Now here’s what I remember from my brown state.” – Dennis
Kaitlin Olson’s pregnancy hasn’t exactly been hidden well over the length of the first six episodes of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’s sixth season. They tried to cover it up with purses and bars and pool water, but we all knew what was up. We all knew. And frankly, it was a little distracting. So needless to say it was something of a relief to finally have it acknowledged in “Who Got Dee Pregnant?”
The basic premise is this: the boys have a plan to spend the night in the museum, Night at the Museum-style. (If you are unfamiliar, Night at the Museum is a movie about a night in a museum.) Dee mocks them for thinking the exhibits will come to life so they mock her right back for her apparent weight gain. But she reveals that her weight gain is actually the result of her impregnation at the bar’s Halloween party… by one of the guys in The Gang.
Dee leaves and the fellas gather around and try to piece together their drunken memories of who might have been the culprit. Unfortunately, everyone “browned out” (Mac’s phrase meaning not quite completely blacked out as there are bits and pieces still remembered) and they each have varying takes of the events of that evening, a la Rashomon.
And this is the part where I admit that it is going to be very difficult to explain all of this in this review. Everything is out of order and a lot of it is incorrect and there’s a few shots of Frank and Artemis having sex in a dumpster behind a Wendy’s and it’s all just too much for me. Too much! So while everyone recalls their equally interesting perspectives on the night, let’s just flash-forward to the actual events. Sure, it’s lazy, but you’re talking to a guy who once ordered Jimmy Johns delivery for five straight meals in college.
Charlie (Charlie Day), dressed as a vampire Phantom of the Opera, mistakes a masked blonde woman for The Waitress and tries to start a fight with the woman’s boyfriend. Mac (Rob McElhenney), dressed as “Vijjo Mortenstein” from Lord of the Rings, comes to Charlie’s rescue by punching the innocent blonde woman in the face, causing the nearby McPoyle’s to spill their milk on Dee. Artemis, in the midst of a fight with Frank (Danny DeVito), makes out with Charlie to cause jealousy in Frank. Artemis is a woman who uses rolled up dough as a sex toy so Charlie is naturally disgusted by this. Thinking his costume is too sexy, he accepts Dennis’ (Glenn Howerton) offer to switch costumes, a move that Dennis thinks will help him hook up with a sexy woman in a peacock outfit.
Meanwhile, Mac goes into the bathroom to wipe the Waitress look-a-like’s blood off his knuckles and is greeted by Margaret McPoyle, with whom he soon fornicates. Dee, covered in milk, convinces the peacock lady to switch costumes with her. And to prove she can still be sexy, despite what the guys said earlier, she pulls Charlie into the bar’s office to make sweet love to him. But, as we just learned, Dennis is now in Charlie’s costume, thus making Dennis – Dee’s own brother(!) – the father of the baby.
The guys of The Gang confront Dee and she reveals that of course Dennis isn’t the father. Just because she pulled him into the office, doesn’t mean she had sex with him. She just said one of them was the father to get into their heads. And then she gives them the kicker: she’s not even going to tell them who the real father is.
But, of course, they are assholes and don’t actually care as long as it’s not one of them. She slams the door on their bird-insults and they leave to enjoy their night at the museum, Night at the Museum-style.
Some might call it a cop-out that Dee’s baby’s father isn’t really revealed, but I got a huge kick out of the guys’ reaction. It was all the more appropriate for them to not give a s— than if they actually made it into a big deal. It’s Always Sunny is a show that subverts a lot of classic sitcom mores and leaving the audience hanging is one such example.
This sixth season might have started slow, but the last four episodes have all been spectacular. To people worrying about Sunny jumping the shark, I think it’s time to put the water skis away.
Lingering thoughts about “Who Got Dee Pregnant?”:
- The sight gag of Dee becoming more and more bird-like until she ultimately is played by a real ostrich was inspired.
- Spiderman and Man-Spider. Don’t you dare get them mixed up.
- Who else is going to start using “Brown Out” all the time now?
- “Wait a second. You definitely said that before.” – Charlie
- “There’s a good reason for that Frank because I think Mac just made it up on the spot.” – Dennis
- “She will be mine.” – Dennis. Creepy voice necessary.
- “This time I will bump it.” – Charlie
- “She incorporated a bun into the love making.” – Frank
- “Mac’s the dad! Chant with me!” – Charlie
- “There was no time for an ocular pat-down.” – Mac
- “I want to call her an emu, but I want to save it.” – Mac
Some stats and info about It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, “The High School Reunion”
TV SHOW – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
SEASON/EPISODE – Season 6, Episode 7
AIRED ON – October 28th, 2010
NETWORK/STREAMING SERVICE – FX, FXX, Hulu
GENRE – Comedy, Office Culture
CREATED BY – Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton
CAST – Charlie Day, Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson, Danny DeVito
This review originally appeared on TV Geek Army.