The second season of the American comedy television series ''

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McElhenney and Glenn Howerton that premiered on August 4, 2005 on FX and later FXX beginning with the ninth season in 2013. It stars Char ...

'' premiered on FX on June 29, 2006. The season contains 10 episodes and concluded airing on August 17, 2006.

Season synopsis

The series' second season introduces veteran actor

Danny DeVito Daniel Michael DeVito Jr. (born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him a Gold ...

portraying Dennis and Dee's father Frank, who moves in with wheelchair user Charlie following a car accident, and blackmails his way into the group. Anne Archer also has a recurring role as Barbara Reynolds, Dee and Dennis's promiscuous, cold-hearted mother. Meanwhile, Mac has sex with Barbara and spins a web of lies and deception in order to throw the rest of the gang off his tracks. The gang ups their efforts on the scheming front: the gang tries to fight back against a property anomaly that leaves their bar in the path of an Israeli immigrant's new place, Dennis and Dee quit their jobs and hatch a plot to get on welfare so they can live out their dream careers, and Frank—along with Charlie and Mac—exploit the religious when they discover a water stain in the back room that resembles The Virgin Mary. Charlie and Dee fight against cigarette smoking, while Frank, Mac, and Dennis fight back against their

freedoms Political freedom (also known as political autonomy or political agency) is a central concept in history and political thought and one of the most important features of democratic societies.Hannah Arendt, "What is Freedom?", ''Between Past and F ...

being encroached by making their bar an "anything goes" establishment that first attracts drunk college girls willing to flash their breasts for beads, but things do not go according to plan when heroin addicts, Vietnamese gamblers, and the incestuous McPoyle siblings get in on the action. At the end of the season, Dennis and Dee find a man on MySpace who claims (and turns out) to be their biological father, while Mac reunites with his convict dad, and Charlie is still trying to find the identity of his missing father.

Production

Before production of the second season began, series creator

Rob McElhenney Robert McElhenney III (; born April 14, 1977) is an American actor, producer, writer, podcaster and co-owner of Wrexham A.F.C. He is best known for his role as Ronald "Mac" McDonald on the FX/FXX comedy series ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelp ...

found out that

was a fan of the show and a friend of FX president,

John Landgraf John Phillip Landgraf (born May 20, 1962) is the Chairman of FX Networks. He is also a member of the Peabody Awards board of directors, which is presented by the University of Georgia's Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. ...

. McElhenney asked Landgraf to set up a meeting. McElhenney met DeVito at his home and pitched DeVito's character, Frank Reynolds. DeVito agreed to star in the show, but was only available for twenty days. To have Frank Reynolds in all ten episodes of the second season, all of DeVito's scenes were filmed before filming the season.

Cast

Main cast

Charlie Day Charles Peckham Day (born February 9, 1976) is an American actor, writer, producer and podcaster. He is best known for playing Charlie Kelly on the FX comedy ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present), which he co-created with Rob ...

as Charlie Kelly *

Glenn Howerton Glenn Franklin Howerton III (born April 13, 1976) is an American actor, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for the long-running dark satirical comedy ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present) on FX/FXX, a show he co-created ...

Dennis Reynolds Dennis Reynolds is a fictional character on the FX series ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present), portrayed by Glenn Howerton, and created by Rob McElhenney, Howerton, and Charlie Day. He is the co-owner of Paddy's Pub, alongside ...

as Mac * Kaitlin Olson as Dee Reynolds *

as Frank Reynolds

Recurring cast

Mary Elizabeth Ellis Mary Elizabeth Ellis (born May 11, 1979) is an American actress, best known for her recurring roles as The Waitress on the FX comedy ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present), Nick's ex-girlfriend Caroline in the Fox sitcom ''New ...

The Waitress ''The Waitress'' is the second album by folk singer-songwriter Jonathan Byrd. The album was released in 2003, the same year that Byrd won the New Folk competition at the Kerrville Folk Festival. ''The Waitress'' reached No. 20 on the Folk Ra ...

* Anne Archer as Barbara Reynolds

Guest stars

Natasha Leggero Natasha Leggero () (born March 26, 1974) is an American comedian, actress and writer. She rose to fame after appearing as the host of the MTV reality television series '' The 70s House'' in 2005, and as a regular roundtable panelist on Chelsea Ha ...

as Stripper #1 *

Tiffany Haddish Tiffany Sara Cornilia Haddish (born December 3, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian and actress. After guest-starring on several television series and lead role on a cable drama, Haddish gained prominence for her role as Nekeisha Williams on ...

as Stripper #3 *

Eddie Pepitone Edward David Pepitone (born November 5, 1958) is an American character actor and stand-up comedian. Early life Pepitone was born to a Sicilian father and a Jewish mother in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, and was raised from the age of nine ...

as Tony *

Aisha Hinds Aisha Jamila Hinds is an American television, stage and film actress. She had supporting roles in a number of television series, include ''The Shield'', ''Invasion'', ''True Blood'', ''Detroit 1-8-7'' and '' Under the Dome''. In 2016, she played ...

as Caseworker *

Lucy DeVito Lucy Chet DeVito (born March 11, 1983) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Stephanie in ''Melissa and Joey'' (2010–2012). Early life DeVito was born on March 11, 1983, in Los Angeles, the daughter of actors Danny DeVito a ...

as Jenny *

Lynne Marie Stewart Lynne Marie Stewart (born December 14, 1946) is an American actress, best known for her performance as Miss Yvonne, the Most Beautiful Woman in Puppet Land. She originated the role in the 1981 stage show ''The Pee-wee Herman Show'', continuing it ...

as Mrs. Kelly *

Sandy Martin Sandy Martin is an American actress, playwright, director, and producer. She is best known for her roles in the film '' Napoleon Dynamite'' and the TV series '' Big Love'', ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', and '' Ray Donovan''. Career Mart ...

as Mrs. Mac *

Eddie Mekka Edward Rudolph Mekjian (June 14, 1952 – November 27, 2021), known professionally as Eddie Mekka, was an American actor, best known for his role as Carmine Ragusa on the hit television sitcom '' Laverne & Shirley''. Early life Mekka was born in ...

as Bobby Thunderson *

Patrick Hallahan My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ...

as AA Director *

David Hornsby David Alan Hornsby (born December 1, 1975) is an American actor, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for a recurring role as defrocked priest Matthew "Rickety Cricket" Mara on the FX comedy series ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', f ...

as Father Matthew Mara *

Jimmi Simpson Jimmi Simpson (born November 21, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known for his work on television, which includes recurring roles as Liam McPoyle on ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–2013), Lyle the Intern on ''The Late Show ...

as Liam McPoyle * Nate Mooney as Ryan McPoyle *

Gregory Scott Cummins Gregory Scott Cummins (born 1956) is an American character actor known for his recurring roles in ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McE ...

as Luther Mac * Artemis Pebdani as Artemis *

Stephen Collins Stephen Weaver Collins (born October 1, 1947) is an American former actor and writer. He is known for playing Eric Camden on the television series '' 7th Heaven'' from 1996 to 2007. Afterwards, Collins played the roles of Dayton King on the ABC ...

as Bruce Mathis

Episodes

Reception

The second season received positive reviews. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, it has an approval rating of 95% with an average score of 7.8 out of 10 based on 21 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Gang becomes complete with the addition of Danny DeVito, whose wily performance gives ''Always Sunny'' a new shine."

Home media

The season two episodes are presented in production order, rather than their original broadcast order.

References

External links

* * {{It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia 2006 American television seasons It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia