The second season of the American television sitcom series ''

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...

'' 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 and filmmaker. He gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series ''Taxi (TV series), Taxi'' (1978–1983), which won him ...

portraying Dennis and Dee's father Frank, who moves in with temporary wheelchair user Charlie following a car accident, and blackmails his way into the group.

Anne Archer Anne Archer (born August 24, 1947) is an American actress. Archer was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971, and in the year following, appeared in her feature-film debut '' The Honkers'' (1972). She had supporting roles in '' Cancel My Reservation'' ...

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 ...

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, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for his role as Mac on the FX/ FXX comedy series '' It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present), a show he created and co ...

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 remainder of the season.

Cast

Main cast

Charlie Day Charles Peckham Day (born February 9, 1976) is an American actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for playing Charlie Kelly (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia), Charlie Kelly on the FX Networks, FX dark comedy ''It's Always Sunny in Phila ...

as Charlie Kelly *

Glenn Howerton Glenn Franklin Howerton III (born April 13, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Dennis Reynolds on the long-running sitcom ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present) on FX/ FXX, a series he co-developed with Rob ...

Dennis Reynolds The following is a list of recurring characters from the FX television series '' It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia''. The Gang , - , style="text-align: left;", Notes: Charlie Kelly Charles "Charlie" Kelly is the janitor of Paddy' ...

Mac Mac or MAC may refer to: Common meanings * Mac (computer), a line of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * Mac, a prefix to surnames derived from Gaelic languages * McIntosh (apple), a Canadi ...

Kaitlin Olson Kaitlin Willow Olson McElhenney (born August 18, 1975) is an American actress and comedian. She is best known for her role as Deandra "Sweet Dee" Reynolds in the FX comedy series ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' (2005–present). She curr ...

as Deandra "Dee" Reynolds *

Frank Reynolds Frank James Reynolds (November 29, 1923 – July 20, 1983) was an American television journalist for CBS and ABC News. Reynolds was a New York–based anchor of the '' ABC Evening News'' from 1968 to 1970 and later was the Washington, D ...

Recurring cast

Mary Elizabeth Ellis Mary Elizabeth Ellis (born May 11, 1979) is an American actress. She is 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 sitco ...

as The Waitress *

as Barbara Reynolds

Guest stars

Episodes

Reception

The second season received positive reviews. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, 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 ...

, 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 seasons