It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia kicks off its fifteenth season by making fun of censorship and PC culture, specifically the way that it’s affected the show itself. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has never been one to shy away from who or what it’s willing to make fun of, especially when it’s the stuff that the cast does both on and off camera. Season 15 has only just started, but it’s already clear that the show isn’t going to let up in the slightest in that regard.
In 2020, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia was one of many shows to have certain episodes pulled from streaming because of instances where people would dress up in blackface, including the episodes covering the popular bit of the Gang making their own continuation of the Lethal Weapon franchise. The removal of those episodes received heavy backlash from people not just because of their popularity, but because of how companies were ignoring that blackface was being used specifically to make fun of racists and genuine idiots. Mac, for example, was the one wearing blackface to portray Murtaugh, but the Gang was constantly telling him that he was wrong to do so; that, combined with his insistence that he was being respectful, should have made the show’s intentions clear, but the episodes still ended up being pulled.
Season 15 of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia starts by perfectly making fun of that entire situation. In the appropriately-titled episode “The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7”, the Gang learns that their self-produced films Lethal Weapon 5 and Lethal Weapon 6 were pulled from the library for being offensive thanks to Mac’s use of blackface. The Gang then makes a few comments about how they couldn’t believe the movies were in the library, to begin with, and that they probably shouldn’t have made them, very clear meta-commentary about their situation, and immediately after that, they decide to make a PC-friendly Lethal Weapon 7.
From there, the episode goes on to hilariously lampoon the negative aspects of censorship and political correctness. Not wanting to cast Frank as the villain since he can’t put on a good performance when he’s not being offensive, Dee is briefly cast to play a literal “Karen” with all of the stereotypical markings and mannerisms. After that, the Gang, deciding to go even further with the concept of political correctness, not only makes the antagonist a tidal wave, but felt the need to specify that it’s both not a tsunami in order to avoid offending the Japanese and that it’s not an act of any specific God; the Gang unanimously agreed that their attempts at being politically correct made their movie terrible.
In addition, the episode also made fun of how people and companies often act PC largely out of self-interest as opposed to simply wanting to do the right thing. Mac kept waiting for applause whenever he said that he wouldn’t be playing Murtaugh, something he never should have done in the first place, and despite the blackface controversy, no one batted an eye at a black man being cast to play the white Riggs. The satire hit its peak when it’s revealed that Dennis was pushing so hard for all of it because being “woke” is the only way for him to be able to have sex with young women, showing that he, and certain companies and individuals, only care about race issues when it makes for good PR, something the rest of the Gang is perfectly okay with.
The episode closes out with the movie being turned into a documentary about the Gang acting as “white saviors” for acting like they have the right to speak for black people. The Gang, completely ignorant of everything, calls the film offensive for acting like it had the right to make statements about them and decide to make a new Lethal Weapon film without a single hint of irony. It’s an ending that cements the episode as a brilliant critique on the double standards of censorship and PC culture, and it’s the exact kind of story one should expect out of a show like It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia.
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