It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia concluded its 15th season in December 2021, and the irreverent comedy is far from done as it is set to go on for at least a few more years. Not too shabby for a show that was on the verge of cancelation after its first season, a timeline that was avoided thanks to the arrival of Danny DeVito.
Largely set in and around Paddy's Pub, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia has produced countless iconic episodes and quotes that have become part of pop culture. The Gang are the worst, and the world loves them for it, so much so that Dennis, Dee, Charlie, Mac, and Frank have found themselves starring in plenty of hilarious memes. Here are some of the very best It's Always Sunny memes.
Updated January 1, 2023 by Mark Sammut: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia has at least three more seasons left in it, with the next batch of episodes expected to drop towards the end of 2023. The unapologetic comedy has been around for nearly two decades, and while there have been a few low points, It's Always Sunny has generally continued to produce laugh-out-loud episodes that reflect the cultural zeitgeist. Always Sunny memes are not in short supply, and their volume echoes the show's popularity and influence.
11 Cover Blown
Season 8's "The Gang Dines Out" has one of the funniest shots in the entire series. The Gang wind up eating at the same restaurant separately, and a battle of wits begins to determine who can keep pretending they didn't notice their colleagues the longest.
Charlie and Mac locking eyes is an all-time great It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia moment, and this meme captures its brilliance splendidly. In this case, the meme does not transform the scene, as its description is basically what happens during the episode.
10 They Don't All Float
Season 7 was the year Mac put on a lot of weight in pursuit of a scam that never came to fruition. Rob McElhenney went all-out and opted to put on the pounds legitimately rather than use a suit. Roughly a decade later, this storyline is still regarded as one of the show's high points and helped steady the ship following the uneven season 6.
When faced with crushing reality, Mac (and the rest of The Gang) tend to resort to delusion to safeguard their fragile egos. This meme blends a scene from Sunny's "Thunder Gun Express" with 1990's It as Pennywise encourages Mac to take a trip down to the sewer. Luckily for the latter, he is way too muscular to fit. If only Georgie had hit the gym, he might have survived.
9 The Conspiracy Of The Tarnished's Finger
Season 4's "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" sees Charlie and Mac get a job in charge of a company's mail room as they want health insurance. Overwhelmed by the endless flow of letters, Charlie stumbles upon a conspiracy revolving around Pepe Silvia, a person who appears to not exist. This storyline produced undoubtedly It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's meme masterpiece: Charlie's conspiracy.
This scene has inspired hundreds of memes, a number that is likely to continue to grow. Charlie's conspiracy is so far-reaching, it has even reached Elden Ring's The Lands Between. A picture is worth a thousand words, and this meme might be on to something.
8 The Implication
Except for Charlie's conspiracy board, Dennis' "Implication" speech is the most meme'd moment of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. In Season 6's "The Gang Buys a Boat," Dennis reveals his sinister interest in using a boat for dates, an explanation that leaves Mac mildly concerned. A brilliant example of the show's penchant for pitch-black humor, the implication represents Sunny at its most unsettling best, and this scene is frequently referenced on platforms such as Reddit.
Speaking of Reddit, this meme pokes fun at "Cakeday," which is a term used to refer to a user's profile-creation birthday. If someone publishes a post on the anniversary of the day they signed up on Reddit, they often receive a boost in karma (upvotes) along with a few comments wishing them Happy Cakeday. There is even a subreddit dedicated to giving away Cakeday karma.
7 The Frank Of Childbirth
Danny DeVito is the man. The actor has been producing comedy gold for decades, and Frank Reyolds captures DeVito's style of humor at its most repulsive and provocative. While the character steadily becomes more unhinged throughout the first half of the series, Frank has been the most consistent It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia character for the best part of a decade.
Frank coming out of the couch in Season 6's "A Very Sunny Christmas" is poetry in motion, permitting the poem largely consists of vulgarity, filth, and a hint of ham.
6 The Crushing Reality
When rated on a curve, Charlie is the "nicest" member of The Gang. At times, he is also the most relatable, especially since he is frequently the only one doing any actual work at Paddy's Pub. In Season 2's "Hundred Dollar Baby," Mac and Dennis enter Charlie into an underground fighting ring since he can take a beating better than just about anybody. However, Charlie ends up taking some of Dee's steroids and goes off the rails.
Charlie's mood swings produce plenty of laughs throughout this episode, a joke expertly adapted by this meme. Life can be exhausting, and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia shows that pretty accurately.
5 They Just Don't Get It
The Gang are not exactly the most empathetic of people. While Dee, Dennis, and Mac have grown a bit more socially conscious in recent seasons, that awareness is predominantly used to game the system or manipulate others. Sure, this "everyone else is an idiot" mentality makes them terrible people, but it also makes them pretty darn hilarious.
Using a moment from Season 7's "The High School Reunion," this meme shows that maybe, just maybe, there is some of The Gang in all of us.
4 Those Unforgettable Mac Memories
Some memories simply refuse to die. They linger at the edge of consciousness, waiting to reveal themselves whenever a moment of rest threatens to hit the mind. Regardless of the time or place, these flashbacks are inescapable; however, few things attract these glimpses into past embarrassments as consistently as sleep.
Season 14's "The Gang Gets Romantic" has nothing really to do with this issue, but this scene perfectly captures the moment anyway. Dennis's expression paints quite a clear picture.
3 Betrayal
There ain't no pain quite like abandoned plans. Once a pipping hot pizza has arrived and the beer is chilling, canceling a D&D session should be punishable by law. After such a betrayal, the only natural reaction would be to indulge in all of the food and drink in the general area. It is what Charlie would do.
In Season 4's "Mac’s Banging the Waitress," Charlie's anger and depression are fueled by a Dennis-inspired lie, but it isn't all that different from what this meme describes. In truth, isn't life just one endless D&D game?
2 Natural Progress
Matthew Mara makes his first appearance in Season 2's "The Gang Exploits a Miracle," putting the priest on the road to becoming Rickety Cricket. It is the type of journey that Oscar-bait movies are made of; in fact, could you not picture Daniel Day-Lewis as Cricket in a hard-hitting drama about drug addiction, homelessness, and peer pressure?
This It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia meme takes Cricket's heartbreaking story and gives it an endearing twist, one that should hit home for those who know the panic of impending submission dates.
1 Charlie Gets It
Charlie is the everyman. He gets it, in the sense that he doesn't get anything, which is the most "real" thing imaginable. In Season 4's "Dennis Reynolds: An Erotic Life," Charlie tries his hand at Dee's life, a decision that leads him to attempt stand-up comedy. The experience goes about as well as it usually does for Dee; apparently, cheese is not a strong enough base for a comedy set.
The thought of being stuck at a gathering without any friends could inspire anyone but the most social of butterflies to assume the fetal position. Charlie gets it.
