Strangely enough, this praise for sunny is often the same as the criticism for South Park - they make a joke out of all sides and every situation. However, I think SP does it in a way that's very, "if you have an opinion, you're an idiot," and sunny does it in a way that's more "if you have an opinion, and don't think critically about it, you're an idiot," and the difference is immense.
South Park has no sides, and creators revel in that fact; it's so completely neutral and it's considered outstanding by some. The Gang makes you think about the side your on. It considers both side instead of marking them as pointless and stupid for even being a thing. Like the Gun Fever episodes, they show both sides in positive and negative light and it's up to YOU to make what you will of it. RGC gave us the Legos and it's up to us to create something with them.
I got the joke about Dennis being on the fence, but I feel like there's also a joke hidden in the fact that they're throwing eggs as opposed to tomatoes. Get it? Fighting over reproductive rights... throwing eggs.
Good catch (no pun intended). I hadn't noticed that until now. Itls one of those subtle jokes that could go either way. On the one hand, egging is a thing, but on the other it could be a commentary on how both sides hate ech other so much that they just use the issue to bash each other over the head, not realizing they become part of the problem. I actually once saw an anti abortionist comment somewhere that he wanted to troll the other side by posing as pro life and staging a protest where they all smash fertilized eggs to prove that it wasn't actually life or whatever, and record the reactions of the pro life people who would probably not react well.
So you really not going to mention how Mac completely reverses his stance on abortion the moment it actually pertains to him XD It doesn't just work because the characters play both sides, it works because the characters play both sides but have absolutely no principles and are willing to shift all their opinions to their own benefit.
It's Sunny is so great because it's such an incredibly smart show but also such an incredibly stupid show at the same time. They really nail that balance most of the time.
@Django Fett it is objectively the worst tho its fantastic and funny, does a brilliant job establishing the characters, and without it Danny Devito would've never come aboard but it's easily the least quality overall out of the 13 we've gotten so far
The absolute knee slapper I got after the end of the abortion episode where Macs one-time lover in the episode says she's pregnant and then Mac says "You gotta get an abortion", that fucking got me more than anything else. Which is the beauty of the episode, one grand joke being built up for 19 or so minutes.
I would actually disagree that Dennis is supposed to be the media. I think Frank represents the capital, the industry, the military industrial complex if you wish while Dennis is the good looking, smooth talking, charming politician who presents himself as the speaker of the common people (Mac and Charlie) but in reality works together with Frank to keep "the commoners" divided over stupid issues to further his own desire for appearing powerful and influential.... and puss of course ;)
the way you said it sounds more like animal farm, frank is napoleon, dennis is squealer, mac and charlie are the other animals, except actually discuss stuff in always sunny
In the first episode you covered I thought it was blatantly obvious that neither Dennis nor mac actually had a logical argument for their decision or even believed in, they just wanted to get banged by someone who did believe in each side. But Dee, the female who was never allowed to vote is the only one with a real logical reason to believe her side of the argument
Let's sprinkle magic, magic water on baby so the loving, loving ghost doesnt put baby in everlasting fire.'We also need to say hocuspocus and amen several times!
I've always seen it as a showing that since they are all kinda horrible people in their own it is saying that your political opinion isn't an indicator of who you are and more that it is mocking this idea people have that someone who you voted for is a marker for where you land on a moral spectrum
good analysis of sweet dee gets audited, never occurred to me before! I don't entirely agree with you but I do think they tend to sidestep the issues themselves and instead comment on the extent to which people's "morals" are based in self interest. one of the running jokes about the gang is how quickly they'll drop their supposed convictions or become self righteous about something as soon as its convenient. so a different reading of Charlie wants an abortion would be that it's more of a critique of Mac and Dennis for exploiting the issue for their own gain. on the other hand, episodes like the gang goes jihad and Mac fights gay marriage do sort of seem to take a stance
@@joeconkle8826 how when in the first episode they shit on the whole diversity thing and needing change. also how this issues are just used for profit. and the way u say left leaning... identity politics really has screwed america coz nothing can be looked at objectively
and one can have varied opinions depending on the topic. i can support abortion and still want guns around. but no that's too complex for a human being. left/right, americans are so dumb. this system was used by the british ruling class to divide the people and forget about feudalism. i mean people actually had a fcking civil war coz they couldn't agree slavery was bad. but am guessing u are gonna say it was republicans that wanted to abolish slavery forgetting that the party abandoned their ideals and were for segregation. some issues are just about the humane thing to do, but when this affects someone's money they can use the public to their advantage coz some people want to validate some horrible opinions they have formed coz they don't wanna seem like bad people. leading to this whole left/right bs. like seriously how can u sum up someone's outlook on society and life issues into two groups and u fall on one or the other??? left leaning... sorry but that is so stupid
@Demacai disagree I would argue that episodes 1, 3, 4, 6, and 10 were all trying to teach me something, which I never got those vibes from previous seasons. Season 13 just seemed a little off, and I personally attributed part of that to feeling like I was getting preached at sometimes, but I also thought there were 2 legit dud episodes (8 & 9) in season 13 which I've never experienced from Sunny before.
Hey just discovered this- great vid! That being said, I kinda disagree about IASIP’s political stance. I don’t think the creative direction is neutral, I think it’s neither “democrat” nor “republican” (both technically neoliberal parties), and certainly not “Alt-right” (basically rebranded fascism). In my opinion, the tone of the show is leftist (probably some form of libertarian socialism; an-com, an-synd, etc). Ok so get ready for wall of text- I’m about to go sicko mode. The show repeatedly takes direct shots at capitalism and makes the socio-economic system of America the primary target of the satire. Not to mention, most of the Gang’s schemes are just absurd attempts at engaging in normal capitalism- the “Solves the Gas Crisis” scheme is just trading commodities, the “Housing Crisis” one is just about being an exploitative property owner, and the most recent season finale “Waiting for Big Moe” is an awesome recreation of Godot, but also directly about the hollowness of pursuing success under neoliberalism. Much of what makes the Gang evil is their horrible childhoods- mostly explored in “A Very Sunny Christmas”- all of their situations being a pretty direct result of the awful culture of extreme poverty and decadent, hollow wealth that they were raised in. Not that it excuses their behavior- it just makes them human enough to want to keep watching their antics. Point is, what makes the gang sympathetic enough to watch is the suffering they’ve undergone, and most of that suffering is very explicitly due to exploitation, poverty, and meaningless consumer culture. Just my 2 cents
I agree - I don’t personally get how people can watch the show and not get that it’s coming from a leftist perspective but I guess there are different ways to view things I think there’s a possibility an alt right minority who watch it just go ‘haha it’s offensive’ and the point sails over their head… (someone in this comment section called Dennis “rational”, so those people must exist….) but I hadn’t considered previously that’d it’d have any appeal to those kinds of audiences
@@BigKicksMix from what I’ve seen, the alt-right group is actually a lot bigger than we think. My dad used to be one of them when he introduced me to IASIP, but the show actually ended up convincing him to become more moderate lol
replying to tis after three years lol but yess. the show is definitely from a leftist perspective with the opinions displayed throughout the show - showcasing the ridiculousness of capitalism, the alt-right, and other matters such as abortion, palestine, gun control, queerness and the like. far-right people who watch the show are fans because they think the show is 'on their side' so it does cultivate some ambiguity but a bit of critical thinking brings forth what the show is really about
Always Sunny and King of the Hill are the two shows that handle politics the best. Community is pretty good at it too... and their free speech episode is extra ironic now.
Making both sides look ridiculous and using basic rhetoric is one way they do it but they also have a way of making weirdly profound statements and critiques of things in society that are just enough below the surface that if you don’t wanna take the message you don’t have to, and things end up so ridiculously that you can dismiss a message cuz it’s just a ridiculous show. Also all of the characters are shitty and don’t know squat about politics so you can blame that for their opinions, and furthermore, many political episodes end unresolved coming to no conclusion at all. The magic of this is that it’s capable of being offensive without actually offending a reasonable person, but it still brings up the topic for you to decide for yourself. It can be risky by speaking about hot topic issues but still reach a wide audience by having characters too screwed to properly pick a side. It’s genius
I found the egg throwing very funny when watching that episodes. I don't know if this was the intention but the fact anti-abortion people were throwing eggs at people without a care for them was very amusing. (i'm aware they're unfertilised and from chickens but still, i saw some humour there)
Even though the abortion episode was largely balanced, keep in mind Dee was the "voice of reason" character in season one. And hers was the pro-choice position. The Pickle Party was an obvious shot at the Tea Party. FIrst of all, at the time this episode was filmed, the Tea Party was very much in the news. It was a major catalyst for the 2010 midterm losses by the Democrats. Then, consider how the Pickle Party describes themselves: *"If you're not as educated or as informed, what you do is you start your own party and you yell the loudest."* If that doesn't tell you where the Sunny creators politics lie, well...still a brilliant show, though. You are correct. The vast majority of the time, they do keep it neutral.
Dee may have been the "voice of reason" in season one but she her motivations have been shallow since the first episode. Their politics seems fairly left leaning, but it's always reprehensible characters spouting either side of the argument. Plus, it's shown early on that Dee's character has no political knowledge at all, in later episodes she even talks about how pointless it is to read the news. "Eww now I can never vacation to syria" My point is that even South Park falls into the pitfall of preaching with it's mouthpiece characters like Kyle and Stan, whereas sunny made all of it's opinionated cast have no moral ground to stand on. Even charlie ends up wanting to ditch the waitress after he promises her a baby to sleep with her. Also that pickle party line sounds more like a jab at all parties, not just the tea party, but you are probably very right about the tea party being a reference.
The tea party was extremely loud, misinformed, and racist (also funded by billionaires). If you were remotely informed you laughed at that line, regardless of political affiliation.
Tropic Mephisto Wow you really are an enlightened centrist type, huh? First, I get being fed up with people repeating the same bits of rhetoric over and over, but that should have no bearing on their value. In the end, someone’s context and exposure are the only things that really determine what they decide to believe, hence the “attention is king” model of political discourse in the digital age. Second, you realize that this and south park are SHOWS, right? Dee’s writing is not necessarily internally consistent beyond what fit the narrative that took shape as the show progressed. It often doesn’t make sense to attempt to square certain later attributes of characters with their previous incarnations (see Brian the dog). That’s how shows work. You can’t go back to make things internally consistent, and to say the Sunny crew know precisely where they were going is really quite naive. A perfectly reasonable explanation for Dee’s later callousness as opposed to her original (relative) voice of reason is that they found her stride in being just as terrible a person as the rest of the gang, even though their original conception of her was not so absurd. This is also consistent with the fact that Sunny’s creators are left wingers (they are). Additionally, I love how you still seem to read The Pickle Party as an indictment of “all sides” even when faced with solid rationale for why it was specifically targeted. Not saying that unhealthy elements of modern politics across the board aren’t present, just that your assumption seems much more indicative of your perspective than of reality, given that you didn’t get the reference in the first place. And you do realize than Kyle and Stan are *intended* to be laughable while simultaneously providing valid points. A valid interpretation of the intent behind their mouth piece ness is that Matt and Trey intend to portray how annoying and preachy liberals get, despite sometimes having (in their eyes) the moral high ground. Above all, these are real issues that affect real people’s lives. I get making fun of people for being annoying, but it’s very unhelpful to allow the ubiquitousness of politics in culture to jade yourself to the point where criticizing the presentation of ideas becomes the focal point of your worldview, like South Park. It’s helpful to take steps back from the conversation, check eachother and ourselves, but I see so many people who have become convinced that the dynamics of discourse matter more than its content that I believe it’s become toxic. In conclusion, do you really think you’re qualified to be making analytical youtube videos like this? It’s not revolutionary or interesting to just say that people spout off the same talking points, or that they’re insufferable for doing so. The fact that you criticize South Park for including a base amount of moralizing (and the fact that you don’t get that it’s simultaneously poking fun at said moralizing) tells me that your worldview is purely the jadedness of a young person who feels like the world is stupid and myopic. And it is. But it’s not helpful to make that your worldview.
I love this show and didn't think about any of this before I've watched every episode for the 45th time time this year and I'm starting from ep 1 tonight again
You forgot about The Gang Turns Black episode about how they discuss racism through musical songs and at the end where the gang seemed to finally learn a lesson until it revealed to be all a dream from a character outside the group.
I knew the episode "Sweet Dee Gets Audited" contained metaphors for politics, but you did a great job of teasing out aspects of it that I hadn't thought about before, especially the Dennis-as-the-media bit.
Well, I know Rob was influenced "big time" by George Carlin, so he's probably along the lines of a secular, liberal/traditional libertarian. Charlie said he's "probably agnostic", and that he is "sometimes a Democrat", but not a total "leftist". And, I think Glenn is an atheist from a couple of his interviews. If I had to guess, I would say they have a good balance of liberalism and libertarianism, and secularism.
so??? at least they show how both sides think and how easily the people in power use these divisive topics to hide their true intentions. at least leaders in your country actually try to do their jobs. in africa they get away with stealing billions by just bringing up divisive moral topics
falaflani not really most right wingers are business owners they know what’s going on but liberals most of the time can’t understand the nuances of politics and want an easy answer which is why we get moron Democrats that let are city’s burn down that not me picking a side it’s a fact
About the limes/ political metaphor, it’s definitely a critique of capitalism. Frank is the owner of the means of production (he owns the bar and exploits the laborers). Dennis is the bourgeoisie (doesn’t work much, more educated, etc). Mac and Charlie are the proletariat (the working class who get screwed over).
I felt like your analysis of Sweet Dee gets audited was missing the most essential part of the metaphor- the fact that frank represents the ruling class. The fact he deflects the big issues with minor small issues is a brilliant microcosm, that you seemed to have missed or ignored.
One, silence dink. And two , I was only saying that because he never mentioned the fact that Dennis was the media rather than frank's main puppet mastering in the situation. I also felt Dennis more represented a political pundit rather than the media in general, more similar to someone of the likes of Stephen Colbert or Charlie Kirk.
@@TheInsaneWaluigi Dennis is the media no doubt about it (I'd have to rewatch the scene to prove it) Frank is the puppetmaster, the ruling class. I don't know why you didn't just accept you were wrong when called out.
Isnt it funny that in the abortion episode dennis was the guy on the fence but in the “science is a liar sometimes” episode he was the only one not on it?
ive binged watched it and all the pieces came together on season 9 during the gun thing. because im so passionate about my opinions on guns, i was seeing what i am
Birthold or conservative views are so outlandish that everything seems liberal in comparison, proof of this would be that the conservatives in the rest of the developed world aren't nearly as far right as ours :^)
He's right. It's refreshing to see It's Always Sunny highlight the absurdity of political disputes instead of preaching. I think Superstore does a great job of it too
Happy 2nd birthday to this video. They addressed abortion really thoroughly in the season 14 ep. A Woman’s Right to Chop, definitely my favorite episode of television in the last few years.
Sunny pays a lot of attention to detail, with the exception of the one episode where they buy alcohol at a gas station. Gas stations in Pennsylvania don’t sell alcohol due to PA having a state monopoly on liquor sales.
What you u i. Uiqi in i no big. I ji kijii I oiuu i Ihiiiioui bu in. U iji iih ii ii jikiu I q u ik iuh iioq iiuuiu I ii bi bi uu ii iniui. I ihuiuuiiuii ii uiuuuou ihuuiiji hi iui hu io iuui iiuu hiiihi hu uiiii iiii uiiiiiiu iiiu uihi hiii ooi uu qiui but iu hi hu. I in buhiooiii qu iuoibii ii juiiijuko ii in uu i qiuiiuoi uiiiqbiuuii ii qi iuuii UI ii uioiji uhouiuu uiiiiiji
charlottesasaki Actually, Hollywood used to be very conservative back then. Then there was a shift. If you look back at all the movies that were black and white and probably up until the 1970s, that’s when liberals started taking over and it seems it will stay that way for a while. Not sure what happened or how things shifted in Hollywood, maybe the diversity of immigrants in California had something to do with it.
I've seen every ep prolly at least 100 times and get when the show is being meta and such but i missed the politics jab in the "Sweet Dee" ep. you used as an example Good job first video i have watched about it's sunny where i learned something.
Strangely enough, this praise for sunny is often the same as the criticism for South Park - they make a joke out of all sides and every situation. However, I think SP does it in a way that's very, "if you have an opinion, you're an idiot," and sunny does it in a way that's more "if you have an opinion, and don't think critically about it, you're an idiot," and the difference is immense.
Skylar Webb never thought about it like that before but yeah, you're right!
South Park has no sides, and creators revel in that fact; it's so completely neutral and it's considered outstanding by some. The Gang makes you think about the side your on. It considers both side instead of marking them as pointless and stupid for even being a thing. Like the Gun Fever episodes, they show both sides in positive and negative light and it's up to YOU to make what you will of it. RGC gave us the Legos and it's up to us to create something with them.
Yes.
THANK you. Honestly as much as I love south park, I feel like it gets its head way too far up it's own ass sometimes
Holy crap that is a perfect way of putting it, thank you!
I got the joke about Dennis being on the fence, but I feel like there's also a joke hidden in the fact that they're throwing eggs as opposed to tomatoes. Get it? Fighting over reproductive rights... throwing eggs.
Heather Calun ah, the plot thickins
Good catch (no pun intended). I hadn't noticed that until now. Itls one of those subtle jokes that could go either way. On the one hand, egging is a thing, but on the other it could be a commentary on how both sides hate ech other so much that they just use the issue to bash each other over the head, not realizing they become part of the problem. I actually once saw an anti abortionist comment somewhere that he wanted to troll the other side by posing as pro life and staging a protest where they all smash fertilized eggs to prove that it wasn't actually life or whatever, and record the reactions of the pro life people who would probably not react well.
So many layers.
You just cracked an egg of knowledge on these peoples heads. Lol
But yeh I agree, was obvious
Kind of a stretch dude.
So you really not going to mention how Mac completely reverses his stance on abortion the moment it actually pertains to him XD It doesn't just work because the characters play both sides, it works because the characters play both sides but have absolutely no principles and are willing to shift all their opinions to their own benefit.
He always comes out on top
It's Sunny is so great because it's such an incredibly smart show but also such an incredibly stupid show at the same time. They really nail that balance most of the time.
it's great to pay half attention to for this reason. I still find new funny little jokes every now and then
That's exactly how I described Sunny and South Park to my girlfriend who has seen neither.
saw a meme about sunny being a show about dumb people for smart people, the way the big bang theory is about smart people for dumb people
The "on the fence" metaphor became obvious when Dennis started getting pelted by eggs, yet still decided not to get the hell off the fence.
season 1 is underrated
MrGrimlocke the whole show is!
@Django Fett it is objectively the worst tho
its fantastic and funny, does a brilliant job establishing the characters, and without it Danny Devito would've never come aboard
but it's easily the least quality overall out of the 13 we've gotten so far
@Hi How Are You? its true, the only season i cant rewatch...only episode i can is "Underage Drinking: A National Concern"
Season 1 is way better than the newest season. Don't @ me
Hi How Are You? I’ve never come across a show that started so strong “the gang gets racist” was amazing
The absolute knee slapper I got after the end of the abortion episode where Macs one-time lover in the episode says she's pregnant and then Mac says "You gotta get an abortion", that fucking got me more than anything else.
Which is the beauty of the episode, one grand joke being built up for 19 or so minutes.
I don't get why no one analyzes " The Gang goes Jihad" where they tackle the Palestinian situation very obviously
Sounds like a good episode to check out. Thank you for the recommendation.
@@phaedrus4931 watch every episode :3
nova I’ll have to rewatch with this in mind!
Especially with the property owner talking to them about where the "dividing line" of the property is! Palestinian/Iranian Border, anyone??
@@bluesira This Jews in for a ton of work!!
REASON WILL PREVAIL!
pickles will prevail!
You cant just start your own party
REASON WILL PREVAIL!
God dammit !!! I don't know how to express myself if not through anger and personal attack !!!
#Thinlimes
I would actually disagree that Dennis is supposed to be the media. I think Frank represents the capital, the industry, the military industrial complex if you wish while Dennis is the good looking, smooth talking, charming politician who presents himself as the speaker of the common people (Mac and Charlie) but in reality works together with Frank to keep "the commoners" divided over stupid issues to further his own desire for appearing powerful and influential.... and puss of course ;)
the way you said it sounds more like animal farm, frank is napoleon, dennis is squealer, mac and charlie are the other animals, except actually discuss stuff in always sunny
That’s exactly how I interpreted it on my first watch.
Yeah I have no idea how Dennis is supposed to be the media.
But "Le media bad" is an easy scapegoat is guess.
Dennis only wants the *illusion* of power... and he didn't see an ounce of puss
Nah, Frank is the government, since he controls the coinpurse. Dennis lies to the people to distract them, which the media does.
In the first episode you covered I thought it was blatantly obvious that neither Dennis nor mac actually had a logical argument for their decision or even believed in, they just wanted to get banged by someone who did believe in each side. But Dee, the female who was never allowed to vote is the only one with a real logical reason to believe her side of the argument
Pretty sure Dee has the right to vote…
Dee is the only member of the gang who votes
Magnum Dong of Morality
the quiet "you disgust me" just threw me man brilliant.
I am Catholic and Mac freaking kills me. lol
IT NEEDS TO BE AS BLOODY AS POSSIBLE
same XD
Let's sprinkle magic, magic water on baby so the loving, loving ghost doesnt put baby in everlasting fire.'We also need to say hocuspocus and amen several times!
It's Always Sunny is the single greatest live action tv show ever and no one can ever convince me otherwise.
I've always seen it as a showing that since they are all kinda horrible people in their own it is saying that your political opinion isn't an indicator of who you are and more that it is mocking this idea people have that someone who you voted for is a marker for where you land on a moral spectrum
Notice how Frank gets immediately heated about the limes to add fuel to the fire to put off the money talk
I'm upset by the lack of people pointing out that pro lifers started an EGG throwing fight at an anti abortion rally
Michael John Kelly not really...unhinged liberals
@@docphibz739 am I missing a joke here
@@irishkelly2062 no, he is
@@dlerpaherpa7138 lmfao. I forgot about this month's ago. I appreciate the healthy reminder of human stupidity
Because chickens = humans
Great logic.
good analysis of sweet dee gets audited, never occurred to me before! I don't entirely agree with you but I do think they tend to sidestep the issues themselves and instead comment on the extent to which people's "morals" are based in self interest. one of the running jokes about the gang is how quickly they'll drop their supposed convictions or become self righteous about something as soon as its convenient. so a different reading of Charlie wants an abortion would be that it's more of a critique of Mac and Dennis for exploiting the issue for their own gain.
on the other hand, episodes like the gang goes jihad and Mac fights gay marriage do sort of seem to take a stance
Love these videos keep them coming. Also good spot with the "on the fence", i missed that
Also the fact that they're throwing eggs, which are basically unborn lives lol
Eggy Fresh omg haha
Charlie= moderately Socialist or progressive
Dennis= opportunist centrist
Dee= left liberal
Mac= paleo conservative/ Neoconservative
Frank= apolitical
all = assholes
frank is definitely a libertarian
Frank doesn’t want the liberal yahoos taking his guns
Labels
frank is more political than anyone else
I first started Sunny years ago and I haven’t rewatched season one since, that “on the fence” joke went right over my head wow
“They like me. They gave me this train!”
“He’s got a gun!” *starts shooting*
There's no doubt that the writers and producers are left leaning, but kudos to them at keeping it as neutral as possible.
they've gotten worse at it. See season 13.
@@joeconkle8826 how when in the first episode they shit on the whole diversity thing and needing change. also how this issues are just used for profit. and the way u say left leaning... identity politics really has screwed america coz nothing can be looked at objectively
and one can have varied opinions depending on the topic. i can support abortion and still want guns around. but no that's too complex for a human being. left/right, americans are so dumb. this system was used by the british ruling class to divide the people and forget about feudalism. i mean people actually had a fcking civil war coz they couldn't agree slavery was bad. but am guessing u are gonna say it was republicans that wanted to abolish slavery forgetting that the party abandoned their ideals and were for segregation. some issues are just about the humane thing to do, but when this affects someone's money they can use the public to their advantage coz some people want to validate some horrible opinions they have formed coz they don't wanna seem like bad people. leading to this whole left/right bs. like seriously how can u sum up someone's outlook on society and life issues into two groups and u fall on one or the other??? left leaning... sorry but that is so stupid
@@joeconkle8826 agreed. Season 13 was waaay too preachy
@Demacai disagree I would argue that episodes 1, 3, 4, 6, and 10 were all trying to teach me something, which I never got those vibes from previous seasons. Season 13 just seemed a little off, and I personally attributed part of that to feeling like I was getting preached at sometimes, but I also thought there were 2 legit dud episodes (8 & 9) in season 13 which I've never experienced from Sunny before.
I like how balanced they can keep their political episodes.
I adore how happy Dennis is to be someone's puppet. Excellent metaphor, and great video
The actor playing Dennis could probably do an amazing tucker Carlson impression
Hey just discovered this- great vid!
That being said, I kinda disagree about IASIP’s political stance. I don’t think the creative direction is neutral, I think it’s neither “democrat” nor “republican” (both technically neoliberal parties), and certainly not “Alt-right” (basically rebranded fascism). In my opinion, the tone of the show is leftist (probably some form of libertarian socialism; an-com, an-synd, etc).
Ok so get ready for wall of text- I’m about to go sicko mode. The show repeatedly takes direct shots at capitalism and makes the socio-economic system of America the primary target of the satire. Not to mention, most of the Gang’s schemes are just absurd attempts at engaging in normal capitalism- the “Solves the Gas Crisis” scheme is just trading commodities, the “Housing Crisis” one is just about being an exploitative property owner, and the most recent season finale “Waiting for Big Moe” is an awesome recreation of Godot, but also directly about the hollowness of pursuing success under neoliberalism. Much of what makes the Gang evil is their horrible childhoods- mostly explored in “A Very Sunny Christmas”- all of their situations being a pretty direct result of the awful culture of extreme poverty and decadent, hollow wealth that they were raised in. Not that it excuses their behavior- it just makes them human enough to want to keep watching their antics. Point is, what makes the gang sympathetic enough to watch is the suffering they’ve undergone, and most of that suffering is very explicitly due to exploitation, poverty, and meaningless consumer culture. Just my 2 cents
I agree - I don’t personally get how people can watch the show and not get that it’s coming from a leftist perspective but I guess there are different ways to view things
I think there’s a possibility an alt right minority who watch it just go ‘haha it’s offensive’ and the point sails over their head… (someone in this comment section called Dennis “rational”, so those people must exist….) but I hadn’t considered previously that’d it’d have any appeal to those kinds of audiences
@@BigKicksMix from what I’ve seen, the alt-right group is actually a lot bigger than we think. My dad used to be one of them when he introduced me to IASIP, but the show actually ended up convincing him to become more moderate lol
replying to tis after three years lol but yess. the show is definitely from a leftist perspective with the opinions displayed throughout the show - showcasing the ridiculousness of capitalism, the alt-right, and other matters such as abortion, palestine, gun control, queerness and the like. far-right people who watch the show are fans because they think the show is 'on their side' so it does cultivate some ambiguity but a bit of critical thinking brings forth what the show is really about
Imagine using "alt right" unironically
@@OrroHelhammer who asked
Not only is he “on the fence,” but they are literally throwing eggs at him...
Always Sunny and King of the Hill are the two shows that handle politics the best. Community is pretty good at it too... and their free speech episode is extra ironic now.
Making both sides look ridiculous and using basic rhetoric is one way they do it but they also have a way of making weirdly profound statements and critiques of things in society that are just enough below the surface that if you don’t wanna take the message you don’t have to, and things end up so ridiculously that you can dismiss a message cuz it’s just a ridiculous show. Also all of the characters are shitty and don’t know squat about politics so you can blame that for their opinions, and furthermore, many political episodes end unresolved coming to no conclusion at all. The magic of this is that it’s capable of being offensive without actually offending a reasonable person, but it still brings up the topic for you to decide for yourself. It can be risky by speaking about hot topic issues but still reach a wide audience by having characters too screwed to properly pick a side. It’s genius
I've seen the abortion episode a dozen times and literally just got the fencesitting joke. Wow.
God, I love this show. It's my only example of a perfect comedy series.
I found the egg throwing very funny when watching that episodes. I don't know if this was the intention but the fact anti-abortion people were throwing eggs at people without a care for them was very amusing. (i'm aware they're unfertilised and from chickens but still, i saw some humour there)
Another commenter used the term "chicken abortions"
He is now my nomination for president
This is fantastic! Although in hindsight, it’s obvious, the on the fence part kinda blew my mind.
Even though the abortion episode was largely balanced, keep in mind Dee was the "voice of reason" character in season one. And hers was the pro-choice position.
The Pickle Party was an obvious shot at the Tea Party. FIrst of all, at the time this episode was filmed, the Tea Party was very much in the news. It was a major catalyst for the 2010 midterm losses by the Democrats. Then, consider how the Pickle Party describes themselves: *"If you're not as educated or as informed, what you do is you start your own party and you yell the loudest."*
If that doesn't tell you where the Sunny creators politics lie, well...still a brilliant show, though. You are correct. The vast majority of the time, they do keep it neutral.
Dee may have been the "voice of reason" in season one but she her motivations have been shallow since the first episode.
Their politics seems fairly left leaning, but it's always reprehensible characters spouting either side of the argument.
Plus, it's shown early on that Dee's character has no political knowledge at all, in later episodes she even talks about how pointless it is to read the news. "Eww now I can never vacation to syria"
My point is that even South Park falls into the pitfall of preaching with it's mouthpiece characters like Kyle and Stan, whereas sunny made all of it's opinionated cast have no moral ground to stand on. Even charlie ends up wanting to ditch the waitress after he promises her a baby to sleep with her.
Also that pickle party line sounds more like a jab at all parties, not just the tea party, but you are probably very right about the tea party being a reference.
The tea party was extremely loud, misinformed, and racist (also funded by billionaires). If you were remotely informed you laughed at that line, regardless of political affiliation.
Tropic Mephisto Wow you really are an enlightened centrist type, huh? First, I get being fed up with people repeating the same bits of rhetoric over and over, but that should have no bearing on their value. In the end, someone’s context and exposure are the only things that really determine what they decide to believe, hence the “attention is king” model of political discourse in the digital age.
Second, you realize that this and south park are SHOWS, right? Dee’s writing is not necessarily internally consistent beyond what fit the narrative that took shape as the show progressed. It often doesn’t make sense to attempt to square certain later attributes of characters with their previous incarnations (see Brian the dog). That’s how shows work. You can’t go back to make things internally consistent, and to say the Sunny crew know precisely where they were going is really quite naive.
A perfectly reasonable explanation for Dee’s later callousness as opposed to her original (relative) voice of reason is that they found her stride in being just as terrible a person as the rest of the gang, even though their original conception of her was not so absurd. This is also consistent with the fact that Sunny’s creators are left wingers (they are).
Additionally, I love how you still seem to read The Pickle Party as an indictment of “all sides” even when faced with solid rationale for why it was specifically targeted. Not saying that unhealthy elements of modern politics across the board aren’t present, just that your assumption seems much more indicative of your perspective than of reality, given that you didn’t get the reference in the first place. And you do realize than Kyle and Stan are *intended* to be laughable while simultaneously providing valid points. A valid interpretation of the intent behind their mouth piece ness is that Matt and Trey intend to portray how annoying and preachy liberals get, despite sometimes having (in their eyes) the moral high ground.
Above all, these are real issues that affect real people’s lives. I get making fun of people for being annoying, but it’s very unhelpful to allow the ubiquitousness of politics in culture to jade yourself to the point where criticizing the presentation of ideas becomes the focal point of your worldview, like South Park. It’s helpful to take steps back from the conversation, check eachother and ourselves, but I see so many people who have become convinced that the dynamics of discourse matter more than its content that I believe it’s become toxic.
In conclusion, do you really think you’re qualified to be making analytical youtube videos like this? It’s not revolutionary or interesting to just say that people spout off the same talking points, or that they’re insufferable for doing so. The fact that you criticize South Park for including a base amount of moralizing (and the fact that you don’t get that it’s simultaneously poking fun at said moralizing) tells me that your worldview is purely the jadedness of a young person who feels like the world is stupid and myopic. And it is. But it’s not helpful to make that your worldview.
Spouting "enlightened centrist" straight away really helped me ignore what I am sure is just rambling idiocy, so thanks for that.
The Menkhu Pray tell why that’s a disqualifying term?
I love this show and didn't think about any of this before I've watched every episode for the 45th time time this year and I'm starting from ep 1 tonight again
This used to say "20th time"
I am suddenly skeptical.🤔
You forgot about The Gang Turns Black episode about how they discuss racism through musical songs and at the end where the gang seemed to finally learn a lesson until it revealed to be all a dream from a character outside the group.
Anyone see the irony in them throwing chicken fetuses at eachother?
What's the season 12 one? 🤔
my left ear enjoyed this
I knew the episode "Sweet Dee Gets Audited" contained metaphors for politics, but you did a great job of teasing out aspects of it that I hadn't thought about before, especially the Dennis-as-the-media bit.
I'm going to have to rewatch the whole series...
Literally every episode revolves around politics bro.
I love these.
I can't wait to see what you do next with Sunny. And how season 12 fits in.
I feel like in season 13 the political satire became more on the nose.
Well, I know Rob was influenced "big time" by George Carlin, so he's probably along the lines of a secular, liberal/traditional libertarian. Charlie said he's "probably agnostic", and that he is "sometimes a Democrat", but not a total "leftist".
And, I think Glenn is an atheist from a couple of his interviews.
If I had to guess, I would say they have a good balance of liberalism and libertarianism, and secularism.
Chris Serpicø Yep, a great balance of Liberalism, athiesm, and the most right wing viewpoint acceptable in hollywood, left wing Libertarianism
Danny doesn't necessarily have as much to do with the writing but he makes Bernie Sanders look like Pinochet.
so??? at least they show how both sides think and how easily the people in power use these divisive topics to hide their true intentions. at least leaders in your country actually try to do their jobs. in africa they get away with stealing billions by just bringing up divisive moral topics
falaflani not really most right wingers are business owners they know what’s going on but liberals most of the time can’t understand the nuances of politics and want an easy answer which is why we get moron Democrats that let are city’s burn down that not me picking a side it’s a fact
@@thewildcardperson dumbass
I never got the joke about Dennis being on the fence. I must be blind.
Whisper: “a god damn fiddle.”
The audio mixing in this one is rly good
I love sunny so much, unlike most shows it just gets more offensively funny as the seasons go on
Really should’ve covered “the gang goes jihad” it’s probably the most overtly political episode in the entire show
Politics in general is one big ass blast
3:04 also there's a joke on throwing *eggs* while protesting against/for abortion
Dude, the videos you put out on Sunny are elite 👌
About the limes/ political metaphor, it’s definitely a critique of capitalism. Frank is the owner of the means of production (he owns the bar and exploits the laborers). Dennis is the bourgeoisie (doesn’t work much, more educated, etc). Mac and Charlie are the proletariat (the working class who get screwed over).
3:03 I also think that the fact that they're throwing eggs is ironic...maybe I'm wrong but I've always found that quite funny!
I felt like your analysis of Sweet Dee gets audited was missing the most essential part of the metaphor- the fact that frank represents the ruling class. The fact he deflects the big issues with minor small issues is a brilliant microcosm, that you seemed to have missed or ignored.
One, silence dink. And two , I was only saying that because he never mentioned the fact that Dennis was the media rather than frank's main puppet mastering in the situation. I also felt Dennis more represented a political pundit rather than the media in general, more similar to someone of the likes of Stephen Colbert or Charlie Kirk.
@@TheInsaneWaluigi
Dennis is the media no doubt about it (I'd have to rewatch the scene to prove it)
Frank is the puppetmaster, the ruling class.
I don't know why you didn't just accept you were wrong when called out.
(Laughing) "I don't really have any convictions."
You should do a video on the season 14 finale.
this deserves wayyy more views, seriously
Isnt it funny that in the abortion episode dennis was the guy on the fence but in the “science is a liar sometimes” episode he was the only one not on it?
Never noticed the on the fence thing. But I'm dumb.
Us; Let's talk about the Federal Reserve..
Gov; What about how racist we are? Women are men, 1819 project, CRT, COVID!
The gang would roast you for everything you just said...
I am so stupid. I never got that on the fence joke.
ive binged watched it and all the pieces came together on season 9 during the gun thing. because im so passionate about my opinions on guns, i was seeing what i am
7:49 Fox talking to Trump
Trump is fat and ugly and ozzing with slezz
CNN, MSNBC, NYT, WaPo, ABC, NBC, CBS, NPR, etc. talking to any Dem.
@@mostly_ignored536 lmfao yeah everyone is in on a conspiracy but you
@@ThatCatfulCat who hurt you? Big business readily admits it's liberally biased. Own it
Birthold or conservative views are so outlandish that everything seems liberal in comparison, proof of this would be that the conservatives in the rest of the developed world aren't nearly as far right as ours :^)
Reason will prevail!
You Idiot. Unless it comes to these 5 idiots lol
The whole "on the fence" metaphor was really obvious to everyone, right?
When Frank mentions how news media or politics really works it feels like Danny DeVito talking instead of Frank, who is basically Donald Trump.
This video is so god damn good.
The political episodes just go to show how great the show itself is.
This season does it bluntly.
Lol. ‘Get it? it’s a metaphor!’
I love the gang exploits a miracle episode
I love the gun fever too episode because it shows how crazy both radical people on each side are.
2:10 😂😂 Mac is slick
He's right. It's refreshing to see It's Always Sunny highlight the absurdity of political disputes instead of preaching. I think Superstore does a great job of it too
Holy shit, the political metaphor was spot on!
Never realised how smart the show was. Maybe the Jokes won't go over my head
Happy 2nd birthday to this video.
They addressed abortion really thoroughly in the season 14 ep. A Woman’s Right to Chop, definitely my favorite episode of television in the last few years.
great analysis !
I didn't get the fence joke in the gang goes jihad till like 5 years later
Mac and Dee are both left-handed, never noticed that before.
I never got that on the fence jome before! Good video.
Sunny pays a lot of attention to detail, with the exception of the one episode where they buy alcohol at a gas station. Gas stations in Pennsylvania don’t sell alcohol due to PA having a state monopoly on liquor sales.
What you u i. Uiqi in i no big. I ji kijii I oiuu i
Ihiiiioui bu in. U iji iih ii ii jikiu I q u ik iuh iioq iiuuiu I ii bi bi uu ii iniui. I ihuiuuiiuii ii uiuuuou ihuuiiji hi iui hu io iuui iiuu hiiihi hu uiiii iiii uiiiiiiu iiiu uihi hiii ooi uu qiui but iu hi hu. I in buhiooiii qu iuoibii ii juiiijuko ii in uu i qiuiiuoi uiiiqbiuuii ii qi iuuii UI ii uioiji uhouiuu uiiiiiji
8:06 I think that Frank as a character definitely represents the corruption of the upper class & people in power within himself
Interesting. The show's soul being liberal has always been obvious to me though.
IASIP has no soul.
That’s true. A conservative show would usually have mild humor, all homogeneous and religious ppl and not talk about society at all.
charlottesasaki
Actually, Hollywood used to be very conservative back then. Then there was a shift.
If you look back at all the movies that were black and white and probably up until the 1970s, that’s when liberals started taking over and it seems it will stay that way for a while.
Not sure what happened or how things shifted in Hollywood, maybe the diversity of immigrants in California had something to do with it.
charlottesasaki Well said
Thank you for this video. I didn't even notice these before.
Throwing eggs is technically killing babies
Smashing! Such a brilliant show. Fantastic.
My left ear enjoyed your commentary
Hes gotta be drenched in blood lol
Great video. The only two comedy shows worth watching are Sunny and South Park. They play both sides so well.
He was elected officials, not the media.
It's always sunny is like the live action version of south park when it comes to this shit. I absolutely love it.
I wonder if they actually thought so deeply when writing the show, lol.
How hard is it to click a few menus to automatically balance to audio ffs
I've seen every ep prolly at least 100 times and get when the show is being meta and such but i missed the politics jab in the "Sweet Dee" ep. you used as an example Good job first video i have watched about it's sunny where i learned something.
3:20 "loved that"