It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Seasons 1 & 2

If this show were titled It's Always Funny in Philadelphia, I'd have to disagree, as this series—set in the City of Brotherly Love—is only intermittently amusing, being one of those frothy concoctions that's too calculatingly snarky to be consistently pleasing to watch. Paddy's Pub is a modest neighborhood watering hole run by four friends—Mac (Rob McElhenney), Charlie (Charlie Day), Dennis (Glenn Howerton), and Dennis' sister Dee (Kaitlin Olson)—whose egocentric attitudes and warped judgments frequently land them in trouble. They're forever spouting off on touchy subjects such as abortion, gun control, underage drinking, religion, and homophobia, and their ill-chosen remarks or actions are guaranteed to tick somebody off. Granted, the gags are often funny, but in its self-conscious desire to be outrageous the jokes just as often fall flat. The second season introduces Danny DeVito as feckless Frank (father of Dennis and Dee), and while he injects some much-needed professionalism into the series, he also grabs too much attention with his scene-stealing antics. There's still plenty of forced outrageousness, but one can also unfortunately sense more traditional sitcom situations seeping into the mix. Compiling all 17 episodes from the 2005-06 first and second seasons, DVD extras include audio commentaries, scenes from the original pilot, a “making-of” featurette, a Fox Movie Channel featurette, Olson's audition tape, and bloopers. An optional purchase. (E. Hulse)