Decent concept, but it didn't feel like a "Sunny" episode in a way that previous "unorthodox" episodes did.
6.0
"Fair"
First thing's first: I love "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" for many, many reasons. One of them is that the show is always pushing multiple envelopes and experimenting with new and offbeat ideas and concepts. We've had musical episodes, episodes that take place during the 1700s, and now we have "Sunny's" first Epic episode. I'd be lying if I said I thought "Frank's Brother" was all that great an episode, but it must be said that the show's ambition (and FX's decision to let these guys do just about anything they want) is commendable.
Here's what happens (some spoilers): Gino, Frank's long-lost brother, comes to Paddy's and immediately begins brawling with Frank. The rest of the episode explains why they're brawling via flashing back to the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and finally the present era, with "Goodfellas"-style narration from Frank and his brother. Basically, Frank began working at a nightclub where Gino was the bookie during the 1960s. There, Frank fell in love with Shedynasty, an African American female ("Negress," as he says) jazz singer who sang at that club. Frank subsequently bought a jazz club of his own and hired Shedynasty as its featured performer in an attempt to get closer to her; they subsequently began dating. Frank assaulted Shedynasty's former lover over a misunderstanding (actually the episode's funniest scene, IMO). Gino finds Frank a place to hide in Colombia. Frank returned to the USA years later to discover that Gino turned his jazz club into a sleazy disco, stole his girl and destroyed the love letters he wrote her. Flashing forward to the present, we discover that Gino believes that Frank has reconnected with Shedynasty. (Major spoiler): It turns out that Shedynasty's first lover (whom Frank assaulted years back), not Frank, is spiriting Shedynasty away from Gino. Gino and Frank decide that Shedynasty has become too fat for either of them, and everyone goes out to get drinks. It's important to note that during the flashbacks, our perception is supposed to be that of the Gang (e.g. we picture Frank and Gino as they currently look and everyone as being much younger and more attractive than they probably were).
Again, I really admire the ambition behind the "Sunny" crew's decision to make an "Epic" episode. It's inspiring that there's one TV show currently being made that actually tries to do something other than pacify an increasingly miserable human population with the same predictable garbage that you find on just about every TV comedy. It's the seventh season and they're clearly swinging harder than ever before. This episode had its moments, most of them directly related to the episode's concept. The costumes and music selections were clever. The recurring racial jokes were usually the right combination of funny and offensive, especially the simple name Shedynasty. The sight of a tiny airplane traversing a 1970s map (to illustrate the fact that Frank is traveling in an airplane during the 1970s) was hilarious. Bottom line, there were some little moments that worked very well.
On the other hand, this really didn't feel like a "Sunny" episode. The plot had promise, but Frank was the only character who did anything (other than ask "So what happened next?"-type questions), and his characterization felt off to me. First, he's depicted as being sincere and sympathetic, especially with respect to his commitment to Shedynasty. While it might explain why he became such an asshole afterwards, since when have "Sunny" characters been assholes for any compelling reason? I mean, I thought the guy was always a jerk for no good reason and that's why I liked him so much. Yes, I realize this episode employed the unreliable narrator device and of course Frank would embellish his erstwhile humanity, but it's rarely made clear when Frank is exaggerating his sympathetic traits, and he's basically the same guy in Gino's version of the story as well. By way of contrast, you knew "The Gang Cracks the Liberty Bell" was an absurd story being told by unreliable narrators because the writers played the device to great comic effect; here, you're left with the impression that the "history" being re-told actually happened (within the show's fictional universe, of course), except some of the characters may have been fatter than the Gang imagines they were. Second, the story and dialogue play out almost like an uneasy mix of soap opera and comedy rather than unfiltered subversive comedy. Yes, the costumes, mild racism and running joke about the black guy getting arrested were quintessential "Sunny," but it really felt like a latter-day "Simpsons" episode, e.g. the dialogue and characters seemed ripped straight out of another series' teleplay with a few touch-up lines/gags here and there to remind you that this is still the show you tuned in to see. Again, much of this had to do with Frank's characterization. Hearing his mournful cries of "Oh, Shedynasty!" seemed wrong, just wrong, when you consider that his defining feature up until now has been a total lack of mature feelings. I'm not saying the writing was abysmal - it wasn't - but most of it just seemed to belong in a different show. Also, none of the guest characters were given any dimension at all. I suppose Gino could become a recurring character like Bruce Mathis, the mothers or Cricket, but I don't really care to see him return - he lacked those stroke-of-genius quirks that define all the other recurring characters on this fantastic show. Finally - and this is just me being anal - Dee and Dennis were born during the disco era (before "I Love the Nightlife," which plays when Frank reconnects with Shedynasty, was released), at which point Frank was a carefree businessman married to Barbara, so this episode threw off the whole "Sunny" chronology a bit. I'm not saying it ruined the whole show (again, you can write most of the episode off, if you want, by reminding yourself that it made liberal use of the unreliable narrator/perceiver device), but you really have to stretch your imaginations to reconcile it with the rest of the "Sunny" canon. And even then, watching most of "Frank's Brother" feels like watching another show. Whereas previous unorthodox episodes ("Liberty Bell," "Who Got Dee Pregnant?" etc) succeeded because the humor, tone and characterization remained consistent and true to the "Sunny" style, those qualities were spotty at best in "Frank's Brother."
Again, though, the concept was very clever and there were some good moments here and there. This has been a great season on the whole, and it's encouraging to see that they're still trying new ideas. While this one wasn't my favorite (and I await a number of thumbs down for saying that), "Sunny's" experimental episodes generally work out well, so here's hoping they continue making them.moreless
