If you watch It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia with any regularity, you know that its five principle characters are basically the worst people on the planet. I mean, they’re the best, but they’re the worst. Whereas the characters on Seinfeld were evil in a relatable way, The Gang at Paddy’s Pub is pretty much irredeemably despicable. But who takes the cake? Who’s the single most evil character on It’s Always Sunny? It’s a question that could be debated for days, but this ranking should get to the bottom of this question once and for all.
5. Charlie
Let’s be honest, Charlie might have some questionable motives behind the things he does, but ultimately, he’s far too dumb to be truly evil. And in most episodes, his terrible decisions seem more like a product of the terrible people he surrounds himself with rather than being his own handiwork. Basically, he’s the George W. Bush of sitcom characters. Plus, unlike just about anyone else on the show, he’s capable of being good some times. Or at the very least, having good intentions. Finally, he’s the only member of the gang we actually feel sorry for from time to time. Like when the gang goes to the Jersey Shore, and he gets to spend a romantic night on the beach with the waitress, and then she wakes up assuming he drugged her. Rather than being truly rotten, poor Charlie is simply a hard luck case.
4. Mac
Much like Charlie, Mac is basically an overgrown child, as his letter to Chase Utley clearly indicates. Beyond that, though, Mac is a bit more evil than his daft companion. We see this in just the second episode, when Mac attempts to seduce an anti-abortion protester by claiming to have murdered at least two doctors. Of course, Mac doesn’t seem self-aware enough to realize how awful he can be. We see this after his infamous “Big Mac” weight gain in 2011, specifically when he goes to confession in order to “confess” all the awful things the rest of the gang did to him. Despite mounting evidence to the contrary, Mac seems to think he’s a good guy and the rest of the world is out to get him.
3. Sweet Dee
Ok, now matter what Mac and Charlie might be capable of, the Reynolds family is where the vast majority of this show’s evilness resides. Dee isn’t quite as bad as the rest of her family, but she’s still pretty damn awful. As we know, she and Dennis are two of the most vain, superficial people you’ll ever meet. For Dee, this was never more clear than in “The Gang Wrestles For The Troops,” when she meets a soldier online, and then immediately ditches him when he sees him emerge in a wheelchair. This would be enough on its own, but later, we find out that he can actually walk just fine, so Dee decides to steal him back after setting him up with Artemis. Dee’s awfulness rarely drives the story, but it’s hard to deny. She would likely be the most narcissistic person in the world, if not for her brother. Which reminds me…
2. Dennis
The D.E.N.N.I.S. System. That’s all you really need to know. Sure, we could talk about some of Dennis’s other evil deeds, but nothing gets to heart of Dennis’s awfulness like the D.E.N.N.I.S. system, his apparently foolproof method for getting girls. In case you for got, it goes like this:
Demonstrate value
Engage physically
Nurture Dependence
Neglect emotionally
Inspire hope
Separate entirely
Honestly, it’s a good thing Mac and Charlie couldn’t figure this out, because Dennis Reynolds is basically a sociopath. The only thing that makes him a little bit likable — or at least relatable — is that he’s so vain and insecure. Remember when Dee told him his face looked fat and he immediately stopped eating entirely? This is a deeply disturbed human being.
1. Frank
The Trashman isn’t just the name of the wrestling persona Frank created for himself, it’s also as good a description of his personality as you can find. The man is just pure garbage, even by the depraved standards of everyone else at Paddy’s Pub. Remember, there was a point when everyone else was so grossed out by his behavior, they tried to hold an intervention for him. Yes, they screwed it up horrifically, but Frank’s awful behavior was the impetus nonetheless. Consider the events of “Thunder Gun Express.” Yes, everyone is evil in this episode, but Frank clearly takes the cake. Not only does he hijack a boat full of Japanese tourists (note: this might be the funniest scene in the history of the show), but when he gets to jail, he calls in a bomb threat to the movie theater just so no one else gets to see the movie either. While Dennis and Dee’s evil deeds were motivated by personal gain, Frank just wanted to ruin everyone else’s fun.
On a show full of rotten people, Frank Reynolds somehow managed to be the worst of them all. His evil truly knows no bounds.
