“The Nightman Cometh” is the second best episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (according to fans of the FXX series on IMDb, at least). The season four classic proved so popular that The Gang — Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Rob McElhenney, Kaitlin Olson, and Danny DeVito — took the production on the road, singing “Tiny Boy, Little Boy, Baby Boy,” “Just to Be Clear,” and “The Troll Toll” in front of packed theaters in six cities. Charlie’s musical has provided much enjoyment… for everyone but him.
“The Nightman Cometh” is supposedly about the titular Nightman paying off a troll to take the innocence of a man-child who’s in love with a coffee shop princess. The boy transforms into the Dayman, though, and kicks the Nightman’s ass, bro. Now he’s a man and the princess falls in love with him, because he’s the Dayman, champion of the sun and master of karate.
Except it’s actually about Uncle Jack molesting a young Charlie, and every horrible thing that’s happened to that poor paint-drinker can be traced back to the actions that led to “The Nightman.” As part of his “Ryan’s Theory” series, Ryan Hollinger, a YouTuber from Ireland, looked “at the tragedy [behind] It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” by examining “Charlie Kelly and the use of the play The Nightman Cometh, which points out some dark secrets.”
It’s really depressing. No wonder Charlie’s such a wild card.
