The Gang Gives Frank an Intervention

"The Gang Gives Frank an Intervention" is the fourth episode of the fifth season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Synopsis
Dee, Dennis, and Charlie attempt to stage an intervention on Frank, who they feel is no longer fun to drink with. Meanwhile, Frank attempts to bang Aunt Donna, who Mac is also interested in banging.

Recap
11:00 A.M. on a Wednesday.

As the gang rides in Dennis's Range Rover, they comment on how much of a drunk Frank has become recently. He states that he has let go of all reservations and is living as depraved as possible. They arrive at a park expecting a cookout but find a funeral for their Uncle Max. Frank tells the gang that he wants to bang their Aunt Donna.

As the crowd leaves the funeral, Frank tries to hit on Aunt Donna, but she refuses him. Mac swoops in and tries to flirt, but she ignores him as well. Dee and Dennis warn Charlie about how awful their cousin Gail the Snail is, and he agrees with them when he meets her. Dee, Dennis and Charlie then agree to get Frank help with his alcoholism.

Dee, Dennis and Charlie meet with a therapist to prepare an intervention for Frank. After she turns down their idea to bring guns to his intervention, they leave and decide to do it themselves. Meanwhile, Frank and Mac walk home from the funeral and Mac convinces Frank to go for Gail instead of Donna.

Back at the bar, Dennis, Dee, and Charlie prepare the intervention. Charlie is most upset that Frank no longer plays Night Crawlers anymore. After they insult his illiteracy, Charlie decides they should get the therapist anyway and leaves to get her. At Aunt Donna's house, Mac cooks breakfast after breaking into the kitchen. Frank and Gail enter and Gail gives Frank a handy under the table. Donna kicks them out.

At Paddy's, the therapist arrives to find Dee, Dennis, and Charlie drunk off wine in a can. Frank arrives, gun in hand, and they manage to wrangle it away from him. They begin the intervention and he thinks it is a roast. Dennis and Dee interrupt and have another intervention on Charlie for his illiteracy. Mac and Gail arrive, and the gang has another intervention on him for being with Gail. He says she won't leave him alone and lets slip to Frank that he banged Barbara Reynolds. Their attention is returned to Gail the Snail who is making drinks at the bar, and Charlie salts her until she leaves. They consider their interventions successes and tell the therapist to leave, while they all drink wine out of a can.

Alliances

 * Charlie, Dee, and Dennis attempt to give Frank an intervention.
 * Mac and Frank try to bang Aunt Donna and Gail, respectively.

Starring

 * Charlie Day as Charlie Kelly
 * Glenn Howerton as Dennis Reynolds
 * Rob McElhenney as Mac
 * Kaitlin Olson as Dee Reynolds
 * Danny DeVito as Frank Reynolds

Guest Starring

 * Nora Dunn as Donna
 * Mary Lynn Rajskub as Gail the Snail
 * Suzy Nakamura as Tabitha

Trivia

 * Mac bangs Barbara Reynolds in "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom".
 * From an extended scene "The Gang consults a professional" we learn that the pamphlets, which Charlie was providently grabbing from Tabitha's parlor, were actually about anorexia.
 * Sadly, there's no such brand of boxed wine as Zuko Vineyards. Here's a page from the prop designer who made the box for the show.
 * As Donna ejects Frank and Mac from her house she argues with Gail which provides Frank an opportunity to help himself to eggs from the breakfast bar, the first sign of his ongoing fascination with them
 * At the beginning of the episode, the rest of the gang berates Frank for drinking wine out of a soda can. By the end of the episode, they are all drinking it.

Quotes



 * Mac: Does anybody else feel really uncomfortable?
 * Charlie: Yes, we're completely under-dressed. It's embarrassing.
 * Dennis: What are we doing here Frank? What's your angle?
 * Frank: I want to bang your Aunt Donna.
 * Dennis: Why would you want to bang our mom's sister at the funeral of her husband?
 * Frank: Well, I don't know how many years on this Earth I got left. I'm going to get really weird with it. Meanwhile, block the wind. I'm going to roast this bone.
 * Mac: Jesus Christ!


 * Dennis: What kind of a person salts another human being? There's no joy in salting someone. Everyone loses.


 * Charlie: My god, there's not enough salt in the world for her.


 * Charlie: But if I'm being honest my problem is less with the fact he is drinking and more that he is doing it without me. And then I start thinking, what's wrong with me? Am I not fun to drink with?
 * Dennis: Oh, no, no. Don't do that to yourself. You're plenty of fun to drink with. Trust me Charlie, you really get drunk and then you get reckless. It's a lot of fun.


 * Tabitha: You know I do offer group therapy.
 * Charlie: Yeah, okay.
 * Dee: What is this? What are you doing?
 * Dennis: What? What is that?
 * Tabitha: With all due respect, you're talking about bringing guns to an intervention and you're drinking wine out of a soda can.
 * Dee: Yeah.
 * Dennis: Oh. you put wine in the soda can?
 * Dee: You didn't know did you?
 * Dennis: That is good.
 * Charlie: Ahh, you stole Frank's idea.
 * Dee: Yeah yeah yeah. It's actually is a pretty good idea.
 * Charlie: Well it's a good idea. I mean the guy has great ideas.
 * Dee: He is a smart man, that is not what we're here about.


 * Mac: Okay, Frank, here's another idea..
 * Frank: Whoa! Whoa! Where'd you come from?
 * Mac: I've been walking next to you the entire time.
 * Frank: Sorry, I'm a little...I'm a little lit. I've been going over this thing, I'm trying to figure out how...
 * Mac: How to bang Donna. I know. You've been talking about it for the last 5 miles.


 * Charlie: Well I guess my letter would be about how Frank and I aren't really making memories together anymore. And you know how when we don't make memories together that's a hurtful thing for me.
 * Dennis: Okay. Uhh, you know let's just dive right in I'm not even going to try and suss out where you're going with that one.
 * Charlie: Right. Um, number one, when was the last time we played Night Crawlers together, Frank?
 * Dennis: Oh, uh, okay. Wha-what is that?
 * Charlie: Well, it's not about you... why don't you just right it down and then... ?
 * Dennis: Yeah, but you said it... you said Night Crawlers. Now... now I feel like I can't... move past it. I gotta know what that is.
 * Charlie: It... it's no big deal, you know. If I were you I'd just write it down cause it's not really a big deal.
 * Dennis: What is it?
 * Charlie: It's... what it sounds like.
 * Dennis: What it sounds like is that you two crawl around like worms at night. That's what it sounds like.
 * Charlie: This is not about you.


 * Dennis: By the way you guys, can I just say as a side note, I am loving this can-wine thing, I think it's brilliant. I mean I'm active, I'm gesturing with my hands, and I don't feel restricted. If I was holding a wine glass right now I'd be spilling wine all over the god damn place.


 * Dennis: As a matter of fact I'm starting to think think we need to intervene on you for your goddamn illiteracy.
 * Dee: Yeah, Charlie, you are getting real dumb.
 * Charlie: Come on, alright, this is what I'm talking about. Illiteracy. You know, what does that word even mean?


 * Donna: What is going on here?
 * Frank: I haven't any idea, honestly.
 * Gail: I'm giving Frank a handy under the table.
 * Frank: That is true. (To Gail) Look, Snail, back off, because you're just mashing it now. It's not...
 * Donna: For God's sake, Gail.
 * Gail: Mom, I'm sexually active now. Get over it!
 * Donna: You're 33 years old! You're supposed to be sexually active! You're not supposed to be fondling your uncle under a table!
 * Frank: Whoa, we're not blood related.


 * Dee & Dennis: Intervention! Intervention!
 * Charlie: Whoop! Whoop!
 * Charlie & Dennis: You're trapped! You're trapped! You're trapped!


 * Mac: Why are you interventioning me?


 * Frank: Intervention! Intervention! You banged my dead wife?
 * Mac: Well, she was alive at the time.


 * Gail: I was going to invite you all to a rave to hang out, but now I don't want to hang out with you anymore.
 * Dennis: Oh my god, salt the snail! Salt the snail!
 * Gail: Wait, wait wait! Do you guys want to go?


 * Charlie: Hyah! Hyah! Get out of here snail! Hyah! Go snail! Go! Hyah!
 * Mac: Oh my god, salt the snail! Salt the snail! Go!
 * Charlie: Oh my god. That was a terrible experience for me by the way.
 * Dennis: Of course, no one likes salting the snail but she gives you no choice.
 * Dee: She doesn't leave you with any options.
 * Charlie: Horrible thing. I'm all worked up now. I feel bad I feel like maybe... I should have some more wine in a can.


 * Mac: I feel like drinking wine out of a can is conducive to my violent hand gestures when I speak.