"The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis" (Part 4)

     After "selling" the house Mac, Dennis, and Frank have plans to buy every house on the block to flip them for a profit.  And Dee is under the impression that in just nine short months she will become $10,000 richer from being a surrogate mother.

     Charlie, still enraged by the lawyer putting him to shame, shows up to the lawyer's office unannounced to challenge him to a duel; assuming that the lawyer will back down.  Immediately the lawyer accepts his challenge, leaving Charlie nearly speechless as he walked out of the office in fear.

     To help fund the purchase of every house on the block, Dennis and Mac decide to involve themselves in Dee surrogate mother plan.  They arrive at the house Dee is staying at, the couple's house, posing as a rich gay couple. "Hello, I'm Hugh and this is my partner Vic.  We're partners in reality and we're partners in life. We're offering $100,000 for Sweet Dee's womb."  They want to start a bidding war with the couple for Dee's womb in the attempt to have them sell their house for it.  Unaware of the new plan, Charlie barges in to the couple's house with a plan of his own.  "Hello, I'm Charlie Kelly and I am the father of the baby that is growing inside of her belly."  At this point the couple is completely confused and asks everyone to leave, including Dee.

     Just as everyone's plan is falling apart, Frank breaks through the wall yelling, "Abort!  Abort!"  He explains that he put the children living in the house he owned to work ripping the copper pipes out of the basement.  They subsequently received wounds all over their hands and the family threatened to sue.  To settle the suit Frank was forced to give them the house.  

     In conclusion none of the gang's plans came together.  They were given great opportunities but, as usual, they either squandered them or screwed each other out of them.  This was the beginning of a great season that set the standard for the rest of the series.  This was the season that brought the series to syndication and brought me to the show.  It was by pushing the limits of the FX network that the cast and crew of Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia made it to this point.

http://static3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110904021342/itsalwayssunny/images/c/c5/Morgage_Crisis.jpg  (Vic and Hugh posing as a gay couple)

"The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis" (Part 3)

     Now in the episode the gang, while trying to prematurely kick a family out of their house to sell it, is at a legal halt and is looking to other means to flip the house.  Dee, while unaware of the results of her actions, is beginning to lose the trust of the couple she wishes to be a surrogate mother for.
     While trying to find a way around the lawyer protecting the family, Dennis and Mac come up with the idea to start their own reality group and sell the house themselves under the nose of the lawyer.  "Lets do, like, a good cop bad cop scenario.  You be the sour to my sweet."  (Dennis)  "The honey to my vinegar?"  (Mac)  "That's it dude!  Vic Vinegar and Hugh Honey Reality!"  (Dennis)  The two of them quickly put this plan to action by purchasing matching blazers and placing an ad spot of their new reality group over top of the existing real estate sign in the front of the house.  They then invite a new couple to come visit the house to sell it as fast as possible, all while being in complete character of Vic Vinegar and Hugh Honey.
     When the new couple arrives, unaware of the ongoing legal situation involving the house, Dennis greets them at the door almost too nicely.  He even goes as far as leaving an awkwardly long kiss on the hand of the woman.  While Dennis is laying down the "honey" Mac is standing silently behind everyone with a menacing look on his face letting the "vinegar" boil inside of him.  This charade goes on for a bit until Dennis asks the couple if they think they could see themselves living in this house.  The husband, off put by the actions of the Vic and Hugh, questions the size of the house and seems to not sound interested.  That puts Mac over the top.  He jumps in the face of the husband and starts screaming at him to consider the needs of his wife and even insinuates that he will take his wife upstairs and have sex with her right now.  The couple, now completely uncomfortable, stands silently as Mac berates the man and repeatedly yells, "ARE YOU GOING TO BUY THIS HOUSE?!"  Finally the woman breaks down and agrees to buy the house as they are running away.  Mac and Dennis see this as a huge victory.

http://i.imgur.com/HFweKKD.jpg  (Hugh laying on the honey as Vic lets the vinegar boil)

http://static.tvgcdn.net/MediaBin/Galleries/Shows/G_L/Iq_Iz/Its_Always_Sunny_InPhiladelphia/season5/sunny-philadelphia52.jpg  (Vic getting in the face of the potential home buyer)

"The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis" (Part 2)

     At this point in the episode Frank and the gang (minus Dee) are aggressively looking to flip a house that the previous owners are still inhabiting and Dee is off on her own plan of becoming a surrogate mother.

     We are reunited with the gang as they have made their way back to the newly purchased house, deed in hand.  When they go to put the key in the door they realize the previous owners have changed the locks to keep them out.  Unphased by this minor setback, Charlie pulls out a battering ram and begins to swing it back and forth to gain momentum as Dennis and Mac help.  Just as they are about to smash into the door it is opened and they are met by a lawyer.  The lawyer, whom in previous episodes has had nothing but bad encounters with the gang, tells them that as soon as he heard someone in the community had a problem with them he took on the case free of charge.  He then informs the gang that the family has 60 days to vacate the house and until then there was nothing that the gang could do to them.  Without skipping a beat Charlie enters his law expertise into the conversation.  (Long time fans of series will know that Charlie, while semi-illiterate, still thinks of himself as a "man of the law")  "He's making a few good points.  Look buddy, I know a lot about the law and various other lawyerings, uh, I'm well educated, well versed.  I know that situations like this, real estate wise, are complex."  (Charlie)  "Actually, they're pretty simple.  The forms are all standard boilerplate." (Lawyer)  Charlie, mentally and verbally outmatched, opts out of the real estate conversation to "go tit for tat on bird law."  When that fails he then smashes out of the front door and runs away, leaving the rest of the gang to follow.

     Dee, now staying at the house of the potential couple she will be a surrogate for, is diving into the couple's pool and drinking pina coladas.  When asked why she was drinking and swimming, two actions that are apparent red flags to the couple, she seems to be oblivious to their concern and even orders them to make her another drink as she was "killing them all day."

http://static4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111102010421/itsalwayssunny/images/9/9e/Stunt.jpg  (Dee diving in the couple's pool)

"The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis" (Part 1)

     This was a great episode full of classic Sunny humor fan of the series have come to know and love.  This was the opening episode to a season unlike any other previous to this point.  Season 5 was the first season in which the cast and crew were able to really let loose and write dirtier, raunchier episodes.
     The episode starts with a heated argument between Charlie and Dennis on "bird law" when Frank (Danny DeVito) storms in to the bar with news that he had just bought a house at a foreclosure auction and was looking to flip it "for a boatload."  The four of them start to get excited for the plan, as they do with all of their schemes, but look to go about it in the shadiest way possible.  While this is going on Sweet Dee, the last member of the gang, announces that she too has a plan of becoming a surrogate mother; solely for the money.  Much like with everything that Dee has to say the gang ignores her and ridicules her for looking like a bird.
     We then see the gang, minus Dee, checking out Frank's newly purchased house that seems to be very recently lived in.  As they make their way through it the family that previously lived there is still there and is apparently not pleased with the gang making themselves at home in it.  "What are you doin' in my house?"(Previous homeowner)  "My house, deadbeat!" (Frank)  Another argument ensues that begins to turn violet but is smoothed over by Dennis when he points out that, "We could smear the walls with their blood, guys...There are a number of twisted scenarios that could play out here.  But the easiest thing, really, is to just go get the deed."  And with that the gang leaves the family alone for now to come back with the deed.
     Meanwhile Dee is meeting the couple that wish to have her as their surrogate for the first time in person.  While talking to them she comes off as greedy and selfish seemingly without even noticing.  Even offering to "double-down" and go for twins for a reduced cost.  Sweet Dee even goes as far as blatantly lying to them about previous drug and alcohol use and serious medical conditions.  (Long time fans of the series will know that, as a child, Dee had to wear a back brace due to her scoliosis and smoked crack in a particular episode in season 3.  Not to mention she is a bartender and drinks in almost every episode, including this one.)  

http://static.tvgcdn.net/MediaBin/Galleries/Shows/G_L/Iq_Iz/Its_Always_Sunny_InPhiladelphia/season5/sunny-philadelphia51.jpg  (The gang stands off with the previous home owners)