Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday! This week, I’m continuing my look at Community (2009-2014, NBC; 2015, Yahoo!), which is currently available on DVD/Blu-Ray and streaming!
Community stars JOEL McHALE as Jeff, GILLIAN JACOBS as Britta, DANNY PUDI as Abed, YVETTE NICOLE BROWN as Shirley, ALISON BRIE as Annie, DONALD GLOVER as Troy, KEN JEONG as Chang, and CHEVY CHASE as Pierce. With JIM RASH.
Season Three is another series-exemplifying collection, boasting an abundance of high-concept entries. They emphasize Community’s media-about-media metatheatricality, which is now the core tenet of its situation. On that basis, I’d call this a good season. However, Three is a comedown from Two because, as an idea-driven sitcom, its ideas are also becoming less effective. It’s already running out of things to spoof, and past stunts are often revisited: another clip show homage, repeated genre parodies, more documentaries, etc. And while many of these gimmicks are also applied more boldly here, bigger is not necessarily better. When a show demands clever episodic notions — especially those derived from external, satirizable subjects — novelty, i.e., the ingenuity of a joke, is more essential. This stands in direct contrast to more character-driven styles of sitcommery, where value actually accrues with repetition (as the better a show comes to understand its regulars — from the practiced exploration and thus refinement of them within story — the better those regulars get at generating more personalized, well-earned ideas). For Community, its characters aren’t ever enough of a focus to meaningfully counteract that declining novelty. And even though these leads are better-defined than ever before, this year is too preoccupied with several long-form narrative arcs and its own meta-satisfying episodic gimmickry to capitalize on them as compensatory assets. So, while this list is indeed filled with memorable samples — including the series’ single best outing — its own particular interests can’t help but reveal, even in this peak-adjacent year, why its version of situation comedy is restrictive given the genre’s requirements. Especially if sustaining a long, consistently great run is the goal… Of course, Season Four will soon make Three look like an inspired collection by contrast, so it’s all relative. And in the meantime, this year is still Community very much being Community, and that’s, as always, more for the better than the worse.
01) Episode 53: “Remedial Chaos Theory” (Aired: 10/13/11)
Jeff rolls a die that opens up six different realities.
Written by Chris McKenna | Directed by Jeff Melman
My pick for this season’s Most Valuable Episode (MVE), “Remedial Chaos Theory” is also the sample that I’d select as the finest half hour from the series’ entire run. The one that best encapsulates its identity and everything it’s able to do when firing on all cylinders. This is because, for all its gimmickry via a Sliding Doors-esque alternative timeline construct, its whole point is to use said gaudy framework to study the characters and their relationships. That’s right; although I love that this entry reinforces the high-concept metatheatricality that is now central to the series’ situation and therefore a requirement for supremacy, what’s most impressive is that it also smartly has Abed call attention to this narrative device. This motivates its inclusion through his own characterization, reiterating him as an expert on the tropes of this fantasy/sci-fi genre that is, in essence, also being spoofed, and with series-specific permission from him as an established access point. That makes the whole thing a reflection not only of the show’s primary ethos, but also of a core character who enables it in the first place, such that it can exist legitimately as a display of the series’ situation. What’s more, while I thrill at the most memorable scene here — the well-named “Darkest Timeline” where everything that can go wrong does go wrong, leading to a well-choreographed bit of chaos that’s so hilariously, artistically performed — it’s really the minutiae of examining how each regular fits within the ensemble, by revealing what happens when each one of them steps out for two minutes, that excites me. In that setup, all major parts of the situation are being engaged thoughtfully, and for the purposes of showcasing and even developing extra value derived by them — rendering this probably the best situation comedy ever offered by Community, on the series’ own terms and mine.
02) Episode 54: “Horror Fiction In Seven Spooky Steps” (Aired: 10/27/11)
Britta tries to uncover which group member tested for homicidal tendencies in a psych eval.
Written by Dan Harmon | Directed by Tristram Shapeero
After last year’s zombie Halloween show, this season goes for a smorgasbord of spooky tropes, with a format that enables an abundance of them. If it feels gimmicky and less conceptually successful than last year’s more targeted and therefore incisive lampoon, it is. But it’s uplifted by, again, a focus on the characters and their relationships, which creates actual situation-relevant value. Specifically, the opportunity here for different characters to narrate Halloween tales is not only a chance for the show to reflect their differing characterizations through sketch-like media-about-media comedy, it’s also a chance to explore what they think of each other, based on who they “cast” as what in their own metafictional narratives. In that regard, this is another example of Community using the kind of storytelling for which it’s known to satisfy the greater genre good of examining the primary elements of its situation that have to actually uphold the weekly plots (however high concept). As such, this is a better-than-baseline showing for Season Three.
03) Episode 57: “Documentary Filmmaking: Redux” (Aired: 11/17/11)
Abed shoots a documentary about the making of a new commercial for the school.
Written by Megan Ganz | Directed by Joe Russo
We’ve seen Community employ documentary framings several times already — the best so far being a spoof of mockumentary sitcoms, which worked well because its allusions were coming from inside the series’ own genre, keeping the meta more personal. Well, this season’s got two more of these documentary spoofs — evidencing Three’s dwindling novelty through this apparent struggle to keep generating fresh conceptual gimmicks for media-about-media parody. However, both are nevertheless strong — not merely because they’re memorable, but because, if they’re not as personalized, they’re at least specific, predicated on separately niche and well-defined cultural artifacts. In particular, this one is an homage to Hearts Of Darkness, a documentary about the making of Apocalypse Now. And in addition to clever parallels, attention is called to the bias of the filmmaker — Abed, who embeds this satire squarely in Community’s identity — and many great character moments throughout, especially for Jim Rash’s Dean Pelton, who is used as the proxy for Francis Ford Coppola. It’s all very funny, with the main cast helping earn the series’ trademark meta laughs. (Luis Guzmán and Jeff Garlin notably cameo.)
04) Episode 59: “Regional Holiday Music” (Aired: 12/08/11)
The school’s choir teacher asks the study group to fill in for the incapacitated Glee club.
Written by Steve Basilone & Annie Mebane | Directed by Tristram Shapeero
After references to Glee in several past outings, this Christmas show offers a full-blown parody of that FOX series, and it’s both wickedly funny and well-applied to Community. That is, Glee is a terrific piece of media for this sitcom to spoof, for it’s so close to home. Aside from the basic fact that they’re both set in schools — which makes allusions easy — they’re also, more broadly, both contemporaneous TV shows that have been nominated in the same award categories because they’re purportedly in the same genre… even though, they’re really not. That’s the point made clear by this entry, which deftly contrasts this series’ pretense-mocking tenor, and the cynical characters who best embody it (like Jeff and Britta), with the heightened and thus stylized artifice of Glee, as the cast gradually transforms — through original songs — into the type of singing smiley faces who inhabit that other program. It’s all very self-aware and even biting, and it’s fun because the satire is, again, rooted in Community’s own medium, allowing all the meta to feel well-affiliated to this series and its own elements. (Taran Killam guests.)
05) Episode 63: “Pillows And Blankets” (Aired: 04/05/12)
A documentary covers Troy and Abed’s pillow fort conflict.
Written by Andy Bobrow | Directed by Tristram Shapeero
The second of this year’s documentary spoofs, “Pillows And Blankets” is similarly pitched as a targeted lampoon of a particular media: the uber-serious and prestigious Ken Burns film for PBS, and most specifically, his lauded recounting of the Civil War. The tropes and conventions known from this very niche but well-studied type of doc are so different from those seen in Hearts Of Darkness that they don’t even feel alike in terms of laughs, even though there’s obvious conceptual overlap — with the series again adopting an authoritatively biased visual framing device to sell this one-off parody. But if all that earns the show’s clever media-about-media satire, the best yuks really come from how Community‘s tangibles are presented in this context, as the joke of Troy and Abed’s pillow fort rivalry being akin to the Civil War stems from continuity that’s unique to the series and therefore vital in how this half hour can indeed be a multi-dimensional reflection of Community’s specialness, its situation. A favorite.
06) Episode 66: “Basic Lupine Urology” (Aired: 04/26/12)
The group investigates who sabotaged the yam they were growing in biology.
Written by Megan Ganz | Directed by Rob Schrab
This is a straightforward but entirely committed sendup of Law & Order that is effective at earning its parodic humor — memorable for all the ways in which it pays comedic tribute to the specific work its spoofing. And as far as Community’s media-about-media reference points go, it’s always a benefit when the series can play closer to its own genre, or at least within the same TV medium. Meaning, this wink about another TV show feels like a wink about itself too, as they’re both in the same world. However, I can’t pretend that I don’t wish there was more pertinent support from character here — more of a point in exploring them or their dynamics as the justifying support (if not outright motivation) for the satirical framework. But this is one of my overarching critiques of the season compared to its more consistently cohesive predecessor. So, including this entry — which is very funny purely on conceptual terms — is also an encapsulation of my general thoughts on the state of the show in late Three.
07) Episode 68: “Curriculum Unavailable” (Aired: 05/10/12)
Abed’s friends, all expelled, join him in therapy to unpack their feelings on Greendale.
Written by Adam Countee | Directed by Adam Davidson
After last season skewered clichéd clip shows in an episode that turned out to be one of the series’ finest — a fresh use of Community’s metatheatricality that centralized its own created elements in the process — Three decides to do it again. It’s another instance of the show running out of new things to spoof (and new conceptual hooks), but I want to be fair and say, perhaps the recurring nature of the gimmick is a fundamental part of the joke and therefore amusing in an extra way. Actually, though, I think this is more of a “kitchen sink” segment than anything — combining clip show jokes with elements of the psychological thriller, all in service of the year’s overarching arc, which just recently came to the fore when the study group was expelled as Chang took over the reins of the school. However, what makes it worth highlighting is that all of this is very metatheatrical, in support of the guiding element of the series’ identity, and since the story is about the setting and the history these characters share there, it’s so firmly rooted within the situation that it satisfies me as an example of Community-specific sitcommery.
08) Episode 69: “Digital Estate Planning” (Aired: 05/17/12)
The group must help Pierce win a video game in order to receive his inheritance.
Written by Matt Warburton | Directed by Adam Davidson
Another memorable excursion, “Digital Estate Planning” is most notable because of its conceptual gimmick — almost the entirety of this half hour is rendered in the style of a retro video game. Like last season’s stop-motion Christmas entry, this is the kind of one-off deviation in form that would eschew the situation on most sitcoms, but here, Community has created series-defining expectations around regular media-about-media satire, so this can be a genuine reflection of self. And, like the aforementioned Christmas show, it’s also supported and even earned by actual character stakes — specifically, the fact that the group is playing the game to help Pierce win his inheritance from his late father, whom we met earlier in the season. Now, it’s all a bit silly and convenient, and frankly, I don’t prefer this visually atypical sample to others that employ the same gimmickry yet better resemble what the series is usually like, but it’s a fresh idea at a time when the show is starting to crave them. And that is valuable.
09) Episode 70: “The First Chang Dynasty” (Aired: 05/17/12)
The group concocts an elaborate scheme to wrest control of Greendale from Chang.
Written by Matt Fusfeld & Alex Cuthbertson | Directed by Jay Chandrasekhar
This plot-heavy outing is the culmination of the year’s Dictator Chang arc, where Ken Jeong’s cartoony menace Chang expels the study group and takes over the school in an elaborate scheme that involves an imposter Dean Pelton. In this episode, the group pulls off an Ocean’s Eleven-style heist to overthrow his totalitarian regime, with lots of comedic Soviet and North Korean implications throughout, and many nods to this genre of ensemble caper. And because that type of film tends to be story-driven as is, I’m afraid this lampoon is also, with laughs coming more from narrative beats and the accordant allusions than the characters and what allows them to be funny or personally interesting. But, again, that’s the state of the show in Season Three. And the kind of media-obsessed satire seen here is impressive — it’s another instance of Community at its most committed to the bit, with a high-octane sense of parodic comedy that’s also action-packed and thus reminiscent of the well-received Paintball battles of yore. Also, to be fair, this installment does offer some emotional stakes in Britta’s feelings for Troy and the sacrifice he makes regarding the A/C school that’s also been one of this year’s main arcs. So, from every metric, this is a better-than-baseline representation of Three.
10) Episode 71: “Introduction To Finality” (Aired: 05/17/12)
Jeff is asked to assist when Shirley and Pierce face off in student court.
Written by Steve Basilone & Annie Mebane | Directed by Tristram Shapeero
Three’s finale ties together several of the year’s long-running story arcs in a package designed to explore the centralized Jeff, who otherwise hadn’t received as much attention this season as in those prior. His restored spotlight is largely because this script was written as a just-in-case series finale, so it’s very concerned with suggesting some sort of earned evolution for him as a matter of closure. And to its credit, it does a pretty good job of using the year’s unique narrative threads to indeed fulfill this intention. Specifically, the idea of Shirley and Pierce taking each other to student court in a dispute over the cafeteria’s sandwich shop is a fun way to engage their characters and remind us of Jeff’s backstory as a lawyer, which creates a natural arena for calling attention to his growth. From there, having the historically self-focused and cynical Jeff reach a catharsis about altruism, as a result of his friendships, is the perfect arc for him — and an ideal notion for an ensemble workplace/hangout sitcom like this. Also, although some additional build-up prior to this half hour would have been helpful, it’s nevertheless appreciated, and aided by the thematic symmetry in the subplots, where Troy’s job with the A/C club (featuring John Goodman) comes to a close and Abed turns into the version of himself seen in the Darkest Timeline from “Remedial Chaos Theory.” The latter is a hilarious bit of continuity that, as with the Troy story, affirms the value of personal connections, Jeff’s own transformative realization. Does the show have anywhere left to go after this? Well, nowhere great…
Other notable entries that merit mention include: “Virtual Systems Analysis,” a sci-fi-trope-filled outing that attempts to cultivate some introspection for both Annie and Abed (this would have made my list if it was funnier!), along with “Studies In Modern Movement,” which enjoys several amusing setups, like the pairing of Jeff and Dean Pelton, “Foosball And Nocturnal Vigilantism,” which boasts several laudable character subplots, and “Digital Exploration Of Interior Design,” which sets up the Pillow Fort documentary episode and has a worthwhile subplot for Jeff, who is encouraged to apologize to a stranger. Other offerings had some interesting character ideas — I just wish the show was as good this year as it was in Two at attaching them to the higher-concept gimmicks that are now most central to its identity.
*** The MVE Award for the Best Episode from Season Three of Community goes to…
“Remedial Chaos Theory”
Come back next week for Season Four! And stay tuned tomorrow for a new Wildcard!