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| Left to right: Donald Glover, Danny Pudi, Alison Brie |
Like most people, I was skeptical about what Community without Dan Harmon would look like. His inane fantasy of a community college was so meta and well structured that anyone who would come in would probably not do the show justice. However, it has happened, and Community is back with former Happy Endings show runners. Is it capable of finding its footing with new controllers, or is this the end? In Thom Bitches About Community, we will attempt to figure that out with sporadic thoughts on season four. Hey, maybe it's not all bad. Maybe it's better? Check back every week for further commentaries, and please feel free to add your own thoughts.
It is odd to consider a Thanksgiving episode crucial, but it really was for me. For anyone that has been reading the columns will know, I just hated the last two episodes with a passion. Since I set unfortunate TV guidelines in which promising shows get a five episode test and returning seasons of bad TV play an even riskier three strikes policy, I was about ready to quit this job. I just absolutely hated the last episode to the point of contemplation. Could this really be it? Could I not be watching Community?
On the bright side, this whole post will be a the Big Bang Theory-free reference center this week. I know that I have been doing it in order to contrast the differences in nerd representation on network TV, but I throw my hands up this week. There is literally no comparison that I feel is necessary to make. The show isn't exactly great, but I have figured out what this show needs if it wants to retain good graces.
It needs to go sincere. As I have stated during the Halloween episode, I am more interested in where the show is taking the characters. In fact, centralizing around Shirley's (Yvette Nicole Brown) and Jeff's (Joel McHale) reunion with his father, it explored something authentic and somewhat sweet. Maybe it was a little too sweet, but at least the show felt sincere. By the end of the episode, you were better off seeing what these characters had to say and it almost grounded Shirley more as this sweet person. It was also nice to see Pierce (Chevy Chase) be racist off camera as opposed to just doing it again and dragging the episode down.
It was also weird, because as much as I think Abed (Danny Pudi) is a little bit broken at this point, his central voice over was the glue to this episode, and I really enjoyed it. The whole choice to parody the Shawshank Redemption was a nice touch, even if it never quite worked out. It at least felt like Abed was doing something interesting. By making Shirley's garage into a metaphorical prison, I saw the show rebuild itself into something more fascinating. How do you escape a family event while also helping out the person that invited you?
I will admit that a few things seemed odd. I find that Troy (Donald Glover) complaining about marshmallows was a decent joke, but the whole discovery that there were yams just felt like an odd delivery. To an extent, these characters feel tired when they deliver lines. Annie (Allison Brie) having lady problems isn't that much of an issue, but it did feel oddly out of place. However, it was Abed's voice over and his insistence that they were prisoners that kept this episode strong.
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| Left to right: Gillian Jacobs and Joel McHale |
I am not entirely buying Jeff's brother being a nutcase. His neurotic energy and lack of confidence is a nice twist on what we expect from the Winger clan, but there was very little interesting to take from it. However, the final moments where Jeff bares himself to his father almost makes up for whatever was hacky about the premise anyways.
There are some funny moments, but the thing that I took away from this week's episode was that it was sincere. You actually cared about what was going on. True, it wasn't an exceptionally great episode, but it presents a soul that the last few episodes just have been lacking. Abed's narrative and acceptance that everything doesn't always work out was a nice return to form for his character, especially after the Greendale Babies massacre of the premiere.
I know it seems lame to think about it, but the show is beyond just being called a nerd show. These characters, in the hands of these new creators, suck as nerds. Whether it is that Hunger Games parody of the Inspector Spacetime nonsense, it just feels like they are desperate to appeal to a market by dumbing down the nerd culture. Maybe that is the best that they can do, but this show doesn't work as a nerd show anymore. Abed just doesn't feel right geeking out over pop culture references anymore beyond a few clips here and there. The show is not that great at parody, but succeeds when the jokes come from the humanity.
I hate to say it, but that is the only way that this show can realize its potential and break out of the Dan Harmon shadow. Maybe there won't be as many inspired episodes, but at least the characters will feel sincere. As it stands, I don't want the pop culture references to come back in spades. I also don't want Chang to come back either. If you give me the latter for the rest of the season, I will consider this show a success. However, kudos on pulling a twist and managing to keep me going right as my hope was about to die.
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