Nerd
Rant
Spoilers for Community! This is a warning!
So October 19th has come and gone. We are
now on the precipice of a new age of Community and the fans are nervous. I know
I am. There has been a lot of press surrounding the behind the scenes turmoil
that the show has been suffering from. The dangerously low number of viewers,
Dan Harmon, the now former show runner and the main creative mind behind the
show getting let go by Sony and NBC, and Chevy Chase outwardly condemning the
show as being the lowest form of comedy to the media... needless to say the
show has had some hiccups along the way. But season four is here and the gloves
are off! Community is back... but it is... kinda different...
I watched the premier episode and was very nervous.
But I was quickly delighted when I was greeted by a multi-cam sitcom complete
with a laugh track and incredibly lame jokes.
The meta-humor in the series is quite intact. This
opening clearly making fun on fans (like myself) that were (and really, still
are) worried that the show would lose its touch and become a standard sitcom. Unlike
some of the other “high concept” episodes, this format was only used in short
intervals, which is probably a good thing.
Alright! Time for me to sound off on what I liked
and didn’t like!!!!
What
I liked
Dean Pelton was in full force during this episode. His
contest, shamelessly dubbed “The Hunger Deans” brought some great humor. Not
only did Leonard get punched in the face by Jeff, but we also got to see the
return of Annie Kim, albeit a brief one. The most amazing part of the episode,
however, was the sexy dance with the Dean and Jeff. My God it was hilarious!
That and Jim Rash has moves! Few men can wear a dress quite like he can!
There are also some great scenes with Britta and
Troy. I have always been a fan of their pairing, so I was very pleased to see
them spend time together, even though it ended up with Britta strangling Troy
in a water fountain while he grunts “Why does this feel good?!”
The characters were all very true to themselves, and
there were definitely some great throw away jokes (hipster glasses), which made
me happy. The storyline for the episode is great too as it is beginning to
prepare the characters for the end as Jeff is close to graduating and his
friends are not pleased about it. No one more than Abed, as he spends much of
the episode in a comatose state, trying to imagine life if nothing ever
changed. There was also great (possible) reference to Muppet Babies! Or maybe
it was just a reference to how many cartoons in the 80’s and 90’s often had
“baby” versions in some sad attempt to preserve the show’s life span. Either way,
it was quite funny.
What
I didn’t like
Dun dun DUUUUUNNNNNN! Uh oh! Nedu has BAD THINGS TO
SAY ABOUT COMMUNITY!??!?!!? Shut up! I can say bad stuff if I want!
Now this episode definitely felt different from
regular Community. I am not sure if it is because I know all the background
stuff behind the show, but something felt a bit off. I feel this may have been
due to a few of the other characters with some lackluster storylines.
I felt that Shirley and Annie had little to do.
Their idea to prank the Dean seemed to lead to very little besides Annie
showing she is still in lust love with Jeff. This annoyed me a bit
because I was under the impression that she had begun to be surer of herself
without needing Jeff. A lot of season 3 focused on the idea of the group
without needing Jeff as a crutch. That may or may not be all forgotten at this
point. It is too early to tell. Pierce had little to do. It seems that the
writers really did not know what to with him, playing heavily off the fact that
he often has no idea what is going on. There was an episode long joke about him
trying to come up with a gay joke about Jeff collecting balls, but there was no
pay-off what so ever. Yawn.
Jeff himself was the A story, as he was trying to
ensure that they all made it into this class (the history of ice cream)
together. The antics that ensured were quite funny, but I feel this may have
lacked the “episode 1 tradition”. I made that up, by the way. In my eyes, the
episode 1 tradition involves Jeff being/reverting to being a complete asshole.
By the end of the episode, either he redeems himself or someone else helps him
find redemption. While the group was pissed that he was secretly taking summer
classes to graduate early, he was working hard to get them all in the same
class. Even so the group found his actions selfish. Hmm... Not sure if I buy
it. But again, it is hard to match the level of assholery That Jeff presented
in episode 1 of season 3 (axe to the table).
Verdict!
I have no idea! It is way too early to tell. But as
far as things stand right now... If it looks like Community, and it sounds like
Community, it probably is Community. But does it feel like community? It
definitely has some potential, but I must see more. I definitely enjoyed the
episode! Community fans, stay strong. Let’s see how this plays out J
Things
to Note!
The throw away joke about the hipster glasses was
awesome! The throw away joke about the Dean’s stapler being moved made me
chuckle.
I’m in love with Britta. Her sexy dancing is so
unsexy, it is sexy. Should I see a shrink?
Troy and Abed becoming more independent?! Again, way
too early to tell.
Hilarious unintentional foreshadowing towards Chevy
Chase’s inevitable departure! In Abed’s sitcom “happy place,” Peirce is
replaced by Fred Willard! Unintentional comedy gold!
This episode fails the Bechdel Test hard. Come on,
Annie. You are no longer defined by your obsession with Jeff!
Kevin has... Changnesia?!
Thanks
for reading folks! Until next time!
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