October 19th is a feeling in us all, and that feeling is Community returning for its fourth season. After being delayed multiple times since its original airdate of, you guessed it, the 19th of October, Community’s long-awaited fourth season premieres next Thursday in the US.
It’s hard to gauge how excited I am, but I’d say the last time I was this excited was when I completed my Community DVD collection and went on a Directors’ Commentary binge. It was a wonderful time.
“But Karl, why do you have such an obviously unhealthy addiction to Community? And why should we watch season four?” Well, anonymous voice at the back of my head, allow me to briefly explain.
Community is a sitcom that, for three seasons, has consistently done what few other sitcoms have been able to do; it has perfectly balanced lovable characters, humour, and originality. It has always evolved while retaining its roots in its central themes of friendship, personal growth, and the goodness of humankind.
The show starts off fairly inconspicuously and like very many other sitcoms. There is a varied group of misfits that gets together in a common setting (in this case, a community college). They start to partake in shenanigans and grow as a group. They initially don’t get along but learn to accept each other as time goes on. Now, the premise seems contrived at best—I nearly stopped watching it the first time I saw it—but the execution is brilliant.
The first season of Community is in fact very much like any other sitcom. While it is genuinely funny and the characters are more complex and endearing than in most others, there is initially nothing that really sets it apart. But near the end of the season, beginning with “Contemporary American Poultry”, a parody of Goodfellas, and continuing in “Modern Warfare”, a homage to every action movie ever made, Community begins to show what it can do with sheer ambition.
From there, it becomes more and more inventive. While there are a few “typical” sitcom episodes from time to time, the writers experiment with everything from episodes shot as documentaries (“Intermediate Documentary Filmmaking”) to plots with multiple timelines (fan favourite “Remedial Chaos Theory”). Watching Community became more than just laughing with these characters. Fans wanted to see what the writers could come up with next. They wanted to see how far the show could take references to Dungeons and Dragons (hint: a full episode loosely in the style of The Lord of the Rings) or holiday episodes (a full Claymation Christmas episode in season two).
But let’s be honest, it’s not very hard to force in references to pop culture and use that as a substitute for actual story and character development. Yet, that’s what makes Community such a perfectly balanced show. At no point do the increasingly complex references to Twitter (“Studies in Modern Movement”) or Law and Order (“Basic Lupine Urology”) overshadow the fact that the show is fundamentally about its characters. Every single episode, from the most straightforward to the most outrageous, is about one or more of the characters growing and learning. Every episode leaves us feeling like we know these people more than we should probably know fictional characters.
So what Community does remarkably well is giving something to everyone that watches. Do you want to watch a show about great characters finding their way through life; or would you rather finally put that massive film collection of yours to use and look for pop culture references? Do you like to find subtle jokes in the background and then read fan theories until 3 AM; or do you just want to sit back, enjoy, and laugh? Community does all that and more.
Up until now, outside of a few hiccups here and there, Community’s three seasons have been astonishingly solid. This brings us to our second question: what can we expect from season four?
Naturally, fans want as much Community as they can possibly get. The worry, though, is that season four is, for better or worse, the start of a very different Community. The end of season three was plagued with an alarming amount of uncertainty and controversy surrounding the future of the show and, to cut a long story short, it culminated in creator Dan Harmon leaving. Harmon, who was known for his almost authoritarian creative control over the show, was forced to step down by NBC, while other writers, including Chris McKenna (who was responsible for the mindboggling masterpieces that are “Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design” and “Remedial Chaos Theory”) and Dino Stamatopoulos, followed suit.
What this means for season four is unclear. All the main characters and a few writers, including Megan Ganz (who wrote the hilarious “Basic Lupine Urology”), are still on board. NBC’s new writing recruits have also all gone on record to claim that they are fans of the show and want to retain its tone and creativity. However, Harmon’s absence and a recent statement from the network stating that the tone has definitely changed are perhaps a cause for concern. Whether or not we’re right to be collectively anxious will be seen in just seven days.
I, for one, am optimistic. There is no reason to criticize anything before it’s even released, and at this point, I feel like I would watch M. Night Shyamalan’s Avatar: The Last Airbender if it featured Troy and Abed, Jeff, Britta, Annie, Shirley, and Pierce. Experience dictates that anything with those characters is worth watching.
But for now, I leave you with the hope of October 19th. It’s only seven days away, but seven days is too long to deprive yourself of Community. So here’s a handy guide to the best episodes in each season to get you through this time of uncertainty. In the words of the undeniably eloquent Britta Perry, feast your ear-tongues on these memory-pops:
Season One:
“Modern Warfare”– This is the original highly ambitious episode of the series. It parodies everything from Die Hard to John Woo to 28 Days Later.
“The Science of Illusion”– It’s April Fools, Britta kills a frog, Shirley and Annie become campus cops to find the killer, and Abed narrates.
“Football, Feminism, and You”– Britta learns to go to the bathroom with her friends, Troy decides to play football again, and the Dean tries to design the least racist mascot possible. This is early Community at its best.
“Contemporary American Poultry”– Abed has always wanted to be in a mafia movie, so here’s an episode in the style of Goodfellas– absolute brilliance.
“Physical Education”– Jeff wants to play pool in PE but isn’t allowed to wear his leather jacket. Meanwhile, Abed is forced find true love.
Season Two:
“Paradigms of Human Memory”– There aren’t many sitcoms that can be said to have good clip shows. This clip show, on the other hand, is hilarious. All the footage is new and nothing is recycled from previous episodes.
“Critical Film Studies”– A showcase for the complexity of Abed’s character. Most of the episode is simply a dinner conversation between him and Jeff. This episode was also directed by Richard Ayoade from The IT Crowd.
“Advanced Dungeons and Dragons”– One of Dan Harmon’s favourite moments in the show. The group plays Dungeons and Dragons in order to help out a classmate.
“Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design”– One of the most clever episodes in Community, and there are blanket forts.
“Intro to Political Science”– Possibly the funniest episode of the season. Greendale has to elect a student president, which leads a spectacle almost as entertaining as the actual US Presidential campaigns.
Season Three:
“Remedial Chaos Theory”– A very strong contender for the best episode of the whole show. Seven different timelines tell the story of what would happen at a party depending on who answered the doorbell.
“Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps”– Britta tries to determine who’s a sociopath by letting everyone tell a horror story.
“Virtual Systems Analysis”– Not a very funny episode, but it’s a surprisingly poignant look at each character through Abed’s eyes.
“Origins of Vampire Mythology”– Like the Political Science episode in Season Two, this one makes the list for no other reason than the fact that it’s thoroughly hilarious.
“Digital Estate Planning”– You can’t mention season three without mentioning the famous videogame episode. The bulk of this episode is shown as a videogame that the group plays in order to protect Pierce’s inheritance.
SIX SEASONS AND A MOVIE