Written by Tyler Lamb.
Out of all the comedies that have been airing over the past few years, there is only one that has constantly been not only critically acclaimed, but fans seem unable to get enough of. I am talking, of course, about the NBC show Community. It is hard to come across a show today with such a great combination of writing and acting, leaving this to be one of the best since Arrested Development.
The overall plot of this show centers around a study group at Greendale, a community college. Initially the group comes together because Jeff (Joel McHale) is a lawyer who has to go back to school because he faked his degree. He eventually wants to impress a girl named Britta(Gillian Jacobs) so he puts together a study group for their spanish class. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work, and Jeff is lured into this group in order to keep attempting at winning over Britta. This is the story that brings the characters all together, but is eventually somewhat forgotten about and doesn’t seem to matter anymore. They genuinely become a study group that takes at least one class together so they can still have something to study for.
One of the main comedic points of this show is the fact that it is set in a community college. Not only is it set here, but it gets the setting right. I, personally, have attended a community college before and almost everything in this show mirrors the experience of attending one. From seeing students of every age to having joke classes with very odd professors, the show gets it done perfectly. However, the writing and acting of this show is so great it doesn’t matter if you have attended a community college or not, you will find it very humorous.
It is clear with almost every production that there is almost no hope of success without a good script. Community has this, and even better, has an amazing cast to deliver it. The characters are brilliantly cast and I can imagine no one better delivering the lines and actions given to them. Two of the stand out characters for almost everyone are Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi). Their chemistry as best friends builds over the first season and just becomes nothing short of amazing in the seasons following. Also, when it comes to just a specific character, Danny Pudi really brings the overall best at points with Abed. His constant television and movie references are amazing and his almost self-awareness of the show can be down right hysterical, as seen in the episode “Bottle Episode.” Throughout this episode, Abed exclaims how he hates when shows do a bottle episode, when only one set is used during an entire episode, and the exact thing happens to them.
I can’t imagine anyone not loving this show. Yes, there are some mature themes that might be seen as immoral to a Christian mindset, but as stated earlier ,it is very similar to the actual community college experience. It also should be noted that the title of the show is more than just meaning a community college, but a community of people. You see these characters grow together and develop into sometimes better, sometimes worse individuals over the course of their time together. You see a very close community between the characters themselves and it’s interesting seeing how the title means more than what you would think at face value.
The most disappointing thing about this show has absolutely nothing to do with the production of it at all. What bothers me the most is how there are so few people who watch it. After the first half of the third season, NBC decided not to air the rest of the episodes and held off on them for months until finally airing them. Almost the same thing happened with the fourth season, which has yet to air because its air date was being pushed back until finally being set for February. Do yourself and every current fan a favor and catch up on this show. You won’t regret it, and who knows, maybe we could push it to last six seasons and a movie.
