Over the Thanksgiving weekend, Amazon had the first season of Community on sale for $12. Being a fan of the show, I immediately bought a copy, and as I revisit these episodes, I can't help feeling like I made a mistake in not buying half a dozen copies or more and giving them out as Christmas gifts. Not nearly enough people are watching this show, which could well be the best comedy on tv right now, and I have to say that, if you enjoy television at all, you really should be.
This is a show that is obviously loved by everybody involved in its creation (a trait it has in common with far too many shows that have been canceled before their time, including FX's recent Terriers). There is a joy surrounding it that is simply infectious, and that joy is enhanced by the fact that this is a show with a heart. The single camera sitcom is a genre that has long been shrouded in cynicism. Shows like Arrested Development, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and even, to an extent, 30 Rock, are essentially about flawed people hurting each other. When done well, this is still a funny format, but it wears on you after awhile. While I still adore it, I'm not sure how much longer Arrested Development could have lasted in the format.
Community takes a different direction. It's a show about flawed people overcoming and/or embracing their flaws to help one another. It's a show about how we find family in this crazy, mixed up world where traditional family is no longer a guarantee.
While that's the important part, it wouldn't be worthwhile if the execution wasn't spot-on, and the unique way that Community executes really helps elevate it. This is a show made by people with an abiding love of pop culture, and it is by no means afraid to make heavy use of tropes or references. The way Dan Harmon and the other writers use the tropes, though, is not as a crutch or even a scaffolding. Except in rare, highly intentional moments, they are used in a way that is incredibly organic and that contribute to the development of the characters. They use them in a way that shows the basis of these cliches in the reality of human interaction.
It's a wonderful and unimaginably difficult thing to do, and it wouldn't work if the writers didn't take the reality of the characters incredibly seriously. For all of the ridiculous things they might do or get caught up in, there are genuine people with genuine motivations in even the most ridiculous characters present, and that shines through most clearly in Abed.
Abed is a character who all but officially has Asperger's syndrome. He relates to people most easily through media cliches, which allows him an interesting role as a commentator on the action, providing a certain amount of meta-referential humor without actively breaking the fourth wall. If this was Abed's only role, he would still be a great character because of the singular way that Danny Pudi plays him, but he's far more than that. In episodes like Introduction to Film, Physical Education, Contemporary American Poultry, and especially last week's Mixology Certification, we can see just how troubled Abed is. Media cliches aren't a way for him to understand people. He can do that just fine. They're a way to help people understand him, something he can't do on his own. He struggles with his oddity and with being left outand he's willing to use people, to an extent, to feel like he belongs. He even recognizes that his own friends occasionally see him as something lesser, but he doesn't know how to express his frustration.
That's a lot of depth, and yet all of this is handled delicately. It's a testament to the collaborative effort on display, the willingness by everybody involved to let each other bring their gifts to the table and let the best possible result unfold. It manages to be touching without being saccharine, to be funny without being alienating, and to be fundamentally true despite being admittedly contrived.
Please watch Community. You'll be glad you did.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Speaking of Abed's deep deep mental troubles, I'm assuming you've watched the Christmas episode already? I'm imagining an alternate version of that episode filmed in the real world... man that would've been depressing.
I'm with you on Community's awesomeness, but there are a few things that bug me a bit. The way it treats religion is kind of superficial, although that's to be expected for a sitcom. In the Jesus Movie episode, for example, was there anything particularly Muslim about the way Abed approached the project? There's also been too many relationship-driven plotlines, especially in the first season, but they've been doing a good job of keeping that in check.
My only worry is that the show will stop being able to walk the line between satire and schmaltz. I don't think Arrested Development was ever as nihilistic as Always Sunny, but it definitely swung wildly from one pole to the other. Community's doing a good job so far, but if it ever starts using Scrubs' "here's what I learned about life" montages set to Coldplay music, I'm saying goodbye forever.
The Christmas episode was brilliant. Very nearly made me tear up a couple of times. I've seen a couple of other people talk about the idea of an alternate version that just takes place in the study room.
As for the treatment of religion, I think that part of that comes from the fact that the only character who takes her faith at all seriously is Shirley (well, and Pierce, but that's joke). Abed's take on Christianity wouldn't be influenced by his nominal standing as a Muslim because that's not how he relates to things. Also, that was just a really weak episode (at least in my opinion).
In terms of plot-lines being driven by relationships, I'm fine with it, so long as they continue to include non-romantic relationships. For many people, relationships are the driving force of their actions, and seeing Jeff mature as he tried to just be friends with Britta was interesting.
Watching the commentaries, I am 100% confident that we'll never see narration (outside of Abed's occasional commentary). For one thing, Dan Harmon and company care too much about the fourth wall. For another, they think that those sorts of devices are artificial, and while they may be willing to go to great lengths for a laugh, they like to keep their characters honest.
Post a Comment