by Graham Osborne
Community has thrown another uninspired episode into the ring, trying to do battle with last week’s powerhouse only to trip on its own untied shoelace and knock itself out before the first punch was thrown. Ordinarily, there would be some saving grace for the show, but it ultimately felt like the writers were phoning this one in.
Community has thrown another uninspired episode into the ring, trying to do battle with last week’s powerhouse only to trip on its own untied shoelace and knock itself out before the first punch was thrown. Ordinarily, there would be some saving grace for the show, but it ultimately felt like the writers were phoning this one in.
The basic plot of the episode has all the hallmarks of a potentially classic caper. The Study Group are on a road trip after a poor online purchase of a giant hand made by the Dean results in them selling it on to another eccentric individual. As the episode progresses, Abed attempts to initiate flashbacks to explain how the plot had unfurled up to that point.
These flashbacks felt forced into being, with the numerous attempts at changing the past to create a better present never really going anywhere, and the entire ordeal reaching a dissatisfying payoff. The meta-commentary between Jeff and Abed over the show’s shifting focus from Jeff as the driving force behind the plots to having a grander ensemble joining him in the spotlight elicited a chuckle, but it was certainly the only highpoint in an otherwise dull affair.
These flashbacks felt forced into being, with the numerous attempts at changing the past to create a better present never really going anywhere, and the entire ordeal reaching a dissatisfying payoff. The meta-commentary between Jeff and Abed over the show’s shifting focus from Jeff as the driving force behind the plots to having a grander ensemble joining him in the spotlight elicited a chuckle, but it was certainly the only highpoint in an otherwise dull affair.
Speaking of Jeff and the rest of the Study Group, the characterisation within the episode goes against much of the character development that has occurred since Season One. The animosity between Jeff and Abed seems to be drawn more from when Abed was solely a trope-naming, reference-dropping robot. His subsequent evolution into a more human persona is largely ignored, while Jeff graduates from narcissistic ex lawyer to narcissistic professor, accepting and even encouraging Abed’s quirks to some degree. It does feel as though the entire cast have taken a step backwards when it comes to their character arcs, leaving them shadows of their former selves, with some people being left on the fringes of the series whilst others take more of the spotlight.
This week’s episode of Community is not worth watching. It should be, but the whole premise lacks the "je ne sais quoi" that last week embodied so fully. Hopefully this is the nadir of the season, and next week will see a vast improvement in quality.
This week’s episode of Community is not worth watching. It should be, but the whole premise lacks the "je ne sais quoi" that last week embodied so fully. Hopefully this is the nadir of the season, and next week will see a vast improvement in quality.
RSS Feed
