Although it seems like we just started it’s finally the penultimate episode of community. Unfortunately due to time constraints this will be an abridged review and I apologize in advance. So here are my quick thoughts on Heroic Origins (4.12).
The episode opens up with the group trying to study for their last history test of the semester. Abed reveals that he’s been slowly tracking the groups origin and discovered that the group were destined to meet and that their stories have always been interwoven. Meanwhile Chang’s evil plan to expel the study group and shut down Greendale starts to come to fruition.
As a whole I’m conflicted with the episode. The idea that the study group was destined to meet by fate sort of tramples over the premise of the show. This group was suppose to be an unlikely band of misfits who by random chance met and melted together into a family they never had. On the other it was a guilty sense of pleasure wanting to delve deeper into the group of characters that I have grown attached to over the years. For the most part the episode works as a whole with a very series finale vibe to it. Barring a few minor plot inconsistencies, the episode felt like a love letter from the writers to the fans. The jokes work well and the references they manage to squeeze in are amusing.
I really liked the running gag with the Star Wars prequels stabs but it comes away as been there and done that. My favorite moment was probably the origin of Magnitude which I will leave undiscussed for you to enjoy on your own. I was actually surprised that the episode was able to deal and salvage Chang in a way that I thought we would never see again. I think the biggest breaking factor for this episode is the fact that these stories try so hard to intertwine that it becomes too convenient and really hard to suspend disbelief.
Overall the premise of the episode is very pleasing and can be seen as a love letter to the fans from the writers, barring a few plot inconsistencies that is. The make or break factor of the episode is the fact that it tries so hard to intertwine each others stories that it comes across as to convenient and almost impossible to suspend disbelief. There are great moments regarding the origins of side characters as well as a great sense of redemption for Chang. As a whole the episode is enjoyable but the fact that it sort of messes with the premise of the show is a bit of a hard pill to swallow.
These past three weeks of Community have seen a rise in consistent quality and it seems that the new staff has finally found their stride. Economics of Marine Biology is a simple episode but it easily feels like a season one era episode.
The episode opens up with the gang, minus Pierce, in the study room as they’re discussing the possible recruitment of a new wealthy student. If they can land the metaphorical whale, Greendale will be financially set to fund its other classes. Meanwhile Shirley and Troy attend their first P.E. class only to find out that things aren’t what they seem.
Economics of Marine Biology featured a very steady stream of jokes per minute that kept the episode very fast paced. I found myself bursting out with laughter more in this episode than I have in the other six. All of the comedic timings were on point and the jokes they made were landing. It had a nice season one vibe that focused a lot of the story on campus. The episode starts off great and only gathers steam from there.
Plot wise things were very simple and somewhat silly. The lengths at which the Dean and Annie go to ensure that the new student enrolls is funny but it the premise seems a bit stretched. It’s always nice to see the Dean and Annie working together though and the two actors more than make up for the silliness.
Season two and definitely season three began the separation of Community from Greendale and with it meant less class focused episodes. Economics of Marine Biology brought us right back to the classroom with Troy and Shirley. The two enrolled in a P.E. class only to find out that the class was actually a Physical Education Education class. This premise screams season one of Community and led to some enjoyable performances from both Yvette and Donald. The resolution was a bit cringe worthy though, ending in a montage and song that just didn’t do it for me.
Pierce and Jeff get some much needed story time, something that hasn’t been touched on for quite sometime. I always liked the idea of Pierce becoming the father Jeff never had but it seems like the plot has been ditched over the years. Pierce’s comedy does seem to rely a little too much on racial humor, which kind of took me away from the story. However I liked the overall direction of their story and it definitely made me remember the Pierce I’m going to miss after this season’s over.
Overall, Economics of Marine Biology had a very season one vibe flowing throughout the episode. The episode has very steady stream of jokes per minute, something other episodes this season have lacked. The Dean and Annie’s plot of ensuring the enrollment of a wealthy student is funny but the premise feels a bit stretched. Jeff and Pierce also get some great screen and helped remind me of the Pierce I’m going to miss.
As a future note, next week’s episode of Community is a rerun so there will be no new Community review next week.
Community airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC! Check out last night’s episode here on Hulu!
Interested in writing reviews or news posts for Thinking Cinematic? Contact me at ThinkCinematicReviews@gmail.com! You can also send your guest reviews there too!
Connect with me at: Twitter: @Treyrs20o9 Twitter: @Think_Cinematic Email: ThinkCinematicReviews@Gmail.com
Warning: This review features a pretty major plot spoiler, please watch the episode before reading the full review otherwise don’t read past the summary.
Summary:
Overall Advanced Documentary Filmmaking is another solid episode coming off last week’s extremely strong episode. Although this episode isn’t a comedy powerhouse it still featured some great bits, especially with Troy and Annie, and Shirley and Britta. Ken Jeong featured a very strong performance this episode and produced an awesome scene between Kevin and Jeff. It almost feels like a step back for Jeff this episode with the way he perceived the group but his plot resolution works well enough to redeem him.
Changnesia has been the teasing point for all of the promotional trailers for the fourth season of Community. The first episode left us with a nice little cliffhanger and then the plot line disappeared for two episodes. It was teased one more time before we finally got to the episode dedicated to it. I’ve been looking forward to this for quite a while, mainly because I was curious to see how it was all going to be pulled off. After last season’s appearance of Chang as a mad dictator I just couldn’t see the gang or Greendale buying into this strange illness. However, Advanced Documentary Filmmaking (4.06) may have just made me a believer of Changnesia.
The episode opens up with the definition of Changnesia and a few testimonials from various people including Chang and Dean Pelton. The entire episode is a documentary homage, shot by Abed, which follows the study group as they try to convince the MacGuffin Institute to award the school grant money for the aide in Kevin’s (formerly Chang) recovery. Jeff is the only one who doesn’t buy into the ‘sickness’ and aims to prove Chang a fraud and everyone else wrong.
Last night’s episode featured a lot of great visual humor such as “rent memento” on Kevin’s arm as well as the name tags in front of each character’s testimonial. The highlight of the episode was the pairing of Troy and Annie as they did some investigation work on the cause of Kevin’s Changnesia. Although it felt like Annie’s new interest in forensics seemed to have come out of left field I am enjoying her new interest and it seems to fit her personality well. Shirley and Britta’s bit at Shirley’s Sandwiches was also another great moment and featured a fantastic exchange between the two actresses. Almost carrying over from last week’s episode Pierce felt great for the first 10 minutes of the episode but quickly devolved back to his racist butt of the joke humor. It’s getting almost uncomfortable to see how much disgust Chevy Chase is emitting on screen and I fear it’ll only get worse from here. Advanced Documentary Filmmaking may not have been a powerhouse of comedy but it still managed to be an incredibly interesting episode.
I have been going back and forth on whether or not I believed Changnesia was real or just another ploy by Chang to be accepted into the study group. I could see him faking for nefarious purposes, and I could also see him being honest only to regain his memory again down the road. The episode worked extremely hard to disprove the skeptics and it does a fantastic job of it. This episode featured some strong performances from Ken Jeong and an fantastic exchange between Kevin and Jeff. The scene alone sold me on the fact that his Changnesia is in fact real and I was excited to see Kevin integrated back into Greendale. I miss the early days of Chang before he was used as a completely insane evil villain and just a mildly insane jerk of a Spanish teacher. If Changnesia is the way to bring a saner Kevin/Chang back into Greendale I’m ready to welcome it with open arms.
Only, there’s one minor problem. Last night’s tag pretty much undid everything the episode worked hard to accomplish by revealing to the audience that nothing has changed. Chang is still evil and he finally has all of Greendale convinced that he has lost his memory. Although I’m still interested in the direction this season is going I can’t help but feel a little cheated that this reveal was done so quickly. They spent so much timing hyping up this plot line, doing a fantastic job of convincing us that it’s real, only to feature it and do away with it in one episode. I understand the short episode order is largely to blame but I would have like to have seen the reveal written a little later down the road. My only hope is that they don’t go completely off the rails with Chang, like they did in season three, and somehow Chang will find some redemption.
Overall Advanced Documentary Filmmaking is another solid episode coming off last week’s extremely strong episode. Although this episode isn’t a comedy powerhouse it still featured some great bits, especially with Troy and Annie, and Shirley and Britta. Ken Jeong featured a very strong performance this episode and produced an awesome scene between Kevin and Jeff. It almost feels like a step back for Jeff this episode with the way he perceived the group but his plot resolution works well enough to redeem him. If I had to place my finger on what’s going wrong in the eyes of most critics this season, I’d have to say it’s the fact that there’s an imbalance of comedy within the episodes. As a fan of the show I’ve grown extremely attached to these character and being able to see them interact is enough to satisfy me, but as I take a step back I can see how imbalanced the humor has been this season. Hopefully this new revelation with Chang will provide more avenues for jokes in the remaining episodes.
Community airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC! Check out last night’s episode here on Hulu!
Interested in writing movie reviews or news posts for Thinking Cinematic? Is TV more your speed? Contact me at ThinkCinematicReviews@gmail.com! You can also send your guest reviews there too!
Connect with me at: Twitter: @Treyrs20o9 Twitter: @Think_Cinematic Email: ThinkCinematicReviews@Gmail.com
Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations is easily the strongest episode of season four. After a grab bag of mixed tones and chaotic storytelling Community delivers on a wonderful episode that finds the perfect balance between emotional and humorous storytelling. Jeff’s reunion with his father delivers on some incredible emotional closure as well as a near tear jerking performance for Joel McHale. The episode finally figured out what to do with Pierce and he didn’t seem obviously isolated. The biggest setback is the inclusion of Adam DeVine as Jeff’s half brother. The character is awkward and over the top and doesn’t add much to an episode that reveals so much growth.
The arrival of Jeff’s dad William Winger has been a moment that has been teased for quite some time. Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations (4.05) finally brings Jeff and his dad together at long last. Community welcomed James Brolin last night in an episode that hit a lot of strong notes.
The show opens up with the gang in the study room as they’re discussing their plans for Thanksgiving. Shirley invites the group over to her place for Thanksgiving Dinner, while Jeff casually denies due to prior plans. Eventually it’s discovered that the reason for Jeff’s denial is that he is finally meeting with his father. Britta asserts herself into Jeff’s plans, not wanting to miss a chance to experience the long awaited reunion, leaving the rest of the group to spend Thanksgiving with Shirley.
Cooperative Escapism in Familiar Relations is the strongest episode of season four that found the perfect amount of balance between humorous and emotional storytelling. Shirley’s Thanksgiving carried a lot of the comedic weight this episode and featured a lot of great performances. Donald Glover has been nailing it this season and continued to do so last night, but he was not alone. Danny Pudi, in an attempt to pay homage to Shawshank Redemption, narrated the episode as Abed and helped set up a lot of the great jokes. The best part of all is the fact that this was the first episode this season that decided to include Pierce, and more than just being there. It was nice to finally see Pierce feel like he was part of the group again. There wasn’t an obvious attempt to isolate him from the rest of the group and there were dedicated jokes given to him. The exchanges between Pierce and Abed were fantastic and I liked the growing frustration on Abed’s face.
Jeff’s storyline delivers so much emotional resolution on a plot line that has been teased for so many years. Joel McHale delivers a near tear jerking speech that revealed so much growth for his character. A lot of the great emotional moments that this plot produced did seem somewhat sacrificed for the sake of a joke but after all this is a comedy and understandable. Through the great writing and fantastic acting the reunion with Jeff’s dad was incredibly satisfying, except for a couple of set backs.
The biggest problem that plagued this episode was the inclusion of Jeff’s half brother, Willy Jr. played by Adam DeVine. Willy Jr. is extremely over the top and at times felt extremely unnecessary, especially when it was paired with such a monumental moment. Personally I’ve never really found Adam DeVine’s comedic style all too funny and his appearance in Community didn’t change my mind. The character type isn’t new to Community seeing as how Troy often plays the over reacting man boy that Willy Jr. tried to emulate but it was in DeVine’s delivery as well as the story pairing that made it feel awkward. It also doesn’t help that Willy Jr. really doesn’t add much to the story. I wouldn’t want to see the character completely written out of the show, but I would have rather seen him introduced in an episode that wasn’t as meaningful as this one.
This last complaint is something that is hard to discuss. Ever since season three Britta has become somewhat of a wild card, moving from the smart and witty foil for Jeff and becoming uncharacteristically dumb and the butt of all jokes. It wasn’t constant but it was enough to notice it. Season four seems to have been working on dialing it back but it still comes through every now and then. Last night’s episode was the perfect example of this. It was great to see her go toe to toe with Jeff again matching wit for wit and showing that’s shes not just a dumb character. I would have liked to have see them dial back on the claiming she’s a therapist bit but it’s easy to forgive especially when it produced a fantastic moment as Gillian Jacobs runs out of the room holding a dinner roll. I don’t think we’ll ever see a complete retracing of Britta but I’m hoping that the writers can find a stronger balance for it as the season progresses.
Overall the episode feels like things are finally hitting its stride. Much like the rest of season four things end on a really heart warming note and things are tied together really well. A very pivotal episode for Jeff and I’m excited to see the way things go from here. For next week’s episode I’m hoping that the Changnesia plot line will finally start to develop and we’ll see more from Chang/Kevin. Last week’s episode left us on a cliff hanger and I can’t wait to see more of the study group’s reaction to their arch enemies confusing return.
Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations is easily the strongest episode of season four. After a grab bag of mixed tones and chaotic storytelling Community delivers on a wonderful episode that finds the perfect balance between emotional and humorous storytelling. Jeff’s reunion with his father delivers on some incredible emotional closure as well as a near tear jerking performance for Joel McHale. The episode finally figured out what to do with Pierce and he didn’t seem obviously isolated. The biggest setback is the inclusion of Adam DeVine as Jeff’s half brother. The character is awkward and over the top and doesn’t add much to an episode that reveals so much growth.
Community airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC! Check out last night’s episode here on Hulu!
Interested in writing movie reviews or news posts for Thinking Cinematic? Is TV more your speed? Contact me at ThinkCinematicReviews@gmail.com! You can also send your guest reviews there too!
Connect with me at: Twitter: @Treyrs20o9 Twitter: @Think_Cinematic Email: ThinkCinematicReviews@Gmail.com
One of my complaints from last week’s Community review was that I felt like the lack of Greendale’s presences was a bit off putting. Now I understand that the future of the show will eventually lead the group away from the beloved study room, but being that this is allegedly Jeff’s last year at Greendale it would be nice to spend some quality time there. However, last night’s episode featured a wonderful return to Greendale, with the study room as the focus of the episode.
In Alternative History of the German Invasion (4.04) the group is again troubled by the annoying German trio from last year, only this time with a new figure head. The Germans force the group out of their study room and cause the group to defend their home ground. Meanwhile, the dean is faced with the return of Chang who is now going by the name of Kevin due to his Changnesia. If the Dean can prove that he is faking his amnesia then he can finally expel Chang from Greendale.
The thing I liked the most about this episode is that it explored the idea that the study group is the most hated group in the school. This idea has been brought up before with last year’s Todd episode and a brief mention in season two, but this is the first episode where the group finally acknowledges it. We are shown that the group has been hogging the study room for three years much to the annoyance of the other classmates. We get to see the group forced from their familiar room into other less desirable rooms of Greendale. There are three different study rooms the group visits, the last of which features my favorite gag from last night’s episode. It was good to see the school expanded and it gave more realism to the campus. Overall the story line works great but the heart warming resolution feels just a bit hollow. After being verbally attacked by other school members the group jumps into a montage of good deeds and suddenly everything is fine again. I know time is limited, but it just didn’t hit as hard when we are told things are fine instead of being shown the reactions of the other school members.
The Germans as the antagonists were funny and featured a lot of clever German culture jokes. It was great to see the obnoxious trio from last season return but it is somewhat disappointing that Nick Kroll couldn’t return as their leader. I was also disappointed that for sharing so much of the screen time, the trio seems to vanish by the end of the episode without any sort of wrap up of their story. Regardless, barring a few annoying scenes, they were a great antagonist to the study group.
Chang and the dean’s story is funny due to the way it explores the two characters extreme behaviors and their penchant for inserting their name into words. I’ve had mixed feelings about Chang since last season, but I never reached the point where I didn’t want to see him back at Greendale. I liked the idea of him suffering from Changnesia but the way it was introduced into this episode just felt sloppy. After nearly destroying the school last year you would figure that things would be harder for him to join again but apparently not. Regardless, it’s nice to see Chang back and I’m curious as to where this will take us.
Malcolm McDowell joined the cast as their new history teacher, Professor Cornwallis. I couldn’t help but feel a bit underwhelmed with his introduction. Again, like the first episode, this episode covered a lot of ground and it left some stories a bit neglected. It is nice to see the group finally get a stricter teacher and I’m looking forward to his dynamic with the group. McDowell is signed on for more episodes so even though this episode was the best intro I’m looking forward to the way he is handled from here.
Four straight weeks and Pierce has been nothing but a shadow of his former self. There are a few glimpses of the great character from the first two seasons but it’s evident that outside factors are bleeding into the show. You can clearly see how miserable Chevy Chase is and he barely adds anything to the show. I love Pierce as a character but if it continues to detract like this I think I’d be okay with him gone if the show is lucky enough to have a fifth season.
Alternative History of the German Invasion (4.04) is a very meaty episode with a lot of great laughs. Much like the first episode, plot lines don’t feel as fleshed out but it’s not as chaotic as the season opener. The episode further explores the idea that the group is the most hated group on campus and it’s nice to see the group come to this realization. The introduction of Malcolm McDowell is nice but somewhat underwhelming for now. The episode also pairs the Dean and Chang and explores the character’s weird nature and penchant for inserting their name into ordinary words. Much like the rest of the episodes this season, things end on a heartwarming note. Four episodes in and four solid episodes but I’m still waiting for an episode to deliver some of the same quality of the best from previous seasons.
Community airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC! Check out last night’s episode here on Hulu!
Interested in writing movie reviews or news posts for Thinking Cinematic? Is TV more your speed? Contact me at ThinkCinematicReviews@gmail.com! You can also send your guest reviews there too!
Connect with me at: Twitter: @Treyrs20o9 Twitter: @Think_Cinematic Email: ThinkCinematicReviews@Gmail.com
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