So we finally come to the end with a triple dose of Community and one final 30 Rock. With a trio of great episodes, Community as we know it has probably come to an end. Dan Harmon being fired by Sony makes it hard to imagine the show that was mostly his singular vision will not being irrevocably changed. We can hope that it will still be funny, ambitious, and heartfelt next year, but it will certainly not be the same. At least Dan Harmon leaves on three strong episodes that are kind of a microcosm of Community. A high-concept episode, a parody episode, and a character based "normal" episode.
Community - "Digital Estate Planning"
The high-concept episode. An 8-bit episode where our characters have to find their way through a video game. This was the funniest episode of the three. Annie and Shirley slaughtering the blacksmith and his family is one of the funniest things they've done all year. There were a bunch of little touches throughout the episode reminiscent of various games I played as a kid, details that only Community would put in. Of course Abed would be able to find a backdoor into the program and save the day. Like the best of the high-concepts, this one had a affecting story at the core, and the wonderful Giancarlo Esposito from Breaking Bad to anchor it. The son who was always there, but never acknowledged. Pierce can be problematic character, but a little humanity goes a long way. Him giving up the inheritance was a nice touch for him, especially when he gets petty in the finale. Troy and Abed shooting lava!
30 Rock - "What Will Happen to the Gang Next Year?"
30 Rock ends a strong season with a mostly strong episode. Everything dealing with Jack and Avery and Liz and Criss was great. Liz even said baby instead of plant near the end. Criss shows once again that he is committed to this relationship by selling his van, and Liz, in turn, was ready to go to jail for him. With the show entering its final year, Criss may be Liz's ticket to happiness. I will miss Elizabeth Banks (I hope she still has stories as Liddy's mom), but it's good that Jack and Avery have realized that they had only gotten married because of the pregnancy. Anything happening on that rooftop was hilarious. I especially enjoyed Kim Jong-il not being dead and being the best waiter ever. The Kenneth and Hazel hookup was strange. I've enjoyed Hazel, but something about that whole story didn't sit right with me. The old roommate in the closet was just too creepy for me. Kenneth is lovably ignorant, not maliciously evil. The story of Tracey coming to the wrong conclusion about life advice has been done many times, but Morgan sells it every time. All in all, I'm very much looking forward to the final string of 13 episodes.
Community - "The First Chang Dynasty"
The parody episode. The gang has to pull of a caper to rescue the Dean from Chang's clutches. Chang's over-the-topness can get to be too much sometimes, and think this episode mostly reigned him enough. The part about eating his twin sister in utero was too much, but, thankfully, the only part that went too far. The caper portion of the episode was splendidly executed. The beats were played perfectly, right up to things going wrong turning out to be all part of the plan. Troy and Abed were, as usual, the best part of the caper with the plumber bit. Troy has to make a deal to get everyone out, though, and now he'll be part of the Air Conditioning Repair School. The Greendale 7 are back where they belong now and Chang didn't set fire to the school.
Community - "Introduction to Finality"
And finally, the "normal" episode, if you can call any episode of Community normal. There are a few stories going on here, which unfortunately leaves Troy on his own for most of the episode. He gets a nice goodbye scene, and while I enjoyed his story, it's not the same when he's not with any of the Study Group. Troy gets to grow up this episode, though, maybe not fully, but he makes a stand for what is right even when he was given an easy out. Moving out of the blanketfort at the end was a clear signifier that he's decided to be more adult-like. Abed, meanwhile, does not deal very well without Troy around and morphs into Evil Abed from the darkest timeline. His manipulation of Britta was great work from both actors. In the end Jeff's requisite rousing speech snaps him out of it to show Abed that there is good in this world, and it also lets Shirley and Pierce reconcile. Jeff finally realizes that he likes it at Greendale, maybe he's come to this before, but never this strongly. To him it was always 4 years and then back to work at the firm, but now he intentionally burned that bridge because he loves this place and the people there. Poor Annie didn't get much to do this episode, but she's had her moments this year and I still get to see her on Mad Men every so often. Goodbye, Community, it was a fun three years. Here's hoping Community 2.0 can be half this good.
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