COMMUNITY Goes for Insanity and Realism at the Same Time

After last season of Community, I got very used to the big genre episodes, so much so that it became odd when there was a “normal” episode. These first three episodes of the season have been rather normal by Community standards, which really puts them at a disadvantage. Some groups of fans have come to expect nothing but these larger than life experiences from this little sitcom. How can you live up to those expectations every episode? The most obvious way can be found in “Competitive Ecology.”

The episode is split into two halves. One half carries a more down to earth plot (though some oddities are still present and pointed out by Professor Kane), while the other is the show’s new version of the genre homage it’s become so famous for. At first viewing, the contrast between the two types of episode is jarring, but the second time around it seems more natural. I think it’s good way to give the best of both worlds to the loyal Community fans. Let’s break these down.

We’ll look at Chang’s storyline first. This quickly becomes a parody of the old 50s noir style films. But what makes this so perfectly Community is Chang filling in the role of detective. The man is insane, and it shows in the way he casually connects unrelated events, i.e., failing to notice it’s his creepy stare that has frightened a student and abruptly accusing a stapler of being the culprit. It has the kind of inner monologue you would find in a noir film, but turned on its head. And really, it draws attention to how ludicrous some of the assumptions in noir films can be. How do you notice one thing and immediately associate it with another? It is exactly what happens, but we just go along with. Community simply asks us to go along with Chang on his bizarre journey. I thought for sure this would end with Chang accidentally stumbling on a real case, but that would have been too easy and unrealistic. Instead Chang does what any insane person would do: burn down a portion of the school. And because the Dean is such an idiot, he rewards Chang for being crazy, promoting him to head of security. If Chang’s evil internal laugh didn’t give you chills, I don’t know what will.

Back in a more normal reality (but only just), the study group is told they won’t be able to be lab partners with each other. Well, this just won’t do. The group naively believes they can stand being around each other more than they already are, so they (sort of) beg Kane to choose their partners from within the group. This episode used Michael K. Williams’ Kane to a greater effect than in the premiere. They toned down his seriousness to the point where I can now believe he is the lone person in the school who isn’t completely bizarre. (And for the record, I totally agree with rant about Lego being too complicated these days. I miss just having different colored bricks to build with.)

Once the group has partnered up, they realize the mistake they’ve made. Even Abed and Troy notice they spend too much time together (as they’re scraping off mushrooms in a bathroom stall?). This leads to a similar situation as the one in the bottle episode, but much more aggressive. Contrasting everything is Todd. This guy takes so much crap from everyone, and he takes it all with a smile (to a point). After all, the group doesn’t really hate him; they’re just deflecting their negative emotions about each other onto him, so no offense Todd (none taken). He’s a scapegoat. One I hope becomes one of the many Greendale recurring characters (by the way, good to see Vicky and Magnitude again!).

The funny thing is, the group’s little spat is never actually resolved. They latch on to Scapegoat Todd, choosing to insult an innocent man (and his child) rather than dealing with the animosity they truly share for each other. They claim the group means so much to them, yet it makes them inherently evil. All they do is argue and fight, suggesting that Pierce wasn’t at fault for his actions last season; it was simply the group that drove him to that dark place. I hope this is a thread that gets picked up later in the season. Creator Dan Harmen has said he has the entire season planned out, so it would make sense that this is building to something. Right now, it feels promising.

Quotes:

“On the Dean-low.”

“You guys have weird reactions to stuff.”

“Who are these people?”

“The stapler. Was it crazy or were they somehow connected?”

“While he was spying I found a turtle!”

“Don’t you try and pawn Todd off on me!”