COMMUNITY: Wait, There Are Other Timelines?

If you had any doubts at all that Community wouldn’t be doing as many weird concept episodes, I hope “Remedial Chaos Theory” gave you some hope. Out of every episode so far, from paintball to bottle episodes to zombies, this is hands down the most bizarre episode to date. It’s a simple enough idea: examining the same situation, but altering it slightly upon every viewing. In this case, during Troy and Abed’s (Trobed’s) house warming party someone has to go get the pizza. That person is chosen through the random role of a die, and we see everybody take a turn to go get the pizza.

There isn’t what I would call a plot in this episode so much as little payoffs to what’s been building so far this season. Because we’re essentially replaying the same two minutes over and over, there isn’t time to introduce a real storyline. That’s okay, as this is a concept being explored; the rules of the sitcom can be bent in this instance. As with most of these types of episodes, Community spends its time looking more closely at the characters.

If you’ve been craving more Jeff/Annie, or Troy/Britta, then you’ll get your fill. A lot of what is going on between the characters, regardless of what timeline is currently playing out, is extremely personal. These people have come along way from Season 1 and now have new things to work out amongst themselves. Whether it’s feelings of being abandoned, unrequited love, not belonging, or just wanting to feel like a grown up, these friends are now people you can turn to. Jeff lets Annie know there are people who care about her; Britta helps Troy feel like a man; and it’s all very sweet and meaningful and oftentimes hilarious.

Not all of it sticks, of course, as there can only be one true timeline, but it’s a fun game of “what if.” The biggest case of what if comes when Troy’s number is rolled, and it sets off a big chain reaction that ends up with Pierce shot in the leg (a fantastic use of Chekhov’s gun), Jeff losing an arm putting out a fire, and Annie committed to a mental institute; all because Troy had to go get the pizza. My personal favorite involved a gag with Britta singing “Roxanne” and being shut down by Jeff. At first it seems like a simple joke that happens every time the timeline resets, like Jeff hitting his head or Pierce’s sex story with Eartha Kitt. At the end, however, when Jeff goes to get the pizza, Britta is allowed to sing uninterrupted. Shirley joins her, and soon the whole group is having a really fun time dancing and singing and just enjoying each other as people. It was the happiest of all the timelines, and thankfully the real one.

The genesis of these multiple universes comes from Abed, the keeper of all things meta. It’s pretty clear most of the episode is just what Abed thinks would happen if things were slightly different, but as odd as Abed is, this could be the most relatable I’ve ever found him. Can anyone honestly say they’ve never thought about how their life would’ve turned out if they made different choices, or if an event didn’t occur? I think about that kind of stuff all the time. It’s not because I’m unhappy with my life, I’m just genuinely curious, as is Abed.

In case I haven’t made it sound as such; this episode is balls-to-the-wall funny (what does that even mean, Brody?). I will forever remember this as the episode that introduced Evil Abed and Evil Troy in the longest tag the series has ever done. Though they’re part of one of the fake timelines, I hope Dan Harmon and the writers find a way to bring them back. That tag, and the episode as a whole, should be more than enough to refuel your love for Community if you were feeling a little empty (I wasn’t. There’s no way I could ever not love this show).

Quotes:

“There’s no such thing as Single Malt Platinum Boobs and Billiards Club? I guess I never said it out loud.”

“Call it Yahtzee all you want, everyone knows it’s just Puerto Rican chess.”

“Okay, so this is definitely a gun.”

“Wait, there are other timelines?”

“Clearly you don’t understand anything about defeating trolls.”