Okay, if you’re like me, you’re probably always looking for a new TV show to binge. If this is true, then you’re in luck! If not… What are you still doing on this article? I’ve managed to find the funniest, quirkiest, most binge-worthy show since “The Office” (don’t @ me). This magnificent show I’m talking about is NBC’s “Community,” which ran for five seasons from 2009-2014, and for a sixth season on Yahoo! in 2015. I first discovered this show on winter break last year, and literally watched the whole series in about a week. The only problem? Basically no one else I knew watched it. I managed to turn my sister onto it, and now it’s our favorite show to reference and quote, and I just want more people to know about it!
If you’re not familiar with the premise of the show, it’s about a lawyer who has to go back to college after his degree is revoked. He ends up at Greendale Community College (which I would definitely transfer to), where he starts a study group with the purpose of getting to know the cute girl from his Spanish class. The only thing is, she’s not the only one who comes to his study group. Although everyone in the group is vastly different, they end up becoming friends, and so the show begins. If you like quirky humor, pop-culture references, long-running gags, and so much attention to detail that you find something new every time you re-watch, then this is the show for you!
1. The running gags are hilarious
There’s a bunch of jokes throughout the series that reappear over and over again, which makes the audience feel even more connected to the show and the characters. One of the most frequently used ones is calling Britta “the worst.” Britta’s character is a pretty hypocritical, sometimes buzz kill, super quirky, wannabe activist who seems to mess up a lot (which weirdly makes her the most relatable character). All of this seems to make the study group label her as “the worst” a bunch of times throughout the series. It’s kinda her thing.
Another running gag, which flies a little more under the radar, is the “Beetlejuice” reference. In the movie “Beetlejuice,” if you say his name three times, he appears. Over the course of three seasons of “Community,” they manage to say his name three times, and he finally shows up in the background of episode 3x05. Pretty spooky.
2. The attention to detail is insane
If there’s one thing you can say about this show, it’s that the amount of detail they put into their episodes is absolutely crazy. Literally every time I re-watch an episode there’s something else I didn’t notice the first time around. For example, since it is clearly established that Britta is The Worst™ throughout the series, in episode 5x13 there’s a quick scene where Britta attempts to do a thumbs-up, but can’t even manage to do that correctly. In the clip, you see Abed, another study group member, help her straighten out her thumb. Only eagle-eyed viewers would ever catch this the first time around. Also, this moment from 2x08 is probably my favorite. But, beware; this one contains a SPOILER for this episode. Basically, this episode revolves around Annie, one of the main characters, losing her pen, and the whole study group getting into a fight about who took it. In the end of the episode, it’s revealed Troy’s pet monkey from a previous episode took the pen from the study room, which seems like a weird, kinda random ending. BUT, that was until I noticed that in the beginning of the episode, you could actually see the monkey discretely stealing the pen off the table! Crazy, right?!
3. The characters are lovable
The characters on this show all have their fair share of ups and downs, and parts of their personality that make them a little rough around the edges. The good thing about this is, even though the show takes place in a sense of heightened reality where schools have all out paintball wars more than once, it adds a sense of humanity to the series. Like I mentioned before, Britta’s often called “the worst,” but she also has a quirky, awkward way about her that makes her a lovable character. The same goes for Jeff, who comes across selfish and self-centered at first, but ultimately has a big heart and a lot of love for his friends. Also, it’s pretty hard to hate Annie when she pulls out her “Disney face.”
4. There are couples for you to ship!
If you gravitate towards shows that pair up their characters, this may be the show for you! There are tons of characters that end up dating or having crushes on each other. For example, the show obviously starts out with Jeff trying to impress Britta, but there’s also a lot of Jeff x Annie, and even Troy x Britta. It’ll make more sense once you watch the show!
My favorite by far, though, is Dean Craig Pelton’s unrequited love for Jeff.
Jeffrey!
5. Dean Craig Pelton, alone
Dean Craig Pelton, played by Oscar-winning screenplay writer Jim Rash, is one of the most compelling reasons to watch the show. From his strange Dalmatian obsession, to his strange Jeff obsession, all the way to his insane outfits, he’s one of the most entertaining characters on the show. Honestly, whenever Dean is in a scene, I know it’s going to be hilarious. Deantastic! Again, that will make more sense once you watch the show.
6. Troy and Abed's Friendship
If you’re not into the relationship side of things, you should definitely stay for the friendship side. Even though everyone in the study group is pretty close, Troy and Abed are clearly the best BFFs. Troy was a popular jock in high school and maybe isn’t the smartest person the study group, but he is played by Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino. Abed, played by Danny Pudi, is a movie-loving nerd, who relates his surroundings to television tropes, and different pop culture references. Although they sound vastly different, opposites obviously attract because they’re hilarious together. They even have a fake morning show called “Troy and Abed in the Morning,” which is another long-running gag throughout the series.
7. It's insanely creative
Have you ever watched a sitcom where all the characters are suddenly puppets or Claymation? Me neither, until I found “Community.” There are tons of episodes where the characters are animated like they’re in a video game or a G.I. Joe type cartoon. It’s so cool that a show that seems like just a live action T.V. comedy pulled out all these creative episodes, including a few musical numbers! It’s certainly crazy, but also hilarious.
Also, episode 3x04 includes multiple timelines and is by far the best episode of the whole series.
8. The parody episodes
Another thing that makes this show stand out is the amount of parody episodes they have. From Star Wars, to old Westerns, to mockumentaries, they have it all. Like I mentioned before, they even took it to new lengths through animation and Claymation. The season two holiday episode features the characters in a “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” like fashion. There are even episodes that parody mob boss movies, “Law and Order,” zombie movies, and “Glee!”
9. There are literally four episodes all about paintball
Over the course of six seasons, there’s not one, not two, not three, but four episodes focusing on paintball! And those are just the four main ones; paintball also makes an appearance in a few other episodes. The first paintball war went down in episode 1x23, and it’s one of my all-time favorite episodes. The two-part second season finale also featured paintball episodes, which included the “Star Wars” and old Western parodies I mentioned before. Something about these crazy, fun episodes made me want to find the nearest paintball range and become as good of a paint-baller as Black Rider. Again, just watch the show!
10. Literally so many famous people were on it
As I mentioned above, Donald Glover played Troy Barnes on the series and Academy Award winner Jim Rash played Dean Pelton, but there were also a bunch more famous actors just in the main cast. Joel McHale, who hosted “The Soup,” played Jeff Winger, and the legendary SNL and National Lampoon actor, Chevy Chase, played Pierce Hawthorne. Netflix stars Alison Brie (“GLOW”) and Gillian Jacobs (“Love”) played Annie Edison, and Britta Perry, respectively. The hilarious Ken Jeong from The Hangover Trilogy played Señor Ben Chang. Also, Yvette Nicole Brown, who played Helen on “Drake and Josh,” played Shirley Bennett (which I was honestly the most excited about).
And that’s just the main cast! Famous guest stars include John Oliver, Josh Holloway, Brie Larson, Jack Black, and many more.
11. The Friendships
Last but not least, the friendships between the characters are the main reasons why this show is so good. Even though the study group has its ups and downs, they always band together at the end and truly care for one another. A lot of the characters don’t have great families or lives outside of the friend group, and this goes to show that it’s really about the family you choose for yourself. At the end of the day, this show is truly about a community.
Overall, I think “Community” is one of the most underrated shows out there, and if you watch it you’ll definitely thank me for introducing you to the weirdest, funniest, most heartfelt show ever.
All six seasons of “Community” are available on Hulu.com.
