r/community

So you all remember in the early episodes, Jeff said it after Britta looked back at him after a convo.

I was sure it was a known TV trope. But apparently it's not?
Regardless, I really like this moment.

I love it but I can't really put into words what the joke is

I consider community to be something like a live action cartoon: each episode is high concept, absurd, and every character is richly drawn in bright graphic colors.

Buried amidst the chaos of Community is a small plot arc involving Shirley and her late husband Andre. Unlike most characters on the show, Andre's characterization begins off screen, with shirley mentioning her ex husband cheating on her. Initially he is supposed to be seen as a pseudo-antagonist, or at least just not a good a person: he is definitively the reason Shirley's marriage fell apart in S1.

In S2, they make a really cool creative decision to not only pick this plot thread back up, but to twist it and loop it through itself to increase complexity. Shirley has sex with Chang, and then immediately runs back into Andre's arms to prevent potential fallout. Again, this all occurs off screen, but the concept of Andre is softened from cheater/antagonist to neutral/anti-hero.

Then, we finally get to meet Andre. He is handsome, speaks in a flatter tone that most characters, and is always positioned as a voice of reason. Seemingly in spite of (or perhaps because of) his past, he takes on a minor role as set dressing in the episodes, gently guiding the whole crew toward more normal behavior. He serves as a character foil not only to Chang, who is insane, but the entire group at large. While canonically not being that great of a guy, he is superior to the group by virtue of acting like an actual human being.

As he gets further integrated into the plot, Andre increasingly becomes the sole proprietor of virtue. He willingly accepts Chang's potential role in his life, he maturely accounts for his past actions and shows up for Shirley where he couldn't before, and he goes so far as to chastize the group for their suggestions.

We are presented an entire, complex arc of a character whos only in the show for like 5 episodes total. I just wanted to briefly sing a song for Andre because he is an undercelebrated aspect of this show, and surprisingly grounded for these hard hitting moments where it counts. He feels both sincere and real in a cast of caricatures.

i've been a fan since season one. rewatched the whole thing probably four times. the movie has been "coming" for literally years now. dan harmon said "holding pattern" in 2025, donald glover said "working on it right now" in april 2026. no date. no trailer. nothing concrete

and i've been thinking do i even want it anymore

like the show ended. it wasn't perfect but it ended. the characters had arcs. britta became britta. abed grew. jeff had his moment. it exists as this complete weird beautiful thing that ran too long and got cancelled and came back and still somehow meant something

a movie in 2026 with everyone 10+ years older, greendale reunion plot, trying to recapture something that was very specific to a very specific era of tv comedy what are the actual odds it lands the way we want it to

i'm not saying don't make it. i'm saying i've stopped holding my breath and honestly it feels fine. the show is still there. it's still good. six seasons and a movie was always the joke maybe the joke was always the point

where is everyone else at with this

I'm starting to get hope because it looks like the schedules are starting to free up again, apparently their figuring out a filming date next meeting and rumor has it that filming starts in fall.

"I heard the deleted scenes are the scenes and the scenes are the deleted scenes!"

I was for Britta, hated how Slater dumped Jeff.

I know this is a big Dear Diary and thanks to those of you who read but....

It was a good show. It took a few tries to get into it but once I stuck with it i'm happy I did. I didn't fall head over heels in love, but it was a really fun show!

Favorites
The Dean - MAAAAN Craig made me laugh more than anybody in the show. He was hilarious. His ambiguity was so funny. 10/10 character.

Season 3 - I think a popular opinion but it was by far my favorite. Donald Glover walking into a room on fire with pizza meme FINALLY makes sense after seeing it for my whole life.

Season 4 - Not bad! I don't get the hate. Maybe I have to be more integrated with the Community community to get the hate or go back for another rewatch to get why it's so bad, but I really liked it! I wouldn't have known anything was different

Forced Love Trope Finale - I appreciate the fact that the finale didn't have some sort of final BIG two characters getting together and the rest is history. I get Jeff and Annie SORT OF had a thing but it wasn't in your face conclusion.

Scrubs Like Finale - I appreciate the fact that the finale didn't have a bow on the ending with perfect conclusions. I appreciate shows less that have a perfect finale because thats not life. This finale had a bunch of friends who won't see eachother again, and like most of us when we age, what we do at a bar or in a living room is talk about the great stories from the past and what could have been.

Dislikes

Season 1 - Maybe my hottest take but I swear it's not rage bait - Most of season 1 is HORRRRRIBLEEEEE. Half of season 1 is Jeff (who is an unlikable narcissist) trying to get into Brita's pants. It just wasn't enjoyable TV. They had ZEROOOOOO onscreen chemistry (romantically, not as characters) and it was the forced trope for the full season. It was TERRIBLE. I GET IT, it's part of his character development. There is a difference between making a great unlikable character and a character you can't like because they're an unlikeable character.

West Wing of Comedy Shows - If you've never seen West Wing then this comparison won't make sense BUT if you have YOU KNOW. Community had a habit of introducing and ENORMOUS amount of characters that have absolutely ZERO resolution or conclusion. Abed's Girlfriend, Prof. Buzz Hickey, Ian Duncan, Shirley's Husband, and Chevy Chase to a both higher and lower degree. These are the biggest ones popping in my head but there were a BUNCH of instances of this.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to tell me why I'm wrong!

One of the underrated relationships in the show, in my opinion, is Jeff and Shirley's. This episode comes before the episode diving into their chilhood dynamic, but I think it has one moment that shows how much Jeff values Shirley. When they're searching through everyones belongings, it's not until Shirley is the one who is sent to tears by Britta, that he loses his cool and destroys the study room. I was watching this episode and I wondered if anyone else ever noticed and or thought this too.

Hello community! Apologies for taking so long, but I am finally flu-free! I cannot wait to share my opinions about S4, seeing how many have dubbed it the "gas leak" season.

1. Maybe its the early episodes, but S4 started off really strong. Episode 1 was great, and 2,3 and 4 were definitely good, with 5 being my fav (as of now). I can understand why some not like it, as even I felt something was missing (maybe the writing is a bit toned down) but till now, its fine.

2. E1 was mightily fun. Multi-cam style episode (its divisive here, I know) with Abed's show-in-show montages (the rib to other sitcoms with a laugh track was a nice touch), the same old "new year, new us" trope, which fell off once the episode progressed, and the entire gags with false ads and what not, I liked everything. Except for the Hunger games spoof, which I didn't find amuzing (maybe cause I never watched the movies) and they felt just kind of there. Also, Troy and Britta's fountain story was too unfocused. Too much Chaos.

3. E2 was the weakest Halloween episode we have got till now, but it was fine. Troy was the MVP of this ep: From, "Anybody else parked by a meter? WAIT. WHAT?!" to "I BROKE THE REMOTE! YOU THINK IT'S EXPENSIVE?!" All the way to his delivery of "secret dogs", he was brilliant throughout this episode. The end sequence with Esposito was wholesome. Again, just feels something is missing in these 2 episodes

4. E3 was equally fine, but I enjoyed it more due to the "friendship tested" scenario with that awkward British creep (which is just regular British, let's be honest). Damn, Troy is a BAAAD boyfriend, and Britta was so supportive here. Annie and Jeff's plot was, again, a meaningless addition (they have turned them into caricatures omg). Pierce's and Shirley's part was hilariously dumb though. The Bow before Thoraxis was diabolical (Joel's hair transplant's the MVP here)

5. E4 was a great meta episode, reminding the audience that although the group is out protagonist, they are still shitty to other members of the college (Seeing how some of the minor characters were affected by the 7 hogging the study room was such a great payoff). The Germans were obnoxious (which meana job well done), and the part where the group tried to trap them using Annie's boobs oktoberfest (seriously, one of the germans was motorboating the luftbaloons lmao) was awesome.

6. E5 is my fav. Community is at its best when the comedy doesn't shy away from some wholesome content, instead complimenting each other. Jeff's meeting with his father, and his little brother (who was just adorable, and made a great reference to twins (Arnold and Devito)). Not sure if he's on the spectrum, but he was the MVP of the episode. Britta was awesome throughout, and looked unusually sexy in this episode (I need therapy I guess). The B - plot with the Shawshank redemption homage was excellent too. The end with thanksgiving dinner was the cherry on top of a great episode. I loved it.

Thanks for those who always tune in to read these. Stay safe, don't get sick, and time for Band Practice!

I'm so sad I missed being part of the Community fandom while it was airing, especially seasons 1-3! I'd love to hear what it was like, whether overall ot specific stories or memories. I can't imagine how dedicated it was.