Community/30 Rock/The Office

Community - "Mixology Certification"

This episode of Community is pretty much reserved for viewers that have been following the show for the majority of its run. As an avid fan, I thought it was a great episode. However, if I had to guess, anybody that tunes in casually probably thought it was ho-hum. There was no recognizable parody or send-up for viewers to find common ground on. There wasn't even much of Greendale as the consistent background for the episode. Essentially, the episode removed the group from the school setting and placed them all in a bar for the night. Now, that's a great synopsis to hear if you've been tracking the various character etchings and traits of each individual group member as it explores further dynamics between the different people. It's probably not too exciting if you still refer to Community as "that show with the guy from The Soup".


Nevertheless, frequent viewer or not, it's hard to find much fault with the episode as a whole considering the off-campus location they chose was a bar for Troy's 21st birthday, or "Explusion Day". And using that setting, the show did a pretty good job of portraying a night out. Annie was worried about getting in with a fake ID to the extent of assuming an entirely different persona and accent to fool the bar employees. Coming as no surprise, this  trick dovetailed perfectly into a reason for Annie to be a newer and less inhibited person for the night. 


Jeff and Britta both acted like typical know-it-alls at the bar as they indoctrinated Troy on the tips and tricks of ordering drinks at bars. Jeff suggested he add two drops of spring water to aged Scotch in order to activate the flavor as he twirled his glass in his hand like a real douche bag. Speaking of Jeff and Britta, I'm really getting torn as to who I'd rather see hook up with each other. Jeff and Britta, judging by this episode, are kind of good for each other. They both try to act more civilized and mature than they really are and clearly have some sort of subconscious attraction to each other. However, I really enjoy when the show teases the idea of Jeff and Annie. A. I like Annie more and B. Jeff, although clearly a snob, does have a good heart and that is best displayed when the possibility of him and Annie is entertained. However, the Troy and Annie possibility that was introduced in Season 1 seems like it could be a whole other storyline judging by the very sweet conversation between the two tonight. So really, these threads could go anywhere or nowhere at all. If nothing else, it is a real relief to watch a show that can juggle both high concept comedy and deep, believable relationships so well in ways that The Office did at its height. 

In other regions of the group, Shirley (who I constantly want to call Sharrie for some reason?) is unveiled as having quite the alcoholic history at the same bar that the group coincidentally decides to visit. This comes as a breath of fresh air because I usually find Shirley annoying. Her whole "That's nice." routine is grating and so its nice to see her open up with some flaws. As for Pierce, well, they sure are sticking to that broken legs storyline faithfully. And Abed spends the majority of the episode displaying his true nerd to the point of talking about Farscape with a gay guy at the bar despite the fact that he is obviously trying to pick him up. INTERESTING SIDE NOTE: The comedian who plays the gay guy in the episode is Paul F. Tompkins and is probably one of my five favorite comedians ever. You want to know more about my history with him? OK well I have all of his albums and he just so happened to come to St. Louis this past August and yours truly went to go see him. In fact, I have a picture to prove it. He also signed his CD for me with a personalized note. If you would like to know more stories about my run-ins with celebrities, I have several. 


Anyway, Troy was the star of this episode and really stepped up to the plate as far as creating a more fitting role as one of the norms for the show. 


-"I broke my legs, not my gender."
-"It's like the Lifetime movie of beverages."
-"Stargate is better."
-"Abed does that like three times a week."


30 Rock - "Chain Reaction of Mental Anguish"

I never have that much to write about 30 Rock. Either the fast-paced gags deliver or they don't And considering the show throws so many at you (a high JPM, or jokes per minutes, a unit of measurement I invented) that there are almost always some great ones that stick each week. However, occasionally the show will entertain some of the various relationships it has on the back burner and bring them to the forefront for the week and then usually place them back on reserve for a while. Where have Jack and Avery been? I'm sure it will come up soon and then disappear for awhile as usual. And as I've said before, this isn't a problem because nobody watches the show to check in with these relationships each week. I think the only real relationship that I care about or get anything from is between Jack and Liz. It's part friendship and part mentorship. Liz looks up to Jack for advice and Jack really does watch out for Liz, despite his occasional disgust at her life choices ("I'm tired of talking this much to a woman I'm not having sex with.")


So, this episode decided to bring a few familiar storylines into view EXCEPT for the only one I really care about watching. Tracy's son is back trying to milk money from his rich dad. I thought he was ruled a fraud like two seasons ago? Why did they bring him back? And Jenna's look-a-like boyfriend has returned. However I can't fault this appearance because of how much I love Will Forte. I hope his departure from SNL doesn't result in a lack of airtime because he is great. He has subsequently been popping up on Conan lately playing a hilarious Ted Turner. Anyway, did the episode go into unneeded territory concerning the plot? Yeah, I think so. But if the one-liners and gags are strong enough, I can't say it was a bad episode. It just wasn't a great one. And if they are going to reintroduce occasional characters, let's make it some of the all-stars i.e. Will Arnett's Devon Banks. He clearly is going to have free time on his hands once Running Wilde is cancelled. 


-"Why can't we just paint each others' toe nails, watch vintage pornography, and then go to bed in our swing like a normal couple?"
-"It was Harold, and I ate all of him. Even the face in case of a tie. I ate him sir! I ate my father pig!"
-Jack: "You're the only one bank rolling this? What about Brown and Folderson?"
Tracy: "That's what I call my wallet."

-"Anyone I ever dated in high school turned out to be either gay or a girl dressed as a guy to get a journalism scholarship."

-Of course, Jack hoping that Kenneth's father figure, who turned out to be a pig, was human was a hilarious smaller moment.

The Office - "China"

I'm having a hard time figuring out this season of The Office and I think I know why. I've been watching the show since its inception and then rewatching the seasons as they come out on DVD. This is especially true with the advent of Netflix which has all of the seasons on Instant View (same with 30 Rock and Parks and Recreation, just saying.) So, other than watching them spaced out week-by-week, I am most familiar with seasons as consumed four or five episodes per sitting. Some days I will just curl up in my bed, draw the shades, drape myself in velvet and watch an entire season of a show like The Office. Is that sad? Yes. Does it help me as a fan of the show? Yes. Is there a bed pan involved? Probably. 

Anyway, I think the prevalence of shows on DVD changes the way we think about and react to the show. It's the same reason I have trouble watching Boardwalk Empire. Its sometimes a slow show week to week. But I bet if I watch it on DVD, it becomes a lot more exciting since I can watch the episodes back-to-back. Likewise, I just recently watched all of Deadwood on DVD and proclaim it as one of the best shows of all time. However, I don't think I would say that had I watched it one episode at a time when it originally aired because it would probably seem so goddamn slow and boring.

So, what does this have to do with this season of The Office? I'm saying its hard get a good feeling for a show when you tune in for 30 minutes once a week. When you have a marathon viewing of a season, the world that the show inhabits seems to take over for extended periods of time and shows that are faithful to that world i.e. The Office or Deadwood pay off for their dedication. Essentially, I think this season has been sporadic and spotty with continual storylines mixed in with occasional offshoot episodes like Ryan's website campaign. And its hard to tell if that's unusual for the season of it's just because you're watching it so spread out. Only time will tell.

As for tonight's episode, I'll say a few quick things. I realized that I don't really care too much about Pam anymore. I thought her whole Office Administrator storyline gave her something to do, but as far as the theme of her failing at her pursuits, I wasn't really affected. I didn't really care that much when she went to art school. I will admit I did enjoy when she left and joined Michael's new paper company. But overall, once the show hooked up Jim and Pam and they got married, the bubble was burst on that subject. However, her interaction with Dwight payed off because it was one of the times, although few and far in between, that the show unveiled a human and sympathetic side of Dwight. He essentially let Pam win because he felt bad for her. Call me a sucker for those moments but they get me every time.

And I am glad that the episode pursued an Oscar storyline because I have always liked his character even though this episode made him look like a know-it-all. I think he is one of the show's norms and keeps it grounded in reality along with Jim and Pam. In fact, if I think about it, Jim, Pam and Oscar are probably the only really normal acting people on the show. Maybe Phyllis? But she is also weirdly sexual with Bob Vance in an X-rated Mike and Molly sort of way.

Overall, this episode gave Michael a chance to be right about something, at least in his mind's eye. And I always enjoy whatever small victories Michael is able to scrape from his Dunder-Mifflin (Sabre) existence. 

-That interaction on the street with the "Other Pam" was hilarious. 

Dwight: "We have a colleague with the same name. You're not a liar too are you."

Other Pam: "I've been known to bend the truth."
Dwight: "Damn it Pam! Get out!"

-"Why do you even need soap? Are you that bad at going to the bathroom?"

-"He really does fit that old stereotype of the smug gay Mexican."

-“I can’t wait to do to Pam what I just did … to Pam.”

-Also, one final note: I play trivia every Thursday night and so I watch all these shows and as soon as they end run down to The Hill for trivia. It's a pretty great day altogether. Anyway, like two weeks ago, there was an over/under category that asked to name how many cities in America had over a million people and also how many cities in China had over a million people. THE EXACT SAME DISCUSSION THEY HAD ON THIS EPISODE. What are the odds that  they would talk about that exactly two weeks after I could have used that very information.