If you've spent any time in the Greendale study room, you know there's a moment in nearly every episode where Abed Nadir looks directly at the situation unfolding around him and names exactly what kind of episode it is. A bottle episode. A clip show. A flashback structure. A documentary. He says it out loud, … Continue reading Abed Nadir: Deconstructing the Fourth Wall Breaking Character
Dan Harmon
Greendale’s Quirky Courses: Exploring the Community’s Absurd Curriculum
There are community colleges, and then there is Greendale Community College. Most community colleges offer practical courses designed to help students better their lives. You might find accounting, basic biology, introductory Spanish... the kind of classes that add credentials and open doors. Greendale offers those, too. It also offers a class called "Can I Fry … Continue reading Greendale’s Quirky Courses: Exploring the Community’s Absurd Curriculum
How Dan Harmon’s Story Circle Made Community Brilliant
If you've ever wondered why Community felt simultaneously familiar and revolutionary, congratulations—you've stumbled onto one of television's most fascinating storytelling experiments. Dan Harmon, the show's creator and the man who somehow convinced NBC to air five out of six seasons of increasingly meta television, had a secret weapon: an eight-step storytelling formula he called the … Continue reading How Dan Harmon’s Story Circle Made Community Brilliant
The Jeff Winger Speech: Deconstructing a Community Trope
Ah, the Jeff Winger speech. It's as much a part of Community as paintball episodes, pop culture references, and Abed's meta-commentary. If you're reading this, chances are you're already familiar with the smooth-talking, snarky lawyer-turned-student who could talk his way out of (or into) just about anything. But have you ever stopped to consider just … Continue reading The Jeff Winger Speech: Deconstructing a Community Trope
The Confusing Middle 