MUST-SEE: I just wanted to give brief props to the four really cool NBC half-hour comedies last night.
Community did something I usually don't like -- an animated episode -- but by acknowledging its animatedness mined both emotional stakes (part of the point of this episode was how tenuous Abed's grip on reality really is, and how his friends want to protect him from that) and comedy (Professor Duncan: "You're grabbing me in real life!"). And [SPOILER ALERT] the reflection of the live-action characters in the claymation TV screen at the end was really cool.
30 Rock -- that was just damn funny. I don't think this show has done this many jokes per minute since its glorious second season. The Tracy story didn't really pay off for me, but virtually every word and glance among Liz, Jack (angrily: "or other things"), Colleen, Milton, and Avery was golden, and I even liked how the show used Jenna and Paul's mostly straight (pun intended) but so weird "O Holy Night," where he was in drag singing the high harmony and she was in blackface as Lynn Swann.
The Office was the other slice of bread in this happy meat-on-sad sandwich, but the part that really got me was the effective and overt Dwight-Jim psychological thriller subplot. You expect things like that from Community, but I don't remember this show ever doing it. Enjoyable.
And commercials reminding us that last season's best comedy, Parks and Recreation, is back in January? It's a Christmas miracle.
I've only watched Community thus far, but you can't deny that they committed to the premise, even if parts of it may not have worked entirely.
ReplyDeleteThere's also an interesting contrast between how well Community worked and the mess that was the puppet segment on Sunday's Simpsons. (Though the prior segments in the episode were pretty good.)
I loved Community. I saw Marsha's tweet from last night that she wants the remote control pterodactyl and I do too. I would also love a small set of the whole cast as the toys.
ReplyDeleteBest part for me - Lindelof tweeted that he saw the Lost joke and Harmon tweeted back a mea culpa (something along the lines of "yikes, I hoped you guys wouldn't see that, I owe you a drink..."). It added a whole new dimension to an already awesome ep.
ReplyDeleteI left the room halfway through the Office. Michael is immature, yes, I get it.
ReplyDeleteOccasionally I remember that there are now ten times as many episodes of this show as there are episodes of the BBC version.
I have to say, normally I don't like watching Halpert getting beaten up, because that's not what he's for, but that was awesome.
ReplyDeleteAlso, apparently with this Blogger thing, it logs your comments under your blogger name. So now, instead of Paul Tabachneck, I am! THE ACOUSTICRAT!
ReplyDeleteCommunity was a great combination between funny and serious... the undercurrent of tension of Abed's mental state added an interesting dimension to it.
ReplyDeleteLoved the psychological warfare Dwight waged on Jim on the Office.
I'm not a fan of Halpert getting beaten up, because that's not what he's for -- but that was awesome.
ReplyDeleteDid we revert back to Halo?
I enjoyed the Simpsons Muppets. Also, Katy Perry oral sex joke.
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