[rating=8.00] “Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television”
I have to admit, the excitement I had for a new season of Community outside of network television was a heavy factor in my initial viewing of the first episodes of this season. And with good reason. The promise of a new beginning for the cult favorite would lead to revelations that were heavily needed during the show’s network run. By airing the season online, not only were viewers able to watch episodes on their own time, but producers and executives at Yahoo were able to determine the actual amount of viewers tuning in for each episode rather than relying on antiquated viewership counts. But with all the freedom and excitement that came with moving the show to an internet platform, nothing could have saved it from sub-par content. At midnight on June 2nd, the final episode of the season aired, turning a contemptuous season into a lesson for all those looking for the same old nonsense.
The opening for the season ender was nothing special, empty halls lined with the same lockers we’ve seen for six years, and an easy one liner laid out by Leonard, “School’s out bitches!” Everyone is ready and excited for the upcoming summer. Everyone that is, except for the gang. Frankie is taking her sweet time ending the final Save Greendale Committee meeting, calling for a name change as they’ve successfully saved the school. Britta votes Nippledippers, Abed purchases the domain name, and that’s that. The semester is finally over.
The Dean makes his entrance wearing every possible ridiculous costume he can get his hands on in an effort to make up for lost gags. It’s pretty good, his antics weren’t nearly ludicrous enough this season. But before everyone can head to Britta’s bar for a celebration drink, Elroy makes his exit. He’s been hired by LinkedIn to figure out why no one actually uses LinkedIn. It’s upsetting, he’s been around the whole year and doesn’t give much of a goodbye. When asked if he’ll be back, he shoots off a complacent, “Yeah…Probably…Maybe.” Huh, that was…heartfelt?
The rest of the episode gloriously makes fun of itself, literally relying on basic Community tropes we’ve come to expect from the series. Rather than breaking the fourth wall to engage with the viewer, the writers simply incorporated it into the characters’ expectations of what should be happening in their lives, thanks to the efforts of Abed. The “oh god it’s been six years,” dread the gang harbors quickly switches to “Six seasons, amirite Abed?” when Britta does her best to figure out what’s next.
While at first the simplicity of the finale is a little off putting, it quickly becomes the best way to end a series of this caliber. Abed’s innate ability to figure out when it’s time to let things go becomes the pinnacle of the group’s next steps. Once it becomes apparent that everyone in the group is accepting of the “six seasons” formula, Abed goes further down the rabbit hole by questioning whether or not a seventh season would work. They’ve been “hemorrhaging characters” left and right throughout the years, and the formula might not be working anymore. Roll to the opening credits sequence again where we get the group sitting at the table, dutifully explaining exactly what their role is for the viewers at home.
The best parts of the initial joke are both Abed’s lack of a role in the formula (he sits silently twitching as the others describe their normal cadence) and Chang’s random insertions, “Lizard, Fire Hydrant, Obama, Chang!” Perfect, Chang at his best. After the initial flash to what season 7 could look like, we get Abed going back on the formula they’ve cultivated all these years. “If we stray from it we’re weird. If we stick to it we’re boring.” Nothing has ever been truer of Community. It’s at this point that we realize, this is Harmon and the writers’ way of discussing whether or not the series needs a seventh season. Will it add anything to the already extensive repertoire of episodes we’ve watched all these years? What’s the point?
After several ideas and flashes to what the gang thinks would be successful as a seventh season, Abed finally interjects. He explains that TV has to be “effortless and fun” otherwise, what’s the point? Putting too much thought into a series, i.e. trying to boost ratings, fight other television shows, writing episodes to reach out to new viewers and effectively shut out the already loyal viewership…All things that ruin a perfectly good television show. Jeff has one last pitch for the seventh season. Everyone would become teachers, he the dean, and they would all be together forever. Able to reach out to one another at a moment’s notice just as they had as students. It’s a nice dream. But, the dream abruptly ends when Abed announces he’ll be moving to LA to work the show of his dreams. With Elroy gone, and Annie being admitted to an internship over the summer, the group is effectively breaking up.
And you know what? That’s perfectly fine. It really is. Community just accomplished what most series struggle with when ending a show. They let it fizzle out slowly, and let the characters grow up when it was time. I’m not going to lie, I was really disappointed that there was no big character arc or twist that would wrap it all up nicely with a bow. But that’s not how life works. And for the characters on this show we’ve come to love so much over these six seasons, why would they have a dramatic end? We got to see a few moments in their lives, and it wouldn’t be true to them or the show to end in a way ties up loose ends, because that’s all life is.
Now, as truthful and surprisingly satisfying as the season finale was, it in no way makes up for the rest of the season. In a time and place where Harmon and co had full creative reign on the series, it’s a little upsetting that the season was so tame. I’m disappointed in the actors that didn’t find it pertinent to engage in the season as it was still important to the overall canon of the series. It’s easy to play devil’s advocate and cite creative differences, contract negotiations, or previous engagements as reasons to not return. But for something that was either a career launcher or saver, it feels like an important moment to take the time and effort to be a part of.
As the gang gives their goodbyes in the library, we get a slight tie up in Abed’s use of six “cools” and Chang farting on the fourth (“It’s an inside joke”). Afterward Jeff drives Annie and Abed to the airport to start their new journeys, then he and the remainder of the group drink at Brittas’s bar. Just as they always have, just as they probably always will. It’s poetic really, the truth behind community college. Some succeed, others fail, but most remain right where they’ve always been.
Before the final tie up joke, and before credits role, we get the fade to black with nothing but a hashtag on screen: #AndAMovie. At this point we could do without the movie. It’s over, let it die. But (and this comes from my distaste for season 6 in general) if Harmon and co were to truly throw themselves into an extravagant movie spiraling out of the Community universe, it might very well be the best part of the series. With Abed in LA learning the ins and outs behind universe building and film making, there’s ample material to pull from to create an honest to god Community masterpiece. So while it’s unclear what we should do with the hashtag it would be a welcome part of the Community world to add that movie to the six seasons.
It’s been a tumultuous season. And I have to say, I’m happy to see it end. There’s only so much one can garner from a season that deserves both acclaim and upset. Community will be sorely missed, but its legacy will live on both through legend and the streaming community. Following the series, let us stew in the wise words of Abed Nadir, the only one who will ever truly have a handle on the essence of Community “It’s almost too conceptual to follow. But I love it.”
