Yvette Nicole Brown

TV Review: Beaten, Battered ‘Community’ Finally Returns to NBC

BrianTT — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 11:41:23 -0500

CHICAGO – Rarely has a low-rated show survived as much off-screen drama as NBC’s “Community,” returning tonight to the network bruised, battered, and slightly damaged but still funnier and smarter than most of the alternatives. Where do we begin? First, the network barely renews it, penciling it in on Friday nights as a partner to the show on NBC with the least-common fan base, “Whitney.” It was like agreeing to go on another date with someone you don’t really like but it’s not a show or a nice dinner, it’s breakfast at a greasy diner. It counts as a date, but just barely, and it doesn’t bode well for the future.

Television Rating: 3.5/5.0

Then it got really complicated. Showrunner and creator Dan Harmon was unceremoniously fired, finding out via the press that he would just be a consultant on the show and not the man in charge. He didn’t take that well, understandably. He walked away in a Twitter firestorm, leaving fans to wonder what the show would be like without him. They’d have to wonder for awhile as the program’s return was indefinitely delayed as the net worked through some other comedy failures like “Animal Practice” and tinkered with “Up All Night.” It would be back in February, which gave Chevy Chase plenty of time to bitch about the quality of the show that is the only reason young people still know who he is and get fired should the show go further than this shortened season.

Community
Photo credit: NBC

Has all of this drama led to better comedy? The short answer is no. While there are some clever references to the show’s off-screen nonsense in the season premiere (the show has always been self-referential), there is a definite sense that the shake-ups, especially the departure of Harmon, have impacted the program creatively. The writing is not as crisp as the program’s best in season two. The pacing isn’t as tight. There were signs of creative sag at the end of season three and they continue into four. Would Harmon have stopped the decline? Would some support from the network done so? We’ll never know.

Community
Photo credit: NBC

One can sense a new hand guiding the show. The pop culture references to “The Hunger Games” and “Doctor Who” don’t feel as organic or from a place of true love as they feel like something efforted to come off that way. “Oh, this is that reference-heavy show I have to work on now — what are the kids watching these days?” Harmon’s geekery came from a place of truth and didn’t feel as forced as it does here. Pudi, being the King Geek of TV, does an amazing job of selling it but the deal doesn’t quite close.

However, a less-than-stellar “Community” is still better than most comedies on TV. While the writing has sagged, the ensemble continues to deliver in the two episodes sent for review (and still tagged as premiering in October, indicating how little the net cares about the program…not enough to update the press materials). Joel McHale, Danny Pudi, Donald Glover, even Chase — they all get moments that truly work even if the plots of these two episodes feel like they’re trying too hard to play off pop culture.

Will this be the last season of “Community”? Somehow, I doubt it. I feel like NBC has so many holes on their schedule and general failures in their comedy line-up that the press surrounding this show is a good thing and could lead to stronger-than-expected ratings tonight. It’s certainly done more to promote the show than NBC ever did.

“Community” stars Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Chevy Chase, Ken Jeong, and Kim Rash. It returns on NBC on Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 7pm CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

DVD Review: Third Season of NBC Critical Darling ‘Community’

BrianTT — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 12:12:21 -0400

CHICAGO – The third season of “Community” was more inconsistent than the brilliant second but it still featured some of the smartest writing and best performances on network TV. I think the writers lost sight of some of their characters in pursuit of concept over substance at times but has there been a modern show that was more unpredictable than this one? You never know where they’re going to go, what they’re going to reference, or how far they’re going to take their concepts.

Television Rating: 4.5/5.0

There’s always one show on the air that critics love and audiences ignore and, except for its loyal demo, that show right now is “Community.” After much bubble drama as to whether or not it would be renewed at all, NBC announced that the series would be moving to Friday nights, partnered with the abysmal “Whitney,” and that creator Dan Harmon wouldn’t return. Purists virtually threw up through social media. To a lot of them, the show is dead already. We’ll definitely review the series when it returns and warn you if it’s changed much but be aware that this could be the last “pure” season of “Community,” one of the best comedies of the last decade.

The DVD release is strong with commentaries on every single episode, deleted scenes, gag reels, and more. I’ll never understand why Sony doesn’t release shows that are broadcast in HD on Blu-ray but this is a strong release for DVD.

Community
Photo credit: Sony

Synopsis:
America’s most incorrigible study group of misfits returns for a hilariously ingenious new year at Greendale College. From homicidal Halloween pizza parties, holiday Glee Club smackdowns, foosball showdowns, epic pillow fight wars and an underage campus security force to a shocking remarriage, a riotous funeral service, submarine sandwich throwdowns, a new Vice Dean (Emmy winner John Goodman) with a strange air-conditioning fixation and a crime show homage for the ages - The Third Season of television’s boldest, brashest comedy is the most brilliant yet. Get ready to cram it all in.

Starring Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Jim Rash, with Ken Jeong and Emmy winner Chevy Chase.

Click here to buy “Community: Season Three”

Special Features:
o Deleted Scenes
o Gag Reels
o Commentaries On Every Episode
o A Glee-ful Community Christmas Featurette
o This Is War: Pillow Vs. Blankets Mockumentary Featurette

“Community” stars Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, Danny Pudi, Donald Glover, Ken Jeong, Jim Rash, John Goodman, and Michael K. Williams. The third season was released on DVD on August 14, 2012.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV Review: ‘Community’ Returns with Hysterically Self-Referential Episode

BrianTT — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 11:57:30 -0400

CHICAGO – Leave it to the writers of “Community,” one of the best shows on television, to take TV lemons and make a tasty comedy beverage out of them. After being forced into hiatus by a network that has never known how to support or promote it, “Community” is finally back on Thursday nights, pushing “30 Rock” to the spot formerly occupied by the done-for-the-season “Up All Night.” It’s unlikely to impact the anemic ratings for NBC, but this is the most creatively powerful two hours of television on network television. And it arguably starts with its most impressive entry.

TV Rating: 5.0/5.0

“Urban Matrimony and the Sandwich Arts” is a “Shirley episode” but, as usual, the entire ensemble gets to shine. The “A plot” is about a major turning point in Shirley’s (Yvette Nicole Brown) life as Andre (Malcolm Jamal Warner) proposes again and the two re-marry. At the same time, Pierce (Chevy Chase) has fallen from business prominence and wants to team with Shirley to open a sandwich shop in the Greendale cafeteria. Will Shirley choose business or marriage? Or find a way to pull off both?

Shirley’s marriage sends the rest of the “Community” gang on their own comedy arcs. Annie (Alison Brie) has a predictably supportive response but the big event challenges the cynicism of Britta (Gillian Jacobs) and Jeff (Joel McHale) as they push against the institution of marriage but end up using their assigned tasks for drunken personal revelations. Meanwhile, in the best (and most self-referential) plot, Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) are forced to be “normal” for the wedding. After getting as much “weirdness” out of their systems as possible, their attempts at normal are absolutely hysterical.

Community
Photo credit: NBC

An episode about a second start in which the characters try to be more normal — there hasn’t been this self-referential a sitcom since the final season of “Arrested Development.” And yet it works without the awareness that the writers are clearly using their situation as creative fodder. The writing is as strong as its ever been and, if possible, the show actually feels more confident than when it left. After “Community” was barely renewed for a second season, I felt like it came back stronger, as if the producers embraced its cult status and stopped trying to appeal to anything but their own sense of humor. That’s when the show took off. Perhaps the recent awareness that NBC barely cares about their existence has given them another boost of creative freedom. This is one of the smartest comedy scripts of the season (there’s a Jim Belushi line that is one of my favorites in the history of the show).

What will happen to “Community”? There should be ZERO expectation that this episode will pop in the ratings more than the show did before it left. Absence does not make the heart grow fonder in the world of TV. It makes one forget a show exists. The good news is that NBC is struggling across the board and I see no reason why they would renew “Whitney,” “Are You There, Chelsea?,” or even “Up All Night” over “Community.” The students at Greendale have often survived by being the best in a group of underachievers. How appropriate.

Check out this cool video that NBC sent over before you make sure your DVR is set:

“Community” stars Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Yvette Nicole Brown, Alison Brie, Donald Glover, Danny Pudi, Jim Rash, and guest star Malcolm Jamal Warner. It returns on NBC on March 15th, 2012 at 7pm CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV Review: ‘Community’ Opens Third Season on Confident Note

BrianTT — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 13:36:10 -0400

CHICAGO – The second season of “Community” was a daring display of creativity without concern. It really felt like the producers of the show had been so freed by the fact that the nearly-canceled comedy was still on the air that they completely gave up on trying to please anyone but the program’s loyal fans. It was a show that didn’t “play” to anyone, never going for the easy, predictable joke as is common in the world of the sitcom. It was dark, clever, edgy, and unpredictable. And it was one of the best sitcoms of 2010-2011. Where does it go now? What will the third season of “Community” be like? Will it slide in quality? Maintain? Could it possibly get better?

TV Rating: 4.0/5.0

None of these questions are fully answered with the season premiere, but it does hint at a team of comedy writers that could be willing to take even more chances than they did in a season with episodes inspired by “My Dinner With Andre” and “Frosty the Snowman.” How is that possible? Well, “Biology 101” opens with a musical number and features a bizarre multi-Jeff dream sequence for its hero. Add to those two scenes the casting of John Goodman and Michael K. Williams (“Boardwalk Empire”) as new recurring characters and it feels even more like “Community” is willing to take risks. Most “safe” sitcoms would never produce anything close to the oddity that is “Biology 101,” an episode about power struggles, a new class for the study group, a man who lives in the vents, and even a monkey named Annie’s Boobs. There’s nothing safe about “Community.”

Community
Photo credit: NBC

Of course, with every show that takes as many creative risks as “Community,” there is the potential for something to fall flat. I’ll admit to thinking that the season premiere of “Community” is a notch down from when this show is at its best. There are still some incredibly clever and funny lines but the cast seems to be getting overcrowded. Adding Goodman and Williams while making Jim Rash a more permanent full-time cast member leads to a premiere that’s almost cluttered with activity. And I criticize because I ADORE this ensemble. I don’t want to see talented supporting stars like Alison Brie and Donald Glover pushed into the background, as fun as it may be to see John Goodman return to network comedy. I hope my concern isn’t that well-founded and that the writers of “Community” know that their greatest strength is their core ensemble.

In the season premiere, the gang is faced with deciding whether or not to allow Pierce (Chevy Chase) back into their study group and what class to take this year. When Pierce can’t get into “Biology 101” (taught by a harsh ex-con played by Williams), Jeff (Joel McHale) takes the opportunity to basically kick him out of the group. After a speech about how none of them really need the group any more, our hero has the tables turned on him and ends up outside looking in.

Meanwhile, Goodman makes his first appearance as Vice Dean Laybourne, the Dean of the Air Conditioning Repair Annex at Greendale, who Dean Pelton (Jim Rash) learns is basically running the whole show. The alpha male persona of Goodman proves a funny oil-and-water counterpart to Rash’s style. We also learn that Chang (Ken Jeong) is still living in the air vents and Abed (Danny Pudi) snaps when he discovers that “Cougar Town” won’t be back on the air until mid-season. Britta (Gillian Jacobs) introduces the pop-culture obsessed young man to the British show on which “Cougar Town” was reportedly based with hysterical results.

Once again, “Community” contains a level of creativity that’s arguably higher than any other comedy currently on TV. The fact that the season premiere is a bit sub-part for the show is only a minor complaint. Below-average “Community” is still pretty spectacular.

The third season premiere of “Community” airs on Thursday, September 22nd, 2011 at 7pm CST on NBC. It stars Joel McHale, Gillian Jacobs, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, Danny Pudi, Donald Glover, Ken Jeong, Jim Rash, John Goodman, and Michael K. Williams.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

DVD Review: Brilliant Second Season of NBC’s ‘Community’

BrianTT — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:20:48 -0400

CHICAGO – The program most unforgivably missing from Sunday’s Emmy telecast is NBC’s brilliant comedy “Community.” It’s almost as if the Academy decided there were too many NBC shows at the party (“The Office,” “Parks and Recreation,” “30 Rock”) and so left out arguably the best of the Thursday night bunch. See the second season, now available on DVD, and see the level of Emmy injustice for yourself.

Television Rating: 5.0/5.0

“Community” went through some growing pains in season one but returned from the brink of cancellation more creatively confident and daring than nearly any program on TV (only two comedies of 2011 — “Parks and Rec,” “Louie” — were arguably better). Dan Harmon’s show is the kind of comedy made for DVD in that you can watch episode after episode after episode and never tire of the show. Stand-outs in season two include “Basic Rocket Science,” “Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design,” “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas,” “Celebrity Pharmacology 212,” “Advanced Dungeons and Dragons,” “Critical Film Studies,” and the two-part paintball finale. How many shows can weave references to “My Dinner with Andre,” “Apollo 13,” “Pulp Fiction,” “Frosty the Snowman,” and much more into one consistent series? “Community” might be the smartest show on TV.

Community
Photo credit: Sony

It’s definitely one of the best-performed. Joel McHale, Alison Brie, and Danny Pudi all deserved Emmy nominations and the rest of the cast improved in season two as well with Gillian Jacobs finding a wonderful rhthym as Britta and Chevy Chase discovering a very-dark edge to Pierce. Yvette Nicole Brown, Donald Glover, and even the sometimes-annoying Ken Jeong also found stand-out moments. I love this cast and will be broken if NBC ever choses to show them the door before the program has run its course.

The DVD-only release of “Community” is a disappointing decision on the part of Sony. Why not release a show with a loyal fan-base on Blu-ray? The thinking is that the show doesn’t really lose all that much by not being in HD but the program looks fantastic in its original broadcast and shouldn’t fans be able to own a series with the same level of quality as when they watched it off their DVR?

Despite the disappointing lack of a Blu-ray release, the four-disc DVD release is pretty stellar. It includes stronger-than-average transfers and an impressive array of special features, including commentaries on every single episode. With deleted scenes, outtakes, and behind-the-scenes featurettes, this as extensive a TV-on-DVD release as you’ll find on the shelf on this month. The Academy may not have done “Community” justice, but Sony has treated one of its best programs very, very well.

Special Features:
o Outtakes and Deleted Scenes
o Cast & Crew Commentary On Every Episode
o The Paintball Finale: From Script To Screen
o Creating Wonderland
o Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas Animatics
o Season 2 Cast Evaluations
o DJ Steve Porter Remixes Season One

“Community: The Complete Second Season” stars Joel McHale, Chevy Chase, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Ken Jeong, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, and Donald Glover. The show was created by Dan Harmon. It was released on DVD on September 6th, 2011.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV Review: NBC’s ‘Community’ Premieres Very Special Christmas Episode

BrianTT — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 11:50:44 -0500

CHICAGO – NBC’s “Community” continues to climb the charts of what must be considered the most creative programs on television with a brilliant Christmas episode tonight inspired by the Rankin-Bass stop-motion animated classics like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Frosty the Snowman.” The incredible comedy has been more and more uniquely-inspired as its amazing second season has progressed and you don’t want to miss “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas.”

Television Rating: 5.0/5.0

The comedic conceit of tonight’s episode is that Abed (Danny Pudi) is the only one who sees his friends and classmates in stop-motion style. The young man who sees the world almost entirely in pop culture references may have finally snapped. Of course, we, the audience, also see Abed and the crew in stop-motion animation, allowing for some fantastic visual flourishes and incredible sight gags. Most remarkably, “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” actually becomes somewhat touching with a moral message about the importance of the holiday season that resonates without the treacle.

Community
Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

In tonight’s episode, Abed visualizes his friends as somewhat freakish holiday-themed characters (as Jeff says in one of the funnier lines regarding the weirdness of Abed’s visions, “Somewhere out there, Tim Burton has got a boner”) like Jeff-in-the-box (Joel McHale) and a Britta robot (Gillian Jacobs). Pierce (Chevy Chase) is a teddy bear, Annie (Alison Brie) a ballerina, Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) a baby, and, of course, Troy (Donald Glover) a toy soldier. Even Senor Chang shows up as a snowman.

Many writing teams would have merely turned the Christmas/Rankin-Bass episode of “Community” into nothing more than a series of references and in-jokes, but it’s only the best writers on TV who can transcend the reference and turn it into something more. The brilliance of “Community” this year hasn’t JUST been the increasingly-clever references but how they’re used to enrich what is arguably the best comedic ensemble on television right now.

We’ll get more into how “Community” has developed in 2010 in the upcoming Best TV of the Year feature and merely end this mini-review/preview by giving you one more detail about tonight’s Christmas episode — it’s a musical. If the visual delights, clever story, and hilarious dialogue aren’t enough, you can now know that not everyone in the “Community” cast can really sing. But, like they do every week, they put their necks on the line and give it their all. Don’t miss it.

‘Community,’ which airs on NBC, stars Joel McHale, Chevy Chase, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Ken Jeong, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, and Donald Glover. The show was created by Dan Harmon. “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” airs on Thursday, December 9th, 2010 at 7:00PM CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV Review: NBC’s Hilarious ‘Community’ Returns For Second Season

BrianTT — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 11:35:35 -0400

CHICAGO – NBC’s “Community” took some time to find its comic rhythm but it has developed into one of the smartest and most expertly-paced sitcoms on television. The Joel McHale vehicle returns tonight, September 23rd, 2010 for a very-important start to its second season. If it can find the audience it deserves, “Community” could be on for years. It certainly should be.

Television Rating: 4.5/5.0

With the recent DVD release of season one (which we’ll get into more later), I had the chance to go back and watch the first few months of “Community” and confirm my opinion that this show was simply much better in 2010 than when it started in 2009. Like a lot of sitcoms, the cast simply went through some growing pains as they developed their chemistry. While some programs never get the time for their ensemble to gel, “Community” turned the corner in the middle of its first season and hasn’t looked back. It ended on a ridiculously high note and continues to impress with its second-season premiere.

“Community” essentially begins where it left off with Jeff (McHale) caught in a love crisis more appropriate for high school than community college. At the end of the first season, Britta (Gillian Jacobs) confessed her feelings for Jeff, who handled the situation by running off and kissing Annie (Alison Brie). Naturally, these developments lead to a few lingering problems. Britta feels publicly jilted but her shame turns to pride as her story becomes a rallying cry for other girls at Greendale Community College who turn their new hero into a romantic martyr. Jeff doesn’t take well to being turned into the bad guy and tries to one-up Britta in a hilarious exchange of public, romantic revelations. While Jeff tries to figure out the terms of his dynamic with Britta, Annie’s seemingly-growing love for him could be a problem.

Community
Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

If it sounds a bit too much like a soap opera, don’t worry, Abed (Danny Pudi) thinks so too. The most “meta” character on TV, the young man who almost entirely speaks in pop culture references, has become almost like the Greek Chorus of “Community,” commenting on the action not unlike the show’s intelligent viewers do with their friends. Pudi continues to impress.

Community: The Complete First Season was released on DVD on September 21st, 2010.
Photo credit: Sony

Finally, the writers take a brilliant stab at their network’s competition, the abysmal “$#*! My Dad Says,” by having Troy (Donald Glover) tweet the odd ramblings of Pierce (Chevy Chase) and even suggest turning it into a TV show, and Senor Chang (Ken Jeong) tries to join the gang as a peer instead of a professor with hilarious results.

The season premiere of “Community” is one of the best of the new season. There have been a few reasonably-entertaining returns (“Glee,” “Modern Family”) and some disappointments (“How I Met Your Mother,” “The Big Bang Theory”) but few programs have come back clicking on the exact same level as when they left the air in May. “Community” keeps getting better by the week and has gone from a promising program a year ago to one of the best comedies on television.

Watch the development of “Community” with a great four-disc collection of the first season courtey of Sony. Sadly, “Community” is not available on Blu-ray, but the video and audio on the standard edition is better-than-average. I still don’t understand how a show that so many people are watching in glorious HD is not available in the same quality as its original broadcast in 2010.

The collection includes a remarkable series of special features, including cast and crew commentary on every single episode and even a comic book version of Troy and Abed’s hilarious “Kick Puncher.” The set also features over ninety minutes of special features including extended episodes, outtakes, and never-before-seen footage. It’s one of the most extensive and impressive standard DVD sets of the season. Don’t miss the DVD. Don’t miss the show on NBC. Do we have to beg?

‘Community,’ which airs on NBC, stars Joel McHale, Chevy Chase, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, Ken Jeong, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, and Donald Glover. The show was created by Dan Harmon. The series returns on Thursday, September 23rd, 2010 at 7:00PM CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

TV News: ‘Community’ Coming to DVD With Amazing Special Features

BrianTT — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 20:39:19 -0400

CHICAGO – The great NBC show “Community” is coming to DVD on Spetember 21st and the set will be loaded with notable special features and even include an exclusive comic book and a bonus pull-out poster. Fans of TV comedy mark your calendars.

Sony sent over the details and artwork and we just had to share. “Community” got better and better with every episode of season one and we hope that this incredible DVD treatment both helps it find a wider audience and satisfies its loyal fans. First, the artwork for the cover and then the amazing list of bonus material.

Community: The Complete First Season
Photo credit: Sony

From Sony…

“The Community: The Complete First Season DVD will feature an exclusive comic book called KICKPUNCHER, a 12-page, full-color collectible illustrated by famed muralist and comic book artist Jim Mahfood, which follows the adventures of KICKPUNCHER, a crime-fighting superhero created from the mind of Troy Barnes. This first edition comic includes a bonus pull-out collector’s poster of “ANNIE and BRITTA UNLEASHED!”

The DVD set will feature all 25 episodes of Community: The Complete First Season, including the highly talked-about “Modern Warfare” paintball episode. This first season is packed with special features, including hilarious cast and crew commentaries on every episode, outtakes on each disc, extended cuts on two fan-favorite episodes and multiple featurettes including one where Dan Harmon , creator of the show, sits each cast member down and evaluates their performances throughout the first season!”

Special Features:
o Commentary on every episode with the creator of the show, Dan Harmon. Joining Dan are Joel McHale, Chevy Chase, Ken Jeong, Gillian Jacobs, Yvette Nicole Brown, Danny Pudi, Alison Brie, Donald Glover and more!
o Extended Cuts of Pilot and Communication Studies episodes
o Outtakes on every disc
o Season One Cast Evaluations
o Season One Highlight Reel
o “Creative Compromises” Featurette
o Advanced Criminal Law Alternative Scenes
o 3 Mini Episodes

And, before you go pre-order, the cover of “Kickpuncher”:

Community: The Complete First Season
Photo credit: Sony

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com