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Community: The Complete Fourth Season
Score: 75%
Rating: Not Rated
Publisher: Sony Pictures Home
                  Entertainment

Region: 1
Media: DVD/2
Running Time: 278 Mins.
Genre: Comedy/TV Series
Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital
Subtitles: English SDH

Features:
  • Cast and Crew Commentary on Every Episode
  • Outtakes
  • Deleted and Extended Scenes
  • Inspector Spacetime: Inspection
  • Adventures in Advanced Puppetry

This is it, Community is officially not Community anymore. It’s difficult to describe exactly what’s missing now, but as the internet would tell us, the loss of Dan Harmon, the series’ creator and writer, would be a big part of that. This used to be a very special brand of humor, a parody on sitcoms, a self-aware and wacky show. Now it’s simply a regular sitcom, stripped of what made it stand out.

Take the first episode of Community: The Complete Fourth Season for example. It instantly propels itself straight over the edge, taking all the quirks and characterization that’s been built up over 3 seasons and just putting a brick on the accelerator, never letting it rest for a second. The episode starts with Abed (Danny Pudi) imagining the gang of friends as stars of a sitcom. It’s such a telling metaphor for what Community itself has become. Where it was funny because it made fun of sitcoms, and it was self aware when it needed to be, now it’s simply a sitcom. For example, the Dean’s quirks and obsessions with dalmatians and cross-dressing used to be dropped here and there. Jeff (Joel McHale) was the main one in the gang that recognized it, but no one really called it out because it was one of those things everyone knew, but didn’t say anything about. The Dean was quirky, and hiding some really weird stuff under the surface, but he could possibly pass as normal because he didn’t really let it slip except during parties and Halloween. Now, with no explanation, he’s cross-dressing and pulling crazy stunts all the time. Jeff and the gang don’t bat an eye anymore, making the whole gag a lot less funny. And what episode of Community would waste a chance to do the best Hunger Games parody of all time? Instead it’s just a name gag, with the rest of it seemingly loosely based on American Gladiators. It’s as if someone just saw a trailer for Hunger Games and decided to name drop it in the show. And believe me, old Community could have also done a kick ass parody of American Gladiators as well, but that’s besides the point.

That’s not to say that there aren’t any funny moments in the fourth season of Community. The episode "Alternative History of the German Invasion" was actually pretty funny. Well, it could have been made funnier if the accents would have been a bit better. But everyone gets a few good one-liners in this episode such as the Dean’s, "Let me get this as straight as I can get things" and Abed’s, "He saved my life" line (referring to being saved by one of the German students in an un-named MMORPG). It was also pretty funny to see other students' aggravation at the group’s monopoly on the study room through the years. Again, though, every time I think the show is going to go somewhere unexpected, insightful, or clever, it simply sits right where it is. It’s just happy to stay in the realm of standard sitcom.

"Economics of Marine Biology" was another pretty decent episode, though it also could have gone further. Pierce and Jeff end up spending the day together since Jeff is assigned to keep Pierce busy. Oddly enough, Jeff ends up liking his day with Pierce. There’s a gag with a fake potato chip brand named "Let’s" that ends up being pretty funny, as well as a few other moments with the rest of the group throughout the day.

Community: The Complete Fourth Season does include all the extras we’ve come to expect from these DVD packages. There are plenty of outttakes, deleted scenes, commentary, and making-of features to keep everyone happy after the show is over.

Even with its bright spots, it’s hard to love this season of Community. The brilliance of the preceding seasons with unforgettable episodes like "Basic Lupine Urology" (the Law and Order parody) and "Remedial Chaos Theory" (the alternate timeline episode) just can’t be found in this current season. Community had a good run, but it is not something that can be easily duplicated. And so, missing a key writer, it is an entirely different animal. It’s still good for a laugh here and there, but just a pale imitation of its former self.



-Fights with Fire, GameVortex Communications
AKA Christin Deville
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