I know it really shouldn't take me four days to write a recap, but I am only one person and sometimes even bloggers need a weekend. So! I know I should probably say something about Will Ferrell on The Office, but it wasn't my favorite episode; I'll talk about what's going on there more next week. 30 Rock wasn't the worst, but it wasn't the best, so we'll focus on the two comedies that WERE the best this week.
Community
As we near the end of Community's second season, it's fun to look back and see how far the characters have come. Sure, Chang is still crazy...crazy-fun to have around! Annie and Jeff are still in the full throes of "I love you but you're a terrible person and I need to reconcile my love with your terribleness"; Abed is the guru's guru (beause, as we established last episode, Abed doesn't have any need to change); Pierce, cured of his drug addiction, is still an ass, but he's an ass with emotions! Pregnant Shirley is apparently Hilarious Shirley - even though she wasn't in this episode much she had some of the best lines. And then we get to Britta and Troy.
I have to admit I really didn't see their romance coming, but once it showed up I was immediately on board. I've said it before and I'll say it again, but Donald Glover is leading the pack of the new generation of comedians, and I know he's gonna be around for a long-ass time. He's just SO GOOD, and versatile, and HOT, and can do quiet, subtle one-liners just as well as he can do huge physical comedy. In Competetive Wine Tasting, all of these talents were on display. Anyway, romance. In a call-back to last season (I love this show's commitment to continuity!), Britta and Troy take an acting class at the suggestion of Ms. Geist, their dance teacher. Troy, when asked to access a difficult memory from his past, finds he doesn't have any - so he invents a story about his uncle trying "to put his finger in my no-no!" (I prefer "plop-plop", because if a butt is a no-no, what does that make "no-no juice"?!) Since Britta is damaged, she is attracted to broken men because fixing them takes the focus off of her own problems (we never hear what her big traumatic memory is, do we?), and so Troy immediately becomes her object of desire. Hijinx, proclamations, and kisses ensue, but at the end, when Troy apologizes for making up the story, you can see that he does really like Britta and that maybe this relationship would be healthy for both of them. Just like how Jeff and Annie balance out the immorality/prudishness in each other, Britta and Troy could supply each other with some damaged & crazy/undamaged & crazy balance of their own.
I love how unexpected this show is. I love how in one episode we get an entire class on Who's The Boss, a racist Asian girlfriend for Pierce, and a romance that I really never saw coming but I bet, once I rewatch this season, I'll find there were clues all along. While we were all staring at Jeff and Annie, waiting for things to happen, something even better came along. I'm really excited to see where the Britta/Troy storyline goes, and if it can be sustained. Greendale FTW! It's interesting that the best show of the night is the one that airs first.
