THE 2014 THINGS IN VISUAL MEDIA AWARDS!

[INSERT AWESOME BANNER HERE... ehh screw it]

Last year I wrote an extensive list of my favorite, and least favorite, of 2013… and then never posted it. Why? Because.

Anyway, these are my favorite things of 2014… they may not be yours. That’s cool. I don’t like things so you’ll think I’m awesome. I like them because no one else is going to enjoy my life more than me.

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Review - COMMUNITY 5.01 & 5.02: 'Repilot' & 'Introduction to Teaching'

COMMUNITY is back after a 2-year layoff! And so is Dan Harmon, baby! But was the return of the great God of this world a triumphant one? Or can nothing pull this show out of its massive nose-dive brought on by the let-us-forget-it-ever-happened season 4? Keep reading to find out in this two-parter review (or whatever).

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Top 10 Penultimate TV Episodes

Many shows can’t pull off a solid finale. However, when it comes to penultimate episodes, as in the episode that precedes the finale, there have been some superb ones.

Here are my top 10 penultimate episodes (of about the past ten years, because I'm not going to try to remember the 90s).

10. LOST – Episode 3.21, Greatest Hits: This was all about confronting realities and accepting the inevitable. It was done to perfection, allowing characters to shine above the plot. Deeply emotional on all levels. Technically this was the third to last episode but the season finale was shown as a 2-hour event.

9. GAME OF THRONES – Episode 2.09, Blackwater: This show will probably go down as delivering the most epic penultimate episodes. This one gave us the drama and action of a big budget movie. Originally I put this higher on my list but then I watched the other episodes and realized it belonged right here.

8. MAD MEN – Episode 5.12, Commissions and Fees: Many people have argued and will likely argue for many more years about the quality of the fifth season but there is no denying that its penultimate episode was one of the show’s best.

7. COMMUNITY – Episode 2.23, A Fistful of Paintballs: The first part of a fun finale set. It was thematically different from the second part and arguably better than the finale.

6. FRINGE – Episode 2.22, Over There (part 1): This episode started a frantic ball rolling that would lead the show headfirst into its third (and my favorite) season.

5. CHUCK – Episode 2.21, Chuck vs. the Colonel: Not just a great episode but arguably the best episode the show ever pulled off in its 5-season run. It has everything that made this show beloved: heart, romance, action, family, drama, and comedy.

4. BATTLESTAR GALACTICA – Episode 1.12, Kobol's Last Gleaming (part 1): This show had some amazing episodes but only one penultimate makes this list. Part 2 would probably make a top 10 list of finale episodes.

3. GAME OF THRONES – Episode 1.09, Baelor: For those who hadn’t read the books, this sent shock-waves throughout the galaxy. It was one of the most surprising turn of events in television history. That is until…

1. GAME OF THRONES – Episode 3.09, The Rains of Castamere: I am going out cheap and declaring a tie for first. Book fans knew what was coming. Non-book fans did not. Both were equally blown away. After 20 episodes of waiting, we finally received the payoff to "Baelor". And yes, this show gets 3 episodes on the list... by earning it!

1. THE WIRE – Episode 5.09, Late Editions: One of the show’s best with various plot points reaching their emotional apex. If Emmy voters had actually bothered to watch this show while it was on the air, this episode would have resulted in a clean sweep of the awards. The Emmy’s need a new category: shows we were too stupid to realize were incredible until off the air.

Don't like my list? Make your own in the comments section below.

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CFBWMR 4 - Jar-Jar Binks is a RACIST!

VladyGG and HGF return with this TOTALLY LIVE PODCAST! No edits. This is the first time we've ever done this and if it works may lead to us doing podcasts where you can listen in live. We talk CHUCK movie; I give advice to GAME OF THRONES fans; talk Star Trek ENTERPRISE; gush about ORPHAN BLACK and Tatiana Maslany; touch on Dan Harmon's potential return to COMMUNITY; my spider coffee story; ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT season 4; and more "fake outrage" talk.

WARNING: Actually, none really. We don't talk about any spoilers. Every discussion is safe if you've not watched the shows discussed. Oh wait... ADULT LANGUAGE THROUGHOUT!

Oh and I know I said "MR MS" during the "Game of Thrones" discussion when it is clearly MS MR. This is what happens when you do it live.

Topics and times noted below.

00:00 Intro: Alice in Chains - Hollow
00:37 opening babble
06:35 CHUCK movie discussion (how fans can help)
13:55 my GAME OF THRONES suggestion for non-book readers re: final episodes of S3
17:29 Star Trek talk, mostly ENTERPRISE (and Scott Bakula going viral)
22:53 ORPHAN BLACK and the incredible Tatiana Maslany
24:15 things go way wrong recording wise (Prelude to War interlude)
28:07 VladyGG is returned by the kidnappers (Prelude to War continues)
29:55 COMMUNITY and Dan Harmon's possible return
32:54 the spider in my coffee incident
34:10 ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT season 4 (if you listen to only one thing, choose this)
45:21 "fake outrage" discussion
52:45 end babble
54:10 Outro: Daft Punk - Derezzed

Press play below.


OR, right click here to save the MP3 to your computer.

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Dan Harmon to return to COMMUNITY for season 5?

The god of the COMMUNITY universe, Dan Harmon, apparently told the crowd at a recent podcast recording that he's been asked to return as show runner for season 5 of COMMUNITY, which was picked up by NBC earlier this month.

If these reports are accurate, they validate every negative thing I've said about the 4th season (outside of the wonderfully written Jim Rash episode) and my reason to stop reviewing the show.

Network and studio executives don't admit they are wrong. They don't crawl back to someone they fired. When they do, it is because they recognize the talent that made the show work was actually essential.

No reports yet of whether or not Mr. Harmon has decided to return (he may have emotionally moved on for all we know) but let me submit my suggestion for how the 5th season under Dan Harmon could begin.

Abed finds Star-Burns in the shower and realizes not only did he not die (we know he didn't), but that season 4 was a bad dream.

Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3

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Review - COMMUNITY 4.05: 'Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations'

I am writing this review the day after and that means I know that it pulled in a solid Nielsen rating, up against the results show for AMERICAN IDOL and a new episode of THE BIG BANG THEORY.

If something changes in the later updated ratings, I will maybe note it here.

Now, let's get to the episode.

Since I am a bit pressed for time, let me just quickly note what worked and what didn't work.

What Did Not Work
About 90% of Shirley's party felt like tired writing.

THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION bit bombed.

Abed had only rare occasions of feeling like the character we've come to know in previous seasons. His character has taken the biggest hit since the ousting of Dan Harmon, likely because Harmon took such special care and put so much soul into the character. Not the current show runners nor their writers seem to have figured out how to make it work.

What Did Work
Jeff and Britta were excellent in this one. Had they just made it about them, I'd have given it a very high score. The writing felt alive and fresh.

Jeff's meeting with his dad, their interaction, and even his half-brother all worked and didn't feel forced (well, maybe one scene where Jeff expresses his emotions felt a bit forced but I don't want to nitpick too much since I loved the rest of it).

While most of Shirley's party didn't work and the "Shawshank" bit failed, the payoff at the end did make me laugh.

Takeway
Jeff has romantic chemistry with all the ladies. Troy doesn't. This episode just accentuated the lack of chemistry between Troy and Britta.

If I had to rate this one, and Britta's Britta says I do, then I'd give it:

77 out of 100

After subtracting 50 Dan-Harmon-is-god points, it is a 27 out of 100.

Had the other half of the episode not bombed, it could have been a 90+.
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Review - COMMUNITY 4.04: 'Alternative History of the German Invasion'

The fourth episode of this fourth season, which I believe was actually shot as the second episode, is perhaps the most classic feeling one of this Dan-Harmon-less season. Does that make it good? Read on.

There have been some complaints by our dear readers that my grades and comments related to this season have been unfair. These people feel I've given Dan Harmon too much credit and that he was at the helm for bad episodes in the past. Episodes that these people claim are worse than any of the first few of this season.

Let me address those comments in this review.

NUTS!

Dan Harmon is the GOD of the COMMUNITY universe. He created it and put himself into every episode (and by that I mean he didn't just let writers have their way with a single episode). With his departure, the new show runners, no matter their qualifications or talent, are at best demigods of that universe. And up to this point, they've helped deliver what amounts to mediocre/bad fan-fiction.

If you think any season 4 episode has been as good or even better than ANY season 1, 2, or 3 episode of the series, then that's your problem. We have totally different perspectives on quality. I'm not suggesting mine is more accurate than yours. My perspective is the one that comes from this mind, this soul, and expressed via these fingers right here (I'm holding them up for you). You don't have to like it. In the same way I didn't like the first three episodes of this season.

That brings us to the fourth episode which I previously mentioned was shot second (as far as I know).  And that's what is very strange about it. Because I'd have thought it was shot much later in the process, after the writers and actors had worked out all the kinks.

This time most things feel very familiar. Comfortable.  That's not to say the episode stands out as one of the best, but at least it can sit alongside those Harmon-era episodes that felt unusually below average.  We get the return of the Germans, Chang (and his Changnesia),  and geek-centric dialogue that doesn't feel (too) forced.

When the Germans figure out a way to take the study-room away from the group, our heroes suffer the consequences until they figure out a way to take it back (if god was still running this show, I'd detail that for you, but I don't make that much of an effort for demigods).  Unfortunately for the gang, the Germans make themselves the victim and rally people to a protest the study group.  And hilarity ensues. Followed by a message delivered by Hitler-Jeff.

This isn't an epic episode but it does have fun dialogue that works with our characters. It succeeds on a most basic level, never achieving greatness but works because of familiarity. This is one of those cases where if Harmon was still running the show, it would earn a much worse score. But because these try-hards are behind it, I'm actually inclined to praise them for it.

QUOTABLES

Reinholt: Don't worry. If there's one thing Germans don't do it's hold a grudge.
Abed: Unless we're talking about DIE HARD 3.
Jeff: Or the 20th century.

When the Dean reacts to the return of Chang, off in a different part of the school...
Abed: I just felt a strange disturbance.
Britta: Did you have dairy this morning?
Abed: Could be that. Or it could be that great evil's nearby. I'll take a provisional lactate.

Troy: I don't understand any of these puns. I think I need to learn history. 

After Jeff gives a long speech...
Abed: You had me at 'ruse'.
Jeff: That was the last thing I said.
Abed: Good thing you said it.

And some other stuff. I'm super lazy tonight.


If I had to rate this episode, and I don't mind doing so, I'd give it:

81 out of 100

Though, after I subtract 50 Dan-Harmon-is-god points, the score is a 31 out of 100. So a failure. Sorry, I didn't make up that rule.

(so I made up that rule)
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Furycast 68 - Sad Birthday Boy

 
In this SUPER FAST AND SHORT episode, VladyGG and HGF discuss the new podcast format; HGF's birthday; Armed Assault 3; HGF's mom's birthday; Star Wars rumors; Metallica and Orion 2; the Oscars, Seth McFucklame, and Cuntgate; and Community without Dan Harmon.

All topics and times noted below.

PRESS PLAY to listen.


You can also RIGHT CLICK HERE and then choose to SAVE the mp3 file to your hard drive so you can listen later.

00:00 Intro - Metallica "Blackened" (...And Moderus For All version)

00:24 Opening - Explanation of the new podcast format.

02:06 HGF's crappy birthday and total lack of donations.

02:43 Armed Assault 3 Alpha release date announced.

03:36 My mom's birthday!

04:20 Star Wars rumors.

05:40 Metallica Orion Music & More 2 info, James going fuckcrazy, and Death goes stupid.

07:37 Oscars - Seth Mcfucklame, Jennifer Lawrence falling, and Cuntgate.

10:05 COMMUNITY sucks without Dan Harmon.

10:28 Ending - Goodbyes

10:40 Outro - Metallica "That Was Just Your Life" (Moderus III.2 version)
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Review - COMMUNITY 4.03: 'Conventions of Space and Time'

In this episode, the gang went to an Inspector Spacetime convention, something everyone has been wanting to see for a while now.

NOT!

What we ended up with was the least interesting and most hollow episode of the series, where every character felt off and the writing was right out of one of those horrible CBS comedies.

This is not COMMUNITY. This is THE BIG 2.5 BROKE GIRLS. Except not as good. Where Annie fantasizes about being Jeff's wife (if someone would kill Dan Harmon, he could roll in his grave), Britta is some kind of ninja, Abed is some weirdly transformed version of the character he was for three seasons, and Tricia Helfer is not awesome.

Granted, the most interesting element of this episode, for a second week running, involved Shirley. Maybe we get lucky and the rest of the season focuses on her.

If I had to rate this episode, and it pains me to do it, I'd give it:

45 out of 100

Which, after subtracting 50 "Dan Harmon is God" points, makes this:

-5 out of 100

At least Alison Brie gets to be on MAD MEN. So this shouldn't ruin her career the way it would have otherwise. Her acting, and that of most of the cast, was less than paint-by-numbers. It was awkward.

If you liked this episode, then you are my enemy for life.
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Review - COMMUNITY 4.01: 'History 101'

Sony fired COMMUNITY show creator/heart-and-soul Dan Harmon following the end of season 3 because he was apparently difficult to deal with and because they were convinced the vast majority of viewers wouldn't notice the change since network executives think their audiences are morons.

If you think this is the show many of us fell in love with, then the executives were right.

I have been saying for months that at best the show without Dan Harmon should be called CINACO (Community in name and characters only). I also promised to take 50 points away from any episode rating because the show minus its main voice doesn't deserve those points.

This isn't the show Dan Harmon created. This is some fan-fiction version of it.

Thing is, you can't replace the madness that was Dan Harmon's tireless drive to make something unique and edgy, though new show runners Moses Port and David Guarascio have sure tried to deliver something they think Harmon might have done. Thing is, Dan wouldn't have done this because he would have thought it wouldn't play.

And it is a shame because these actors and characters deserve better material. A better show runner.

Dan Harmon.

Dan Harmon!

Dan Effin' Harmon!

Sure, as an episode it wasn't completely terrible if one pretends the show hasn't done much better --in fact, every episode that preceded this one was superior. Yet some things worked a bit, like Abed's show-before-a-live-audience version of reality with Fred Willard as Pierce. Or the line about Taco Bell and the war on terror:

Abed: All of our wishes come true. Last year Troy wished we got Bin Laden and the Dorito taco.
Troy: Yeah but Obama got credit for both.

The meta jokes about things changing were also appropriate and did feel like something Harmon would have enjoyed using had he not watched the essence of his creation raped by marauding studio fools. And while I am not a fan of Britta and Troy's relationship, their fight and Troy's "Why does this feel good" worked.

Unfortunately, the rest didn't work as well. The whole Hunger Deans bit was a tired wannabe version of the paintball episodes with none of the effort. Annie's backtracking on her emotional growth away from Jeff made no sense. Annie and Shirley's dean punking? Weak. Plus Pierce's attempt to find a ball joke, which could have worked if used once, just withered away in the less than capable editing hands of these new pair of clown-shoes.

If I had to rate this episode, and Dan's essence says I don't, I'd give it:

   78 - (50 Harmon points)

= 28 out of 100

So far, not so good. And based on what critics who have seen followup episodes have said, this was one of the better early ones.
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Furycast 66 - That Kiss Sucked

Jess and Magnus talk about the NEW GIRL kiss that shocked the world (and disappointed one of us); also HAPPY ENDINGS and our inability to remember its storylines; the new show THE AMERICANS about KGB spies in the US in the early 80s; THE OFFICE trying to jump the shark; ARCHER still being brilliant; 30 ROCK series finale; and many other discussions involving COMMUNITY, THE WALKING DEAD, GAME OF THRONES, CHUCK and much more.

WARNING!!!!! This is an unedited podcast. If we decide to order pizza in the middle, then you will hear it.

Either autoplaying or you need to press play below.


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Furycast 46 - Where is Jimmy?

In this episode VladyGG and HGF discuss COMMUNITY, REVOLUTION, FRINGE, DEXTER, HOMELAND, ALPHAS, and play some listener phone-calls, plus more. All times and topics noted below.

Consider all discussions to have potential spoilers and only listen to that which you have watched or don't care to know about even if you haven't.

00:00 – 00:26 OPENING (Damned If I Do by Life Of Agony)
00:27 – 03:11 INTRO including talk of COMMUNITY premiere delay
03:12 – 10:33 REVOLUTION
10:34 – 16:24 FRINGE and the crazy Joshua Jackson fan(s)
16:25 – 19:07 DEXTER
19:08 – 19:11 HOMELAND
19:12 – 19:35 ALPHAS
19:36 – 27:19 Listener phone calls
27:20 – 30:49 End of podcast discussion including Eli, Jimmy, Plopper etc.
30:50 - 32:42 OUTRO (River Runs Red by Life of Agony)

PRESS PLAY!


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If you have any questions or requests for a future podcast, feel free to call us at 201-639-GEEK (4335) and leave a message!
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Furycast 39 - Deadly Whores

In this episode, Jess and Magnus discuss a bunch of topics. View the list below for the information and time.

Consider EVERY discussion a potential SPOILER discussion.

00:00 - 00:17 Musical Intro - Metallica, Rebel of Babylon
00:18 - 02:00 Podcast Opening
02:01 - 04:34 GO ON pilot episode
04:35 - 07:24 ANIMAL PRACTICE pilot episode
07:25 - 11:11 REVOLUTION pilot episode(s)
11:12 - 18:34 Stuff that leads into BBC America's COPPER
18:35 - 21:37 DOCTOR WHO and that leads into discussion of fandoms
21:38 - 24:47 DOWNTON ABBEY
24:48 - 30:30 The problems with reality shows like SURVIVOR
30:31 - 31:21 End of episode
31:22 - 31:52 Musical Outro - Metallica, Rebel of Babylon



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Furycast 38 - Such a Pussy Riot

In this podcast, Jess and Magnus discuss many topics. View the list below for the information and time.

Be aware that there are some SPOILERS in those topics (noted).

00:00 - 00:29 Musical Inro - Bloc Party, Kettling
00:30 - 01:04 Intro to the Intro
01:05 - 01:29 Musical Intro Continued - Bloc Party, Kettling
01:30 - 02:22 Podcast Opening
02:23 - 06:17 UK show SURVIVORS; mostly talk WALKING DEAD (season 2 spoilers)
06:18 - 06:42 TRUE BLOOD (I guess you could call this spoilery, kind of)
06:43 - 07:10 WALKING DEAD again with season 2 cliffhanger spoiler
07:11 - 13:34 GAME OF THRONES mostly book talk with some spoilers
13:35 - 15:28 UK show LUTHER
15:29 - 16:37 UK show SHERLOCK and Benedict Cumberbatch's new show PARADE'S END
16:38 - 18:15 HBO, critics, our hate for BOARDWALK EMPIRE, and NEWSROOM
18:16 - 19:04 Olivia Munn (the problem with... and when she works)
19:05 - 19:52 Danica McKellar
19:53 - 27:51 UK show THE INBETWEENERS vs. US version (spoilers discussed)
27:52 - 28:53 MISFITS and THE OFFICE US remake discussion
28:54 - 31:54 OUT OF THE WILD - VENEZUELA discussed with some spoilers
31:55 - 33:18 LILLYHAMMER
33:19 - 33:54 ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT on Netflix
33:55 - 37:58 ALPHAS
37:59 - 38:36 The blue eyes of the LOST cast
38:37 - 41:51 The BBC America show COPPER
41:52 - 46:03 FOX pilot episodes for THE MINDY PROJECT and BEN AND KATE
46:04 - 49:14 Jarring cut into a COMMUNITY season 4 discussion
49:15 - 51:49 General babble about people's TV and political choices.
51:50 - 53:12 Pussy Riot goodbye.



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COMMUNITY Wins Best TV Comedy Series at the Critics' Choice Awards 2012!

That's the only important thing that happened there.

Discuss!

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Review - COMMUNITY 3.22: 'Introduction to Finality'

Evil Abed gets a little rape-happy with a saw.

Shirley and Pierce's disagreement leads to a legal battle in Greendale Summer Fun Court.

Plot
Season 3's three-episode finale night ended with the lesser of the bunch but still a solid episode that delivered closure and some character growth.

The gang, minus Troy, is in summer school and preparing for finals when the dean tells Shirley and Pierce that Subway is leaving the campus and that their sandwich place will replace it. But when the two can't agree who should sign the single line contract, the two face off in an in-school lawsuit that pits not only the two business partners against each other, but Jeff against the lawyer who ruined his career. In the end, Pierce and Shirley decide to cooperate.

A secondary story has Troy in the AC repair school, missing his friends, and solving the apparent murder of Vice Dean Laybourne (I will believe he is dead when I never see him again).

Troy gets to shine a bit here as he not only solves Laybourne's murder, but also demonstrates his natural air conditioning repair skills that make him the messiah of the school. The new Neo of the school then changes the rules so that he can live off-campus and continue his AC studies while still remaining in the study group.

The tertiary plot is Evil Abed's attempt to carry out his evil timeline mission, complete with a Terminator like first-person perspective; a total emotional dress-down of Britta; his general bad attitude; and a funny bit where he tries to use a bone-saw to remove Jeff's arm but is foiled by a lack of an extension-cord and then Jeff's speech about goodness.

After Abed takes back his body from Evil Abed, he shuts down his Dreamatorium so that Troy can move back in, but secretly keeps a smaller cardboard version in his own space.

Oh, and Starburns faked his own death. Called it!

Well, I kind of called it.

Quotables

Abed notices Evil Abed standing in the doorway of the Dreamatorium.
Abed: This can't be good.

Evil Abed: When the world gets bad enough, Abed, the good go crazy. But the smart (pause), they go bad.

Britta tries to give therapy to Evil Abed but realizes things aren't going the way she wants.
Britta: You know what? Maybe I should talk to Good Abed instead.
Evil Abed: Where I come from, his name is Lame Abed.
Britta: And you come from?
Evil Abed: The darkest timeline. You might call it the Britta of timelines, where everything is the worst. Jeff has one arm there. Annie shot Pierce. Troy can't speak.

Evil Abed: Do you know what kind of person becomes a psychologist, Britta? A person that wishes deep down that everyone more special than them was sick because 'healthy' sounds so much more exciting than 'boring.' You're average, Britta Perry. You're every kid on the playground that didn't get picked on. You're a business casual potted plant. A human white sale. You're VH1, ROBOCOP 2, and BACK TO THE FUTURE 3. You're the center slice of a square cheese pizza. Actually, that sounds delicious. I'm the center slice of a square cheese pizza. You're Jim Belushi.

After Troy gets Murray to admit to murdering Vice Dean Laybourne, the AC school nutjobs decide to exact their own form of justice.
Troy: No! No! Take him to the police. He murdered someone. Take him to jail. You guys are weird.

After Jeff wins the case, he receives praise.
Annie: Jeff, that was great!
Shirley: You were like a white Blair Underwood.

Rating
If I had to rate this one, and Dan Harmon's expired contract with Sony says I do, then I'd give it:

87 out of 100

It was a mostly standard episode of the show but worked as a nice ending to the season. And though this episode wasn't as great as the previous few, the season as a whole delivered on more levels than I ever imagined. And so I feel comfortable proclaiming season 3...

THE GREATEST THIRD SEASON OF ALL TIME!

If this is Dan Harmon's last season as showrunner (and I promise to turn hatefully against the show next season if it is), then he has gone out a champion. Sure, the Emmy voters may never figure this thing out, but they didn't get THE WIRE until it was gone either.

UPDATE: It is official... Dan Harmon will NOT be back as show runner.

COMMUNITY is THE WIRE of half-hour comedy!

If I had to rate this season, and damn hell skippy I do! I'd give it:

98 out of 100

Yeah, if you add up the episode grades they don't actually equal to that but I don't care. It's my site. My grades. My rules. Deal with it.

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Review - COMMUNITY 3.21: 'The First Chang Dynasty'

Me like Britta. Me not ashamed.

The study group develops a plan to infiltrate Greendale's Chang-controlled campus; Troy turns to the Air Conditioning Repair Annex for help.

Plot
Another episode in a line of great episodes this season. I am totally in love with Dan Harmon and crew! I'd do unnatural things to all of them but they'd be slumming it.

Anyway, so this episode tackles the Chang plot to not only overthrow Dean Pelton but to get the study group expelled. His Stalin like success has resulted in lower attendance, even as he makes commercials proclaiming the opposite.

Through Troy's association with the air conditioning school, the group discovers the location of the dean's prison chamber and set into action utilizing the blue-print strategy from OCEANS 11.

It is all executed beautifully, hilariously, and other words that end in ly. And to add even more weight to the episode's greatness, we get an honest and emotional moment as Troy, having made a deal to save the group, leaves the gang to join Vice Dean Laybourne's school, which apparently requires you to leave home like some Harry Potter school for wizards.

The episode also features the study group in various costumes, fake mustaches, and roles that confuse the evil Chang empire. This includes Britta in arguably her hottest outfit/makeup yet as Jeff's gothy magician's assistant. Meowsers! Also, we get a rave dubstep action sequence. Not to mention Chang adorned in his most glorious evil. The whole episode is the icing on the delicious cake that was the previous episode.

Quotables

Officer Cackowski: I'm working on a cop opera.
Entire gang minus Pierce: Cop Rock!
Pierce: (late) Police'icle!

Chang: Where's my deanlechanger?

Britta: First Chang kidnaps the dean and now he throws himself a birthday party? It's just like Stalin back in Russia times.

Murray: Suppose you actually managed to make it past the guards at the front. There's 50 more inside, armed to the teeth with stun batons and misplaced sexual aggression. But let's say you happen to get past them. Then you get to meet Chang's number one, Joshua. A four foot ten, one hundred and five pound bucket of piss and zit cream. I cannot express to you how much I hate this kid!

Murray: Not a lot of people get a second chance. Just you and probably Obama.

Jeff: The answer's simple. We just have to plan an elaborate heist!
Britta: (under her breath) Yes!
Pierce: Great. I'll get my turban.
Jeff: Everyone except Pierce has to plan an elaborate heist!

Shirley: You had time to build a tiny working water fountain and I'm a pine-cone?

Little girl singing: Chang eats the sun and drinks the skies, and they both go with him when he dies.

Jeff: How's it coming with the guard?
Britta: Boys are pathetic. Two days of Facebooking with this Joshua kid and he's eating out of my hands. 'Got a new flavored lip-balm. Meet me at Chilli's in ten minutes.' Sheep.
Jeff: Umm, I just wanna reiterate that this should be the only time you seduce a child over the Internet.
Britta: I know!

Annie: You're gonna burn down the school and kill everyone!
Chang: Fire can't go through doors, stupid. It's not a ghost!

Abed: Chang started his solo. Knowing him, that gives us only 9-minutes to get to the records room.

Abed: Which wire do I cut?
Troy: There's only one.
Abed: God, I hope I'm right.

As Troy says goodbye to the gang, they deliver their parting words.
Pierce: Never wear a rubber.
Jeff: (shaking hands with Troy) Never listen to Pierce.

Britta: (kisses Troy on the cheek) This is a lock of my hair.
Troy: (genuinely touched) Creepy.

Rating
If I had to rate this one, and my imprisoned doppelganger says I do, then I'd give it:

94 out of 100

A great homage to OCEANS 11 with a bunch of laughs, that leads us into the finale with the right amount of anticipation about Troy's future (thankfully, it followed immediately so it wasn't a long wait). Even though this episode could have worked as a finale and the next could have easily introduced us to season 4.

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Review - COMMUNITY 3.20: 'Digital Estate Planning'

I want to play this game... now!

The study group must pitch in to help save Pierce's inheritance.

In the three episode finale, this episode is officially numbered as 3.22, but I am going to number it based on the order it aired.

Deal with it!

Plot
When Pierce's half-brother, Gilbert (played by the great Giancarlo Esposito) fights for the family inheritance in an 8-bit world called Journey to the Center of Hawkthorne, the gang teams up to fight fire with fire. Literally.

If I were to break this episode down completely, in a way that would do my love for it justice, I would be writing all night and I have two more reviews to complete. So, instead I will just jot down my favorite moments and take it for granted you have watched the episode and agree it is brilliant, without needing to justify it.

1. The opening credits are done in 8-bit video game style, graphically and musically, as the gang gets their avatar scanned in.

2. Pierce is supposed to bring 7 friends but only has 6, so the player icon says "Insufficient Friends" instead.

3. The hippie zombies attack is apparently humping the life out of your character.

4. Pierce digs himself into the ground, followed by his brother suffocating him inside the hole after he wipes out the gang. Later, when Pierce feels like he can't compete with his brother, he digs a hole again and tries to suffocate himself. Britta saves him only to accidentally kill him when she tries to give him a hug. It's adorably sad and funny.

5. Abed's love for Hilda, the video game character with options that touch him in a special place. She turns out to be the daughter of the blacksmith...

6. Annie and Shirley's thieving, murder, and arson spree at the blacksmith's shop that starts off innocently enough when Annie just wants a free weapon. One of the funniest moments of the season.

7. Britta's attempt to make a buff potion that turns out to be a deadly poison that kills Gilbert.

8. Jive turkeys!

9. After Gilbert has defeated the gang near the finishing point, they respawn and Jeff gives them a rallying speech about how prepared they are now. They then run into the next room and get gang raped by the hippie zombies.

10. Abed's baby factory makes him a filthy rich kingpin and he's able to supply the gang with crazy weapon platforms that they then use to beat end-game boss Cornelius.

11. The boss fight and all the fun ways the gang attacks the giant Cornelius monster, ending with an homage to Dr. Strangelove as Pierce rides a nuke in on target.

12. Pierce letting his brother win (awwww).

13. Abed extracting his dearest love from the game server onto a USB stick.

Quotables

Britta: (upon entering the game) Which one is me? I assume nothing because I'm not racist.

Cornelius Hawthorne: Nevertheless, I designed this game to be played, upon my death, by you and whatever cabal of fruits, junkies, and sluts you call your friends.
Pierce: Her name is Britta.

Cornelius Hawthorne: (laughing) Worst son ever!

Abed: You can leave notes. This game is incredible.

Britta: (after killing Pierce) I guess there's no hug button.

Abed: (discovering Hilda's vast source of topics) Holy crap. Where have you been all my life?

After Annie accidentally sets the blacksmith on fire and then begins hacking him to death, Shirley is shocked.
Shirley: Now what are you doing?!
Annie: (finishing killing him) He was suffering!
Shirley: Yeah! From axe wounds!

Britta: Here's the thing about women, Jeff. We don't hack and slash our way through life because we're one with life.

Annie tries to hide the blacksmith's body.
Annie: (dragging the body) Help me hide the body.
Shirley: Oh my lord! Oh my lord!
Annie: Shirley, these things happen in video games.
Shirley: They do?
Annie: Yes. We can't get hung up on real world morality. We need survive and win.

When the blacksmith's wife appears and begins screaming for help, Shirley kills her.
Annie: Shirley!
Shirley: No witnesses! Grab everything you can carry. (equipping the axe) I'll check upstairs for any more family. Don't give me that look! These are your loose ends! I'm just tidying up!

Jeff: (to Britta) This place is 20 cat turds and a Pixies poster from being your apartment.

Troy: He's shooting lightning and I'm naked!

Jeff: Dammit! I thought we could count on Britta to not screw up drinking!

Troy: Unbelievable! Jeff bet all our lives on Britta and won! And I lost my pants to a pair of nines.

Pierce: Uhoh. He's playing the Rainman card. Let's bounce.

Britta: (upon seeing Abed's castle) I hope this isn't blood gold.

Troy and Abed: Troy and Abed shooting lava!

Abed: Hello my love. I said I'd come back for you.

Rating
If I had to rate this episode, and an 8-bit mechanized warrior says I do, then I'd give it:

97 out of 100

Creatively epic. Hysterical at times. And with the perfect amount of heart. An episode I will happily watch several hundred more times before I die (unless I die today).

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Review - COMMUNITY 3.19: 'Curriculum Unavailable'

First of all... great news! COMMUNITY HAS BEEN RENEWED FOR A 4TH SEASON! Not good news? It is only 13 episodes. What does that mean for its syndication future? I don't think it matters or Sony would have gotten more. They already sold online syndication to Hulu, and cable to Comedy Central. They must be confident they can survive on 84 episodes (unless they plan on continuing the show on another network). Plus there's always the chance that everything else on NBC tanks next season and the show gets picked up for a back 9.

Anyway, let's get to the episode.

Plot
It has been two months since the gang was expelled from Greendale and the gang seems to be spending a lot of time together. When Abed is caught trespassing on school grounds, the fake dean, having been replaced last week by Chang, offers free counseling to help him cope.

The entire group joins Abed in therapy and discuss him with the psychiatrist. We get several scenes related to Abed's apparent lack of a stable mindset over the years.

*Freaking out over daylight savings.

*Calling Shirley a bad person for saying Brett Ratner is the next Spielberg.

*Narrating Pierce's habits as if reading from a novel.

*Video taping a sleeping Annie at four in the morning.

When the gang tries to defend Abed's behavior, they turn the evaluation onto themselves. We then see scenes depicting the rest of the group behaving strangely.

*Britta arriving at the study group looking like she just came out of a hurricane, seemingly after a night of freebasing peyote.

*Annie doing 'Troy and Abed in the Morning' by herself and with two stuffed animals.

*Jeff being weird about his jacket.

*Troy spending all his money on an all terrain vehicle.

*Shirley punishing her boys for eating the cookies she made for the group by giving the group her kids' personal things.

The psychiatrist determines that Abed should be in a mental institution. The gang argues that they've been subjected to mental anguish at Greendale and we get several scenes that show the total lunacy that is the school including classes on advanced breathing; "Can I fry that?" which gets a student thrown out for suggesting fries; ladders and other nutty things.

The gang also discusses the positive effect the school has had on their lives, all seemingly involving the real dean playing favorites with them, including another paintball game for free tickets to see a performance of "Chicago." Abed, having earlier tried to tell them that the real dean has been replaced, tells them the real dean would never have expelled them.

The gang rallies behind the idea that something doesn't fit and decide to return to Greendale to find out the truth. But the doctor tells them that Greendale isn't a community college but instead an asylum and that they have all been experiencing a shared psychosis. Having all been released at the same time, they have now relapsed.

We then get scenes of the gang acting out moments from episodes, but this time in crazy people jail garb. The doctor then tries to convince the group that they've been crazy the entire time. But as they leave his office it is Jeff who realizes the ridiculousness of it all. They go back in and find the "doctor" on the phone and sneaking out the window.

Problem for him? They have tons of evidence of Greendale existing, including pictures and a school bag. The fake psychiatrist then confesses that Abed has been right all along and that Chang has kidnapped the real dean and replaced him with a look-alike.

We then get crazy Chang scenes. As the gang reminisces, the fake doctor escapes. The gang decides to solve the problem. Chang gets a heads-up and begins to enact phase 2, whatever that is (as if he knows).

Quotables

Hearing a knock on the door and expecting Abed to arrive with food, Troy receives a different surprise, a police officer with Abed in tow.
Troy: See? Cool. Abed brought delicious police.

Annie explains to the officer that Abed is just playing a character.
Officer Cackowski: Oh yes, I'm very familiar with Inspector Spacetime. You think a guy becomes a cop because his prom night was a dream? If this were comic con, I'd take a bullet for that kid. But here in the real world, trespassing is a crime.

Officer Cackowski: Anyway, walk to your cars in pairs tonight. Rape's up eight percent.

Psychiatrist: Talk to me about crazy-town-banana-pants.

After Troy rides into the library on his new ATV.
Annie: Troy! You can't bring that in here!
Troy: Yes I can. It's all terrain, dummy!

Troy: (crying) Please, mister doctor psychiatrist, sir! Please don't send my best friend to crazy people jail!
Jeff: Relax. He doesn't have the right. Abed isn't dangerous.
Shirley: Yeah, he's just unique like a snowflake who gets bent-out-of-shape when you mix up Star Wars and Space Treks.

Doctor: It was a mentally compatible alternative to your grim reality.

Doctor: And you've attended Greendale for three years but don't community colleges end after two?
Jeff: Everyone's always saying that! The average community college student attends school five to seven years. Many offer four year degrees.
Doctor: In your mind they do. In your mind.

Rating
If I had to rate this episode, and the gang says I do, then I'd give it:

90 out of 100

So this was the show's clip episode, except with clips from episodes that we've never seen. So, it was an original but felt like a clip episode. It was still very enjoyable and had some funny moments that passed by very quickly, like Chang's pre-cog bathtub, or the paintball game we never heard of before. I also loved the hospital sequence with the characters acting out scenes from other episodes. This may not go down in history as one of the best COMMUNITY episodes, but it was thoroughly enjoyable and I look forward to next week's three-episode finale.

I am NOT looking forward to writing that review, though!

What did you all think?

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Review - COMMUNITY 3.16: 'Virtual Systems Analysis'

When a final exam is postponed, Annie talks Abed into letting her spend some time in the dreamatorium, where an innocent simulation turns into...

Plot
Abed and Annie go into the dreamatorium where Annie pushes Abed too far and fractures his fragile little mind. From that point, until the final few minutes, we deal with Abed's ability to emote his friends, and Annie's willingness to get to know her friend better, even as she struggles to get through his emotional defenses.

Let me just warn you all that I am going to write something of a traditional "critic's review" here and not my typical recap with some critique. Why? Because I think this episode needs that.

Alright, so I love this show a ton and think it is one of the most unique shows in the history of television. But there were moments in this episode where I couldn't wait for it to end. I was bothered by the overuse of the in-and-out-of-character back and forth effect. I would rather have seen it less and more of the episode from Annie's perspective of watching Abed perform his imagination.

Though, perhaps the show runners didn't want to go down that route since the reality perspective had already been used in 'Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'. COMMUNITY has been known to repeat itself, such as with the paintball episodes, but they always do something different with it and so I accept that the effect in this one is partially there to set it apart.

Much like the episode 'Critical Film Studies' I wasn't fully able to enjoy it until it was over. And much like that episode, this one centered around Abed adopting a personality, or in this case a series of personalities. Both took a bit of reflection to truly appreciate the tone and exploration of Abed's psyche and his fear of eventually losing his friends as they move on without him.

Also focused on in this episode, Annie's control issues as well as her empathy; Britta and Troy's potential love affair; the Dean's half-man-half-woman wannabe Angelina Jolie "duality of man" character; the study group's cramming (they are given one more day to study for an exam but punt it in favor of putting off their cramming for one more day); and douchie people who don't love DIE HARD. And I'm sure there was more in this episode but I'm already exhausted!

Quotable

Annie: You're mad at me for playing matchmaker for Troy and Britta. You think you're gonna lose Troy.
Abed: I'm not petty, Annie. I'm mad at you because you tampered with the fabric of the group. How do you know Troy and Britta pairing up wouldn't destroy everything? I run the scenarios. I examine this stuff from every conceivable angle.
Annie: Oh and you can do that but I can't? You don't have a patent on being a control freak.

Abed: I'm able to simulate any of the study group and even a half-accurate Chang in over seven thousand unique situations.
Annie: Abed, it's cardboard tubes and a funnel.
Abed: You see it that way because it's calibrated to a specific level of brain function.
Annie: Right. I'm stupid.
Abed: Not stupid. Just less able to see what I see.

When Annie gives dreamatorium Doctor Troy a shot of truth serum to find Abed, he confesses too much.
Doctor Troy: I saw Abed's name in the hospital school files. I love butt stuff. I hate spiders. I stole a pen from the bank. I cried during 'About A Boy' (beat) the soundtrack. I don't wash my hands before a surgery. I can see why women find Clive Owen attractive to the point where I might just as well be attracted to him. I use comparisons to Hitler to win arguments on the Internet at the drop of a hat. I know nothing about wine! I'm more turned on by women in pajamas than lingerie. I just want to know they feel comfortable. (breaking down) I didn't get 'Inception'! (crying) I didn't get 'Inception'!

Abed: I've run the simulations, Annie. I don't get married. I don't invent a billion dollar website that helps people have sex. I don't make it into Sundance, Slamdance, or dance pants. Troy invents dance pants in 2019. Don't tell him. He needs to stumble onto it.

Rating
If I had to rate this episode, and I almost don't want to, I'd give it:

90 out of 100

I am happy to love a show that is willing to do really strange episodes like this even when I'm not particularly entertained by them. I may have felt strong dislike for what I was watching at first, but made the wise decision to watch it again after I had absorbed the message of the episode and that enhanced the overall experience.

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