"Community" A Thursday Night Gem

NBC’s newest addition to the Thursday night fall line up has proven to be quite successful considering its competition such as “The Office” and “30 Rock”. “Community” is a show about the journey of a former lawyer (Joel McHale) through the community college system in order to re-obtain his degree, which he had previouly falsified.

From the trendy soundtrack provided by such artists as Matt & Kim to the relationship problems experienced by the leading characters, it’s quite obvious that this show is targeted at the college-aged demographic. In fact, some of the jokes on the show seem to be spot on. Most of us can relate to needing to enroll in a Spanish class with an insane teacher and many uninterested students, or having to deal with a study group plagued by an extreme lack of focus.

There are several characters that college students will quickly recognize and easily relate to— the big shot college athlete who needs to adjust, the overzealous brain who needs a reality check, and, of course, the flat-out weirdo. Even though there are fewer adults trying to seek the approval of hip college kids on the UMW campus than there are in the “Community”, the humor is easily seen. The show is character driven, and its fortunate that the writers have developed a well-rounded group of underdogs who prove easy to root for.

The show’s characters are faced with regular college problems that lead to betterment amongst themselves and within their “community.” Even though I doubt that living in a dorm is part of the community college experience, one episode shows how being a dorm rat can lead to unhealthy solidarity.

The best thing about the show is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. There are countless shows today that are much too dedicated to developing a solid background amongst the characters in order for the audience to make a connection. “Community” is raw comedy and it’s meant to be enjoyed at face value. We can understand the basic substance of each character easily, and the show continues to develop them through each of their comedic contributions.

“Community” is definitely worth the extra half hour of your time before you jump into “The Office” or anything else on your Thursday night viewing schedule.