Good news, Human Beings! The dream of six seasons and a movie lives on. Community has been saved at almost literally the last second by a most unlikely source—something calledYahoo Screen. I don’t know what it is, you don’t know what it is, but it’ll be bringing Joel McHale, Alison Brie, and Gillian Jacobs back to the world of Greendale Community College for a sixth season—along with series creator Dan Harmon.
Now that Community’s home has been decided, a larger question remains: what exactly willCommunity be when it returns? With Troy Barnes sailing around the world with Levar Burton and Pierce Hawthorne reduced to an expository hologram, who will people the halls of Greendale? Will we even spend that much time in Greendale? Last season’s “Save Greendale Committee” was a clunky plot device, which was then ignored for the large part of the season, until the finale. And that finale, while certainly better than the Matrix-inspired paintball fiasco that marked the end of the Port/Guarascio “gas leak” year, was still disjointed.
But, then again, each Community finale for the past three seasons has been an awkward attempt to craft an episode that could function both as a continuation of the story or as a summation, should the show be cancelled. Add to that difficulty the episodes written to deal with the departure of Chevy Chase and Donald Glover, and it’s no wonder that, even with the return of mad genius Dan Harmon, the series struggled to find a voice last season. It’s hard to focus on the future when all you get to do is say goodbye.
The internet presents an interesting opportunity for Harmon creatively. His Adult Swim cartoonRick and Morty is a prime example of what he is capable of when his imagination is free to run without the threat of executive oversight. I don’t think we’ll be seeing the non-monkey version ofAnnie’s Boobs anytime soon, but it’ll be fascinating to see just how far Harmon is willing to push these characters.
What do you think? Are you optimistic about a sixth season, or weary of the drama? What do you hope to see from Community in its new form?
Discussion Pages are a chance for you, the reader, to express your opinion on the news of the day. Scroll down to the comments section to join the conversation.