Taking a risk with sitcom formats can lead to success but more often than not networks stay faithful to promoting the formulaic shows rather than venturing into the unknown. All one need to do is mention the shows Arrested Development or Firefly, two shows many believe were cancelled well before their time, and what will come is a passionate response from fans angered by premature cancellations.
Given the circumstances then it should be considered a victory for prime time television that NBC’s Community has been renewed for a third season. The show itself, created by veteran comedy writer Dan Harmon, deserved the chance to continue entertaining fans since it is arguably one of the best comedies on network television at the moment.
How many opportunities will be presented however remains to be seen. For the moment, NBC is willing to let Community venture off path. For the dedicated followers, it’s a welcome change of pace that is being cheered with every passing episode.
The show takes place in a subpar community college called Greendale, chronicling a diverse study group of mismatched students through their weekly misadventures. The show has always played up the stereotypes of each of its members, walking the fine line of controversial in a light hearted mood.
The cast is anchored by Chevy Chase providing the recognizable star power however Chase has effectively taken the backseat to young and aspiring actors. Joel McHale and Gillian Jacobs head the cast, along with and young stars Donald Glover, Danny Pudi, and Allison Brie. Regular guest appearances by comedic stalwarts Jim Rash, John Oliver, and Ken Jeong help solidify the strength of the supporting cast.
Relying on the ensemble cast to carry the show, and not simply the big name on set, has allowed each episode plenty of room for growth. And moving away from the standard hard-to-get love interest halfway through the first season the show found theme based episodes caught the attention of viewers. These offshoots helped the show rise from a series on the bubble of cancellation to a prime time hit.
The first season the show picked up on the tendencies of one of its main character Abed (Pudi), who constantly makes pop culture references throughout his dialogue. They first ran an episode based on mafia films where the study groups takes control of campus after they gain control of the chicken strips in the cafeteria.
Following that they found critical success with their episode Modern Warfare, which plays off of just about every action movie cliché during a campus wide paintball game. It received acclaim from TIME and IGN magazine and even won the award for best comedy episode of the year from the Golden Derby Awards. Since that episode they have mocked themselves for that success, at one point blatantly stating ‘it’s all downhill from here’ when characters made reference back to that paintball match.
In the second season more theme episodes have been inserted, mocking movies from Apollo 13 to The Passion of the Christ, to a stop motion animation Christmas special reminiscent of the childhood classic Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. One episode was shot entirely in a documentary style format, a complete change of pace not yet attempted by the series. The most recent episode was an interesting combination of the Louis Malle film My Dinner with Andre and Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction.
Clever and witty writing can foster success but network decisions of the past suggest it is not always enough to guarantee a show will survive. The risks that were attempted by the creative team of Community kept a show that fits the mould of being stopped well before its time on the airwaves.
It has also given the shows cult following not only more opportunities to follow their favourite characters but also more ammunition should the decision come down to pull the plug on this well-crafted production.
Television has not always welcomed the bold and daring, but in this case so far the risks appear to have been worth it.
I think the problem with shows like Arrested Development and Community is they're not typical sitcom fare and require you watching them from the very beginning to really understand the humour. This was especially true with Arrested. I think to Fox's credit, they gave the show 3 seasons to try and build up an audience but it just wasn't happening. Good on NBC for giving Community a chance to grow its audience, but at the end of the day, if it doesn't make business sense to keep it on the air, they'll have to pull the plug.