ok i'll be honest. i am quietly hoping this show fails.
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:32 (3 years ago) Permalink
i'm a Soup stan so i'll hope for the best but if it's not great then i hope it dies quietly, because of all people McHale doesn't get to contribute to the mountain of useless TV he makes good TV ridiculing
― some dude, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:34 (3 years ago) Permalink
OTM
― ... (Pillbox), Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:34 (3 years ago) Permalink
how about this -- he goes back to ridiculing people on tv instead of people in community colleges
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:36 (3 years ago) Permalink
you must go to community college to be a person on TV
(w/ a few exceptions like Chevy Chase, who went to Bard with Steely Dan)
― A Patch on Blazing Saddles (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:43 (3 years ago) Permalink
And Mindy Kaling, who went to Dartmouth with gbx.
― jaymc, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:47 (3 years ago) Permalink
But other than those two, that's pretty much it.
fwiw La Lechera i just read an interview where McHale says:
Many reporters are like, “So are you guys going to make fun of community colleges?” It was such a weird, hostile attack approach. Just like in M*A*S*H, they were like, “Are you making fun of the Korean War?” “No.” “Are you making fun of doctors?” “Uh, not really…” Or like Cheers, you’re like, “You making fun of people that go to bars?” So what did they think our show was going to be? So a community college is somewhere that is a huge cross-section of America, and I thought it ironic that you have to have about as diverse a cast in television history if you want to do a show about community college. I’m just amazed that we’re all English speakers.
― some dude, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:48 (3 years ago) Permalink
I don't think it's that weird for people to think that, though. Community college is not as widely represented in American pop culture as hospitals and bars are, and when it is, it often does have a mocking or derisive undercurrent to it (cf. Adam Carolla rants). So I totally see why someone would expect that the show would be more of the same.
― jaymc, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:52 (3 years ago) Permalink
yeah, true. i mean it'll be interesting to see if he's right and the show doesn't laugh at its setting or they end up making the easy jokes after all.
― some dude, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:53 (3 years ago) Permalink
Uh ...
It's been said that community college is a ‘halfway school’ for losers, a self esteem workshop for newly divorced housewives, and a place where old people go to keep their minds active as they circle the drain of eternity,” reads a network description of the show. “Well, at Greendale Community College ... that's all true.
As a community college student, I'm annoyed.
― etaeoe, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:53 (3 years ago) Permalink
yeah yeah i knowi realize he is not out to ridicule earnest students, but he may wind up doing that anyway.
i just...i dunno. i smell yuck.
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:55 (3 years ago) Permalink
― etaeoe, Thursday, September 17, 2009 8:53 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
those are lines from the trailer, said by a character. i don't think ur meant 2 b "yes, he is right, lol." but nor is it "oh he is awful, that is so wrong."
― history mayne, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:57 (3 years ago) Permalink
The pilot is good. It's chiefly about McHale's character being an arse.
― William Bloody Swygart, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:57 (3 years ago) Permalink
ok just watched via torrent the pilot and i give it an unambiguous: yes, lol!
― ice cr?m, Thursday, 17 September 2009 19:57 (3 years ago) Permalink
the main thrust of the show does not seem to be making fun of community college - and where it does the jokes are not abt the people associated w/the being omg total retards - so dont worry yalls
― ice cr?m, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:00 (3 years ago) Permalink
I don't think there is anything wrong with poking fun at community colleges - there are a lot of jokes to be made on this subject. if this show becomes popular, if anything, it's just gonna help make ccs seem like a more normal part of american society (which they already are obv, but are non-existent in pop culture.)
― iatee, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:02 (3 years ago) Permalink
it's just gonna help make ccs seem like a more normal part of american society (which they already are obv, but are non-existent in pop culture.
I have not seen the show. But from the promotional material I've seen does not reflect the most predominate characteristic of community college students: poverty. Therefore, I believe it would do little for normalizing community colleges.
― etaeoe, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:05 (3 years ago) Permalink
im glad weve gone straight tot he hand wringing - enjoy the show!
― ice cr?m, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:08 (3 years ago) Permalink
xp
that seems like a generalization to me. I live in CA and significanttt numbers of middle class students go to our local cc instead of straight to a 4 year school. I took about 10 classes there in hs and there is a v. large variety of people and incomes.
of course, my local CC looked like this:
― iatee, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:11 (3 years ago) Permalink
One only needs to look at how "Good Times" normalized the way people view welfare and tenement housing to see how badly "Community" has dropped the ball before it even airs.
― so says i tranny ben franklin (HI DERE), Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:12 (3 years ago) Permalink
(and is probably less representative of ccs than the show. but still, main idea, you really can't generalize + it's probably good that they're getting *some* sort of pop culture rep)
― iatee, Thursday, 17 September 2009 20:13 (3 years ago) Permalink
I spent a summer at a community college getting a few credits out of the way, and I must say that I did not have a favorable impression of the experience. Sorry guys!
― Your heartbeat soun like sasquatch feet (polyphonic), Thursday, 17 September 2009 21:25 (3 years ago) Permalink
ownd
― ice cr?m, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:06 (3 years ago) Permalink
I also went to a community college in CA for the first two years of my degree! Now I work at a community college in OR, and people cry when I tell them I was paying $11 a unit compared to the $81 a unit they're charging here.
― gmail im going to murder u at a beach party (reddening), Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:25 (3 years ago) Permalink
two years off cc for the basics seems like not a bad idea - also watching and discussing this show - it is funny
― ice cr?m, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:32 (3 years ago) Permalink
I trust ice cr?m's taste; going to dl
did u see any 'glee' yet ice cr?m?
― cozwn, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:34 (3 years ago) Permalink
Glee is 50% good, 50% terrible, sometimes at the same time.
― Your heartbeat soun like sasquatch feet (polyphonic), Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:35 (3 years ago) Permalink
that's what I'm into
― cozwn, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:36 (3 years ago) Permalink
I'm sort of embarrassed about currently attending a community college, not because I'm attending a community college, but because when people ask me what I'm learning I honestly have to say "not much." If I didn't need something official looking to put on my resume, I could've saved a lot of money just teaching myself at home.
It's for this reason I will not only be NOT offended if this show skewers the community college experience, but I was actively derive joy from it!
― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:41 (3 years ago) Permalink
was=will (der)
― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:42 (3 years ago) Permalink
Is it "not learning anything" because the classes are poorly taught, or because they require you to take a bunch of general ed bullshit before you can get to your chosen subject? I have students complain to me all the time about the uselessness of general ed, but ultimately they'd be taking the same classes for way more money at a four-year.
― gmail im going to murder u at a beach party (reddening), Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:49 (3 years ago) Permalink
the classes are poorly taught
I'm in the digital media/tv production program, which is basically run by two instructors at different campuses who absolutely hate each other. Whatever one teaches, the other debunks. After all that is through, it's basically playtime when it comes to studio production and editing projects. Basically, they tell you how to turn on the computer and open up Adobe Premiere (which isn't even industry standard software) and then advise the best they know how, which is limited in all respects.
The worst thing is, the college has a completely digital hi-def PBS station right there, and they won't let students anywhere near it. We're using a studio with equipment that's, no lie, from the 1970s.
― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 17 September 2009 23:55 (3 years ago) Permalink
in my experience (classes at a pretty well funded california cc) there was a large spectrum of teacher quality. but overall, what you get out of a class also sorta depends on the students (teachers often teach to the lowest common denominator + you learn through class discussions / study groups.) and this is where the cc classes I took were significantly worse than the classes at my srs 4 year school. they tended to be worse than my public hs AP classes too.
― iatee, Friday, 18 September 2009 00:02 (3 years ago) Permalink
xpost Ugh, that's awful. The students I work with gravitate toward the humanities or medical/nursing programs, which run really well at my CC, but I've heard similar accounts of, like, blind incompetence in certain Computer Science classes.
― gmail im going to murder u at a beach party (reddening), Friday, 18 September 2009 00:14 (3 years ago) Permalink
part of the problem (not to get all shop talk on you, but...) is that cc teachers are usually people who have other jobs and teach "for a little extra cash" adjunct instructors (sometimes up to 75% of the instructors at a CC are adjunct) are often blase because:
they are not teachers by trade are often not given the training or tools to be effective teachersare not paid very well for their time/expertiseare often required to do things that are beyond their range of skills, like writing a syllabus*
that said, there are a lot of great teachers out there at CCs (ahem), but there are a lot of craptacular ones too for the aforementioned reasons
*note: this is not always true, but it's true more than more than most students at CCs realize
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Friday, 18 September 2009 00:20 (3 years ago) Permalink
Ok I'm watching the show and this bears no resemblance to my life at all aside from the woman who referenced her babysitter.
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Friday, 18 September 2009 01:40 (3 years ago) Permalink
These people all talk to each other. As iatee referenced above, almost nobody in my classes talks to each other.
― Johnny Fever, Friday, 18 September 2009 01:42 (3 years ago) Permalink
It must be said, John Oliver is the funniest thing in this show.
― Mordy, Friday, 18 September 2009 01:46 (3 years ago) Permalink
It must also be said that whatsherface really doesn't look all that much like Elizabeth Shue.
― Johnny Fever, Friday, 18 September 2009 01:50 (3 years ago) Permalink
Where are the nonnative speakers? Sorry but if this is what passes for funny on tv I'm not impressed. My real life is funnier than this. I have a student whose name is Porntip, but she prefers to go by her nickname: Nooky.
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Friday, 18 September 2009 01:50 (3 years ago) Permalink
Ass-burgers.
― Mordy, Friday, 18 September 2009 01:58 (3 years ago) Permalink
Nice touch ending with "Don't You Forget About Me."
― Johnny Fever, Friday, 18 September 2009 01:59 (3 years ago) Permalink
I give it a B+ (ish).
I laughed a little at the menengitis joke.
― figgy pudding (La Lechera), Friday, 18 September 2009 02:01 (3 years ago) Permalink
i didn't really have high expectations from the ads/clips i'd seen, but this was a really strong pilot, i laughed a lot. hope it goes well from here.
― murda mo not mo murda (some dude), Friday, 18 September 2009 02:49 (3 years ago) Permalink
right, the whole 'no outside social interaction, people don't know each other' thing is one of the defining features of these places.
I didn't think it was that great, maybe because I felt like I had already seen the entire episode over the ads they showed earlier in the night.
― iatee, Friday, 18 September 2009 05:03 (3 years ago) Permalink
i wasn't so bullish on the pilot, but yay trudy campbell!
― Wake OOIOO (get bent), Friday, 18 September 2009 05:33 (3 years ago) Permalink
the whole 'no outside social interaction, people don't know each other' thing is one of the defining features of these places.
Granted, I went to a smaller community college, but this wasn't true of my experience at all! People in the same classes formed these rag-tag social groups all the time, even if they'd only last a semester or two.
I enjoyed the show a lot -- definitely a stronger pilot than, say, Parks and Recreation last season.
― gmail im going to murder u at a beach party (reddening), Friday, 18 September 2009 05:52 (3 years ago) Permalink
that dude from Derrick Comedy being in this upped my interest about 50%
that said, this pilot was just ok - i'll give it sometime, gotta watch something b/w Office and Sunny until 30 Rock comes back anyway
― Nhex, Friday, 18 September 2009 06:10 (3 years ago) Permalink
(╯︵╰,) this is the darkest timeline (╯︵╰,)
― stefon taylor swiftboat (s.clover), Saturday, 11 May 2013 02:32 (1 week ago) Permalink
I've been moving to the pov that s1 was the strongest overall, after the pilot. I think I might get the most lols from it + I think it's the only season where every element in the show worked and worked together. Despite the brilliant ideas in s2, you could already see them straining with Chang's and Pierce's characters.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Saturday, 11 May 2013 02:36 (1 week ago) Permalink
season 1 is the funniest overall, 2 had the big conceptual eps but there are definite seeds of the reddit/tumblr-baiting fanwank that really flourished in the third season. (and i mean if you're into that, that's cool, but that shit kinda grates. and the third season also somehow manages to waste both john goodman AND omar!)
― kiss me, son of based god (fadanuf4erybody), Saturday, 11 May 2013 02:48 (1 week ago) Permalink
i'm feeling pretty solid now about dropping out after s3.
i wonder if they've been keeping any cast loyalty by promising them more (better) work down the road, development deals. (not that many early-career actors would give up paying work just because it kind of sucked.) or if nbc is bringing it back just to prove themselves right.
― j., Saturday, 11 May 2013 07:38 (1 week ago) Permalink
Season 1 is virtually flawless I think, although S2 maybe has higher highs - the conspiracy thriller episode is probably my all-time favourite.
S1 > S2 >> first part of S3 >>> second part of S3 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> S4.
Gonna make a bold prediction and suggest that S5 will be funnier than the fourth.
One kinda sad thing was seeing the assorted tertiary characters all there for Jeff's graduation and realising the extent to which the Community universe has shrunk over the last couple of years.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 11 May 2013 10:58 (1 week ago) Permalink
community mostly got renewed cuz nbc wanted some of the new sony pilots and sony wants that guaranteed syndication $.
― da croupier, Saturday, 11 May 2013 12:42 (1 week ago) Permalink
I figured it was probably related to syndication. Which is why you'll probably hear no complaints from any of the actors, syndication money is pretty good.
― The last of the famous international Greyjoys (Nicole), Saturday, 11 May 2013 13:49 (1 week ago) Permalink
not that many early-career actors would give up paying work just because it kind of sucked
I'm sure the work experience itself is still decent, maybe even less stressful without Harmon.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Saturday, 11 May 2013 13:54 (1 week ago) Permalink
Anyway, as is usual regarding this show, Matt DC is OTM here:
The best conceptual episodes from S2 are my favourites: Christmas, D&D, conspiracy.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Saturday, 11 May 2013 13:55 (1 week ago) Permalink
I can't really pick a favorite, I think I like about an equal amount of episodes from seasons 1-3. I'm going to start pretending the show ended then.
― The last of the famous international Greyjoys (Nicole), Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:01 (1 week ago) Permalink
Alison Brie came close to talking shit about Harmon on WTF this week: basically, the scripts were always late, "That's not how you run a tv show."
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:01 (1 week ago) Permalink
If she wants to argue that the end results were better when things ran more smoothly, more power to her.
― Tarfumes The Escape Goat, Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:03 (1 week ago) Permalink
Her other experience in television is Mad Men, Weiner seems like the sort who wouldn't (or wouldn't let any of his writers) turn in anything late. xp
― The last of the famous international Greyjoys (Nicole), Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:10 (1 week ago) Permalink
Anyone else get the feeling that Chevy wasn't even in the same room as the others for most of this episode? Pierce was either the only person in the shot or filmed from behind. The exception being when he was sitting next to Troy in the study room and I'm pretty sure that was two images next to each other.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:31 (1 week ago) Permalink
Hologram Pierce
― Johnny Fever, Saturday, 11 May 2013 14:34 (1 week ago) Permalink
heard that harmon was pretty checked out and awol during s3 - no doubt due in part to network note bullshit, but not shocked that he might have been less than profesh
― da croupier, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:13 (1 week ago) Permalink
i mean they don't fire you JUST because you're determined to blow minds
― da croupier, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:14 (1 week ago) Permalink
Harmon has admitted himself that he is 'hard to work with'. He has diagnosed himself with asbergers, and is a functional alcoholic. I mean, the show was amazing, but I can't be surprised that Sony didn't want to work with him. I think he would function better on cable, but he seems to want to try and create a broad hit, which just seems weird.
― Frederik B, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:19 (1 week ago) Permalink
http://www.deadline.com/2013/05/community-is-coming-back-will-dan-harmon-return-too/
― Mordy , Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:20 (1 week ago) Permalink
last season nbc was super psyched about their new sitcoms to the point where it looked like it might be the end of all their cult thursday shows. Now, everything is canceled except for two of the cult thursday shows. a+
― da croupier, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:24 (1 week ago) Permalink
xxxpost whoops I meant Gillian Jacobs, not Alison Brie
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:30 (1 week ago) Permalink
i britta-ed that one
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:32 (1 week ago) Permalink
He has diagnosed himself with asbergers
Unless he's been actually diagnosed this is probably bullshit.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:32 (1 week ago) Permalink
my god that Deadline article is so dumb.
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:36 (1 week ago) Permalink
I completely agree but I'm fairly sceptical of actual 'diagnoses' of things like this as well.
― EveningStar (Sund4r), Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:50 (1 week ago) Permalink
the extent of his self diagnosis was that people started telling him that Abed surely had Aspberger's and he thought, well a lot of Abed's quirks are based on my own, therefore I must also have it.
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:52 (1 week ago) Permalink
Well, no, he looked it up on the internet and took some tests and stuff. Which is still probably bullshit.
― Frederik B, Saturday, 11 May 2013 15:58 (1 week ago) Permalink
god do people not understand what doctors are for
― j., Saturday, 11 May 2013 20:13 (1 week ago) Permalink
It's possible that the people telling you about this on ILX are not registered doctors who are accurately reporting Harmon's actual words
― charli.xlsx (sic), Saturday, 11 May 2013 23:25 (1 week ago) Permalink
heard that harmon was pretty checked out and awol during s3
The writers' room's tumblr was from S3 wasn't it? Or might have just been when I saw it.
Anyway, ppl who worked on S3 have said that 50-85% of another writer's script could be written by Harmon, and the immediate collapse of tone & pace in S4 indicates that he was still present in the editing bay right through S3.
― charli.xlsx (sic), Saturday, 11 May 2013 23:30 (1 week ago) Permalink
i know he's famous for doing rewriting but I've heard some secondhand chat about him being less predictable and waaaaay behind schedule in s3. while obviously there's a big shift between s3 and s4, s3's patchiness/clumsiness compared to s2 indicates something too.
― da croupier, Sunday, 12 May 2013 03:48 (1 week ago) Permalink
meant less reliable not predictable
― da croupier, Sunday, 12 May 2013 03:52 (1 week ago) Permalink
looks like i'm not the only one to hear this
http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/05/11/could-dan-harmon-return-to-community-for-season-5
There are definitely reasons to be skeptical about this, one being that Sony and NBC letting Harmon go was due to many factors, with his feud with Chase just one – one that was notable and got lots of press, but at the most was likely a straw that broke the camel’s aspect back more than the central issue, and even that may be an overstatement. In fact, long before the Chase issues, Harmon was said by many to have frequently gone over budget and both he and his writing staff have spoken openly in the time since he’s left about how he almost never had a completed script ready on schedule, making it very difficult for production on a basic level. On top of that, it’s well known (and acknowledged by Harmon) that he was prone to flat out ignoring studio and network notes, something that might make him a hero to fans, but is not desired by those in charge.
― da croupier, Sunday, 12 May 2013 03:57 (1 week ago) Permalink
that doesn't mean "awol" though, it's more because he wouldn't let something go in order to get the whole thing done
Harmon was said by many to have frequently gone over budget
he's said this himself, and he used to put his own pay back into the production at times
― charli.xlsx (sic), Sunday, 12 May 2013 07:35 (1 week ago) Permalink
After staying away from the series at first for fear of it being some horrific mess that would spoil my memories of what came before, I have to say that season 4 really didn't seem all that awful to me. Some missteps, sure, and it didn't have the same spark as before, but it wasn't unwatchable. And it sure as hell wasn't as bad as The Big Bang Theory.
― media conglomerates are pedaling the same product (stevie), Sunday, 12 May 2013 11:24 (1 week ago) Permalink
i would have preferred it to be a horrific mess rather than bland and unfunny
― mimicking regular benevloent (sic) users' names (President Keyes), Sunday, 12 May 2013 11:43 (1 week ago) Permalink
This was still WAY better than Big Bang Theory
― Emperor Cos Dashit (Adam Bruneau), Sunday, 12 May 2013 15:27 (1 week ago) Permalink
Y'all are high
― far too much asshole flesh (DJP), Sunday, 12 May 2013 15:28 (1 week ago) Permalink
Maybe you're low?
― media conglomerates are pedaling the same product (stevie), Sunday, 12 May 2013 17:49 (1 week ago) Permalink
adam's right
i'm with the attitude that even a mediocre Community is better than most sitcoms and still enjoyable. also agree with the prediction that season 5 will be better than season 4, there were a lot of obvious transitional pains going on with this season, not to mention the horrific scheduling mishaps which were made worse when it seemed like half the episodes were holiday-based
― Nhex, Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:02 (1 week ago) Permalink
i don't really gaf if a show airs things when it's seasonally appropriate. pretty much every show on cable airs holiday/seasonally specific episodes at the 'wrong' time of the year and it's not like it matters to me at all when i'm watching.
― seanpennderizer (some dude), Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:28 (1 week ago) Permalink
one episode isn't that noticeable, but we only had 13 eps this season so the the abrupt jumps from halloween > thanksgiving > christmas during february-april was really weird to me
― Nhex, Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:33 (1 week ago) Permalink
i think most cable shows wouldn't do that many holiday episodes in one season either for that reason
― Nhex, Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:34 (1 week ago) Permalink
The first half of Mad Men season four was just holiday episodes. And it was awesome!
― Frederik B, Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:37 (1 week ago) Permalink
30 rock had a holiday episode themed season which was awesome.
― stefon taylor swiftboat (s.clover), Sunday, 12 May 2013 18:54 (1 week ago) Permalink