Community: 10 Things Season 4 Did Right

5) Malcolm McDowell

When John Oliver left after season 2, Community struggled to introduce recurring professor characters that fit in with the story. What resulted was a couple of casting stunts in season 3 with good intention, but squandered potential. Michael K. Williams disappeared without fanfare, and John Goodman was killed off before he was able to really do anything, other than help move along the plot.

Malcolm McDowell’s Professor Cornwallis is certainly not the most memorable character, but he yielded significantly more story than his recent predecessors. More importantly, McDowell himself got some decent material in Cornwallis’s quirks and pseudo-villainy. While his spotlight episode, “Intro to Knots”, admittedly left a lot to be desired, McDowell’s presence provided a Hitchcockian essence to the proceedings. As such, McDowell was far from a wasted bit of stunt casting, instead playing a decently fleshed out and unique character. Beyond that, Cornwallis is the exact type of broken, lonely character that fits in with Greendale, and one worthy of a return appearance.

6) The Supporting Players

Greendale’s background students have been a mainstay since the beginning, and the best ones have only grown since their introductions. We don’t get too many new characters in season 4, but the established ones are well-used throughout. The likes of Leonard, Annie Kim, Todd, Fat Neil and Vicki are all given new and fun things to do. Magnitude in particular gets some of the funniest material, during his search for a new catchphrase and the origin of his old one.

And while they’re hardly “supporting,” even members of the main cast that were often given the short shrift, like Shirley, Chang and the aforementioned Pierce, are given some respectful material at points. The Changnesia plot may have fell flat for the most part, but the quiet acceptance of him into the group by the end turned out oddly effective. Shirley in particular gets much more to do than she ever has; in addition to the aforementioned pairings and subplots,  Yvette Nichole Brown finally shows off her singing ability by stealing the show in the puppet musical.

7) “Intro to Felt Surrogacy”

For the most part, season 4 as a whole was not particularly daring until the tail end. So when it came to doing a the puppet episode, there was a valid question in whether or not the new showrunners were digging at the bottom of the “weird things to homage” well. But “Intro to Felt Surrogacy” excels by not making Muppet references or cracking puppet jokes. Instead, the episode uses the set-up as a tool (much like the characters use their sock puppets as tools) to delve into the characters’ personal flaws in an unexpectedly whimsical and colorful way. The songs are catchy, the cast seems to have tons of fun, and guest stars Jason Alexander and Sara Bareilles are good surprises.

A criticism of season 4 is how its warm and fuzziness gets too in-your-face, but “Intro to Felt Surrogacy” justifies its own warmth in its context. The Muppets and things like it are supposed to emit those feelings and let you leave happy. This episode does exactly that.

8) “Basic Human Anatomy”

For fans looking for a glimpse of “old Community,” this late-season entry was a breath of fresh air. Throughout all of season 4, no episode was as finely crafted as the Freaky Friday homage, which turned out to be much, much more than a cheap parody with Troy and Abed switching bodies. “Basic Human Anatomy” instead crafts a surprisingly heady tale about Troy’s fear of confronting his feelings–an evolution of the “becoming a man” arc present since day one. It throws out the body switch stuff without breaking any of the show’s rules, and uses it to tell a surprisingly introspective story. The relationship between Troy and Britta was poorly utilized throughout the season, but here it manages to feel imperative for a character’s development. It doesn’t do much for Britta, sadly, but it provides ample fuel for Troy in this installment.

It’s really, really funny too. In addition to the delightfully spot-on performances from Donald Glover and Danny Pudi, we get an added surprise in Dean Pelton “having Jeffrey inside him.” Jim Rash’s Joel McHale impersonation is a revelation, and we even get solid humor out of Annie’s often-mishandled infatuation with Jeff during Dean’s antics. It’s a wonder why more episodes weren’t bubbling with as much joy and cleverness as this one–though it may have something to do with Academy Award winner Jim Rash penning the script. Speaking of which…

9) Jim Rash

Between a fantastic script and the funniest performances of the season, Jim Rash consistently stole the show from just about everyone, easily becoming the MVP. Something the entire fanbase can agree on is that Community has one of the best casts on TV, but even at that, Dean Pelton was given loads and loads of material that Rash attacked with aplomb. There’s plenty that could have easily gone wrong, especially considering the Dean/Jeff stuff gets played up to uncomfortable levels. But Rash is so endlessly capable that even the most simplistic of jokes always land. And, of course, Dean’s costumes never once faltered in quality.

10) Jeff Winger/Joel McHale

Jim Rash may have been the comedic hero of the show this season, but Joel McHale was the dramatic hero. Jeff’s big moment in “Cooperative Escapism” deserved its own slot, but it’s important to note just how much the character Jeff Winger and the actor Joel McHale held the show together. That might sound obvious to say, considering the entire show was conceived with Jeff at the center and McHale as the star. But focus had significantly deferred from Jeff over the past few years as the characters broke out, and it became the story of this group as a whole rather than Jeff’s story. That evolution is one of the reasons the show excelled, of course.

But season 4 was caught at a crossroad: Should it have a big serialized plot? Should the characters graduate? Should it reinvent itself? With so much up in the air, the choice was to center on Jeff’s (supposedly) final journey, which provided some decent character material in a season that didn’t always appropriately handle character development. In fact, the “new Jeff” after his experiences in season 3 is exceptionally well-handled, presenting a man who retained his cynicism and laziness, but understood the necessity of being with and helping the people he loves. And when dialogue bordered on too mushy–which it often did this season–McHale’s earnest performances constantly saved them. All-in-all, Jeff’s journey and McHale’s performances were the most consistent and enjoyable parts of the uneven season. Jeff represented the huge heart the show retained even during its most tumultuous time, and showed that our own attachment to this group of people we’ve grown to love are enough to get over even the most frustrating flaws. Season 4 ranges from uneven to disappointing to downright bad depending on who you ask, but like Jeff and his less-than-fun experiences at Greendale, at least we got to spend that time with characters we love.

Agree or disagree? Have other things you liked about season 4 or hope to see in season 5? Sound off in the comments!

Community returns with an hour long season premiere Thursday, January 2 at 8p.m. on NBC. Check out some cast photos and images and clips from the premiere!