Sophomore seasons are usually tricky but NBC comedy sitcom Community nailed it. Created by the beloved Dan Harmon (Rick and Morty), the majority of the series revolves around a lovable yet mismatched study group attending their local Greendale Community College. Despite the occasional dysfunctionality, the seven students truly support each other as they deal with problems in and outside the classroom.
If season one of Community emphasized being a comedy with heart, season two embraced the series’ signature meta-humor and pop-culture references. While the style shift meant the season leaned more towards concept episodes than character moments, there was still plenty of the latter throughout. From classic episodes to memorable scenes, here are the ten best moments of season two. Full spoilers are below.
Jeff Dances With The Study Group
Sometimes, Community reminds viewers how important the study group is to each other. In “Accounting for Lawyers,” Jeff (Joel McHale) is invited to a party at a law firm by lawyer Alan (Rob Corddry). The study group shows him evidence Alan was the person who caused him to lose his job. After Alan blames someone else, Jeff leaves to attend a Greendale dance competition.
Initially featuring Jeff apathetic like he was early in the series, the episode is an important testament to how far the selfish former lawyer has come since then. His visit to the law firm is the closest he gets to his former world, but he chooses instead to attend a dance competition to be around people who make him more vulnerable but happier.
Troy Becomes An Adult
For the younger members of the study group, Community is a coming-of-age story. In “Mixology Certification,” Troy (Donald Glover) turns 21 and the group takes him to a bar to celebrate. As he is ready to have his drink, he sees the study group is distressed and leaves it behind.
From driving the drunk study group home to reassuring a conflicted Annie (Alison Brie) on who she is, Troy displays his first major signs of maturity on his 21st birthday. Also, his realization that the cool adults in his life, Jeff and Britta (Gillian Jacobs), are clueless too is an important lesson that wisdom isn’t guaranteed with older age.
Abed Finds The Meaning Of Christmas
In “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas,” Community explores the holidays when they can be a blue time for some. On the final day of classes, Abed suffers from a mental breakdown after his mother says she won’t be visiting him in order to spend time with her new family. With Abed perceiving everyone in stop motion animation, Professor Duncan (John Oliver) organizes a group therapy session.
Poignant and funny, the episode uses stop motion brilliantly to feature Abed’s journey through a winter wonderland to find Christmas’ meaning. Supporting him is the study group, who transform into Christmas versions of themselves. Everything builds up to Abed’s revelation: the meaning of Christmas is that Christmas has no inherent meaning, but that meaning can be anything.
Britta Delivers Shirley’s Baby
Crazy things have happened at Greendale, but a baby’s birth ranks pretty high up there. In “Applied Anthropology and Culinary Arts,” Shirley’s (Yvette Nicole Brown) water breaks during class. Due to a race riot on campus, she is unable to leave or have an ambulance arrive. Britta is forced to deliver the baby as the study group and classmates watch.
The birth is a rare shining moment for Britta, who has been assumed incompetent by this point. In addition to featuring the Dean’s (Jim Rash) repeated failure to command the situation, the episode is an emotional culmination of several storylines before the craziness of season two’s paintball finale. Also, it features Troy’s memorable crying reaction to his tainted handshake with Abed.
Greendale Has Another Paintball Fight
In two-part season two finale, “A Fistful of Paintballs” and “For A Few Paintballs More,” Greendale hosts another campus-wide paintball competition. But this time, there’s a bigger prize: $100,000. As the event progresses, the students of Greendale uncover a sinister party behind the prize and band together to stop them.
Homaging Westerns and Star Wars, the two-parter is Community at its most fun as the study group navigates a campus that has embraced the two themes. Yet at the joyful finale’s core is a redemption story for Pierce (Chevy Chase), who has been a dark presence in the season thus far. Like with Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back (1980), his ambiguous fate helps close a great second chapter.
Jeff And Britta’s Dysfunctional Wedding
Season premieres usually continue the cliffhangers of the previous season but “Anthropology 101” is something entirely different. After season one’s finale, Jeff and Britta get into a game of chicken in the form of a relationship with each other. Neither wanting to back down, the two accept Abed’s idea to get married before Jeff’s promiscuous actions surface and derail the wedding.
The ensuring argument brings up each of the study group’s recent mishaps as well – an important reminder that they are still fundamentally flawed and dysfunctional despite the progress they made last season. With tons of humor and memorable lines, the scene sets the tone for the craziness of season two by subverting season one’s traditional sitcom style.
The Study Group Reflect On The Year
If season two upped the pop-culture homages, “Paradigms of Human Memory” is one of the most creative of the season. While working on the final anthropology project, the study group finds a trove of their stolen items. The discovery triggers memories of past adventures and sparks disagreements.
The episode homages the clip episodes of TV by featuring clips of unseen events from earlier in the season. Not only is the episode a clever twist on the popular sitcom format, but a critical analysis of Community itself. Framed with the characters criticizing themselves and their patterns, the study group’s reflection is a funny, self-deprecating, and overall great moment in the series.
Pierce Torments The Study Group
If there was a villain in the study group, it would definitely be Pierce. In “Intermediate Documentary Filmmaking,” the elderly millionaire gets his revenge by faking dying and gifting each member a parting gift that torments them. As they react negatively, Abed films it for a documentary.
Parodying mockumentaries, the documentary format allows for an intimate exploration of the study group by seeing them respond to their vices. With memorable scenes like Troy tearfully singing in a restroom to Jeff freaking out about possibly seeing his father, the study group’s reactions to Pierce’s twist gifts rank among Community’s best moments.
The Study Group Plays Dungeons & Dragons
“Advanced Dungeons & Dragons” is proof the simplest premise can lead to the best results. Hoping to cheer up the bullied “Fat” Neil (Charley Koontz), the study group invite him to play a Dungeons & Dragons game with them. Angry he wasn’t invited, Pierce joins and intentionally disrupts the session causing everyone to rally against him.
Like the finest moments of Community, the episode excels because it mixes the performances of the cast with a creative concept. From Britta’s political correctness to Jeff’s reluctance, the characters are given moments to shine as they try to defeat Pierce. Also, Annie playing a character named “Hector the Well Endowed” and miming a sex scene with Abed’s elf character is utterly awesome.
The Study Group Searches For Annie’s Pen
It’s not often that a bottle episode becomes one of the best in a series. In “Cooperative Calligraphy,” Annie notices her pen goes missing again and forbids the study group from leaving the room. Not wanting to be blamed for the theft, they try to find it before a puppy parade on campus ends.
Instead of a film or a genre, the series honors all the bottle episodes on TV by creating the perfect one. The study group’s back-and-forths are compelling and hilarious as secrets are revealed and insults are traded. While not as flashy as other parts of the season, the search for Annie’s pen is the study group’s best moment from their second year together.
