Community: Season 1, Episode 3 "Introduction to Film" Review

 "And how 'bout I pound you like a boy!  That didn't come out right."

-Troy Barnes

"Introduction to Film" begins with Jeff (Joel McHale) enrolling in an accounting class that he has heard is an easy A.  The class is taught by Professor Whitman (John Michael Higgins), who doesn't have any tests or papers in his class, but they must learn how to "seize the day."  Jeff tells the rest of his study group about the class and most of them sign up, but Abed (Danny Pudi) says he can't because his father, Gobi (Iqbal Theba), will only pay for classes that will help Abed run the family falafel business.  Abed really wants to study film, so Britta (Gillian Jacobs) pays for Abed to enroll in a film class.

In Professor Whitman's class, Jeff is called out by the Professor who can tell Jeff is a slacker with no intention of seizing the day.  He tells Jeff that he must genuinely seize the day by the end of the week or he will fail the class.  Jeff tries to impress Professor Whitman by wearing goofy costumes, flying a kite, and jump-roping with underage girls, but none of it works.

Abed starts working on his film and Gobi arrives at Greendale to confront Britta about meddling with family affairs.  The argument nearly becomes physical and Jeff has to break it up.  Gobi tells them that they are responsible for Abed now and leaves.  Britta starts giving Abed money for classes and general expenses, but Abed blows the money on a more expensive camera and pizza and coffee for the study group.  He also cuts class, which causes Britta to become frustrated and angry.  When she tries to confront him about it, he just keeps filming and tells her that this is the scene where she leaves.  Britta storms off.  Jeff calls Abed weird and leaves as well.

The next day, Jeff brings Britta and Gobi to the study room to meet with Abed and hash things out.  It doesn't work until Abed interrupts and says he has finished his movie.  The film frames the discussions and arguments Jeff and Britta have had about Abed as being the same discussions and arguments that Abed's parents had.  Abed's unusual behavior is presented as the reason Abed's mother left the family and Gobi blamed Abed, even if he never said so.  Jeff and Britta aren't sure what to make of the film, but it makes Gobi cry and he agrees to pay for the film classes.

Britta thanks Jeff for helping resolve the situation and says she owes him one.  She tells Jeff to kiss her and they share a passionate kiss.  Professor Whitman witnesses this and congratulates Jeff on the life-changing kiss.  Britta tells Jeff they are even and she walks off.

Meanwhile, Troy (Donald Glover) gets teased for having adorable sneezes.  Pierce (Chevy Chase) teaches Troy to have manlier sneezes to help his image.

The episode ends with Abed and Troy attempting to krump.  Jeff arrives and is unimpressed and shows them how krumping is done.

What Works:

I love Professor Whitman so much!  John Michael Higgins gives a hilarious performance.  He's a character that I wish would have shown up again past season 1.  I love the enthusiasm he gives to the role and the reveal that he is an accounting professor is wonderful.

The Troy sneezing storyline is a very minor part of the episode, but Chevy Chase does a great job.  The scene where Pierce explains all the various sneezes he uses feels like classic Chevy Chase material.  It's silly, but I've always found it funny.

I want to give some praise to the stunt woman who fell off the desk in Professor Whitman's class.  It looks great and convincingly painful.  It's some solid stunt work!

I like how the two main storylines intertwine as well.  Jeff is so focused on seizing the day, but then he decides to help Britta with the Abed situation.  By the time Jeff and Britta get to the kiss, the audience completely forgets about the whole seizing the day day subplot.  The reveal that Professor Whitman witnessed the kiss comes as a surprise to both Jeff and the audience.  The episode does a great job of making us forget a storyline for the reveal to really work.

Finally, Abed's film hits like a gut punch.  This episode really rewards a rewatch because you see all of the dialogue from Jeff and Britta and know how it will be presented later.  Iqbal Theba gives a great performance, especially after seeing the film.  It's always interesting to see how a comedy handles a more emotionally dramatic moment and this episode nails that.

What Sucks:

Not every joke lands for me in this episode due to a couple of dated references, but the big one is Pierce struggling to use his cell phone.  It's him just saying "Voice command" over and over again.  I don't really get it.  Maybe because I've never used voice commands on a phone like that before.  What was he supposed to be doing?  Did he need to say words in addition to "Voice command?"  Did he not need to say "Voice command" at all?  I think I remember having a phone where you pressed a button and then just said what you wanted the phone to do.  I don't know.  I don't get it.  Maybe I'm thinking too hard about it.

Funniest Moment:

The funniest moment of the episode is the following exchange.

Abed: "Jeff, I think you should play the role of my father."

Jeff: "I don't want to be your father."

Abed: "Perfect.  You already know your lines."

It's sad and hilarious with perfect delivery from Danny Pudi.

Heavenly Human Being:

The Heavenly Human Being Award goes to the MVP of the episode.  For "Introduction to Film," this Award goes to Abed Nadir for using his movie as a way to finally communicate with his father.  Jeff and Britta may not fully get it, but Abed reached the audience he wanted to reach and his film said what he wanted to say.  His filmmaking style may be unorthodox, but it was effective.  This is Abed's 1st time winning this Award.

Verdict:

"Introduction to Film" is another really funny episode of Community thanks to a wonderful performance from John Michael Higgins and some really funny writing and line deliveries from the regular cast.  But it also manages to have an nice emotional moment with Abed's film.  The best comedies can also make you cry at times.  This episode does both well, even if not all of the humor works for me, but the episode as a whole has definitely got it going on.

 9/10: Great