I love the fact that Shirley got another all-too-rare chance to be front-and-center this week. Shes’ the character with the least depth, so I love episodes in which we learn a little more about her. Of course, I just wish that it didn’t involve bullying, because even though it’s a show like Community, I still have a really hard time watching it. I didn’t cry like I did during Dungeons and Dragons, but the last scene with Big Cheddar and Tinkle-Town walking away arm-in-arm almost got me.
It helped though that The Shirley/Jeff storyline was interspersed with the ridiculous beauty that is Abed as Batman. I’m so glad that they’ve brought him back, although it did make me nostalgic for the first season, and even sadder that this is the penultimate episode before the hiatus of (potential) doom.
The other thing that was so great about the two storylines is that they worked together with a “good girls gone bad” theme. Shirley wasn’t always saintly, and Annie can be cowardly and put her own interests ahead of Abed’s (for a while, at least).
The subject of Jeff’s dad keeps on coming up this season, so I wonder if there’s a big reveal planned for an upcoming episode. Perhaps Robert Goulet can come in and play the absent Winger. Or maybe Alan Alda. Alda’s always good for a missing family member.
Overall, it was a really solid episode, but it wouldn’t be Community if someone watching it for the first time isn’t completely confused. They could have made a super-accessible episode, but instead they went with a crazy anime fight foosball fight scene. Oh, Community. Don’t ever change.
But seriously, Nick Kroll‘s Schadenfreude joke was killer.
(EDIT: Want to see the really quick scene at the end of the episode that showed a portion of Leonard’s blog? We’ve got you covered — click the image there for the full-size version.)
Some of my favorite lines from this episode:
“He only has the one eye, Jeff. I can’t exactly buy him a cat monocle, can I? It’s pretentious.” – Britta
“Jeff, you don’t need to worry what foreigners think of you. That’s your birthright as an American.” – Shirley
Shirley: “Foosball is a vile game for vile people.”
Jeff: “Shirley, you wouldn’t get it. It’s a guy thing; not a fresh-baked pie thing.”
“Once you make a boy pee his pants, you start thinking about where your life is headed.” – Shirley
Clacked by Kona Gallagher 
on Dec 01, 2011 @ 20:58 EST5EDT
You are aware that Robert Goulet has been dead since 2007 right?
It’s Community. I honestly don’t think that matters in the slightest.
“Deutschbag” is my favorite new insult ^^;
BTW no real German was uttered during the episode and the German Soccer National Team uniforms were cheap knockoffs but that’s really not important. Kroll did a nice job at being the ugly German and of course we heard the obligatory “Schweinhund” (which, by the way, should be Schweinehund but since every Amercian would pronounce that Schweine like Heinie it’s understandable that the dialogue coaches leave out the E in the middle of the word in the script)
I haven’t laughed this hard about an episode of Community in a long time.
Follow Leanord on Twitter @Leonard_GCC !
My favorite moment had to be Annie’s attempt at the Bale Batman voice.