This week’s episode sort of answered my prayers. Oddly, I’m not talking about Joel McHale‘s Tiger print boxer briefs– although those were certainly interesting. I’ve been wanting Abed to get a love interest (besides Troy) for quite some time, and while he didn’t end up riding off into the sunset with the girl of his dreams, we did learn some very important things about Abed: he has self-confidence coming out of his butt, and he does a shockingly good Don Draper impression.
Speaking of his Don Draper impression, does it hurt anyone else’s brain that that show exists in the world of Community? When Abed/Don Draper was wooing Annie, who is played by Allison Brie, who plays Trudy, Pete Campbell’s wife on Mad Men, I think my brain leaked out of my ear a little bit. Call me simple, but I can’t handle that much meta, and I swear to God, if The Soup somehow exists as well, I’m probably going to have a seizure and die.
I like how Community doesn’t constantly try to make Abed some sort of charity case or object of pity. Up until this point, where he pretty much just spells it out for everybody, he’s stealthily been the coolest, most put-together person in the group. He’s the only one out of all of them who hasn’t tried to change, or had any sort of identity crisis, or even an unsure moment. As Jeff says, he’s almost some sort of God.
Speaking of Jeff, as funny as his storyline was this week, it was a little weird that it took place so outside of the group. They really didn’t get involved at all, until the very end when they came to cheer him on in his showdown and see every awkward, naked angle a guy can possibly put himself into.
I was a little surprised at a couple of things though: one, that it was so obvious that Annie was taking a lot of peeks, but we didn’t really see much of Britta’s reaction, and two, that everybody came so close to him and patted him on the shoulders and whatnot to congratulate him after his win. I know Joel McHale’s a good-looking dude and all, but in my experience, when someone gets unexpectedly naked in public, you generally don’t get too close to them. It’s almost as if their embarrassing nudity is contagious — you kind of want to keep your distance.
While it’s hard to top the amazing holiday episode that they did, Community consistently gets better and better. Watching it this week makes me glad that the Olympics are finally over, and the stuff I love is back on. And what I love is the version of Abed that may be a vampire.
Clacked by Kona Gallagher 
on Mar 04, 2010 @ 21:26 EST5EDT
Don’t forget one of my favorite quotes:
“Oh, come on. If all Chinese were psychic you would’ve started using birth control centuries ago.” – Pierce to Chang
And then Abed and Troy and Bert and Ernie!
Oh my god. I did not notice Brie playing both Annie and Trudy. She’s such a b**ch on Mad Men I honestly did not notice. Wow.
I think her not having had any interaction with Don Draper on Mad Men saves it for me but it’s pretty close to the Universe ceasing to exist should she ever be on TV on Community as Trudy while in the room as Annie. Wow. Extreme. And that for an actress who’s not on that many TV shows anyway.
Phew. Insane. But I think the show can pull it off. The short scenes at the end are already sometimes out of character or not within the story of the episode so if they would want to put McHale into something spoofing The Soup, I guess it would still work. Although I might get nosebleeds ^^;