There are some stories that beg to be told. Stories that we as an audience crave and don't even know it until we get a taste. If there is one thing that Community creator Dan Harmon is good at, it's providing such stories. Tonight we gained some depth into the much under appreciated bond between working mom Shirley, and our beloved little anti hero Jeff. The two haven't had a really solid episode together since the beginning of the first season, yet somehow their "reunion" felt as natural as it could be. As if it was only yesterday that the duo was making fun of Vaughn's nipples. Despite being among the two most different study group members, the writers managed to find a way to integrate their story into something emotional. We get to witness a defining moment in Jeff's life, and arguably Shirley's as well.
Shirley and Jeff get closer after Jeff's desire to beat out a group of Germans in foosball reveals Shirley's unexpected skill. This prompts Jeff to ask her for lessons. She is hesitant, but eventually agrees to teach him. She then shares a personal story about why foosball puts her off. She was a horrible bully as a child, and foosball was her method of choice.
Community is sneaky in the way that they handle character development and backstories. Almost every single character has a heart wrenching past, but it's played off so casually that you really need to put the pieces together to figure it out. We know that Jeff's father was a drunk and both physically and emotionally abusive to his son before leaving him alone with his mother.
So now you have this very fragile young Jeff Winger who's recently been abandoned and hasn't quite developed the classic "Winger" charm. Along comes Young Shirley, who plays the perfect kid bully. While challenging him to a game of foosball, she makes more than a few unnecessary jabs at Jeff's lack of a father figure. By the end, the poor kid has peed his pants, literally. The trauma from the event is what finally triggered Jeff to become what he is today. The final nail in the self esteem coffin if you will.
Finally putting two and two together and realizing that Shirley was his childhood tormenter, Jeff is initially upset. Shirley's efforts to apologize fall on def ears. After a supercharged game of foosball against her (complete with anime sequences) Jeff calms down and accepts her apology. He ends up better for it, because he realizes that Shirley had her insecurities too. Both of them grew up to be strong, independent, and kind people, and the past doesn't need to impact their friendship as adults.
Each episode of Community seems to have a moment of clarity, where the hijinks come together and build up on this foundation of growth and change. Sometimes that is taken for granted, especially if an episode hasn't been an explosive "Chaos Theory" one. I think it is only fair to take the time to appreciate that this was a fantastic Jeff episode, where you really get into the meat of some of his deeper, darker problems. At the same time, you can appreciate that they probably wouldn't have been addressed at all of the Jeff from season 1 had been the one to learn about the truth of Shirley's past. Sitcoms are not traditionally known for their feats in character growth, especially to this kind of magnitude. This entire plot line centered around the pains of a character's extremely troubled childhood, and managed to still make us laugh and move us. It wasn't a special drama episode where everything we knew about the show was turned upside down for one day of beautiful character growth. This is simply how Community functions, and what sets it apart from other sitcoms like it.
The other fantastic thing about this little story is that it gives Shirley a break from her religious mom persona. She's a 3 diminutional character, but she is utilized much less than she should be. She is much more than her religion and catch phrase "OH! That's nice" . Seeing her getting personal with Jeff and facing their past together? Now that's nice. Seeing the assertive Shirley that Jeff loves? That is really nice. Dan once said that she is the hardest character to write for, but he proved tonight that when he does give her layers of complexity, it works. It isn't awkward because she is a middle aged conservative parent. A fleshed out Shirley is just as interesting as any of the other characters. She just needed more of a chance to shine.
The "B" plot line revolves around Annie, Troy, and Abed in their first real room mate adventure. Annie accidentally breaks Abed's special DVD copy of The Dark Knight, and accidentally creates a massive conspiracy for Abed to uncover in full Batman attire. The end result was probably a bit more beneficial than she expected. Instead of uncovering the secret behind his desecrated DVD, Abed stumbles upon their sneezy landlord's woman's shoe collection. The last few episodes have been pretty heavy on adding Annie to the Troy & Abed equation. While there was a lot of initial hesitation from fans, it's pretty fair to say that Annie has been a fantastic addition to the duo's antics. She provides a completely fresh dynamic, and watching her personality bloom between the show's two biggest clowns is a refreshing shift from being treated as Jeff's designated love interest.
Foosball was one of those episodes that had some good lines and was genuinely funny, but it's real value was the stories that it told and what that means for the characters. Ask Harmon to pass the salt, and he'll give you a bowl of soup. We got several season 1-2 throwbacks for the hardcore fans, an engaging story for emotionally invested fans, and tons of laughs all around. Frankly, it's an atrocity that NBC would even consider canceling this perfect specimen of a TV program; let alone actually go out and bench it.
