Just checking in--the 'Community' marathon continues here; I'm up to S.3, Ep. 3.
Of course, I love the show. Genius. I had largely lost patience with the whole post-ironic, Gen-X obsession with winking, straight-faced references to the larger pop culture within pop-culture vehicles--until season 2 of community. The way they use Abed to take the'Meta' trope to the infinite degree--culminating with the clearly labeled--there might as well have been subtitles--meta-within-meta-within meta of Abed's film 'Abed' in "Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples" was brilliant and hilarious, I thought. And it's done with such a light touch. I have been watching most of the episodes more than once--partly due to typical nerd/fanboy syndrome and partly because I dread coming to the end of the supply of new episodes.
But the topic that most interests me at this moment is Chevy Chase/Pierce, especially after reading the Huffpost interview with Chevy Chase.
I have no notion or awareness of what Chase's authentic personality is like--does he have a sense of humor about himself? Is he a complex 'meta' type guy? I found it interesting that throughout season 1, his character repeatedly made pleas to be taken seriously, only to take a crazy, slapstick pratfall--I took that to be the naked id of the actor Chevy Chase, being acted out by--very meta--Chevy Chase as Pierce Hawthorne.
In season 2, as the movie homages heated up, and as we see Abed and Troy indulging in the ironic, hipster taste for kicking back to watch a dreadful, pop-culture movie, I wondered whether a 'Vacation' film would ever find it's way onto their playlist. Chase's film career is such a goldmine of targets for this show, and yet it wasn't until S.3, Ep. 1 that anyone said the words 'National Lampoon', and--significantly??--Pierce was out of the room when that happened.
You think, what do you want?
You think, make a decision...
Updated On: 5/27/12 at 10:15 PM