Class is back on at Greendale with another important life lesson: drinking is bad. But not for the reasons you think… Having accidentally discovered on Troy’s twentieth birthday, that he is, in fact, 21 (apparently repeating fifth grade means you stay 10 for years), the gang (read Daddy Jeff and Mommy Britta) decide that, as Troy is now legal, the only way to celebrate is with copious amounts of alcohol. After procuring a stolen ID for Annie, the only non-legal member of the group, the gang is ready to party. Well, sort of. In Community‘s world, when a group of friends go out drinking, they might arrive together, but they’ll spend the evening drinking alone. There are a couple of exceptions: two of them don’t drink at all. Instead of the drunken, debauched shenanigans generally associated with a football player turning 21, poor Troy gets to play Daddy for the night, shepherding home the wasted remnants of his beloved study group: Annie suffering a personality crisis, Abed lost after a sci-fi conversation led to a drink in the face, and Jeff and Britta at their combative and annoying best. Frankly, it’s the worst twenty-first ever, and they should all be ashamed. No wonder Troy now considers alcohol to be the Lifetime Movies of beverages. Having said that, by concentrating on the downbeat, (and for a comedy, this is definitely downbeat), we’re given a few more hints at who these people really are. Despite the coming of age depression, the episode did find time for some excellent sci-fi references: a particularly in-depth Farscape discussion and a fantastic throwaway line involving Stargate, proof, if any were still needed, of where this show’s heart really lies. Life lessons are all very well, but what it really wants to tell you is how good Farscape is, and that’s a large part of what makes Community is so good. It’s also nice to see a Troy-centric episode. It’s about time we got to know Troy outside of his bromance with Abed. As part of the nerdy duo, we’ve really only seen him in a comedy light, and Mixology Certification gave us a chance to see him as more than just Abed’s soul mate. While this week’s Greendale visit might have been a little more downbeat than usual, what it lacked in out and out laughs, it more than made up for with its warmth. Clearly, the writing and acting teams are really starting to gel, and it definitely shows. No flashy guest stars, no TV-land stunts,just great writing. Troy learns that his parents are human, and forgives them. Who says TV is dumb? Read our review of episode 9, Conspiracy Theories And Interior Design, here.
