Community – Urban Matrimony and the Sandwich Arts

After an extended three-month hiatus Community returns with a fun, but not great, episode centered around one of the characters getting married. As Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) and Pierce (Chevy Chase) work to convince Dean Pelton (Oscar winner Jim Rash) to let them open a sandwich shop in the Greendale commons, Shirley is surprised the unexpected proposal of her ex-husband Andre (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) - complete with Boys II Men back-up singers and dancers.

Attempting to be adult about the proceedings, Abed (Danny Pudi) and Troy (Donald Glover) work to get all the whimsy out of their system and attend the rehearsal ceremony as normal community college students. As Jeff (Joel McHale) struggles to write a toast for the occasion, Britta (Gillian Jacobs) and Annie (Alison Brie) agree to help put the ceremony together - something, it turns out, Britta is extremely good at (much to her horror and disgust).


Given that this is an episode of Community, I doubt I'm giving much away when I tell you the ceremony doesn't go exactly as planned. However, thanks in large part to a drunken Jeff and Britta snipping to each other at the altar, Shirley and Andre are able to put their differences aside and move forward on a hopeful note.

Television has certainly missed the show's unique zany sense of whimsy over the past few months. I'm not sure that a Shirley episode was the best choice for their first show back, but we do get Abed and Troy's attempts to be normal, more Inspector Spacetime references, and Andre's proposal certainly fits into the show's collection of oddly charming original moments.