Most people thought by 2015, machines would learn to become self-aware. Instead, it’s our TV shows.
One of the quintessential parts of this “Golden Age of Television” has been programs going meta — poking holes in their own “real life” constructs and having a peek at their true identity. Product Placement jokes and the stripping of the fourth wall are commonplace on nearly every network.
“Community”, per usual, is there to take things to the extreme.
“Basic Email Security” is one of the most self-aware 30 minutes of television I’ve seen, helping the episode keep a fervent pace and giving me a nostalgia of the series’ earlier seasons. Yahoo! Screen has given the car keys to Dan Harmon and his writers, and it payed off this week.
The episode centers around Greendale’s computers getting hacked, with the crime’s culprit threatening to release students’ emails if a racist comedian set to perform at the school is not turned away.
Anyone who’s watched this show knows what comes next: group attempts to fight the antagonist, end up fighting themselves, end up doing something rash, end up getting saved by a Jeff Winger speech. Laughs are had, feels are felt.
But this episode makes meta references in nearly every scene, almost blatantly recognizing the show’s own strengths and weaknesses almost as a tribute to the show’s patrons. Depending on how often you watch the series, the episode could fluctuate between pleasurable and uncomfortably annoying. As a devout follower of Harmon’s universe, you can throw me into the former category.
Subtle hints at old characters, Chang realizing his lack of utilization and the group desperately attempting to find a lesson post-fiasco sort of resemble inside jokes — high praise and chuckles by those inside the circle and envious confusion on the outside.
Beyond that, the rest of the episode carries itself effortlessly. The scene in which each group member’s email is leaked, revealing deep secrets including astronaut letters and the Frankie Dart sexual preference betting pool, is similar to the famous “Lost Pen” episode in season two. Six actors and actresses backed by good writing are free to do what they’re best at — losing their minds.
This week also appears to be a breakthrough in identity for new character Elroy Patashnik, played by Keith David. He’s near the same age as Pierce Hawthorne, but trades in Hawthorne’s aging cluelessness and subtle racism for a weirdness that could only be the product of living in a trailer for so many years.
Perhaps most important, the show is starting to find its footing on a website containing shows like “Sin City Saints” and “Other Space”. Yahoo Screen has given the show freedom — more playing time, more creative control, more ways to tear down a school that cannot die.
And, as we saw this week, more meta.
Score: 4.5/5