Jeff Winger the King of naked Billard, awesome episode, so funny
It was before I started actually paying attention to actors' names (sue me, I was only about ten years old), so I couldn't tell you who Coach Bogner (Blake Clark) was "in real life". But I knew him immediately as Chet Hunter, Shawn's wayward father from Boy Meets World. Pleasure to see him on the small screen again.
good episode but pierce is just terrible man
This might be the most perfectly distilled representation of all of these characters in only 30 seconds. It hit every established character trait effortlessly:
Shirley: Abed, what are you doing?
Abed: Don Draper from Mad Men. What did ya think?
Britta: Weird.
Troy: Awesome!
Pierce: Put your tongue in her ear.
Annie: I liked it.
Shirley: Don't be him! He cheats on his wife. Be somebody nice like Mike Brady. He always had that housekeeper throwing herself at him, and he never made a move on her.
Britta: Don't like Mike Brady. Mike Brady's not sexy. You should be like Jo from The Facts of Life! But, you know, the dude version.
Pierce: I knew it!
Troy: You should be like Calvin. His best friend was a tiger, he always went on dope adventures, and if anything stood in his way, he just peed on it!
--
And this moment is when Jeff's "Abed is a shaman" line from the pilot really comes true:
Britta: So we didn't damage your self-esteem or anything?
Abed: Britta, I've got self-esteem falling out of my butt. That's why I was willing to change for you guys, because when you really know who you are and what you like about yourself, changing for other people isn't such a big deal.
i am afraid of White Abed
This was definitely one of my favorite episodes from this series. Alison Brie's acting and mannerisms in this episode are so spot on for her character. She was brilliant in this!
"I can't count the reasons I should stay."
Me neither
Omg, Danny Pudi, how many performances do you give?
"Abed, you're a god." — Jeff
OMG, he is
Dean, wtf
Jeff and this coach are crazy
Omg, they're human muppets
SCORE: 7/10
I have to admit I’ve been sighing for Vaughn every time he appeared shirtless, but man Jeff is ripped! Even being ridiculous with his dances and attitude
Despite the eye candy, I love the show dynamics and mostly Abed. Best character ever
Classic Britta, gotta love the group.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2017-02-16T02:34:41Z
7.4/10. The Abed story is what makes this one. The premise of the gang trying to Can’t Buy Me Love/Love Don’t Cost a Thing him after discovering a girl who seemingly has a crush on him is, as Jeff points out, a bit trite and inevitably going to lead to a “just be yourself” message. But, as Community always does when it’s at its best, the episode finds interesting wrinkles to that archetypal story.
The reveal that Abed not only doesn’t need to be someone else to get the girl, but that he doesn’t need to be encouraged at all, is a nice reversal. The sentiment that when you know who you are and what you’re like about yourself, changing for others isn’t a big deal, is a pretty powerful one in the confines of a semi-goofy story. And Abed showing the gang that as well-meaning as they were, it was them who were missing the boat, not him, is another great turnaround. It’s one of those bits that it’s hard to imagine another show being able to pull off as well.
Jeff’s story on the other hand is…not that great. I appreciate that it dovetails well with Abed’s lesson, but the whole notion of Jeff refusing to play pool because he doesn’t want to look dumb is not a strong enough motivation or story engine. On top of that, the big third act resolution, with Jeff and the pool teacher stripping down to their skivvies to play their big game, is broad without being clever in a way that doesn’t suit the show. There’s a sports movie parody baked in there somewhere that works at times, but for the most part, it pales in comparison to the other storyline.
Plus there’s all the great little asides that make Community great. The recurring bit about Britta pronouncing “baggles” is minor but hilarious. The gags about Abed being on the spectrum are funny because they’re about the rest of the gang’s reaction rather than Abed himself. And the whole ep is quite the showcase for Dani Pudi, who excels whether he’s imitating a vampire, Don Draper, Jeff, or pulling double duty as Joey. The Jeff B-story brings it down a little bit, but overall it’s a quality episode.