External links
- "The Art of Discourse" at NBC.com
- "The Art of Discourse" at IMDb
| "The Art of Discourse" | |
|---|---|
| Community episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 22 |
| Directed by | Adam Davidson |
| Written by | Chris McKenna |
| Production code | 124 |
| Original air date | April 29, 2010 |
| Guest appearances | |
| |
"The Art of Discourse" is the twenty-second episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community . It aired in the United States on NBC on April 29, 2010.
Abed (Danny Pudi) reveals to the group his film-based social goals of an ideal first year of college. This includes pulling down someone's pants and having the same done to him, which quickly happens between him and Troy (Donald Glover). Pierce (Chevy Chase), wanting to get in on the joke, proceeds to pull down Shirley's (Yvette Nicole Brown) pants, greatly offending her. When Pierce refuses to apologize for what he sees as a harmless joke, the group decides to kick him out. However, they quickly realize that with Pierce gone, there is no scapegoat for them to throw their hatred at. This leads them to try and get Pierce to apologize, but when he botches the attempt, Shirley decides to leave the group herself. Ironically, this leads to Shirley and Pierce bonding in the library.
While Troy helps Abed complete his goals, Jeff (Joel McHale) and Britta (Gillian Jacobs) find themselves at the mercy of a group of high schoolers taking early classes, who make fun of them for attending community college. Plotting revenge, they eventually decide to have Jeff seduce the ring leader's mother. It initially works until she discovers the truth and begins acting like the kids. This culminates in Jeff and Britta going into a massive mimicry battle with the high schoolers in the cafeteria that lasts several minutes. The battle culminates in Shirley and Pierce pulling down the kids' pants, distracting them enough to lose. As a last resort, the kids start a food fight, which was another item on Abed's list.
In the end tag, Troy and Abed are in the student lounge, discussing their "porn names" which they derived from their grade school and their favorite soft drink.
Abed and Troy's storyline parodies comedy films set at colleges and universities, in particular the 1978 film Animal House . References include Abed destroying Pierce's guitar, Abed and Troy dressing up in togas, and the use of freeze-frame labels at the end of the episode revealing the personal futures of the main characters and single episode characters. Although he wasn't in the film, Chevy Chase, who plays Pierce Hawthorne, worked with a number of the cast and crew of the film, as he worked with National Lampoon, was on the sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , and was in the 1980 sports comedy film Caddyshack .
Around 4.36 million Americans watched "The Art of Discourse". [1]
Emily VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club gave the episode a 'B', saying that while she "liked the other two plotlines in the episode quite a bit" the main Jeff/Britta plot was difficult to enjoy because she "just couldn't get past how irritating the characters were." [2]
"Spanish 101" is the second episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on September 24, 2009. The episode features Jeff and Pierce working on a Spanish project as Annie and Shirley organize a protest. Receiving 5.39 million viewers upon its premiere, the episode was met with mostly positive critical reception. The end tag—the first of the series—shows Troy and Abed performing a nonsense rap in Spanish, an early interaction between the pair which was praised by reviewers.
"Messianic Myths and Ancient Peoples" is the fifth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Community, and the 30th episode of the series overall. It aired in the United States on NBC on October 21, 2010. The episode's plot surrounds a religious film created by Greendale Community College student Abed Nadir.
"Social Psychology" is the fourth episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on October 8, 2009. The episode shows Jeff bonding with Shirley through mockery of Britta's new romantic interest, Vaughn. Annie gets Abed to participate in a psychology experiment organized by Dr Ian Duncan. It received 4.87 million viewers in the United States and mixed critical reviews.
"Advanced Criminal Law" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on October 15, 2009. The episode follows Jeff attempting to help Britta after she confesses to cheating on a Spanish test, as Pierce helps Annie by composing a school song and Abed attempts to convince Troy that he is an alien. It garnered 5.01 million viewers in its first broadcast and was met with mixed critical reception.
"Home Economics" is the eighth episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on November 5, 2009. The episode revolves around Jeff's living situation now that he no longer has the money he earned as a big-shot lawyer and the emotional aftermath of Britta and Vaughn's breakup. It garnered 5.45 million viewers on its premiere and received positive critical reception.
"Debate 109" is the ninth episode of the first season of Community. It originally aired in the United States on NBC on November 12, 2009. In the episode, Jeff teams up with Annie to take on City College in a debate, while Pierce tries to help Britta quit smoking using hypnotherapy. Meanwhile, the study group attempts to figure out if Abed's student films are predicting their futures. The episode received mostly positive reviews, with many critics singling out Abed's subplot for praise.
"The Politics of Human Sexuality" is the eleventh episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It originally aired in the United States on NBC on December 3, 2009.
"Romantic Expressionism" is the fifteenth episode of the first season of the U.S. television series Community. It was originally aired on February 4, 2010, on NBC.
"Communication Studies" is the sixteenth episode of the first season of the U.S. television sitcom Community. It originally aired on February 11, 2010, on NBC.
"The Science of Illusion" is the twentieth episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on March 25, 2010.
"Aerodynamics of Gender" is the seventh episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Community, and the 32nd episode of the series overall. It aired in the United States on NBC on November 4, 2010. The two plotlines concern the women's discovery that Abed has an undiscovered talent at insulting people's appearance, and Troy and Jeff finding a secret garden with a trampoline.
"Mixology Certification" is the tenth episode of the second season of Community. It was originally broadcast on December 2, 2010 on NBC.
"Early 21st Century Romanticism" is the fifteenth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Community and the fortieth episode of the series overall. It aired in the United States on NBC on February 10, 2011. The episode revolves around the study group's various Valentine's Day plans: Abed and Troy ask the same girl to the dance, Britta goes on a date with a lesbian, and Jeff is tricked into hosting a party.
"Intermediate Documentary Filmmaking" is the fifteenth episode of the second season of Community. The episode originally aired on February 17, 2011 on NBC. In the episode, Pierce pretends to be dying after a drug overdose and takes psychological revenge on the rest of the study group for not taking him seriously. He stages a documentary with Abed and plays on the rest of the study group's sympathies by giving them gifts and promises that torments them with their insecurities.
"Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps" is the fifth episode of the third season of the U.S. television series Community. It first aired on October 27, 2011 on NBC and is the series' 2011 Halloween episode.
"Studies in Modern Movement" is the seventh episode of the third season of the American sitcom Community. It was originally broadcast on November 10, 2011, on NBC.
"Digital Exploration of Interior Design" is the thirteenth episode of the third season of the American television series Community. It originally aired on March 29, 2012, on NBC. The episode was written by Chris McKenna and directed by Dan Eckman.
"Comparative Religion" is the twelfth episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on December 10, 2009.
"Introduction to Statistics" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Community, airing on NBC on October 29, 2009. Annie hosts a Dia de los Muertos party, the success of which depends on Jeff attending. At the party, Pierce gets high, causing trouble for the other characters. Jeff pursues their statistics professor, Professor Michelle Slater. Finally, Shirley is distressed due to her ex-husband's behavior.
"Conventions of Space and Time" is the third episode of the fourth season of the American comedy television series Community and the seventy-fourth episode overall. It was written by Maggie Bandur and directed by Michael Patrick Jann. It originally aired in the United States on NBC on February 21, 2013.
