Community owes some of the early success of the show to the talent of the incredible Russo brothers who came in as executive producers, and frequently stepped up to direct episodes of the show. While the show was the creation of Dan Harmon, who went on to co-create Rick and Morty, Community was a much more grounded sitcom that still managed to subvert the genre and experiment throughout. The series follows a mismatched group of people who all find themselves in a community college for a variety of reasons, but this summary doesn’t begin to capture the creativity of the show.
Throughout, Community experiments with the format, introducing fantasy, action, sci-fi, and even stop-motion at various points. However, while many shows struggle to get a balance with such eclectic styles, Community made every one of these choices make sense in the context of the show. And during the first three seasons, Anthony and Joe Russo were involved as executive producers, who frequently stepped in to direct episodes, including the pilot, and a further 33 episodes throughout the series’ run.
10 “Basic Rocket Science”
Building on that same creativity, Anthony Russo steered the ship in one of the most ambitious episodes in season 2, “Basic Rocket Science.” This episode sees everyone in the study group, apart from Abed, trapped inside a rocket simulator. While there are obvious ways to take an episode like this with a varied cast of comedy characters cramped in a tiny space, Community uses the opportunity to showcase the show’s imagination and potential.
And while the main cast is split up with Abed on the outside acting as mission control, the narrative works in perfect harmony. The episode is also full of the things that make the show great; tension between the group, problem-solving in creative ways, and ultimately, a moral lesson that sees them grow as individuals and a team. All things considered, this is one of the best episodes of the series directed by Anthony.
9 “Debate 109”
“Debate 109” is great for a number of reasons that make it distinctly different to “Basic Rocket Science.” For one, this episode avoids using one central story, and in the brief 21-minute runtime, it manages to tell three distinct and equally great stories. Jeff Winger and Annie Edison prepare for a debate, Britta agrees to let Pierce help her quit smoking through hypnotherapy, and Abed’s films appear to predict the future.
In terms of economical storytelling, this episode, like many of the other Russo directed episodes, is a masterclass in how to give every character a moment to shine. Joe Russo helmed this early episode of the series, and while the show was still finding its feet and establishing the characters, “Debate 109” did a huge amount to expand on their personalities, motivations, and strengths. It’s truly spectacular how much character development could be given to such a varied cast in so little time, but Joe smashed it.
8 “Physical Education”
Anthony Russo also directed the incredible “Physical Education” episode in season 1. The entire episode revolves around a simple plot point, with some minor sub-plots. For the most part, the episode follows Jeff as he faces off against the gym coach, when he is being forced to wear incredibly short gym shorts as part of the uniform, despite the activity in that class being a simple game of Pool. Jeff obviously takes issue with the mindless rules, and tries to make a stand.
While the episode is one of the most simple concepts, it dives deep into the minds of the group, particularly Jeff, and forces the stubborn and reluctant leader of the group to reconsider his position. While he starts the episode believing that changing his stance would be a weakness on his part, he eventually learns that it can be a sign of strength, and willingly embraces the change. This change and growth for the characters is a pivotal part of the show, and this episode does it better than most.
7 “Cooperative Calligraphy”
In “Cooperative Calligraphy,” Joe Russo focuses in on a Community story that puts Annie in the spotlight. This episode follows the group as they all try to solve the case of Annie’s missing pen. However, the group is still fragile and struggles to approach the subject without completely breaking down and engaging in a brutal battle of insults and accusations. And despite the draw of an adorable puppy parade on campus, the group can’t resolve their differences in time.
This episode hones in on the group and, like few others in the series, it isn’t afraid to lock the story into predominantly one location. Everyone sits or stands around the table as they try to decipher the mystery, offering up their stories, and trying to find holes in each other’s alibis. The creativity and excitement of such a static episode is truly awe-inspiring, and it ultimately resolves with a hilarous conclusion that the audience gets to take part in, but the group is still a long way off discovering for themselves.
“Intermediate Documentary Filmmaking” is another entry directed by Joe, which focuses on the detestable Pierce. By this point in the series, he has established himself as a villain, but this episode takes his ire to a whole new level. Pierce pretends to be dying, and in his “final moments,” he wishes to impart gifts to his dear friends in the study group. However, all of these gifts are actually intended to torture and punish those same friends.
The episode follows Abed making a documentary throughout, and it allows the focus to zero in on Pierce, and how his actions cause ripples in the group. However, despite the malicious intent, the episode is absolutely laugh out loud hilarious. Particularly the moments where Troy meets his celebrity idol, LeVar Burton, whom he is bitterly afraid of disappointing, and so he retreats within himself, becoming completely frozen. Again, the style, and the focus on characters and storytelling make these short comedy episodes into something that has a much longer lasting impact than the episodes’ runtime themselves.
5 “Documentary Filmmaking: Redux”
Fittingly, Joe returns to helm an episode that is partially a sequel to the one mentioned above in season 3’s “Documentary Filmmaking: Redux.” Once again, movie buff Abed puts on his director’s hat, and assigns himself the job of documenting the experience as the study group helps the Dean film a commercial to try and advertise the benefits of studying at Greendale and attract more students. However, when things break down, the budget is blown, and everything appears to fall apart.
As is often the case with Community, the show approaches its own story in a meta narrative where the characters in the group are cast as other people at Greendale, and rather than becoming convoluted, it’s playful and clever. Joe does an excellent job at layering the stories neatly on top of each other in a way that never feels crowded or overstuffed, but works perfectly for the episode. And Abed becomes an intermediary that appears to stand between reality and the show on multiple levels.
4 “Geothermal Escapism”
While Joe and Anthony did not continue to act as executive producers on Community after season 3, Joe did return to direct two of the episodes in season 5, with one of those capturing some of the magic of the classic college wide school games that they introduced back in season 2. It wasn’t a paintball episode, but “Geothermal Escapism” delivered a similarly entertaining story with all of Greendale competing in a high-stakes game of “The Floor is Lava.”
The episode pays tribute to Mad Max, with many groups becoming factions in the wasteland of the school. While the backdrop of Greendale remains, the episode tansforms this familiar setting with barebones props, colored lights, and makeshift costumes that make it feel like something much more epic in proportion. In addition, the episode carries tremendous emotional weight, as it acts as a send-off for Troy before he embarks on a sailing trip around the world. Joe captured emotion, action, friendship, and comedy against impossible odds, and to a high standard.
3 “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons”
However, season 2 easily led the way in terms of Community’s very best game based episodes. One of Joe Russo’s absolute best comes in the form of the D&D inspired Community episode “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.” After some dramatic lighting and a Lord of the Rings style intro to the episode, the rest of the episode puts the group around their study table, and they play a game of D&D with a student who has a tougher time fitting in. While the group do what they can to make Neil feel welcome, Pierce derails the game out of jealousy and spite.
But, the genius of this episode actually comes from the fact that the narrative plays out just like a regular game of D&D. The episode doesn’t use clever tricks, animations, or other visual tricks, it simply sees the group talking and playing, while both they and the audience imagine the adventure together. Rather than relying on the visual tricks that are readily available to them, the episode does a great job at showcasing how compelling and engaging a simple collaborative storytelling game can be.
2 “For A Few Paintballs More”
In season 1, Community established a tradition of including massive epic game events with the first paintball episode. However, for the season 2 finale, they stepped up the game and put the task into the hands of Joe Russo. The paintball motif evolved into a multi-event extravaganza that closed out the second season and left Greendale rocked like it had never been rocked before. And while both episodes pay homage to the Dollars Trilogy of spaghetti westerns starring Clint Eastwood, the second and final entry shifts from a typical western, to a space opera.
More specifically, the episode begins to lean into a clear parody of Star Wars, with rolling credits, an Empire-like villain, and more small details throughout. This episode is a great example of the show’s ability to parody pop culture, while delivering a new story and making it fit perfectly into the world of Community. And on top of this, it takes the study group on a journey that ultimately brings them closer together.
1 “A Fistful Of Paintballs”
However, the first part of this two-episode saga takes the cake for the best episode from either Russo brother, with the tribute to spaghetti westerns providing the perfect stage to create an epic, all-out brawl in Greendale. In fact, throughout this episode, which originally aired in 2011, there are plenty of moments that feel like another Russo brothers project in 2016s Captain America: Civil War. Joe Russo was given the reins in this episode, but it certainly influenced the careers of both brothers going forward. But, honing in on this episode alone, the paintball competition is back.
In an attempt to promote greater school-wide participation, the Dean announced a spectacular prize to get the Greendale students motivated; $100,000. Evidently, this causes the entire school to step up, and take a game of paintball more seriously than ever before. Factions form, a mysterious masked gunman roams the halls, and the group find themselves separated and questioning who they can and can’t trust. This episode is a perfect example of both what Community is capable of as a show, and the Russo brothers’ talents as directors, many years before they became some of the best known directors in Hollywood.