Episodic Review: Community - "Basic Sandwich" Airing Tonight on NBC; FX Orders 3rd Season of The Americans, Solid Start for Fargo

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Episodic Review: Community - "Basic Sandwich" Airing Tonight on NBC; FX Orders 3rd Season of The Americans, Solid Start for Fargo

On the next...Community (NBC, Thur 8:00pm):
By: Vincent

NBC's ensemble comedy lead by Joel McHale airs Thursdays at 8:00pm and we have just watched the next episode that airs tonight (April 17). In the episode airing tonight, "Basic Sandwich," once Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) and Hickey (Jonathan Banks) locate the school's blueprints, Annie (Alison Brie) and Abed (Danny Pudi) lead the search for Borchert's old computer lab, which was sealed off years ago. Meanwhile, Jeff (Joel McHale) and Britta (Gillian Jacobs) make a grown-up decision about their futures.

Because of its low-rated status, the past few season finales of Community have also meant to serve as potential series finales in case the show didn't get picked up. Season 3's finale, "Introduction to Finality", was a low-key, heartfelt outing that nicely wrapped up all of the shows' central themes into a clear and concise knot. The troubled Season 4's finale, "Advanced Introduction to Finality", took the opposite route by giving us a huge spectacle that tried to be as daring and surprising as possible but mostly just wound up feeling reductive and hollow. This years' finale, "Basic Sandwich", finds itself somewhere in the middle. There's no doubt that it's a much better effort than last years' finale, which is to be expected given the show has seen a huge creative resurgence this year, but it does lack the depth and the fearlessness that Community possesses at its very best. It's a fun adventure with a lot of great jokes, a fairly unique premise, and a lot of nice character moments, but it also feels a little worn around the edges. The story is far more basic and rudimentary than you might expect from this show, and there's sort of a sense that the show is at a bit of a loss for how to wrap up the season.

What is most disappointing about "Basic Sandwich" is the way it sort of drops the interesting questions that the preceding episode "Basic Story" posed for the show. While "Basic Story" seemed to be an episode that wrestled with the very idea of an ending, "Basic Sandwich" is little more than a fun scavenger hunt that finds the study group looking for buried treasure. The study group looking for buried treasure promises a lot of fun in and of itself, and it delivers on that front. But when Community is at its best - as it has been several times this season - there's a little more going on underneath the surface, and I'm not entirely sure that's true of this episode. Still, maybe Community has earned the right to relax a bit. This season has been the first time in a long time - perhaps ever - that the show has felt at ease with itself. And as we head into another era of uncertainty about the shows' future (though I'm staying hopeful and trusting that "six seasons and a movie" will soon be fulfilled) it's not so bad to see the show just kicking back and enjoying the ride a little. It's not a gear I want to see the show in all of the time, but just for now, there's something comforting about seeing Community relax just a bit. B

FX has picked up its hit drama The Americans for a 13-episode third season. One of television's most critically-acclaimed series, The Americans has fast become a signature show for FX. Five episodes remain in the current season. The series airs Wednesdays at 10:00 PM E/P. In its first season, The Americans was the most critically-acclaimed new program of 2013, winning the Television Critics Association Award for Outstanding New Program. The critical acclaim for season 2 has surpassed that of its remarkable first season. On a Live+7 basis, season 2 of The Americans is averaging 3.08 million Total Viewers and 1.47 million Adults 18-49, respective declines of just -9% and -14%, due in part to the lofty performance of the series' premiere episode. Time-shifted viewing has increased significantly with season 2 averaging respective gains of +130% in Adults 18-49 and +109% in Total Viewers (Live+Same Day to Live+7, compared to +93% and +83% respectively for season 1.

Set in 1981 just after Ronald Reagan is elected president, The Americans, starring Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys and Noah Emmerich, is a drama series about the complex marriage of two KGB spies posing as Americans in suburban Washington D.C. The series was created by and is executive produced by Joe Weisberg (Falling Skies), a former CIA agent who went on to become an accomplished author. Joel Fields and Graham Yost are also executive producers, along with Amblin Television heads Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank. The Americans is produced by Fox Television Studios and FX Productions. And finally, "you betcha" the limited series Fargo is off to a good start! FX's new 10-part limited series and critical juggernaut Fargo received a warm reception among viewers, drawing 4.15 million total viewers and 1.79 million Adults 18-49 for its first installment, a very strong initial number which will amount to only a small fraction of its final tally once time-shifted viewing arrives. The premiere episode, "The Crocodile's Dilemma," which ran from 10:00-11:37 PM, and encore telecasts (11:37 PM and 1:13 AM) combined to deliver 4.1 million Total Viewers and 1.79 million Adults 18-49. Fargo's first-run episode at 10:00 PM posted 2.65 million Total Viewers and 1.02 million Adults 18-49, which were respective increases of +100% and +67% over its lead-in half hour (the broadcast premiere of the movie Contraband). The network expects a massive spike in viewership when Live+3 ratings data becomes available on Monday and inclusive of Live+7 data in approximately three weeks. Oscar(R) winner Billy Bob Thornton stars as Lorne Malvo.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Thursday, December 11

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "Bitin’, Spankin’ and a Load of Yankee Psychobabble" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Georgie and Mandy get upset when Audrey disciplines CeeCee without their permission.

Ghosts - "The Life and Times of Esther Greene" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Now a successful podcaster, Todd Pearlman returns to profile Sam and Isaac’s book, but becomes obsessed with Jay. Meanwhile, Pete tries to get to the bottom of why Alberta changed her name, forcing her to admit a hidden truth.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 8)

Thursday, December 11

Jamie Lee Curtis (The Sticky/Anything But Love/Operation Petticoat) - Catch Jamie Lee on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Rachel Sennott (I Love LA/Call Your Mother) - Rachel appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Elon Gold (Stacked/In-Laws) - Elon is a guest on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Zooey Deschanel (Physical/New Girl) - Andy Cohen interviews Zooey on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 3:30am on Bravo. She also talks about Merv on Live with Kelly and Mark (check your local listings) and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Lucien Laviscount (Emily in Paris) - Lucien talks about Emily in Paris on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Kyra Sedgwick (Call Your Mother/Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kyra and Kevin talk about The Best You Can with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Loretta Devine (Family Reunion/The Carmichael Show) and Lela Rochon (The Wayans Bros.) - Co-host Gayle King sits down with Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine and Lela Rochon, original cast of Waiting to Exhale, on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea talks about Broadway's Chess on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am. She also performs in the 10am hour.
Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters - NBC's Today catches up with Daryl in the 9am hour.
Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) - Brooke co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Mila Kunis (Family Guy/That '70s Show) - Mila tells Drew about her role in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Ashley Park (Emily in Paris) - Emily tells Drew about what to expect in season five of Emily in Paris on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Joey McIntyre (Return of the Mac/The McCarthys) - Joey talks about Roku's Jingle Bell Wedding on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Danica McKellar (The Wonder Years) - Danica is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:15am.