What Defines Us: Troy's Back Pack

Troy Barnes: former high school quarterback whose injury during a keg flip helped land him in community college. Troy is a really sweet, good-natured guy who happens to believe that all dogs are boys and all cats are girls. That singular notion is an example of the simple mindedness of Troy. His is a very specific naiveté that is rooted in a romanticism of innocence. Troy's flaws are not only lovable, they're logical.

Take for example this scene from "Cooperative Calligraphy", where we go through the group member's personal belongings (a great way to get introspection on each of the characters):

What do we learn about Troy? Well, in his second year of college we now know that Troy sees fit to only bring a pillow with him to class. Earlier in the episode, when faced with the accusation of stealing Annie's pen, Troy responded "Why would I want your pen? I don't even want my own." Troy is ill-prepared to be a college student in terms of school supplies, but Troy knows what he needs to get by is the appearance of being prepared. Troy likely uses the pillow when the opportunity arises. Troy doesn't flaunt the pillow, he keeps it in a back pack. I imagine he keeps it in the backpack and lays his head down on the strap side when using it to rest in the back of a class. It's a simpleton's move to sleep in class, or even not to write down anything while being taught. But this is Greendale Community College, and Troy's awareness of his college leads him to this defining moment.

Jeff's assessment of : "You just became my hero," is met by a "Thank You." Troy, annoyed with the situation, still knows how awesome his pillow idea is. He knows that a throw-pillow was the perfect choice as much as he knows that the pillow will suffice for his day at Greendale. 

Troy's seemingly random moments make for great comedy in the fact that the randomness is met with a deeper, sometimes darker, sometimes sweeter development into his core character. A pillow in his back pack, can't meet LaVar Burton, "notches". Troy Barnes is one of the most simplest, complex characters on television today.

My Struggle in Watching Television Sometimes

OK. So describing myself: A skinny, foreign tan young adult who obsesses over TV and Movies and expresses creativity thru being meta.

I also just described Abed from Community. Now, me not admitting that me and Abed were similar was holding back me absolutely loving that TV show.

Abed is awesome. I shouldn't project my feelings of inadequacy onto a TV character despite how I've said similar things that rang hollow and true when uttered by him.

Keep saying it: Abed is awesome. His friends view him in a particular light and have certain expectations of him. Abed can tell you the overlapping specifics between Teen Wolf and Teen Wolf 2 (Dad/Uncle and Francis from Pee-Wee's Big Adventure).

There's the upsetting part about relating to a recluse, odd television character. The 'dark side' if you will: Abed has to be blatantly told life is real and can't express emotions fully. That's fine. I see that in myself, I can work on that.

Things are allowed to happen in real life, as long as I can spot the differences: I flirted with a gay man because I wanted to talk about Strangers With Candy. Not some nerdy sci-fi TV series. There's a difference.

Mostly, though. Abed is everyone. He is viewing Community as a TV show too. Not understanding Abed is really not fully comprehending TV. Imagine if you related to Britta or Jeff. I would feel kind of sorry, but in a tragic way that's acceptable and makes me seem deeper than I really am.

If I'm seeing too much of myself in a TV character (nervous nerd type) at least it's on a show that has the TV character I want to grow up to be:

WAY TO READ A LINE: Danny Pudi in Community "Epidemiology"

Community has been the most fun on TV for the past 2 weeks. They hit you with the heavy hand of their 'Jesus' episode, and then follow it up with and go 'Zombie'. And it feels right to quantify each episode with one word, because Community has deftly parodied and subtlety become that short-handed and familiar of a TV show. The one character that sums that up, for better and acknowledged for worse, is Abed.

Now I said Community is a fun show. Fun is pretty much all you can ask from a TV sitcom, and Community throws fun up all over your freshly washed sport coat. Part of the fun (of watching any TV show really) is having your expectations exceeded. Let me explain: The Big Bang Theory isn't funny because the characters are saying their jokes. There have a pattern of set-up and heighten. Say the jokes, pause for the laughter. It's fine. It's not fun though. Better TV shows serve their jokes.

Abed, as established from every episode, as established even in this episode, has a romanticized view of life shaped by movies. He is also established as smart and capable. So having this character in a zombie movie setting is such a treat. So when we're down to the last 2 survivors, and its the best friends who have been arguing, the best friends who we recognize as the more comedic relief of the ensemble- we get to expect something.

"Troy, make me proud. Be the first black man to make it to the end."

We get an Abed movie zinger- a classic stereotype of horror movies that of course Abed recognizes in this situation. We get an emotional resolution to the Troy-Abed nerd dispute- Abed means his words- he wants Troy to succeed, he wants the school to be saved (Abed after all did bring up changing the temperature most out of all the characters), and- because we know Abed- he really wanted to say that line. All that in one line. In a zombie episode.

So sure, I took a cheap shot at Big Bang Theory... they could say this line and make it their own. Hell, I'm sure they had a similar line to this one. But no, they didn't have the emotional core to it. And no, they sure didn't do it in a zombie episode. That was set to Abba music. That played it totally straight. They would say the joke. They wouldn't serve it.

Also in this episode The Dean had heavy cream (not for drinking) on his grocery list.

Review: 2010 NBC Thursday Night Season Finale

The Swanson on The Swanson

TV loves its season finales. Its' inherit epic quality and heightened emotional depth just plays out to the fan quality of the show while still setting up the something to happen for the future. What? I can't understand what I just said. OK- A lot of things happen to a lot of our favorite people. Easy enough. Anyway, this post is just going to take my favorite joke from each episode and dizcuzz it to some extent.

Community - Star Burn's Video Yearbook Comment

This joke comes in the PS of the episode. John Michael Higgin's professor was in this episode and Troy ate a giant cookie (remember Kramer's lollipop?), but Star Burns is always pure gold. Initially I thought the line read, 'I just want people to remember there was a guy with these things', making an amazing explanation for the existence of Starburn's starburns. But the real line is quote: "I just want people to remember theres a guy in between these things". Adding an emotional depth to a side character that we really don't care about? Awesome, as long as it's Starburns. The notion of Starburns is such a shallow man whose claim to fame and source for social acceptance are stars that are hair that are on his face. That is hilarious. And giving him a line revealing that he just might be more than that? Nice try, he's Starburns. Please note my inherit bias to Dino Stamatopoulos, one of the funniest people in known existence (Conan, Moral Orel, TV Funhouse, he wrote the Pre-Taped Call In Show on Mr. Show). I am all for him being everywhere anytime probably more than anyone ever, save for real life relationships.

Parks and Rec - Freddy Spaghetti Songs

You know what show nailed it this season? Parks and Rec. I think we'll be talking about the 2nd season of Parks and Rec way on down the line. It is well on its way to being an Arrested Development level of genius situational comedy. So many characters with so many layers of interaction between them. Best scene of the night: the Brandanowitz farewell. Kept it straight, and we really know what these two people feel about one another. My favorite joke from tonight's episode comes from the episode's namesake, Freddy Spaghetti. Not so much a joke, as an existence of character. Freddy Spaghetti writes children's songs to the tune of other popular songs (remember when John Redcorn did that?) but he also adds in a callback to his own name of Italian themed food. For example- "she made an itsy-bitsy teenie weenie yellow polka dot linguini". Kids entertainer's are always ripe for weird, creepy businessmen (see Krusty the Clown) and they established Freddy as in it for the money within his first line. The real payoff is that how lazy he is in turning a song about a bikini into one of his own. Kids don't know and shouldn't know that song, but Freddy is making money. "What was your favorite song?" Leslie asks. "Penne and the Jets". And wow- that song really is all about saying the word Benny, and Freddy Spaghetti is smart enough to rip that off for his own. His other song was also just a call and response with the audience where Freddy yelled: "Spaghetti! Fusilli! Egg Noodles!" O the last one always gets ya. Freddie was played by 'force of nature' actor Brian McCann who helped carry Conan O'Brien the past decade with such characters as Fed Ex Pope, Johnny G: a guy who thinks Max Weinberg is hilarious, Randy the Pyloric Sphincter and Preparation H Raymond. Now he's one of the great minute characters on Parks and Rec. Now go on and win some Emmys, you great massive show you.

The Office - Meredith's Van

As pre-established, I am a huge sucker for Dwight, and tonight we got to see him work. The episode was a lot of Jo and Sabre's interrogations of the employees, which I hope they have deleted scenes of the lot of them, but none of them would be able to outshine Dwight's. We also got to check in with 2 of our favorites via one joke each- Todd Packer making a prank call, and David Wallace using an opportunity on TV documentary he used to be on to talk about his new product, Suck It (of course the sweatshirt was yellow, its for kids). We were also treated to one of the finest scenes in The Office lore- the IT Guy scene. Just remarkable on all accounts- no one really caring, even insulting (accidently: Jim not remembering his just announced name. on purpose: "...they use it for games and porn"), sprinkles of character in Oscar's nodding agreement with Dwight's assessment that the old IT guy was a terrorist or Daryl's face when it was revealed he had Facebook. Andy also sang a Woody Guthrie song, and Michael made me incredibly sad at points. But for one joke that stood out: Meredith's Van. This is the place where Michael meets 'the leaks'. Meredith's Van is a safe haven, a secret place, even though it apparantly is never locked. It seats 4 people comfortably though. The joke plays out like this- cut to scene in Meredith's van: With hand full of yellow sheets of paper, Pam: "I've never seen so many parking tickets." Daryl, holding a parking boot he found in the backseat: "This is just messed up." Read into this: Meredith is a classic alcoholic and she drives drunk. She drives her mini van, which she owns because she has kids, drunk enough to accrue a pile of parking tickets, likely from many different violations, and, worse, she is legally allowed not to drive, but took the device of her car anyway. Was she smart enough to hide the evidence, no just lazy enough to put it in there. Meredith has a sordid life- her kid plays soccer and she frequently has group sex with any number of disheveled souls looking for anything. Meredith is a bottom rung kind of women, one who drinks at work and has shown parts of her body to everyone at work. She works at this place, this dark, deeply perturbed character is part of Michael and Jim and Pam and everyone's everyday life. I love that. And she wasn't even in the scene. Kudos.

30 Rock - "...the current tattoo situation in the NBA"

First I want to get the something off my chest. 30 Rock is insane and it really tried pushing the comedic envelopes and has been more closer to 12-16 seasons of The Simpsons but earns triple times the points for not being animated, and is truly in another category all its own in TV history--- so I don't care that you already used Will Forte already as Price Gerhardt's messenger. I don't care because he is an on screen darling, sucking the viewer in with every charming smarmy breath and movement and welcoming vulnerabilty that this man is (MacGruber IN THEATERS NOW). You already used Rachel Dratch multiply, so established semantics over. I would love to give my favorite joke tag to the Jenna Maroney walking in on him as Cher scene: "this isn't what it looks like." Or when he can't control his Cher voice, "that came out wrong." Those jokes work on so many levels, each one hilarious. Everyone did a great at being their characters and when Kenneth becomes so drunkenly depressed that he reveals his true feelings: "Kiss My Face"--- is a totally validating an existence of a character just so we can have him play out that wonderful scene. My favorite joke goes to something bias once again: Carol is just meeting Liz and divulges information about life as a pilot leading to the exchange of him saying, "I don't know what's wrong in this country." Liz: "I know. People wear flips flops to church. And the NBA tattoo situation is out of control." That situation is out of control! In the 80s, those were men playing a team sport. The 90s crept in some individualism (Rodman, pff) and now its just a matter of fact thing that NBA players have tattos. LeBron had them in high school. Our country used to have its star basketball players be respectful and endorse nice products, now they thrive on individualism and making asses of themselves via stupid tattoos that compromise why they are really out there. Sure there is a dress code, but they ain't making up for tattoos. Sure, be yourself- but dammit- you're an image to people. Dr. J didn't have any tattoos probably. (Even Fundamentals Duncan has a dumb tattoo!) Also, flip flops in Church speaks to the lack of conviction in faith based religion. Church is about simply going to church, not about sticking to any higher power code. So much context hidden behind so much funny in one line.

So cool, inherit bias all around. That's how you're supposed to watch TV- for yourself. Develop a relationship with the characters, and like in real life, you'll have ones you like better and marry one of them and watch them with her for just an enjoyable evening of yourselves. That actually made sense, and I am only half patronizing here. Look, great TV inspires, and this inspired me to try a little more. You could tell that by the length of this entry as compared to others.