I’ve now watched every currently-available episode of Community, in some cases more than once. And doing so has confirmed the show as a new favourite, ranked right up with Spaced and some of the best of recent British comedy.

(I’m going to get mildly spoilery at various points throughout the next few paragraphs, so if you care about that sort of thing, then stop reading now.)

Here’s why Community is so wonderful, then.

First up, it strikes the perfect balance between the mundane and the absurd. The main cast’s backstories are all somewhat tragic and quite serious in some cases, but the situations into which they all get are frequently bizarre, odd and downright hilarious. But when the time comes to drop the stupidity and “be serious” for a moment, the show always manages to do so with dignity and without feeling overly “preachy”. Jeff’s speeches are a predictable part of the show — so much so that the characters even reference them on regular occasions — but they often provide a good amount of “closure”, either to an episode, or to one act at least. In some ways, it’s like South Park, with bizarre, frequently borderline-offensive humour punctuated by material which is making a point — be it satire, moralising or simple observations on life.

Secondly, the characters themselves are interesting and well-defined. They all have two specifically-identifiable features: a character trait and their appearance. Every character has their own unique way of responding to the situations the group comes across, and every character has their own unique, instantly recognisable look. This isn’t to say they become predictable, however (Jeff’s speeches notwithstanding) — on a number of occasions we find out more about them when they don’t do what we expect.

Britta is a particularly good example of this. In the first episode, she’s introduced as “the hot girl”, the impossibly beautiful eye candy whom all the male viewers would very much like to… well, you know. Jeff (the impossibly beautiful eye candy whom all the female viewers would very much like to… etc) wants to get into her pants, so he sets up the fake study group, thereby setting up the whole series. It’d be easy for the show to have been all about those two, with both Jeff and Britta remaining somewhat shallow, predictable characters. But any time we see Britta making the hideous social faux pas that she becomes known for (“turning it into a snake!”), we suddenly have sympathy for her. She’s no longer the unattainably attractive perfect blonde girl, she’s a human. Jeff finds himself the subject of similar sympathy on a number of occasions throughout, though generally not for making social faux pas.

Thirdly, and continuing on the subject of the cast, the chemistry between them is excellent, and a real highlight of the show. The show doesn’t make a big deal out of the blossoming, budding, potential relationships among the group — it’s somewhat more natural, and that’s what makes it all the more powerful. Every stolen glance, hint of a smile, lingering hug — it all adds up and makes each and every relationship feel real, and you’re right there with them, feeling that “will they/won’t they” feeling as if you were the one hoping to steal a kiss from your favourite. It’s a far cry from Ross and Rachel, anyway — there’s no angst, no whining, no “on-off-break” drama, just realistic, adult relationships between people who are convincingly awkward about such things.

Jeff and Annie’s relationship throughout the show is a particular highlight, and this was a surprise for me as I watched each episode for the first time. I was expecting the show to focus on Jeff trying to convince Britta that he was worth bothering with, but in fact the relationship which seems to be explored the most is that between Jeff and Annie — and it’s between these two that the on-screen chemistry is so utterly compelling. When the first season ends with that kiss between the two of them after all the drama with Britta and Professor Slater, it’s a surprise, but a welcome one. There’s a lot of subtle setup prior to this point, with things looking like they were coming to a head with the “debate” episode, but then tailing off as the two seemed to think it’d be “wrong” somehow — largely due to the age gap between them.

As of the time of writing, whatever electricity is between them hasn’t been fully resolved, and there’s growing tension between Troy and Britta, too. It’ll be interesting to see how these are developed when (not “if”, at last!) the show returns later in the spring.

It’s not all about the main cast, though. A big part of the humour in the show comes from its supporting actors, too. While we don’t learn a lot about Leonard, for example, we do pick up a number of nuggets of information during his brief appearances and a memorable shot of his frozen pizza reviews YouTube channel in the credits of one late episode. The Dean, conversely, gets plenty of screen time and we get to know quite a bit about this character. Initially appearing to be something of a predictable camp, gay stereotype, we gradually come to discover his hidden nuances, particularly in later episodes, with it all coming to a head (no pun intended) with his revelations in the episode where he shoots the new Greendale commercial.

And all this isn’t even getting into the wonderful “special” episodes. The paintball episodes, the Dungeons and Dragons episode, the stop-motion Christmas special, the spectacular anime sequences in the fussball episode, the Glee episode which rounded out the first half of the third season — some of the most memorable moments in TV right there. But I digress.

The sign of a good show of this type is if you’d want to hang out with the characters in your own time. And I can say with some certainty that if I had the opportunity to join that study group, I’d do so in a heartbeat. Sure, I’d probably fail every exam I took, but I’d have formed some of the most memorable friendships of my life.

The cast and crew of the show have done an astonishingly good job on creating one of the best shows in recent years. I hope against hope it isn’t made to die before its time due to its apparently poor ratings — but at least fans can take comfort from the fact that the show has been confirmed to be returning to complete its third season in the spring of this year. Beyond that, who knows?

Would that this desk were a Time Desk, so I could travel forward to the future and see if it runs for six seasons and a movie…