You gotta give NBC this much: they understand how the concept of the “news dump” works. Back in May, the news of Dan Harmon’s unceremonious ousting as Community’s show runner broke late on a Friday evening, when most of the entertainment press had called it a week; similarly, word leaked of Community co-star Chevy Chase’s exit from the show on the night before Thanksgiving. It wasn’t an unexpected move — Chase’s run on the program hasn’t exactly been rainbows and puppy dogs (more on that presently) — but the timing was downright peculiar; this is the kind of thing that usually happens between seasons, and though the finale to the show’s abbreviated, 13-episode fourth season is in the can, at least two episodes remain to be shot, meaning Chase’s Pierce Hawthorne will weirdly disappear for at least part of the year.

Then again, would anybody really notice? Chase’s presence on the show — his first regular television work since the notorious late-night Chevy Chase Show fiasco back in ’93 — was something of a sell point, or at least a curiosity factor, when Community premiered back in 2009. But as the show’s ace ensemble gelled, Chase saw less screen time, which prompted him to grouse in the press, which probably led to even less screen time, as his character’s arc and plotlines began to reflect his own alienation from the show’s cast and crew. Now that he’s gone altogether, where do he and the show go from here? … Read More