Community: 10 Best Standalone Episodes

10. Basic Rocket Science

Blast off in 3, 2, 1...

After changing the school flag to a butthole, the study group have to clean up the "Kentucky Fried Chicken Eleven Herbs and Spices Space Experience" space simulator before its "launch" as punishment. Due to a mishap, however, all but Abed find themselves trapped inside and being towed to an unknown location, leaving it to him to save the day.

While clearly being a parody of Apollo 13, like any good episode of Community Basic Rocket Science manages to stand on its own separate from its influences. Community is a series defined by clever character bits, and this episode excels in that area.

The entire inciting incident involving the study group changing the Greendale flag to a butthole isn't just hilarious (especially considering it stays that way for the rest of the series), but also totally in character for all of them. Then there's the conflict inside the simulator where Pierce has somehow managed to succumb to "space madness" which is easily the highlight of the whole episode.

Sometimes all an episode needs to do is be one hell of a good time, and Basic Rocket Science is just that.