10 Best Community Episodes
5. A Fistful Of Paintballs
While Community gained a cult following over the course of its first season, late episode “Modern Warfare” was the making of the show. The paintball war that took over Greendale was a blast, demonstrating the true ambition of Dan Harmon’s creation.
Returning to the well a second time seemed a recipe for disappointment, but somehow season two’s closing episodes managed to achieve even more with the medium of paint-filled guns. The finale is an explosive tribute to Star Wars, but the better half is part one’s spaghetti western-tinged opener.
From the Sergio Leone style credits to the six shooting paintball guns, this is one of Community’s best pastiches, but like the first season’s episode, there’s more to it than just madcap fun. “A Fistful Of Paintballs” begins to pay off season long arcs, like Pierce’s precipitous slide into darkness.
It’s a perfect encapsulation of two of the show’s key strengths - an ability to push its comedy to ever larger, sillier places, and a carefully crafted group of characters and performers who fit together beautifully. Over time the bravura would start to overshadow the thoughtfulness, but this is right in the sweet spot.