Community Season 1

(M) Sony DVD

Hey, hardcore fans of 30 Rock, The Office (US version) and Arrested Development. Welcome to your new favourite show.

After the first few episodes of outrageously mega-awesome Community, you will clear your diary so you can immediately watch the rest of the season. Talking up a program may destroy enjoyment for latecomers, but Community is so great it’s impossible to overstate how spectacular this pop-culture celebration is.

Loosely based around a deliberately diverse (and ridiculous) group of mature-aged students in a Spanish study group at a community college, Community is rapid-fire — and breathtakingly clever — in its ability to channel film, TV and modern references into a brilliant parody and reinvention of traditional sitcoms.

Plus, Chevy Chase co-stars! Besides challenging devoted viewers to stop gushing when recommending this program, the latest American small-screen comedy kingpin humorously lays bare the joy and trials of relationships between those of vastly varied backgrounds, beliefs and knowledge about The Breakfast Club or Who’s The Boss?

Insults, sexual innuendo and tongue-in-cheek offensiveness are included — but the heart of Community is, naturally, our need for worthwhile bonds.

Ben McEachen