After six seasons, Community is finally getting a movie, and this final farewell to Greendale’s favorite study group should redeem one key character.
Ever since Abed Nadir started the rallying cry of „Six seasons and a movie,“ Community fans have been determined to see the sitcom make the leap to a feature-length format. Now, it’s finally happening, with showrunner Dan Harmon and most of the series‘ original cast reuniting to bring the Community movie to life on the streaming platform Peacock. Anticipation is high among the series‘ dedicated fan base, who have plenty of questions. Harmon has confirmed the movie won’t indulge in the series‘ paintball penchant, nor will it see Greendale Community College out of action, but there have been no hints yet as to what the plot will involve. All fans know is that the series‘ key cast members are returning.
With the exception of Chevy Chase, who played Pierce Hawthorne and infamously fell out with Harmon on the set of Community, all the series‘ original cast members are expected to return for the movie. Following the series‘ conclusion in 2015, the film will pick up with the study group almost a decade after fans last saw them. That leaves plenty of room for growth and change in the interim, which might be for the best for one character in particular. While all the study group members changed to some extent over the course of their time at Greendale, fans were generally disappointed by the series‘ treatment of Britta Perry after Season 1.
Introduced as the object of Jeff’s desire in Community’s pilot episode, Britta quickly made it apparent she was so much more than just a sitcom love interest. While she was struggling academically in her introduction, she was intuitive and principled, becoming the only study group member to see through Jeff’s self-interested deceptions. As a foil for Jeff, Britta became something of a matriarchal figure to the group and provided a moral compass to contrast Jeff’s amoral outlook. Britta wasn’t without her own flaws and struggles, like any member of the study group, but she was often the only one who could see through the others‘ facades to help them confront their own issues.
As the series progressed, the Britta and Jeff romance got played down. The interactions between the two would still play a key part across all six of Community’s seasons, but thankfully, Britta was allowed to develop into much more than a love interest. However, the series failed to show Britta living up to her potential as a confident and independent character. By Season 3, characters were using Britta’s name as a verb to mean messing up, signaling Britta’s fall from a level-headed guiding force in the study group to a joke character seen as synonymous with incompetence. Her supposed principles were played as a one-note parody of social activists, and she became overly reliant on her friends.
With the Community movie on the horizon and likely to be the last time the study group reunites, Community has one last chance to redeem Britta. Following the conclusion of Season 6, Britta is perhaps in a better position than ever to reclaim the self-possessed confidence and insight that defined her in Season 1. While the series‘ final season doubled down on rendering Britta an incompetent airhead in many regards, it did at least provide her with a satisfying character arc, seeing Britta learn to respect and value herself rather than constantly defining herself through the eyes of others. Maybe some time away from Greendale will help this more self-assured Britta reclaim the character fans fell in love with.
In Community’s earliest episodes, Britta held an effortless air of authority in the group. Unlike other authority figures seen throughout the series, such as Jeff or Frankie, there was no bossiness or smug superiority in Britta. Rather, her compassion, intuition and desire to help those around her earned her the respect of the study group. The movie should see Britta return as the best version of herself to bid a fond farewell to Greendale.