"I've got self-esteem falling out of my butt."
- Abed Nadir, Community
I've just finished watching the latest season of 'Community' and I have to say, it has definitely risen to occupy the number one spot on my favorites list. I think it's safe to say that Harmon's show about a group of students in Greendale Community College has accomplished what 'Glee' had initially set out to achieve, which was to sell a story about underdogs to an audience. While the 'Glee' kids were singing more and more Ke$ha with each passing episode... While Rachel's skirts grew shorter to satisfy a wider scope of viewers... While the show became more about the guest stars instead of the actual plot (or lack thereof)... It became pretty apparent that it had lost it's meaning.
What I like about 'Community' is how different each character is presented as. They are by no means, perfect. Heck, they may not even be all that appealing to most people. Lets see, you've got...
Annie Edison, the neurotic do-gooder
Jeff Winger, the insecure cynic
Britta Perry, the closet-ignoramus
Shirley Bennet, the repressed rage monster
Pierce Hawthorne, the lonely bigot
Troy Barnes, the airhead sidekick
As undeniably awesome as these aforementioned characters are, I would just like to talk about Abed Nadir.
He's weird.
He speaks in tongues barely anyone can understand (primarily references to obscure movies).
He analyses any and every situation.
He makes charts for no reason.
He was even suspected to be diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome.
Though, what I find interesting is the fact that I have an inability to call him socially awkward because he doesn't seem to think he is. He embraces each quality that makes him different from everybody else.
He would dress up as Batman and actually investigate a crime. Why? Because he doesn't see anything wrong with it.
In the face of humiliation inflicted by a teacher, he simply blinks and agrees to prove said teacher wrong in class the next morning.
He doesn't see anything wrong with how he chooses to live. Sure, he pretends to be different characters from different movies, but it never takes away from who he essentially is at the end of the day. As much as I laugh at the capers he gets himself into, I realize that he's one of the most inspiring characters, if not, the most inspiring character on the show.
His ability to shrug and say "I don't care" when met with critics who ridicule or alienate him for being somewhat out of the ordinary is something that we all continue to perfect over the years.
We tend to build a fence around the people we fail to understand in fear that they might infiltrate our lives in an irreversible way we cannot comprehend. Now I know all of us have had moments where we feel like an outcast or that our existence has not been admitted by certain people. Trust me, that is normal. In turn, these moments manifest into a feeling of self-deprecation and worthlessness that affect us in ways that make us hate our weaknesses. Again, this is normal.
Abed teaches us that we can say "Okay" and "Cool, cool, cool" and "I don't care" when we encounter such problems. We can turn our weaknesses into qualities that strengthen our identities as individuals. We can go through phases in our lives without a dependence on this sickening idea that we need to be accepted by everybody in order to be happy. Such a mentality is immature and ridiculous, yes... But it exists in every age group.
Come on, how many of us have pointed out random people just to pick at their flaws? How many of us have spent hours trying to find a smudge in someone's reputation? How many of us have attempted to badmouth someone behind their backs just for the sake of a wee bit of entertainment?
It is normal for us (as flawed human beings) to do so... but, it doesn't make it right.
Well, what started out to be a positive review has somehow escalated into an analysis (read:rant) of our human nature. I suppose I should try to lead this post back into a happy place, which is exactly why I'll leave you guys with the best of Abed's scenes in Season One and Two of Community:
