No One Replaces Troy

Community, S04E03

Abed, Troy, and Britta went to an Inspector Spacetime convention, inviting Annie and Jeff along who planned to go skiing in the area.  Abed introduced a friend he had been emailing for a while named Toby, and Troy quickly began to feel threatened by Toby's obvious attempt to replace him as Abed's best friend.  Annie played as Jeff's wife in the hotel, making Jeff's flirtation with a girl seem like adultery.  Pierce and Shirley also came to the convention, even though they weren't invited, and got pulled into a focus group about the American version of Inspector Spacetime.

I wasn't happy to see Toby, who was so pushy and rude, try to muscle his way into Abed's life through their mutual love of IS, but I did love how Troy got jealous in the same way a woman would if someone was trying to steal her boyfriend.  It's not unlike Abed to not even notice that Troy felt like he was being snubbed, especially since Abed was told to expand his his horizons and Troy was now spending his time more often with Britta.  Even though I'm still not loving the two of them together yet, I'm glad Troy wasn't just left to his lonesome.  Britta's no substitute for Abed, but at least she was there to support him and encourage him to "win back his man."  Troy might have gone off in a more destructive way if Britta hadn't been there instead of just screaming at Toby for forgetting his name.

Abed has really made some progress because he realized that although he had a lot in common with Toby, he was no replacement for Troy who is the one who keeps him grounded or "human," if you will.  It might have been nice if Troy had heard him come to that conclusion, but him simply knowing that Troy is his rock no matter how many other friends his makes is enough for me.  Also, Abed didn't need to freak out much being shoved into that phone booth like he would have in the past.  He trusted that Troy would find him, and of course he did.  That was a really cute moment.

Something else that I liked was when Britta asked about the only female inspector.  Somehow his explanation about Minera seemed to be sort of directed at Britta:

Yes.  And everyone hates her, not because they're sexist but because she sucks.

I liked how they kept using Minerva as a point of discord between Britta and Abed.   She seemed to have tgotten that shirt with her on it to sort of poke fun at Abed, who didn't agree much with her thoughts that Minerva was kinda cool.  It really shows you how Abed and Britta are like polar opposites when it comes to taste.

I thought Annie seemed a little delusional when she was pretending to be Jeff's wife, even if it was just for fun or to pass the time.  I mean, she seemed like a bigger psycho when she brought Jeff into it and made him look like a philandering weasel.  Still, I'm glad that she made him stop lying to that Thoraxis fan.  It made him look sleazy, and his accent was terrible.

My favorite part of their story was actually when Jeff stopped acting like he was too good for the convention and let his inner geek out by shouting Thoraxis' catchphrase.  He even ripped open his shirt and stood dramatically.  It was sort of cute that most of the other fans bowed down to him.   He should have done that sooner and had fun with it rather than sulk around the hotel like a jerk.

The only good thing about Pierce an Shirley joining the focus testing was Pierce's contribution to the show.  When Abed saw the Inspector Spacetime that was made with Pierce's suggestions, he had me laughing at his whispered "I hate you."  I wish I could see Abed get some kind of revenge on him somehow.

So far, I like this episode better than the other two.  It's not exactly noteworthy, but I feel like things are starting to pick up.  I hope that they will be able to have a story that makes me like Britta and Troy together better.  Right now I can't see her as much more than a third wheel to the Troy-Abed dynamic.  I'd rather see Jeff and Annie give it a go again, though.  They were sort of interesting as a fake married couple at least.  I don't know if they would really be so great if they were really man and wife.  Pierce and Shirley didn't have a big part in this episode, but at least they contributed to a final laugh in the extra scene.  Can't end an episode much better than Abed quietly furious at someone.