Much to the chagrin of seemingly everyone on Twitter (not to mention this editor) the witty and wonderful Community was notably absent from the midseason schedule released by NBC this week. Might they be about to cancel Community outright after a post-musical-Christmas-episode hiatus? Might they deny us the glorious twenty-five minutes of multiple timelines, paintball and sinister men who work in Air Conditioning? It’s starting to look like it.
The Internet reacted with everything from outrage (see: Twitter) to indifference as it is prone to do, with most people saying that NBC have definitely Britta’d their midseason schedule. Take a look:
- The New York Magazine’s Vulture blog has a useful Q&A on Community’s future with the important note that the show has not been cancelled at this point “and NBC insiders say there are absolutely not plans to cut back on the episodes already ordered.” The rest of the post also serves to explain the current ratings situation, syndication and the probability of a fourth season (Vulture gives Community a 70% chance of returning).
- The reaction to the midseason lineup at Ken Tucker’s TV blog at the Entertainment Weekly website focuses on the shelving of Community as a PR problem due in large part to the enthusiasm of Community’s fanbase, but also because NBC’s “new fall shows have either been watched with a minimum of enthusiasm or by virtually no one.”
- Reuters‘ article on the schedule also mentions a source at NBC who has said Community ”is expected back at some point.”
- Time humorously notes: “On the one hand, TV is a business, at which Community has had over two years to sell its wares. On the other hand, as Troy would say, this is the opposite of Batman.”
- On Twitter, Community creator Dan Harmon said he believed the Christmas episode will be the last to air before 30 Rock takes over.
- In probably the most pessimistic Community reaction to be found, Den of Geek writes “it looks like [Community's] been cancelled in all but name.”
- Lastly, the website http://www.save-community.com/ has been started up to host a petition calling for the show to be saved from (speculative) cancellation.
And how about you? How did you react to the gaping absence in the midseason schedule? Do you feel like Community‘s about to get the chop? Discuss in comments!
