Now that Dan Harmon is OFFICIALLY(!!!) returning for the fifth season of NBC’s Community, people in the streets are rejoicing and the world is righting itself and all that stuff. Harmon, feeling rightfully proud of his return to his baby, went on his podcast and gloated just a bit too much, and is now backtracking on some of the stuff he said, apologizing for the overall tone and some of the less tactful parts. I’m going to try and truncate it to the bare bones, but you really should go over to his Tumblr and read it in full because, well come on, he’s Dan Harmon.
I am first and foremost sorry to Community fans that got paid nothing to stick by Community and get us to a fifth season only to hear the incoming showrunner say some stuff that felt very un-Community. Even if my goal had been to hurt someone, it would never have been you.
Next I want to apologize to the people that did get paid to work on that season, but not enough: the cast and crew. I get personal value out of being as honest as possible, but, honestly, how honest was what I said? It was dishonest to imply that something you worked on was as hard to watch as my family being assaulted.
Thirdly, because they got paid more, but still not enough, the season 4 writers. I’m sorry I pooped on your work. You had to do something nobody should have to attempt, and you had the option of doing it the lazy way or the sellout way and you clearly did what you did because you were thinking of the fans. There was some amazing stuff in there. Funny jokes. I liked the “Hogan’s Villains” line. The idea that in Germany, people watch Hogan’s Heroes, but they call it Hogan’s Villains, is seriously so funny I had to rewind it a couple times to finish laughing.
On one hand, I absolutely adore Dan, and I have ever since The Sarah Silverman Program. The guy has one of the most deliciously twisted and original voices in TV today, and I really just love everything he does. That being said, I also really enjoyed season four of Community. The showrunners had an uphill battle to fight, between a down-on-its-luck network, a demanding fanbase and a lot of critical acclaim to live up to. They did the best they could with the hand they were given, and overall I think they were successful and they turned out a pretty good season. I’m looking forward to Harmon on season five, but lighten up on the previous season.