Early 21st Century Romanticism

Early 21st Century Romanticism

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Director: Stephen Sprung — Writer: Karey Dornetto — Aired: February 10, 2011 —Season: Two — Number: Fifteen Summary: Valentine's Day finds Troy and Abed competing for the attention of an assistant librarian, and Britta tries to prove how progressive she is. Meanwhile, Jeff gets into a fight with the study group and takes a break from them.

Plot

Caring about a person can be scary. Caring about six people can be a horrifying, embarrassing nightmare. At least for me. But if I can't say it today, when can I say it? I love you guys. Oh, and Pierce? Take it from the expert. These knuckleheads are right outside your heart. Let them in. Before it's too late. Happy Valentine's Day.

— Jeff Winger

In the study room, Troy and Abed are covertly checking out an attractive school librarian as both are interested in asking her to the upcoming Valentine's Day dance. As the rest of the group arrives for their meeting, they turn to Jeff for advice but he is unhelpful. Everyone notices Pierce taking too many pain pills but are distracted when they hear Britta palling around with another student outside. When she sits down at the study table, she gushes about her new friend Page whom she proudly declares is a lesbian. Everyone expects an offensive response from Pierce but he instead reads a statement he had prepared in advance. After finishing, he takes another pill and moonwalks out of the study room. Concerned over his overuse of pain killers for his recent leg injuries, Annie suggests an intervention.

'...And in summation, good luck and Bon Appétit!'

Jeff refuses to participate adding a sarcastic dig at The Barenaked Ladies which angers the study group. Their poor reaction to his snide comment causes Jeff to storm off telling them he needs some space. Outside he runs into Professor Duncan who convinces Jeff to blow off attending the Valentine's Day dance to watch a soccer game at his apartment. Unbeknownst to them, Chang had overheard their plans. Elsewhere, Pierce is walking down the hallway when he hallucinates the Tiny Man again who encourages him to keep taking more pain killers. Back in the library, Troy and Abed approach the librarian Mariah and respectfully state their romantic interest in her. They suggest that she join them at the Valentine's dance and spend time with them so she can decide which one she wants to date. Being both amused and flattered at their proposal she agrees.

'It's Valentine's buddy...be mine?'

In the student lounge, Annie is called homophobic by Britta for being so inquisitive about her new friendship. Britta then goes to talk to Page while Annie chats with her friend Claire. After conferring with each other they both realize that Page and Britta mistakenly believe that the other one is gay. When Britta tells them that Page and her have decided to go to the Valentine's Day dance together they decide to keep that revelation to themselves. Meanwhile at Jeff's apartment, Duncan is enjoying the soccer game while Jeff is preoccupied with his cell phone believing that the study group is about to call. Duncan convinces him to forget about them and to try to enjoy the game. Chang arrives at his door step attempting to join them. Jeff lets him only to regret it when Chang accidentally destroys a lamp.

Time for a Chang of address.

He insists on making it up to Jeff by offering to order a pizza. Chang then secretly uses the opportunity to call up Star-Burns and tells him to spread the word about a party at Jeff's place. At the Greendale Valentines Day Dance, Troy and Abed are competing against each other for Mariah's affections. Britta and Page show up together and immediately start to get self conscience about the other students reaction to them. In a show of defiance, they decide to dance together provocatively. Back at Jeff's apartment, Jeff is annoyed at how Chang seems to be making himself at home. He is further aggravated when Chang lets in crowd of people into his residence and a party led by Star-Burns, Leonard and a student named Magnitude starts up. At the Valentines Dance, Mariah chooses Troy who sadly breaks the news to Abed.

'"POP!POP!"'

Elsewhere, Annie approaches Pierce having noticed his odd behavior. He is unresponsive to her concerns and has his attention drawn to Page and Britta by the Tiny Man. After Pierce loudly proclaims them to be lesbians, they become emboldened by their sudden oppression. The two begin awkwardly kissing on the dance floor in order to make a statement about intolerance. However, the make-out session comes to an end when they reveal to each other that this is their first time kissing another woman. Meanwhile, Troy is upset when he learns Mariah didn't pick Abed because she thinks he is weird. He breaks up with her and leaves to be with his best friend. At the same time, Jeff finds that he is actually enjoying himself at the impromptu party in his apartment.

Kissing as a political protest.

Back at the dance, Britta and Page hypocritically confront each other over the true reasons behind their friendship. Page leaves after a scathing retort and Annie consoles Britta. At Jeff's apartment, Jeff discovers Chang was using the party as a distraction to move in. His wife kicked him out after learning slept with Shirley. Jeff ends the festivities and throws Chang and the other party goers out. Duncan is the only person left and he gives Jeff some advice; stop resisting Greendale and enjoy his time there. Later, Jeff finds Chang still in his apartment complex asleep inside the hallway garbage disposal unit and carries him back inside. He then sends a mass text to the study group apologizing for their fight earlier and to let them know that he loves them all. It's shown that Pierce is the only one who failed to read the text as he was passed out on a bench outside having overdosed on his medication.

"Happy Valentines Day".

End tag

Troy feeds a blindfolded Abed Valentine conversation hearts candy, and Abed is able to tell what was written on the heart just by tasting it. Abed soon admits to cheating, but Troy tells him the heart says "Email Me" instead.

Abed correctly guesses what's on the candy hearts.

Recurring themes

Continuity

Continuity lists

Narrative Recurring or debuting plot points in this episode: That just happened: Chang's wife kicked him out when she found out he had sex with Shirley. They hooked up on Halloween but the affair wasn't made public until later. History lesson: Jeff's driver license reveals his birth date to be November 20, 1971. Winger speech: Jeff texts the group a speech with the reason he had a fight with them. People Recurring or debuting characters in this episode: Returning students: Leonard and Star-Burns (who has shaved his sideburns into hearts for Valentine's Day) return for a party at Jeff's apartment. First appearance: Magnitude, the one man party, makes his debut in this episode. Familiar face: Pierce's "Tiny Man" pilot makes a return from his last appearance in "Aerodynamics of Gender". Places Recurring or debuting places in this episode: This must be the place: Group Study Room F, the Library, the student lounge, the cafeteria and Jeff's apartment all make an appearance. Things Recurring or debuting items in this episode: School uniform: When Jeff asks if Chang is wearing his underwear, the underwear matches the pattern of Jeff's shirt and socks from Debate 109. School supplies: Jeff's cell phone is featured prominently in this episode as are the other study group members phones which all happen to coincidentally seem to be BlackBerrys. The Foosball table is beside Britta and Page when they are at the vending machine. School song: "I Never Die" (Chang's personal anthem first heard in the Season One episode "Investigative Journalism") plays during the impromptu party at Jeff's apartment. A slowed-down piano version of "'If I Die Before You" plays as Jeff sends his text message and the study group reads it. The original version of "If I Die Before You" was first heard in the first season's Valentine's Day episode as well.

Running gags

List of Running gags

Recurring or debuting running gags in this episode: Bon Appétit!: Pierce reads a statement he had prepared if Britta ever outed herself as a lesbian. His last line is where the name of this running gag comes from. Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?: Annie, worried about Pierce's painkiller habit, asks the rest of the group, "Intervention? Intervention? Intervention?" Changuage: When Jeff reluctantly says Chang can come in his apartment, Chang says "don't mind if I Chang". Fanservice: Britta and Page kiss awkwardly and Annie leans in to kiss Britta when a bystander suggests it. Gay, he's so gay!: Pierce tells Jeff he has a similar statement prepared for Jeff when he comes out of the closet. My other half: Troy freaks out when Mariah suggests that Abed is weird. Raging against the machine: Britta repeatedly overreacts to what she perceives as homophobia in others. You're the worst!: Page calls Britta this after learning she's not gay and was just hanging out with her because she thought Page was a lesbian. Zzzzz: Troy and Abed fake a snooze after catching the attention of an assistant librarian.

Pop culture references

List of Pop culture references

References to popular culture in this episode: IMDb: Abed gives Mariah a detailed overview of the Saw movie franchise. Name that tune: The song "Fancy Footwork" by Chromeo plays at the dance. Shout out: Jeff makes a sarcastic crack about "The Barenaked Ladies" and the rest of the group leaps to aggressively defend the band. Well-read: Troy tells Abed that Mariah wouldn't shut up about Nicholas Nickleby.

Meta references

List of Meta references

Meta references in this episode: IRL: The actress who plays Claire is Cyrina Fiallo, Alison Brie's good friend and co-star from a web series they both did in 2008 called "My Alibi". Pierce is shown abusing his pain medication throughout the episode. Chevy Chase had a bad addiction to pain killers in the 1980s. In 1986, his addiction would lead him to seek treatment at the Betty Ford Center. The casting of Andy Dick as the Tiny Man is probably a "meta" reference to his real-life alleged involvement in many Hollywood scandals that included drug abuse/overdoses, with the media going out of its way to connect him to a few actors' and comedians' tragic drug-related issues. Up against the wall: Jeff has an argument with the study group about the band "The Barenaked Ladies" which leads to him taking a break from the group. Although fans of the show thought this was a dig at The Big Bang Theory, which shared a timeslot with Community at the time of airing, and had The Barenaked Ladies write and perform The Big Bang Theory theme, Dan Harmon confirmed during a Paley Center event that the joke was not aimed at The Big Bang Theory. It was just a joke he thought up because "everyone seems to aggressively defend The Barenaked Ladies."

Trivia

• In the Community The Complete Second Season DVD commentaries, episode director Steven Sprung mentions that Magnitude's name wasn't settled upon so multiple takes had to made with other possible names for him including "Poochie", "Ray-Ray" and "Glisten".
• Jeff and Duncan gather to watch a live soccer match at 6:30 p.m. meaning that the game is happening at 1:30 a.m. in England.

Quotes

“Why does being a librarian make her even hotter?”— Troy

“They're keepers of knowledge. She holds the answers to all of our questions, like "Will you marry me?" and "Why are there still libraries?"”— Abed

“I wanna be a book. She could pick me up, flip through my pages, make sure nobody drew wieners in me.”— Troy

“I'm a stylish American, Professor. I've been forcing myself to be into soccer since 2004.”— Jeff

“If you have to ask if it's homophobic to ask questions, haven't you already answered your own questions?”— Britta

“Have I?”— Annie

“You're the worst. And for the record, I never thought you were cool. I only thought you were a lesbian.”— Page

“What is it about me that makes broken people flock to me. Is it my height? Do huddled masses mistake me for the Statue of Liberty?”— Jeff