{"product_id":"community-going-back-to-school-with-televisions-best-sitcom-9781538191897","title":"Community: Going Back to School with Television's Best Sitcom","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA fun and engaging overview of the popular television series \u003ci\u003eCommunity\u003c\/i\u003e as the show fulfills its own prophecy of concluding with six seasons and a movie.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Sitcoms are unique to television. In many respects, they define US television from \u003ci\u003eI Love Lucy\u003c\/i\u003e to \u003ci\u003eSuperstore\u003c\/i\u003e. Given sitcom's longevity and adaptability, the only surprise is that it took until 2009 for someone to create a series that both skewers and honors the sitcom genre: \u003ci\u003eCommunity\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In Community\u003ci\u003e: Going Back to School with Television's Best Sitcom\u003c\/i\u003e, Erin Giannini examines the cultural phenomenon that is \u003ci\u003eCommunity\u003c\/i\u003e, a series about a community college and, in the series own words, \"the goofballs who run around stirring up trouble, and the eggheads that make a big deal out of it.\" It's a meta series with an active fandom (enough to justify a follow-up film) and features an eclectic cast. Created by Dan Harmon based on his brief experience in community college, it appears on the outside to be a typical sitcom: lovable rogue Jeff Winger is forced to go back to college to earn the credentials he lied about and falls in with a motley group of quirky new friends. Yet the series almost immediately deconstructs this by having the character of Abed Nadir tie in the group dynamic to pop culture touchstones, from mafia film \u003ci\u003eGoodfellas\u003c\/i\u003e to bottle episodes and clip shows. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Giannini explores how the series embodies the cusp between traditional television and the streaming era. Highlighting \u003ci\u003eCommunity\u003c\/i\u003e's influence, the way it differentiated itself from other sitcoms and yet embraced the genre, the comedic generational divide embodied by the escalating tension between Chevy Chase and Dan Harmon, the ascendance of Donald Glover, and much more, this is a must-read for fans of the cult-favorite show.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Erin Giannini\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Bloomsbury Academic\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/13\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 232\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.25lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.14h x 6.07w x 0.72d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781538191897\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eErin Giannini\u003c\/b\u003e, PhD is an independent scholar and has written numerous articles about topics from corporate culture in genre television to production-level shifts and their effects on television texts. She is also the author of \u003ci\u003eSupernatural; A History of Television's Unearthly Road Trip\u003c\/i\u003e (Rowman \u0026amp; Littlefield 2021), \u003ci\u003eThe Good Place\u003c\/i\u003e [TV Milestones], and co-editor of the book series B-TV: Television Under the Critical Radar for Bloomsbury. She lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Erin Giannini \/ Hardcover \/ English","offer_id":47733836644509,"sku":"9781538191897","price":81.43,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_aea699b7-1b39-427f-bfb7-e64772779308.jpg?v=1773736704","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/community-going-back-to-school-with-televisions-best-sitcom-9781538191897","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}