“VCR Maintenance and Educational Publishing” began and ended beautifully, with the Dean’s freestyle rap (note the smile on Gillian Jacobs’ face) and the tragi-comedy of Gina Gershon convincing Vince Gilligan to sell his stock in Apple for a profitable life as the Luke Skywalker of VCR games, but what came between…*takes 20 second pause where you’re not sure if the VCR is broken*…was also really good. The Abed and Annie subplot not only gave us Pile of Bullets, which needs to exist right now (“DRAW”), but also more Brie Larson and the introduction of Annie’s bearded brother, Anthony (played by Harmontown‘s Spencer Crittenden). Both played the straight (wo)men to the increasing insanity of their boyfriend and sister, respectively, who both eventually admit that Troy helped balance them out. They need a new roommate, though they’re not so desperate that they’re ready to ask Britta to move in.
Speaking of Britta: can she snort fake cocaine out of a book every week? The case of the hidden textbooks never really went anywhere (it wasn’t supposed to), but it was an excuse for Shirley to show off her hard-boiled side, and for Jonathan Banks to talk about stashes in an episode that also had Gilligan in a cowboy outfit, so prisons recruiting, the police be shooting/Them rap artists looting, them labels all deluding/And Barack Obama is scared of me/’Cause I don’t swallow knowledge and I spit it for free.
(I DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS.)
1. They call her Unpredictable Edison.
2. Hot Saucerman would do well for himself at Greendale.
3. Get some of that book candy.
4. Anthony would be BFFs with Orin.
6. Seriously, I would pay upward of $5 for Pile of Bullets.
7. Abed and Annie spin right round.
