Remedial Chaos Theory
| "Remedial Chaos Theory" | |
|---|---|
| Community episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 4 |
| Directed by | Jeff Melman |
| Written by | Chris McKenna |
| Production code | 303 |
| Original air date | October 13, 2011 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
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"Remedial Chaos Theory" is the third (aired as fourth) episode of the third season of the U.S. television series Community. The episode was written by Chris McKenna and directed by Jeff Melman. It originally aired on October 13, 2011 on NBC. The episode features a housewarming party for Troy and Abed panning out in seven alternate timelines. Each timeline explored the effect of the absence/presence of a character on other characters in similar situations.
Considered one of the best episodes of the series, "Remedial Chaos Theory" received highly positive reviews, with many critics lauding its unconventional structure and noting a significant improvement from the first three episodes of the season. McKenna was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for this episode.
Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) invite the study group to their housewarming party. In particular, they call attention to their Indiana Jones boulder escape scene diorama. Once everyone has arrived, they begin playing Yahtzee. The pizza delivery man, Toby (Robert Tarpinian), arrives, and someone has to go downstairs to collect the pizza. Everyone agrees to Jeff's (Joel McHale) plan to roll a die to determine who has to get the pizza.
The episode then splits into different timelines—as noted by Abed throughout, to his friends' confusion—with each alternate timeline playing out every possible outcome of the die roll. Every timeline features running gags which end differently depending on which characters are present or absent:
In the first timeline, Jeff rolls a two and Annie (who is sitting second on his left around the table) goes to get the pizza. Troy opens Annie's purse to find a gun, and is too distracted to open Pierce's present. Abed confronts Britta about the smell of marijuana in the bathroom, which offends her.
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