Community: A Movie - Season 7 Episode 1 or short film concept (2020)
In homage to the ongoing six seasons and a movie joke that runs throughout Community, I have written an episode or short film titled: A Movie.
This episode picks up where season six leaves off.
"A MOVIE"
We open with Jeff Winger attempting to conduct his first class of Law 101 for the year. He stands at the front of the class holding a text book which he stares blankly at. The students sit waiting patiently for him to begin but Jeff cannot focus, as he misses his friends and is not sure he will be able to get through the year without them.
Dean Pelton’s voice comes over the PA, welcoming all the students for the year and advising them all there is a costume competition in place, entries closing at the end of the day. He also calls Jeff to the Dean’s office. Jeff gladly leaves his class but not before instructing a student in the front row to get up and read the first chapter of the text book he was holding: Teaching Law 101 for Idiots.
Jeff arrives at the Dean s office. The Dean is wearing a female pirate outfit and taking a polaroid selfie which he places in the Costume Competition Entries box on his desk. Sitting in his office is Shirley Brown. Jeff is delighted to see Shirley but she advises him not to celebrate yet. She is in need of his services as a lawyer because she has been accused of murdering her employer, the detective Mr. Butcher. Shirley says that due to the accusations her assets have been frozen so she needs it to be a pro bono favour. Jeff regretfully turns Shirley down, stating he doesn’t have the time or money to allow him to take a pro bono case.
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“I can help with that!” says a voice from the doorway.
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Troy enters the Dean’s office. The four are elated to see each other and Troy offers to help financially since he has completed Pierce’s challenge of sailing around the world and inherited Pierce’s fortune. He assures Shirley he has more than enough, since the only things he has spent his money on is ten thousand copies of The Bridge on the River Kwai on Blu-ray, a custom bedazzled Motorola Droid X and one pack of candy cigarettes, just in case he relapses.
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Dean Pelton, Jeff, Shirley and Troy sit in the iconic study room. The Dean is now dressed as a Harley Quinn and while taking a selfie, tells Jeff the student in his Law 101 class is doing a fantastic job of substituting, freeing up Jeff for Shirley’s case. The group begin to go over the case details.
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Annie Edison enters. She has just completed her FBI internship and her first assignment is solving the murder of Mr. Butcher. She advises Shirley that even though they are friends, if Shirley is guilty, she will have no choice but to arrest her. Annie joins the group and goes over the facts of the case with them, comparing notes from her investigation with Shirley s details of the night in question.
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In the cafeteria, Abed Nadir approaches Shirley’s Sandwiches. Leonard is working behind the counter, giggling strangely as he works. Abed sees him take a handful of white flour from a mortar and pestle, sprinkling it onto the dough. He asks Leonard if he has seen Annie, Leonard directs him to the study room. Once Abed leaves, Leonard proceeds to knead the powder covered bread dough.
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Abed enters the study room. He says he has been quite successful in LA having almost won the coveted EGOT awards, the only one remaining is an Oscar. He wishes to follow Annie’s investigation of Mr. Butcher s murder to turn it into a documentary. He requests that no one acknowledge his presence as he wishes to shadow them in silence, so as to observe them all in their natural states. He does however recommend that the best way to solve the case is by doing a re-enactment of the night of the murder.
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The study room has been rearranged to look like Mr. Butcher’s personal study. The lights are off as the murder occurred at night, the room lit with carefully positioned lamps. Dean Pelton is playing Shirley so he has dressed himself in a sexy French maid’s outfit, once again taking a selfie. Shirley comments on the Dean’s outfit saying she never dressed like that, firstly because she was the chef not the maid, but also because it is offensive to her Christian nature. Jeff, playing the role of Mr. Butcher, sits in a chair.
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Shirley describes the events of the evening whilst Annie takes notes and asks questions. Abed is lurking around with his camera (almost creepily) in the corners of the room or directly behind people, looking over their shoulder as they talk and act out the night of the murder. Troy is standing beside Jeff with a lampshade on his head.
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Shirley explains that she had made dinner and brought it into the study, whilst the Dean (over dramatically as if he is on Broadway) re-enacts the movements. Shirley says she found Mr. Butcher with his pants around his ankles, dead in his chair. They all look at Jeff who refuses to drop his pants. The Dean says he will help and approaches Jeff who jumps up and backs away from the Dean.
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Annie yells at Jeff because Mr. Butcher was a paraplegic who was confined to a wheelchair so Jeff must sit back down. Jeff yells at an overly eager Dean Pelton who is attempting to pull Jeff’s pants down. The Dean is yelling at Jeff that it will be much easier if he stops resisting. Shirley yells at everyone to stop making a mockery of her serious situation. Troy is still standing with a lampshade on his head because he takes his role very seriously, he is a method actor.
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The group are startled by the lights coming on and someone declaring “you’re having a party without me?” They turn to see Britta Perry standing at the door. She holds a tray of sandwiches. They stop for a break and to eat, chat and catch up. Abed does not partake because the sandwiches contain ham.
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After finishing the sandwiches, they all begin to feel light-headed. Abed, who has of course not eaten the sandwiches and therefore has not been affected, watches them as they laugh and reminisce. We see this from his perspective though so they are all animated clouds, each one a colour that represents their personalities. Abed realises that Leonard has spiked the sandwiches with something. He leaves to find Leonard.
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Leonard admits he put his prescription pills into the sandwiches. The pills are for his heart but when used in a certain way, can give people a high. Abed returns to the study room and presents the information to the group. Shirley recognises the name of the heart medication as one that Mr. Butcher also used.
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Britta (in a typically-Britta long winded and random story) says that she once dated a guy who used to steal those pills from his grandfather and take them to get high but one night, he took a bunch and died from a heart attack in the middle of them having sex. Jeff says that explains a lot. Britta glares at him. The two begin throwing shade at each other.
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Annie interrupts and announces she has solved the case. She goes through her files and finds the autopsy report. Annie deduces that Mr. Butcher had enough of the pills in his system that he must have given himself a heart attack whilst attempting to pleasure himself.
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The next day the group, all except Troy and Dean Pelton, sits in the study room. Annie s phone rings. She answers it and has a brief discussion with whoever is on the other end whilst the others look expectantly at her. When she hangs up, Annie happily announces that the DA agrees with her findings and has ruled it as an accidental death, Shirley is free and clear.
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Abed’s phone rings, it is Troy. Abed puts Troy on video. Troy tells the group Abed edited the footage during the night and sent Troy to LA to present it to the Academy. Troy continues on to say the Academy loved it and agreed it was Oscar nomination worthy. Over the PA Dean Pelton announces the winner of the costume competition was none other than… himself.
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They all look at each other and agree that they are all better when they’re together than apart.