The fifth season of the television comedy series Community premiered on January 2, 2014,
and concluded on April 17, 2014. The season consists of 13 episodes and aired on NBC on
Thursdays at 8:00 pm ET as part of the network's "Comedy Night Done Right". The season features
the return of series creator Dan Harmon as showrunner, as well as the exit of cast members
Donald Glover and Chevy Chase from the series, the introduction of Jonathan Banks, and the
return of John Oliver. NBC announced the series' cancellation in May 2014, however in June
2014 Yahoo! Screen announced it had ordered a sixth season.
Cast
Starring Joel McHale as Jeff Winger
Gillian Jacobs as Britta Perry Danny Pudi as Abed Nadir
Yvette Nicole Brown as Shirley Bennett Alison Brie as Annie Edison
Donald Glover as Troy Barnes Jim Rash as Dean Craig Pelton
Ken Jeong as Ben Chang Episodes
Production On May 10, 2013, NBC announced it had renewed
the series for a fifth season, to consist of 13 episodes. The season does not feature
original cast member Chevy Chase in a regular role, as he left the series near the end of
the fourth season by mutual agreement between the actor and network. Chase does appear in
a guest role during the first episode of the season and the character's exit from the show
is finalized in "Cooperative Polygraphy". Donald Glover, who portrays Troy Barnes, only
appears in five of the thirteen episodes. Jonathan Banks appears in 11 of the season's
13 episodes as criminology professor Buzz Hickey. Rob Corddry reprises his role as lawyer
Alan Connor in the season premiere. Walton Goggins guest stars in "Cooperative Polygraphy"
as a mysterious man named Mr. Stone, "with a dangerous accusation, a tantalizing offer
and a devious plan that will change the group forever." John Oliver, who played Professor
Duncan throughout the first two seasons, reprises his role in season 5 for multiple episodes.
Other guest stars in the season include Vince Gilligan, Mitchell Hurwitz, Tim Heidecker,
Eric Wareheim, Brie Larson, Nathan Fillion, Robert Patrick, Paget Brewster, Kumail Nanjiani,
Katie Leclerc, and Ben Folds. David Cross guest stars in an episode that serves as a
sequel to season 2's "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons", playing Hank Hickey, the estranged son of
Professor Hickey. B. J. Novak has a cameo in the second part of the two-part season
finale. Season 5 began shooting on August 19, 2013.
The fifth season has the return of series creator Dan Harmon as showrunner and executive
producer after he was fired from the show after the end of the third season. Also returning
is former writer-producer Chris McKenna, who is also now an executive producer. Season
4 showrunners Moses Port and David Guarascio do not return for season 5, as they just had
a one-year deal. The only other returning writers are Andy Bobrow and Tim Saccardo.
Meanwhile Annie Mebane, Steve Basilone, Maggie Bandur, and Ben Wexler all departed to join
The Michael J. Fox Show, while Megan Ganz joined Modern Family. Joining the writing
staff for the fifth season are Parker Deay and Jordan Blum, Alex Rubens, Ryan Ridley,
Dan Guterman, and Matt Roller. Other writers in the staff include Carol Kolb, Briggs Hatton,
Clay Lapari, Erik Sommers, Monica Padrick and Donald Diego.
Reception The fifth season has received strongly positive
reception from television critics. The season received a Metacritic score of 80 out of 100
based on 15 reviews, signifying "generally favorable reviews". The season was also "Certified
Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes, with an approval rating of 92% and average score of 8.7/10,
based on 25 reviews. Verne Gay of Newsday gave the back-to-back
episodes an "A" grade, remarking that the first of the two was funny, while the latter
was "simply hilarious." Alan Sepinwall, writing for HitFix, remarked that the show "is back,
and back to being itself." References
External links Episode guide at NBC.com
List of Community episodes at the Internet Movie Database
List of Community episodes at TV.com