If there is any episode that could have shown NBC what a mistake they're making in sending this show to hiatus, it might just be "Regional Holiday Music." It isn't, perhaps, Community's best episode, but it illustrates the potential of this show in an absolutely delightful way. This episode somehow manages to be a hilarious play on many of the quirks we've come to know and love in these characters, a spot-on parody of Glee, and in the end a heartfelt holiday episode, ending with a dose of good old-fashioned friendship.
The little digs at Glee in this episode are almost too numerous to count, but some of my favorites include SNL's Taran Killum as an only slightly creepier Mr. Schue, the bearded piano accompanist who appears as though from nowhere, and of course, the constant talk about the vague but certainly impending Regionals.
And the music itself offered a lot of laughs, too. From Troy and Abed rapping to "Baby Boomer Santa" to a children's choir prompting Shirley to sing with them about Jesus, there were many lyrics that were just pure gold. Of course, there are a few obvious low points (Annie, I love you, but I can't listen to your voice when it sounds like that, or look at you when you're literally acting like a baby), but overall the music added to the episode in a logical way rather than seeming dropped in and random (like a certain other show I can't quite think of...).
This might not have been a holiday special on par with "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas", but it was charming in its own way, and it achieved exactly what I hoped it would: ensuring that I will be wholeheartedly nostalgic for this show until it returns sometime in the unforeseeable TV future.
Until then...
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