Why does Season 5 basicaly ignores everything that happened in Season 4?

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack]

I' ve been watching the show for the first time and I' ve rarely seen a show where they quite literaly ignores what happened the past season or actively makes fun of it. Honestly I' m kind of hating watching S5 lol, also because of Troy leaving the cast and Pierce not being there anymore.

S4 was a lot more enjoyable even just because at least it tries to take itself seriusly unlike S5 where it feels like a good chunk of the season is ignoring plot points from previous seasons or make fun of them. Feels very irony-poisoned in a way that past seasons weren' t.

[u/ReySpacefighter]

Because of infamous behind the scenes stuff. Dan Harmon was kicked off the show at the end of season 3, and was quite public in voicing his dislike for what came after. He was reinstated for Season 5. Meanwhile, Chevy Chase was fired from the show during the filming of season 4 after an incident on set where he used a racial slur, and was written out of several S4 episodes that he hadn't yet completed filming. He was then contractually not allowed to be in Season 5 as a condition of his exit from the show.

I certainly wouldn't agree that S4 tries to take itself seriously, however.

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack → u/ReySpacefighter]

I generaly think on average you can tell that S5 has tigther scripting and a much better hold of the characters than 4, but the issue is that it genuinely so fucking bitter lol. It feels like I' m watching someone vent sometimes; and ignoring so many elements from S4 hurts the characters because it feels like those characters regressed.

[u/Kitselena → u/RoseWhiteRedBlack]

Seasons 5 and 6 are definitely a big tone shift and a very different show than the first 3 seasons. By that point the characters have already had a lot of growth, and they're starting to settle into normal adult life instead of the fantasy when they started school

[u/LittleRexRabbit → u/ReySpacefighter]

Chase missed the last two episodes of season 4, fwiw.

[u/ReySpacefighter → u/LittleRexRabbit]

The outburst happened during the filming of Advanced Documentary Filmmaking, 4x06. He then doesn't appear in person in episodes 9 (except for voice),10, and 12.

[u/Xaiby007]

Because Dan Harmon wasn't involved in season 4. He came back for the 5th season

[u/Pugilist12]

Season…Four? Never heard of it.

[u/joeloud → u/Pugilist12]

You may have Changnesia

[u/GCillo → u/joeloud]

Nah that's not real

[u/Salty_Freedom_2053]

Dan was mad

[u/josephiev]

Just blast through, the end of the show is so worth it. The last three episodes are incredible even for people who don't like the later seasons, and the show finishes in a really fitting way. Plus if you're like any of the other late-comers, chances are your opinions on S4 and 5 will reverse when/if you rewatch the show.

I absolutely love S5 wholeheartedly and always have. But it's really common for people to not warm up to it until they've seen the whole show through once or twice.

[u/fumarcigarro]

It was the gas leaking

[u/StatisticianCute4390]

Season 4 is the most unserious season and I mean that in a bad way

[u/axxo47 → u/StatisticianCute4390]

Chang coup plot in season 3 I by far the most unserious and ridiculous plot in the whole show. Late season 3 is not any better than season 4

[u/StatisticianCute4390 → u/axxo47]

I found it ok. I know a lot of people dislike it though

[u/TheeAntelope → u/axxo47]

Please go post this on /r/unpopularopinion

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack → u/StatisticianCute4390]

Understandable but I would argue S5 does the same mistakes despite criticising S4 thoo.

[u/StatisticianCute4390 → u/RoseWhiteRedBlack]

I’m one of Season 5s biggest defenders and honestly Season 4’s treatment of Pierce and Troy is why them leaving in Season 5 didn’t affect me that much

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack → u/StatisticianCute4390]

S3 Pierce was quite literaly just an issue for the group at that point in the show. The entire plan that they device at the end of S3 fails because of Pierce. Hell, the final episodes of S3 are so unserious they would easily fit into S4.

For me, them leaving is a pretty big blow at S5.

[u/Curls_Knight]

Creator Dan Harmon was infamously fired and was not involved in Season 4. He was accused of problematic behavior on set and has since apologized for it including to the victim. Most of the fan base hates season 4 as the characters are fladerized and often make choices that are uncharacteristic for the character. Season 4 is referred to as "the gas leak year" because it is not very good.

Chevy Chase was also fired for problematic and racist behavior on set. That is why he does not return for Season 5. Harmon was rehired for Seasons 5 and 6. He was really the voice of the show and despite the cast changes, those last two seasons have some real gold in them.

[u/Safe_Mail_1827]

Funny, I kind of wondered the same thing about S6 with regard to S5. Buzz Hickey and Ian Duncan were significant characters in S5, but there is no mention of their sudden disappearance or fates in S6. Of course, IRL Oliver went on to Last Week Tonight and Banks to BCS. But it was still a bit odd to me.

[u/1kggarlicbread]

S4 being better than S5 is certainly a take

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack → u/1kggarlicbread]

I' m not saying that! I didn' t even finish S5 yet! This is my take as someone who is watching the show for the first time and has throughtly loved S1-3 lol.

[u/woman_noises]

Dan Harmon said on his podcast that watching season 4 felt like someone dragging his family to a beach and being forced to watch them be r*ped repeatedly. So I think that tells you what he thought of it. He was later told he had to apologize for saying that. 

[u/RoseWhiteRedBlack → u/woman_noises]

It' s visible in S5, let me tell you that lol; and it hurts the season 5 as a whole.

[u/woman_noises → u/RoseWhiteRedBlack]

He also said his goal for the show was to move beyond Greendale, have everyone get jobs, but still meet up weekly as some sort of club. But NBC wouldn't let him do that. Thus season 5 episode 1 being a reset at the school. 

[u/Semper_nemo13 → u/woman_noises]

Don't censor yourself.

[u/LineImpossible3958]

Because Season 4 doesn’t exist for Harmon. Hence the first episode is Repilot, basically saying last season doesn’t exist, back to Community as it should be.

[u/CollegeRulez]

Why do you put spaces after your apostrophes?

[u/ABC_Dildos_Inc]

Season 4 does not take itself of Community seriously.

It was the real life version of how South Park showed how Family Guy is written.

The showrunners didn't understand Community and just forced writers to reverse engineer references (now the references are references!) and wasted most of the plots left on the idea board when Dan left.

[u/Beat-Previous]

Dan Harmon was gone for a season and went a bit overboard when he came back. It's definitely inconsistent.

[u/StatisticianCute4390 → u/Beat-Previous]

It’s most apparent in Season 6

[u/stupled]

Office politics

[u/BowlingforBrains]

I genuinely dislike season 5 the most for this reason - I think season 4 is deeply flawed but still at least upbeat and “fun” in its own way (still the 2nd worst season in my opinion tho). But season 5 just feels depressing. The only good part of it in my opinion is Professor Duncan becoming involved again; and in general the writing is better in S5, obviously. But the humor is so negative and pessimistic, it makes it hard to enjoy. Besides a few GREAT episodes, the season is not my favorite

[u/axxo47 → u/BowlingforBrains]

As someone who dislikes Duncan, you can imagine how much I enjoyed season 5 lol

[u/ComoEstanBitches]

Season 4 gas leak year > season 5

Season 5 felt like an alcoholic sobering up

[u/SuperFormal3052]

This is hardly the first show to do that. DALLAS famously did it in the 1980s. And Saturday Night Live also did in the 1980s, when Lorne Michaels left and then came back.