A "bottle" episode is usually an episode where the studio uses the least amount of money on it by not changing sets or wardrobe or anything that will cost extra. They are usually done so that a different episode can be more extravagant from the saved money. Note this episode all takes place in the study room. If it took multiple days to film, everything was already in place.
The "Annie's boobs stealing Annie's pen" observation suddenly puts a new light on Annie saying "or are you afraid my pen will fall out!" while stripping
Your despaired cries of "It's just a pen!" had me rolling. One of my favourite tiny Community moments is Garrets delivery of "It's still sunny!" It gets me every time.
You may have learned this by the time today's video is posted on RUclips, but a bottle episode doesn't necessarily have to happen in just one room. Its a generic term for episodes that use existing sets, actors, and other resources so as to save money that can be used to produce more expensive episodes. The standard example being people in a room talking... Happily, good writers can turn that premise into gold with sharp dialogue and interesting character dynamics, as _Community_ does with "Cooperative Calligraphy". I'm fortunate that these tend to be some of my favorite episodes of shows, especially in sci-fi (where visual spectacle sometimes takes the place of intelligence).
It's not always with existing sets, though. Sometimes it's just about restricting it to a location so they don't have to spend money on multiple sets and costumes and whatnot. On of my favorite examples is the Doctor Who episode "Midnight". It's a bottle episode, but the primary set isn't one that was previously used.
@@peterlewis2178 Fair point. One of my favorite Babylon 5 episodes, "Intersections in Real Time", is basically two people in a room talking for the entire episode. Except that the room is a new set (albeit a basic, nondescript one), and only two of the six people filmed in the episode had been in previous episodes. Still very much a bottle episode, but it relies very little on existing sets and actors, etc.
Back in an episode of season 1, we mentioned there was an amazing setup for a future joke. Well, today, in the beetle, sorry, in the bottle episode, there was the second part of that brilliant setup for that future joke.
If you rewatch the bottle episode, you can see the pen being stolen near the beginning. You see a little hand grab the pen from the corner of the table. Great episode.
Annie "Adderall" Edison didn´t get her nickname because she is a very easy going person. That woman is under pressure all the time... thats also why she debates like a robot. Its one of the best episodes. Bottle episodes are, as you said, mostly contained episodes to save money for the more expensive action packed episodes. (if you spot one - you know something needed more money this season) But this is a masterpiece on writing. Set up and Delivery - like the chocolate - the charts - the pregnancy test... the callback to two fan favorite episodes with setting up a possible Chang baby only one character knows about... this episode does so much work with so little. I also love the moral of Joshuas episode - paradise with exclusion isn´t really a paradise... because it also parallels how they never include Pierce... (for good reason I might add) not that Jeff recognices it when he talks what he "learned in this episode" but still - great theme development using a maze-enthusiast and a trampolin.
Two great episodes that show Dan Harmon's attention to detail. Abed's "robot" screens have some info about goings on. And Harmon had the monkey take the pen on camera. Also the reveal about Shirley and Halloween (known only by Troy). Hillary Duff did a great job, with a sympathetic look at Abed after she used the "destruct codes".
the great thing about community is the side characters, they are scene stealers , ofcourse the main characters are great too, but i just love how the side characters are funny with just one line scripts , great writing❤😂
Starburns 'These things give you salmonella, you know?!' had me google that one time months ago and it's actually true - they can give you salmonella apparently.
Troy's reactions are always great. There were clues about the guy in the secret garden being a racist. "This is a place free from darkness" and "Some are natural jumpers" were a couple of lines that hints it. Also part 2 of the joke that started in the first season was mentioned in the bottle episode! It will conclude in the thrid season! ;)
20:00 A bottle episode is when TV shows spend too much time and/or money during production and are basically forced to do an episode basically in one cheap setting. Community did in fact spend too much time and money on other episodes and needed to make a bottle episode, but as usual found a way to make the concept of it hilarious and clever
A bottle episode is usually an episode planned to be very low budget. Usually in one room or set. They blew most of the seasons budget playing all that ABBA music in the Halloween episode from what I hear.
Starburns 'These things give you salmonella, you know?!' had me google that one time months ago and it's actually true - they can give you salmonella apparently. Most are carrying it.
1st I'm glad to see that one of my fav jokes made the cut. So many jokes to choose from 😁 It was Pierce and Leonard zooming in on the computer, just to read how to download. 😂😂 I believe it was Manesh (did I get that even close to your name?) who cracked up like I did. So stupid a joke and yet SO FUNNY. 2nd Not only did Jeff miss the monkey. We all did! Seriously, the monkey can be seen stealing the pen at the very beginning. That leads me to this joke that I just can't pass up....Annie Boobs are clearly criminal.😂 And yes, that was Hilary Duff playing a mean girl. 😜
I almost forgot. Yes a bottle episode takes place in one place/room. It's a good way to save money. Community blows up their budget on crazy parodies of space movies or zombie outbreaks 😃😂
Finally we didn't cut one out. That computer joke. We almost thought Leonard was a genius😂🤣 I prefer Batman but Manesh will do. I really hope we weren't the only ones to miss that pen being stolen so early on. "Annie Boobs are clearly criminal" 😂😂😂
@@RamblersInc I'm Batman!! Gotcha! 😄 I think EVERYONE missed the monkey. They wanted it that way. Because, if you spot it then it kinda of ruins the episode/reaction. You'll just spend your reaction yelling "It was Annie's Boobs!!" the entire time.😜 And I too briefly believed Leonard was really skilled, then came the payoff. 😂😂
A bottle episode or bottle show is an episode produced cheaply and restricted in scope to use as few regular cast members, effects and sets as possible.
I disagree. At this point in the show Britta can be annoying. Every reactor I've seen (guy or girl) reacts the same way when Britta gets started on her civil liberties rant. The reaction is always a head or eye roll, with a "not this again" The writers did it that way on purpose, they wanted that kind of response. I LOVE Britta!! And the actress. Her character actually gets much better as the show moves along and she becomes one of my absolute faves by season 5 and 6. But, at this point in the show they wrote her so that she sometimes feels like a cheese grater on your nerves. Even Britta recognizes it in herself. Back in season 1 when Annie and Shirley were holding a bake sale for the oppressed journalists in Guatemala. Britta suddenly realizes she doesn't REALLY do anything, she just rants about it. The good news is that Britta grows as a person, while still remaining mostly the same. I LOVE that fact. Character growth, without a full change.
It's strange but when rewatching this show, the more time passes, the more I relate to Britta. Compared to the intensity of cancel culture and twitter mobs and the painful realization that people who deserve to be ignored for their dangerous views have staunch supporters and aren't bothered by criticism, Britta seems like a decent person. She's not as saintly as she acts, but that's one "fake it till you make it" that doesn't hurt anyone, unlike others whose "fake it till you make it" attitude led to people losing lots of money. Also, "it's just a pen" doesn't help someone whose pens are constantly taken. Even if there's no ill intent, it gets extremely frustrating. Especially if you care about your writing instruments. I'd be very annoyed to lose a certain model of gel pen that's no longer made. When I realized they stopped making that model, I bought as many as I could find (which sadly was only about 10, including refills) and I'd hate losing any.
You've nailed it with "fake it till you make it" with her underlying good intentions. But I feel like they've at times made an over dramatic or hyper version of an activist. Obviously it's for comedic effect so it works. Ok, lets meet in the middle. When it causes the group to mistrust each other to the point where they've stripped all their clothes, at day time, in a study room, in a college full of people.....then it's just a pen 😂
@@RamblersInc I never went nuts over a pen, and although I can understand someone who would go nuts, I would definitely stop looooong before strip searching people :) I just checked my comment history (not a huge undertaking, since I rarely comment) and I found out I mentioned before that I understand Britta more with time. I'm so annoyed I repeated myself. I knew I thought this before, but I didn't realize I had already said it. I usually watch your videos as soon as I see them, often on my phone, where I hate to type.
Trust me, it wasn't long. Also, I remember you did but it's still ok to mention how much you understand her again. Especially if we're going to keep on ripping on her. And sleep is overrated🤣
@@RamblersInc I don't know where you are in your current Community watching, but it might be worth seeing 2001 before you get to season three if you haven't, yet. Then again, watching them in reverse order could be fun, too--it was for me, though I had to re-watch the Community episode to really appreciate it. Either way, I'll watch that reaction if you post it! Great movie, but so different from almost everything else that it's fun to see others love it or hate it. It helps to think of it as a 3-hour painting instead of a story, for me. (Though the story is there, too: it's about humanity, from its earliest beginnings to its possible future.)
Season 1 episode 20 you were talking about how Britta was the normal, sensible person in the group and the show didn't seem to know what to do with her. This video it's "oh my god she's gone full britta". I actually thought I remembered it taking longer than that for the show to butcher her character. They do at least have a self-aware line about this change in a late season 3 episode. To be fair, it's entertainment, and if a central character can't be made entertaining I guess the writers' options are either remove them or change them. It still kind of bugs me though.
Great point. It has been a massive character change for her. I don't know why though. I'm not complaining as it makes sense in a comedy show for characters to have quirks. But still, that happened quickly.
You can actually see the monkey take it at the start of the episode :D
It took me like 50 rewatches to notice that 😂
@@TheFilmmakersTimeChamber and i didnt even catch it myself someona told me in a comment section 🥲
There’s another Easter egg in this episode that we can’t mention until next season.
The pen episode has the most concise and snappy writing of any sitcom episode I've ever seen. It relies nearly 100% on dialogue and it works so well
Good thing this show has expert writing.
it’s going to be a maze!
Hahahaha... The _absolute_ seriousness of "Gasp! Annie's boobs!" ... Excellent.
🤣
A "bottle" episode is usually an episode where the studio uses the least amount of money on it by not changing sets or wardrobe or anything that will cost extra. They are usually done so that a different episode can be more extravagant from the saved money. Note this episode all takes place in the study room. If it took multiple days to film, everything was already in place.
"Wall to wall facial expressions, I might as well sit in the corner with a bucket on my head"
The "Annie's boobs stealing Annie's pen" observation suddenly puts a new light on Annie saying "or are you afraid my pen will fall out!" while stripping
😂😂😂
Your despaired cries of "It's just a pen!" had me rolling. One of my favourite tiny Community moments is Garrets delivery of "It's still sunny!" It gets me every time.
I live in Florida. "It's still sunny!" is the line I quote most often from the show, and just like Garrett says it lol.
😂
Crisis alert!!!
Now you're really in the meat of where this show gets delightfully bonkers.
Calligraphy is my favorite episode of this whole show. So, so good!
You may have learned this by the time today's video is posted on RUclips, but a bottle episode doesn't necessarily have to happen in just one room. Its a generic term for episodes that use existing sets, actors, and other resources so as to save money that can be used to produce more expensive episodes. The standard example being people in a room talking...
Happily, good writers can turn that premise into gold with sharp dialogue and interesting character dynamics, as _Community_ does with "Cooperative Calligraphy".
I'm fortunate that these tend to be some of my favorite episodes of shows, especially in sci-fi (where visual spectacle sometimes takes the place of intelligence).
It's not always with existing sets, though. Sometimes it's just about restricting it to a location so they don't have to spend money on multiple sets and costumes and whatnot. On of my favorite examples is the Doctor Who episode "Midnight". It's a bottle episode, but the primary set isn't one that was previously used.
@@peterlewis2178 Fair point. One of my favorite Babylon 5 episodes, "Intersections in Real Time", is basically two people in a room talking for the entire episode. Except that the room is a new set (albeit a basic, nondescript one), and only two of the six people filmed in the episode had been in previous episodes. Still very much a bottle episode, but it relies very little on existing sets and actors, etc.
I agree. Bottle episodes seem heavily reliant on writing and this show has some good ones.
the enhance scene is my fave joke in this episode 😂
It’s great plus Leonard is always a bonus
They almost had me as well 😂.
Back in an episode of season 1, we mentioned there was an amazing setup for a future joke.
Well, today, in the beetle, sorry, in the bottle episode, there was the second part of that brilliant setup for that future joke.
Hmmmmm 🤔
Best bottle episode ever.
This is one of my favorite episodes.
If you rewatch the bottle episode, you can see the pen being stolen near the beginning. You see a little hand grab the pen from the corner of the table. Great episode.
16:21 - keep your eyes on the pen! - everyone is distracted by the puppy
I WENT BACK AND CAUGHT IT 😱 Annie's boobs did a number on us as well.
Rowboat Cop!
🤣🤦♂️
Annie "Adderall" Edison didn´t get her nickname because she is a very easy going person. That woman is under pressure all the time... thats also why she debates like a robot.
Its one of the best episodes. Bottle episodes are, as you said, mostly contained episodes to save money for the more expensive action packed episodes. (if you spot one - you know something needed more money this season) But this is a masterpiece on writing. Set up and Delivery - like the chocolate - the charts - the pregnancy test... the callback to two fan favorite episodes with setting up a possible Chang baby only one character knows about... this episode does so much work with so little.
I also love the moral of Joshuas episode - paradise with exclusion isn´t really a paradise... because it also parallels how they never include Pierce... (for good reason I might add) not that Jeff recognices it when he talks what he "learned in this episode" but still - great theme development using a maze-enthusiast and a trampolin.
"Maze-enthusiast" 🤣
Yeh, I can't fault the writing. It was jam packed and each bit didn't feel rushed
Two great episodes that show Dan Harmon's attention to detail. Abed's "robot" screens have some info about goings on. And Harmon had the monkey take the pen on camera. Also the reveal about Shirley and Halloween (known only by Troy). Hillary Duff did a great job, with a sympathetic look at Abed after she used the "destruct codes".
I need to pause at some of those robot scenes. Also, I need to get used to Harmon's attention to detail.
Garret. The greatest comedian of our generation!
His lines are hilarious 😂
The Pierce crash into the dumpster is one of the funniest scenes in TV history lol.
Nice, that even in your reaction one can spot the pen disappear (if you know where - and when - to look. (16:21)). 😉
😱
the great thing about community is the side characters, they are scene stealers , ofcourse the main characters are great too, but i just love how the side characters are funny with just one line scripts , great writing❤😂
Same. The beauty of it being in a community college. A side character could come out of anywhere.
I cracked up when you said it’s just a pen 😂😂
😂
4:21 That was Hilary Duff, good eye! Love her
Funny how he asks how they didn’t see the pen being taken by the monkey when they you guys didn’t notice either and the camera was on it.
I put my hands up. That menace of a monkey had us all.😂
I know about the monkey and I still miss it on casual rewatches.
Starburns 'These things give you salmonella, you know?!' had me google that one time months ago and it's actually true - they can give you salmonella apparently.
Yeah I didn’t know that either. I wanted you to get one for my nephew a while back as a pet but my sister shut that down for that reason
Y’all know how to properly handle chicken ?
@@tempsitch5632 I'm a vegetarian so no. I do know of the chicken - salmonella risk.
You know, Girl !
Troy's reactions are always great. There were clues about the guy in the secret garden being a racist. "This is a place free from darkness" and "Some are natural jumpers" were a couple of lines that hints it.
Also part 2 of the joke that started in the first season was mentioned in the bottle episode! It will conclude in the thrid season! ;)
That reveal came out of nowhere. 😂
The pen episode is one of my favorite Community episodes..
20:00 A bottle episode is when TV shows spend too much time and/or money during production and are basically forced to do an episode basically in one cheap setting. Community did in fact spend too much time and money on other episodes and needed to make a bottle episode, but as usual found a way to make the concept of it hilarious and clever
Oh, so it's not a proactive choice? Shame. Some of the best episodes are bottle ones. Relies on writing though.
Episode 14 is the one of the best of the series & my and many's favorite. It's worth a single reaction video if you haven't edited it already ✌😎
A bottle episode is usually an episode planned to be very low budget. Usually in one room or set. They blew most of the seasons budget playing all that ABBA music in the Halloween episode from what I hear.
Starburns 'These things give you salmonella, you know?!' had me google that one time months ago and it's actually true - they can give you salmonella apparently. Most are carrying it.
Wow. Didn't know that. Who would've thought you could learn something new from Community 😂
1st I'm glad to see that one of my fav jokes made the cut. So many jokes to choose from 😁
It was Pierce and Leonard zooming in on the computer, just to read how to download. 😂😂
I believe it was Manesh (did I get that even close to your name?) who cracked up like I did. So stupid a joke and yet SO FUNNY.
2nd Not only did Jeff miss the monkey. We all did! Seriously, the monkey can be seen stealing the pen at the very beginning.
That leads me to this joke that I just can't pass up....Annie Boobs are clearly criminal.😂
And yes, that was Hilary Duff playing a mean girl. 😜
I almost forgot. Yes a bottle episode takes place in one place/room. It's a good way to save money. Community blows up their budget on crazy parodies of space movies or zombie outbreaks 😃😂
Finally we didn't cut one out.
That computer joke. We almost thought Leonard was a genius😂🤣
I prefer Batman but Manesh will do.
I really hope we weren't the only ones to miss that pen being stolen so early on.
"Annie Boobs are clearly criminal" 😂😂😂
@@RamblersInc I'm Batman!! Gotcha! 😄
I think EVERYONE missed the monkey. They wanted it that way. Because, if you spot it then it kinda of ruins the episode/reaction. You'll just spend your reaction yelling "It was Annie's Boobs!!" the entire time.😜
And I too briefly believed Leonard was really skilled, then came the payoff. 😂😂
This show is so unhinged lmao
😂
It’s a principle
I call it a pen but each to their own 😏
A bottle episode or bottle show is an episode produced cheaply and restricted in scope to use as few regular cast members, effects and sets as possible.
Britta’s the best! stop yelling at her
Ok. Let's meet half way. No more yelling at Britta.....unless she goes full Britta. 😂
I disagree. At this point in the show Britta can be annoying. Every reactor I've seen (guy or girl) reacts the same way when Britta gets started on her civil liberties rant. The reaction is always a head or eye roll, with a "not this again" The writers did it that way on purpose, they wanted that kind of response.
I LOVE Britta!! And the actress. Her character actually gets much better as the show moves along and she becomes one of my absolute faves by season 5 and 6. But, at this point in the show they wrote her so that she sometimes feels like a cheese grater on your nerves.
Even Britta recognizes it in herself. Back in season 1 when Annie and Shirley were holding a bake sale for the oppressed journalists in Guatemala. Britta suddenly realizes she doesn't REALLY do anything, she just rants about it.
The good news is that Britta grows as a person, while still remaining mostly the same. I LOVE that fact. Character growth, without a full change.
It's strange but when rewatching this show, the more time passes, the more I relate to Britta. Compared to the intensity of cancel culture and twitter mobs and the painful realization that people who deserve to be ignored for their dangerous views have staunch supporters and aren't bothered by criticism, Britta seems like a decent person. She's not as saintly as she acts, but that's one "fake it till you make it" that doesn't hurt anyone, unlike others whose "fake it till you make it" attitude led to people losing lots of money.
Also, "it's just a pen" doesn't help someone whose pens are constantly taken. Even if there's no ill intent, it gets extremely frustrating. Especially if you care about your writing instruments. I'd be very annoyed to lose a certain model of gel pen that's no longer made. When I realized they stopped making that model, I bought as many as I could find (which sadly was only about 10, including refills) and I'd hate losing any.
You've nailed it with "fake it till you make it" with her underlying good intentions. But I feel like they've at times made an over dramatic or hyper version of an activist. Obviously it's for comedic effect so it works.
Ok, lets meet in the middle. When it causes the group to mistrust each other to the point where they've stripped all their clothes, at day time, in a study room, in a college full of people.....then it's just a pen 😂
@@RamblersInc I never went nuts over a pen, and although I can understand someone who would go nuts, I would definitely stop looooong before strip searching people :)
I just checked my comment history (not a huge undertaking, since I rarely comment) and I found out I mentioned before that I understand Britta more with time. I'm so annoyed I repeated myself. I knew I thought this before, but I didn't realize I had already said it. I usually watch your videos as soon as I see them, often on my phone, where I hate to type.
sheesh this was a long and rather incoherent comment. I should sleep more
Trust me, it wasn't long.
Also, I remember you did but it's still ok to mention how much you understand her again. Especially if we're going to keep on ripping on her.
And sleep is overrated🤣
She’s gone full Britta 😂😂😂😂
🤣🤣🤣
🎉
Only vaguely related: are you guys familiar with the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey?
We've heard of it. I know a song that's famous because of it. It's on our list to watch.
@@RamblersInc I don't know where you are in your current Community watching, but it might be worth seeing 2001 before you get to season three if you haven't, yet. Then again, watching them in reverse order could be fun, too--it was for me, though I had to re-watch the Community episode to really appreciate it.
Either way, I'll watch that reaction if you post it! Great movie, but so different from almost everything else that it's fun to see others love it or hate it. It helps to think of it as a 3-hour painting instead of a story, for me. (Though the story is there, too: it's about humanity, from its earliest beginnings to its possible future.)
Dammit. Yeh scheduling wise we're not getting that chance. Thanks for the heads up though👍
"3-hour painting". 😂I don't know what to make of this.
Season 1 episode 20 you were talking about how Britta was the normal, sensible person in the group and the show didn't seem to know what to do with her. This video it's "oh my god she's gone full britta". I actually thought I remembered it taking longer than that for the show to butcher her character. They do at least have a self-aware line about this change in a late season 3 episode.
To be fair, it's entertainment, and if a central character can't be made entertaining I guess the writers' options are either remove them or change them. It still kind of bugs me though.
Great point. It has been a massive character change for her. I don't know why though. I'm not complaining as it makes sense in a comedy show for characters to have quirks. But still, that happened quickly.