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If You Have To Ask, You're Streets Behind: The Best Of Pierce Hawthorne On "Community"

By Rob Payne | Lists | April 5, 2012 |

By Rob Payne | Lists | April 5, 2012 |


For seemingly as long as “Community” has been on the air, it’s been known to some degree that creator Dan Harmon and co-star Chevy Chase haven’t always gotten along. Really, if you’ve seen any footage of the cast at various convention and festival panels, or listened to any of the DVD commentaries, it’s pretty obvious Chase has always been the outsider of the group. The comedian’s ego mania is the major reason he was only on one season of “Saturday Night Live,” and his otherwise sad TV history has been well documented. An easy argument could be made that a lot of Pierce Hawthorne as a character has been informed by both Chase and how the writers/producers see him: angry, bitter, and incredibly hard to work with.

That’s all to say that the recent leaks about trouble on the “Community” set, and the possibility that comedy legend Chevy Chase might leave said show after this year, is not very surprising. After all, it was widely believed that the season two finale ended the way it did as insurance policy should Chase not come back for season three. That isn’t to say that Dan Harmon getting the entire cast and crew at the show’s seasonal wrap party to sing, “Fuck you, Chevy,” wasn’t an equally asshole-ish thing to do. Nor does it mean that Pierce Hawthorne is a necessary character that should be missed. A Pierce-less fourth year at Greendale won’t be a shock or a real downer, just like it wouldn’t have been for the third. But it would be a mistake to forget that Chevy Chase as Pierce Hawthorne has provided some of the show’s most memorable moments.

Without further ado, I give you Ten of Pierce Hawthorne’s Best Moments on “Community” (Non-Exhaustive):


“Did you say ‘S’?”


“I am the beastmaster! From the movie, Beastmaster…?”


“I’m gonna put in some Loggins.”


“In a moment, girls, I’m just enjoying a nice post-coital brandy.”


“When we seek to destroy others, we often hurt ourselves.”


“Ah, good evening, senator! Any requests?”


“What…? NO!”


“Your mother’s lover!”


“People used to wish I was dead to my face.”


“Coined and Minted, My Friend.”


Whatever happens next, the actor and the character deserve better than a fiery death and a ghost played by Kathy Bates. Save Pierce!


Rob Payne also writes the comic The Unstoppable Force, tweets on the Twitter @RobOfWar, and his ware can be purchased here (if you’re into that sort of thing). He would like to offer a friendly remind that the epic clash between Troy and Abed continues on tonight’s “Community” at 8/7pm on NBC.