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Paradigms of Human Memory

"Paradigms of Human Memory" is the twenty-first episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Community and the forty-sixth episode overall. It was originally broadcast on April 21, 2011, on NBC. It was written by Chris McKenna and directed by Tristram Shapeero. In the episode, the study group reflects on events from the past school year; many of these memories lead to arguments as they recall and recognize their faults, both as individuals and as a group.

Though it contains almost no material from previous episodes, the episode has the format of a clip show, parodying the genre and self-parodying many aspects of the show itself. Production of the episode required at least 70 new scenes, many of which were filmed during a day at Universal Studios away from the show's sets. The episode includes a notable nod to a shipping video made by a fan and set to the song "Gravity". It also includes multiple references to The Cape, which led to the line "six seasons and a movie".

In its original broadcast, "Paradigms of Human Memory" was seen by 3.17 million viewers. It received widespread acclaim from television critics, with praise going to its numerous jokes, and it is often considered to be one of the show's best episodes. Many critics, along with series creator Dan Harmon, noted the lack of a strong story or message, though most felt this was not to the episode's detriment. The clip show format would later be reused in season three's "Curriculum Unavailable", while "six seasons and a movie" would become a slogan for the show's fans.

The study group is working on their final anthropology project in the library. Troy's (Donald Glover) former pet monkey, Annie's Boobs, steals a paintbrush and escapes into an air conditioning vent. Chang (Ken Jeong) follows Annie's Boobs and finds a trove of stolen items, including Annie's (Alison Brie) missing pens that caused a heated argument earlier in the year. Some items remind them of their adventures throughout the year.

They realize the year has had many unfortunate events, though Jeff (Joel McHale) and Britta (Gillian Jacobs) encourage them to look past those events. Abed (Danny Pudi) deduces that Jeff and Britta have been secretly hooking up for the past year. This angers the rest of the study group, who blame Jeff and Britta for the year's problems. The two retaliate by recalling events where each of the other group members behaved unscrupulously. Annie points out many romantic moments between her and Jeff despite his hook-ups with Britta; Jeff denies those moments were romantic by noting similar moments between Abed and Pierce (Chevy Chase).

Overhearing the argument, Dean Pelton (Jim Rash) enters in a Carnival costume, and Jeff criticizes the dean's frequent visits in ridiculous costumes. The dean gets upset and leaves. Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown) begs the group to stop fighting, but Troy suggests they should let everything out now to prevent future arguments. Abed recalls several similar fights that failed to achieve the same goal. This leads Annie to conclude that the group will always be fighting.

Resigned, the group completes the project. Before everyone can leave, Jeff delivers a speech intercut with his past speeches; he convinces everyone that the fighting will ultimately make the group stronger. Everyone hugs and makes up. The group agrees that Jeff and Britta can keep hooking up, causing both of them to quickly lose interest in each other.

According to series creator Dan Harmon, "Paradigms of Human Memory" was an "experiment" he had wanted to try for a while as a new way of telling a story. The episode is officially credited to Chris McKenna, his fifth writing credit for the series. McKenna later remarked that the script was "gang-written" as the show was running behind schedule. It was directed by Tristram Shapeero, though executive producer Joe Russo assisted with several scenes. In addition to scenes filmed at the show's normal sets at Paramount Studios, the show's cast and crew spent a day filming at Universal Studios. The clips feature a wide range of locations, including sets from films such as Jaws (1975), War of the Worlds (2005), and Psycho (1960).

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