Competitive Wine Tasting

"Competitive Wine Tasting"
Community episode
Episode no.	Season 2 Episode 20
Directed by	Joe Russo
Written by	Emily Cutler
Production code	219
Original air date	February 4, 2011 (2011-14-04)

"Competitive Wine Tasting" is the 20th episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Community. It aired in the United States on NBC on April 14, 2011.

Plot

The study group chooses electives for the spring semester. Britta (Gillian Jacobs) and Troy (Donald Glover) enroll in an acting course as suggested by their dance teacher, who encourages them to tap into their emotional core. Abed (Danny Pudi) takes a class entitled "Who Indeed: A Critical Analysis of Television's Who's the Boss?." Jeff (Joel McHale) is initially excited about his wine tasting class, but is dismayed when he learns that Pierce is taking the class as well.

Pierce (Chevy Chase) and Jeff, along with Ben Chang (Ken Jeong) are in their first wine tasting class when an attractive young Asian woman (Michelle Krusiec) catches their attention. Jeff and Pierce both take interest in courting her. Jeff scoffs at the possibility that Pierce could outdo him when it comes to womanizing, but when Jeff approaches the young woman he is shunned outright.

Troy and Britta attend their first acting class, but Britta is more excited. When the professor (Kevin Corrigan) encourages each student to share a painful memory, Troy cannot come up with anything besides the hardships of "being popular in high school." Later, wanting to win over his peers, he blurts out that his uncle molested him, which immediately earns him sympathy and respect, especially Britta. She reacts to Troy's revealing story by hugging him. When Abed confronts Troy about her behavior, Troy explains that since he didn't have a painful story to share in acting class, he made one up. Abed notes that Britta is attracted to men in pain because it helps her pretend to be mentally healthy. The two agree that Troy needs to defuse the situation. However, back in class, Troy is still elaborating on the story. His damaged behavior drives Britta to kiss him passionately.

During Abed's first class regarding Who's the Boss?, the professor (Stephen Tobolowsky) poses a rhetorical question: "Who was the boss?" Abed answers with Angela (Judith Light), the actual boss in the show. The professor laughs derisively, stating the answer is not that simple. Later, in the study room, Abed is seen with his textbook, determined to prove to his professor that Angela is, in fact, the boss.

Pierce shows up at the study room holding hands with the same Asian woman who rejected Jeff the day before, announcing that they're getting married. Jeff is outraged by the situation, believing that the woman has hidden motives and is after Pierce for his money or a green card. The rest of the group does not believe so. Jeff invites her to the study room in hopes of finding out her true intentions for marrying Pierce. However, she not only has dual citizenship, but also intends to sign a prenuptial agreement.

Meanwhile, Abed visits his professor, explaining that he's read the book and believes there are points the professor has overlooked. The professor explains that he's not a fan of the show, he's an academic, and as such his authority should not be questioned. When Abed continues to challenge him, the professor proposes that Abed teach the next class. Surprisingly, Abed agrees outright.

At the engagement party, Jeff offers Pierce his sincere congratulations. However, when Pierce's fiance hands him a wet wipe with the label "Red Dragon," and Chang notes that her last name means "red dragon" in Chinese, Jeff becomes suspicious again, researching on his cellphone. He finds out that she is the heir to the Red Dragon wet wipes fortune, the number two seller of wet wipes in China. Jeff makes the revelation during dinner, and she admits that she agreed to marry Pierce to dismantle his Hawthorne wipe empire. However, Pierce is upset with Jeff rather than grateful; Pierce already knew she was trying to use his money and did not actually mind.

Also during dinner, Britta accidentally reveals Troy's story, and Abed pressures him into revealing the truth about the story. Back in class, Britta tells Troy that kissing him was a mistake. Troy notes that maybe one day she'll fall for someone who's healthy like him. Troy confesses to the class that he made up the story to fit in, and the professor is surprisingly understanding of the situation, explaining that the pain of not having enough pain is still pain.

Abed teaches his lesson on Who's the Boss?. The professor is stunned, and concedes that Abed's conclusion is correct.

Jeff brings Pierce's ex-fiance to the study room. He tells Pierce that he asked her to come because he realized that they should be together because of the sheer number of similarities; both are rude, deceitful, racist, and come from moist-wipe dynasties. The two leave arm in arm, already hitting it off with crude, racist conversation.

Reception

Around 3.49 million Americans watched "Competitive Wine Tasting".

External links

• "Competitive Wine Tasting" at NBC.com
• "Competitive Wine Tasting" at IMDb
• "Competitive Wine Tasting" at TV.com
• "Competitive Wine Tasting" at TV Tropes