Sexual Tension 101: How 'Community' Gets It Right

With everything that went on during last night's hilarious 'Modern Warfare' episode of 'Community,' one aspect that is slightly overlooked is how Dan Harmon and his writers dealt with the sexual tension -- or lack thereof -- between Jeff (Joel McHale) and Britta (Gillian Jacobs).

When you take a close look at how it was dealt with, it was a good case study in how to deal with the inevitable "will they/won't they" situation that develops whenever a sitcom has attractive leads of the opposite sex. Not only are the writers of 'Community' listening to their viewers -- and have gone meta with the feedback -- but they decided to address the tension in a way that might not lead to ugly blowback later on.

There never really has been any great sexual chemistry between Jeff and Britta, but for some reason, the writers tried to force it during the season's early stages. But when critics and fans voiced their opinion that the two of them work better as a comedic pair than a couple who were flirting with each other, the writers backed off. It made the episodes lighter, and it gave all of the characters room to grow in their roles.

But the flirtation was always there, and in 'Modern Warfare,' the writers acknowledged how much the fans hated it. It was discussed in the study group room, when Abed pointed out that the pair's bickering kept them from being a completely tight group. Then there's this scene, after the apocalyptic paintball battle was on, and the boys found themselves trapped in the bathroom surrounded by the girls:



As Jason pointed out in his review, when Britta and Jeff finally did hook up, it was in the heat of the battle. She was tending to his wounds, the world is blowing up around them, it's them against the rest of Greendale Community, and they only have each other. That is probably the most universal scene in most of the action/thriller movies the episode parodied. Heck, Hawkeye and Hot Lips got together in a similar fashion in 'M*A*S*H,' so we've even seen it on TV before:



So here you have the sexual tension relieved, done in a situation where everyone can forget it ever happened, and everyone can go on with their lives. It's for the best. This way, we can get more episodes like 'The Art of Discourse,' where Jeff and Britta team up to prank, defeat, or otherwise make fun of someone who bugs them. They just work better that way.

What do you think? Are we going to keep revisiting Jeff and Britta as a couple, or are they done? Let me know in the comments.