Just one week after being officially reinstated as showrunner on Community, creator Dan Harmon revealed his less than favorable opinion of the shows fourth season and its studio, Sony, on a recent episode of his podcast Harmontown, according toThe Hollywood Reporter.
Its not somebody doing what they do and trying really hard to make people happy, Harmon said of the shows most recent season, which was helmed by Moses Port and David Guarascio. It is very much an impression, an unflattering one.
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Harmon went on to say he believed he and a handful of writers were flushed before Season Four because they would have commanded too much leverage, power and salary. Harmon was fired from Community following a particular rocky third season that included a public feud with former cast member Chevy Chase.
While not necessarily a fan of Port and Guarascios work, Harmon nevertheless noted they were faced with a tough uphill battle and they did their best to give Communitys rabid cult following the show they wanted:They tried their best, and I think thats the best idea well, not the best idea it turns out but the most admirable impulse . . . If theres anything else we do, lets not let [the fans] down.'
When asked if he believed he could return Community to its former glory, Harmon admitted, I dont feel confident in my ability to slam-dunk anything. Ill measure slam-dunking by my own standards, so the baskets always going to be one inch higher than what I can jump.
Harmon also criticized Communitys studio, Sony Pictures Television, for pitting writers against writers, saying thats the fucking American dream in the eyes of Sony. He added: They want creative people rewriting each other. They want creative people replacing each other. They want us interchangeable. They want to think about writing the way they think about the guy on assembly line 24 that puts the final screw on the fucking Playstation. They want to think about us all that way, and I shouldnt even say they, cause its an it. Its a fucking machine.