*SIX SEASONS AND A FILM THEORY!*

I like how you eliminated Pierce because he was in a wheelchair in season two, BUT NOT BECAUSE HE WAS DEAD IN THE EPISODE SURROUNDING THE ACB

"Starburns is still locked in his cage being pelted by change." Never realized how insane that sounds outside the context of the episode lol

The dean tryin to get his assistant to "trace the call" is honestly one of my favorite scenes lmfao

Okay but you missed one key thing. In the last episode of the show, right after Jeff brings up the bandit again, it cuts to Britta’s pitch for the next season. In which she says a very specific Dave Matthew’s lyric.

this theory was streets ahead

Imagine never watching the show and just hearing "Peirce dies at the end of the episode and Troy leaves on a boat with Levar Burton"

During the call the pause when the ACB says "I mean, get a room already" tells me it's Abed. Britta says it quicker Jeff says it slurred, a bit nonchalant Annie was never cool, she couldn't pull it off. Abed is the only one that pauses his sentences there.

It was all of them at various points. This has been done TO DEATH in the Community Fandom. The truth is right in the ending montage. Troy and Abed did it for fun. Duncan for sexual gratification. Annie and Jeff to keep having their little flirty adventure. Finally, Britta, because she wanted to bring it back to write about in the school paper.

Still trying to figure out the question ‘Nicolas Cage: good or bad?’

I personally always loved the idea that the ACB was actually all of them at different times. All cashing in on the mystery to serve a personal agenda and then hanging up the cape for the next person to use.

Also, for a split second when Jeff + Annie are chasing the bandit after Duncan gets cracked, you can see Abed in sprinting around the corner.

I always thought it was Abed as he generally loses touch of reality and becoming the ACB was a way to “move the story along this season” as Abed would put it. Also what ACB says about Annie and Jeff definitely sounds like something Abed would say

Could've saved a lot of time of crossing out Britta. She'd Britta the whole thing and get caught in the act 🤣

Can you recreate Abed’s theory about how Angela was the boss in whos the boss

Mat: "2 little humps in one continuous stroke" Me: "Don't all people write m's that way?"

Plot twist: it wasn’t a slip up or a realization, it was an awkward moment because Annie had said “her” instead of “she”

I miss Leonard’s Food Review. It was Streets Ahead

Dan Harmon: **furiously crosses out **_Community_** movie script**

Abed literally never once in the entire course of the show says "I mean, ..." His speech is far too calculated for him to ever need to rely on that phrase like most people. Also, Dan Harmon, who wrote that episode, said himself that he deliberately wrote it so that it could be anyone. This question has no answer.

More community theories please! Attempt their greatest mystery: It's been six seasons, WHERE'S THE MOVIE?

I literally binged every season of Community over the quarantine, and now there's tons of new content coming out about it. This is the Brightest Timeline.

Jeff in season one: “I gave a quarter to a dirty bum today”

can we also appreciate that the russo brothers directed those paintball episodes and that’s one of the things that got them hired for marvel

We should look at the victims. Ian Duncan who was cracked last, created a experiment in season 1 based around the Duncan Principle. Abed was the last one to leave, and he later said in the episode he was livid. Garrett, was a friend to Abed, so he could have been a mislead. However, he joined Troys during the pillow war, so Abed could cracked him in revenge and Garrett didn’t participate in any of Abed projects throughout the rest of the season. Troy, was definitely a mislead, but I’m not sure about Vicki.

Annie acts so suspicious in that last episode because she knows who the ACB is. She lived with him for 3 years and he decided to tell her, but she can't tell anybody else...

In one episode Abed literally helps a pregnant lady and gives BIRTH to her child all in the background. Then later in the episode when asked what he did that day Abed simpler replies “meh not much.”

Still think it’s Britta…😄 I think she was standing on something…also I think Anne found out when they lived together and that’s why she reacted that way, I also think the phone call sounds just like Britta!

This series is way too underrated. It's so we'll written and consequently so funny and fun to watch.

I remember the first time I watched this episode I had to pause from laughing so hard at the Dean going "Abed you're special...cant you just stand at the crime scene and see what happened?"

I think the reason Annie acts weird with the mention of the ACB is she knows who it is! She was really close with Abed by the end and they lived together for half the series

Maybe this will be how they set up the movie

It was Abed but both Annie and Troy were in on it. Troy was with him from the beginning because they are best friends, and he sold getting cracked way too much. Annie on the other hand figured it out almost immediately, but she decided she wanted in so she could continue to work with Jeff and cause it was fun. Abed struck a deal with Annie that would have her act like the bandit to throw people off, and be the one to take the blame if it was ever figured out. Change my mind

“Pierce can’t move around well in season 2.” Well, that and he’s dead in the ACB episode which would make it pretty difficult to be him.

When the bandit talks through the phone, he suddently accelerates his talking, just like Abed does.

The attention to detail and hidden secrets in this show is INSANE! In season 6 Buzz Hickey disappeared without an explanation but an email discussing his funeral was briefly shown in the episode where everyone's emails were leaked

What if this is like a scream situation where there’s two bandits? Annie and Abed

Leonard is actually Purple Guy

Annies pretty young, we try not to accuse her.

It was Professor Duncan, the crackings stopped while Duncan was away "looking after his mother" and only began again when he returned. At the very end, one of his victims gets revenge on him, Troy.

I love how Mat doesn’t even mention that Pierce is fucking dead after Season 4

Plot twist, it’s Leonard taking revenge for all the times people told him to shut up.

I love this theory and am 100% convinced. I'm glad when Community gets a little love, it's a criminally underrated show. Great theory Matpat.

I think they were all in it. Abed and troy started it but troy had to take one for the team bc always something up with those two (and the group overall, something the other students at greendale always point at) They all know but they got something from the bandit so they didn’t say anything, shirley got the money, britta gets something to write her paper on and annie gets to spend time with jeff (tho she def was the last to find out or maybe she finds out later but never says anything bc she can’t snitch on her friends). Jeff is the only one that never finds out and that’s why he’s the only one still intrigued

I had never heard of Community before I saw this episode half a year ago. I proceeded to binge the whole thing in the first two weeks of summer break, and I’m doing the same this winter break. Favorite sitcom, easily.

Me, knowing that Abed's handwriting matching is probably just a props person writing both pieces: Wow this is so true...

I just finished Community today and I’m not ready to move on yet. I’m trying to find all the content I can, I’m still fully immersed.

It really makes a lot of sense, cause Abed is also really into older movies and stuff. It wouldn't be far off for him to know about Dave Matthews either. Gotta thank the person who bought Annie's binder for sharing the info 😮👏🏾 Also, thanks for loving the show and making this video Matpat. Here's to hoping that #sixseasonsandamovie happens 😊

I'm OBSESSED with the amount of time and effort in this analysis of an invented mistery from a tv serie. God I love this kind of things

When you finish Community Troy and Abed are in mourning.

If Abed isn't the acb, then it could be that he planted those notes to add drama. It seems like something he would do to make the acb more villainous and interesting.

as a criminology major and community super fan i revisit this episode like every couple of months 😅 thanks matpat love the channel

It's probably my favorite show ever as well. Every little detail in the background and the incredible character arch's(not including the gas leak year) are just amazing. This show with everything it has to offer is just perfect.

My theory expands on yours: It was Abed from the beginning, and Annie actually figured it out on her own (hence the binder) but kept her solving it a secret so she could play detective with Jeff, using it both to spend more time with him and as an attempt to DTR. Then, she got carried away and teamed up with Abed to keep Jeff from solving it before she’d accomplished her goal, dragging the mystery along for her own ends.

Community has gone mainstream, initiate protocol omega!

The fact that you covered this show genuinely makes me so happy, it's one of my all time favorites

Abed is the only one that makes sense for them to be the ACB. I also love how, throughout the series, the homages they do to movies, are usually instigated by Abed (and normally to relate to everyone else like in contemporary American poultry) or at least involves him as a main character in the plot, but it is very odd that in this particular episode they don't have him as a main character at all and barely see him as a result. Also the thing about pointing out Annie and Jeff's relationship is very on brand - as he sees them looking at each other all the time, but never mentions it, like how he can only understand real life when he relates it to tv. Basically... I've watched wayy too much Community recently.

The most damning piece of evidence that it is Abed is at the end of the episode when he is going through his DVR. The Episode is actually more of reference/parody/homage to Hannibal and, coincidentally in that scene, the Bridge. Abed is deleting the episodes, thus hiding evidence that this is the current homage he is doing

Remember what Batman said about Abed. "That guy's pretty ruthless, and that's coming from Batman."

was literally just introduced to dave matthews, loved him, and now he's appearing EVERYWHERE

To back up your case about Abed being the ACB: it is confirmed that Abed himself doesn't like Jeff and Annie's romantic entanglement. In season 4 episode 1, History 101, we get a glimpse into Abed's 'happy place,' which is the idyllic TV show taking place inside his mind. In that 'perfect world,' Jeff and Britta kiss, not Jeff and Annie. Plus, later in season 4, we see a scene from the darkest timeline, where Annie gets released from the psych ward and Jeff says he wishes that him and Annie's age gap was bigger than it already was, which reveals that Abed is disgusted by their age gap. Additionally, in Virtual Systems Analysis in season 3, Abed gets mad at Annie for playing matchmaker with Troy and Britta because that would 'tamper with the fabric of the group' (granted, Abed had other, more personal reasons to be mad at Annie in this episode, but this was part of it.) Hence, Abed bringing up Jeff and Annie's relationship may have been genuine; he wants Jeff and Britta to be together, not Jeff and Annie, because Abed assigned Jeff and Britta the 'mom and dad' role early in the series. So that call was a chance for him to express his disdain for Jeff and Annie's relationship without receiving ridicule for doing so, while directing the blame toward Britta at the same time.

That actually explains Annie’s reaction! By season 6, she has lived around 3 years with Abed, so it’s natural she could have discovered the true identity of the ACB. They probably talked about it, and Abed probably convinced Annie to not tell anyone. Then, when Jeff mentions the ACB in the last episode, Annie gets nervous about Abed’s secret and behaves weirdly.

What convinced me it was Annie was the map she showed Jeff, the faculty lounge isn't near the attacks...she just knew Jeff wouldn't look

This excludes a lot of minor characters too. I feel it's much more likely that it's a side character than the main cast. Notably Neil, Magnitude, and Leonard who all appeared by season 2 and could be potential candidates as the ACB. Todd would make a decent candidate too but he was introduced in season 3 and may not have attended Greendale during the ACB's initial spree. Now while Neil was in this episode and notably called out Garrett while on his way to Shirley's Sandwiches opening, he could've looped around and cracked Garrett. We don't see Magnitude during this episode so it's possible he was hiding in the shadows (his backstory is extremely murky; in s2e6 "Intro to Political Science he is shown as being 16 but appears in a flashback when Annie smashes through the glass door at the party Trop "injured" his shoulder which calls into question his actual age, he's actually British but pretends to be American, and is extremely affable which could just be a front). Leonard, while definitely older, was into frisbee, swimming and tai chi so he could be in surprising shape and does not appear in any cracking scenes but does appear in the episode giving more credibility to him being the ACB than Magnitude. This also leaves out other instructors like Sean Garrity who appears in both seasons 2 and 5 (when the ACB is actively referenced). One last teacher of note would be Cory Radison who (allegedly) killed the Glee Club and disappeared when he let that slip so the return of the ACB could be revenge.

The loss of Donald Glover in Community was more of a tragic event than even The Red Wedding. You can quote me on that.

The movie might be coming out soon. The actors say they're interested. The Russo brothers say they're in. It's on Netflix now. There's a new podcast with Ken Jeong and Joel McHale, called The Darkest Timeline. I think that it might be made by Netflix.

I'd be happy with a spin off of troy and abed traveling the world together

i would also like to point out that the bit where he calls out jeff and annie, even through the voice changer the speaking pattern matches abed’s, the pause and then the slight rushing of his words doesn’t match anyone else in the group

I don't think those mat pats are social distancing. They seem really close to each other.

I’d literally never heard of this until last week and I binged it all and finished it yesterday. I’m actually scared how even MatPat knows what I’m thinking.

I think i needed that! reminded me of all the great times chilling watching Community. Truly a great show x

This video is really good because it's a film theory video and an episode of community all in one. Really fun formatting lots of reference humor and was generally "meta"

For me, the “I mean get a room already” line toward Annie and Jeff solidified Abed for me. Despite the voice change, I recognize Abed’s instigative sitcom tone in that comment. I have loved this show for years. Been raving about it for a long time and people never knew what I was talking about. Feels good seeing others enjoy this cult gem now.

I honestly want a Community movie, but it just wouldn't be the same without hearing "shut up Leonard" after one of Leonard's jabs at Jeff.

Nah, it was Annie. We know from their psych evals that Abed is the only non-psychopath. And once he saw how much Troy was hurt by the cracking, he would have fessed up. (Like when he stopped Troy from running into the cartoon tunnel). Annie is clearly a sociopath who often obsesses over perceived sleights (the pen) and takes things too far (breaking the Batman DVD).

The theory that I believe is true and that I find the cutest is that it’s both Jeff & Annie, but that they don’t know that each other are doing it. They both have the same motives, to stay close to each other, plus the last scene of the episode seems to signify that they were talking about themselves. Just saying

one of those cracking "victims" could just be the ACB pretending to get cracked to shake suspicion off of them

I just love how he talks about this whole thing like murder when really. It’s just quarters. A lot, a lot of quarters hOw DiD i GeT sO mAnY lIkEs

This is exactly what commitment looks like. Congrats! You really nailed it

Dawg, Annie, throughout the show, is shown to be thorough and intelligent. She would fake notes in a binder, and she would write with different handwriting. She's that type of person.

I never ever comment, but I need whoever reads these to know that I want more community content somehow

6:18, pierce can’t be the acb because of the wheelchair, yea he also died in that episode

thankyou so much for doing a theory on this! i remembered this video when community came up on my netflix recommendations and so i clicked it. now one of my favourite shows ever.

4:26 wait, why was Troy’s law for cameras in the bathroom when he was cracked in the library outside of the bathroom?

It’s weird seeing community so popular right now. I’m happy to see it has lots of traction, and hope it lasts. We need a movie

I'd even say that the comment over the phone about Jeff and Annie's team-up was _appropriately_ meta.

15:24 1st clip, he does the bit because he feels isolated and underapreciated by Jeff, 2nd clip, it isn't even him messing with Troy. It's the... Other person.

Ok, so far I’ve been convinced that Annie would be the ACB, but you just changed my mind with this really in depth analysis 😄 I’ve never taken the scrapbook and handwritings into account, because I didn’t know that the scrapbook was actually accessible. So thanks for all the work you put into it! ❤️

Annie's reaction in the finale (aside from it being tossed into the script, I guess) was probably more of a "trying to hide my frustration" thing. Because she was a forensics student, always one of the most intelligent in classes, and pretty neurotic about losing or not understanding things. The Bandit was probably the one case she could never let go of because they'd bested her.

Abed was one of the best characters in sitcom history. Community deserves love, #sixseasonsandamovie

THIS IS SO AMAZING!!!! I'M SO THRILLED WITH THE RESULT I REALLY THINK YOU GUYS NAILED IT

You just Brita’d the ACB theory!! 8:00 it was Pop-Pop! Duh!! 😂

Hey, MatPat, in regards to the motive, let's not forget the Scream rule: just because an alibi exists does not mean innocence. There could have been a partner that was doing the attacks when the other ACB was establishing an alibi.

there's something about Abed that I find so incredibly attractive

To solidify Abed’s status as well, Abed is willing to go thru lengths to make a bit happen. CIP, the “I was messing with you” bit with Troy when he created an entire alien language and even had Garrett join him. And then the Pulp Fiction episode

This video is what got me into community in the first place and now I met some of my best friends because of that show, so thank you Matt

I’m so glad this show is finally blowing up.

Annie: maybe the acb's point is that we're letting our values slide Jeff: or maybe he's a frat boy coming from the laundromat Maybe he's the founder of the only fraternity on Greendale campus, the Delta Cubes

This video made me decide to binge Community, loving it so far

I just finished watching Community and it’s definitely one of my favourites, loved this as much as I did watching an episode ❤️