Pierce Parts

So Chevy Chase is leaving Community.  At present, this means he won't appear in a couple episodes of the 13 that have been ordered this season, and since that may be the end of the show, fans will hardly notice his absence.  But if the show is picked up, this is sad news indeed.

Chase's character Pierce may do less than most of the others, but all seven in the student group are important to the show's appeal. (Dean Pelton and Chang are far less significant.  Either could leave without much effect on the show--Chang leaving might even be an improvement.)

This is because all seven balance each other.  They're all different and represent an aspect of the group that no other character does.  Pierce was generally the odd man out, being angry, out of it and borderline racist, but that was a good thing--it allowed him to say things no one else would.  It's true his character wasn't always used that well, or given much to do, but he still filled a gap.  (If I had to remove one character from the group, it'd probably be Shirley. Sorry Yvette.) 

It's not exactly a surprise.  While some might think this role was good for his image--a movie star long past his prime appearing in a highly-regarded sitcom--Chase always seemed to think it was beneath him.  Not only was it a comedown from his former stardom, but it was a sitcom, and Chase started out as an alternative type who despised conventional television.  He regularly was at odd with creator Dan Harmon, and even after Harmon was removed this season, Chase still blew up at how ugly his character was getting. (It's a character, Chevy, not you.)

Chase did a good job, even though the part wasn't a great fit for his particular talents.  He's too old to play a lot of bumbling physical comedy, so there wasn't much of that, and the smart-ass character he's known for is already on the show--Joel McHale's Jeff Winger.  I'm guessing a lot of lesser-known actors could have done as good a job, but Chase was a name and probably helped the show get on the air.  So we'll be missing him. Pierce, we hardly knew ye.