Jeff Winger
| Jeff Winger | |
|---|---|
| Community character | |
| First appearance | "Pilot" (2009) |
| Last appearance | "Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television" (2015) |
| Created by | Dan Harmon |
| Portrayed by | Joel McHale |
| Information | |
| Full name | Jeffrey Tobias Winger |
| Aliases | Tango Tinkletown Thoraxis Wingman Milord |
| Occupation | Lawyer Law Professor at Greendale Community College |
| Family | William Winger, Sr. (father) Doreen (neé Fitzgerald) Winger (mother) William "Willy" Winger, Jr. (half-brother) |
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Jeffrey "Jeff" Tobias Winger is a fictional character and the protagonist of the NBC/Yahoo! Screen sitcom series Community, created by Dan Harmon and portrayed by Joel McHale.[1] A former lawyer who was disbarred after it was revealed that he forged his Bachelor's degree, Jeff became a student a Greendale Community College to earn a legitimate degree and be able to practice law again. Sardonic and cynical, Jeff often manipulates people into doing things for him and cares little about paying genuine effort. Over the course of the series, however, Jeff gradually begins to change his attitude and personality and grows closer to his study group. He is viewed as the de facto leader of the study group and later of the Save Greendale Committee.
Character[edit]
Early life[edit]
Jeffrey Tobias Winger was born on November 20, 1974, to Doreen (neé Fitzgerald) and William Winger, Sr. When he was eight, his parents divorced, and his father abandons the family. The divorce left Jeff emotionally scarred and led to him become resentful of fatherly figures. Jeff would reunite with his father (James Brolin) in season 4 at Thanksgiving, where he meets his half-brother Willy Jr. (Adam DeVine). He claimed that he was inspired to become a lawyer because he saw how his parents' divorce lawyer was able to do his job without letting his emotions get in the way. When Jeff was 10, he was bullied and humiliated in front of his friends at a YMCA during a game of foosball, causing him to wet his pants. According to Jeff, the incident caused him to change schools, his physical appearance as well as his personality. The bully, known to Jeff only as "Big Cheddar", later turns out to be his study group peer Shirley Bennett (Yvette Nicole Brown). In "Intro to Political Science", it was revealed that Jeff submitted an audition tape to MTV's The Real World: Seattle in 1997 (McHale himself is from the Seattle area).
Biography[edit]
Before enrolling at Greendale, Jeff was a highly successful lawyer at the law firm Hamish, Hamish, and Hamlin for over six years. He specialized in traffic offenses and DUI cases and was known along with his colleague Mark (Joe Lo Truglio) as "Tango & Cash". After successfully defending a stripper name Mysti, Jeff's background becomes scrutinized by the Colorado Bar Association. Alan Connor (Rob Corddry), a colleague and friend of Jeff's, betrays him by sending the CBA an incriminating e-mail that reveals that Jeff does not hold a bachelor's degree from Columbia University, but rather a "less than legitimate" one from the country of Colombia. To avoid being disbarred, Jeff strikes a deal with the CBA: he will be able to practice law again if he graduates from an actual college with a legitimate degree. While brainstorming as to which college to attend at a frozen yogurt shop, Jeff runs into Ben Chang (Ken Jeong), who was passing out fliers for Greendale at the shop. Upon learning from Chang that Ian Duncan (John Oliver), a former client of Jeff's, teaches at Greendale, Jeff decides to enroll there, hoping that Duncan will help him graduate as fast as possible.
In "Pilot", Jeff approaches Duncan asking for the test answers of all his classes. Duncan initially refuses, but later agrees on the condition that he gets to drive Jeff's Lexus sedan. Jeff later finds out that Duncan had tricked him by giving him a pack of blank paper, forcing him to ask to rejoin the Spanish study group he accidentally formed to court his classmate Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs). He was a mostly subpar student, often preferring taking easy classes and cares little for extra work. Because of his role as the de facto leader of the study group, Jeff was often asked by Dean Pelton (Jim Rash) to participate in activities, such as substituting for the debate team and glee club. At times Jeff also serves as mock attorneys to his peers, such as defending Britta when she was accused of cheating in Spanish ("Advanced Criminal Law") and Shirley when she and Pierce were battling over the ownership of their sandwich shop ("Introduction to Finality").
In season 4, Jeff graduates from Greendale with a Bachelor of Education degree and returns to practice law. However, in "Repilot", Jeff's law practice has failed a year after he graduated. He is approached by Alan, who is representing a disgraced engineer suing Greendale, and asks him to participate by retrieving files related to the case. Jeff runs into his old study group peers at Greendale, who have all experienced rough patches after leaving Greendale. This inspires Jeff to file a class action lawsuit of his own against Greendale, and he convinces the study group to sign on as plaintiffs. However, upon seeing a hologram of Pierce, Jeff changes his mind. He is then hired by Dean Pelton as a law professor and forms the Save Greendale Committee with the study group, who all decides to re-enroll at the school. He acts as an apathetic and subpar instructor until Annie enrolls in his class and forces him to teach.
Personality[edit]
Jeff possesses a sarcastic wit and is known for his egotistical and sardonic personality. He was initially dismissive and manipulative towards the group, but over the course of the series gradually grew closer to them and considers them as friends. He is less enthusiastic about participating in activities compared to the rest of the group, although he often takes the lead whenever the group is involved. Jeff enjoys being in charge and leading the group, though he is often resisted in his role by Pierce Hawthorne (Chevy Chase), causing Jeff to kick him out of the group a couple of times. However, Jeff is often insecure about his character and feels threatened when there are people outperforming him in certain tasks, leading to occasional bursts of rational agent sociopathy. Jeff also dislikes discussing personal issues and avoids talking about his personal life at times.
Over the course of the later seasons, Jeff becomes increasingly self-conscious about his age and the fact that he will probably be the last in the study group to leave Greendale. In the season 5 episode "G.I. Jeff", Jeff got drunk on his 40th birthday and consumed anti-aging pills he purchased from Koreatown, causing him to slip into a coma. While unconscious, Jeff imagines himself and the study group as characters in the 1980s cartoon G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, where he eventually comes to terms with the fact that he is getting older. He later regains consciousness surrounded by his friends and reveals to them his actual age, which surprises the group. In the season 6 episode "Intro to Recycled Cinema", Jeff fights with Abed over his parts being edited out, leading him to burst out to Abed his fear of being possibly the last person in the group to leave Greendale. Abed comforts him by saying that life isn't always predictable and that Jeff should look out for pleasant surprises. At the end of the season, Jeff has accepted his situation and thanks to the group for being a positive impact on him.
Jeff is agnostic, and is fond of luxuries such as designer clothing and vintage whiskey. He begins to drink more often (even in class) during the course of the later seasons as he becomes more depressed about his situation. With Frankie Dart (Paget Brewster) at one point secretly calling him a "functional alcoholic" as revealed in "Basic Email Security".
Relationships[edit]
After Britta continues to reject his advances throughout season one, Jeff begins to flirt with his statistics professor Michelle Slater (Lauren Stamile). She initially turns him down, but soon they began dating. Their relationship nearly ended when Jeff accidentally drunk-dialed Slater when he meant to dial Britta, but she helps Jeff and Slater resolve their relationship. Slater then abruptly breaks up with Jeff in "Basic Genealogy", causing him to become depressed and briefly flirt with Pierce's stepdaughter Amber (Katherine McPhee). In "Modern Warfare", Jeff and Britta's sexual tension was finally resolved when they have sex with each other in the study room during the paintball tournament. In the season finale, "Pascal's Triangle Revisited", both Slater and Britta declare their love for Jeff publicly at the Transfer dance. However, an overwhelmed Jeff runs out instead of picking between the two of them. He then runs into Annie Edison (Alison Brie), who was initially leaving for Delaware but had decided to stay. After hugging each other, the two then share a kiss.
In season 2, Jeff returns to Greendale dealing with the aftermath of the Transfer Dance. He realizes that he has been made a villain by the school for his actions, and Britta takes advantage of being made popular as a result. To get back at her, Jeff also publicly declares his love for Britta, and the two ends up getting engaged. Which upsets Annie, who thought Jeff had genuine feelings for her after their kiss. After Shirley reveals that Jeff had sex with Britta during the paintball tournament, Annie punches Jeff in the face. Leading Britta to reveal that she was only caught up in competition with Slater when she said she loved Jeff, the two then breaks off their engagement. Although it was later revealed in "Cooperative Calligraphy" that Jeff and Brita have continued to secretly hook up over the course of the year. Jeff and Annie also continue to flirt to no avail, and Annie confronted Jeff when it was revealed that he was still sleeping with Britta. By season 3 Jeff begins to be open about his feeling towards Annie and have accepted Britta as a friend rather than a romantic interest. Although the two continue to flirt throughout the semester, Jeff and Annie were still unsure where they stood. The two would often partner up for activities and investigations, such as the destruction of their Biology class yam ("Basic Lupine Urology"). Over time, Jeff and Annie have also begun to fantasize about each other more, including Jeff's fantasy of their evil counterparts being together in "the darkest timeline" ("Advanced Introduction to Finality").
In the season 5 finale "Basic Sandwich", when Greendale is about to be sold to Subway, Jeff and Britta decide to get married. However, when the group is trapped underneath the school and can only be freed by a computer powered by human passion, Jeff volunteers to start the computer. He then uses his feeling for Annie to power up the computer and freed the group, preventing Greendale from being sold. Afterward, Jeff and Britta mutually agree to break off their engagement.[2]
In the series finale "Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television", upon learning that Annie has taken an internship with the FBI, Jeff becomes upset. He later imagines settling down with Annie and having a son named Sebastian with her, but then realizes that he does not know what Annie wants romantically. In the study room, Jeff privately tells Annie his feelings for her but admits that he must let her go. They share a goodbye kiss before being joined by the rest of the group. Jeff would later drop off Annie and Abed (who is moving to Los Angeles to become a production assistant) at the airport and hug them both goodbye.[3]
Reception[edit]
Joel McHale received positive reviews for his portrayal of Jeff Winger.[4][5] The popularity of the character and show led to speculation that there would be a movie. McHale commented on it's possibility, saying: "There's way more rumblings than there used to be. Alison [Brie] tweeted that she got a phone call from Sony. They still haven't called me, maybe Matthew Lillard will take over. But I would say there's a better chance than there’s ever been -- For a long time I was like, 'never gonna happen.' And now I think with the renewed interest, and I know the cast is interested, that it could happen".[6]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Jeff Winger". NBC. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ↑ Gualtieri, Jacqueline. "Who Did Jeff End up With in 'Community'? Why He and Annie Couldn't Happen". Distractify. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ↑ Milner, Sarah Bea (June 7, 2020). "Community: Where Jeff Ends Up At The End Of The Series". Screen Rant. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ↑ Pais, Matt (April 6, 2015). "From 'The Soup' to 'Community' to the stage, Joel McHale knows funny". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ↑ "Community star Joel McHale lands role in The X Files reboot". Entertainment.ie. Packed House. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ↑ Chung, Jun (April 13, 2020). "Community Movie Could Happen Soon, Says Star Joel McHale". Screen Rant. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
External links[edit]
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