Community Episode 3.22 Digital Estate Planning

Pierce brings the group out to a server farm with eight computer centers set up. Pierce's longtime assistant, Gilbert Lawson, asked Pierce and his seven closest friends to come. Pierce has six. Gilbert explains there was a time Pierce wanted money to start a video game company. Instead, his father spent 30 years making a video game for him and his friends to play right now. As they take their seats, Jeff quips about a 100-year-old man making a 30-year-old video game. This I've got to see.

The gang is turned into cute little chalk-like characters and set into a virtual world beginning at Greendale. To escape the campus, they battle strange killer hippie creatures. Pierce's dad, Cornelius Hawthorne, virtually appears in the game to congratulate the players for leaving the hippie lifestyle and getting through community college... Something Pierce couldn't do in real life. Cornelius adds that whoever gets all the way through the game first will receive all of Pierce's inheritance money.

Gilbert inserts himself into the game and knocks the Greendale Seven back to the study hall at the beginning of the level. Gilbert's planning on reaching the end of the game first and taking all of Pierce's money for himself. The gang rallies around Pierce, but feeling it's hopeless, Pierce just wants to quit. Annie tells him that while Gilbert's fighting for greed, they're fighting for friendship! Pierce gathers his courage and agrees to press on as Annie's avatar suddenly hits him and knocks him down. Oops, guess there's no hug button.

As they pursue Gilbert, Abed finds an in-game character named Hilda who has information on how to finish the game. The characters split up to find the necessary materials for reaching the last castle. Annie and Shirley get weapons from the blacksmith; Jeff and Britta make a potion in the magic shop, and Troy and Pierce lose their virtual clothes in a poker game. Having found a spell book, Gilbert enters the village shooting lightning. Jeff tricks Gilbert into drinking Britta's potion, figuring she made it wrong, and his poisoned body reassembles in the study room. Gilbert is ticked and says let's play.

The group heads into the Black Cave while Abed stays back to help Hilda rebuild the village Annie "accidently" burned down. The gang succeeds in beating the jive turkeys to acquire the crystal needed to enter the final level. Gilbert catches up to them as they're crossing a rope bridge. Gilbert's already collected an assortment of weapons he shouldn't have been able to gather in the time since he died. They cry foul as Gilbert uses a boomerang to take out the bridge and send them all down into the abyss below.

Jeff and Pierce get out of their video game chairs to confront Gilbert on his cheating ways. Pierce declares the money is rightfully his since he's Cornelius' son. Gilbert claims he's Cornelius' son too. What?! Gilbert's mother was the hot cousin of Pierce's nanny. Cornelius paid for Gilbert's education and hired him in exchange for his silence. Gilbert advises Pierce to shut up and play... or quit. It's what you always do.

Reinvigorated, the gang gets back in the game more determined than ever to win. Pierce still has his doubts, believing Gilbert will continue to find ways to cheat until he eventually wins. They find Abed and Hilda again who've rebuilt the medieval village into a futuristic metropolis. Abed's found a way to make babies with Hilda and each virtual child is able to run all sorts of computer code. Jeff asks what can they make to help them win, and Abed replies, "Whatever you can imagine."

Gilbert reaches the final location first. The Cornelius avatar appears and recognizes he's Gilbert Lawson. Cornelius offers him the inheritance, yet only if he signs a legal document declaring if he ever tells anyone he's Cornelius' son, he'll lose it all. Gilbert decides he can't accept those terms, so Cornelius' floating head begins shooting at him. The Greendale Seven arrive in zeppelins, tanks and mechanisms of destruction to beat down the avatar. Pierce rides a nuclear bomb himself into his father's head for the final blow. Team Pierce wins!

Dejected, Gilbert puts down his headset only to find the group standing in front of his console. They've forfeited their game. Pierce tells Gilbert they've been playing this game for a few hours, but Gilbert had been playing it his whole life. Gilbert had to put up with all Cornelius' crap, and he wouldn't even give you his name. Pierce decides Gilbert was more of his son than he was, so he lets Gilbert have the inheritance. Gilbert is dumbfounded and thanks them profusely. As they leave, Abed runs back into the room, inserts a thumb drive and downloads his sweetheart, Hilda. "I told you I'd come back for you!"