Tonight, both NBC comedies Community and Parks and Recreation have Halloween-themed episodes—which might render them dubious propositions, but the former, at least, is worth watching while you think about the concept for your Halloween costume. The quick-witted comedy about community college students is pulling out of its pilot stage and into the pure pleasure zone. Chevy Chase, who I worried might be underutilized or never fit in on Community, is hitting his stride tonight when the gang of oddballs at the school throw a Halloween/Day of the Dead party.  In this episode, Chase echoes his role in Modern Problems, which, if you haven’t seen it, is essential rental viewing. And Joel McHale’s selfish, shallow Jeff ends up showing a bit more substance, which doesn’t render the show quaint so much as realistic—and lends Jeff a bit more believability. There is something life-affirming about the collection of kooks that one meets in community college—I can even vouch for that. Oddly enough, the show is starting to play less silly and is the better for it. One of the best things about this comedy is that it never wastes a minute. There’s nothing so much as a subplot in the densely joke-riddled Community, but that’s just fine with me—it never has to awkwardly switch gears, it moves too fast.

Community airs tonight at 7pm on NBC.