RENEWAL ALERT: Community, The Office, Parks and Recreation

NBC has renewed a trio of critically acclaimed but mildly rated sitcoms. One was no surprise at all, one was likely, and only one was on the bubble.

The most obvious renewal was for The Office. For a long time, The Office has been the tentpole and highest rated show on NBC's Thursday comedy block. With the writers planning for the transition as series star Steve Carell leaves, a renewal has been a given but didn't become official until today. Of course the show will be heavily scrutinized this spring and fall as it prepares to move on without Carell, the center of the show and biggest name in the cast. Through 17 episodes this season, it has averaged 7.3 million viewers and a solid 3.7 demo. It has slipped a bit in recent weeks but will probably spike for Carell's finale and Will Ferrell's overlapping guest arc.

Another unsurprising renewal was for Parks and Recreation. After being delayed for midseason this year, it got the prime post-Office slot. While the ratings have still only been ho-hum, the series has enjoyed a surge of critical praise and has a loyal and devoted but niche fan base. After a very rocky six episode first season, the show found its footing in its second season and is now one of the most consistently funny comedies on the air. Through 6 episodes, it has averaged 5.1 million viewers and a 2.6 in the demo. The good news for the show is that it is young-skewing.

Finally the most surprising (but still not entirely unexpected) renewal was for Community. The show is a cult favorite but has an extremely small audience in its spot as the lead-off for NBC's comedy block. Still, the show enjoys critical praise and for NBC, that seems to be enough despite some really paltry total viewer numbers. Through 17 episodes, it has averaged a low 4.5 million viewers and a 2.0 in the demo. The biggest question is, how will NBC's Thursday lineup look after the mediocre results for the experiment of three hours of comedy this spring.

These sitcoms join 30 Rock, The Biggest Loser, The Sing Off, and Who Do You Think You Are? among early renewals for next season. Likely or sure to join them are Harry's Law, Parenthood, Law & Order: SVU, Minute to Win It, and Celebrity Apprentice. On the bubble is Chuck, Law & Order: Los Angeles, and Outsourced while The Cape, Chase, The Event, Perfect Couples, and America's Next Great Restaurant are likely goners. Still to debut is The Voice while The Paul Reiser Show, Love Bites, and Friends with Benefits were never given premiere dates and are likely dead (why they wouldn't try one of them in place of Perfect Couples is beyond me).