School is back in session — “Community,” the low-rated NBC comedy with a rabid fan base returned for its junior year on Sept. 22. Once again, it has proved it is the funniest, least-watched show since “Arrested Development” and unless things change, it will follow “Arrested Development” straight into an early cancellation.

At its center, “Community” is a show about a group of slackers and misfits who bond together while attending Greendale Community College. While struggling early on to find a consistent tone, “Community” really hit its stride when it became a loving homage to everything pop-culture, hitting its absolute peak with the episode “Modern Warfare,” a tribute to action movies that had the whole campus caught up in the middle of a paintball war. Since then, there has been a zombie-themed Halloween special, a stop-motion Christmas episode and a flashback episode that looked back on times never actually seen on the show.

I think it’s undeniably the most inventive show on television at the moment, and has a lot more to offer viewers as it continues to evolve. Which is a shame, because it might not be around for much longer. The season three premiere debuted to a pitiful 3.93 million viewers. With the future of the show in question, I guess it’s time to beg.

I am convinced if this show gets canceled it will ascend to the geeky legacy of “Firefly” and “Arrested Development.” It has likeable, quirky characters. It has an amazing ensemble cast. It has some ingenious and clever writing. And most importantly, it has its fingers directly on the pulse of geeks everywhere. The time has never been better for a small, eccentric comedy to survive for its full run under the radar.

Either start from the beginning (“Community’s” first and second seasons are on DVD), or look for the season three premiere online. While it doesn’t pack as big of a wallop as most “Community” episodes, it features an opening song-and-dance and a tribute to “Doctor Who” and “2001: A Space Odyssey.” And with that sentence alone, you should know if this show will appeal to you or not.