Skip to main content

Parks and Recreation - Pawnee Zoo


Leave it to Leslie Knope to unwillingly stick herself right in the middle of the gay marriage debate just by doing something as innocent and cute as marrying a couple of gay penguins at the zoo. She has always been a champion for gay antarctic animal rights.
Parks and Recreation returned tonight picking up somewhat where it left off in the ridiculous factor but without many ongoing storylines. Sure we have the Leslie as a political wanna-be powerplayer but beyond that what is there? Where The Office always had the running Jim/Pam will they or won't they debate, Parks and Rec lacks much of the week-to-week questioning. Instead it relies much more on the characters' (read: Leslie's) individual antics to carry the storyline. This isn't bad persay, as Parks and Rec is a pretty funny show, but it isn't a formula for long term success. We need more than "Leslie wants to be popular" as a reason to tune back and in. I don't think the Ann and Mark possible love affair is enough to get us there so where do we go? I, of course, petition to get a shitload more of Tom, but my wife said his character was goo "as is" so I don't know. There just needs to be more than a few laughs for a show to remain endearing. The season two premiere of Parks and Recreation didn't give me a great deal of confidence.

Highlights:
- Tom's appearance on "Pawnee Today" was the highlight of the episode. He schmarmy attitude is something I just want to hang out with.

- The Bulge party with Leslie doing a little "Poker Face."

- The return of a suited-up, yet degenerately homeless Andy Dwyer made me happy as much as sad. .

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia - The Gang Exploits the Mortgage Crisis

This summer Mrs. Channelup was dying to see "The Nightman Cometh," Its Always Sunny's broadway-esque rendition of the Charlie's season 3 ending play. I balked, but now regret it to some degree. The gang would have probably made a fairly hilarious spectacle. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is like Curb Your Enthusiasm for the young, drunk and stupid crowd. I mean this is the best possible sense. The formula of Ridiculous premise + inane ranting dialogue + actors and actresses that can pull it off = comedy fucking gold. There aren't many funnier shows on television. Consider tonight's season premiere where Dee strives to become a surrogate mother strictly for the cash and residual benefits while the rest of the gang exploits a family foreclosing on their home. Does any other show make so much light of two topics more unfunny? That the gang is too stupid to pull either ploy off makes the show that much better. I always wonder how much of Its Alwa...

Parks and Recreation - The Stakeout

Leslie is such a active member of the the Pawnee landscape that she literally has started a community garden in the vacant pit. Can you blame someone for growing pot in said garden? I cannot. The Stakeout was an interesting episode for Parks and Recreation . I liked it for a couple of reasons. for starters, it featured considerably less Leslie Knope. This is a positive move considering the writer's seeming over reliance on her character. Tonight's episode spread the wealth in such a way that I didn't feel The Stakeout was about any particular character but instead about the cast as a whole. It was about everyone and no one all at once. Mark and Ann's date, Tom's idiocy in the name of racial profiling, Ron's hernia, and Andy's decent into the literal pit of hell. I liked The Stakeout for it uniformity. A couple of other notes on the episode. It isnt easy making a guy just sitting totally still and doing nothing funny. Damned if Ken Tremendous and the...

The Listener - I'm an Adult - Review

Toby Logan has telepathy and he chooses to use it for good?!!! I am sick of these moral fundamentalists who insist on using their powers for the greater well being. Give me one day of telepathy and I would be able to retire away to an island. What does Toby do? He becomes a Toronto paramedic. What a waste and a perfectly awesome super power. Forgive me for being skeptical about The Listener when I read it was : A: A Canadian television show B: Made in Canada C: Produced by our neighbors to the North Hmm, maybe I just have something against Canada. Its good to talk these things out. The Listener (according to trusty old reliable, accurate and all knowing Wikipedia) has had a pretty nice run in Canada and a few other countries so it isn't technically a new show. NBC picked it up for a summer run. The idea that it has had enough success elsewhere to warrant a new airing in The States was enough to start changing my tune. Toby's telepathy is a secret from those close to h...