Hey, Greg Daniels and Mike Schur: Please keep "guest star" Chris Pratt on Parks and Recreation. Pratt, and his goofball fratboy-past-his-prime charm, dominated the show’s season finale, delivering some of the best moments ever in the fledgling series. His listing of all the band names he’s gone through was pure genius. Some favorites: Department of Homeland Obscurity. Just the Tip. Teddy Bear Suicide. Puppy Pendulum. Everything Rhymes with Orange.
The finale, "Rock Show," was solid all-around, with Leslie getting set up on a blind date with a 62-year-old government guy, while the whole Parks department headed to a local bar to watch Andy (Pratt) and his band Scarecrow Boat. (They should totally change it back to Department of Homeland Obscurity.) The music, described as Matchbox Twenty meets The Fray, was awesomely awful. To be fair, not many bands have songs that "rock really hard" but also "inform people about a small public works project."
A lot of people I know gave up on Parks after the first episode. I don’t blame them. It was pretty underwhelming. But the last two have been really good, if not great. But there are still a couple of nagging issues I’d like to see fixed for the next season. Click through the jump to read the three things the show needs to do to improve in season two.
1. Always remember and never forget who the star is: Amy Poehler. Poehler really, truly is one of the most gifted comedians out there.But why do I get the nagging feeling Parks isn’t the best vehicle totake advantage of her talent? She seemed particularly subdued in lastnight’s episode. She occasionally had some great facial reactions, butLeslie wasn’t really the star of the episode. She was more on theperiphery, until the episode’s final moments when she and Mark (PaulSchneider) made out by the pit. When Leslie rejected Markbecause he was too drunk, and because she’s too in love with him, thesubtlety of Poehler’s performance really shone through. Subtlety isfine and all, but this is Amy Poehler for crying out loud! I wish the showwould give her more to do. Perhaps give her a rival that’ll amp up her competitiveness?
2. Make Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, and Aubrey Plaza’s characters more dynamic. Jones’ character, Ann, spent most of the finale pissed off. Andy never told her he could have removed his cast far earlier, and once she found out the truth she was a terror. And not in a funny way. When Mark kind-of, sort-of hit on her, she rejected him so fast (and cruelly) it was frightening. Jones was the straight woman on The Office, and here she is almost exactly the same. They should let her wave her freak flag, or something.
Elsewhere, Aziz Ansari is hilarious. That’s just a fact. His reaction to Leslie’s date was priceless. His character Tom is undeniably a huge jerk, but not in an irritating way. (I’m still laughing about "peacockin’.") I like that they finally introduced his wife, Wendy, but his character is going to have to evolve from the whole jerk persona eventually, right? Otherwise he’ll just be another one-dimensional character on the show. Like Ann, or April (played by Aubrey Plaza). April’s signature bug-eyed looks of disgust are great, and she typically has one killer line per episode. (Last night’s: "I make out with him sometimes when I’m drunk.") But that’s pretty much it. They need to weave her into the story better.
3. Utilize the confessionals better, or delete them altogether. I really can’t decide if the documentary-style format does Parks any favors. Besides the occasional guffaw (like Andy’s list of band names), the verite feel doesn’t really deliver laughs or advance the plot in any way. Confessionals on The Office make sense within that world, but I don’t think that holds true for Parks. No one would care if they were deleted. It’d at least make people less apt to compare the show to The Office over and over again.
This reads like I’m being hard on the show. I do it in good faith. Parks and Recreation is only six episodes in, and it’s already better than I anticipated. It has its own tone, a talented cast, and a plot that’s advancing toward something, at least as fast as governmental red tape will allow it to. I will definitely be tuning in next season to see what (if anything) has changed. But again, a friendly PSA: Chris Pratt better still be on the show. He rocks, even if his band doesn’t.
Did anyone else catch the finale? Did you like it? What are some improvements you’d like to see next season?
Comments (1-30) of 31 Add your comment
Though I agree that Rashida Jones needs more to do on the show, I thought Ann’s rejection of Mark was the funniest bit in the entire episode.
I really like this show. I like all the characters thus far but I agree- give Rashida more to do. And I prefer Amy more awkward, less of a buffoon.
It’s not “Aubrey”. Her name is April on the show. I should know.
This show has so much potential. I thought last night’s finale was pretty good and it really makes me look forward to next season.
When I saw the title of the article I was like “Please say something about keeping Chris Pratt on the show.” When Andy was naming his band names, I almost lost it. Also, from a couple weeks ago I think, when Andy decided to take a bath, but in a children’s pool outside. So f***ing funny!
I agree completely with everything you said, especially how the show’s shown potential these last two weeks. Rashida was hilarious at the banquet last night (btw, the scene where they’re all just messing with each other teasing Leslie is my series fav so far). AZIZ! Hilarious. More to do, more nuance. Ditto for Ron.
Chris Pratt should definitely be given permanent status on the show. He’s awesome. I also think they should do away with the documentary-style format. It’s doing the show no favors and only brings more comparisons to The Office. Overall, though, I enjoyed the first season and am looking forward to a full season 2.
I haven’t given up yet on this show, but so far it’s not great. It’s just not that funny.
this show just stinks. there is no saving it.
this show just stinks. there is no saving it.
I can’t believe EW hasn’t or isn’t going to do a recap of smallville and supernatural season finales!
http://theninthdragonking.wordpress.com/2009/05/15/tv-smallville-and-supernatural-season-finales/
I thought Ann’s reaction to Chris not having his cast removed (and the whole idea really) was hilarious but not the nasty cut down of Brandonovich (is that his name?) Anyways, I kind of enjoy the interviews. We’d never hear their Boss’s opinion otherwise. I thought they did a good job 6 episodes in. It took a while for The Office to grow on me.
Well, I watched it on mute waiting for TO to come on. I just can’t seem to care about the characters. They all seem to be one-dimensional. And the whole show is just generally unfunny. I really want Amy P’s green and gold necklace that she wore last night. Very pretty.
I love this show. Probably my favorite of this season.
Ack. Sorry. This show is just bad — no saving it. I love Rashida, though, and really hope she finds something better to do.
Best line – Tom talking about Leslie’s old guy date – “He’s 6, he’s got Benjamin Button’s disease.”
I love this show, it is just getting better and better. Can’t wait till next season.
I hated the first season of The Office when I first saw it. So any show by the office people – I give them the first 6 episodes as a gimme. They’ll get better. But I’ve liked P&R better than I liked The Office at first. I love the little love story and how hilarious Aziz is and the amazing Bright – I mean Andy!
Love this show! More Chris Pratt!
This was the best episode by far. I actually liked Leslie tonight! I think her overly sunny and clueless personality can be a little bit much. And please KEEP CHRIS PRATT! He was hilarious! Mark, Tom and Andy are my favorite characters on this show.
This show is awful. I kept watching it, hoping to see improvements, but they never really came. It had a few bright spots, but out of all the episodes I only laughed a few times. This show is just plain boring. It’s a shame it gets to stay while “Life,” a show that was never dull, gets thrown by the wayside.
I love Poehler and she could do so much more on the show. I hope they maximize her talents next season. Could she go back to SNL if things don’t look good? I love her on snl. Look’s like she’s having a hard time shedding the pounds after the baby, lol. But she still looks great anyway
Its really starting to grow on me. Gave it a chance because of Amy and I’m glad I did. And yeah I agree 100% about Chris Pratt. Hilarious and hot at the same time!
I seriously don’t know what people expect from this show. This episode was hilarious. Everyone was on point and there was nothing unfunny about Ann’s cutdown of Mark. She was pissed and his pushing it made it funny. This is why shows get canceled left and right. Just watch it if you like it and stick with it or don’t!
Awful, awful show. I have watched 5 episodes and they are all pathetic. It just doesn’t work, it’s unfunny, and frankly the actors are not appealing. Time to go….
This show is fantastic its quicky become one of my favorites and I’m so glad NBC is going to give it more time to establish itself. I think the same could be said for 30 rock, these shows need to be settled into, its been a super abridged season and its Amy fricken Poehler people! She can do no wrong. Just like Tina Fey w/ 30 Rock and Steve Carrell with the Office. These are some of the funniest comics out there today and if they have the faith in their shows give them the time to get established. It worked for the Office and 30 Rock and I’m more than positive that this time next year we’ll be saying it worked for P&R!
I’ve been so pleasantly surprised by this show. I thought it would be kind of a let down, but I love it. All the characters are so great, and I can’t wait to see where they go with it. This show has made me laugh out loud way more than the Office has lately.
Couldn’t agree more with your #1.
Amy Poehler is a major talent. There are any number of actresses out there who can do a second-rate Steve Carell/Michael Scott impersonation. Amy Poehler’s talent is kind of being wasted so far.
Amy Poehler is a gifted comedian?
Never been truly challenged. From Chicago to SNL. No real chops and now, you’ve got to carry it. Real bad
Jeremy, I agree w/you on all your suggestions. They should definitely keep Chris Pratt. Did they make him “guest star” b/c they’re not sure if he would fit in w/the rest of the cast, or is it that they won’t be keeping him and Ann together for long? Whatever it is, he is a great part of the show, I think. And Rashida Jones’s character, Ann, has got to be more dynamic. I loved it when she rejected Mark, that was so “in your face!” Finally, w/the confessionals, they remind me too much of “The Office” style approach. Leslie didn’t have any confessionals where she was sitting behind her desk, and that was good, b/c I didn’t find any of those types of confessionals of hers funny at all. All that said, I watched the episodes online via the nbc website. I didn’t watch it live because it isn’t that kind of show that makes me feel like I have to catch it live (unlike Lost and House, the only 2 shows I try my best to watch live). I’ll still watch it, but hope they make improvements next season.