Last night’s episode of Parks & Recreation took us deeper into Chris’ ongoing psychological collapse and introduced us to Gayle Gergich (Christie Brinkley), Jerry’s incomprehensibly beautiful but slightly robotic wife. It also brought back Tammy II, Ron’s deranged, nymphomaniac ex-wife (or “sex-wife,” as she calls it) and pitted her against Leslie in what is probably the greatest dumpster fight ever depicted on screen.
But the heart of the episode took place at the Indiana Fine Woodworking Association Woodworking Awards, a surly event that Ron referred to as “heaven.” Given that he was surrounded not only by hand-made wood crafts but also by three of the most important women in his life — Leslie, Tammy, and new flame Diane — Ron had ample opportunity to dish out his singular wisdom. So grab your belt sanders and strap on your safety goggles folks, because it’s time for the eight best Ron Swanson-isms from “Ron & Diane.”
Last week’s episode of Parks and Recreation, in which Ben finally proposed to Leslie, set the bar pretty high — some might say impossibly high — so last night the writers stepped up and let loose with some top-shelf material. We met Ben’s sparring, divorced, insufferable parents (played by Glenne Headly and Jonathan Banks) and watched Chris have a total, happy-sad mental breakdown (“It’s like a perfect storm of emotions!”). The team even brought back the scene-stealer (and arguably the show’s most consistently funny character) Jean-Ralphio, Tom’s flamboyant cad of a business partner. With so many memorable moments, it’s hard to narrow down the episode’s highlights… but here goes.
Last night’s episode of Parks and Recreation ranks as a series standout. It tackled well-established themes — Tom’s media addiction, Pawnee’s laughably archaic social policies — in ways that felt fresh, timely, and subversive. Even bit player Perd Hapley, a witless and perpetually dramatic talk show host, took the spotlight and dished out some ridiculous one-liners.
