I do my weekly DVR Purges, but let's be frank: they are crap. I don't proofread them at all most weeks. They're collections of scattered thoughts that barely even make sense a week later. What I've decided to do is, with most of these shows I watch taking a break, reflect on where I stand with them, assessing what is in the show's favor (assets) and what could get it in trouble (liabilities).
Now, not every show I watch will be included. In general, I'm sticking to shows that I've kept notes (be them from Purges or otherwise) as I've watched. That means, shows like The Bridge, Looking, Sherlock, and Dexter will not be included. To get my thoughts on those, ask me. This project, supposing I stay on schedule should take all month and I hope it does a good job summing up where these shows stand. In some cases, I'm hoping to convince you to start watching. Other times, it'll be nothing more than a postmortem for a show that's gone.
I hope you enjoy.
Favorite Episode(s): "London", "Ann and Chris", "Moving Up: Part 1 & 2"
The Highs: Looking at the best episodes, it's hard to not think of this as an all-time great season. It starts with half the gang going to London, which featured everything that was right about the series. The mid-season high point of Ann and Chris' farewell was one of the most emotional episodes on TV this season as far as I'm concerned and was packed with great scene after great scene (Ron gave Chris two hand-shakes for god's sake and April told Ann that she loved her!). Then, the finale is my reigning highest scoring episode and could have be one of the greatest series finales of a comedy ever if not for the upcoming season happening. That's not even mentioning finding out Leslie is pregnant and everyone meeting John (middle name redacted) Swanson. At times, Parks and Rec. was churning out some of the funniest, sweetest, best written product possible.
The Regulars: Amy Poehler, Adam Scott, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Aziz Ansari, Chris Pratt, Rhetta, etc. How do you get any better than that? Even with notable departures (farewell Rashida Jones and Rob Lowe) and extended absences (Pratt shooting Guardians of the Galaxy), this is a hyper talented cast. I believe I mentioned in a previous "Offseason" that Parks & Rec. features more headliners than any comedy I can think of. Pratt, Ansari, Poehler, Plaza, and Scott have all been the leads in movies already (probably others too). At this point, they are the equivalent of the Miami Heat: All-Stars taking a pay cut so they can play together. There's a ridiculous amount of talent on display in each episode.
Closing Moments: Most comedies I can think of work hardest to make their opening tags (before the opening credits) funny: a tight, quick, effective joke to keep people who might've forgotten to change the channel watching (because I know we all watch our TV live). Parks & Rec. certainly does well by their cold opens. When I go back to my favorite moment from this season, I notice that they repeatedly occur in the closing tag of the show. Ron's beautiful trip to the Scotch distillery, the return of Lipitus, Ron winning Employee of the Month, and even the time jump reveal. Parks and Rec outdid itself at the end of episodes this year, while many shows (I'm looking at you Big Bang Theory) often trail off at the end as though the editor ran out of time.
Attrition: Rashida Jones is gone. Rob Lowe is gone. Chris Pratt is missing time to make movies. Billy Eichner's Craig has come in and Rhetta stepped up this season, but the cast definitely felt leaner. It's obvious that they worked hard with Pratt to keep Andy around as much as possible, I believe, writing the London episode so they could film with him. When he returned, Andy/Pratt seemed genuinely excited to be back. Chris and Ann were nearly written out of the show before they actually left, often gone from episodes altogether or by themselves looking for an engagement ring. All this led to the uncomfortable experiment that is Craig. I'll give the writers this: I liked Craig much more at the end of the season than I did when he was introduced. By next season, I assume he'll be fully integrated. It was touch and go there for a while. With only a final shortened season left, I can't imagine we'll be seeing anyone else leaving or disappearing before the end, although it's not out of the question, I fear.
Rehashing: When Parks and Recreation first began, my fear was that I couldn't see how they would find enough things to do episodes about. 113 episodes later, the writers proved me spectacularly wrong. Still, Parks & Rec. is a senior comedy, in its 6th season. That's a long time to be funny and it was obvious that the writers were running out of ways to shake things up. Early in the season, every other episode was about Leslie being awful to Eagletonians then realizing the error of her ways. Late in the season, every other episode was about Leslie feeling unneeded in the department and forcing herself into things, then realizing the error of her ways. Most of these episodes were still good. They even used expectations to mess with the audience in "Flu Season 2", using it as a way to introduce Leslie's pregnancy. In a world where Parks & Rec. had a three season commitment from NBC, this would make me worry that they are running dry. As is, well, there's a different set of worries.
The Future: This is one of the strangest moves I've ever seen for a show like this. It's nice to know I can still be surprised, and there's potential that the writers could have a lot of fun with this. It deftly avoids a season-long pregnancy story, followed by another season of Leslie and Ben as tired parents. We can go immediately into the triplets hanging out with the young Swanson boy and adorableness will ensue. The reason this is a liability is that since the time jump is such a rare move for a show, there's not a template in how to handle it. Pawnee is a pretty insular community, but what is Tom going to do? I, for one, learn most of my hip references from him. There's probably some fun to be had with the writers making crazy predictions about celebrities as a wink to the audience. My bigger worry is that this is a 13 episode final season. That's not a lot of episodes. 30 Rock needed almost all of them to setup a satisfying finale. Parks will have to devote a good chunk of the season to catching the audience up. Hopefully that won't cut into the wrap up time, because, after a psuedo-finale like "Moving Up", they've set a high bar for themselves.
Parks & Recreation is one of my favorite shows already [probably all-time]. There's no worries about if it will be good anymore. Mike Schur and company have proven themselves and if they announced the final season was going to be one long filibuster, I trust it will still be top-tier comedy. Season seven will be the last for this perennially overlook, underrated (as in, Neilson ratings), and only occasionally awarded series. It's hard to believe it has lasted this long, yet at the same time, it's been long enough for so many cast member to cement themselves in pop culture. Amy Poehler went from respected SNL cast member to that Tina Fey, nearly untouchable status. Nick Offerman was a character actor, best known for...marrying Megan Mullaly and now he's the epitome of man. Chris Pratt was bouncing around movies and TV. Now he's starring in major Hollywood franchises. Aubrey Plaza and Aziz Ansari were young and in need of a launching pad, which they've used to increase their stars. Adam Scott is bigger than ever, as is Rashida Jones, Rhetta, and Jim O'Heir. What I'm trying to say is, I love this show and there's no way history won't be very kind to it.
Previously this Offseason...
Community
Brooklyn Nine Nine
New Girl
Suburgatory
Modern Family
Parenthood
The Mindy Project
The Michael J Fox Show
The Big Bang Theory
Agents of SHIELD
The Crazy Ones
Back in the Game
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