Inside Television with Alan Sepinwall

Review: 'Parks and Recreation' - 'Ben and Leslie/Correspondents' Lunch': It's a trap!

The gang tries to throw an impromptu wedding, and Leslie battles a local reporter

By Alan Sepinwall Thursday, Feb 21, 2013 9:30 PM

Amy Poehler in "Parks and Recreation."

Credit: NBC

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I'm on vacation this week, but I got to see both of tonight's "Parks and Recreation" episodes before I left, and I have a few thoughts on them coming up just as soon as I figure out what Neve Campbell sounds like...

As I noted in last week's review — and as Mike Schur discusses at length in the interview published this morning — "Ben and Leslie" was conceived at a time when there was a chance it was going to be the last episode of the season, and possibly the series. Even more than "L'il Sebastian" and "Win, Lose or Draw," it feels like a summation of the entire series: Ben and Leslie get married (and before that, Ben gets to tease Leslie with his awareness of how strong and independent she is by pretending he wants her to take his last name), Chris gives Ben a framed copy of the letter that brought them to Pawnee, a L'il Sebastian impersonator blesses the event (and the entire cast later sings Andy's song from the memorial), Ron walks Leslie down the aisle (after turning a sconce into wedding rings and before decking Councilman Jamm) and then does it again, the real wedding happens in the parks department office (accompanied by black and white montages of Ben and Leslie's greatest hits), and DJ Roomba even comes back to keep things lively.

It is an incredibly warm and happy episode, and if this had, in fact, been the last we saw of Pawnee, I'd have been sad to say goodbye but happy that it ended so well.

I do wish, though that, as I said last week, "Ben and Leslie" had wound up paired with "Emergency Response" and not "Correspondents' Lunch." Not only does it feel weird to have such a finale-y episode followed moments later by a regular one, but "Correspondents' Lunch" is one of this season's lesser outings. It does a good job of establishing new roles for Ben and Andy (always a good combination), moves Ann and Chris forward on the baby-making idea and gives Perd Hapley some choice moments ("The story of this situation is: it's extremely personal"), but it's kind of forgettable overall — and especially so aired back-to-back with the wedding. (And there are other oddities that come as a result of the scheduling, like Leslie doing her Tim Gunn impression in "Ben and Leslie" and then struggling to come up with a single useful celebrity impression in "Correspondents' Lunch.") Sometimes, the show does very well when it lifts ideas from current events (like Leslie discovering she was born in Eagleton), but the phone hacking idea got cursory treatment at best.

But boy oh boy was "Ben and Leslie" good. As I've been saying for a while now, it would be a stunner if NBC didn't renew the show at this point, which means Schur has at least two more finales to come (including this season's, which was written at a time when the future was more in doubt). Can "Parks" pull a "Friday Night Lights" and make all of its faux series finales great? After the three we've gotten so far, I wouldn't want to bet against it.

What did everybody else think?

Alan Sepinwall
Sr. Editor, What's Alan Watching

Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com

Related Searches: Parks and Recreation, Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Adam Scott, Rashida Jones, Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza, Rob Lowe, Aziz Ansari, Mike Schur, Alan Sepinwall

Next 62 Comments

TJ

Wow. Maybe it was the glow of "Ben and Leslie," but I found the second episode hilarious, and one of the more "season 2 in its prime" episodes they've done in a long time.

Which, "Ben and Leslie." Wow. That was perfect. Really. I think I'm going to consider that the series finale. Everything we get from here on out is just a bonus extended coda.

Just an awesome hour all around. In related news, there was more great Ron Swanson and great Ann Perkins bits than they've done in quite a while.
February 21, 2013 at 10:40PM EST Reply to Comment
- James J I agree about "Correspondents' Lunch"... it wasn't the culminating payoff episode that "Ben and Leslie" was, but it's still a great episode that produced many a laughter.
  
  Yes "Ben and Leslie" should have aired with last week's episode, but the silver lining is that "Correspondents' Lunch" showed that Parks still has a lot to offer even after its faux finale. I was a little worried that all of S5 seemed to have a aura of finality over all it's storylines, so it's encouraging to have the show come out pretty strong after the wedding episode.
  February 22, 2013 at 2:21AM EST
- Col Bat Guano Yeah, I thought "Correspondents Lunch" was a great episode. Maybe not as good as "Ben and Leslie", but still a good one. Of course, anytime they trot out inappropriate murals or paintings I'm in.
  February 22, 2013 at 2:40AM EST
- PotatoSolution Add me to the list who thought "Correspondents Lunch" was consistently hilarious.
  February 22, 2013 at 1:14PM EST
Shawn

Do you also not mean like Chuck making its 5 finales after season 2 great too? I mean I like 3.13, 3.19, 4.13, 4.24 and 5.13 a lot! So maybe Parks can do it too.
February 21, 2013 at 10:41PM EST Reply to Comment
- Nia Chuck was amazing and all of their finales were so fantastic. I think parks can pull that off too!
  February 21, 2013 at 10:50PM EST
- John I love all of Chuck's finales, but I do prefer to imagine that season 5 didn't happen, because I'd rather give them a 100% happy ending then having Sarah (maybe) slowly regaining her memories. That's just me, though.
  February 21, 2013 at 11:52PM EST
- RP Alan made the Chuck comparison in the introduction to the Schur interview linked above.
  February 22, 2013 at 12:20AM EST
- Neeraj The end of Chuck was terrible. The writers took a couple that had been through a lot together and destroyed that by deleting one of their memories. Why? Absurd.
  February 22, 2013 at 12:21PM EST
- Joe I'm of the opinion Sarah got all of her memories back when they kissed, but maybe I'm just a sucker.
  February 22, 2013 at 3:13PM EST
- Brian Yea, I was not at all a huge fan of the final Chuck finale. Although, some of the other Chuck "finales" were solid, I don't remember any of them even approaching the level of "Ben and Leslie."
  February 22, 2013 at 4:47PM EST
- Will Chuck's Season 2 Finale is the best finale the show did.
  
  I'd personally rank it over "Ben & Leslie", but YMMV.
  February 22, 2013 at 9:13PM EST
Zach L

That first episode was perfect. I'd actually like to think of that as the series finale and everything else following is just the whip cream on the waffles that are Pawnee
February 21, 2013 at 10:45PM EST Reply to Comment
- Lazy Iggy i like that....and now i really want whip cream and waffles
  :)
  February 22, 2013 at 1:46AM EST
ed w

I thought the second episode, the "regular one", was better than the first. Just enough Knope without the overkill of the previous two and the Anne/Chris stuff was played just right.
February 21, 2013 at 10:50PM EST Reply to Comment
Jeff G

The wedding was perfect. Great job by Schur. He really knows what he's doing with this show, even with all the uncertainty around. It was a little weird continuing to a new episode after, but I was on such a Parks and Rec high after the 1st episode, I was glad to watch another.
February 21, 2013 at 10:56PM EST Reply to Comment
Blaze Domingo

I agree with those who thought "Correspondents Lunch" was a pretty good episode. No, it didn't have the emotional depth of "Ben & Leslie", but it was a typically breezy, funny episode of Parks. And I thought the honeymoon cold open was the perfect segue between the two.
February 21, 2013 at 11:01PM EST Reply to Comment
serenefire

I understand that this was conceived and executed as a series finale, but the idea that everything afterward is going to be somehow lesser? I completely disagree. COMPLETELY. Yes, I enjoyed "Ben and Leslie," but ultimately, it made me realize that, as much as I love Ben and Leslie together, that's not why I watch the show, and the idea that their storyline is somehow "finished" and that somehow because their storyline is finished the show is, also... well it obviously isn't, and they're two dynamic people who will continue to be interesting to me no matter what storylines the writers throw at them.

And while I didn't think "Correspondent's Lunch" was one of the better episodes of the season, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The extended ficus euphemism made me laugh harder than I've laughed since, well... last week's Parks.

Honestly? I was worried I would feel like the show should have ended tonight. I don't. I don't feel that way at all.
February 21, 2013 at 11:02PM EST Reply to Comment
kronicfatigue

perfect episode.
February 21, 2013 at 11:14PM EST Reply to Comment
- kronicfatigue 1) I finished watching the first episode, and commented w/o reading Alan's review (I know i know, I shouldn't have, but I was so moved by the episode)
  
  2) then I started reading and learned there was a second episode, so I watched that.
  
  3) WTH is wrong with NBC? Seriously. Their Thursday lineup ALL YEAR has been messed up with double episodes, extended breaks, etc etc. They couldn't figure out a way to give us a pause after the wedding? even if it was only for ONE week? They have a two part episode and they air them in separate weeks and then throw on another new one after part II (which, mind you was already messed up b/c it was written as a potential series finale). NBC doesn't deserve nice things.
  February 22, 2013 at 12:21AM EST
- Lee Harvey Sorry to repeat, but what a shame these two were scheduled back-to-back. It would have been nice to bask in the glow of the first episode for a week. I agree with Kronic. NBC is giving us whiplash. Chris giving Ben the framed letter than brought them to Pawnee is one of my favorite moments in show history.
  February 22, 2013 at 1:45AM EST
- Lee Harvey *that (not "than")
  February 22, 2013 at 1:46AM EST
- James J Ahhh Chris' gift, so many emotions! It was as if Chris was talking for the entire show, and for all its viewers, when he said they (Chris/Ben) lasted 3 more years.
  February 22, 2013 at 2:25AM EST
- Brandon Tart-i-who?? I love that we're complaining about an extra Parks episode.
  
  Look, if NBC knew what they were doing Leslie & Ben WOULD have been the finale because they'd have found something that got better ratings.
  
  Thank God for NBC's incompetence, and may it lead to many more hilarious seasons of Parks!
  February 24, 2013 at 7:16AM EST
Sana

Man oh man! That episode was amazing, I can't wipe the smile off my face.
February 21, 2013 at 11:30PM EST Reply to Comment
- April Just be careful cause, well, there's nails in there too!
  February 21, 2013 at 11:34PM EST
- Sana Not a dull moment in the episode!
  February 21, 2013 at 11:36PM EST
- TJ Can it Unibomber, this is an emergency!
  February 21, 2013 at 11:47PM EST
- Sana Ah! I just opened a can of whoop ass on myself!
  February 21, 2013 at 11:57PM EST
Miguel

So I take it that this is the "Chuck vs the Other Guy" of Parks?
February 21, 2013 at 11:35PM EST Reply to Comment
- LoopyChew Probably more like the "Chuck vs the Push Mix" of Parks.
  February 22, 2013 at 5:46AM EST
C

Great episodes tonight. "Leslie and Ben" made me smile from ear to ear, but "Correspondents' Lunch" was fun if slight.

Did anyone else love the stop at Ethel Beavers' house? I hope, as Andy and April's newly adopted grandma, that we'll see her again soon!

Also, in the second episode, I loved that Leslie referred to the gang (minus Ann) as a bunch of ugly nerds and Chris shot the camera a horrified glance. Ha!
February 22, 2013 at 1:04AM EST Reply to Comment
- Lazy Iggy Oh I loved seeing Ethel again!
  And it made so much sense that it would be her!!
  February 22, 2013 at 1:50AM EST
Murph

Another great "series finale" from Parks and Rec. The way the finales have upped the stakes each time, it would be funny if the actual series finale took place over something as unexciting as Jerry's retirement party.
February 22, 2013 at 1:08AM EST Reply to Comment
- Medium Sebastian I dunno, Jerry's birthday and Christmas parties turned out to be pretty exciting.
  
  For a dark, but hilarious, turn the series finale could be Jerry's funeral.
  February 24, 2013 at 7:22AM EST
Nate

Ron's demonstration of wedding ring making is possibly the best episode closer. I lost it completely when he started filling the waffle iron.
February 22, 2013 at 1:21AM EST Reply to Comment
- svetlana I loved the demonstration, so funny! I got ready eyed during the Ron and Leslie scenes, they were touching without being cloying. Amy Poehler is probably the most likeable actress on tv, i cant even think of a close second. And i wonder if people being mean to jerry will ever stop being funny.
  February 22, 2013 at 7:45AM EST
- Bendik And if "Ben and Leslie" had indeed been the series finale, it would have been the very last scene of P&R ever.
  February 22, 2013 at 1:52PM EST
Lazy Iggy

"i've never been here willingly past 5:04"

lol!!!!
it's all about the little things!

confession: right before the show i rewatched "The Master Plan" when they first met.
made me weep even more during "Ben and Leslie"
:)
February 22, 2013 at 1:49AM EST Reply to Comment
- James J Nice touch on the "willingly."
  
  A subtle callback to his hernia episode.
  February 22, 2013 at 2:27AM EST
Andrew S

Kind of surprised there was no mention of Terriers regular Jamie Denbo as the hacking reporter, but it was a fairly small part. She's just downright delightful in everything I've seen her appear on.
February 22, 2013 at 1:54AM EST Reply to Comment
Michelle

I actually enjoyed Correspondents' Lunch, but I loved Leslie and Ben! There were so many lovely, emotional moments - the vows, Chris' gift to Ben, Ron's conversation with Leslie just before walking her down the aisle, to name a few. I can definitely see how this could have served as a series finale (which I would have been satisfied with, though still sad), but I'm glad we've got more episodes to look forward to.
February 22, 2013 at 1:58AM EST Reply to Comment
gco211

Terrific episodes, both! "Ben and Leslie" was nirvana though. The return of Little Sebastian in some form was a terrific move.

Also, in both episodes, Chris had some great reaction shots.
February 22, 2013 at 2:07AM EST Reply to Comment
- Guest Not my cup of tea...
  February 22, 2013 at 2:35AM EST
Rob

Ridiculously good. I can't stop smiling thinking about it. Love that it looks like it's going to be renewed. Sometimes good things do happen to good shows.

I agree with people about the scheduling, but I'll take back to back PNR any week that I can, tyvm
February 22, 2013 at 3:08AM EST Reply to Comment
CJ

The shift from "Leslie and Ben" to "Correspondents' Dinner" was a little jarring at first, but I have to disagree with Alan about the quality of the second episode. I thought it was a solid normal episode and actually funnier than the wedding episode.

But the wedding episode was just fantastic from start to finish. It had an almost perfect balance between comedy and emotion, and every main character got an excellent moment. Had that been the end of the show, it would have been one of the best series finales I can ever remember.
February 22, 2013 at 3:32AM EST Reply to Comment
Mark Kawakami

"Ben and Leslie" may be my new favorite episode. I'm surprised no one in the comments has mentioned Ron's punch. I re-watched that moment five times in a row and cracked up each time. God bless Nick Offerman, the man threw the most Ron-effin-Swanson-y punch anyone has ever thrown: precise, direct, impatient, no wasted movement, and entirely manly. If that punch were a person, it'd have a glorious mustache, play a mean sax, carve canoes out of trees and only cry at funerals or the Grand Canyon.
February 22, 2013 at 4:42AM EST Reply to Comment
Brandon

Anne trying to come up with jokes was the highlight for me.
February 22, 2013 at 8:13AM EST Reply to Comment
- Andrew S Even though it probably wouldn't work in the show's established universe, I would really love to see Ann actually try to have a stand-up career, for the lulz.
  February 22, 2013 at 11:15AM EST
Karen

I thought Ben and Leslie's wedding was perfect. Being a big Jim and Pam fan of The Office, the whole episode I was thinkging why couldn't their wedding been more like this. The writers of P & R are spot on with laughter and heart and staying TRUE to the characters.
February 22, 2013 at 10:57AM EST Reply to Comment
Brendan

The look on Chris Pratt's face at the old woman's house after he realized she was hooking up had me in tears.
February 22, 2013 at 11:03AM EST Reply to Comment
Marie

When I was watching "Ben and Leslie," I first thought that April and Andy's wedding episode was better. Then, as I started crying due to the sweetness of last night's episode, it occurred to me that both weddings were awesome and perfect, and that the showrunners/writers must have PhDs on creating weddings that are wonderfully suited for these characters.
February 22, 2013 at 12:36PM EST Reply to Comment
Rev. Slappy

Ron Swanson is a great character and I think it's Ran that makes the more emotional Parks episodes work so well. He's so stoic and old-fashioned in his beliefs about how a real man should behave ("I've cried twice in my life. Once when I was seven I was hit by a school bus."). He tends to ground moments that would so easily become incredibly sappy. When he tells Leslie how much she means to him it's incredibly understated, yet we know how deep his feeling for her is. The scene never tips over into be unbearably trite because Ron the character isn't that guy. It's great writing and acting all around.
February 22, 2013 at 1:28PM EST Reply to Comment
Jared K

"Ben and Leslie" was a series highlight, as it was no doubt intended to be. While April and Andy's wedding (and the episode it took place in "April and Andy's Fancy Party") remains my favorite moment and favorite episode of the series to date, this one was in the Top 5, easily. It would have been a very worthy series finale. Luckily for us, it won't be.

"Correspondent's Lunch" wasn't an all-time classic, and definitely suffered at least a small amount from the tonal shift that comes from airing after a . But it was another very funny episode, and that's really all I could have asked for. Like Ben and Leslie, Parks and Rec will move forward and find new challenges to tackle and new stories to tell, stories that I'll be pleased and grateful to watch for as many years as NBC will let us.
February 22, 2013 at 1:48PM EST Reply to Comment
ryan_r._reed

Did anybody else get a kick out of April and Andy nodding at the trash can where Leslie threw away the "Fertility Tea" as if say, 'yeah, we're totally smoking that later' Good thing he's not going to be a cop.
February 22, 2013 at 2:39PM EST Reply to Comment
- albatross April's reaching out in dismay was hilarious. I re-watched it 4 times.
  February 22, 2013 at 2:45PM EST
thejoshbaker

All Jerry in the corner everything.
February 22, 2013 at 3:20PM EST Reply to Comment
Sam Little

Wow. I actually thought the Wedding episode was the worst episode of the series ever ( and I love the show). But just now reading that it was conceived as a possible final episode sort of explains it. Like Ron Swanson, I just don't like too much sentimental mush. I think 30 Rock did a better job of balancing sentiment with humor in it's final episodes, but maybe that's cause they were in fact actual final episodes, so I was more susceptible to sentiment. I just really don't care for heartwarming, except in small hard-earned portions, which I think is how P&C usually serves it up. Just too much group-hugging in this one for me. Hell, even my wife thought so. We liked the second episode just fine though.
February 22, 2013 at 4:49PM EST Reply to Comment
- Mahmoud Fayed But it's a freaking wedding! The situation called for it.
  
  I don't mean to start drawing comparisons but I found it a lot more enjoyable than Jim & Pam's from The Office. I tried to find it sweet but really I was just embarrassed. Ben and Leslie's however gave me a lump in my throat, I think they did a great job with it.
  February 26, 2013 at 2:05AM EST
Sam Little

Excuse me, P&R not P&C. And the Ron makes the wedding rings tag was brilliant, I must admit.
February 22, 2013 at 4:54PM EST Reply to Comment

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Review: 'Parks and Recreation' - 'Ben and Leslie/Correspondents' Lunch'

Comments

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Col Bat Guano Yeah, I thought "Correspondents Lunch" was a great episode. Maybe not as good as "Ben and Leslie", but still a good one. Of course, anytime they trot out inappropriate murals or paintings I'm in.

PotatoSolution Add me to the list who thought "Correspondents Lunch" was consistently hilarious.

Shawn Do you also not mean like Chuck making its 5 finales after season 2 great too? I mean I like 3.13, 3.19, 4.13, 4.24 and 5.13 a lot! So maybe Parks can do it too.

Nia Chuck was amazing and all of their finales were so fantastic. I think parks can pull that off too!

John I love all of Chuck's finales, but I do prefer to imagine that season 5 didn't happen, because I'd rather give them a 100% happy ending then having Sarah (maybe) slowly regaining her memories. That's just me, though.

RP Alan made the Chuck comparison in the introduction to the Schur interview linked above.

Neeraj The end of Chuck was terrible. The writers took a couple that had been through a lot together and destroyed that by deleting one of their memories. Why? Absurd.

Joe I'm of the opinion Sarah got all of her memories back when they kissed, but maybe I'm just a sucker.

Brian Yea, I was not at all a huge fan of the final Chuck finale. Although, some of the other Chuck "finales" were solid, I don't remember any of them even approaching the level of "Ben and Leslie."

Will Chuck's Season 2 Finale is the best finale the show did. I'd personally rank it over "Ben & Leslie", but YMMV.

Zach L That first episode was perfect. I'd actually like to think of that as the series finale and everything else following is just the whip cream on the waffles that are Pawnee

Lazy Iggy i like that....and now i really want whip cream and waffles:)

ed w I thought the second episode, the "regular one", was better than the first. Just enough Knope without the overkill of the previous two and the Anne/Chris stuff was played just right.

Jeff G The wedding was perfect. Great job by Schur. He really knows what he's doing with this show, even with all the uncertainty around. It was a little weird continuing to a new episode after, but I was on such a Parks and Rec high after the 1st episode, I was glad to watch another.

Blaze Domingo I agree with those who thought "Correspondents Lunch" was a pretty good episode. No, it didn't have the emotional depth of "Ben & Leslie", but it was a typically breezy, funny episode of Parks. And I thought the honeymoon cold open was the perfect segue between the two.

kronicfatigue perfect episode.

Lee Harvey *that (not "than")

James J Ahhh Chris' gift, so many emotions! It was as if Chris was talking for the entire show, and for all its viewers, when he said they (Chris/Ben) lasted 3 more years.

Sana Man oh man! That episode was amazing, I can't wipe the smile off my face.

April Just be careful cause, well, there's nails in there too!

Sana Not a dull moment in the episode!

TJ Can it Unibomber, this is an emergency!

Sana Ah! I just opened a can of whoop ass on myself!

Miguel So I take it that this is the "Chuck vs the Other Guy" of Parks?

LoopyChew Probably more like the "Chuck vs the Push Mix" of Parks.

Lazy Iggy Oh I loved seeing Ethel again!And it made so much sense that it would be her!!

Murph Another great "series finale" from Parks and Rec. The way the finales have upped the stakes each time, it would be funny if the actual series finale took place over something as unexciting as Jerry's retirement party.

Medium Sebastian I dunno, Jerry's birthday and Christmas parties turned out to be pretty exciting.For a dark, but hilarious, turn the series finale could be Jerry's funeral.

Nate Ron's demonstration of wedding ring making is possibly the best episode closer. I lost it completely when he started filling the waffle iron.

Bendik And if "Ben and Leslie" had indeed been the series finale, it would have been the very last scene of P&R ever.

Lazy Iggy "i've never been here willingly past 5:04"lol!!!! it's all about the little things!confession: right before the show i rewatched "The Master Plan" when they first met.made me weep even more during "Ben and Leslie":)

James J Nice touch on the "willingly."A subtle callback to his hernia episode.

Andrew S Kind of surprised there was no mention of Terriers regular Jamie Denbo as the hacking reporter, but it was a fairly small part. She's just downright delightful in everything I've seen her appear on.

gco211 Terrific episodes, both! "Ben and Leslie" was nirvana though. The return of Little Sebastian in some form was a terrific move.Also, in both episodes, Chris had some great reaction shots.

Guest Not my cup of tea...

Rob Ridiculously good. I can't stop smiling thinking about it. Love that it looks like it's going to be renewed. Sometimes good things do happen to good shows.I agree with people about the scheduling, but I'll take back to back PNR any week that I can, tyvm

Brandon Anne trying to come up with jokes was the highlight for me.

Andrew S Even though it probably wouldn't work in the show's established universe, I would really love to see Ann actually try to have a stand-up career, for the lulz.

Karen I thought Ben and Leslie's wedding was perfect. Being a big Jim and Pam fan of The Office, the whole episode I was thinkging why couldn't their wedding been more like this. The writers of P & R are spot on with laughter and heart and staying TRUE to the characters.

Brendan The look on Chris Pratt's face at the old woman's house after he realized she was hooking up had me in tears.

ryan_r._reed Did anybody else get a kick out of April and Andy nodding at the trash can where Leslie threw away the "Fertility Tea" as if say, 'yeah, we're totally smoking that later' Good thing he's not going to be a cop.

albatross April's reaching out in dismay was hilarious. I re-watched it 4 times.

thejoshbaker All Jerry in the corner everything.

Sam Little Excuse me, P&R not P&C. And the Ron makes the wedding rings tag was brilliant, I must admit.

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Parks and Recreation is updated

Shawn

Do you also not mean like Chuck making its 5 finales after season 2 great too? I mean I like 3.13, 3.19, 4.13, 4.24 and 5.13 a lot! So maybe Parks can do it too.

Will Chuck's Season 2 Finale is the best finale the show did.

I'd personally rank it over "Ben & Leslie", but YMMV.

Zach L

That first episode was perfect. I'd actually like to think of that as the series finale and everything else following is just the whip cream on the waffles that are Pawnee

Lazy Iggy i like that....and now i really want whip cream and waffles
:)

ed w

I thought the second episode, the "regular one", was better than the first. Just enough Knope without the overkill of the previous two and the Anne/Chris stuff was played just right.

Jeff G

The wedding was perfect. Great job by Schur. He really knows what he's doing with this show, even with all the uncertainty around. It was a little weird continuing to a new episode after, but I was on such a Parks and Rec high after the 1st episode, I was glad to watch another.

Blaze Domingo

I agree with those who thought "Correspondents Lunch" was a pretty good episode. No, it didn't have the emotional depth of "Ben & Leslie", but it was a typically breezy, funny episode of Parks. And I thought the honeymoon cold open was the perfect segue between the two.

kronicfatigue

perfect episode.

Sana

Man oh man! That episode was amazing, I can't wipe the smile off my face.

Miguel

So I take it that this is the "Chuck vs the Other Guy" of Parks?

Lazy Iggy Oh I loved seeing Ethel again!
And it made so much sense that it would be her!!

Murph

Another great "series finale" from Parks and Rec. The way the finales have upped the stakes each time, it would be funny if the actual series finale took place over something as unexciting as Jerry's retirement party.

Medium Sebastian I dunno, Jerry's birthday and Christmas parties turned out to be pretty exciting.

For a dark, but hilarious, turn the series finale could be Jerry's funeral.

Nate

Ron's demonstration of wedding ring making is possibly the best episode closer. I lost it completely when he started filling the waffle iron.

Lazy Iggy

"i've never been here willingly past 5:04"

lol!!!!
it's all about the little things!

confession: right before the show i rewatched "The Master Plan" when they first met.
made me weep even more during "Ben and Leslie"
:)

James J Nice touch on the "willingly."

A subtle callback to his hernia episode.

Andrew S

Kind of surprised there was no mention of Terriers regular Jamie Denbo as the hacking reporter, but it was a fairly small part. She's just downright delightful in everything I've seen her appear on.

gco211

Terrific episodes, both! "Ben and Leslie" was nirvana though. The return of Little Sebastian in some form was a terrific move.

Also, in both episodes, Chris had some great reaction shots.

Rob

Ridiculously good. I can't stop smiling thinking about it. Love that it looks like it's going to be renewed. Sometimes good things do happen to good shows.

I agree with people about the scheduling, but I'll take back to back PNR any week that I can, tyvm

Brandon

Anne trying to come up with jokes was the highlight for me.

Karen

I thought Ben and Leslie's wedding was perfect. Being a big Jim and Pam fan of The Office, the whole episode I was thinkging why couldn't their wedding been more like this. The writers of P & R are spot on with laughter and heart and staying TRUE to the characters.

Brendan

The look on Chris Pratt's face at the old woman's house after he realized she was hooking up had me in tears.

ryan_r._reed

Did anybody else get a kick out of April and Andy nodding at the trash can where Leslie threw away the "Fertility Tea" as if say, 'yeah, we're totally smoking that later' Good thing he's not going to be a cop.

thejoshbaker

All Jerry in the corner everything.

Sam Little

Excuse me, P&R not P&C. And the Ron makes the wedding rings tag was brilliant, I must admit.

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