When one speaks of governments – especially in such a tumultuous time such as this – rarely do we mention that it is fun, humorous, and full of wild and crazy characters. (Never mind that last part. Recent events have shown that you have to be crazy to be working in government).
Before you lambast me, and before I get off track, let me assure you that this is not a political post. The radical leanings of yours truly (you keep telling yourself that Ahmad) will not be on display here. Rather, I'm here to talk about one of my favorite television shows, a show I consider to be the funniest today, the under-appreciated and – especially around these parts – relatively unknown Parks and Recreation.
Parks and Recreation is the story of the Parks Department of little (I think fictitious) town of Pawnee, Indiana. The de facto runner of the department is Leslie Knope, a workaholic who hasn't – unlike everyone around her – given up hope in government. She is helped by Tom Haverford, a self described player with a not so smooth way with the ladies. Tom thinks he's every woman's dream. In reality, getting with any woman IS his dream.
Then there's April Ludgate, the intern who at no point shows any enthusiasm towards her job, and towards anything really. There's Jerry, the bane of everybody's existence, and Donna Meagle, the sassy black secretary (yes, I know there's one on every show).
The real gem of this ensemble, though, is Leslie's boss, Ron Swanson and his glorious mustache. Ron is probably the embodiment of every Midwestern American male, a steak guzzling, whiskey drinking red blooded male with a hatred for government and a love for Bobby Knight (This is Indiana, where basketball rules supreme. You'd expect former Indiana University coach Knight to enjoy a little cache around these parts).
Ron is brilliant. From the moment he shows up, you know you're in for a treat. The deadpan delivery of lines, the sporadic yelling. This guy is a comedic genius, and his comedy is eclipsed only by his love of bacon wrapped shrimp.
This is just a glossing over of the characters you can expect on the show, a show who's premise is (through season one) Leslie's quest to convert a pit into a park. This is instigated by Andy Dwyer's (more on him in a bit) fall into said pit and his girlfriend Anne Perkins wanting to do something about it. She goes to a public forum (Leslie is a sucker for throwing those) and Knope – as Knope only knows how – takes full control of the situation and decides to help Anne in her quest.
I don't want to ruin the show for you guys, so my advice to you is to get it on DVD or something, and just watch it for yourself. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.
This show is as good as beef bacon wrapped shrimp.
– Ahmad Alowaish
Image: nbc.com
