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Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

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Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Old 02-24-15, 10:33 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Very heartfelt finale. I love this show and am sad it is ending but it was a really good finale. I love all the cameos and bit characters. I wish they had weird Orin and councilman Jamm make an appearance.
Old 02-24-15, 10:48 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

I can't believe Parks and Recreation is finally over. This has long been one of my favorite television shows of all time and I truly think that over time it will be viewed as one of the finest comedies ever created. During the first season the show was pretty average while it found its footing, but as far as I'm concerned it hit the ground running in the second season premiere and crossed the finish line here without ever having let up. I loved every moment of this series and the finale was no exception. This show has always had just the right combination of humor and heart with some of the most well-developed and endearing characters; it was just great to see them go out like this.

The fast-forward worked so well for the final season and I'm glad to see them use it to even greater effect in the finale. It was great to see all of the characters stayed in touch over the years and grew both apart and with one another, but never lost who they were. I've written a lot, so I'll put my thoughts on the characters' futures in spoilers so it's not too long on everyone's browsers.

Spoiler:
Donna - I loved that she never lost who she was, but still found a way to make Joe's happiness a priority.

Craig - I know some people aren't his biggest fan, but I think he's been used to great effect on the show and was a breath of fresh air. Leslie's assessment of him was spot on and I'm glad he found his own sort of happiness in the future. I died when they revealed Ron was Typhoon's best man.

April and Andy - I like that they kept going to Leslie and Ben for advice and that they eventually got to the point where they had a family of their own. It was great when Andy realized Ben was using "help me in the kitchen" as a way to speak with him in private. That he had somehow made it to the year 2022 without ever having experienced that is both believable and hilarious. Same goes for Andy thinking the presents were for him and being utterly devastated that they were for the baby. Nice touch having Dr. Saperstein deliver the child.

Jean-Ralphio - Brief, but effective. I actually thought he was dead for a second and honestly wouldn't have been at all surprised if he wanted "Bend Over" playing at his funeral.

Tom - Great to see that he's still with Lucy and she was supportive of him after he experienced another failure despite his early successes. He matured in a way that felt amazing to see for the character and I love that he got right back on his feet and found another way to succeed. As he cycled through his coworkers as the different types of people, I knew "Garry" was coming but it was still so funny. Having the audience cheer "Don't be a Garry!" while Jerry sat there gleefully exclaiming, "Ooh he's talking about me!" was perfect. I also loved Tom laughing hysterically at Jerry saying they were best friends.

Garry (Jerry) - After watching the show lovably hate on Jerry for 7 years it was nice to see him get such a happy ending. If anyone deserved it he most certainly did. From finding success as a mayor and being seemingly loved by all in the town to having his beautiful family expand exponentially and dying peacefully in his sleep at 100 after having been with his entire family...it was perfect. The fact that at 100 Jerry was still with Gale who looked as beautiful as ever was a nice touch as was Ben's reaction to Gale's everlasting beauty. I also liked how Ben thought they got Jerry's name wrong on the tombstone.

Ron - I thought it was great to see his company continue to succeed and him resign amidst all the success because he wasn't feeling fulfilled anymore. Very fitting for the character. I can't believe we went the entire series and only saw his brothers in the finale episodes. The exchanges between Ron and his brothers were great. It was nice to see that Ron didn't make the same mistake as before and actually went to Leslie to help find him a job he would enjoy. And honestly, him taking over as superintendent for the national park just made sense and you can tell the writers had really planned for this. Nice callback to the distillery too.

Leslie and Ben - Jen appearing out of nowhere like she always does was great. The conflict of them deciding who should run for governor (complete with identical pro/con lists) and the ultimately resolution was well-handled. Sometimes things don't need to be surprising or unexpected to be good; sometimes the natural and logical outcome, if well-done, is better. This show excelled at that and Ben letting Leslie run for governor was definitely a perfect example of this. I love how as soon as Anne is back in the picture Leslie shoves Ben aside. And Andy confidently calling Chris "Chip" was wonderful. I wonder if that was improvised. Leslie's speech at the end to close out the series was so very fitting for the tone the show managed to pull off over the years.


Random Observations...

Ethel calling Leslie a Luddite was great. and it was nice to see Kyle one last time...the only character who got even more shit than Jerry. Also enjoyed Shauna appearing for a story one final time and Leslie's long-winded headline. Can't believe Brandi Maxxx became President of the City Council.

Really dug April in those glasses. Andy as Sgt. Thunderfist, MD.

Tom: "Accounting Nerd, what do you think?"
Ben: "Can you at least call me Congressman?"

I chuckled when Tom said sometimes he gets "Donna" when he takes the test in his book, but I lost it when he reacted to Ben saying when he takes the test he sometimes gets "Tom".

Leslie getting a library named after her and her reaction were so perfect.
Old 02-24-15, 10:54 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

The flash forwards seemed like a weak hybrid of the Up Series and Six Feet Under, but I'm glad it went out on a high note.
Old 02-24-15, 11:07 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Well done finale.
Great to see how far this show has come.
I'll miss Parks and Recreation.
Old 02-24-15, 11:28 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Apparently there will be flash forwards for Jamm and Shauna Malwae-Tweep in the producer's cut. They just got cut for time in the finale.
Old 02-25-15, 12:06 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by mwbmis
Apparently there will be flash forwards for Jamm and Shauna Malwae-Tweep in the producer's cut. They just got cut for time in the finale.
Nice! I'll be watching that!

I thought the finale was great, although not as outright funny as most of the series. As others said... very heartfelt. Nice to see a series end on a high note like this.
Old 02-25-15, 12:38 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by MrX
Loved the Jean-Ralphio funeral
In October I met Amy Poehler at a book signing, a few days before she was off to write tonight's SERIES finale. I told her that I "just had to know if Jean Ralphio was going to be murdered in the finale" - she cracked up hard. After having a good laugh we both agreed that he totally deserved to die in the finale....so I am taking full credit for planting the seed that ended up in the episode. I love Parks and Rec so much, one of the all time great comedies with the best balance of humour and heart...and a great series finale that I helped write

Agree with everyone that this wasn't the funniest episode of Parks but it was so damn sweet that I don't care. It made me feel good. It made me happy.
Old 02-25-15, 06:35 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Pretty much the perfect ending. Couldn't ask for more. Sad to see it go but happy to see it end on such a high note.
Old 02-25-15, 09:17 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by mdc3000
In October I met Amy Poehler at a book signing, a few days before she was off to write tonight's SERIES finale. I told her that I "just had to know if Jean Ralphio was going to be murdered in the finale" - she cracked up hard. After having a good laugh we both agreed that he totally deserved to die in the finale....so I am taking full credit for planting the seed that ended up in the episode.
Nice!

Even Variety was intrigued by that turn of events...

The Jean-Ralphio fake out with the funeral is really great. Did you want to play off the idea of, “Maybe we’ll kill off one of these characters”?
We thought it was really funny to have Leslie say, “I hope you live a long happy life” and then cut to his gravestone. If the show was a little darker I guess we might have said, “Yeah, he died.” We actually had a second possible ending. He says, “We’re off to run a casino in Tajikistan.” Someone pitched an idea that made me laugh so hard to smash cut from that to an unmarked grave in Tajikistan, like he moved there and what did you think would happen opening a casino in Tajikistan? But yeah Jean-Ralphio is an insane goofball and I would like to believe that he continued to be an insane goofball for a long time. In fact, I don’t want to say what it is, but there’s a tiny easter egg very deeply buried in the finale that I hope someone finds someday, that gives you a clue about what happens to Jean-Ralphio.
http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/park...ew-1201441047/
Old 02-25-15, 09:31 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Some other thoughts:

1- Moral of the story is that if you work a dead end job at the parks department in a small town you will end up being either a multi-millionaire or a high ranking government official... or in Ben's case, both.

2- It's always interesting to see how sitcoms introduce kids late in the series run. We've seen plenty of times where the child becomes the focal point of the plot and the show suffers. I definitely prefer what Parks did in that they kept the kids in the background but at the same time it does make Leslie and Ben look like terrible parents that are never with their kids.

3- The ending was very heartfelt but it was never sappy. There's a fine line there. HIMYM was sappy. The Office was too. Parks and Rec was different. The path that we saw the characters go down made sense and there wasn't anything thrown in solely meant to tug at the heartstrings. They didn't try to hard and the finale was better for it.

4- Loved Chris and Anne making a short cameo. This season was great without them but I liked seeing them again. Got a kick out of Chris' watch that tells him he's healthy. With that said it was strange seeing all those future scenes with Leslie talking about how great her friends are but not having Ann there. I'm sure it was scheduling reasons and it was out of the control of the writers but it still seems strange.

5- Forget the future scenes of Jamm and Shawna Malwae-Tweep... I want to see what the fuck happens with Mark Brandanawicz

6- In a few years I think people who didn't watch this show will be saying "ever hear of that show Parks and Rec? It's where super hollywood mega star Chris Pratt got his start. We should check it out. I hear it's good".

Last edited by Goat3001; 02-25-15 at 10:01 AM.
Old 02-25-15, 11:50 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by Goat3001
Pretty much the perfect ending. Couldn't ask for more. Sad to see it go but happy to see it end on such a high note.
Sums my feelings up perfectly. I got downright teary a couple of times towards the end. Especially wrapping up Leslie and Ron's relationship. His shit-eating grin while out on the lake was perfection.
Old 02-25-15, 11:52 AM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by Goat3001
6- In a few years I think people who didn't watch this show will be saying "ever hear of that show Parks and Rec? It's where super hollywood mega star Chris Pratt got his start. We should check it out. I hear it's good".
they'll say that about Everwood
Old 02-25-15, 12:22 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by Goat3001
5- Forget the future scenes of Jamm and Shawna Malwae-Tweep... I want to see what the fuck happens with Mark Brandanawicz
I read an interview with Paul Schneider from last year, and while he wished them well he had no interest in ever coming back.

I guess finding availability for Rob and Rashida at the same time was pretty tricky. I didn't understand why Leslie didn't still have a picture of Ann right behind her desk this year though.

It was too bad that Lucy Lawless was unavailable this year.
Old 02-25-15, 12:27 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

I love that the finale made me think of both "The Dead Zone" (Leslie seeing the future when she makes skin contact), and "Highlander" (the immortal Gayle Gergich!).
Old 02-25-15, 02:31 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

That was a fantastic, fantastic finale. Made me tear up a few times. Loved the flash forwards. Really great. I'm sad it is gone, but happy it got to go out on such a high note.
Old 02-25-15, 05:39 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

That was an absolutely spectacular finale. Massive bonus points for The Traveling Wilburys song during the end.
Old 02-25-15, 05:42 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by mwbmis
It was too bad that Lucy Lawless was unavailable this year.
Totally. I'm genuinely surprised they weren't able to sneak her in at all. It's like she didn't even exist, aside from a brief picture of her.
Old 02-25-15, 05:43 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Just watched the reunion on Seth Meyers. At the end, when Chris Pratt started playing guitar and singing 5000 Candles in the Wind, and the rest of the cast was holding up lighters, Jim O'Heir and Aubrey Plaza started making out. The rest of the cast couldn't hold it together.
Old 02-25-15, 06:19 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by DaveNinja
they'll say that about Everwood
Yup.
Old 02-25-15, 07:09 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Very entertaining finale.

I can see them trying a Swanson spin-off.
Old 02-25-15, 08:32 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by Deftones
That was a fantastic, fantastic finale. Made me tear up a few times. Loved the flash forwards. Really great. I'm sad it is gone, but happy it got to go out on such a high note.
Well said.
Old 02-25-15, 08:58 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

It was a good finale.

It's always sad to see a show you enjoy with characters you love come to an end. As was said earlier, it was heart-felt but not sappy. It felt just right. I was a lot more teary-eyed when Leslie and Ann said their goodbyes last season with the beautiful Wildflowers by Tom Petty playing.
Old 02-25-15, 09:07 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by windom
Why did future Leslie only have bangs for one episode? Why do people in the future not seem to look any older than their younger selves unless it's really far into the future?

I don't understand why they all seemed to be leaving Pawnee around the same time but then they kept coming back to it. Weird.
Advances in plastic surgery and Gail benefitted the most.
Old 02-25-15, 10:34 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Originally Posted by Draven
Sums my feelings up perfectly. I got downright teary a couple of times towards the end. Especially wrapping up Leslie and Ron's relationship. His shit-eating grin while out on the lake was perfection.
I'm not sure why, but I started tearing up there.

Originally Posted by DaveNinja
they'll say that about Everwood
A show about boners? I think Andy would enjoy that.
Old 02-25-15, 11:33 PM
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Re: Parks and Recreation (NBC) - The 7th & Final Season Thread - premiering 1/13/15

Amazing series finale.

The show went out on top. Loved the flash forwards to see what everyone was up to in the future.

Loved Garry's flash forward that he served like 10 terms as Mayor and lived to 100.

It was great seeing Rashida Jones and Rob Lowe again in the 2025 scenes.

How old would Leslie be in those scenes? Late 40's? Then the 2035 scene at Indiana University would make her creeping close to 60?

Well written with some great interactions from everyone. Going to miss this show, but glad they got to go out on their own terms unlike many shows who don't get that chance.

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