There have only been a few shows in the history of television that have evoked an emotional response out of me when they left. The one that sticks out the most was "Cheers". The reason Cheers was such a great show was that every single member of that cast could make you laugh. Every member could carry an entire episode. You really began as a viewer to care about these fictional characters. I guess when you think about it, it's kind of silly. Silly or not, I felt that way this past Tuesday night when Parks and Recreation ended its 7 year run. I felt like my dog died. I really held back tears that night. I thought to myself, "Bill get ahold of yourself man, this is just a TV show." Fandom is a weird thing. There are extreme fans who are psychotic and stalk celebrities and there are fans like my friends and I who often are able to bond just by discussing the past weeks episode. There are always characters that you relate to on a show, there are characters that you despise on a show, and there are always characters you root for on a show. The Parks and Recreation cast was the type of show where I rooted for every character on that show (Excluding Jeremy Jamm of course).
Hollywood and actors are a mixed bag these days. Despite being a fan of a considerable amount of TV shows and movies out there, you always hear about the actors personal struggles and it somewhat tarnishes the product. The clearest example of this is Two and Half men. Im sure that 90% of the people that work on that show are talented, well adjusted, people. The problem is that you have the Executive producer and Charlie Sheen going at it through the media and quite frankly it ruins it for the viewer. The show ran for 12 years and couldn't even come together to give their fans a decent ending. Personally I wasn't even a fan of the show but it was one of the first shows my wife and I watched as a couple. The point of this is that I never felt that way with the people at Parks. They always seemed to love their job and they seemed like a family. I'm sure there were things that didn't go well on set but you never heard about them if they existed. I have seen many interviews with the cast and producers and they always just seem to be full of joy and genuine love for one another. That's a very refreshing thing to see when you hear about so many bad working relationships in the business.
The writing on the show was brilliant. Most shows lose their "mojo" about half way through their run. This show stayed consistent from the opening bell until the very last episode. The quirkiness of each character made every episode worth watching. Every actor on Parks was spot on with their comedic timing and I loved each and every one of their characters. I truly believe that this is perhaps the best ensemble cast in the history of television. I never understood why the show didn't get killer ratings. I know amongst my group of friends that it is ranked way up there and deservedly so.
The cast was outstanding and of course it has to start with the charming and brilliant Amy Poehler. Amy has been a star with me since her early SNL days. She is definitely one of the best weekend update anchors ever and her seemingly tireless energy was something to behold. My friends and I had a joking conversation one time whether we were Poehler people or Fey People. It was a joking conversation of course because we are fans of both but Ive always been more of Poehler guy. I liked 30 Rock but loved Parks. Leslie Knope is one of the true great female characters of all time. Leslie was goofy of course but there seemed to be a very determined inspirational character in there. I think she deserves to be up there with all of the other strong female tv characters of all time...strike that, men or female characters.
I loved Amy's character but if I had to pick my favorite character it would have to be Ron Swanson. I had no clue who Nick Offerman was before Parks came along. I certainly know him now. The guy is absolutely genius in that role. Ron Swanson has had so many memorable quotes over the run of this show. The funny thing is that I'm nothing like the character Ron. Im kinda a nerdy guy but there is just something about his "extreme" manhood that is just addicting to watch. Having Megan play his wife was great and their interactions are some of the funnies physical comedy I've ever seen.
Chris Pratt is the man. The guy is just comedy gold. Ive always thought that when an actor can pull off a character like that they have to be either really hard worker or just a naturally blessed physical comedian. I think there is a little of both there. I remember Andy in the first season and I was almost a little annoyed with him but he soon found his groove with me and he became one of the funniest characters on the show. His chemistry with Aubrey Plaza was spot on. Johnny Karate, Burt Maclin, etc....all things I will always remember about this show.
Aubrey Plaza is smoking hot. I think all fellow geeks like myself have a small crush on her. The thing about her is that she seems to be a budding star. She is an amazing presence on the screen. Her looks can bring down the manliness man. Her interactions with Rashida Jones were priceless in the first few seasons. I am excited to see what the future brings for her. Her French kissing Jim O'heir at the end of the Seth Meyers show Tuesday night was one of the funniest things Ive ever seen.
I am so glad that both Rhetta and Jim O'heirs characters made it into the main cast of the show. I loved her relationship with Tom. Treat yo self was one of my favorite episodes. I loved her interactions with the entire cast. She was like the cool person in the cast. Tommy wanted to be cool but she was cool.
Aziz Ansari is one of the funniest stand up comedians out there today. My wife and I saw him in Indianapolis about a year or so ago and it was amazing. Tommy Haverford so wanted to be a serious baller and watching him on that journey was pretty hilarious. Him and John Ralphio were great as a team and watching the rise and fall of entertainment 720 was fun
Adam Scott is one my favorite comedic actors out there today. His dry humor and facial expressions to the camera were some of the highlights of the show. His nerdy character Ben Wyatt of course rung very close to home. I feel bad for him as an actor because im sure he will feel the wrath of the geek nation asking him stupid questions for the rest of his career. Especially about that Cones game.
Rashida Jones and Rob Lowe were my biggest surprises on that show. Being a product of the80s I was very familiar with Rob's resume. Ive enjoyed the majority of his work and I knew he had comedy in him from watching the Waynes World movie but I was so impressed with his character on the show. He actually at times was the Literally the funnies part of the show. Rashida Jones is very easy on the eyes and has always been but she was so important to the chemistry on the show. I remember her short stint on the office and she was great on that as well. She played so well off of Amys Knope that it was kinda sad to see her go early. She was sorta like the female version of Ben with the looks at the camera.
Lastly I want to talk about Jim O'heir. Not because he was Jerry and should be last but because he may be my favorite actor in the cast. I recently joined Twitter because my son had monopolized our mancave and while he plays video games, I sit on the computer. One night when I was on Twitter I exchanged a couple of messages with Jim O'heir and asked him if he could do me a favor. I asked him if he had anything I could give a friend of mine who is a fan of the show for his upcoming wedding. Im not in the habit of doing things like that but I was actually shocked that a celebrity was responding to my tweets. I was even more shocked when Jim replied "what kind of thing are you looking for?" He eventually offered to make a short video to give to my friends who are getting married. I can't tell you how appreciative I was that someone who didn't even know me would take the time out of their very busy schedule to do something so nice. I actually at first was afraid it wasn't really him or someone that ran his twitter account but as I exchanged tweets with him I learned that it was probably him. A couple of weeks later he delivered on his promise and send me the video. I was able to give this video to this said friend and they were floored by it. I know it was only a 20-30 second video but to them it meant the world to them. It will forever be apart of their wedding and it just shows what a good human being Jim is. That being said Jerry Gergitch was priceless. What a fuck up! A loveable fuck up though. The fact that the entire cast ripped him to shreads was just hilarious.
The last thing I want to talk about is the city of Pawnee. The city itself was a huge character in this show. The writers did a masterful job of creating a unique ridiculous community that was almost as funny as the main cast. From Ethel Beavers to Perd, they were all awesome. I remember just laughing so hard at the paintings that were hung up in the government buildings. The little things like that are what makes this show stand out from the rest. I will eventually find a new favorite show. It will be sad for a few months. I just wanted to write this to say thank you to everyone that was involved in making this amazing show. I hope to see all of you in your future projects. Pratt of course is a huge movie star now and being a comic book nerd, Jurassic park fan ,and fingers crossed Indiana Jones fan Im sure to see him a lot in the next few years. You guys are all talented and I wish you nothing but future success.
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