Parks & Rec 2-23: Blazing Chemistry

Plot: Leslie has to charm the local police into donating security for the fall festival. Ann is in love with Chris. Ben is in love with Leslie. And Ron, bless his pointy head, is in lust with his ex-wife Tammy 2.

Deep Thoughts: Seriously, Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman have amazing chemistry. They’re one of the couples who will irrationally devastate me if they ever break up. Also, OMG, Nick Offerman really does woodcrafts and has a shop.

Your Related Link For The Day: Cops like pizza. They also like donuts. Here’s a tiny little history of the cop-donut relationship.

Ann is Finally Having Character Development: But it’s not great. She’s subsuming her own personality (such as it is?) in Chris’s. Even though I know where this is heading because I’ve already watched the series, you can tell where this is heading.

Jerrybashing: Everyone is pissed at Jerry for failing to help separate Ron and Tammy. That’s actually kind of legit. But Jerry’s just a happy guy, and doesn’t see what’s not happy about marriages and love. We all need more Jerry.

Donna Is Cooler Than You: Donna knows how to do an intervention and will do it on your ass if you need it.

Somebody Get Tom Some Therapy: Tom shows up at a party with Tammy 2, setting off the chain of events that leave Ron with cornrows and a new divorce on his record. In the end, though, this episode is about Tom’s relationship with Ron, which is deeper and more beautiful than either would ever want to admit. It’s Tom’s determination (and his getting beaten up by Tammy) that wakes Ron up from his sleepwalking nightmare.

April Is My Patronus: You can be as jaded and hip as you want, it still feels nice when your boss tells you you’re doing a good job. Even if he writes it on an orange post-it and hands it to you as motivation.

There Is Only One Ron Swanson: …but he definitely looks better without his hair in braids.

The LOL moment: When Ron and Tammy get into an argument at the cops’ pizza party, all the cops step in simultaneously with beautiful Stereotypical Cop portrayals, using phrases like “verbal altercation” and “dispute of a domestic nature.” It isn’t disrespectful and definitely made me giggle. And they all describe Tammy 2 as “Real piece of work.”

I am NOT Leslie: Leslie apparently doesn’t like calzones. Ben’s obsessed with them. I’m loving the number of running jokes I’m seeing on second-viewing that I didn’t notice first time around, including Ben’s obsession with calzones that will eventually be his undoing. But also, he’s right. Calzones are amazing, and Leslie is wrong.

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One Response to Parks & Rec 2-23: Blazing Chemistry

  1. Colleen says:

    Ben’s reaction to “It rubbed off… from friction” is the embodiment of the viewers’ reaction to this train-wreck of a relationship.

    The longevity of jokes in P&R is one of my favorite things. That and how they maintain the continuity of the characters’ back story — no hiccups where a character is an only child, and then their sibling shows up (except in the Time Capsule episode, Jerry’s mom’s diaries refer to him as Gerald, so his real name is Gerald, not Gary)

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