Leslie Hacked, Ann's Request, And Andy's Charity

Parks and Recreation, S05E15

Leslie had her jokes stolen by an enemy at the Pawnee Sun, and she asked her friends to help her fight against the woman hacking into her emails.  Ben asked April, Andy, and Tom to help him pick a charity at his new job, and April got angry at him when he didn't choose Andy's pick, which could have cheered him up about failing the police academy.  Ann asked Ron for help on how to ask Chris to be sperm donor.

Leslie's jokes for the Correspondence Lunch weren't that great, but it was still annoying that Kim had hacked her email and stolen all her ideas.  What a bitch.  I don't know what Leslie's done to her to make her the butt of every joke in her paper.  Actually, opposed to Leslie's jokes I liked the one that Ron suggested to her that she didn't use:

[Ron] I have a joke for you.[Leslie] OK.[Ron] The government in this town is excellent and uses your tax dollars efficiently.[goofy laugh]
[Leslie] That's not really a joke.[Ron] I disagree.  I find it hilarious.

I liked at the end, thanks to Donna's plan, Amy brought up a rumor from a fake email Donna had sent, revealing Kim's guilt.  That stupid bitch.  It  was funny that they had brought up a fictional thing from Stars Wars, making Kim look like an even bigger idiot.  It's too bad that people there didn't boo her or something.  She couldn't have enough humiliation in my book.

One of my favorite parts about Ben's story was when he told April and the others why he had brought them there.  April quickly let him know she hadn't come to help:

[April] Pass.[Ben] You came down here to pass on helping me?[April] Yeah, I wanted to see what your face looked like when I said no.  It was totally worth it.

Ben's job at Sweetums Foundation is insane.  I can't believe how fancy it is around there with the expensive food, massages, and office space as if Ben was the CEO of a global corporation.  Tom was soaking it up like he was duck in a pond (no surprise there), but I can't believe that Ben didn't feel the irony of having to settle for one charity while they wasted so much money on fringe benefits.  What I did like is that Andy, even in his depressed state, could see that as plain as day.  He's pretty sharp when it comes to certain things.  Since Ben eliminated all of the wasteful spending on pampering the employees, I wonder if there will be enough money to do the music program that Andy wanted.  It was so cute when Andy hugged Ben after he finally realized that Ben was hiring him as his assistant at the foundation.  Yay!  Andy might have found a new calling.

Ann made an awkward mess out of asking Chris to be the father of her baby.  She could have easily just pulled him somewhere private at work and asked him, yet she beat around the bush so much that Ron forced her to do it where someone like Perd could listen in.  Luckily, Chris wasn't repulsed by the idea so much as he was a little shocked.  However, he seems like he may eventually say yes to her.  Here's hoping--I think they would have a really adorable child together.

What I liked most about Ann's story best was her talking to Ron in his office.  I loved what he said to her when she first ran into his office for help:

 I wish this office had only walls.

You really got a sense that he didn't like anyone just stopping by his office, no matter what their business was.  Ann later came to praise Ron for his advice, but he didn't even want to hear that:

[Ann] I gotta tell you Ron.  You were absolutely and totally right.[Ron] I know.  Stop talking and get out.[Ann] Yep.

Ann barely sat down before Ron essentially kicked her out.  I wish I could cue people to leave with just a few words like that with no further questions nor complaints.

Oh, I also liked at the very beginning where Leslie and Ben were dishing out presents from their honeymoon.  They gave Ron a Hawaiian god of anger who looked like Ron when he was at work.  It really did look a whole lot like him, even though Ron doesn't bare his teeth like that.

This was a good episode to follow that amazing one before it.  It helped get the excitement of their wedding out of your system and return to the usual stories of lesser importance, but still with the usual comedy.  Chris might be soon fathering Ann's child, and Andy will soon be working for Ben to help people in a different, but still useful, way than he would have if he became a police officer.  I'm not so sure how well Ben and Andy will work together, but it could turn out to be funny.  After all, Ben is a riot when working with April and Tom, so him and Andy might be another hilarious pair.

Yay--Best Wedding Ever!

Parks and Recreation, S05E14

Leslie and Ben scrambled to get their friends to help them prepare for their last minute wedding.  They had some trouble at first, but they managed to get it together within two hours.  However, the wedding was ruined when Jamm stepped in  with jeers and stink bombs and Ron had to go to jail for punching the councilman in the face.  When it looked like Leslie would have to wait until their planned wedding date, her friends surprised her with an even more intimate wedding at her old City Hall office.

One of the quick fixes that was impressive was Ann's contribution.  She really stepped up and created a meaningful and fashionable dress for Leslie!  I loved her dress.  It was fun, unique and also didn't make Leslie look like some old lady getting married for the third time.  It's not at all what I pictured her walking down the aisle in, so it was a wonderful surprise.  I don't know what her original concept was for her wedding dress, but I can't imagine it topping Ann's creation.  Who knew that watching Project Runway for so long could turn you into such a skillful designer?

I was also impressed by Ron making those rings from Ann's wall sconce.  He just ripped it out of the wall and next thing you knew he had two silver rings.  That was confusing until they showed an extra scene where Ron like melted that metal down and formed rings as if he does this sort of thing in his sleep.  It only took him about twenty minutes to make those.  Damn.  Let me get a friend like that.  He had a good comment after he finished making them:

People who buy things are suckers.

I wish I could not be a sucker and just make stuff out of raw materials.  Unfortunately, there aren't people like Ron everywhere you look.

Another good line was when Chris was watching Ben fix his tie.  Chris got emotional, but was trying to hold back:

I promised myself I was not going to cry tonight, and I have already broken that promise five times.

Chris and Ben had a little touching moment then, but it didn't get to quite as much as later when Ron was walking Leslie down the hall of City Hall for her second attempt for a wedding ceremony.  I don't know why, but I teared up when I heard Ron say to Leslie:

You are a wonderful person, your friendship means a lot to me, and you look very beautiful.

I think this was so heartful because Leslie refused to have her wedding without Ron there to walk her down the aisle as her father figure.  It's so rare to hear Ron speak from the heart, but when he does it's emotionally amazing.

That part was my second favorite part.  My absolute favorite part was when they were having the wedding initially at the gala.  Jamm's ass was acting a fool (I don't know why Leslie gloated to him about the wedding in the first place) and he had the balls to hit Ron.  It was an awesome moment when Ron hit him in the face once and Jamm was down on the floor instantly.  April conveyed my feelings about that perfectly:

Yay--best wedding ever!

Any ceremony when Ron can assault a jackass is a great event to me.  It's just too bad that he couldn't have literally thrown Jamm out of there on his ass.

Still, the little wedding ceremony they had in the office was just as great, if not better.  It came as another surprise and it was more than Lesile and Ben could have asked for.  I'm really happy that it all worked out in such an amazing way.

It's unfortunate that Andy was bummed about him failing the police academy, but at least Chris was there to comfort him and assure him that all was not lost.  Plus, Ann realized that she should have considered Chris as a sperm donor all along.  I don't know why she was looking for strangers when Chris has always been nearby.  Not sure if he'll be up for that, though.

This was a beautiful episode.  It was heartwarming yet funny, so it didn't just feel like they overwhelmed you with just Leslie and Ben mushiness--you also got to see the joy and feelings of her friends in seeing them unite.  Everyone had a little part to play, and in the end it was the people who were most special in her life that made her wedding possible.  I feel relieved that they are finally man and wife, so I don't have to worry about someone sabotaging it for them.  I just wish that Andy would soon feel like his life has come together.  Chris has to be right that sooner rather than later they will figure out the next step, and Andy will have found his place in the sun.

No Drill Can't Stop The Gala

Parks and Recreation, S05E13

Leslie and Ben came up with an idea to throw a fundraising gala to fund the Pawnee Commons, but things looked bad when Leslie had to spend her last hours to finish up what was needed for the event in an emergency preparedness drill instead.  Andy also took the test to be a police officer.

I can't wait until the Pawnee Commons gets made.  I am so over Jamm putting a monkey wrench into Leslie's plans at every chance he gets.  He latest dick move to make the emergency drill extra long so that she couldn't manage the gala before it started was such a spit in her eye.  However, even though Leslie was deperate to get out of there, it had its moments of being funny.

My favorite part of her being trapped in the drill was when she had to talk to animal control.  Brett had me cracking up with the way he didn't understand whether he was to kill the birds for real or not.  Leslie finally just gave up on him and asked him to pretend like they never talked.  It got better when Leslie was angry that Jamm hadn't done his part in the drill to ask the buses to be shut down.  I loved when she muttered that she should have had animal control kill him:

[Brett] Oh, who you want me to kill?

[Leslie] No one.

[Brett] I'll kill 'em.  Soon as I'm done with these birds.

I like how ready Brett is to kill anything, man or beast.  If I was her, I would have let Brett do away with Jamm.  He was being such a jerk.

I also liked that Chris got infected in the drill, thanks to Jamm, and when he got killed, he was so damn positive about it.  He proudly said he was dead with a big grin and a thumbs up.  Freaking loveable Chris, with his crazy ass.

Another great thing about Leslie being occupied with the drill was that she wasn't able to do her interview.  Instead, Ron went on the show and with an unconscious Joan at his side, he took calls for people about all sorts of things, while promoting the gala.  My favorite piece of advice he gave was for some woman who had a terrier.  After giving her a tip on the scratches the dog made to the legs of the table, he added his two cents about small dogs:

Next thing you want to do is ditch the terrier and get yourself a proper dog. Any dog under fifty pounds is a cat, and cats are pointless.

I'm not much of a cat person, so to hear Ron say so matter-of-factly that cats are useless really made me laugh.  He should get his own talk show.  He was brilliant.

The last great thing about that story was after Leslie had gotten free and the gala was going great.  Leslie expressed how she couldn't wait to marry Ben, and Ben told her they should indeed get married right then and there.  That was a nice surprise!  I thought we would have to wait until the season finale or so to see them seal the deal.  I hope that nothing goes wrong with their impromptu wedding, though.

Andy's story went pretty much as I expected.  I felt like he was going to do awesome on his test because he seemed pretty damn prepared.  It was disturbingly cute when April gave him a dead rabbit with its legs removed as a good luck charm.  However, I liked Andy's response to it:

Baby, you are so creepy.  I love it.

Match made in heaven, those two.

It was also expected that Andy didn't do well on his personality part of the test.  He was answering the questions all kinds of wrong ways.  He was being really honest with his answers, the kind of honest that's dangerous.  However, that one officer remarked that Andy's perfect score on the exam and his miserable score on the personality test was a shame.  I think so too.  I thought maybe Andy would be able to slip by.  I'm curious to know what Andy will do next.

I really liked this episode.  Leslie didn't get trapped by Jamm as long as he wanted, and all of her friends came through for her and made the gala a success.  Next week, we are going to finally see Ben and Leslie get married, if they play their cards right.  I'd hate to see someone or something get in the way of that.  It's a shame that Andy didn't pass the qualifications to be a police officer, but I feel like there's hope for him yet.  He has a set of special skills that I think should be useful for some occupation, police force or not, and I really want to see him find his way to something that is perfect for him.

It Wasn't Just A Calzone

Parks and Recreation, S05E12

Ann decided to have a child through a donation at a sperm bank, and Leslie tried to stop her before she let her child be fathered by someone of ill-repute.  Ben enlisted the helped of Ron, Chris, and Tom to sample food for the wedding.  April thought that the only way she could handle the public forums was by acting like Leslie as much as possible.

I wasn't on board with Ann's decision to have a child.  I don't think there's anything wrong with any woman going to a sperm bank when they are ready for that, but I don't believe Ann is ready.  Ann's a little all over the place, and I wouldn't even feel comfortable letting her babysit kids, even as good as she was with Diane's girls.  It's a good thing she has a friend like Leslie that has way too high expectations for her and isn't bothered by meddling in other people's business.

I don't remember Nick Kroll's previous appearance on the show, but it didn't take me long to see that his character is repulsive.  I can't believe that Ann was able to look past his "Douche" side and still take his sperm for her baby.  Ugh.  It was horrible that, thanks to Leslie, Ann was ridiculed on the radio about her personal business, but at least it helped her change her mind.  I'd much rather her have a baby by a total stranger than that guy.

My favorite story was about Ben's catering review council.  He basically gathered my three favorite guys.  Together these guys couldn't be more mismatched.  Ron and Chris are like opposites, and Tom is just on some psuedo cool level of his own.  There were so many good lines from the story, starting with Ron's reaction to getting a salad:

There's been a mistake.  You've accidentally given me the food that my food eats.

Then Tom delivered his opinion about the caters that was equally as funny:

[Tom] Cater number one's presentation was simple yet exhausting.  Number two's was subtle and provocative.  Like a coy Dutch woman guarding a dark secret.

[Ben] Nothing you're saying is helpful.

[Tom] But number three's told a story.  A story from a book I wouldn't read, but I would watch the movie of.

[Ben] That's nonsense.

The laughs kept coming when Ben described the mini calzones he sampled with excessive details as if they were some kind of magical, new dish he had never had before.  I loved Ron and Chris' responses to that:

[Ron] It was a calzone.

[Chris] It was literally just a small calzone.

I like that Ben's calzones are kind of like Leslie's waffles.  Except even with food poisoning I doubt she would ever give them up.

The last line I liked was when Ron was talking about the condition of his food poisoning:

I did not sleep one for second last night.  And I cracked the bottom of the toilet bowl.

It's ironic that the one food that Tom avoided was the one that made them all sick.  Especially because his reasoning for not eating it was that he doesn't eat food that needs to be dipped.  Apparently it's above him to put sauce on things.  Wow.

In April's story, I loved that it was Andy who tricked April into seeing that she didn't need to be Leslie to have a successful forum--she just needed to be herself.  He's a great husband.  My favorite line from the story was when April was herself again and she dealt with Harris:

[Harris] Yeah, I wanted to talk more about that topless park idea that a local hero brought up yesterday.

[April] Yeah, there's not going to be a topless park, Harris.  Nobody wants your creepy, stoner eyes staring at them while they're enjoying a park, OK?  Stop being gross.

What made that even greater was that the entire forum clapped to hear April tell that guy how it was.  April's the greatest.

This was a good episode.  I wish that Leslie and Ann's story was a little funnier.  It was just sort of stupid to see Ann wasting her time on something that would be big mistake.  She's really lucky she has Leslie to help her see the light.  I really loved the guys trying out the caters.  Ben needs to assemble the same team to do something else.  It doesn't matter what--it would be hilarious.  April is also hilarious when she is herself.  Even to pacify idiots for her job, I don't see why she would want to be anyone but her tell-it-like-it-is self.

Lots Of Love All Around

Parks and Recreation, S05E09

Ron brought Diane and Leslie to an award event where he would be honored for a chair he built.  Leslie was worried that Debbie showing up would cause the couple problems, but Diane was most worried about Leslie's involvement in Ron's life.  Ann refused to let the others in the office attend Jerry's Christmas party because they had intended to spend the night celebrating how much they laughed at Jerry over the past year.  Ben also looked after Chris at the party, making sure that he didn't fall apart emotionally.

I really loved how excited Ron was to attend the woodwork event.  He was giggling at the sight of someone he said was famous, who Leslie and Diane had no idea about.  I actually wasn't too worried about Debbie showing up because I noticed early on that Diane seemed worried about how well Leslie knew Ron.  It doesn't seem odd that she would because no one knows Ron like Leslie does, except maybe his ex-wives?  But it was sweet that Leslie would take on Debbie by herself just so that Diane and Ron could spend the rest of the night alone.  She's such a great friend!  Cuz that Debbie bitch is crazy (but at the end when she was in cuffs, I would have killed to see Lucy Lawless kick her ass like she suggested).

Ron obviously loves Diane because he revealed one of his biggest secrets to her--that he is Duke Silver!  Wow!  I was really impressed that he did that!  It was also funny that one of Ron's fan said she was going to kill Diane!  Damn.  Didn't know he had such dedicated fans!  Great scene.

I didn't expect that Ann would condemn the mean party that the others were having concerning Jerry, but I'm glad she did.  After all, they should be a little nicer to the guy after he had a brush with death.  It was nice that Donna had a change of heart and wanted to include Jerry in the dinner instead of just using it as a time to make fun of him behind his back because they all got to see that Jerry was throwing a big ol' Christmas celebration.  I freaking loved seeing them peeping into the window, dying to get in there.  It was kind of like Scrooge peeking into his nephew's house and seeing how much of an ass he had been to his only family member.  It was nice that they took all the money that they had collected to remember Jerry's fumbling at work to instead donate to his medical bills.  And they learned that Jerry always sent them nice emails congratulating them on their achievements and birthdays.  He's such a sweetheart and it was great they had a moment to remember that behind his Charlie Brown-esq personality, there is a heart of gold.  Way to get into the Christmas spirit.

I was also impressed with Chris's progress.  I didn't think that his 15 times a week with his therapist were really helping, but they were.  He could drink non-fat egg nog, let someone point out his gray hair, and speak to his ex-girlfriend and her fiance without spiraling into his usual dark place (although I think it's hilarious when he gets so negative).  I also loved that Ben was doing his best to support him and make sure that he kept it together.  I sort of forgot until they had this overly long hug that they are such good friends.  I love their bromance, especially on Chris's end because he needs all the love he can get.

I just got this warm, happy feeling from this episode--it was great.  This is one of those stories about Christmas that didn't make me hate the overall spirit of this holiday.  We got to see Leslie be there for Ron and Diane, Diane and Ron become closer, Tom and the rest give Jerry a break, and Ben and Chris reconnect as friends.  I have nothing bad to say about it.

Wreston's All Right

Parks and Recreation, S05E08

Leslie and Ben got a decent person to build their new park, but because he was  from Eagleton, Leslie resisted hiring him against obvious proof that he was superb in his work.  Tom had his friends helped him set up his Rent-A-Swag store, but he was so focused on being responsible and frugal that he was neglecting his style and flair that was necessary for his business to succeed.  Andy found his security guard work to be boring and April came to play with him.

I think most people were wanting for Wreston to turn out to be a bad guy after all, but luckily he was a genuinely nice guy.  It's funny to see someone as sweet as Leslie fighting a nice guy tooth an nail to prove he's a scumbag.  Maybe I sort of wanted her to be right so she wouldn't seem so crazy.  But logically after Wreston's employees had sent Ben and Leslie that horrible model for the park anyone would have thought they had been duped.  Thank goodness Ben had a major man-crush on Wreston and refused to believe he was that much of a snake.

I loved how much Ben fell for Wreston.  He even slipped in an invitation to their wedding, having only known the man for a few hours.  It's weird because Ben doesn't really seem to take a shine to people so easily, unless they're related to something nerdy like accounting or maybe comic books or something.   It was also funny because Leslie was annoyed by it.

I'm still a little worried that Wreston being from Eagleton is going to bring some trouble somehow.  I don't know.  If his employees can go behind his back and send a fake model, who knows what else his staff might do when his back is turned?  I think that Leslie's suspicions sort of rubbed off on me.

I'm not too worried about Tom's store, though.  First all, he had all his friends working there, so at least he can count on them working to their best abilities.  His first penny-pinching version of the place was a little drab, but after using the investment from his friends and pieces from his house, it looked more like a place you would buy swag.

My favorite thing about that story was Chris learning woodwork from Ron.  I love when these two get together because they are such opposites!  Chris was so eager to learn, while Ron sounded like he couldn't be bothered to tell Chris the simplest thing to do.  I loved when Ron tried to give Chris busy work to keep him from bothering him with millions of questions:

[Ron] Here. I have designed something very important.  Why don’t you start work on that right away?
[Chris] Yes, sir!
[Ron to the camera] It’s a flight of stairs that leads to nowhere.

Ron, the master of getting overly enthusiastic people to be distracted.  It was nice that the stairs, though, ended up being a nice display piece to use in Tom's store.  Chris assumed that was Ron's plan all along and Ron didn't correct him.

My second favorite line from Ron was when Tom had set up a pathetic pizza party with a small toppings-less pizza, two drinks, and had turned off the majority of lights.  Only Ron was the one who seemed impressed by this:

If there were more food and fewer people, this would be a perfect party.

Chris also had a good line concerning the first version of Rent-A-Swag.  Everyone was commenting on how bad it had looked, but Chris almost was the sole voice of positivity:

[Chris] I think what’s important is we all had a goal, and we achieved it.
[Ann] So you like the place?
[Chris] Oh, no, it’s quite terrible.

I love how honest Chris is.  He might try to see things in the best light, but he's also not going to straight up lie when asked his opinion about something.

 In the April and Andy story, I wasn't that surprised that Andy was bored out of his mind.  I thought it was adorable that April came and they were playing around like kids.  It really reminds you how perfect they are together.  It's almost a shame that April had to make him realize that he had to retire the fantasy version of himself as an FBI agent for the real version of himself who helps lost kids find their mothers.  April's a really good wife to not just make him see his potential, but also give his imaginary character a final decommissioning session.  That was over the top, but really cute.

 I hope that Wreston continues to be the dream come true that saves the new park idea from being squashed before it's even started.  It would be pretty disappointing if Ben's new best friend turned out to be one of those evil Eagleton jerks.  I can't wait to see what kind of customers come to Tom's store and maybe he could move out of his store sooner rather than later with good sales.  I think that Andy will like his security job a little more, even without playing make-believe.  But there probably needs to be a robbery or something soon because he's too ADD to be kept content forever by the "glory" of saving one little boy.

Distraction Waffles

Parks and Recreation, S05E07

Leslie and April fought over using lot 48 for a dog park and ultimately had to stop Jamm from using it for a burger place.  Andy tried to investigate the disappearance of his computer and learned that police work might not be as exciting as he was imagining.  Ben went back to his old accounting job and tried to help Tom with his new business, but kept getting job offers.

I really liked that April sort of took the role of Leslie and Leslie had to slip into Ron mode a bit when the two were butting heads with each other.  My favorite part was when Leslie went to Ron for help:

[Leslie] Ron, thank you for agreeing to see me.

[Ron] I didn't.  You just walked in here and started talking--

[Leslie] I don't have time for a history lesson.

Ron continued to be hilarious when he explained how he got Leslie to cool her jets when she would be overly excited about a project.  He brilliantly used waffles as his best tool of distraction:

[Leslie] Those were distraction waffles?  I thought they were friendship waffles.

[Ron] Breakfast food can serve many purposes.

 I don't know how one man can be so wise and hilarious, but Ron Swanson does it.  I would love to get advice from him, especially if he could work the subject of breakfast into it.

Besides Ron being brilliant, as usual, there was a touching moment in this story when Ann got Leslie and April to make up.  Leslie grabbed April's hands and they both said they loved each other and it was just so damn sweet!   Particularly because April was being sort of shy about gushing with emotion like Leslie can do at the drop of a hat.  Leslie really is like more of a mother to her than her own mother and I love that they have that kind of relationship.  But I can't say that I didn't also laugh at them battling each other because they're both strong, opinionated women who don't back down easily, so watching them fight was pretty entertaining.

Also, Jamm is such an ass.  But he made the mistake of making not just an enemy of Leslie, but also of April and Ann.  He may have a lame catchphrase, but I don't think he's prepared to take all 3 of them on (which sort of reminds me when April suggested they all do a 3-way with him--what??).  They better take that jackass down.

I loved that Ben and Tom are set up to work together again.  It was cute that Tom was being jealous of Ben getting offered job after job.  And how funny was it that there was this pigeon next to Tom after he was feeling down about being rejected left and right while everyone seemed to want Ben to work for them?  It was like that bird was his only friend.  Haha.  But even though Tom felt bad about Ben's high demand, their little business trip made Ben see that being an accountant was a waste of his talents and life.  He might be worried about the job security thing and all, but I'm sure he'll one day thank Tom for leading him on a much more interesting career path.

Andy was pretty cute, too, while trying to figure out who took his computer.  What I liked best was when Chris got involved.  I love that everyone seems to be pointing out how good Chris looks, but Andy stating it so naturally really makes me laugh:

Don't play stupid and handsome with me.

Followed by a little later:

You're as guilty as you are sexy.

It was nice to see Chris in this story end up pumping someone else up instead of the other way around like it has been lately.   He not only suggested that they investigate who stole the gruff policeman's positive attitude (loved that), but offered Andy the job as city hall security to give him a taste of being a cop before he took the test.  I sense a little bit of a disaster with that as Andy is prone to an overactive imagination, but I love that Chris believes in him and is willing to take the risk.

Finally, Ben is just the best fiance ever.  I mean, first of all he wanted to go back to his boring accounting job so he could ensure he had money to pay for a wedding and a future with Leslie.  Second, he gave her the best engagement gift by letting her meet Vice President Biden.  Leslie was acting like such a dorky fan.  She even was feeling all up on his face and threatening secret service!  Wow.  I bet she would have put Biden into her purse and kidnapped him if Ben had left her there long enough.

The more I watch this show, the more I can't imagine it not filling my Thursday nights with happiness!  Like this show has so many characters I heart who are always making me laugh in unexpected ways.  I have to say that once Ron Swanson is no longer on the air it would take more than distraction waffles to help me cope.  Haha.  I guess next time I'm most looking forward to what Ben and Tom will accomplish together.  Last time they did business it was just too funny.  Even though Tom is a little smarter this time, I still anticipate that Ben and Tom are going to mix up some great comedy again.

Bitch Would Have Gotten A Quilt Up Her Ass

Parks and Recreation, S05E06

Leslie and Ben held an engagement party and tried to mend fences with Ben's hateful parents.  Chris was distraught after hearing the beautiful speech Ann gave at the party.  Tom had to prepare for a presentation for his new business to show to Ron.

I had a lot of good laughs from this episode, which I will discuss shortly.  First, I just gotta say how much I hated Ulani.  No question that Ben has horrible parents, but that little bitch was too rude for words.  Her ass wasn't even invited, yet Leslie welcomed her to the party with open arms.  She didn't have a sliver of gratitude and dared to question why she didn't have a square on the unity quilt.  Bitch, please!  Leslie is better than me because I would have handed her a big serving of attitude.  She had me boiling when she went on further to say that it was mean that Leslie hadn't made her a real square, when Leslie had graciously tried to squeeze her in there at the last moment.  That bitch ain't even family yet!  I don't care if she's carrying Ben's sibling in her belly--she needed to be slapped.  I'm so glad we will not see her again until the wedding, I hope.  She's one of my least favorite people that have popped up on this show.

Anyway, onto all of the great laughs I had.  My favorite part was after Ann gave her speech at the party and everyone pitched in to warn Ben:

[Ann] Ben, don’t you dare hurt her.
[Laughter]
[Ben] I won’t.[Andy] Don’t laugh.  She means it.
[Ben] Okay, I-I won’t.
[Ron] Seriously, son, don’t hurt her.
[Ben] Okay, I’m not planning on hurting her.
[Jerry] You better not be.
[Ben] I’m not!
[Donna] Hey, Ben, you best watch yourself.
[Ben] Why would any of you think I would hurt Leslie?

 I love when they all team up to show love for Leslie!  And anytime Ben can be made nervous, it's all the better.  I think Andy's addition was the best because you know it's no joke when he's being serious.  Such a great scene.

Chris was also being pretty funny in the episode.  I liked when he was hugging Leslie and Ben at the beginning because Ben's face was so uncomfortable at that time!  And Ben's expression was just as funny when Andy hugged them and Chris joined in a little later.  But Chris' best moments were when he was moping around at the party.  Rob Lowe is so good at making me sympathetic but also chuckling at the same time.  I liked his reaction when he reached the end of the tissues:

There’s no more tissue--everything ends.

With him crying over that, I wanted to hug him, while laughing into his shoulder.  Poor Chris and his overly emotional self.  He was funny, too, when eating shrimp:

[Chris] Wow, that’s amazing.[Ann]  See? There you go.[Chris]  This one’s not as good.

A grown man getting depressed over shrimp not being that good just tickles me.  It also reminds me of that great moment when Ron and Stephen Wyatt eyed each other when both approached the last piece of shrimp at the same time.  Loved it.

What I also loved concerning Ron was that he decided to give Tom a chance without even listening to his pitch.  Tom had proven himself by cutting his business ties with Jean-Ralphio and that was enough.  I just liked Ron's general contempt for J-R in the first place.  Tom couldn't have done more to impress him if he had cut his own lumber and built a table out of it.  Thanks to Ron, we'll get to see how "Rent-A-Swag" will fare as a business.  It couldn't be any worse than Entertainment 720 (which was a hilariously money-down-the-drain failure).

 This episode only could have been made better if Leslie had shoved Ulani's makeshift square down her throat the second time she dared complain about it.  Can't take such ridiculous bitches, but the PAR crew is so hilarious that her existence couldn't bring down the overall quality of the episode.  Ron didn't really say anything great in this episode, but he was great in the way he decided to take stake in Tom's future.  And perhaps there's a happy future for Chris soon.  I want to hope for that, but I also get a kick out of his overly dramatic misery as well.  Whether sad or happy, gotta love Chris!

Fart Attack And Proposal

Parks and Recreation, S05E05

Jerry had a heart attack, and Leslie got together a garage sale and auction to raise some money for his bills.  She got a little too enthusiastic about the fundraising after learning that Ben was thinking about starting a new campaign project in Florida.  Ron and Andy joined Diane and her kids for trick-or-treating, but things went badly when Diane had to leave them alone with Ron.

I like how they downplayed Jerry's heart attack with him farting so much you wondered as Tom had said if Jerry had eaten farts for lunch.  I liked how Tom was frustrated that the doctor refused to label Jerry's condition as a "fart attack."  It was also nice to see everyone wanting to help Jerry instead of just making fun of him as they usually do (I mean, he's sort of the Charlie Brown of the group, but he's a sweet man).  

Jerry's hospitalization also worked to expose Leslie's insecurity about her future with Ben when she saw that Jerry's plans for the future would no longer be able to go as he planned with his medical bills and possible further health complications.  I love how Leslie tries to deal with her own problems by trying to fix someone else's problem.  Her desperation to fix everything (which I suppose in her mind would have made things magically better with Ben) even led her to try and sell Ann at the auction.  I really loved that part because although two attractive guys bid on her, one really creepy guy with a tank top outbid the others and had unpleasant ideas on how they'd spend their date.

I was really starting to feel so bad for Leslie, especially since she was trying to live through Jerry of all people, until Ben suddenly showed up and proposed!  I did not see that coming!  They totally surprised and delighted me.  It was so sweet and I couldn't be happier to know that they are engaged now.  I don't know if that means he won't take the job in Florida, but I at least know that Leslie will probably shift her focus to planning the most ridiculous wedding ever.  She'll probably spend the most time on figuring out a cake (or I think a sweets bar would really suit her) that has enough sugar to put someone in a coma.  I'm so excited to see their wedding (if we get to see it--I'd be so disappointed if not)!

Ron's story was a little sad too because he just isn't good with kids at all (although Andy is like a huge kid, so he sort of has experience with them).  I was worried that he was going to cast aside Diane for a moment there.  I'm not ready to see Lucy Lawless leave just yet.  And somehow she looks pretty damn good in a ridiculous princess outfit.  Haha.  But I kept wondering what the hell Ron was dressed as?  Was he trying to be one of the dwarfs from Snow White?

One of my favorite things about that story was at the very end when Ron retook the girls for trick-or-treating about a week later.  He just asked people to get something sweet from their house and give it to the girls and then slipped them some money for their trouble.  That's pretty damn sweet.  And even though they were getting things like cookie dough, I'm sure it made their day.

There were also a couple of good lines from this story.  Andy supplied one of them:

[Andy] 7:34 p.m. Man dressed as nerd. Lady dressed as crazy witch.

[Man] Neither of us is in costume.

Ron's best line was when one of the girls told him she needed to use the bathroom and he replied:

I have no idea what to do about that.

Donna also had a good line from when she was attending the garage sale.  An annoyed Twitter follower complained about her tweets on the movie.  She told him to unfollow her if he didn't like what she was saying (why do people on Twitter complain so much about tweets they chose to read by their own will??) and had this to say when he wondered what she was doing on her phone:

I'm live tweeting this dumbass conversation.

I would love to do that to someone if I had the skills to type that fast on my phone.  Because she didn't even make eye contact with that moron.

Great episode.  A lot of good things happened (one that I didn't mention being Tom's possible new business venture).  The best, of course, is that Ben and Leslie will one day be married!  Yes!  I couldn't bear to see them split apart by his job or her job--they just have to make it work somehow.  I hope now we get to see them actually together a little bit more from now on.  I liked their phone conversations but I miss their face-to-face interactions.  Can't wait for more of their lovey-dovey scenes!

A Toilet, A Pothole, And A Road Trip

Parks and Recreation, S05E03

Leslie tried to get a bill passed by doing things her own way, but saw that sometimes she has to do things the "easier" way.  Ron and Andy went to fix a lady's pothole after being unable to solve the woman's problem over the phone.  April and Ben tried to drive to Pawnee to see their loved ones, but got stopped in the parking lot for several reason until it was too late for them.

I think the best thing about the Leslie story is that all she had to do to get her bill to pass was to pacify her fellow councilman by giving her his office, which he only wanted so he could have his own toilet.  To think that decisions are made over something as simple as a toilet is pretty funny.  But I like that Leslie resisted giving into Jamm's demands, until the very end after winning over Milton had failed.  I can't be mad at her for making some concessions when it came to her own policies, especially when it made a bunch of kids happy.  Plus, she got to shove Jamm into a pool before he told everyone how she got the bill passed.  So all, in all, a victory for her.

There were also some good lines in that story.  My favorite was when Milton was offering Leslie and Tom the salad and Tom didn't want to eat it because Milton had already said some offensive things to him:

[Leslie] Tom, eat some.
[Tom] I’m not eating racist salad.
[Leslie] The more we eat, the faster we talk.
[Tom] You can really taste the ignorance.
[Milton] It’s pronounced “anchovies.”

I'm really glad that Tom is by Leslie's side not just for the support, but for the much needed laughs.

I also thought April and Ben's story was really good just because it involved the "Odd Couple" stranded together in a car.  It's too bad that we didn't get to see more because I think the tension would have been crazy funny.  I especially liked how April made fun of his choice in music and gave him a look when she heard what he had on his "summer jam" CD.  Ben is such a dork, which makes him the best person to showcase April's coolness.  They could make a spin-off of them working in D.C., for real.

What I liked best about the Ron story was, of course, that Ron began to like a woman named Diane, who was played by Lucy Lawless.  That seems like a great match!  It was really sweet how Andy made sure that Diane came to see him by writing a note for her on the fixed pothole.  Otherwise, I think Ron would have been too embarrassed to ever show his face again.  It will be nice to see Ron dating someone who can match him on his powerful level, yet not be crazy like all of his evil ex-wives.

Also, at the beginning of that story when Chris was explaining about starting therapy, I loved how he wouldn't let Jerry share anything about his own therapy, suggesting that it was too much.  But I think I liked best when Chris was sort of talking to himself in an attempt to thank himself and admitted that he sounded insane.  I knew that him starting therapy would make him more insane!  I'm glad that Chris just doesn't disappoint.  And if he has any other crazy ideas like the 311 line, I can continue to be pleased by his new path for mental health.

Great episode.  It could only be better if April and Ben's story were extended, but we simply didn't have enough time.  I'm pretty excited to see how Diane and Ron's relationship goes, especially since it seems like Diane is about his equal.  Looking forward to seeing more of Lucy Lawless next time!

Is the Killer Sugar? Or April?

Parks and Recreation, S05E02

Leslie was on the fence about how to vote on a sugar tax after she found out that she might cause some businesses to lay off some employees if it were passed.  Chris and Tom helped Andy train so that he could meet the running requirements to be a cop.  Ben struggled to get the interns at his office in line with little help from April.

There were quite a few good things about Leslie's story.  The first would be the size of the cups, which were ridiculous.  The small was 64 ounces, while the regular size was 128!  They managed to top that with a child size of 512 ounces, which was sized for what a child might weigh if liquified.  I love it because it does echo the insane size of drinks (and pretty much most things) in American fast food.  I also thought the concept of "zero water," was funny because it had 300 calories and the "zero" only referred to the fact there was absolutely no water in it.  I'm pretty sure something like that wouldn't fly in America, but when you think about what is allowed to be sold maybe it could be a real item.  I mean, we do drink and eat a lot of sugar and are the fattest country in the world.  It's nice to see the writers poke at that with humor, but also remind you that it isn't really a joke if you stop and think about it.

Another part of that story that was great was when Leslie was at the forum.  One guy stood up and had a really funny comment:

I think we should tax all bad things.  Like racism and women's vaginas.

I think I really love when she takes an issue to a public forum.  That's when all of the crazies come out to say whatever thing they damn well please.  It's a complete circus.  But unfortunately for Leslie, it made her doubt that she would be doing the right thing by favoring to let the tax pass.  But fortunately for us, it led her to seek counsel from Ron, which is always a recipe for comedy.

No surprise that Ron had tried on numerous occasions to get Leslie fired.  I really liked that he said that one of the reason was because she was bubbly.  Leslie tried to defend herself against Ron's complaints about her going over his head and such:

[Leslie] I was a dedicated public servant.[Ron] Right.  That was the worst thing you were.

You can always depend on Ron to show his dislike of working hard in a government position.  Despite that he was annoyed by her, he respected her conviction and grew to accept her.  Aww.  But something just as funny was when Leslie was talking about how her decision on the sugar tax might have created enemies that could potentially become friends.  Ron's door was open and he shouted:

Let's keep down out there!

before he used a remote to have his door automatically close.  Ron is so freaking cool!  That's on my list of things I would want if I had my own office.  And I would probably be saying the same thing before I shut my door too.

The Chris and Andy story was more sad than it was funny.  I just felt bad for Chris realizing he didn't have what Andy had at all--someone to love him.  But it was great that Tom suggested therapy for him (although, I think Tom could use some too).  Chris, although upbeat and fit, needs to get that mind in check.  Him falling to pieces over something like a fear of dying alone is a serious problem.  I hope that a therapist will actually help him and not make him even crazier than he already is.

The Ben and April story was painful to watch at most times because Ben kept trying to buddy up to all of his young interns.  From the beginning, I wondered why April would help him a little, but she basically had to humiliate him with caricature drawings before she realized what she needed to do.  I like that she tried to negotiate the percentage of effort she would give when 15 was more than a fair amount to ask.  But the best April part was not until the very end when she finally got on Team Ben and told one of the interns what the deal was:

The light kiss and the slap to the face were my favorite part!  Why did they wait until the very end before we got to see April kick a little ass??  But this is a great start to the saga of April working for Ben.  I'm am looking forward to move scenes like this.  April has well established herself as the one in charge there.  Haha.

In the next episode, I wonder if we will see all those lost jobs from the sugar tax.  I can't imagine it just being just an empty threat.  Things don't work out that easily for Leslie.  I'd like to see the results of Chris' first therapy session, as well as April torturing more interns at her job.  However, I don't want to see Ben trying to act like a college student again and quoting decades-old SNL skits.  That's just way to sad to see.

D.C. and BBQ

Parks and Recreation, S05E01

In the season premiere of this show Leslie visited Ben in Washington, D.C. with Andy.  She soon discovered that despite being a councilwoman, she couldn't hardly compare to the tall and "beautiful" women who worked around Capital Hill.  Ron took up the task of doing the employee appreciation barbecue that Leslie had always thrown.  However, his idea to just make it about the meat and no thrills (or vegetables) ended up blowing up in his face.

Leslie's story made a little sad to see her comparing herself to the successful ladies involved in national government.  Especially when one lady commented that her grandmother had the same position as Leslie and it was merely an excuse to "get her out of the house."  Thankfully, Leslie had Andy by her side, who isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but is smart enough to know that no one works as hard as Leslie and there was no reason for her to be putting herself down.  Just love that Andy.  Without him, Leslie might have gotten discouraged that her petition was just going into a pile and not have decided to start cleaning up the river herself.  This story could have gone in a much worse direction, but I was glad it didn't.  I would have hated to see Leslie start to question whether she was good enough to stay with Ben.  I mean, after all, it was pretty much Leslie who got Ben back on his feet and gave him the opportunity to show he could be a good enough to be a Washington-based campaign manager.  For now, we will still get to see Leslie delighting in checking out Ben's ass--haha!

Ron's story was great.  This is just how they needed to start things.  I loved that everyone laughed when Chris said that it was Ron who was leading the meeting in the conference room.  But it was funnier that Ron, who sort of has natural leadership qualities (or at least if he gives a command, you'd expect anyone to listen to him), is actually a horrible organizer.  His policy for absolutely no vegetables at his barbecue cracked me up.  The death stare he gave Jerry when he asked,

Can we at least have corn on the cob?

 made me laugh so hard.  Love that Ron is so dead-set against vegetables!  Later, when things were falling apart, it was amazing that he had really no intentions of doing anything but grilling up some meat (and possibly supplying some beers) when he didn't even supply them with plates!  What the hell...  It showed me a lot that Ron really needs to only be in charge of one single thing in an event and asking him to do more than that is overwhelming for him.  Case in point (during one of my favorite scenes), when the employees were all complaining to him about hunger and peeing and thirst, he just packed up his meat and drove off in a puff of smoke that was trailing from his grill that was still lit!  It's great to see Ron like this because he never had a need to be the answer guy when Leslie was around.  If this is an indication of sides of Ron we'll get to see now that he'll have to do his job, then it's gonna be a great season.

I didn't find Tom and Ann's charade to be that entertaining, but I did like Tom moaning like a child about being hungry.  What was even better than that was when Chris ran up to Tom and Ann, claiming that he had smuggled in some candy for them to enjoy while Ron was cooking the meat.  Tom's voice when he saw that they were just raisins ("nature's candy"--oh, Chris), was hilarious.  Anyway, Rob Lowe in that striped T-shirt sort of made me chuckle too.  He just looked like a goofy kid in that, which matches his character Chris pretty well, though.

This was a pretty good start to the show.  I'd like to see more of April next time, and I'd like to continue to see more of Ron's struggles to do things without Leslie there to help him.  I'm also sort of interested to see what Leslie is going to accomplish first as being a councilwoman.  I hope after her long journey to get there, she really gets to something really special for Pawnee.

Leslie's Election Brings Change (Or Not)

Parks and Recreation, S04E22

Leslie was nervous about the outcome of the election, but she had her friends and Ben there for support.  The initial tally said that she had lost, but a recount showed that Leslie was the real winner.  Ben got offered a job in Washington by Jennifer, but wasn't sure if he wanted to accept it if it meant being apart from Leslie.  April was afraid that she would be fired because she lost some important files, so Andy was helping her think about some dream jobs for both of them.  Chris had one more romp with Jennifer before she left town, and Tom proclaimed that his dream predicted that he and Ann would get back together.

I liked that this episode marked a lot of change in everyone's lives, not just Leslie's.  She won the election, but I feel like it won't change Leslie that much.  She's been dying to make Pawnee a better place since day one, so her win is only going to give her more power to do so.  But it was nice to see Leslie grow from just a Parks and Recreation employee to someone with power to make some major decisions in the city.  But it wasn't just Leslie that was going somewhere, but also Ben.  I never thought that his brilliant campaigning would impress Jennifer enough that she would want to offer him a job.  As much as I like Leslie and Ben together, I'm glad that she told him that she'd be selfish to not let him grab the opportunity.  After all, he had worked so hard to make her dreams come true, so it was about time she let him have some of his own (a great step up from being mocked as a horrible, teenage mayor).  I can't imagine Ben not around anymore, so that's a change that I will have to get used to.

Another thing that was interesting concerning change was Ron's proclamation that he's a man of consistency, but he approves of Ben and Leslie's relationship:

Well, I've never been one for meeting new people, or doing new things.  Or eating new types of food.  Or traveling outside of southern Indiana.  I've had the same haircut since 1978, and I've driven the same car since 1991. I've used the same wooden comb for three decades. I have one bowl. I still get my milk delivered by horse. But you and Leslie like to hold hands, and jump off of cliffs together, into the great unknown. You two have a good relationship. I don't personally know what that's like, but, I'm given to understand it means you're gonna land on your feet.

He's ridiculously stuck in his ways.  I thought after that speech of his that him taking the job to work with Chris would be a great contradiction, but Ron turned it down.  I have to admit I couldn't imagine him not sitting in his office, ignoring as many people as he could.  Just wouldn't be right.  I also liked how even Chris wasn't about to have someone like Jean Ralphio work for him instead.  Chris is pretty easy going, but I guess there are some people annoying enough that he can't put a positive spin on them.

 I'm glad that things didn't have to change for April, and she wasn't in danger of being fired.  I did like Andy's enthusiasm in brainstorming new occupations.  I noticed, just like April, that the jobs he listed were all in law enforcement, but I still didn't think about him becoming a cop.  I'd be scared with someone like Andy carrying a gun all the time.  It was cute, though, when Donna came in and got all the files back in a matter of seconds and April hugged her.  Then Andy joined in and it was just a big ball of love.  Good God, if only every office situation in real life could be as loving as this one.

It was emotional to see Leslie give her winning speech about how she owed her victory to her friends and supporters, but I was more touched before she knew she had won and Ron had come to comfort her.  Leslie was thinking that she would let everyone down if she lost, but Ron let her know otherwise:

We did it because we care--about you. You had a dream and we wanted to support your dream. That's what you do when you care about someone. You support 'em - win, lose, or draw.

There's something about these caring words coming out of Ron's mouth that made me so touched that I teared up.  He's the one who tries to hide his love of Leslie the most, but he's in the same boat as the rest of their department.  I really envy the support system that she has--it's something that everyone could use.

 Relieved to see that this season finale has the result that I wished for.  It seems like it's been such a long journey for her to get there, especially after her original campaign team dropped her after the "scandal" with her and Ben.  Leslie beat the odds, and she did it without being super sneaky and sticking to her beliefs.  This ending makes me really proud of her and love the employees of the P&R department even more.  If NBC were foolish enough to end the series right there, I would be sending them as many hate letters as I could.  I'm so excited to see what Leslie will do as a councilwoman next year! As one of my favorites, I'm missing this show already!

Dave Tries to Get Leslie And Tom Tries To Get Ann

Parks and Recreation, S04E15

Good episode!  We had Leslie stuck in an awkward love triangle with her ex and current boyfriend, we had Andy trying to compose the best campaign song ever, and we had Tom trying to get together with Ann.  Also, Ron was trying to hide his secret persona, Duke Silver.  All interesting stories.

I'll start first with the campaign team at the recording studio with Andy.  I liked how intense Andy was getting, who is known for being laid back about pretty much everything.  He was pretty much acting like a tyrant, not accepting anything less than perfect singing.  The worst singing of all (or at least the only that they let us hear) was Chris' version of "Take Me Out To The Ball Game."  Not only were the words wrong (I think), but he was singing too deliberately.  I expected him to be a little better, but at least it matched his over-the-top personality.  Surprisingly, Andy gave him the thumbs up during a time when he was being the hardest on everyone ever.  April seemed to enjoy his demand for perfection, especially when he told the band to play the song each time perfectly:

God, that was hot nonsense.

Andy got frustrated about the quality of the song, but good ol' Ron came to the rescue!  He sent Andy to clear his head and then added his own sax track to the song.  Andy was blown away and no one (except Jerry who got his eardrums incapacitated by some cymbals) knew of Duke Silver's existence.

While they were all practicing in the studio, Tom was trying to get Ann to be his sweetheart.  Back at the office Tom had several horrible nicknames for her, despite that they had only went on one date.  These included "Cookie Tush," "Annberry Sauce," and "Tommy's Girl."  I felt bad for him, even though he was jumping the gun; his cutesy voice saying, "I  feel like you're embarrassed of me," made me want to just hug him.  Aziz Ansari is a pro at playing a character like Tom where the guy is repulsive, yet adorable at the same time.  He's like a hamster trying to throw lame pickup lines at you.  You have to admire his tenacity from changing his Facebook status to "it's complicated" to waiting out in the rain for Ann and getting the "sniffies."

I thought Tom wouldn't have a shot in hell until he was real with Ann (and stopped acting crazy like texting everyone about them dating) for about five seconds.  But after Tom starts singing this ridiculously cute and dorky song, Ann is finally worn down.

The only thing I'm wondering about now besides how Tom will manage to keep Ann is why Chris needed to "adjust" to the information that Tom is "dating" Ann now.  So his improved positive attitude is related to Ann?  If he's going to fight Tom one day for Ann, that's going to be such a great episode.  They're such different people, so I wouldn't know who she would choose.  They're equally crazy in their own way and attractive guys in their own ways.  I guess since Ann is a beautiful girl it's not a stretch at all that at least 2 men would be after her.

Leslie, too, is had problems with 2 men: Dave and Ben.  Not that Ben is really a problem beyond his irrational fear of police.  He really needs to shut that trap when he's talking to one of them!  Anyway, Dave's return to this show is awkward from the very second he gets on the screen until the end.  I love it.  After he tells them that he'll enjoy a frozen burrito from a gas station, Leslie blurts out a dinner invitation to him.  Ben isn't very threatened beyond the fact that Dave is a cop.  In fact, the two seem to get along pretty well at dinner until Dave blurts out his love for Leslie (a lot of that going on) and ruins the good thing they had going.  Ben was none the wiser of how much Dave wanted to get Leslie back until he handcuffs him to the urinal!  I loved that!  It was especially good when Leslie found out and Dave had to explain himself.  Dave just reminds me of someone who's never had a girlfriend before and is too confused to know how to woo a girl.  He was pretty cute in that scene.

Before Dave traps Ben in the bathroom, I really like the complicated conversation they all have about talking to each other in private.  It was so confusingly funny.

Later at the retirement part for the police chief, Dave and Leslie have a heart-to-heart and he understands that the "shrimpy" Ben is a good guy for her after all.  I wonder if he's going to stay on the show for a little while as the new police chief.  I'd love for him to keep picking on Ben.

The best picking-on-Ben moment was when these 2 police officers offered him a beer.  One was saying it was polite to have one because it was a retirement party, but the other was warning him not to break up the law and drink if he was going to drive.  Ben was so hopeless and begged them to just tell him which answer was correct in that situation.  Poor awkward Ben!

Lastly, I just want to say how I loved Andy's version of honey and tea, which was nothing but a cup of honey.  So gross, but it was funny.

Freaking love this show!