Ratjo

The Cleveland Show, S04E13

Cleveland was tasked to kill a rat in the house, but he kept it as a pet and lied about it to make his family stay away longer. Cleveland had to make a tough decision about his new pet when it bit Donna and it wasn't clear if the rat had rabies or not.  Rallo also got obsessed with a suitcase Junior was carrying and found his step-brother was involved in real espionage.

Although Cleveland acted like his usual self and lied to get some time away from his family, I liked that he got found out quicker than most cases. Also, his lies were sort of necessary this time because Domna wouldn't have let him keep his new rat friend. It was a little cute that Cleveland befriended the rat, but it was weird how he carried himself with the rat at his side. For example, he was walking his rat in nothing but an open robe with a rope tied to it. Not to mention that he looked like he had just woken up and not showered in days--he looked so ghetto. I don't know why his love for the rat encouraged his slovenly behavior. Like it's bad enough having a rat as a pet without living in your own filth. That was the one aspect of Cleveland's new friendship that I didn't like.

It was messed up that Cleveland's pet bit Donna, possibly giving her rabies, and Cleveland took so long to chose her over the rat. Yeah, it was sad he had to kill the pet he had always wanted as a child, but that was his wife. He is so damn cold sometimes.  Donna was being a bit of a bitch ordering him around while she was hanging with her mother, but that's not a reason to gamble with her life like that.

My favorite part of this story was when they took the rat to the woods and it started attacking them in a rabies-induced frenzy.  It totally reminded me of Stephen King's Cujo.  The two of them were trapped in the car just like that lady and boy in the movie. I loved that because instead of a pretty scary dog, it was a little rat keeping them there. Under normal situations it shouldn't have been able to  harass them so badly. It even crawled into the car via the exhaust pipe--that was crazy!  I almost wished that Donna's mother hadn't shown up and killed the rat. I enjoyed how ridiculous Cleveland and Donna looked while screaming and running from a little animal (not to say I wouldn't freak out being attacked by a rat, rabid or not).

In Rallo and Junior's story, I liked how obsessed Rallo was with spy movies.  That was so typically of a little kid.  He was really annoying the hell our of Junior.  It takes a lot to get Junior pissed, so I liked seeing that for a change.  But once Junior started carrying the suitcase to get back at him or whatever, Rallo stopped being such a nuisance and just worked on cracking Junior's mystery.  I would have liked that better if it wasn't a fake coupon that acted as a pass card to Junior's secret organization.  That was unexpected, but not entirely amusing to me.  I mean, it was a little disturbing, making Junior seem like the kind of dangerous person who abducts people and murders neighbors.  I would have enjoyed it better if the two of them battled in an exaggerated fantasy setting as pretend spies.  In the way it did end, Rallo just got terrified. Wasn't much to laugh about that.

This episode was okay.  I did like that Cleveland's lies this time didn't feel completely selfish.  He was trying to prolong the life of his new pet.  The best part was the rat suddenly attacking him and Donna.  It turned into a good movie spoof.  Rallo and Junior had the potential to turn their spy games into something funny, but it fell flat for me when Junior made the games real and more sinister.  It was a slightly interesting twist, but I'd rather watch the two boys being silly any other day.

Everyone Sucks At Everything

The Cleveland Show, S04E12

Cleveland and his friends worried that the excitement had gone out of their friendship and tried to repair it.  After many failed attempts, they tried going to an amusement park they had once shared good times, ignoring the fact that it was closed down.  Donna wanted to boost Rallo's confidence by making him think he was an excellent bowler, but Rallo's overconfidence made Donna show him the harsh truth about how little there is that young kids are good at in general.

You would think that with such a variety of friends that it would take longer than 3 years for it to get stale.  Unless that group was composed of the most boring guys you could find, I find it hard to believe Cleveland and the gang were having problems already.  I'm sure that they do spend most of their time together sitting at the Broken Stool drinking, but they've done so many random activies that were also dangerous and thrilling.  That should make the days when they're not doing something to put them in jail or injury themselves seem like a vacation.  So I had problems just buying that they didn't have the same chemistry anymore.

There were little things that I sort of liked in this story, like Cleveland remarking he'd get another bear as a friend or how Tim looked in the fun mirror, but mostly I had neutral feelings about their frollick in the condemened amusement park.  The vomiting was gross and them being stuck on the Roter overall made me impatient for their rescue or just anything.  Things did get a little better when Rallo tried to save them and later Donna.  By the end of it, I don't even think I cared whether they were better friends or not.  The focus had really changed to Rallo feeling better about being a worthless kid.

Rallo, who had to hear the ugly truth about the skill level of a kid from his mother, didn't really start to grab my interest until he stopped acting like a superstar bowler.  I liked when he went to the strip club and met Robert.  His father actually had some good advice about finding Cleveland, yet he didn't give a damn that his 5 year-old was walking around at night to strip clubs and such.  Instead of driving Rallo home, he took him to an abandoned amusement park where Rallo could have gotten hurt (and very likely would have if the firemen hadn't come).  It was funny that even Rallo couldn't stay quiet as his father left him unsupervised in such a frightening place:

[Robert] Man, this place looks scary.  All right, see you later.[Rallo] That man is not a good father.

That was about the funniest thing in the episdoe, except for the disturbing picture that Junior had drawn.  It had him crying next to a grave with the caption, "I miss mommy."  It was sad in a way that made you chuckle that no one gave a damn about what might be going on in Junior's head to draw that.

After all of Donna's talk (and that horrible song) about how kids suck at everything, she really showed that any person of any age can suck when she set the place on fire.  Damn.  How stupid can she be?  Rallo was mostly stupidly courageous--Donna was just ignorant about electrical fires.   They were just lucky that the firemen showed up.  I don't know why they did, though.  How is it that they got there so fast, especially when that place was supposed to be empty?

I didn't hate this episode, but at the same time, I can't say there was much that was worth mentioning about it.  I did like that Cleveland and his friends' problem eventually became part of Rallo's story about wanting to prove his worth as a kid.  There are less intersecting stories in this show recently, so I like when they change things up once in a while.  Neither story was particularly good, so combining them into an almost decent story was better than having the two of them separate and completely awful.

Same Old Story Again

The Cleveland Show, S04E11

Cleveland voluntarily took a severance package and quit his job, but kept it secret from Donna and had fun spending the money while only pretending to use that time to find a new job.  Roberta and Federline broke up, and Rallo was happy to see Roberta start dating a black guy until he found out that Devon was too strict and boring.

I can't say what's much different in this story about Donna and Cleveland compared to most stories about the two of them.  Cleveland does something wrong and enjoys himself in the meantime before Donna figures out that he's been lying through his teeth.  This formula for a story isn't unique to this show (Homer Simpson does it on a regular basis, as well), but what I dislike about when Cleveland chooses to do it is that he usually does it for selfish reasons.  It's not that he wanted to save himself from embarrassment or felt not so confident about finding another job, but he just didn't want Donna to make him do chores or whatever around the house (and he probably didn't want to have to use the money on his family).  I was surprised at first that he was going to tell Donna exactly what he had done at work until he used the time-rewinding technique from Superman (I don't know which one).  Unlike when I had seen Stan Smith use this on American Dad, Cleveland successfully went back in time to prevent himself from letting Donna spoil his fun.  I wish that Cleveland had only imagined he had done it, like Stan (I don't much like that they used the same reference like that).

Also, per usual to this setup, Cleveland's deception was revealed through his own carelessness and stupidity.  Much like when he was pretending to be homeless, he was too busy having a good time to remember that he shouldn't dine in the same restaurant his wife was working in.  I guess since Cleveland will never be the type to admit what he did wrong without being caught in the act first, we have to wait for his lies to catch up with him.  I wish they had caught up sooner--he wasn't doing anything that exciting with all that money.  He then spun the situation to look like he was going to end his life due to the hopelessness of the current job market, making him look even more like a selfish ass.   It would have been a great lesson to him if Donna had won in the end when she punched him off of the ledge.  Instead, Cleveland's seemingly joke to sue Donna wasn't a lie at all, and the money that he won in that settlement allowed him to return things back to status quo.  I didn't like that ending.  I hate when Cleveland appears to win in the end when he was the one doing wrong all along.  Unless they can do that in a very humorous way, which wasn't achieved this time, I'd rather see him get his just desserts.

There was only about one thing I liked about this story and that was when Clevleand was making some speech on the ledge to the "unemployed hippies."  He was getting a little long-winded and Rallo shouted out:

Wrap it up!

I had to laugh at that because the time was perfect and the sentiment was apt.  Cleveland was just having another bullshitting session that wasn't important in the least.  If only Donna could have gotten up  there sooner to knock him off.

The side story involved Rallo, but sadly he wasn't put to good use.  The focus was mainly on how Ferdeline reverted back to his non-poser self (a sight that was a bit eerie for some reason) and how Devon sucked the fun out of Rallo's life.  The latter should have been decently funny, but it wasn't.  I guess because there wasn't anything more to Devon than following the rules and reforming Rallo.  I actually didn't even feel like he was dating Roberta--it was more like he was Rallo's 24-7 babysitter.  I might have found Rallo's situation funnier if he complained to someone about Devon, but they didn't believe he was an unpleasant guy.  Instead, it just became clearer and clearer than Devon was as about as fun as counting blades of grass.  He was making Rallo's life hell, but to me it wasn't anything personal, so it didn't tickle my funny bone.  Also, Rallo didn't have any chances to turn the tables on Devon or anything.  He just had to get Federline back.  As much as I dislike Federline, he's the lesser of two evils, I guess.

This episode made me feel like I was watching a different but similar episode with just a few of the pieces changed.  I'd like to see Cleveland have more times where his lies seemed necessary rather than a reflection of him protecting his own best interests.  I would have also liked to see Rallo get more revenge on Devon than bringing back Federline to take his place.  While it's better to have Federline at Roberta's side than Devon, I would have ultimately preferred a story without the two of them in the first place.

Crappy Marriage Leads To Crappy Story

The Cleveland Show, S04E09

Cleveland and Donna went to marriage counseling after Cleveland messed up his personal vows to Donna.  On top of paying the counselor extra to make it seem like Cleveland was always right, the man blackmailed Cleveland into having sex with his wife.  Rallo retrieved Junior's old fridge from its grave and filled it with snacks that Junior couldn't help but eat, and Junior ended up owing Rallo a hefty sum for it.

I didn't expect much for a story about Cleveland and Donna's marriage.  They don't have the best one, and Cleveland is chronically saying bad things about being married in the first place.  You knew he was going to say something terrible at their ceremony, and then take the whole episode to make up for being unappreciative of his wife (pretty much how all of these shows go).  Luckily, it wasn't completely boring.  There were a few things that I found relatively funny.

The first was when Cleveland was questioning paying $80 for the marriage counseling.  Thanks to Junior he was able to illustrate how many sandwiches he could get with that money, and asked Donna:

[Cleveland] What would you rather have, a happy marriage or lots of sandwich?[Junior] Lots of sandwich![Cleveland] That'll be all, buddy!

I like the idea that Cleveland would rather have more sandwiches in his life than a more successful marriage.  Can't blame him--him and Donna are a mess.  He might as well enjoy some good food than someone being paid to tell him he's doing everything wrong.

The second thing that I liked was when Cleveland was in the marriage counseling and thought for a second that the counselor was agreeing with him.  When he showed that he was just agreeing Donna for the millionth time, Cleveland had a good line:

You've got a slappable face, you know that?

Cleveland may be an ass, but no one wants to sit there and listen to someone take the side of their spouse constantly over theirs.  He'd be an idiot to refuse to pay the guy more to turn the table in his favor (or he could have just told Donna he wanted a more impartial counselor, but hey).  I liked that instead of Dona figuring out what he had done, it turned into a blackmail situation.  That was different.  However, before Cleveland even went to sleep with the woman, I suspected that it was just a ploy to get Cleveland to prove that he loved Donna.  So the ending wasn't much of surprise to me.

In the side story with Junior and Rallo, I was disappointed that it wasn't funnier.  The two of them usually are a hit for comedy, no matter what they're doing.  I don't know.  I guess Rallo extorting Junior to buy food out of convenience seemed too easy.  The only part I sorta liked was when Junior "roughed it" by walking out of the room and into the hallway, which was super windy all of a sudden.  When he was blown away, he yelled, "Cartoon!" and that made me smile.  I like when they acknowledge that in cartoons you can get away with situations that defy the laws of nature.

Didn't care for this episode, but it wasn't too bad on a scale specific for this show.  It wasn't like watching that one about different countries, so in that sense it was all right.  I can't think of one episode dealing with Donna and Cleveland's marriage that was humorously depicting the negatives of marriage (because it's not all good, of course).  Instead, these stories just leave a bad taste in my mouth.  I wouldn't mind this as much if the side story could throw in a few laughs my way to make up for the main story.  It's a shame when even Rallo and Junior can't pull that off.

Donna Ain't Playing Around

The Cleveland Show, S04E07

Cleveland was learning how to hustle like Robert, in the hopes that Freight Train would love him as much as he did Robert, his new adopted son.  Junior and Rallo desperately looked for a dog so they could earn enough money to replace Donna's favorite recorder in time for a performance.

Rather than been amazed that FT would adopt Robert as his new son, I was a little more surprised that he hadn't done that a long time ago (even if adopting a grown man is silly).  It's not new that Robert and FT get along way better than Cleveland and FT do.  I think FT probably likes just about anyone better than his own, blood-related son.  What was funniest about Cleveland getting a new brother was that FT started treating them like they were little kids.  I liked how he yelled at them about all the puzzle pieces on the floor and told them to go to bed.  It's pretty normal for Cleveland to act like a little kid, but it was weird for FT to go along with it, so that joke worked for me.  I also thought it was sort of funny when the geese Cleveland was playing with gave him a look when he tried to leave in the middle of their game.  Lastly, I got a bit of a chuckle seeing Cleveland's kids' faces when Cleveland was doing that terrible dance for FT.  They looked more disgusted than FT probably did.

In the side story, I similarly didn't find a lot of jokes that I liked, but I generally just liked Rallo and Junior running around together.  The funniest thing about that story was Donna acting like a psycho who was going to murder Larry if they didn't get the money for her.  She had him tied and gagged in the cupboard, threw him into a freezer, and was about to cut him up with a buzz saw--what the hell is her problem?  In the end, Rallo summed up nicely how one should deal with Donna:

Keep your head down around here, Rock--Mama crazy.

I like that he just sort of accepts that Donna is out of her mind, but doesn't plan to do anything about it.  Although, Rallo is just a little kid, so it is silly to think that he'd have a chance of standing up to her, crazy or not.

Definitely not one of my favorites, but not too bad, considering it was another story about Cleveland and his dad.  I don't think we'll ever see FT and Cleveland loving each other like Cleveland wants, nor would I want to see that.  FT is much funnier when he hates Cleveland, and I wouldn't want to see that change.  Donna is funnier when she's threatening children's stuffed animals, something I wouldn't have previously thought.  It's nice to have her making me laugh instead of making me wish she was gone.  I'd like to see her use Larry against Junior again in the future.

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.

There'll Be No Baby Tomorrow

The Cleveland Show, S04E05

Donna wanted to have another baby with Cleveland once Rallo had grown up, but Cleveland's vasectomy made it impossible.  Donna and Cleveland battled each other to expose the other concerning the fake pregnancy that they both were aware of.   Rallo became the star of the play Annie, but his diva-like actions got it shut down before it was even performed.

Wow, I think it has been a while since there was a story where Cleveland and Donna were trying to best the other with a lie or a scheme.  Or maybe not, but I feel like it has because I hate this setup.  Mainly because you know that both of them already know the other is full of crap, but they keep playing out the charade anyway.  I mean, it was a little funny that they were both so stubborn that they would actually go to the hospital and get the doctor to birth a cushion, but it was mostly frustrating as hell.

The best line from that story came from Dr. Fist, who finally spoke up after going along with their fight for some reason:

If I may interject…you’re both terrible people who should not have any children.  In fact, I am not even comfortable sending that cushion home with you.

His comment was almost worth them acting like idiots for the majority of the episode.

The side story where Rallo got to be Annie was kinda cute.  I liked how he adapted Junior's shirt into something that looked like Annie's dress.  It was also cute when he was crying at his window after regretting the show getting cancelled due to his ureasonable and costly demands.  A little later when Roberta was offering a way to have Rallo be a star after all, there was a pretty funny moment:

[Roberta, bring Junior and Rallo close] We’ll do our own knockoff version!
[Rallo] Ack, ugh!  Girl don’t know how to whisper.
[Roberta] I am whispering!

There's something very funny to be about people who don't understand how to whisper.  I guess because it makes them look a little crazy and stupid at the same time.

This was an okay episode.  I really wish the side story about Rallo could have been longer.  I would have liked to see him be more of a diva than was shown.  Didn't care too much for the lie fest between Donna and Cleveland--it stopped being funny a few seconds after they started.  It's a little weird to say, but I feel like for the sake of this show's comedy, Cleveland and Donna shouldn't do much together.  It usually ends up being a pretty boring (or annoying) story.

Thanksgiving Again?

The Cleveland Show, S04E04

Cleveland changed his mind about making Junior kill a turkey and helped his son try to protect all the turkeys left that Lester was trying to kill and sell.  Donna agreed to help Rallo decorate a float for the parade, but soon pushed him out of the process when she found out that it was for a competition.

I was a little surprised that they did another story that was about Thanksgiving, although this one was a lot more about the holiday than the previous one.  It's rare for a show to do that.  Either they do a nod to the holiday and move on or they chose not to do it at all.  It also didn't help that Thanksgiving was already over and I wasn't expecting anymore stories about it.  However, it wasn't too bad.

Although I say that, there is much that I particularly liked about this episode (but there wasn't anything that I particularly hated either).  My favorite quote was when Junior was trying to defend turkeys by saying that Ben Franklin thought they were noble and Cleveland said:

Benjamin Franklin was an atheist pedophile who flew kites to meet children.  That’s why God struck him with lightning.

There's something really funny about making up your own horrible story about a historical figure (although, there's no concrete evidence to prove that it's wrong).  The part at the end where he claims that even his contributions to electricity were just a fluke from divine punishment also makes me laugh.

As far as Donna and Rallo's story went, I did like when Rallo was trying to decorate the float just as a boy his age typically would with odd coloring, googly eyes, and macaroni.  There's nothing more I love than being reminded that Rallo is just a kid.  Because when he decides to be one, he's really childlike.  However, there wasn't enough of him to really make the story great.  It was just all right.

I probably still like this Thanksgiving story better than the Auntie-Mama one.  It wasn't really funny, but at least it wasn't frustrating to watch (or disgusting).  It just had stories you could watch without really reacting to them much, which for this show is sort of a success.  I dislike when I have to list all the things that made me want to shoot the TV screen.

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!

Leslie And Safe Sex, Tom and Technology

Parks and Recreation, S05E04

Leslie wanted to teach the elderly community about safer sex, but was shut down by some morality watchdogs of Pawnee.  Tom, after a car accident, was ordered to spend time away from his technology and sought help from Ron to get through his hardship.  April and Ben also wondered if the congressman they worked for was a robot.

Instead of speaking much about each of the stories specifically, I'll mostly just mention my favorite lines.  I did, however, like the story about Ron and Tom the best because Tom was going crazy without being able to text and all of his other things.  One of my favorite moments was when he was trying to recreate his favorite internet venues and devices, such as pinterest.  He just looked so pathetic tapping pictures he had put on a real board and hoping that something cool (like on the actual site) would happen.  However, his best recreation had to be when he tried his hand with his iPhone:

[Tom] I made an iPhone out of paper.  It's not the same, though.

[Ron] This is the work of a lunatic.

It was equally as funny when Ron was able to make progress with Tom's addiction when Tom admitted that he needed some help:

I'm proud of you.  But also a bit fearful that we're verging on what I call "feelings territory."  So let's stare at the fire in silence.

I also love when Tom went to apologize to Ron for damaging his car and Ron silently stood up:

What are you doing?  Are you going to kill me?

 I really love when Ron and Tom get together because they are really like opposites at times and it can't be a better setup for some comedy there.

Donna also had a great line (she usually does, but she's usually beat by even funnier lines) when commenting on Ann's clothes:

It's not my favorite shirt, but it is my least favorite shirt.

I love her tell-it-how-it-is attitude.  I would totally be friends with her.

Finally, I liked when Leslie was still acting like Chris was her boss:

[Leslie] You’re my boss, what do I do here?
[Chris]  Actually, you’re my boss now.
[Leslie]  That’s right! Why am I still weirdly scared of you?
[Chris] I’ve very confident and I make a lot of eye contact.

God, I can't imagine if Chris wasn't around.  He is always saying great things like that! He's a mess, but he somehow makes it work.

I think I really loved this episode because Tom's struggle without his Twitter and Facebook and such was just too funny and the other stories with it were funny as well.  I just wish there were some funnier lines from Ben and April's story (which was funnier in what was happening more than what was being said), but I'll not let that really affect my overall wonderful opinion.  Love this show!

One Mama, Two Mamas

The Cleveland Show, S03E21

Donna was upset about not knowing her mother, so Cleveland tried to look for her.  He settled on paying an actress to pretend to be her long-lost mother, but it backfired on him twice when the actress wouldn't leave and suddenly died during Donna's recorder dedication to her.  Cleveland came clean and Donna kicked him out of the house.  When Donna's real mother came to see him at work, Cleveland got the idea to put them both in the hospital so that Donna would have a chance to talk to her mother without her knowing.  Donna wasn't immediately pleased when she discovered what he had done, but eventually she was happy to finally know her mother.

I think the best thing about Cleveland hiring someone to play Donna's mother was that the woman he picked was voiced by Loretta Devine.  She's just such a pleasant, motherly-sounding woman that I could buy that even with her terrible acting (Cleveland really should have selected better) that someone would at least want to believe she was their mother.  I'm glad that Cleveland's plan didn't develop into a drawn-out blackmail and eventual breakdown of all the lies the actress made up and the woman just suddenly died instead.  Who would think that would ever happen?  But if it had never happened that way, I doubt with Cleveland's "expert" finding skills that he would have gotten any closer to locating Didi.

I didn't understand at first what the hell crashing Cleveland's car into a tree was going to do to help Donna and Didi meet.  There could have been a million other ways to get them together secretly without Donna having a clue she was speaking to her own mother.  I was hoping that the reason Didi abandoned Donna was something more sorted and shameful, but it was a fairly tame reason.  She didn't want to give up her fame to raise a child--pretty simple.  We have no idea what happened to her father and all, but I guess he doesn't really matter in the story.  Anyway, Donna did grow up with Auntie-Mama, who probably did a better job raising her than Didi ever could.  So no matter what reason she left, it didn't feel like it really screwed up Donna's life all that much.  The most interesting thing about her story was that Didi had no idea that her brother Kevin was a cross-dresser.  She could spill the beans about Auntie-Mama's true identity (or I suppose she did after the episode ended).

None of the jokes particularly worked for me this time, but I did slightly like when Junior was talking to Donna's fake mother and tried to find out what kind of candy she had in her purse.  He got frustrated quickly and told her to just give it to him, and he just grabbed the first thing closest to a sweet he could find.  I don't know why he needs to be so desperate for a snack (especially from someone he just met), but damn.  I like when Junior has these random explosions over insignificant things.

If they had to do a Mother's Day type story, I'm glad it wasn't about Cleveland's mother and they took the time to explain a little more about Donna's past.  I can't say that her past was incredibly interesting, but at least no one has to wonder why Donna's mother never comes to visit.  I don't know why that thought would cross anyone's mind, but at least it doesn't have to now.  I would have liked to see Rallo do something special for his mother in the episode, but they all can't focus heavily on him.  I wish they would, but I know they won't.

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!

Even Death Can't Stop The Leslie Victory Train

Parks And Recreation, S04E21

Leslie was campaigning for one more day before the election, via a bus and having great success with her speeches and appearances.  However, the sudden death of Bobby Newport's father put a halt to it all.  After saying some negative things about the deceased man and barging in on his memorial with her campaign bus, Leslie finally apologized to Bobby in private for her comments.  Thanks to her cheering him up and being a decent human being, Leslie got endorsement from Bobby in a press conference about his father, even though he had stolen a story Leslie told him about her childhood and made it his own.  Chris tried to distract himself from dark thoughts by keeping busy with any task he could volunteer for in the campaign.  Andy was busy investigating a pie that had almost hit Leslie.  Tom, accompanied by Donna and Ron, had to get back the vans they had paid for from the owner who had been paid by the competition to withhold the vans from Leslie's group.

It's kind of disgusting that someone's death can be turned into a "political sideshow" as they put it in this episode.  I could really see that Leslie was so determined to win and continue her bus tour because she refused to listen to Ann's advice to do the right thing for the longest time.  I think it was funny that Leslie couldn't spin her negative opinion of the deceased owner of Sweetums to her advantage, but instead called him a jerk and said other things to dig her hole deeper.  The way that Jennifer played her hand in making Leslie look like a monster, though, was much more contemptible.  It's too bad that she's such an aggressive and calculating manage and Bobby is such a moron because all of her tactics basically went to waste.  I really didn't think that after Leslie rammed her bus into that portrait of Bobby's father at the memorial that she would be able to recover from that, but I guess Leslie really has luck on her side.

I liked when Leslie told Bobby about her running a marathon and winning her mother's pride, and Bobby understood from that story that he and Leslie both had dicks as parents.  Wow.  I think that conclusion he drew was much more amazing than him taking that story and changing it so he could use it in a speech later on.  I thought he wasn't too bad of a guy until he did that.  But now that I think about it, maybe he told the story because he didn't have any nice stories about his own dad and didn't want to share with others how much of a dick his father really was.  But he redeemed himself by saying that Leslie was awesome for comforting him and that anyone not voting for him should vote for her.  It's hard to hate him after that, and like I've said before, Paul Judd is just too cute sometimes.

The only thing I liked about Chris' story was that April had the opportunity to cheer him up again.  It didn't work, but I still thought her words were sweet for someone like her.  She told him that he wasn't as alone as he was claimed and must have friends out there somewhere.  Aww.  She's too embarrassed to admit that Chris is her friend.  Sadly, what did get Chris out his sad spiral (although his last major one was so hilarious) seemed to be the sex that Jennifer offered him.  I hope that's all it turns out to be.  I couldn't stomach to see someone as cheery as Chris with a snake like her.  Eww.

I thought Andy's story was just stupid until he found out that the pie was meant for Ben.  I liked that someone was disgruntled for Ben's actions and thought that throwing at pie at him would satisfy his anger.  Andy solved the mystery, but he surely didn't protect Ben from getting pie on his face.  Still, for Andy I think that qualifies as a success.  What I liked best about Andy's story was when he gave everyone code names, which were mostly based on sex he had had with each person.  My second favorite name was Donna's, which was "It Happened Once In A Dream," but my favorite was Tom's: "If I Had To Pick A Dude."  Love it!   Most of them seemed pretty content about the names he came up with.

Tom's story made with mad, with that guy who was taking advantage of the demand for his vans.  It was really smart of Leslie not to send Tom alone to handle Butler because if Ron couldn't get through to that stubborn man, no one would have been able to.  It was really nice that Ron agreed to pay what the competition was offering out of his own pocket.  It's too bad that guy bumped up the price, and it was too bad that Ron didn't knock the hell out of him for being such a greedy dick.  I also admire that Donna, who loves her Mercedes more than anything else, would back into Butler's car so that she could claim he rear-ended her.  She would have to pay for the damages herself, but they got the vans back in the process.  Wow.  It just really shows how far everyone is willing to go to help out Leslie.  I love all the love.

I liked this episode, but I always have to complain when I don't get a good Ron quote from it.  I did like Ron trying to handle Butler, but I was disappointed he couldn't really do anything to change the ass' mind.  I also would have preferred a little more Tom because you know I love me some Aziz.  However, I'm just glad to see that Leslie may very well be celebrating her victory in the next episode.  Although, I'm fairly certain that Obama isn't going to make an appearance at her ceremony, no matter how much she envisions it.

How Not To Get Rid Of A Man In A Wheelchair

The Cleveland Show, S03E19

Cleveland's suspicions that Donna was cheating on him turned out to be about half right.  She was trying to secretly let down her ex-boyfriend Maurice who had been in Iraq and thought he and Donna were still a couple.  After seeing that Maurice was in a wheelchair, Cleveland helped her lie until Maurice proposed to her.  Maurice stayed at their house, punishing them for their deceit by being a general nuisance.  They tried to appease him by giving him a parade in his honor, but it wasn't until Cleveland punched Maurice and treated him like a normal guy that Maurice forgave them and left.  Junior pretended to be Christian to win a girl's affection and had to compete with Hunter, another boy doing the same thing.  When they unintentionally sang about their deceit in front of Vanessa she was attracted to their "bad boy" ways and wanted to have sex with them both, to their horror.  Junior was saved from losing his virginity by a fire that Hunter started.

I think that Donna has had lots of opportunities to cheat on Cleveland, so the idea of her suddenly sending her husband off to have one now didn't make sense, so I couldn't agree with Cleveland's friends that her buttering him up with ham was to distract him from her cheating.  Cleveland, too, found it hard to believe that Donna was having an affair, but he had to go with what a typical man would think:

Then again, what kind of man would I be if I didn't automatically think the worst about a woman?

Because that line was funny, I couldn't get mad about Cleveland listening to his friends and accusing Donna.  He did a horrible job of tailing her, and later when he knew the truth and Maurice showed up, he did a horrible job of lying.  In fact, he had to make sure that he didn't forget the name he made up for himself, "Cleveson."  That terrible name did set up for some good jokes by his friends, however:

[Tim] Wow, I am so embarrassed.  I’ve been calling Cleveson, “Cleveland” for years.
[Lester] And I didn’t know he was married to his sister.  I approve.

I don't know which of their comments is stupider, but I liked that they were sucked into the lie better than Cleveland was himself (who forgot his own fake name).

I only felt bad for Maurice when he first found out about the lies and had a very pathetic and weepy exit out of the room, where he fell and had to eventually crawl.  However, I was glad that Cleveland got pissed at him and punched him.  Donna and Cleveland are bad people, but there was no reason they needed to be continually punished when they had already apologized.  I really liked Cleveland's statement about this:

We only lied to spare your feelings, and we apologized.  So either forgive us or don't. But stop being a dick.

True dat!  This story made a good point about people who walk on eggshells around people with disabilities.  We're all essentially people, so no one should be able to get a free card to be a jerk.  I'll admit it's hard not to be extra nice and forgiving to someone who can't function the same as yourself, but when someone is being an unnecessary dick, you need to be able to call them on it, regardless of what kind of person they are.

Junior's story wasn't that great.  I guess it's because it's not the first time that he has fallen for a beautiful girl that he ultimately won't get (I just assume).  I thought the song that the mission team choir had some clever lyrics, although the tune wasn't particularly pleasing.  I admired how they had a song that praised Jesus and God by using social media terms and technological trends like texting that teenagers would be interested in.  Because of that, I was less annoyed that I had endure another Seth MacFarlane world song (not to say that The Simpsons has come out with a good song in any recent years).  I also like Darren Criss' voice ever since I watched Glee (but have given up on since their last terrible Christmas special), so it couldn't be too angry about it.  Junior started singing too, to my dismay, but I liked that while he was having his moment, you could see Roger in the stained glass.  Nice touch.  When he stopped singing, I wondered to myself if he had done it out loud, and Junior immediately said the same thing to himself.  That was funnier than him being dumb enough to sing about a girl he liked right in front of her.

Junior and Hunter's duet about their plans to fight each other for Vanessa was cute (though I still didn't care for the lyrics) and funny just because it was stupid.  It was the stupidest when they continued to sing until Vanessa showed up and they had to be honest with her.  I didn't think that she would be so turned on by their deceit.  I was going to be happy for them that they got the girl they wanted after all, but the two were turned off by her sexual aggression.  I forgot that Junior wasn't ready for that yet (according to the episode with his teenage wife whom he couldn't sleep with) and Hunter seemed to be the same.  It was just funny to see two teenage boys crapping their pants because they girl they were after wanted to jump their bones--any other typical boy their age would have acted like they won the lottery.  I mean, Vanessa was a little intimidating, but for those two, that might have been the opportunity of a lifetime.  In the end, I'm glad that Junior got out of it and that he and Hunter went from being enemies to being friends.  I mean, they have a lot in common (both think it's a good idea to lie about their faith in order to date someone), so friendship seems like a more feasible conclusion than the two getting lucky with a girl.

This week we had a double-dose of this show, but I think the episode that preceded it was better than this one.  It lost points for having songs (even with Darren Criss' beautiful voice) and failing to utilize Rallo very much. After seeing that episode where Rallo was shining, it was hard to be satisfied when he only popped out for a random line or two.  I seriously think if they made it "The Rallo Show," it would be an even better show now that Cleveland isn't as half funny as he used to be on Family Guy.

Yeah, No One Wants Cleveland's Life

The Cleveland Show, S03E16

Cleveland, depressed about the humdrum of his shitty life, met a new coworker who quickly becomes his new best friend.  Donna demanded that Cleveland not see her anymore, but Cleveland, of course, ignored ier and continued their friendship until Donna caught them and threw a frapp in his face.  Thanks to Rallo and Junior making an online video of the attack, a famous producer named Willy Nilly came to whisk Cleveland off to Hollywood to make more videos.  Instead of Cleveland getting fame, he got another man trying to steal his life and his wife, but Cleveland easily showed the man that being Cleveland Brown is not the fantasy that he first imagined.

Rather than be glad to hear one of my favorite songs from a movie, I was dismayed to hear Cleveland singing the words to "Mad World." It's like going to karaoke and listening to someone butcher a song (or purposely sing in a way to mock it).  I liked the depressing montage, but I wished they had used a song I didn't know, so I hadn't been tempted to shout "Boo!!" the whole time.  If they bought the rights to use the song, why not let the original artist sing it.  That would have made the opening fabulous.  Instead, I have to complain about Cleveland singing again.  I have never liked one damn song he has ever done (or any of the songs in Seth MacFarlane world).

After Cleveland made an attractive new friend, the story moved in a way I didn't expect.  I mean, a woman clearly more attractive than Donna (and fun) came along, and they were getting closer without her consent, yet that matter was forgotten pretty much as soon as Rallo and Junior's video made Cleveland famous.  I would have thought Cleveland and the girl might become even creepily closer or something might happen romantically between the two to prove Donna's point.  No, her point got across when Willy Nilly became her friend and Cleveland got jealous.  I was a little annoyed it turned out this way (don't care to see Donna treated like she's all that), until Cleveland stopped feeling sad for himself and gave Willy a Cleveland reality check.  The best part of him showing him how bad his life is was when he showed him how he starts each day.  The kids were acting crazy, especially Rallo who was naked and hitting the wall with a hammer while saying "Hammer Time!"  I loved Willy Nilly and Cleveland's remarks after that:

[Willy Nilly] Whoa!  Why are they even awake?

[Cleveland] They're always awake!

It didn't take Cleveland long at all to show that no one in their right mind would want his life, even if Donna was a part of it.  More so the latter because Donna was seen without her wig, saggy boobs practically to her knees, and bits of all the boiled eggs she eats in her teeth.  Okay, I know Cleveland needed to make a point, but damn!  I didn't think they could make Donna look worse than she did in that episode with the man girdle.  I just don't understand why she needs to look so bad--she's not that old.  But I guess having the two kids and the stress of doing it alone can do that to you.  Yeesh.

I guess it was nice that the glamor-less life that Cleveland has can help him stop a celebrity from taking over his life and prove his wife right at the same time.  Although, I guess she wasn't right because Cleveland's coworker had no plans to move in on him, but I guess it's good enough he learned that it can be uncomfortable to see one's partner with a person of the opposite sex.

I was hoping that Rallo and Junior would have a little more screen time after their video had so much success, but no such luck.  It was a pretty good Cleveland-centered story, though, and I guess it was because the idea of anyone wanting to be Cleveland was absurd enough to be amusing.  You'd probably have to be a drunk living in a gutter to think that Cleveland was living the good life.

Ron Tries To Make Ann The New Leslie

Parks and Recreation, S04E17

There was bad news for both Campaign Leslie and the Parks and Recreation department yesterday.  Leslie and Ben were getting their asses served by a slick, new campaign manager Bobby Newport had hired, while the P&R department had to get a project successfully done without Leslie's power sustaining them.  The latter was the better of the two because, of course, it involved the characters who make me laugh the most.  So I'll skip any comments about Leslie's current bump in the road to being on city council.

We all know Ron, so we know he is not going to do work, but also doesn't want to have Leslie replaced.  In fact, he relates this problem to his childhood where he had to choose one of his pet calves to kill on his sixth birthday.  The conclusion to this problem is evidence why I love Ron Swanson stories:

 I couldn't choose, so I slaughtered both of them.  ...And they were delicious.

Unfortunately for Ron, Chris had other plans about replacing Leslie, so Ron had to get the "dream team" together, led by Ann.  Ann is a pretty poor leader and their brainstorming to figure out how to stop the nasty citizens of Pawnee from french kissing the water fountains turned into a full on water balloon fight.  Before all this craziness happened, I loved when Ron went to Ann to propose she take up the new project:

[Ron] Hello, Ann Perkins.
[April] This is the first time you've said my entire name correctly.
[Ron] Nonsense.  We're close friends.

I knew Leslie's absence was going to deliver in the Ron department!  The best of all was when Ann appeared to have solved the water fountain issue, and Ron sat her down to almost suggest she become the mini-Leslie.  When Ann tells him that it was all April and she was the girl for the job, Ron ends their conversation by simply picking up a book.  He only reads for a few seconds in silence before Ann questions him:

[April] Should I go?
[Ron] Are you still here?  Yes.

I can learn a lot from Ron.  It would be my dream to do that to someone but have them act without me needing to tell them to go.  I tip my hat again to the brilliance of Ron Swanson.

Lastly, I wonder why Donna doesn't get many lines.  She is a clearly funny person.  When Ann asks her for her idea about the water fountain she doesn't even look up to reply:

Do I look like I drink water?

That is probably something I would say word for word to someone.  I'd love to see her a little more involved in the episodes.  That may or may not be related to simply just how her character was designed or to fit Retta's busy schedule.  Regardless, after the "Treat Yourself" thing, I'm sure that there are many others who would gladly watch a Donna-themed episode.

I guess this was an okay episode, but it was mostly carried by Ron.  If he wasn't his usual funny self while dealing with Ann, I wouldn't have enjoyed this episode half as much.  I do miss Leslie's crazy adventures in the office, but that's not going to come back anytime soon.  I do hope that she and Ben figure out a way to turn the tables with their opponent.  And back in the P&D department, I hope that April as the new mini-Leslie brings some new hilarity that only someone who has studied under Ron Swanson can produce.

Mommy Issues

Last night's The Cleveland Show was about a dance competition that Donna kept losing every year.  Her main competition was Freightrain and Cookie, Cleveland's parents.  I found that to be pretty weird.  I never expected that couple to be involved in something that required so much teamwork.  I thought they had a pretty turbulent marriage.  Hmm. 

What I liked least about this episode was that Roberta was involved.  I just can't stand her.  I don't know if it's because she's gotten a Meg-like status (Seth MacFarlene is always making teenage girls so unpleasant), or if she's always lip-locking with her boyfriend.  But I will say that I loved her taking care of Rallo.  Not because she turned into a weird version of Donna, complete with stretch pants and a wig, but because Rallo was so funny.  He's such a cool little kid.  I definitely like him better than Stewie.  As soon as Roberta is in charge, he goes straight to the kitchen to heat up some aluminum foil in the microwave.  Love it.  And he cracked me up with his inability to run his own bath.  I couldn't be so annoyed with Roberta's lack of responsibility because it allowed Rallo to do all these ridiculous things a child his age shouldn't be doing.

As far as the dance contest, I really didn't give much of a damn.  I knew that as soon as Junior entered the dance studio that he would know how to dance--he's got that stupid genius thing going on, after all.  I was beginning to think that it was sweet he and Donna were getting close (I didn't mind that Cleveland felt neglected) until it turned into attraction for Junior.  I did not expect that.  Although, since he did have a crush on Roberta (as Tyra), it did make a little sense.  Thankfully, it didn't go anywhere creepy (as it would have if this were Family Guy).

The part at the end where Junior eyes the Donna-fied Roberta with interest was kinda creepy, but less creepy because of that earlier episode with "Tyra."  But they still are siblings, and it would mean that he was just using her as a substitute for Donna, so that's pretty gross.

I liked this episode enough.  I think that Rallo's antics, as usual, were what made me like it the most.  It's usually either him or Junior who does that for me.  I would like to see them utilized more in the next episode.