S2E24: I like you. In a ... romantical kinda way

We're entering serious rom-com territory, folks.

You know the old adage, you’ve heard the immortal words: “don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

That’s the vibe with season 2. We’re smiling because, despite a bit of a rocky star, the season ends on such a fucking high. But we (me) are also crying a bit because the Parks and Rec rough-and-tumble rockiness we know and love is behind us. The show’s entering its golden age, and I’m already a bit nostalgic for all of these moments where they’re getting their bearings.

ICYMI, check out my interview with Jennifer last week about “The Master Plan,” one of Parks and Rec’s greatest episodes. We gib gab about a lot of things, but one of them is the emergence of the show’s two leading couples: Andy and April, and Leslie and Ben.

If you’ve been reading Park It for the past 8 months (insane), you know that I’m an absolute sucker for a sitcom’s will-they won’t-they couples, especially when it becomes clear that they definitely will. Jennifer actually describes it as a “how will they?” in Mike Schur’s sitcoms. Schur doesn’t do the whole “we were on a break” Ross and Rachel vibe, or the ride the Nick and Jess rollercoaster. He’s too much of a hopeless romantic! Once it becomes clear two characters need to be together, they generally get together and stay that way — after, of course, so much tension and build-up that it starts to drive us bonkers.

I watched most of Mike Schur’s shows on Netflix vs. as they released each week, which means I could basically sit down and binge through all of the couple tension. There was no waiting MONTHS to see when they’d finally get together. This definitely feels like cheating.

The season 2 finale is a big one because ….. April and Andy finally, finally, FINALLY kiss. After revealing to us in “The Master Plan” that he likes April (now that she’s finally 21 lol), Andy decides to tell April how he feels. The only problem? The government of Pawnee is shut down and no one’s in the office except for Ron, who’s gleefully having visions of sugarplums and slashing government budgets:

As part of the shutdown, all local parks are closed, so Leslie is forced to cancel a pre-scheduled concert with local kid’s superstar, Freddy Spaghetti. She’s, understandably, distraught at not being able to work, and she spends her free time lobbying Ben to reopen City Hall.

Ben: “The government has been shut down for two days, and one city employee has tried to schedule 14 meetings with me. Can ya guess who?”

he tries to be annoyed but look at his little smirk!

In protest, Leslie decides to organize the whole Parks department and throw a free concert in the lot behind Ann’s house. April and Andy both show up to volunteer, and Andy pulls April aside to confess that he likes her. April likes him too!!! But nooooo — she can’t date him because she’s concerned he still has feelings for Ann.

Andy being Andy, he just bought a new motorcycle he has no clue how to drive (“it’s like driving half a car, right?”) and he pretty immediately gets into an accident, breaking his arm and hand. While he’s in the hospital, Ann comes by on her rotations to take care of him, they start yucking it up about old times, then she KISSES HIM. And then hightails it outta there when he pulls away!!

Not long after, April rushes to his bedside and ALSO KISSES HIM. From which (of course) Andy does not pull away and instead, pulls a Sheryl Sandberg and Leans In. Their kiss is probably one of the cutest things ever and for some reason neither YouTube or TikTok has a clip I can embed here, so you’re all going to have to go to minute 21, 22 seconds and watch it for yourselves.

It’s not necessarily all perfection for April and Andy, mostly because right after they kiss, he tells her Ann also just kissed him. Then April — get this — ALSO hightails it outta there! They’ll will-they-won’t-they a little into season 3 before they get together for good. Thank god. I’m not cut out for the stress. But I don’t care that it doesn’t end perfectly in this exact episode. All I care about is their first kiss! Finally!

So, in honor of one of the best slow burn resolutions on TV, this post is dedicated to my other favorite sitcom first kisses. I’ve divided this into 2 main categories: 1) obsessed, they’re endgame, no notes; and 2) iconic so I’m obligated to include but I feel meh about the couple themselves.

Obsessed, they’re endgame, no notes

• Jess and Nick, New Girl — starting out with a perfect banger. They play True American, Nick’s wearing a women’s trench coat for most of the episode, the way he just spins her around. The fact that there’s no music playing, which isn’t something I initially clocked but of course the scrubs on reddit had something to say

• Leighton and Alicia, Sex Lives of College Girls – okay, so I know this one wasn’t a slow burn because it happens like 5 episodes in to season 1, BUT I do still think it’s great and I absolutely loooove Leighton. RIP Leighton (almost wrote Leighton Meester there lol Freudian Slip).

• Jake and Amy, Brooklyn Nine-Nine — I fucking LOVE Jake and Amy, and I absolutely love that they actually make out 3 times in their first kiss episode. But what I will say about the two of them is that for some reason I was not really clocking their chemistry until they finally kissed. I have no idea why. It might have something to do with the fact that I binged this show junior year of college while I had a serious concussion after my 21st birthday, so I watched it all like this?? But that’s just pure speculation:

• Patrick and David, Schitt’s Creek — kill me. It’s perfect.

• Gregory and Janine, Abbott Elementary — I actually almost put this on the list below because they have a season. and. a. half of back and forth before they get together, but my emotions got the best of me. I simply love these two fools.

• Ben and Leslie, Parks and Rec — I KNOW THIS IS A SPOILER, but as I said from day 1 of Park It: spoilers fly here. The show is 15 years old and if you haven’t seen it, you live under a rock. I can do whatever the hell I want. The moment Ben finally kisses Leslie when they get back from the Indianapolis trip is basically rom-com gold.

Iconic so I’m obligated to include but I feel meh about the couple themselves

• Rachel and Ross, Friends — transparently, I think the coffee shop kiss in the rain scene is a bit overrated, but it’s a staple of the genre and we have to pay homage.

  

• Luke and Lorelai, Gilmore Girls — the slowest of the slow burns! Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely looove Luke and Lorelai when they’re good. But they’re both too stupid later in the show and I get SO mad at that they mess everything up. So that’s why they belong here.

• Joanne and Noah, Nobody Wants This — this is going to be such a hot take and I’ll clarify by saying that I’m obsessed with this show, I’m obsessed with the two of them, and I’ve loved Adam Brody since his OC days. The only reason they’re in this category is because I just do not know where we go from here after the season 1 finale!! Like what’s the solution if she won’t convert and he’s always gonna be Mr. Rabbi? So I’m a little skeptical about the “how will they” as it stands right now.

• Jim and Pam, The Office — might be flayed alive for saying this, but I just never found myself caring all THAT much about Jim and Pam. I feel like I watched Parks and Rec right after I first watched The Office, and I was 10x more invested in the P&R couples. But their back and forth definitely falls in the iconic category, even if I wouldn’t die on a hill for these two.

So there you have it! I’m honestly a total sucker for a good sitcom couple, and P&R is finally entering the territory where we’re seeing the early little springs of our main two. It only goes up from here.

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Other episode highlights!

• Tom and Lucy are officially together and gettin’ absolutely after it. Honestly, go Tom. Lucy makes him kinda nice

• Mark Brendana-quits is officially GONE

• We got a nice little seed planted for nice guy Ben! He saves the Freddy Spaghetti concert in the end

• Ron going to BAT for Leslie when Ben tries to fully cut her job. Ben goes “every department’s losing a Leslie Knope” and Ron goes “no, Ben, they are not. No other department has one to begin with.”

• Ron’s shotgun blast ringtone never fails to get me

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If you run out of Christmas movies over the holiday season, I joined my pals over at

Pantsuit Politics

for a podcast ep about all things Parks and Rec! Deeefinitely give it a listen.

More to Say about Parks and Recreation

Aaaaaand that’s a wrap on season 2!! Wow. Seriously can’t believe that we’ve all been on this little journey together since April. That’s bonkers!

Considering we only have 2 weeks of the year left, I’ll probably wait until the first week of January to watch the first episode of season 3. But keep checkin’ your inboxes for Park It both this week and next - I still have a few last tricks up my sleeve for 2024 :)