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| Left to right: Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones |
Welcome to Parts of Rec, a new column that will attempt to take the weekly brilliance of NBC show Parks and Recreation and cut it into the bare essentials. After all, time is precious and sometimes you cannot read pages and pages of reviews. While it will be impossible to bottle all of the highlights, I will do my best to cover the plot, as well as memorable moments and just what makes it great in general. Make sure to look for Parts of Rec every Friday following the episode.
Season 5, Episode 14
"Leslie and Ben"
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| Left to right: Adam Scott and Poehler |
"I'm going to be a cop tomorrow. Better do a
bunch of crimes to get it out of my system."
-Andy (Chris Pratt)
Following up the events of "Emergency Response" is the wedding. Since it was done last minute, Leslie (Amy Poehler) and Ben (Adam Scott) rush to get everything done. Along with Ann (Rashida Jones), Leslie looks for a dress while Ben sends Chris (Rob Lowe) and Ron (Nick Offerman) around town to find a ring, which is proved to be problematic since jewelry stores are closed at night. Tom (Aziz Ansari) attempts to become an ordained minister, but ends up splitting duties with Jerry (Jim O'Heir), who actually is registered. Andy (Chris Pratt) and April (Aubrey Plaza) get the paperwork filled out and signed so that Leslie and Ben can get married. Everything goes according to plan and Ron walks Leslie down the aisle at the party. However, Jamm (Jon Glaser) is upset and wants to start a fight. Ron beats him up, and the sudden realization that Leslie won the lot of land only makes the night more happy. Andy also realizes that he failed his police test. At the after party for the marriage, Chris cheers him up while everyone is out partying and making the couple feel all sentimental. The episode ends with a touching round of the tribute song for Lil Sebastian, whose lookalike made a cameo in the episode.
Rating: 5 out of 5
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| Left to right: Nick Offerman and Jon Glaser |
I know that this slot should go to either Ben or Leslie, but for anyone who has seen the episode, there is no doubt that the hero of the episode was Ron. From the touching speech where Leslie basically called Ron a father figure to Ron punching out Jamm, it was like Ron wanted everything to go right. In many ways, it makes him the noblest character on the show, and his decision to be seen as a mentor all the more heartwarming. True, he didn't have the meatiest role this week, but he was the backbone for most of the wedding happening successfully. Ron's a hero, and the emotional glue of this episode, if just for punching out Jamm.
Best scene: It would be a crime not to say that the wedding was the best part. However, from there, what do you call the best scene? Could it be Ron punching Jamm? How about the montage where the after party is being held in the office? These are all close, but the emotional build-up to Andy and Donna (Retta) performing the Lil Sebastian song takes the cake. In a way, it is a fond reflection on where the show has been in recent years without being overbearing (the 30 Rock song "Rural Juror" in the finale comes to mind) and almost makes you feel like something went right. The song's humor has been replaced with sentimentality, and brings the end of the episode to a close on a beautiful note, waiting for some exciting experiences to happen with the Knope/Wyatt clan in the near future.
*NOTE - I am aware that this was a double episode week. I promise that I will have the second episode recap up sometime tomorrow.
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