Review: Parks and Recreation ‘Ann’s Decision’ – Herbacious Medleys

A few quick thoughts on tonight’s Parks and Recreation:

With season four’s election campaign putting Leslie at the forefront of almost every episode, there’s been a noticeable shift in season five to focus on the growth of other characters, whether it’s Ron finding a sane version of love, or Chris trying to find some real happiness in his life. ‘Ann’s Decision’ puts the two characters most distant from each other – Ann and April – and gave us a terrific episode of two women trying to find their own identities in the world.

They manifest themselves in very different ways: April’s initial attempts to embrace Leslie’s attitude about government clearly weren’t working for her, and Ann’s sudden decision to get pregnant stems from her chameleon-like personality. Having a baby for Ann would give her a purpose in life, a sense of definition by having the title Mom; for April, it’s part of her continued journey into maturity, finding a way to embrace the work she’s starting to enjoy by channeling her own voice and passions (no matter how many excessive rudeness complaints it might lead to).

With the guys off having an unfortunate gastrointestinal adventure, it was nice to spend some time with Ann and April as they worked through their own internal problems. I’m not the biggest fan of Ann’s story line – the unsatisfied single 30-something who wants to get pregnant is a well-worn idea for both comedies and dramas, with wildly varying results. But Parks and Recreation has done a great job handling plots that normally ruin comedies – Ben and Leslie’s impending marriage is another one the show’s dealing with really well – so I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt here.

Grade: A-

Other thoughts/observations:

– Leslie is confused about Lance Armstrong… I think we all are.

– Fleetwood Mac Sex Pants is a kick ass band name.

– “what is more cuterus than your uterus?”

– The Douche suffers from a bit of split personality disorder, one of which invented taintball.

– Leslie’s pantsuit contained a Sweetums condoms: how many calories do those have in them?

– “I’ve been betrayed by the ‘zone!”