chrishelock
This show will inevitably be compared to the Office, partially because of the similarities, the fact that its by the same producers, and that the show took over for the Office. For those of you that are not going to read this whole thing, here's what you should know................this is a great show that is definitely worth investing your time in, though there are several negative aspects that hold it back from being a true masterpiece. To go into more detail, lets get the cons out of the way. The show during its first season or two feels like it is trying to be the Office. Sure, that is probably natural, and it is certainly a pro that the show shakes that mold and becomes it's own thing. However, if I had to knit-pick, here are my serious complaints with the overall story. First, several characters have problems that I just cannot understand why the writers did not change these aspects over time. Gary/Gerry/Larry, etc is UNFAIRLY bullied the entire show. For a show that uses a lot of progressive ideas, the idea of unnecessarily bullying him is just straight up wrong. Comparisons can be drawn to Toby from the Office, but Gerry is wrongfully mistreated. He's a nice character, and though he can be clumsy he never got his story arc to where he was actually respected. Tom, can be extremely annoying throughout most of the show. Maybe its just not my type of humor, but he is annoying. He evolves and matures over time, and its a wonderful arc, but almost every scene with him in the first 4 or so seasons is unbearable. His friends John Ralfio and his annoying sister are a waste of time. The last bit of complaints is the amount of immature fart jokes. You'd think you were watching some childish Cartoon Network show. Once or twice is fine, but talking about or showing farts is just disgusting and really sad that an adult show would stoop to that level. With that out of the way, let's talk about why I love this show. Like I said before, it becomes its own show as time goes on. Almost all characters change for the better, and the little expanding that happens welcomes fresh faces that add so much to the story. I knew Ron Swanson was an internet fan-favorite, but I never knew how much I would fall in love with Chris, Rob Lowe's character. He is without a doubt the funniest character on the show. He steals almost every scene. Overall, the show has memorable characters, and almost all have their moments to shine, unlike the office. Cameos from famous politicians here and there doesn't hurt either. As the title says, Parks and Rec is better and worse than the Office at the same time. Unlike the office, almost every season is enjoyable. The final season or two of the office was almost unbearable to watch, while Parks and Rec ends on almost a high note. The characters are not as memorable or lovable as the Office's cast, but they still are solid characters. I recommend this show to anyone. It has it's setbacks for sure, and they cannot be overlooked, but this is worth some stretches of binging on Netflix. You will not regret it.
green_kerry
Absolutely brilliant, every episode makes you laugh out loud. The characters develop throughout each series and you find yourself loving them all, even those with a lesser part.
The timing of the jokes and the 'office' style documentary camera work is genius. Very worthy of the 10 star rating
