Why Aren't You Watching: Parks and Recreation

Welcome to the first post of our "Why Aren't You Watching" column, where we will talk about a great show that you really should be watching yourself. Today's show, Parks and Recreation on NBC (Thursdays, 9:30).

Parks and Recreation, which began its third season last week, had a rough start in its first (only six episode) season. It was created as a vehicle for Amy Poehler (fresh off of SNL), by some of the people behind the Office, who chose to make it an original show, instead of a spin-off of the office, which was the initial plan. Having been rushed into production, the first season didn't really find its voice and was largely written off. However, with the premiere of its second season, Parks quickly became the most improved comedy of the year, maybe even the decade, and one of the most original and hilarious shows currently on TV.

Though there are a number of excellent comedies on right now, Parks is able to set itself apart with the perfect combination of subtlety, absurdity, slapstick, plot, and, perhaps most important for a comedy, hilariously acted and written characters. Lets start with Poehler's character, Parks and Recreation Deputy Director Leslie Knope. Though she began the series as slightly grating, she evolved into someone you really root for. Her unflappable optimism and dedication are so extreme that, when coupled with her naivety, she is a true political rarity; someone who actually believes in the system. Contrastingly, her libertarian boss Ron Swanson (played with expert restraint by Nick Offerman) values capitalism so strongly that he believes government shouldn't really be doing anything. His unabashed glee over the budget cuts for their department was riotous, especially compared with Leslie's horror at the news. Other fantastic characters include the lovable but oafish and accident-prone Andy Dwyer (Chris Pratt), who ends up (poorly) running a shoe shine stand in the government building, and the sardonic and apathetic April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza), the office's sarcastic intern. Of course these are only a few of the many hilarious characters that inhabit the small town of Pawnee, Indiana.

So check this show out, you can even go ahead and skip the first season, after a few episodes of the show's second season, you should be pretty hooked. Before you know it you'll be laughing at Leslie's intense paranoia over a first date and her desperate crusade against a teenage vandal. You'll delight in seeing the staff try to handle 93 meetings in one day (mistakenly scheduled on a presumed non-existent date so Ron could avoid them), while Leslie's subordinate Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari) unsuccessfully tries to hit on every pretty girl he sees. Parks and Recreation plays out its stories like a straight-faced farce, though it is often aware of its own ridiculousness. Give Parks a chance and it will easily fit in with your current comedy line up.