TV Review: Parks & Recreation 4.19 ‘Live Ammo’
Parks & Rec is finally back on NBC for the final four episodes of the fourth season.
rating: 4
After over a month off the air to make way for new Community, Parks & Rec is finally back on NBC for its final four episodes of the fourth season, and mercifully a conclusion to the Knope We Can campaign arc that has dominated the season. Continuing the Leslie Vs. trend, Leslie is up against a city councilman who threatens to cut the Parks budget, as well the ruthless Jennifer Barkley (guest star Katharine Hahn), Bobby Newports Campaign Manager, who does her best to make Leslie look like a pet killer on TV. The Anne/Tom thing is still going on as the episode opens, despite them not really have any scenes together this week. Anne has fallen in love with Toms apartment and invites Leslie over to sleep on some soft sheets. Im sure their relationship will hit a bump in the road soon after the way Chris has been longingly staring at her. Meanwhile Leslie is trying to persuade Councilman Pillner, played by the comically underrated Bradley Whitford (who can currently be seen in cinemas terrorising teens in The Cabin in the Woods), to not cut the Parks budget. He agrees to find the cuts elsewhere, resulting in the local animal shelter to have its funding cut. Barkley spins this on The Final Word with Perd to make Leslie look like a dog murderer by holding a cute puppy up to the camera, Weswie Knope gona kill woo. Elsewhere Chris offers Ron the position of assistant city manager. Why would Ron Swanson ever want that job? I thought to myself, but he justifies it by saying if its gets deeper into the belly of the beast hell have a better chance of bringing the government of Pawnee crumbling to the ground. The catch though is that Ron has to join Chris at one of his meditation classes. Some of the best Swanson moments come from him doing something he hates, and this is no exception. He ends up just standing, instead of sitting, there for six hours with his mind blank thinking hes bested the meditation class when he was in fact doing it properly. Chris later learns that if Bobby Newport wins the vote that hell most likely lose his job. Rons solution; he gets Chris drunk. Leslie ends up adopting all the shelters dogs and cats, and even a pig, to save them from being put to sleep. April, whos spent the episode complaining about having to do Leslies job, is thrilled at being put in charge of an event to get people to adopt the pets. A highlight of this was Donna creating fake info for all the animals, No way! This cat was in Boogie Nights? April quickly gets frustrated when barely any animals are sold, and people even start dumping unwanted pets there. Leslie and Ben return to Pillner to ask him to reconsider and give the shelter back their funding. This leads to smaller departments under the threat of closing and Anne losing her job. Leslie decides the only solution is to fall on her sword and persuade Barkely to pay for the shelter to stay open with Newports fortune. Itll help Bobby greatly but at least the animals wont be killed, and Leslie ends by reminding Barkley that the debate is next week, and Newport wont be able to hide behind her then, and we all know how stupid he really is. At least this means well be seeing Paul Rudd return next week! Overall a strong return with a conclusion now visible on the horizon. Now Leslie has to win the campaign, for herself, the future of the Parks department and Chriss job. Best Jerry put down: April making him continuously clean up all the cat and dog poop. Best Swanson line: Theres a hot spinning cone of meat in that Greek restaurant next door. I dont know what it is, but, Id like to eat the whole thing. Parks & Recreation returns next Thursday on NBC with 'The Debate'