Parks and Recreation: Anniversaries (6x14)

This is our first Parks and Recreation episode after Ann and Chris's departure. It was a decent episode... cute, fluffy, with a few great jokes. However, one of the plot lines was pretty shrug-worthy, and this isn't the type of episode I feel like I'll ever re-watch. Let us dive in.

It's Leslie and Ben's one year anniversary, and Ben is determined to get Leslie a great gift. Usually, for all gift-giving holidays, Leslie totally beats Ben, but this time, Ben want it to be different. He decides he'll surprise Leslie by giving her surprise gifts all day the day before the actual anniversary. He plans a couples massage, a carriage ride, ballroom dancing, and more. The only trouble is, Leslie ends up too busy working to participate, so Ben ends up going on all the dates with Gary/Jerry/Larry. Ben presents a scrapbook to Leslie that chronicles his adventures with Larry. Leslie is touched by the gift, even if she didn't get to enjoy it firsthand. However, her gift still wins: she presents Ben with a replica of the iron throne from Game of Thrones.

Leslie has been trying to help the Pawnee/Eagleton merger go over, but there's a lot of animosity and competition between the two towns. Then, she finds a notice in the newspaper about a couple that have been married for fifty years. The woman is from Pawnee, and the man is from Eagleton. Leslie decides to use this couple as an example of how the two towns can achieve harmony. When the couple show up to be on the news and showcase their love, Leslie discovers that they're a grumpy old pair who don't have any real affection for each other. Since this plan falls through, she decides she needs to come up with a different way of helping the merger.

Instead of looking to the old, she decides to look to the young. She creates a committee of young Pawnee and Eagleton residents, including Tom and April. They come up with the idea of holding a giant festival to unite the two towns. Leslie is overcome with joy at this idea.

So. I'll be brief in talking about this. I didn't really like Ben's plot line. The idea of trying to surprise Leslie with a great gift has already been done so many times, and we all know that Leslie will be the eternal winner when it comes to gift giving. It felt a bit stale. I've also never thought that Jerry/Larry/Whatever we call him is a very funny character, so I was annoyed at the amount of screen time he got. However, the tag at the end with the iron throne was hilarious.

Leslie's plot with the old couple was serviceable, but not amazing. I loved it when she formed the committee of young people and got the results she was looking for. That was a good, positive way for things to turn out, even if her initial idea didn't work. I also liked the hilariously drab radio show hosts.

Then there was the subplot. Donna works at the animal shelter with April sometimes, but she's always ditching work to go shopping or whatever. When Ron tries to adopt a dog and Donna isn't there, April decides, as Donna's superior, that she needs to do something. She's too afraid to confront her directly, however, so she just leaves an anonymous review about Donna's poor service. Donna threatens to track down this anonymous critic, but eventually April comes forward and tells the truth. Donna already knew. They agree to be more honest with each other from now on, and Donna apologizes for skipping out on work. The anonymous review gives Ron the idea to send letters to different companies that he dislikes. He sends letters to a vegan restaurant, a frozen yogurt place, etc.

Ron's part of this subplot was totally without substance, but it was absolutely great. I love the fact that he provides his name and address so that all of the people he's pissing off can come and confront him about it. He has no fear, and no shame. April and Donna's relationship was also interesting here. I'm glad to see that they're continuing to explore it. April is in an awkward position, suddenly being Donna's superior, even though Donna is older and has been in the work force longer. April tries to evade the situation, but eventually has to face it head on. Donna acts like an adult about it once they finally have the conversation. I really admired this.

So, there you have it! An okay episode for the most part... the main plot was lacking in many ways, but the subplot was great.

7/10