Parks and Recreation is the tale of Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) a wide-eyed, optimistic politician in the small hamlet of Pawnee, Indiana. After a local citizen falls into a pit left behind by a bankrupt property developer, Leslie makes it her mission to turn the dangerous eyesore into a public park. She immediately encounters obstacles and bureaucracy, including angry locals and miles of red tape. Through it all, however, she never wavers in her belief that she can make the park happen.
Both helping and hindering her are her fellow government employees: Mark Brendanawicz (Paul Schneider) a city planner, on whom Leslie has a long standing crush; Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari), who also works in the Parks and Recreation Department; April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza) a low energy intern, whom Leslie tries to mentor and Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman), Leslie’s anti-government boss. Also joining Leslie in her quest is Ann Perkins (Rashida Jones), whose boyfriend is the ill-fated citizen who fell into the pit. Ann doesn’t really belief that the Department of Parks and Recreation will come through, but she can’t help supporting her new friend Leslie.
Shot in the same style as The Office, Parks and Recreation is a documentary style show that features one-on-one interviews with the characters. They share their reactions to each other, their work and their week to week adventures. The show is funny, sweet and shines a comedic light on just how difficult it is to get anything done in our government, even something as pure as building a park.
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