Apartment Pants

Parks and Rec - “Are You Better Off?” (5x22)

Another stellar year in the books for Parks and Rec.  And a good finale that makes me anxious for next season to start.  Ron as a dad?!  Oh, it’s on.  

• Donna has a condo in Seattle?!  Because she likes rain and fish markets?!  Does she have a man waiting for her there at all times?  (Don’t worry, she cracked a window for him.)  Just when I thought I couldn’t love her more.  
• I also love how every time Donna’s on screen these days, you find out more about her.  She’s always been hilarious, but I love that we’ve gone from knowing that she loves her Mercedes and Treating Herself, to knowing that she’s an amazing singer, she bids on Terrence Howard’s shirt from Hustle & Flow, Ginuwine is her cousin, her family has a mansion-cabin they keep secret, she Tweets, she loves horror films, she hangs out in cigar clubs, etc.
• Burt Macklin!  And a pregnancy mystery!  I’m guessing it’s Diane; hello, why else would it be in Ron’s cabin buried in the trash?
• Hahaha, Chris’s face when he realizes the beautiful pigs have been cooked.  Rob Lowe’s expressions are hilarious.
• “You somehow convinced our school board that napkins are a vegetable.”  
• Ooooh nooo, who wants to buy Rent A Swag?  
• I still think Rashida Jones doesn’t get enough credit.  
• I love Leslie in red. Even though that skirt looks too late-90s.
• Oh, Jerry, so glad you came back to be the city government’s punching bag.  
• Haha, Leslie’s love of Elizabeth Warren and dance movies.
• April got into vet school!  
• Ron’s going to be a dad!  OMFG, this is going to provide so much fodder for next season…

Last week’s TV

Life got in the way of TV last week, so I didn’t watch anything until yesterday and I didn’t write anything down as I was watching, but this is the gist:

Grey’s Anatomy (“Love Turns You Upside Down” 9x8):

• I hope this was just a one-off episode, and not meant to transition the new interns into being more prominent characters.  
• I wasn’t a fan of the dream-like sequences.
• Dr. Smash Ross is awesome, and I’m kinda liking the two bickering ones who were on Cristina’s service.
• I still cannot stand “Princess.”  The girl who plays her is not a good actor, particularly not in comparison to the uniformly strong actors on Grey’s through the years.  Nor do I buy her sob story (I believe that’s really what her character’s back story is, but it doesn’t jive with how she behaves).  I think it’s Shonda and Co.’s first big casting misstep of the series.

Scandal (“Happy Birthday, Mr. President” 2x8):

• I’m loving season 2.  Loving it.  
• I loved getting to see some history in this episode, getting some major questions answered.
• I loved the intense, sweeping, and literally physically painful declarations of love that Olivia and Fitz made to each other.
• I’m worried for (and about) Huck.

Parks and Rec (“Ron and Diane” 5x9):

• Hilarious as always.  
• Jerry’s beautiful wife and daughters, and Ben’s reaction to seeing them.
• “Jerry Dinner.”
• Ron’s pure giddiness at the woodworking awards.
• Andy’s shock that Ann knew Jerry.

The Good Wife (“Battle of the Proxies” 4x10):

• Is Nick finally gone?!  That is the only thing I can remember at the moment.
• Well, that and the fact that Jackie was googling “types of condoms.”  LOL.

Glee (“Swan Song” 4x9):

• As Tina says, Marley is not the new Rachel.
• Why did no one seem to really care Marley’d been starving herself?  
• Rachel and Kurt were amazing.  Rachel’s O Holy Night was freakin fantastic.
• So.  Freaking.  Happy.  For Kurt.  loved his performance, and I love the “moral” of the story - you can’t get everything you want in life, at least not right away, but hard work and believing in yourself pays off in spades.
• I would be okay with Brittany and Sam getting together if that was all there was to the story.  But then fucking Ryan Murphy had to go and ruin it by talking (through Brittany) to all the fans who made Brittana happen and basically tell them to fuck off.  

L&O SVU (“Dreams Deferred” 14x9):

• This case never would have involved SVU, but other than that absurdity, I loved it.
• Patricia Arquette as the prostitute was great (I smell an Emmy nom).
• Olivia’s incredulous look when the ADA claimed prostitutes weren’t victims was perfection.  

thoughtsyouread:

New TV blog post!

Great, well-written list.  Definitely worth the read.  

5.  I didn’t watch Lost beyond season 1, and thought Charlie was fucking annoying, but the other four are certainly some of the most moving moments that I’ve seen on TV. 

4.  I was a fucking wreck when Dr. Greene died.  I adored him from day one, and when he died, I knew I was watching a show that would never be the same.  ER lost something amazing when he left.  He was the foundation on which ER was built.  The soul of the show (arguably so was Dr. Carter, but I think in a different way).  I agree that Dr. Greene’s death was not the number one saddest moment in the history of of television, but it was definitely the most outwardly emotional I’ve ever been over a TV show.

3.  Leslie winning the election felt so earned and so fulfilling that you’re beaming with pride; it couldn’t have happened to a better, more deserving character.  Ben’s proposal is also a candidate for most emotional Parks and Rec moment; it’s not so much Ben as Leslie’s reaction that gets me.  I love how the emotional moments on this show are the happy moments.

2.  I can think of several moments on Grey’s that destroy me, and George dying probably isn’t in my top five, but that’s only because Grey’s is that good.  It’s not a negative assessment of the emotional impact of George dying.  Because it was devastating.  And supremely-acted.  Meredith’s reaction.  Callie’s reaction.  Bailey’s reaction.  Grey’s is sometimes accused of being too heavy-handed with the emotional manipulation, but its ability to evoke such deep, intense feeling is one of the very best things about it.

1.  What more can I say about FNL?  Its writing, acting, and storylines are unparalleled.  Everything about Tyra and that essay scene was perfect.  I loved how blunt she was.  I loved how anguished she was.  I loved how her essay was full of hope and optimism and bravery, but was also naive and unspecific.  I love everything and everyone on this show, forever and always.

Parks and Rec - “Halloween Surprise” (5x5)

Freakin fantastic episode.  One of my favorites.  Parks and Rec is really killing it in its fifth season.  Its cast is perfection (as my very wise friend says, you know it’s amazing casting when you cannot choose a favorite), it expertly balances the funny and emotional stuff, and it knows its characters so well that every line of dialogue and every behavior is perfectly suited for the moment and the character.  In other words, absolutely nothing is generic or canned.  

• I’m glad to see Diane is back.  I love how Andy is like the third kid.  Diane has her two daughters, and Ron has Andy.
• How awesome would a trampoline room be?!  Good question, Leslie.  
• LOVE and adore everything about Leslie and Ann’s friendship.
• Donna and her love of horror movies and tweeting.  Of course.
• “He’s very wise.  I see him five times a week.”  Donna’s face!!
• Haha, April literally runs back to Pawnee.
• Andy and his “observation skills.”  LOL.
• Chris’s greatest fear is getting old.  Why do people keep hating on him?  He’s awesome.
• Donna shouting at the movie.  And tweeting about the three earlier movies in the series that day.  Clearly she got a ton of work done.  Also, that reminds me, I really need to make a Twitter account just to follow Retta.
• Ann’s dressed as one of the Fierce Five.  OMFG.  This show.
• Only Parks and Rec could pull off Jerry’s heart/fart attack scene that well - it was hilarious, yet because Leslie and Ann (and Tom when he shut up for one second so he could hear Jerry wasn’t just farting) were concerned, it was okay for the viewers to laugh.
• “I’m live tweeting this dumbass conversation.”  What more can I say about Donna?  Let me love you.
• Of course Tom tried to up-sell his clothes.
• LMAO, Leslie auctioning off Ann.  Of course the guy with the tank top and tattoos wins, and I love how Leslie was thinking something weirder than the mud pit, Thai food , and a tank of nitrous. 
• “The lifetime of chronic misery that awaits you … OMG, your life is so depressing.”
• Ron bringing grout cleaner for Diane and a saw for her daughters.  Perfect.
• Ben’s proposal to Leslie was so great.  I know this is sacrilege, but probably the character I come closest to not being invested in is Ben.  As a stand-alone character, he bores me sometimes.  Sometimes.  Not all the time.  But anyway, with Leslie, he becomes the Greatest Guy Of All Time.  Because, obviously, any guy Leslie chooses to be with must be all kinds of wonderful.  His speech and the proposal scene was Parks and Rec at its best - earnest, straightforward, funny, and touching.  “I’m thinking about my future.  I am deeply, ridiculously in love with you. And above everything else, I wanna be with you forever.”  The way he said it.  The utter conviction in his voice.  And then Leslie’s face, and how she takes some seconds to soak it all in and revel in the moment.  Ben’s face while she’s taking her seconds.  How she says yes before he can even officially ask her.  (I also love her outfit.  I want it right now.)  All of it, a perfect ending to a perfect episode of a perfect show.

Parks and Rec - “Ms. Knope Goes to Washington” (5x1)

I was sitting there smiling and practically giddy at the thought of spending 22 minutes with the Pawnee Crew.  So damn happy this show is finally back.  And this premiere did not let me down - the perfect mix of funny, sweet, and everything else I’ve come to expect.

My favorite things:

• “My amazing lover” - I love how she says that with a straight face.
• Leslie Knope Employment Enjoyment Summerslam Grill Jam Fun-Splosion.
• Andy knowing nothing about DC and thinking only of National Treasure (though there would probably not be gum just laying around on the Lincoln monument).
• Donna, I’ve missed you and your quips!  And Retta, you have a standing invite to my celebrity dinner party.
• Ron’s park permit.  Where can I get one?
•  “I’m hungry.  My legs are tired. It feels like I just exercised.”  Why am I sure that it wasn’t lost on anyone that first Ann complained about how jogging is the worst, and now Tom is whining about feeling like he, heaven forbid, exercised.
• Andy and April chewing the gum Andy found.
• “Can we just real quick stop at the nearest place that has free pants?”
• Ann mocking Tom’s glitter business ideas, but Tom loving her idea for real.
• “It’s 120 degrees out with 200 percent humidity because this is a stupid swamp town.”   TRUEST STATEMENT EVER ABOUT DC, LESLIE!
• Leslie’s List of Amazing Women, and the fact that Leslie makes lists like that.  
• Donna, what have you lied about regarding previous relationships??!  I can only imagine…
•  “You’re better than Hot Rebecca, you’re Kick-Ass Leslie.” I  love how they keep Andy just this side of total caricature, so that when he occasionally hits the nail on the head, it’s super sweet and mostly believable.

“Hey, honey, good morning! How did you sleep? I adopted thirty-two cats and dogs. Do you want pancakes?”

—Leslie Knope, Parks and Recreation (4x19)

Parks and Rec - “Live Ammo” (4x19)

I am so fucking happy that Parks is back!!  How awesome was last night’s episode?!  Twenty-two minutes of perfection.  Every single character had funny moment or two and Leslie was on fire.  

Things I especially loved:

• Tom’s spectacular apartment.
• Ann and Leslie laying on his bed covering themselves in all the soft (Ann wearing a sleeping mask was a nice touch, too).
• Donna’s back-stories about the shelter dogs were really funny, but her reaction to her own brilliance was fucking hysterical.
• Ron’s so-not-fucking-amused expression during meditation.
• Ben asking if he’s Michelle in Leslie’s Obama musing.
• Bradley Whitford looking almost unrecognizable (or was it just me?).
• Andy’s record of 5 cats on himself.
• Tom declining to attempt to beat Andy’s record so as not to ruin the “cashmur.”
• April chasing after the woman who left her cats at the pet fair, swearing at her.
• The fact that they ended up with more pets at the end of the fair than they had in the beginning.
• Ron’s wink at April at the end.
• And last, but most importantly, Leslie’s horror when she realized she’d inadvertently gotten Ann fired.  Her “but what now?!” was pure comedic perfection by Amy Poehler, and Leslie’s subsequent “political suicide” move was so sweet and just so Leslie.  I love Ann and Leslie’s friendship so so so so so much.  

Parks and Rec - Lucky (4x18)

How fucking great is this show?!  Every time I watch an episode I sit there half in awe that a show could be this amazing.  Its attention to detail, its heart, its stellar cast, etc.  What I noticed in this episode in particular is that almost every fucking line of dialogue is a great one-liner on its own, and yet nothing feels forced.  No one is trying too hard and I don’t feel like I’m being beat over the head with with the funny.  Which is a fucking accomplishment.

Anyway, things that were awesome (beyond just the general awesomeness that was the entire 22 minutes):

• LMAO that Ron gets laid in the episode Nick Offerman wrote.  Of course.
• “Are you hitting on Leslie for me?” - Ben
• Andy and his oral exam.  Really hoping for that P+.
• Andy’s too-short ties and his short-sleeve shirts slay me.
• April and her needless snark always cracks me up - “are you gonna wear that?”
• “Hello, Lady Knope.”
• Every single one of Leslie’s facial expressions during her interview with Buddy.  Seriously, Amy Poehler, be more perfect.
• Donna Fucking Meagle.  Especially her exasperation with Marcus, the gigantic fireman.  ”I don’t know, Marcus, I’ll hit you up when I hit you up.”
• Of course Donna’s had boyfriends offer to commit arson for her.
• Jerry.  Hahahaha, watching Donna watch him was priceless.
• Are Ann and Tom finally over????  I hope so. 

I love that Chris is wearing his synthetic bees’ wing shirt and Donna is wearing her treat yo self robe.  The attention to detail on this show!

“Never half-ass two things.  Whole-ass one thing.” —Ron Swanson

Things that are okay when dating Tom:

• Not liking him.
• Not having any chemistry with him.
• Wanting to keep secret the fact that you’re dating.

Things that are dealbreakers  (the oh-no-no’s):

• Not loving 90s R&B music.
• Not knowing who Ginuwine is.
• Sheets that are anything less than 1000 thread count.
• Cotton ts-shirt sheets are the worst.
• Having seen zero Paul Walker movies.
• Not caring about Blu Ray.
• Owning less Uggs than Tom.
• Consistently disagreeing on who wore it best.
• Using anything less than the newest iPad.
• Reading books.

“My family has a lake house up in the foothills but we keep it quiet.  We’re not big on hospitality.  The Meagles are a cold people.”

—Donna Meagle

Parks and Rec - Dave Returns (4x15)

My favorite part of last night’s episode was the recording session.  That was a fucking riot.  Especially April destroying all evidence of Duke Silver.  I burst out laughing so hard when Jerry found that flyer and April clapped those cymbals (is that what those were?) in his face and tore the paper out of his hands.  Oh, Jerry.  Anything where the others are picking on him is funny.  Chris singing was also funny.  Robe Lowe has gone from somewhat annoying to hilarious as Chris.  I really never though I’d be able to think of him as anyone other than Sam Seaborn, but here I am.  

That said, I wasn’t a huge fan of Parks and Rec this week.  I DO NOT LIKE TOM AND ANN TOGETHER.  DEAR GOD, NO.  It doesn’t make any sense to me.  Ann doesn’t seem to like him at all as anything more than a friend, not even a kinda-sorta-underneath-all-the-annoying way.  So I don’t get it.  Also, shouldn’t there have been a scene where Ann and Leslie discuss Ann’s date with Tom (it would have been hilarious; lost opportunity!).  And Tom sure upped the annoyingness this week.

Also, what’s up with Dave?  I LOVED him before, but he was just being a giant dick last night.  And not in a funny way either.  Sheesh.

I love Leslie’s continual and unabashed adoration of Ann.  And how she’s always calling Ann beautiful.

I love Ann’s sort-of-embarrassed-but-can’t-hide-the-happy smiley reactions to Leslie’s praise.  

Annslie forever.