Top 30 TV Shows of 2012 : No 02 Parks and Recreation

By lou On 30 December 2012 In End of Year Lists

There is a reason this show is so high on my list and it is a simple one, no other show brings me as much enjoyment and happiness as Parks and Recreation. If I could spend a day with a bunch of fictional characters it would most definitely be the people of Pawnee.

Parks is quite unique in comedy right now in that it allows the lives of its characters to change gradually and realistically. It allows them to dream and for those dreams to come true.

It isn’t afraid to move locations and try new things. In S4 Tom had his own arc with the Entertainment 24/7, in S5 we lost April and Ben to Washington for 5 episodes. If the show gets a 6th season we could realistically lose Andy to the police academy but this entirely works because no matter where the characters are we want to go with them.

I always think it is quite easy for TV and movies to be cynical especially at a time where the real world isn’t doing that great but it is much harder to actually be positive and have characters like Leslie Knope be full of optimism and making changes that don’t just benefit herself but her community instead.