S03E01 - Go Big or Go Home

07/22/21 • 78 min

Live from Pawnee: A Parks and Recreation Fan Rewatch Podcast

This week, Mark and Allen break down the Episode that introduces the often imitated but never duplicated Swanson Pyramid of Greatness! The government shutdown is over, and the Parks Department is back, although on a shoestring budget, with Chris and Ben only letting them conduct existing park maintenance. Wanting to offer and do more, Leslie has a brainstorm when she learns Chris has continued to ask out Ann... convince Ann to go on a date with Chris in order to persuade him to increase the parks budget! (What could go wrong?) Meanwhile, due to popular demand, Ben did allow one exception to the maintenance-only rule, and allocated money for the youth basketball league, although with only two teams (they're gonna be GREAT rivals) coached by Ron and Andy, with Tom chosen to referee their first game. Finally, ever since the disaster when April learned about Ann kissing him, Andy has been calling April non-stop hoping to get in touch with her, explain, and smooth things over. What Andy didn't know is that April was in Venezuela all this time. When he finally sees her return, he excitedly jumps at the opportunity to connect with her... only to learn that she is back in town with mysterious, handsome new boyfriend Eduardo. Holy cow! Do we have questions to tackle? You bet we do! Important questions, such as ... Will Ann go out with Chris? Are she and Leslie sneaky enough to pull this off? Will Ron's team win, or will Andy's team pull a stunning upset? Whose team has the better battle-cry? Will Tom learn basketball in time to correctly referee the game? Is April truly over Andy? Will Eduardo encourage Andy to follow his dreams? Loyal podcast viewers, this is a great start to a great season! Keep your hands and feet inside the car at all times - it's going to be a wild ride. Many thanks to our mystery sponsor, providing a new product from the makers of the Swanson Pyramid of Greatness - you'll just have to listen to find out!

Previous Episode

Pawnee Spotlight: Featuring Christopher Murray

Mark and Allen are enjoying some well-earned time off this week but they've left newly promoted Constantine in charge and are confident he will play the right Episode...this time. After all, he is no longer confusing the 8-Track's with the Digital archives and we've locked up the Vinyl collection just in case too. Join us as the guys interview the very kind and very gracious Christopher Murray! Christopher talks Parks and Rec as well as giving us a special inside look at growing up in Hollywood and his wealth of experience including co-starting alongside huge movie stars like Denzel Washington, Laurence Fishburne and Sean Connery - 007 himself! Even our frequent guest pitch-man (who is also off this week) was slightly star struck...You know him better as Swanson...Ron Swanson!

Next Episode

S03E02 - Flu Season with Norm Hiscock

This week, Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Chris tells himself to ... STOP ... POOPING!!! The flu is sweeping across Pawnee, with Ann caring for many of the sick, including April (who still resents Ann for kissing Andy). While Ron visits April, she asks him not to tell Andy she's there. With April gone, Ron does ask Andy to fill in as an assistant, believing (correctly) that Andy will be ineffective. Meanwhile, Leslie is preparing for a presentation with the Pawnee Chamber of Commerce, and it becomes clear Leslie is not feeling well, but she won't admit it because of the importance of the presentation. Ben finally takes a reluctant Leslie to the hospital, Ann admits her, and Ben tells her not to worry, he and Tom will do the presentation, which Leslie is not happy about. A bit later, a flu-ridden Chris is checked into the hospital, having a total physical breakdown. Ann has been dating Chris, and really likes him, but fears he is too perfect... until now. Meanwhile, instead of helping Ben prepare for the presentation, Tom abandons him to hang out at a spa. As the day goes on, Ron and Andy bond over many things, including food, drink, football, and politics, with Andy eventually feeling comfortable enough with Ron to tell him about his problems with April. To top things off, a delirious and over-medicated Leslie escapes the hospital and heads back to City Hall to do the presentation herself! Never fear - as always, we answer all the questions others are afraid to even verbalize, such as ... Will April's constant poking at Ann make her break? Will Andy ever find out April is at the hospital? How will Ann feel about Chris now that he is essentially a puddle of goo? Does Tom ever come back from the spa? Will Leslie make it to City Hall? Will Ben decide to introduce himself musically? Will Ron and Andy ever successfully complete a passing play outside? Will the Harvest Festival fail before it even starts? Loyal podcast viewers, this is one of the BEST episodes of the series - fight us about it! Or, just tune in and enjoy it. Yes, that's probably better. Many thanks to our awesome sponsor, Big Head Joe's.