Of all the shows I'm really invested in, I think it's fitting that this will be the last one to premiere, because it is the closest to my heart and the one that never fails to make me smile. Parks may have just been snubbed out of a much-deserved Emmy award (but we don't need to get into that here...), but I have full faith that Season 4 is going make this show's status as one of TV's best something that simply cannot be denied.
Where We Left Off: As we overcame our collective grief at Lil' Sebastian's funeral service, loose ends cropped up in virtually every corner. Tom has resigned from his position with the Parks Department in order to go into business with the irrepressible Jean Ralphio, establishing Entertainment 720, a high-end conglomerate of...something (Tom explains it better). Andy and April are taking a big step in their relationship-- she's going to be the new manager of Mouse Rat, his band! Ron is currently somewhere cowering in fear because the implicitly terrifying Tammy 1 has rolled back into town. But the biggest cliffhanger at all is what we saw happen for Leslie in the finale's last few minutes: she's being vetted to run for political office in Pawnee, a lifelong dream of hers, but there can't be any scandals to dig up. And unfortunately, her secret relationship with Ben is a scandal as big as they come.
What's Ahead: The showrunner's have intimated that the season premiere will have Leslie making her decisions on both professional and personal fronts (though in typical Leslie fashion, she will likely try to avoid a confrontation with Ben for as long as possible), and it will not be an easy choice. We're going to get a glimpse of the "rise and fall" of Entertainment 720, and we'll be seeing not only Tammy 1 but also Tammy 0 (Ron's mother) as early as the season's second episode. Considering the fact that this is already quite a bit of chaos and there are still a handful of characters to be accounted for, it is shaping up to be a pretty busy season for everyone in Pawnee.
What I'd Like to See: Much as it breaks my heart to admit it, I just can't foresee a scenario in which Leslie gets to both run for office and keep Ben, so I'm predicting we're going to see a breakup by the end of the season opener. It'll likely be a reluctant breakup, but a breakup nonetheless. What gives me hope in the face of this is two things: one, we will (hopefully) get to see Ben with a story line of his own, unattached to his relationship with Leslie; and two, Mike Schur has spoken on numerous occasions of Leslie experiencing "buyer's remorse" with regard to her decision, and he has suggested that whichever choice she makes will likely be reversed or altered by the second half of Season 4. So I think we'll see a breakup in the name of Leslie's political aspirations, but I think she will be very disillusioned by the world of politics and will either drop out of or lose her race by the midpoint of the season, leaving the door open for a reconciliation with Ben. This would give both characters time to experience valuable growth as individuals and to realize how much they mean to each other, and I think their relationship will only be stronger for it in the long run.
As for the rest of the gang, I'm really excited to see some great stories for the unsung supporting players on this show. I can't wait to see Tom's hijinks over at Entertainment 720, and how he deals with watching his dream essentially go up in flames. Ron and anything to do with anyone named Tammy is bound to be hilarious, and Andy and April are sure to continue stumbling toward adulthood together. What I'm really pulling for this season, though, is a better arc for Ann, Leslie's BFF. Last season we saw her descend into a kind of pathetic trend of serial dating, and not a whole lot else. She works at City Hall now, so there are a lot more options for her as a character, and I'd love to see her collaborate with the Parks department on something awesome. I'm not sure what will happen with her and Chris; for my part I hope they remain just friends, but we'll have to see what the writers have in mind for that.
Overall, it will be very difficult for this show to destroy the unshakable foundation it has spent three seasons building, and no matter what happens (even if, sigh, all my predictions are proven wrong), I'm sure it will be the same hilarious and heartfelt show we've all come to know and love.
Premiere Date: Thursday, September 22nd.
No comments:
Post a Comment