Oh Parks, I've missed you so very much. And this episode was well worth the wait. "Live Ammo" continued the slow heightening of the stakes in Leslie's campaign, this time with a nice healthy round of mudslinging on the part of
Basically, Leslie wants to save the Parks Department budget from potential cuts, but in fighting for it manages to lose funding for the Pawnee animal shelter. It then falls to April, who has taken over Leslie's Parks responsibilities (and who plays the role with a perfectly April blend of reluctance and near-enthusiasm), to try and organize a Leslie-esque solution that will allow everyone to go home happy. Cut to an adorable parade of puppies, kittens, and apparently, a pig, waiting to be chosen by the fine folks of Pawnee. Unfortunately, even April's best-laid plans can't save the day, and the gang winds up with a gaggle of animals with nowhere to go.
Of course, Leslie's first solution is exactly what mine would be-- bring all the animals home with her so they don't get sent to a farm upstate (that's what happens, right?). And even though Ben adorably goes along with this plan for a bit, purchasing dog food in bulk with the Barack to his Michelle (that was one of my favorite lines of the night, incidentally), he convinces Leslie that they need a more sustainable solution. Leslie comes up with one, but it's an answer that will require her to "commit political suicide."
Apparently this means a secret meeting with Bobby Newport's campaign manager, in which Leslie proposes that Newport announce plans to fund the animal shelter, a move which will give him an advantage going into their upcoming debate. Now, at this point I may have tuned out the conversation a bit, because I remembered how excited I am to see this showdown in next week's debate-centric episode, penned by none other than one Amy Poehler.
In other news, Chris wants Ron to take over the responsibilities of Assistant City Manager (this is following a long string of odd tests, the last of which was a meditation challenge), but just as things are looking up for our favorite carnivore and his plans to "eliminate all departments" within Pawnee's government, we learn that the job may not be Chris' to give if Bobby Newport wins the City Council election. Not only am I excited by the prospect of potentially dropping the increasingly tedious Chris (not to mention the famously douche-y Rob Lowe) from the show, or at least cutting down his screen time, but I like the way this changes the weight of Leslie's victory--she's now got the success of two close colleagues resting on her shoulders going into the final weeks of her campaign. As for that whole thread where we were afraid Ann might lose her job, I have to say, it didn't worry me nearly as much as the stuff surrounding Ron-- after all, Ann showed up at City Hall often enough in the 2.5 seasons before she worked there; I can't imagine she wouldn't do the same if she went back to full-time nursing.
Also, this is the episode featuring a guest appearance by Bradley Whitford of The West Wing fame, and I can't decide if I like the understated way they used him, or if I was expecting something more exciting based on the hype.
Although I don't have extensive thoughts on any of these things, I'd like to give honorary awesome points to a few little features of this episode, in no particular order:
1. I loved Tom and April bonding, and him essentially mentoring her, not only because he almost never takes on that role, but also because she actually swallowed her pride and asked for advice.
2. Tom's apartment. You know the set designers and propmaster have been working on that one for at least a full season.
3. Ben's embracing his role as essentially Leslies' "first lady," and his hilarious reactions to her more brazen behavior.
Overall, I'm just glad this show made its comeback chock-full of things we've always loved about it, as well as some new complications just in time for May sweeps and the final leg of its season.
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