I’ve tried to stick with “The Office,” but I’m just not laughing lately. I thought the show was funny and somewhat original (although it spun off from the British version, it developed an American voice) when it premiered, but now it strikes me as depressing and tired. Another Matt introduced me to an alternative, though: “Parks and Recreation,” of which I recently watched the last five episodes of Season 2 on Hulu.
I think part of why “The Office” gives off a depressing vibe is the economy in 2010. In 2004, the Dunder Mufflin employees hated their jobs but they could presumably get new ones. (Jim, the audience surrogate, just lacked ambition, and he wanted to be close to Pam.) In 2010, they can’t afford to quit; they are lucky to be selling a nearly obsolete product (paper) in a dead-end job (by the time Jim and Pam move up the paper-company ladder, there won’t be paper companies).
But more so than the place, I generally don’t like the people (with the notable exceptions of Nard Dog and Kelly, the latter of whom is woefully underused). Michael has a hidden soft side we all like, but the idea of a dumb boss is depressing and frustrating.
On the other hand, there’s Leslie Knope of “Parks and Recreation.” She loves her job, she’s a nice person and — although she’s idealistic — she’s not stupid. I’m drawn to shows where intelligent people enjoy doing a job they believe in; it’s part of the reason I liked “Law & Order” — for all their cynicism, there was an underlying passion to what Briscoe and McCoy did.
As played by Amy Poehler, Leslie is the burst of sunshine that is needed to distinguish “Parks” from “The Office,” because let’s face it, creators Greg Daniels and Michael Schur cloned their previous success in many ways. The tone and structure of the jokes are the same, which is fine. But annoyingly, “Parks” also uses that faux-documentary style. It was a cool idea in the early days of “The Office,” but now — ugh. More shows should copy “Curb Your Enthusiasm” — it doesn’t have a laugh track or a live studio audience, nor does it pretend to be a documentary. It doesn’t try to distract a viewer from the material.
However, I return to the “likable character” argument. While it’s true that, aside from Leslie, no one wants to be in that park board office in Pawnee, Ind. (Fun fact: It’s the fourth-fattest city in the U.S.), they generally seem happier than the Dunder Mifflin drones. Even the most despicable character, Leslie’s boss Ron (Nick Offerman), has redeeming traits. It’s not cool that he leaves 95 percent of the work to Leslie, but it is very cool that when government auditors come in to slash the budget, he tells them that Leslie does 95 percent of the work and they should lay him off instead.
Aubrey Plaza has made a nice career out of playing the bored-with-everything, but not stupid, girl. April’s almost-relationship with Andy (Chris Pratt), the not-a-boy, not-quite-a-man shoe shiner down the hall, is cute. (Andy and Rashida Jones’ Ann are two characters who don’t work for parks and rec, which gives this show more breathing room than the claustrophobic, incestuous “Office.”) The April-and-Andy thing is the same as the Andy-and-Erin formula on “The Office,” except the genders are reversed. The smart person has a crush on the dimwitted person, and I want them to get together, yet I also know it won’t work in the long run.
That brings me to most fans’ favorite character. Aziz Ansari, as Tom, gets the juiciest material. He’s a skirt chaser who isn’t bowed by rejection. He makes women laugh, but then follows it up with, “But seriously — are you into me?” When he “plants the seed” of a potential relationship, he plans to take the next step 30 minutes later. He’s the guy who can get away with blunt sexual comments and everyone knows it’s just Tom being Tom. But for all that, we see ourselves in Tom: He wants the courtship process to be sped up, not necessarily because he’s a sex addict, but because he wants to be in love.
I don’t love “Parks and Recreation.” Frankly, I don’t love TV comedies anymore (with the notable exceptions of “Curb” and Matt Groening’s animated shows). But I do like it well enough.
Anyone looking forward to Season 3 of “Parks and Recreation” in the spring? How do you think the show stacks up against “The Office?”