Season 4: Eps 11 -22: C’erah and Geoff

Reflection

When it comes to analyzing Parks and Rec I have come to see the many different aspects in which the show has to offer. Each episode is a build up off of the next one but they aren’t set up to where you have to see the season before to understand what is going on it the episode that your watching because the narrative sequence is set up differently for each episode with a relative pattern.When first watching the episodes I didn’t really give any thought to paying attention to the narrative sequence or to the way in which each episode is set up for Leslie(the main character) to fail in every episode in the beginning.One of the main episodes that I actually really like and that stuck out to me with an interesting narrative sequence was episode 14 of season 4 because in this episode it would seem as Leslie is the hero but she could be seen as an undercover villain and the person ,April,you would think is a villain but by the end of the episode she is then the hero.

Thinking about the oppositions in each episode helps a lot and I have also noticed myself looking for oppositions in other shows I watch like Glee. It's interesting just seeing the ways in which a person can set up the narrative sequence to be similar but yet different to the episode before. The main opposition that I saw in the several episodes that I watched was professional vs. personal. I say this because Leslie has a hard time keeping her personal life and professional life separate. However, according to the narrative sequence she usually some how finds a way around the mess ups she encounter.

Main Opposition(s)

      • Profession vs. Personal
    • Ethical vs. Unethical
  • Men vs. Women

Narrative DNA

  • Hero Plans
    • Hero gets helpers to help
      • Villain flips hero plan upside down
        • Hero FAILS
          • Helper create backup plan for Hero
            • Hero executes back up plan with help of helpers
              • Hero seems to succeed/ find another solution

Episode 11

Plot Summary

Leslie decides to make Ann her official campaign manager and for her to help lead her team. The team tries to have a successful rally but it ended up a fail. By the end of the episode Ann is fired as the campaign manager because of the turnout of the rally and the team with their jobs. Leslie wasn't wanting to hire Ben because of their personal relationship even though he was qualify for the position. However, Ann's downfall leads to Leslie having Ben move into the position as her new campaign manager.

Opposition:

Professional vs. Personal

Characters

Hero : Leslie

Helper(s): Chris , Ann, Ben, Tom. Ron , and etc.

Villain: Jerry

Narrative Sequence

  • Leslie gets help from Ann
  • Leslie runs into problems with Ann not being able to do the job needing to be done
  • Leslie fails at what she needs to be done and her rally doesn’t end so well
  • Leslie fires Ann as her campaign manager
  • Leslie hires Ben instead


Episode 12

Plot Summary

Leslie and her team are coming up with an AD for her while she is running against Bobby Newport. Leslie wants to go for a positive AD, but her campaign manager Ben wants for her to go for a negative AD on Bobby that could help get Leslie some coverage. The team splits into two and they come together to vote on who's AD is better, Ben's or Leslie, the negative one or the positive one. Eventually, neither AD get aired because the negative AD won the teams vote but Leslie eventually ended up messing her self up when she attacks Ben at the news station. On the other hand, they end up making a completely new AD and Bobby tries to convenience Leslie to drop out of the campaign because he wants to win just so his dad can get off of his back. In other words, he just wants the campaign to be handed to him. The episode ends with Leslie telling Bobby to toughen up because she is coming to win just like Ben told her early in the episode that she needed to toughen up.

Opposition:

Ethical vs. Unethical

Character

Hero: Leslie

Villain: Bobby Newport and Ben

Helpers: Ben , Tom, Donna, Ann, and Jerry

Narrative Sequence

  • Leslie plans an AD
  • Ben doesn't agree with Leslie's thinking for the AD
  • Ben and Leslie breaks into two teams
  • Leslie creates positive AD
  • Ben creates negative AD
  • Leslie's AD loses against Ben's
  • Leslie attacks been over AD
  • Neither AD is aired
  • Leslie and Ben meets up with Booby
  • Bobby wants the win to be handed over to him
  • Leslie gets another AD posted
  • Leslie tells Bobby to toughen up.

Episode 13

Plot Summary

Leslie is taken back by the feedback she got from her focus group. She doesn't like the feedback of one person in particular. He said he wouldn't vote for her because she doesn't look like someone you could even go bowling with and have fun. All in all, she puts together a bowling campaign just so she could get this one person vote. In other words, she wanted everyone to like her. However, it ended up backfiring because he says he still wouldn't vote for her and calls her a "Bitch". By him doing this it leads to Ben punching him in the face. She also had to hold a press conference needing to apologize for the actions that happened but she ended up not apologizing because she felt like it was right. By the end it leads to Leslie realizing that Ben was right about not everyone is going to like you and that sometimes you need to loosen up.

Opposition:

Hero vs. Villain

Character

Hero: Leslie

Villain: Derek "Man from focus group"

Helper: Tom, Ben, Donna, Chris, Ann, Jerry

Narrative Sequence

  • Leslie team hold a focus group and Leslie fails
  • People don't have positive things to say about Leslie
  • Derek says he wouldn't vote for Leslie because she seems up tight
  • Leslie gets offended
  • Leslie does extreme research on Derek
  • Ben tells Leslie that's not the point
  • Leslie sets up a Bowling campaign to prove her point
  • Leslie focus on Derek opinion the whole time while bowling
  • Derek says he still wouldn't vote for her
  • Ben tries to convince Leslie to focus on other people as well
  • Derek calls Leslie a "B**ch"
  • Ben slaps Derek for his disrespect
  • Leslie holds a press conference
  • Leslie decided not to apologize and wins over more people

Episode 14

Plot Summary

This episode is about everyone helping Ann to find a date to the Valentine's day dance because she was going to attend the dance alone. Ann ends up going on a date with Tom by the end of the night after April helps to set them up together. Subplot--> Ben, Ron, and Andy all go on a scavenger hunt that Leslie set up for Ben to go on. He eventually goes all over town with Andy and Ron and they eventually skip some steps and get to the end of the hunt after splitting up.

Opposition:

Hero vs. Villain / subplot: Hero vs. Challenge (scavenger hunt)

Character

Hero: Ann

Undercover Villain: Leslie

Undercover Helper: April

Helper: Tom

Narrative Sequence

  • Leslie and the ladies have a lunch the day before Valentines day
  • Leslie tells people to help find Ann a date to the Valentine day dance
  • Ann speaks to several dudes that Leslie sets up
  • None of the dudes have a connection with Ann
  • Leslie thinks April is trying to mess up Ann's night
  • April sets Ann up with "mystery" guy
  • Leslie is determined to find out the mystery guy
  • Leslie meets up with Ben after he finishes his scavenger hunt
  • Leslie and Ben go to find out who Ann went on a date with
  • Leslie finds out the mystery guy is Tom
  • April tell Leslie to stop snooping and explain why she set those two up

Episode 15

Plot Summary

Tom consider's Ann and him are in an "it's complicated" relationship. Ann wants to keep the whole thing a secret because she is embarrassed by Tom. Andy writes Leslie a campaign anthem and gets everyone to sing along with it and help. Leslie is in a love triangle between Ben and Dave.

Opposition:

Hero vs. Villain

Character

Hero: Leslie / Tom

Villain: Ann / Dave

Helper: Andy, Tom, Ann, Ron, Donna, and April/ Ben

Narrative Sequence

  • Andy plays Leslie's campaign song
  • Leslie runs into an old fling named Dave
  • Dave and Ben all go out for dinner together
  • Andy gets the group to sing Leslie's campaign song
  • Andy is very particular about the sound
  • Tom and Ann are having their "relationship" issues
  • Dave confesses his love for Leslie still
  • Leslie tells Dave it's not going to happen seeing shes with Ben
  • Leslie and Ben go to the police party to get an endorsement
  • Andy and the team finally agree on the sound that was right for the campaign
  • Ann finally agrees to go out with Tom officially

Episode 16

Plot Summary

Leslie is trying to keep things separate from when it comes to working for the government to running for a position in office. Also Leslie decided to have a party for Jerry since everyone else had forgot about his birthday. Leslie is wanting to prove to Ron that she is able to handle it all. Furthermore, Tom and Ann are having relationship issues and are confiding in April about wanting to break up with each other and the problems that they have with one another. This then leads April to drinking.

Opposition:

Ethical vs. Unethical / Personal vs. Professional

Character

Hero: Leslie

Villain: Leslie's will to have to do everything

Helper: Ann , Tom, Ben, April, Ron

Narrative Sequence

  • Leslie tries to keep her campaign life, personal life, and job life apart ( literally)
  • Leslie remember's that it is Jerry's birthday because it a leap year
  • Leslie has her team help to throw Jerry a surprise party
  • The team has the party ready but Leslie forgot she was suppose to invite Jerry
  • Ron and Leslie go to get Jerry and find him in the bath tub
  • After they get Jerry to come with them Leslie sees one of her campaign signs in a yard incorrectly
  • Leslie takes it to the printer place to get fixed
  • Leslie then takes the signs to go replace over the town and doesn't notice the time
  • By the time they reach the surprise party everyone is sleep or gone
  • Leslie get's everyone to come back
  • Leslie ends up falling asleep on everyone at the surprise party after the long day
  • Ron the next morning talks to Leslie about going on sabbatical
  • Leslie says she will just cut her hours back a little
  • Ron tells Leslie, " Never half-ass two things. Whole-ass one thing."