7. Ms. Knope Goes to Washington
Having Leslie go to Washington DC felt like such a natural place to take Parks and Recreation, and the episode feels like something the show has been building to for years. Leslie and Andy make the journey to Washington to visit Ben and April, but also to try to get funding to clean up the Pawnee River. Putting Andy in Washington leads to some hilarious moments, like him asking “Is that the train from Back to the Future 3?” It’s also always really fun to see Leslie so passionate about kind of mundane things, and obviously that’s on display here where she’s in what is basically her heaven.
This episode is also an example of the show, which is usually extremely positive, being somewhat cynical as Leslie is met with the realities of the political process. Whereas Pawnee is the center of the country in Leslie’s mind, here in Washington, nobody even knows what Pawnee is. She places her painstakingly made presentation on to a giant pile of binders and leaves. But of course this is Leslie, and so she doesn't wait around for Washington to get back to her, volunteering to go clean up the river herself.
Meanwhile, with Leslie gone Ron throws an employee appreciation barbecue which goes hilariously wrong, with Ron just wanting to cook meat in silence but being pestered with demands and complaints. This leads to one of the all-time best visual gags in the show as Ron drives away with the grill, still cooking, attached to the back of his car.
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