One problem the early episodes of Parks & Rec had to resolve was the balance of Leslie Knope’s character: sometimes she was overzealous but likeable, other times, she came off as a twit. By now, the writers have gotten a handle on her sufficiently to the point that we can have an episode like “Hunting Trip,” in which she is actually competent and does the right thing from beginning to end. Not only is she actually a better hunter than Ron, she effectively fools everyone to cover for Tom after he Cheneys Ron with a shotgun (and does so by playing off not only the park ranger’s sexism but the assumption that of course she would be the one to have a hunting accident). While the show doesn’t need to make Leslie a paragon, it’s good to see it’s confident enough to treat her like this without having to set her up for a pratfall. Meanwhile, Parks & Rec continues to find interesting combinations for its side players, this time pairing ultra-deadpan April and ultra-effusive Andy in a way that makes their unusual chemistry make sense. It was also good to see April interact with someone in a way that didn’t involve utter contempt. She’s got one lucky gay boyfriend and gay boyfriend’s boyfriend.
