Live from Pawnee: A Parks and Recreation Fan Rewatch Podcast

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where our beloved Jerry Gergich retires! Ben has talked Leslie into taking a VERY rare day off and spending it with him. However, when they learn Jerry is retiring ... THAT DAY ... their plans are put on hold, as Leslie furiously works to send Jerry off on the right note. Leslie turns to the goals Jerry originally set for himself when he was first hi...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode with special guest star Patton Oswalt! The City of Pawnee annually celebrates the great Pawnee tea dump of 1817, but due to how the old-timey script looks, "tea" looks like "ted", so each year the city dumps a man named "Ted" into Ramsett Lake. This year, the "Ted" thrown into the lake becomes very angry, and demands Leslie address the many, many out...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where we first visit the office of Dennis Feinstein! When Leslie and Chris visit Animal Control, they find a mis-managed department building and ineffective staff. After Chris accidentally steps on a coyote trap in the middle of the floor, he fires Harris and Brett, the stoners working there. Soon afterwards, Leslie begins discussions at a city counc...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where we are introduced to Ben's sister, Stephanie Wyatt! Leslie and Ben head to his hometown of Partridge, Minnesota, where he was mayor at the age of 18, drove the city to 30% unemployment when he attempted to create a winter sports complex called "Ice Town,", and got impeached two months later. As a gesture of goodwill, all these years later, the...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where we are introduced to Jean-Ralphio's twin sister, Mona-Lisa Saperstein! Leslie is shocked to learn that the Pawnee Video Dome, owned by Dennis Lerpiss, is closing, not a big surprise since video stores are closing left and right, and the Video Dome doesn't even carry mainstream movies. However, Leslie is determined to keep the business afloat an...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Nick Offerman has his directorial debut! Back from her Hawaiian honeymoon with Ben, Leslie prepares for her upcoming speech at the Pawnee Correspondents' Lunch, where every year the government and media get together to roast each other ... and Leslie is determined to give it to the Pawnee Sun tabloid with both barrels. At the luncheon, Leslie c...

We know you are a giant Parks and Recreation fan otherwise you wouldn’t be here! But just in case you got lost, this episode celebrates one of the best sitcom relationships in the history of ever: Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt.  In their recent coverage of the Season 5 episode, ‘Leslie and Ben’, Mark and Allen covered the episode that finally made them husband and wife. Spoiler alert: the guys gave t...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where we learn Leslie lost her father when she was 10 years old! When we last left our heroes, Leslie and Ben decided to get married that very night at the gala, giving them only 2 hours to get everything ready prior to the gala's 11pm finish. The gang gathers at Ann's place for an emergency strategy meeting, and the Pawnee Chapter of the Avengers on...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where the future of Lot 48 is finally decided! Leslie and Councilman Jeremy Jamm are finally going head-to-head, pitching their proposals for Lot 48 to the Planning Committee. Despite Jamm plying them with fast food during the meeting, Leslie is told in private her Pawnee Commons project is MUCH better for the town, and that they can't approve it bec...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Ann wants to be a mother! Empowered by her newfound independence, Ann decides to date herself for a while instead of getting swept up in a new boyfriend's personality. Six weeks into the experiment, she comes to a realization: she's ready to be a mom. It's a big decision, but she tells Leslie she's ready to go to the sperm bank and look into ha...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Ron says "I love you" to Diane! Realizing there is a criminal lack of women in their government, Leslie decides it is time to do something about it. She meets with Chris, and he wholeheartedly agrees, arranging a meeting to discuss a course of action. During the male dominated meeting, Leslie points out the number one offender of gender inequal...

Join us for a  message from the man, the myth, the legend...Ron [BEEP]ing Swanson himself! Recorded in the Swanson cabin (geo-location undisclosed), this is a Live from Pawnee exclusive to kick off your 2023 and put the continued dumpster fire that was 2022 in the rearview mirror! We hope you take a minute to listen , lookback briefly and look forward, with hope, to a  better 2023! From Ron and al...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that reveals where Jerry met his wife Gayle! Ann is preparing for Leslie's bachelorette party with what might be considered "typical" choices: dancing, Jell-O shots, strippers, anything that can be penis shaped WILL be penis shaped - you know, the usual. Unfortunately, despite Ann's diligent efforts, Leslie is not able to enjoy things when it is reve...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that introduced us to not only Jerry's wife Gayle, but also his two other daughters, Miriam and Gladys! When Ron gets an award nomination from the Indiana Fine Woodworking Association for a chair he made, he actually looks forward to the event, and plans to take his girlfriend Diane. As Ron's "self-appointed emotional guardian", Leslie invites hersel...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that introduced us to a new April alter ego!  After asking the public for park design submissions for Lot 48, Leslie receives only one decent submission ... from one Mr. Wreston St. James ... who lives ... in Eagleton.  As you might expect, Leslie wants to reject him outright, but Ben convinces her to at least meet with Wreston before making a decisi...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that was responsible for first casting then Vice-President Joe Biden!  April practices her presentation with Leslie on her proposed dog park for Pawnee. However, the two clash heads after April suggests the dog park be located at Lot 48, a lot Leslie has been trying to create a park at, for four years. Leslie suggests April find a new location, but t...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that introduces us to Ben's parents, Julia and Steve!  Leslie and Ben announce their engagement to the gang and go through engagement party details with Ann, although Ben is nervous about his parents coming because they are divorced and hate each other. When Ben's parents arrive, all hell breaks loose. Ben's father, Steve Wyatt, brings his much young...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that shows us the origin of Tom's "Rent-A-Swag" business idea!  When Diane Lewis invites Ron to go trick or treating with her and her daughters, he initially declines, but an excited Andy wants to join them, and gets Ron to agree. That night, Ron and Andy go trick-or-treating with Diane and daughters Zoe and Ivy, but in the middle of it, Diane gets a...

Mark and Allen recently had the pleasure of catching up with the one and only Kathryn Pinewood - AKA Mary Faber! Check out  the full interview with the terrific and multi-talented character and voice actor this week! Join the guys as Mary shares many stories and answers many questions about her career including reminiscing about her experience on Parks and Rec, performing on Broadway and in the ir...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode that introduces Marcia Langman's husband Marshall!  With STDs running rampant among Pawnee's senior citizens, Leslie decides to give a sexual education seminar, and asks Ann, Donna, and Andy to help out. Things are going well until Leslie's seminar is stopped by Marcia Langman (and her husband Marshall) from the Society for Family Stability Foundatio...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Ron finally meets Diane, This Ben and April decide to take a Road Trip to Pawnee, and  Leslie tries to pass her "Fun in the Sun" act. Unfortunately, a combination of garish rouge blush, a very common DC event, and a self-centered Councilman/Dentist put a crimp in everyone's respective plans!  Tune in to hear the guys cover Potholes, Princesses,...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Leslie proposes her first bill to tax the city's sodas, hoping to discourage citizens from drinking them. She meets with Pawnee Restaurant Association spokeswoman Kathryn Pinewood to discuss the terms of her bill and to question the reasoning behind the city's growing drink sizes. Kathryn warns Leslie that if her bill passes, local restaurants...

Mark and Allen are in the studio this week working on the latest Season 5 Episodes and will be back with a new episode next week! Recently, they were fortunate enough to chat with Dorian recently and dive into her experiences as a casting director, as well as an actress and a singer! Check out the full exclusive interview with Dorian this week ... as charming and interesting a guest as we've ever...

This week Mark and Allen break down the Episode where Leslie Knope first meets John McCain (even though she doesn't realize it)!  Leslie and Andy are visiting Washington, D.C., to see Ben, who accepted a temporary job there for a congressional re-election campaign, and April, who decided to join Ben as his intern. Thrilled to be in the nation's capital, Leslie also hopes to secure federal funding...

Mark and Allen recently had the pleasure of catching up with the one and only Burley - AKA Andrew Burlinson - a few months ago. Check out our full interview with Andrew this week - he is friendly, down-to-earth guy with a great story, and a lot of fun to talk with. What's not to like? Join the guys as Andrew shares many stories and answers many questions about his career including reminiscing abou...