That's what Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune says. Oof - that's rough. She does present a detailed and compelling argument, though...
People bash "Joey" as the worst example of NBC's tendency to extend its franchises well beyond what is desirable or logical. Yet "Parks and Recreation" is a more dispiriting example of the same trend, because far more talent is going to waste on this show...
For years, Amy Poehler was one of the best things about "Saturday Night Live." Clearly she has talent to spare, and the idea of her creating a comedy with writers Greg Daniels and Michael Schur of "The Office" seemed like an excellent idea.
Unfortunately that idea was not ready for prime time; Schur, Daniels and Poehler needed more time to marinate their ideas.
But NBC was bound and determined to have an Amy Poehler comedy on the air this season, and what co-chair Ben Silverman wants, he gets. The end result of all that rushing, however, is that much of "Parks and Recreation," which airs it season finale Thursday, comes off as half-baked and decidedly unfunny.
By this point in its life cycle, Daniels' version of "The Office," which also started with a six-episode tryout season, was showing quite a bit of promise. NBC has renewed "Parks and Recreation," but it's hard to see why. Then again, having forced this show on the air, executives at the network can hardly admit their mistake now.
The biggest problem is that Poehler's character, officious and dim parks bureaucrat Leslie Knope is as unappealing than she was in the first episode. Not once have I rooted for this strained character, who has more ambition than "The Office's" Michael Scott but none of his child-like charm. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that Poehler should be playing a smart if sometimes inept character --someone like Liz Lemon on “30 Rock” -- not a female Michael Scott with delusional political ambitions.
Like we, said, oof. Rough - but also a lot like what our Remote Bryan said, though he had a lot more hope in his voice.
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