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Parks and Recreation season 4

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Parks and Recreation
Season 4
Region 1 DVD cover art
Starring
No. of episodes22
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseSeptember 22, 2011 (2011-09-22) –
May 8, 2012 (2012-05-08)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 3
Next →
Season 5
List of episodes

The fourth season of Parks and Recreation originally aired in the United States on the NBC television network, and began on September 22, 2011, and ended on May 8, 2012. The season contained 22 episodes. It stars Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Adam Scott, and Rob Lowe, with supporting performances from Jim O'Heir and Retta.

As with past seasons, it focuses on Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) and her staff at the parks and recreation department of the fictional Indiana town of Pawnee. However, this season features an overarching story arc, beginning in the first episode and culminating in the finale, where Leslie runs for the city council of Pawnee.

Cast

Main

  • Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, a mid-level bureaucrat with a strong love of her home town of Pawnee, who has not let politics dampen her sense of optimism; her ultimate goal is to become President of the United States.[1] Poehler departed from the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live, where she was a cast member for nearly seven years, to star in Parks and Recreation.[2][3] It was only after she was cast that Daniels and Schur established the general concept of the show and the script for the pilot was written.[4]
  • Rashida Jones as Ann Perkins, a nurse and political outsider who gradually becomes more involved in Pawnee government through her friendship with Leslie.[5] Jones was among the first to be cast by Daniels and Schur in 2008, when the series was still being considered as a spin-off to The Office, where Jones had played Jim Halpert's girlfriend Karen Filippelli, who formerly worked at the Stamford Branch but was soon transferred to the Scranton Branch in the 3rd season.[4][6]
  • Aziz Ansari as Tom Haverford, Leslie's sarcastic and underachieving subordinate,[7] who eventually begins to consider leaving his city hall job to pursue his own entrepreneurial interests.[8] As with Jones, Daniels and Schur had intended to cast Ansari from the earliest stages of the development of Parks and Recreation.[4][6]
  • Nick Offerman as Ron Swanson, the parks and recreation director who, as a libertarian, believes in as small a government as possible. As such, Ron strives to make his department as ineffective as possible, and favors hiring employees who do not care about their jobs or are poor at them.[7] Nevertheless, Ron consistently demonstrates that he secretly cares deeply about his fellow co-workers.[9]
  • Aubrey Plaza as April Ludgate, a cynical and uninterested parks department intern who eventually becomes the perfect assistant for Ron.[10] The role was written specifically for Plaza; after meeting her, casting director Allison Jones told Schur, "I just met the weirdest girl I've ever met in my life. You have to meet her and put her on your show."[11]
  • Chris Pratt as Andy Dwyer, a goofy and dim-witted but lovable slacker. Pratt was originally intended to be a guest star and the character Andy was initially meant to appear only in the first season, but the producers liked Pratt so much that, almost immediately after casting him, they decided to make him a regular cast member starting with season two.[12]
  • Adam Scott as Ben Wyatt, a brilliant but socially awkward government official trying to redeem his past as a failed mayor in his youth.[13] Scott left his starring role on the Starz comedy series Party Down to join the show.[14]
  • Rob Lowe as Chris Traeger, an excessively positive and extremely health-conscious government official.[15] Unlike Scott, Lowe was originally expected to depart after a string of guest appearances,[16][17] but later signed a multi-year contract to become a regular cast member.[17][18]

Starring

  • Jim O'Heir as Jerry Gergich, the office scapegoat and overall klutz, with unbelievably attractive daughters and wife.
  • Retta as Donna Meagle, who's sassy and savvy and has little patience for stupidity.

Episodes

See also: List of Parks and Recreation episodes

† denotes an extended episode.

Parks and Recreation, season 4 episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
471"I'm Leslie Knope"Troy MillerDan GoorSeptember 22, 2011 (2011-09-22)4.11[19]
482"Ron and Tammys"Randall EinhornNorm HiscockSeptember 29, 2011 (2011-09-29)4.33[20]
493"Born & Raised"Dean HollandAisha MuharrarOctober 6, 2011 (2011-10-06)4.15[21]
504"Pawnee Rangers"Charles McDougallAlan YangOctober 13, 2011 (2011-10-13)3.99[22]
515"Meet n Greet"Wendey StanzlerKatie DippoldOctober 27, 2011 (2011-10-27)3.90[23]
526"End of the World"†Dean HollandMichael SchurNovember 3, 2011 (2011-11-03)4.00[24]
537"The Treaty"Jorma TacconeHarris WittelsNovember 10, 2011 (2011-11-10)3.66[25]
548"Smallest Park"Nicole HolofcenerChelsea PerettiNovember 17, 2011 (2011-11-17)3.68[26]
559"The Trial of Leslie Knope"Dean HollandDan Goor & Michael SchurDecember 1, 2011 (2011-12-01)3.69[27]
5610"Citizen Knope"Randall EinhornDave KingDecember 8, 2011 (2011-12-08)3.64[28]
5711"The Comeback Kid"Tucker GatesMike ScullyJanuary 12, 2012 (2012-01-12)4.09[29]
5812"Campaign Ad"Dean HollandAlan YangJanuary 19, 2012 (2012-01-19)4.25[30]
5913"Bowling for Votes"Michael TrimKatie DippoldJanuary 26, 2012 (2012-01-26)3.49[31]
6014"Operation Ann"Morgan SackettAisha MuharrarFebruary 2, 2012 (2012-02-02)3.60[32]
6115"Dave Returns"Robert B. WeideHarris WittelsFebruary 16, 2012 (2012-02-16)3.45[33]
6216"Sweet Sixteen"Michael SchurNorm HiscockFebruary 23, 2012 (2012-02-23)3.43[34]
6317"Campaign Shake-Up"Dan GoorDan GoorMarch 1, 2012 (2012-03-01)3.77[35]
6418"Lucky"Troy MillerNick OffermanMarch 8, 2012 (2012-03-08)3.66[36]
6519"Live Ammo"Tristram ShapeeroDave King & Chelsea PerettiApril 19, 2012 (2012-04-19)3.46[37]
6620"The Debate"†Amy PoehlerAmy PoehlerApril 26, 2012 (2012-04-26)[a]3.17[38]
6721"Bus Tour"†Dean HollandAisha Muharrar & Alan YangMay 3, 2012 (2012-05-03)[a]3.26[39]
6822"Win, Lose, or Draw"†Michael SchurMichael SchurMay 10, 2012 (2012-05-10)[a]3.42[40]

a Episodes 20–22 premiered on Citytv two days prior to airing on NBC. The NBC airdates and ratings are listed.

Reception

Like the two previous seasons, the fourth season of Parks and Recreation received highly positive reviews. The show's fourth season holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[41] Alan Sepinwall of HitFix said the fourth season was "funny and touching in all the best Parks and Rec ways."[42] Some of the more critically acclaimed episodes of the season included "The Debate" and "Win, Lose, or Draw". Matt Fowler of IGN said in regard to the finale that "Parks and Recreation continues its streak of leaving a season on a strong note with "Win, Lose or Draw" - an episode that hit the right spots comedically while also, you know, sneaking up on me emotionally."[43] The fourth season also received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations; Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Amy Poehler, and Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series for the episodes "The Debate" (also for Poehler) and "Win, Lose, or Draw" for Michael Schur.[44]

Production

At the March 2012 PaleyFest, series co-creator Michael Schur revealed that three different season endings were filmed because "we want to make sure that the one we are choosing is the right [one] and we reserve the right to change our minds and also partly just to confuse people," he said, adding that "there may be a last-minute switch".[45]

References

  1. ^ Dawidziak, Mark (April 7, 2009). "'Parks and Recreation': New NBC comedy is uneven but promising". The Plain Dealer. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  2. ^ Stasi, Linda (April 9, 2009). "Raiders of the Lost 'Park': Amy Poehler quit "SNL" for "Parks and Recreation"". New York Post. Archived from the original on November 15, 2010. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  3. ^ Grossberg, Josh (September 16, 2008). "Amy Poehler Moves Up SNL Exit". E! Online. Archived from the original on March 27, 2011. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  4. ^ a b c Itzkoff, Dave (March 26, 2009). "It's Not 'The Office.' The Boss Is a Woman". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  5. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (May 19, 2011). "Interview: 'Parks and Recreation co-creator Mike Schur post-mortems season 3". HitFix. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Sepinwall, Alan (July 21, 2008). "Sepinwall on TV: Leno undercover, 'Office' non-spin-off". The Star-Ledger. Archived from the original on October 11, 2011. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  7. ^ a b Tobias, Scott (April 23, 2009). "Parks and Recreation: Season 1: Episode 3: "The Reporter"". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved April 26, 2009.
  8. ^ Snierson, Dan (May 19, 2011). "'Parks and Recreation' co-creator Mike Schur gives 10 hints about tonight's season finale". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 19, 2011. Retrieved June 17, 2011.
  9. ^ Snierson, Dan (January 27, 2011). "'Parks and Recreation' scoop: Amy Poehler and co-creator Mike Schur dish on Leslie's big gamble, romantic possibilities, and tonight's episode 'The Flu'". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on May 9, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2011.
  10. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (January 15, 2010). "Parks and Recreation, "The Set Up": Will Arnett dates Leslie". The Star-Ledger. Archived from the original on April 5, 2011. Retrieved January 17, 2010.
  11. ^ Heisler, Steve (March 24, 2011). "Interview: Michael Schur". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on May 20, 2011. Retrieved May 22, 2011.
  12. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (September 17, 2009). "Parks and Recreation: Interviewing co-creator Mike Schur". The Star-Ledger. Archived from the original on August 19, 2010. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
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  28. ^ Gorman, Bill (December 9, 2011). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Parks & Rec' Adjusted Up; 'Big Bang,' 'Rules,' 'Person Of Interest,' 'Mentalist,' 'X Factor,' 'Bones' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 7, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
  29. ^ Seidman, Robert (January 13, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Big Bang Theory' Adjusted Up; 'Private Practice' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 15, 2012. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
  30. ^ Gorman, Bill (January 20, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Big Bang Theory' Tops 'American Idol' 1st Half Hour; 'Office,' 'Mentalist,' 'Grey's' Adj. Up; 'Person,' 'Rob,' 'Parks' Adj. Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 23, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  31. ^ Seidman, Robert (January 27, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Big Bang Theory' Adjusted Up to Thursday High; 'American Idol' Up; 'The Finder' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 29, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
  32. ^ Gorman, Bill (February 3, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'American Idol,' 'Big Bang Theory,' 'Grey's Anatomy,' 'Office,' 'Mentalist' Adjusted Up; 'Rob' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 5, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
  33. ^ Gorman, Bill (February 17, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'American Idol,' 'Vampire Diaries,' 'Grey's Anatomy,' 'Big Bang Theory,' '30 Rock,' 'Office' Adjusted Up; 'Person Of Interest,' 'Mentalist,' 'Secret Circle' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 10, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  34. ^ Bibel, Sara (February 24, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Big Bang Theory,' 'American Idol,' 'The Mentalist' Adjusted Up; 'Rob,' 'Private Practice,' 'Up All Night' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 27, 2012. Retrieved February 25, 2012.
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  37. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (April 20, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'American Idol', 'Grey's Anatomy', 'Awake' & 'Missing' Adjusted Up; 'Scandal' & 'Parks and Recreation' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. Retrieved April 20, 2012.
  38. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (April 27, 2012). "-Thursday Final Ratings: 'Idol', 'Big Bang Theory', 'Grey's', 'The Vampire Diaries', 'Mentalist' & 'Missing' Adjusted Up; 'Scandal' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on April 30, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2012.
  39. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (May 4, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Big Bang Theory', 'American Idol', 'Vampire Diaries', 'Grey's Anatomy' Adjusted Up; 'Secret Circle', 'The Mentalist', 'Scandal' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 7, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
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  43. ^ Matt Fowler (May 10, 2012). "Parks and Recreation: "Win, Lose or Draw" Review". IGN. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  44. ^ "Parks and Recreation)". Emmys.com. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  45. ^ Ng, Philiana (March 6, 2012). "PaleyFest: 12 Panel Highlights, Teasers From 'Parks & Recreation' Cast and Producers". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 7, 2012.
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