What Some Parks And Recreation Fans Can't Stand About The Final Episode

One of the greatest things about the conclusion of "Parks and Recreation" is the fact that the show managed to give a satisfying ending to nearly every character. While there is definitely something to be said for leaving a series finale open-ended and up to the audience's interpretation, "Parks and Recreation" went above and beyond to make sure everyone got their own personalized ending. In fact, the finale jumps forward in time to showcase what each character's future looks like after they leave Pawnee's Parks and Recreation department for good.

Some of the most notable events from this time skip include Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) becoming the superintendent of Pawnee's newly created national park, Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) being elected as the governor of Indiana, and Jerry Gergich (Jim O'Heir), perhaps to make up for all the abuse he suffered throughout the series, becoming the mayor of Pawnee, where serves for 10 terms before dying at the age of 100 while surrounded by friends and family. The leap forward in time allows the series to wrap up any loose ends and give each character a (relatively) happy ending — which is why it's surprising that some fans absolutely hate the time skip in the final episode.

Fans on Reddit were not shy about asserting their distaste for the "Parks and Recreation" finale's leap forward in time, with many claiming that the time skip felt forced and unbelievable. "It just feels like a different show," wrote u/BoomBoomSpaceRocket. "Everyone has become ridiculously successful. A whole town has somehow completely turned around in just a few years ... It just seems like such a cop out to give everyone a happy ending." In another thread, Redditor u/barbwireboy2 shared a similar opinion, writing, "Overall, I feel like the last season was just a lot of fan service without any real storylines or interesting plots. The finale was just 40 minutes of what was going to happen in the future for each character, leaving literally nothing up to the imagination."

Indeed, most users clarified that the issues with the time skip were not solely related to the final episode, but also to the entire final season, which takes place 3 years after the end of Season 6. Fans criticized the show's portrayal of the future, saying that the ridiculous technology presented after the time skip will date the show as time goes on. "Might be an unpopular opinion here, but the time skip is horrible," wrote u/TheHypnosloth. "All the silly jokes and visuals of 'the future' are over the top and don't fit the style at all."

Perhaps the criticism surrounding the show's time skip is simply proof that a series finale will never be able to please everybody. "Parks and Recreation" went to such great lengths to create a satisfying ending for every character, and wrap up all the plotlines left hanging at the end of the series, and some fans still found a reason to complain about the way the show ended.