Should You Skip The First Season Of Parks And Rec?
Plenty of television shows take some time to find their stride. That was definitely the case with "Parks and Recreation." Though Greg Daniels's and Michael Schur's stories of the dysfunctional Parks and Recreation Department of Pawnee, Indiana, are much-beloved today, fans consistently agree that its first season is their least favorite.
Sure, Leslie Knope is the same exhausting over-achiever she always is, but she is a bit muted and it's unclear if viewers are meant to take her seriously, or if she's meant to be a bumbling boss like Michael Scott (Steve Carrell) of "The Office." Ron (Nick Offerman) is wearing suits and ties rather than his signature long-sleeved polos, and April (Aubrey Plaza) isn't given nearly enough to do. Not to mention that fan favorites Chris (Rob Lowe) and Ben (Adam Scott) have yet to show up at all — with the boring Mark Brendanawicz (Paul Schneider) filling the role of Leslie's romantic interest instead.
All of this is enough for some would-be fans to ask whether they should just skip the first season of "Parks and Rec" entirely. A thread on the r/television subreddit did just that, with Redditor u/Pecky posting, "So I've been reading that the first season of Parks and Recreation is bad. Will I be lost if I skip it? Is there like a recap of season one somewhere?" Here's what fans had to say.
Most Parks and Rec fans think the first season is still worth watching
A couple of commenters on the thread were fine with skipping Season 1. Plenty of others chimed in though suggesting that new viewers may as well give the season a watch. "It's not bad, it's just not great," wrote u/weeble182, "It's only two hours in total so I'd say just watch it."
Others agreed that the season's brevity makes it worth a watch. One comment, from u/slardybartfast8, wrote "It's six episodes. Just watch them knowing it gets better. It's not like they are unfunny." There's also a simple continuity reason for watching Season 1, given that, as u/Octopirox pointed out, "Season one ends on a little bit of a cliffhanger so I'd advise at least watching the last episode of season one if you don't want to watch the whole season."
As for the quality of the season, most commenters seemed to agree with these assessments. While Season 1 of "Parks and Rec" isn't as laugh-out-loud hilarious as those that came after, it is still quite funny and entertaining. After all, there had to be something that kept it on the air long enough for it to get renewed and ultimately become such a memorable part of TV comedy. Plus, watching the total lack of chemistry between Leslie and Mark makes the eventual soulmate pairing of Leslie and Ben all the sweeter.