Parks and Rec is
one of those shows that just about everyone agrees on. I mean, I don’t really
know anyone who (if they’ve seen it) actually dislikes the show. That’s
impressive. I can’t say that about many other shows or movies, not even the
ones that are, to me, so obviously awesome (Community,
Doctor Who, The IT Crowd).
But all of this unadulterated adulation makes it a little
hard to actually assess the show from an objective standpoint. Yes, it’s a
fantastic show. Yes, I enjoy watching it a lot and am very happy that it
appears in my magic picture box. But, no, I’m not really sure that NBC is
making the right ratings decision to keep it on the air.
Please hear me out before you start leaving death threats in
the comments. And, remember, a properly punctuated death threat is a happy
death threat.
Okay, we’ve all known for a while that NBC is a poopiehead
when it comes to shows that are critically loved and, you know, good. They have
a very tight rein on what airs on their network, and lately it’s seemed like
the noose is only getting tighter. 30
Rock is going into its last season. Community
has been postponed indefinitely and
had its showrunner fired. Whitney is
terrible but tragically still on television.
And Parks and Rec
has also had to bear some of that brunt. Why, NBC? Why are you being so mean to
all these shows that get you Emmy nominations and critical acclaim? Why are you
trying to rush them off the stage when they are some of the most brilliant
sitcoms television has ever seen probably?
It’s really very simple: money.
I don’t mean that in a cynical, “Oh, well, it’s all about
money, isn’t it?” kind of way, and I don’t mean to imply that the people at NBC
are all money grubbing jerks. I mean, practically speaking, it’s all about
money.
NBC needs money from advertisers in order to keep having a
network. In the past few years, they’ve really gone down the tubes on this, and
the network is visibly struggling. Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t
shows actually need money to run? Parks
and Rec is an amazing labor of love done by the fabulously talented cast
and crew, but they’re not doing it for free.
The Thursday night comedies that we love suffer from a lack
of ratings. And while some networks discount ratings in favor of a loyal and
slavish fanbase (see the CW), NBC can’t afford to do that. They need money.
Actually, literally need it in order to stay in business. And Parks and Rec, sadly, doesn’t make them
any money.
“But what about artistry?!” I hear you cry. “Why can’t we
just make good shows and not worry about the money? Why does it always have to
be a battle between art and commerce?”
Nice points, straw men, but you know as well as I do that
the world doesn’t really work that way. Shows need to make money in order to
stay on the air. And Parks and Rec,
tragically, doesn’t make money.
Amy Poehler is a crazy talented woman. I think that Leslie
Knope is one of the best television characters we’ve been blessed with in a
long time, and I can’t express how happy it makes me to see an effortlessly
feminist, sexually empowered, exasperatingly nice and relentlessly ambitious
female character on my screen every week. True story.
I think Aubrey Plaza, Rashida Jones, and Retta are amazing
actresses who inhabit fully realized and absolutely hilarious characters. I
think the show is one of the finest sitcoms on TV and when it gets cancelled I
will weep into my waffles.
But it’s going to get cancelled. Have no illusions about
that. NBC has already been very generous to its Thursday night block, and we
can’t blame them for wanting to make a little more money off of some choice TV
real estate. It’s not a crime for a network to worry about how it’s going to
keep the lights on next year. They’re not dicks, they’re just being prudent.
So, yes, I will cry with the rest of you when Parks and Rec gets the boot. I’ve
already shed my tears about the upcoming Community
news, and I’m gonna be a sobfest during the last episodes of 30 Rock. But that doesn’t mean I think
it’s wrong. It just means that I’m really going to miss these shows, and I’m
super psyched to see what these crazy talented people do next.
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