Upon finishing my favorite show, "Parks and Recreation", for the third time and yet again crying my eyes out at the season finale; I’ve decided to tackle a debate that’s very important to me.
The debate as to why "Parks and Rec" is better than "The Office".
First of all, I connect with the characters more in P&R. They're just funnier and more likable.
It seems the biggest objective difference between the two shows is Pawnee vs. Scranton.
We learn bits and pieces about Scranton, but P&R created an entire realistic three-dimensional universe with Pawnee from scratch.
Only The Simpsons have been able to equal that level of detail (and it's a lot easier to do on a show that's animated).
We know seemingly every detail about the town and its people. There's something like 160 characters that appeared in "Parks and Recreation" at least twice. That's a crazy amount.
I think that extra layer adds a variety and a spark to P&R episodes that makes it better than "The Office".
The characters in P&R are dynamic. Their relationships grow and develop as the show goes on, especially Ron and Leslie's relationship. While the characters in "The Office" are static.
"Jim plays pranks on Dwight" is a good start of a relationship between characters, but it never leads to anything more between them.
Jim always just plays pranks on Dwight and that's the majority of their relationship.
Compare that, to "April insults Ann all the time" which is the start of a relationship that culminates with April eventually expressing genuine affection when Ann leaves Pawnee.
Not only does P&R have great main characters, but it has great recurring characters, like Perd, Joan, Shawna, and Tammy 2.
But then it goes even deeper with great tertiary characters, like Brandi Maxx, the townspeople, and Kyle.
Additionally, "The Office" is a lot more bleak about the "reality" of life.
In "Parks and Recreation" there's a pretty realistic (for a sitcom) standard that life is hard work.
It's almost impossible to achieve anything, and when you do, few will appreciate it, but it's still uplifting because of the deep, important relationships between the characters.
It's a funny, happy, fun-loving show, and I will not cringe while watching it so I can watch it, irrespective of my mood.
Personally, I just couldn’t really get into "The Office".
I’ve discussed it with people, and they tell me I just have to “get through it to the good episodes”. What is that about?
I shouldn’t have to “get through” a good television show because every episode should be good.
There's never been a time where I didn't love a single episode of "Parks and Recreation"; they’re all special and entertaining in their own ways.
While there is a lot of in-depth reasoning that goes into why P&R is better than "The Office", a lot of it is also obvious.
It’s funnier, more relatable, in-depth, and makes you feel a deep connection to the character relationships.
I’m a hardcore "Parks and Recreation" fan until I die, but it’s just one woman’s opinion, so feel free to debate!
