Parks & Recreation came to an end in 2015, making it eligible for a revival, but even though Amy Poehler would be up for it, Parks & Recreation is one of those TV shows that should never be revived. Created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, Parks & Recreation took the audience to the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana, to meet the crew at the Parks Department, led by the always optimistic Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler). Through her, viewers met her closest friends and coworkers and saw Leslie and these characters go through many ups and downs in their personal and professional lives.
Although it had a rough start as season 1 of Parks & Recreation struggled to find its own voice and the right tone, subsequent seasons made it one of the best TV shows of the decade. Parks & Recreation came to an end in 2015 after seven seasons and many changes in the lives of Leslie and company, but they continued to love and support each other and became one big happy family. Now, the entertainment industry is defined by trends, and reboots and revivals are some of the current ones, but even if Leslie Knope herself is up for a return to Pawnee, Parks & Recreation should never be revived as it doesn’t need to be.
Parks & Recreation Had A Perfect Ending
The final episode of Parks & Recreation is widely regarded as one of the best TV finales in recent years, as it beautifully addressed the fates of its main characters without sacrificing the show’s sense of humor. The Parks & Recreation finale included flash-forwards for each main character in which the writers of the show gave the audience a look into the near and far futures of each character, essentially leaving no loose ends (except for one, but more on that later). First off, Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) was given the job of Superintendent of National Park in Pawnee, which was perfect for him as he didn’t have to socialize, and he spent the whole day in the quiet and peace of nature. Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari) dealt with the end of his restaurant, Tom’s Bistro, but this led to him becoming a best-selling author.
April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza) found her ideal job at the American Service Foundation and Andy Dwyer (Chris Pratt) followed her to D.C., and after some hesitation on April’s side, they became parents. Donna Meagle (Retta) started a non-profit to help her husband’s school, and Jerry Gergich (Jim O’Heir) was elected Mayor of Pawnee several times, and he passed away at the age of 100. Last but not least, Ben Wyatt (Adam Scott) became a representative from Indiana for the U.S. House of Representatives, and Leslie became Governor of Indiana and quite possibly President of the United States, this being the one “loose end”/mystery that Parks & Recreation left.
The Parks & Recreation Reunion Special Was Also Perfect
Parks & Recreation made sure to bring the stories of its main characters (and even those of secondary characters like Craig and Jean Ralphio) to a proper end, and the reunion special added to it without messing with the finale. The Parks and Recreation Special was set during the COVID-19 pandemic, with Leslie catching up with the rest through video call due to social distancing, and it made some fun reveals about the characters’ current situation (which the finale’s flash-forwards never showed). Leslie is a regional director for the National Park Service, Ben started making a claymation film based on his board game The Cones of Dunshire but abandoned the project, and Ron is in his cabin, and as he never really liked people, he’s enjoying social distancing.
April randomly selects five items from a bad to wear every day while Andy accidentally locked himself in his shed. Tom’s book tour was canceled due to the pandemic, Donna is supporting teachers in any way she can, and Jerry is the Mayor of Pawnee. While all of this arguably gives writers a lot of material for a revival, it’s a lot funnier and entertaining to just have those bits of information and brief looks at the futures of the characters. Even though Amy Poehler has shared (via People) that she’s up for a Parks & Rec reboot whenever it happens, truth is that the story of Leslie and those of her friends are over, and they were given fitting, satisfying, fun, and beautiful endings that shouldn’t be expanded nor undone.
Will A Parks & Recreation Reboot Happen?
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Parks & Rec creator Michael Schur said back in 2019, during a reunion at PaleyFest, that he “would never ever say never” to a revival of the series, but they would only do it if they all felt “like there was something compelling us to do it”, and if one cast member said no, they wouldn’t do it. The team behind Parks & Rec seems to be aware of the risks of reviving the show and that it’s not a necessary thing to do, so for now, the Parks & Recreation reboot won’t be happening.