One might suggest it's a telling symbol of the Australian public's tastes that Parks and Recreation (Seven, 11.30pm) languishes in a late-night timeslot while prime time is filled with big brothers and broke girls. But it does allow those of us who are in on the secret to feel a huge sense of superiority to the great unwashed who think the art of the sitcom reached its apotheosis with Everybody Loves Raymond.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Of course, America is a big enough place for many different preferences to flourish, which is why it can make the stars of Two and a Half Men millionaires while also turning Parks and Recreation into a hit, and sending demand for its five-star cast into the stratosphere. Chris Pratt is now a Marvel superhero, Aubrey Plaza and Nick Offerman have achieved iconic status, Aziz Ansari is a comedy A-lister, and then of course there is Amy Poehler. Ah, Amy. The role model for any girl who dreams of growing up smart and funny and essentially perfect. The role model, in fact, for any boy who dreams the same: everyone on earth should be aspiring to be more like Amy.
The only risk is that the stars' stocks have risen so high it could overshadow the show itself, which is a well-written, warm-hearted and frequently hilarious workplace comedy. Thoroughly modern in its doco-style aesthetic, but retaining roots that stretch back to classic sitcoms like Cheers and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Parks and Rec eschews the cynicism and cruelty that many of its contemporaries make a stock in trade to keep its focus on absurd-but-loveable characters and what experts in televisual anthropology technically term "shenanigans".
To illustrate: in Thursday's instalment we have Ben and Leslie attempting to run a charity auction while also striving to remain calm in the face of the news that they are expecting triplets; meanwhile Andy tries to keep their secret in the face of April's efforts to weasel it out of him; and Ron helps Donna with her ex-boyfriend, whose character flaw is apparently his overweening niceness. Which is exactly the kind of character flaw you'd expect from Parks and Rec: it's a show about nice people who may be laid low by ambition, anxiety or even stupidity; but never by being evil. And it works, because of adherence to the old-fashioned values of well-drawn, distinctive characters, and a steady stream of cracking gags.
If you prefer your TV on the depressing side, however, you'll want to tune in to Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners (Gem, 7.30pm), in which Linda Dykes, answering to the titular description, leads her band of merry clean-freaks around Britain, cleaning up filthy homes and public spaces. In the genre of schadenfreude-reality, it's a high achiever, showcasing both dirty folks' squalor and clean folks' warped priorities. We viewers get to feel smug about both.
