Thu Night Open Thread- Parks & Recreation

EXTRA SPECIAL GUEST EDITOR’S NOTE: I’m still having trouble with my pictures but I am not going to let a little thing like vanity keep me from posting hard-hitting content, so get started and I’ll fix the picture when I figure it out.

So, how about that TV last night, Monsters? I didn’t get to watch, but Twitter seemed to have enjoyed all the episodes. Lots of stuff happened, I guess! Why don’t you all discuss those happenings in the comments, eh? I saw a lot of calls for .gifs of Parks and Rec on Twitter, too. Post those, why dontcha?

Also, during this week of season finales and surprise endings, I have a question for discussion, guys. Do you feel like there’s a statute of limitation on spoilers? Would my upset be justified if someone ruined, say, a climactic twist in The Wire for me? What about a cliff hanger for a season finale episode of a show, a week later?

If there is a statute of limitations, is that effected by how pervasive the specific film, book or show is? I’m talking Harry Potter spoilers versus last episode of Battlestar Galactica spoilers. Do they get different statutes of limitations, because of their different levels of cultural saturation?

I’m of two minds on the topic, and I’d be interested to here what you guys have to say about it. Do we all need to preserve a zone of silence forever? Or can we start to finally openly discuss the fact that in season 5 of The Wire Stringer Bell is revealed to be a robot from Mars? (Oops, spoiler alert.) Please, let’s discuss this issue like a family. Perhaps there is a time when you had something spoiled for you.

Thanks to Chris Trash for his help with getting grandma her screen grab and special note to Baby Friday that this is in no way a dig at you for last night’s accidental Bones spoiler. The entire internet spoiled that one. <3 U, GURL.

Comments (161)
  1. This is how I felt last night:

    This is how I feel this morning:

  2. is it even possible to spoil the last episode of battlestar galactica outside of saying ‘shit was dumb’ ??

    • The twist at the end of LOST was that you had wasted six years of your life.

      • I still love both shows and still love both endings to both shows.

      • did i get to watch a lot of kate? yes? NO REGRETS

      • Oh come on! A space-time cork was so worth all of the buildup!

        Actually, no, it wasn’t. I still punch myself in the dick every morning nearly a year later for having watched. No amount of mute-Kate can wash that taste out of my mouth!

        • There were two types of LOST fans. Those who were in it for the mysteries and those who were into the people. I was always a people-person, so the ending totally worked for me. I would argue that, no offense, but those into just the mysteries kinda missed the point.

          • Hahaha, that is one amazing tweet.

            I liked the Lost ending more than BSG, although I didn’t completely hate the BSG ending. Mostly it felt much more like the ending of convenience, ESPECIALLY with regard to one KARA THRACE. Also the suddenly inconsequential hybrid baby Hera and equally inconsequential joining of the 5, yada yada blah blah blah it’s been like 3 years when am I going to get over it?

            But Lost, yeah, I dug it.

          • Nope. Sorry. You can’t make a show full of mysteries and tell us it’s really about the people when you can’t figure out how to solve the mysteries. That’s like saying the Jersey Shore was really popular because of Sam and Ronnie’s on and off again romance. It’s just a false statement.

            One of these days, maybe I will stop being mad about that horrible finale.

          • What this rabbit, Miss Rabbit said. Still pissed over here.

          • I’m sorry but this argument has never worked for me because the people on that show were almost uniformly terrible. Okay, maybe not Desmond. But he is pretty much the only one.

        • yup, that’s when the show lost me. you could say it had me pretty corked. that’s when i pulled the plug on the show. after that, it went down the drain. really sucked.

          PUNS ASIDE: i enjoyed the show up until then, and i had been progressively lowering my expectations for the finale, but when the gigantic plug showed up, i gave up. i still enjoy having watched the show up until then, though! season 4 was among the more ridiculously entertaining things i have ever watched. and i still enjoy imagining a lost spinoff show involving sawyer and miles being detectives in LA though (miles possibly still possessing his crazy ghost powers).

          • I think my perspective might be a little different in that I watched the first 4 seasons all at once leading up to the final season, which I watched week to week with everyone else. So I didn’t have the tension of figuring out the mysteries for the bulk of the series as I could just play the next episode. I then naturally focused on the characters and their stories, rather than why the statue only has four toes and other, in my opinion, minutia.

        • I just recently watched all of Twin Peaks AND Fire Walk With Me (whaddup MOBFD?), and ESPECIALLY after having watched the last 14 episodes of season 2 and the never-resolved, cliffhanger-ridden series finale, I have a greater appreciation for the less than many think unsolved mysteries in LOST.

          David Lynch and Mark Frost never actually intended on revealing Laura Palmer’s killer, although they knew from the beginning who it was. They were using the mystery as a vehicle to explore the relationships between the characters in the show in all their normal-on-top-but-twisted-below-the-surface glory. But they were pressured by the network execs to show their cards to the Twin Peaks audience in episode 8 of season 2, and their ratings PLUMMETED immediately after the reveal until they were canceled without even getting tho air their final six episodes (which eventually aired after the remaining fans did a campaign).

          After the mystery of “Who killed Laura Palmer?” is solved, you the viewer can see the show visibly go “WHAT THE FUCK DO WE DO NOW?!” And it took them most of their second season to recuperate and get interesting again, and even then it wasn’t what it was (EXAMPLE- The Season 2 finale centers around a MISS TWIN PEAKS BEAUTY PAG-ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ OH! I’m sorry, PAGEANT).

          So when it comes to LOST- It was the end of the series. They could have shown you all their cards (THE ISLAND’S A SPACESHIP! NEAT, RIGHT?), but they didn’t. It was their choice, and having watched Twin Peaks, I think it was a delicate one to make.

          I certainly don’t consider LOST a waste of my viewing time, or am angry with the show. I still like to think about it, and I still like to ponder some of the mysteries from time to time. If everything would’ve been solved and neatly wrapped up to the degree people demanded, it would immediately get tedious and annoying to ever bring LOST up. People would be like,”LOST THIS! LOST THAT! LOST SAID SO! I HAVE ALL THE FACTS!”

          I hate those people. “I have Google too, loud person. Get away from me.”

        • (Disclaimer- I apologize if this comment shows up twice, but this is the second time this week I’ve posted something and I’m notified my comment is awaiting moderation, probably due to me using too many z’s the first time around, and with Gabe gone my other moderated comment still hasn’t posted so I’m just going to go ahead and post this comment again.)

          I just recently watched all of Twin Peaks AND Fire Walk With Me (whaddup MOBFD?), and ESPECIALLY after having watched the last 14 episodes of season 2 and the never-resolved, cliffhanger-ridden series finale, I have a greater appreciation for the less than many think unsolved mysteries in LOST.

          David Lynch and Mark Frost never actually intended on revealing Laura Palmer’s killer, although they knew from the beginning who it was. They were using the mystery as a vehicle to explore the relationships between the characters in the show in all their normal-on-top-but-twisted-below-the-surface glory. But they were pressured by the network execs to show their cards to the Twin Peaks audience in episode 8 of season 2, and their ratings PLUMMETED immediately after the reveal until they were canceled without even getting tho air their final six episodes (which eventually aired after the remaining fans did a campaign).

          After the mystery of “Who killed Laura Palmer?” is solved, you the viewer can see the show visibly go “WHAT THE FUCK DO WE DO NOW?!” And it took them most of their second season to recuperate and get interesting again, and even then it wasn’t what it was (EXAMPLE- The Season 2 finale centers around a MISS TWIN PEAKS BEAUTY PAGEA-ZZZZ OH! I’m sorry, PAGEANT).

          So when it comes to LOST- It was the end of the series. They could have shown you all their cards (THE ISLAND’S A SPACESHIP! NEAT, RIGHT?), but they didn’t. It was their choice, and having watched Twin Peaks, I think it was a delicate one to make.

          I certainly don’t consider LOST a waste of my viewing time, or am angry with the show. I still like to think about it, and I still like to ponder some of the mysteries from time to time. If everything would’ve been solved and neatly wrapped up to the degree people demanded, it would immediately get tedious and annoying to ever bring LOST up. People would be like,”LOST THIS! LOST THAT! LOST SAID SO! I HAVE ALL THE FACTS!”

          I hate those people. “I have Google too, loud person. Get away from me.”

  3. Who wants a shot of Snake Juice?!

    • Best GIF EVAH!


    • SLITHERY RUSSIAN

      This tastes like if a hot Russian spy and a badass snake got it on… in a world where fictional woman-on-snake hookups were pleasing, and could somehow be served over ice.

      1 oz SnakeJuice
      1 oz vodka
      1 oz cream
      Splash of Sweetums High-Fructose Corn Syrup
      1/4 cup of ice

      Combine ingredients and shake well. Sip slowly and slither over to your prey.


    • HISS CREAM SODA

      Ladies – are you tired of the same old boring “lady drinks” you’re always ordering? Try this super-sweet concoction, guaranteed to bring a smile to your face and power to your dance moves. (Also guaranteed to make you need a designated driver, so plan accordingly.)

      2 oz SnakeJuice
      1.5 oz whipping cream
      4 oz soda water
      3 maraschino cherries

      Shake SnakeJuice and whipping cream vigorously; pour over ice. Add soda water, garnish with cherries, and begin drinking. The next time you look at your watch, it will be three hours later.


    • THE FORKED TONGUE

      My go-to drink on a cool night.

      1-2 oz SnakeJuice
      6 oz hot cocoa
      1 tablespoon whipped cream

      Add SnakeJuice to hot cocoa, stir well, and top with whipped cream. The hot cocoa will soon warm you up, and the SnakeJuice will soon impair your speech to a level that people will think you have a forked tongue.

    • When Ron did that last night all I could think was: “The Parks and Rec people must know about Thursday Night TV Open Thread, because this is gif heaven”

      • I think you’re onto something. They even have a gif of this on the official NBC Parks and Rec site (and the Parks and Rec Facebook group thought it necessary to tell me about this TWICE in the last few hours.)

    • As soon as I saw this yesterday I knew it was the only gif I wanted to see today: thank you thank thank you!

    • I lit’rally cried.

  4. I think people are way too uptight about spoilers. People think basic plot-points that are in trailers and official log-lines of movies are spoilers, which is ridiculous. PLUS, if a spoiler “ruins” a movie or show for you, that property wasn’t worth its salt to begin with.

    That being said, I think for movies, if it’s out on DVD, it’s fair game. TV shows? A week.

    • I need to voice my VERY IMPORTANT THOUGHTS on spoilers! But I mostly agree with you, so I am just riding on your coattails.

      Also, for books, I usually give three months or so, because by that time, if someone is interested, they most likely have either read the book or (sadly?) had it spoiled already.

      Also, Rosebud killed Dumbledore.

    • KIND OF disagree. I mean, while I would have enjoyed Veronica Mars even if I’d known from the beginning who killed Lily Kane, I wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much. It may not have been RUINED with spoilers, but at the same time, it kind of would have been, you know? My mixed feelings regarding Logan throughout the first season would have been non-existent had I been privy to spoilers, and I would have lost a lot of interest pretty early on.

      • I can feel ya on that one, Taco. TV is different from movies in this regard, I think. Look at M. Night. Even his best stuff is crap after the spoilers. If spoilers were everything, you’d never watch a movie more than once. But TV shows that are based around mysteries like Veronica Mars or LOST or BSG or whatever need a little more consideration as far as spoilers are concerned.

        • One correction: knowing that Orphan was a secret midget hooker made the movie way better.

        • Exactly: spoilers are actual things w/r/t mysteries or dramas based around one piece of hidden information (Like for instance did you guys know that I am Keyser Soze?) but a romantic comedy? Not so much.

      • Yay for Veronica Mars! Nay to spoilers!

      • Well there was no way to figure out it was Logan’s dad… not unlike the bus situation of the second season. But goddamn that was some good television. And you know who was on it? Our buddy Adam Scott.

  5. Anne and Leslie’s fight? So cramazing.

  6. All i gotta say is how pissed off I was at The Soup for ruining Dexter for me (bathtub scene). I didn’t have Showtime and was catching up on DVD.

  7. While I definitely would not want someone to spoil a TV show or movie for me, when a major broadcast network show references Neutral Milk Hotel, I gots to tell the world.

  8. Can we talk about the season finale of Breaking Bad yet? I mean it’s been a year.

  9. I liked the Cougar-Town-Special-Guest-Extra-Shout-out-On-Community #ThatsNotAThing:

  10. My theory of spoilers:

    -Don’t spoil something you have to pay to find out (movie, book)
    -Don’t spoil something before it has aired (if you got an advanced screening, saw it on an online screening room, etc)

    Other than that, spoil away. A few weeks ago I had to miss Parks and Rec and I just didn’t visit Facebook and Tumblr until I watched it. It wasn’t that hard to do.

  11. Guys, I just ordered Season 1 of the Today Show. PLEASE do not talk on here about what happens to Dave Garroway.

  12. I LITERALLY cried tears of laughter when Andy vomited all over that guy’s shoes.

    • I was studying (sad) and my roommate shrieked “GET UP HERE”. I thought she’d been severe;y injured by some freak accident, so I dropped my pencil and sprinted up to the living room.
      “WATCH THIS” she said, and proceeded to rewind that part of the show three times.
      Worth the near-heart attack.

  13. Thought of concert_addict a lot last night…..give us whatcha got, CA. It’s showtime, Synergy!

    There were so many funny lines last night, but the most underrated line of P&R last night?
    Chris’ ironic “There’s literally nothing the two of you can’t do.” Leslie’s reaction face to that was priceless.

  14. why are ywe habing a conversation about spoilers in a threaf thesaedrt thats filled with spoilers? please forgive the tpyeos im typimnf with my weeyes closed submit submit CRAP I CLICKED ON “BUZZ MEDIA”

  15. I don’t get too angry about spoilers unless they come out of nowhere. If I’m reading an interview with Idris Elba, I can’t be upset is a spoiler comes up. If I’m reading about a cat video and someone randomly spouts out a major plot point for something I haven’t yet seen, that pisses me off. I don’t think there is a statute of limitations on anything that isn’t big enough in the pop culture world to be considered common knowledge. While a Batman movie might be okay to casually reference after it leaves theaters, I don’t think deaths on the Sopranos will be for quite a while. It might seem like everyone has seen it, but there shouldn’t be that expectation. At least, that’s my take.

  16. I spent 2 years avoiding the end of Sopranos spoilers, I was like Richard Kimble on the lamb. And there was A LOT of talk about the ending of that show and a lot running out of rooms with hands over my ears shouting “LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA!!!”

    After seeing it, I assumed those discussions were about how nothing really happened.

    (Ah! But actually, did something, in fact, happen? Something definitely happened. (Look at me, I’m still reluctant to spoiler it))

  17. Rapper pro tip: Always end on the rhyme.

  18. Oh my God, you guys, Bones was SO sad last night! And that is all I’ll say about it.

  19. So, the office was fine without Michael Scott, right? I don’t know why anyone was worried. I also watched the rerun before the new episode and felt kind of weird with Michael walking in every once in a while. I am A-OK with him being gone. I just hope they don’t screw it up next year.

  20. Jean-Ralphio.

  21. For spoilers, on Thursday Open Thread, I think its fair (& kind of obvious) to expect any spoilers from Thursday shows.

    If it’s any other show- esp a big twist- a courteous “SHOW NAME SPOILER” isn’t hard to preface your comment with.

    That being said, I tried very hard not to be spoiled on Black Swan & it happened anyway- sucks, but it happens when you wait months after it comes out.

    • I agree with these statements. I won’t check out the open thread until I’m comfortable with what I’ve seen.

      If I’m reading a review or anything and they include spoilers, which isn’t always necessary because you can rate your enjoyment independent of a plot synopsis, I want to know if it contains spoilers before I continue. It’s all about being able to make an informed decision.

      I think TvTropes generally has the best approach to spoilers. You can read them, but you have to make the decision to highlight the text to see them. Makes it really hard to read them on a mobile device sometimes.

  22. Let’s all play air banjo like a family

  23. So I know Dwight is suppose to be ridiculous, but I’d prefer his gift basket of a “knapsack filled can goods, chainsaws, gasoline, emergency radio in case he wakes up post-apocalypse” over flowers any time. This may be because I saw 28 Days Later again recently. Especially if I went into a coma so close to 2012

  24. having a random friday off and getting to watch the gifs of the of thursday tv open thread as they are posted is the first time i’ve been truly happy in like a month. thanks, monsters.

  25. No City College and Greendale flags gif yet ? This is more disappointing than the lost and battlestar galactica finales combined!

  26. Anyone have a gif of Andy running and throwing up?

  27. Community was brilliant. I kept getting annoyed at myself for feeling emotional about paintball.

  28. Gif gif gif, gif gif gif. Gif gif? GIF! GIF GIF GIF GIF!!!! GGGGGGGGGGGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (gif)

  29. #VforVgum #4evz btdub

  30. Uh, for some weird reason I ended up watching about 10 minutes of Outsourced yesterday. I had avoided it thus far due to the immense hatred for it on the internet, but decided to give it a chance, and now I know to always listen to the internet.

    That said, y’all Americans are lucky that you don’t have the horror of Little Mosque on the Prairie. It’s like Outsourced but even more vomitriocious.

  31. I just hate that I can’t go on Tumblr at all on Thursday nights because I happen to NOT LIVE IN THE EASTERN TIME ZONE. Like, you seriously can’t keep it in your pants until it’s aired for the rest of the damn country? It’s rude and pointless.

    /mad because I got home from work at 11:30 last night and was spoiled for every single P&R plot point by midnight.

  32. Wait how has nobody mentioned Abed Han-Solo-ing Annie yet? Don’t assume that was a one time thing, this is community people, they are all about the call backs.

    • Who HASN’T Annie hooked up with yet? Annbed is just the latest in Annie pairings… I mean, Jannie could still work if Jeff wasn’t such an arrogant douchebag, Brittannie was a cute tease and Trannie, of course, started out the show. Part of me says don’t hold your breath for Channie…but I think that will happen sooner than Pannie, LOLAMIRITE?

      aww…poor Pierce.

      • What no Shannie love?!

        • Shannie had that great buddy cop/mother-daughter dynamic (like Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman in that Die Hard), but I don’t see them moving past the ‘just friends’ stage (of a mother-daughter relationship). BUT WHO KNOWS! She has to be kissing on someone next season finale and she is running out of options. #TeamShannie

  33. I really loved April as Janet Snakehole. I think the writers of P&R do such a great job on keeping their characters fresh compared to other sitcom. I wondered in season 2 how they would keep April going without making her completely unlikable but they’ve managed to do it!

    And hurray for giving Anne a reason to hang around there now.

  34. Way late to this, so maybe no one will see it, but what about just a little spoiler-golden-ruling? If it’s something you wouldn’t have wanted to be spoiled on, don’t spoil it for others. Right?

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