Leslie Knope, Regional Director of the National Park Service, takes on the rise of tech company Gryzzl, who have designs on her beloved Pawnee. The problem is, that the team she want behind is her old team from the Parks and Recreation Department and most of them now work for Gryzzl. Leslie must talk them into joining her for one last crusade...

And so, the final season of Parks and Recreation is finally released on DVD. This time around we only get 13 episodes, compared to the usual 22.

To be honest, I think the show had outstayed its welcome and Season Six actually said goodbye quite nicely to the characters. I'm not sure if the show was renewed for this seventh season after the filming on season six had already wrapped, but I'm guessing that the producers were hedging their bets by neatly tying up all the loose ends. The problem then is that Season Seven does feel a little pointless. I'm not complaining, because I love the show, but everything is turned on its head for just 13 episodes, with the writers desperately trying to work out a believable series of events that pull everyone back together. And they, just about, pull it off.

Everyone has moved on, as this season is set three years in the future, and the first few episodes see Leslie and Ron not even talking to each other - practically mortal enemies. Leslie's task is to get everyone back together, which she manages to do after a handful of episodes. Pretty much after that the writers just throw random storylines in to fill up the remaining episodes and neatly have an excuse to have all the characters in the same room.

Highlights include:

Ron & Jammy: Councilman Jamm is dating Ron's ex-wide, Tammy II. Jamm has turned into a truly bizarre version of himself (as is usually the fate of anyone who dates Tammy II). Leslie brings in Ron to help Jamm break up with Tammy II... but it's not going to be easy.

Save JJ's - JJ's Diner has gone out of business, and has been bought with the intention of knocking the building down and redeveloping it. As this is Leslie and Ron's favourite place for breakfast, they set about trying to save the business. Meanwhile, Tom and Donna partake in their annual "Treat Yo Self" day, travelling to Beverly Hills.

Donna & Joe: It's Donna and Joe's wedding day. April is tasked with keeping the peace between Donna's family; Ben has to make a decision about whether or not to run for congress; and Donna has a special surprise for Terry (which is what Gerry/Larry... etc is now being called). She deliberately sets his table place name as "Garry", which is his real name, knowing that the rest of the group will adopt that as his new name.

The Johnny Karate Super Awesome Musical Explosion Show: Any episode where Andy takes centre stage is always fun to watch. When April gets a new job offer, that means she will have to leave Pawnee, Andy quits his kid's TV show, but the more she sees how much Andy loves his job, the more she has reservations about making him give it all up. The entire episode is the last Johnny Karate show.

Two Funerals: When mayor Gunderson dies, it's up to Ben to find an interim mayor until a replacement can be chosen. Ron also gets some distressing news: His barber, who has cut his hair every month for decades, Salvatore, has also died. Donna steps forward to help Ron, but the new barber, Typhoon, is the polar opposite of Salvatore. In addition Leslie helps Tom plan his proposal of marriage to Lucy. This episode stars Billy Murray as mayor Gunderson. It's a rather odd role, as he lays in state for his scenes, with his only acting being on the video messages that are played at his funeral.

One Last Ride: This is a two part episode which sees the entire team together one last time to fix a swing that isn't working in one of the parks. As the episode progresses we get a glimpse into the future of the main cast, which is a nice touch. In addition both Leslie and Ben are approached about running for governor of Indiana.

Extras include: Ron & Jammy Producer's Extended Cut (27 min, 02 sec - compared to the broadcast length of 21 min, 30 sec); Deleted Scenes (17 min, 22 sec) Gag Reel (27 min, 53 sec - this also includes the main casts original auditions and spoof ads that are also including in various episodes); Pie-Mary Producer's Extended Cut (26 min, 54 sec - compared with the original episode length of 21 min, 20 sec); Commercials (2 min, 45 sec of spoof ads that were included in the Johnny Karate episode); Deleted Scenes (11 min, 54 sec); The Story of Mouse Rat (3 min, 16 sec - Andy tells us the history of his band); One Last Ride Producer's Extended Cut (52 min, 55 sec - which includes Shauna Malwae-Tweep's deleted flash forward); Deleted Scenes (4 min, 6 sec); The Wisdom of Mayor Gunderson (2 min, 52 sec of what looks like partly improvised material from Bill Murray imparting info from beyond the grave); Behind the Scenes of the Farewell Season (47 min 33 sec - split into: Jim O'Heir Set Tour; April and Andy (A nice interview with the two actors who are sad they soon won't be working together); On the Road (location footage); From Script to Screen (behind the scenes on Garry's future from the finale); and The Final Scene (which sees the show being wrapped after the final scene is shot).

While this final season is still great entertainment, it's not a patch on previous years. I think the main problem is that we only have 13 episodes in which to set up all of the characters in their new roles, try and link them together and then wave goodbye to them. You could miss this season entirely and not really miss much. However, the writing is as solid as ever and the season finale is a nice way to send off all the characters properly.

7

Darren Rea