# 30 Rock and Parks and Recreation are the same show. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 2, 2020, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784 "2020-03-02T13:04:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/1 "2020-03-02T13:04:06Z")
I didn’t realize it until just now. A successful 30-40 something woman in a management position. She is quirky but more than competent at her job. She is the eye of the storm, in a storm of craziness that is swirling almost out of control all around her every day, propelled by the stupid and improbable antics of her subordinates and co-workers (who are all next-level weird), and sometimes by the stupid and improbable acts of her superiors, the Baldwin/Lowe-(ish) types who also offer romantic subplots. It’s a good formula. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/2 "2020-03-02T13:09:01Z")
They both owe a debt to the Mary Tyler Moore Show. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/3 "2020-03-02T13:10:15Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > They both owe a debt to the Mary Tyler Moore Show. That was before my time. Do the episodes hold up? I seem to like the formula. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/4 "2020-03-02T13:19:27Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > That was before my time. Do the episodes hold up? I seem to like the formula. MTM is still very much worth watching and you can very easily pick up on similar characters in each show. Many of the characters in 30 Rock were clearly inspired by characters on MTM. As for 30 Rock and Parks and Rec, yeah, they’re both workplace sitcoms, but more similarities tend to be drawn between Parks and Rec and The Office (and Brooklyn 99). All created by Michael Schurr, who played Dwight’s cousin Mose on The Office. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/5 "2020-03-02T14:17:07Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > That was before my time. Do the episodes hold up? I seem to like the formula. I think it holds up very well, especially the early seasons. It’s one of the best shows ever made. ---
**Author:** ![2Bits](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e95f7d/32.png) [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/6 "2020-03-02T14:32:25Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > That was before my time. Do the episodes hold up? I seem to like the formula. MTM will seem very slow-paced compared to 30 Rock (or most any modern sitcom. ) 10 - 20 funny lines per episode compared to 50+/-. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/7 "2020-03-02T15:16:00Z")
A great introduction to MTM is the Lars Affair, Season 4, Ep 1. You don’t need to know much about the backstory to appreciate the premise. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/8 "2020-03-02T15:23:45Z")
MTM is great for the first 4 seasons. Once Rhoda left it wasn’t as good but still very good. The Lars Affair is a good way to introduce to the show, it previews soon to be added Betty White as Sue Ann Nivens. However, might as well start with the Pilot, it is a really good pilot episode. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/9 "2020-03-02T16:13:50Z")
Yeah, when Rhoda left it suffered. They tried to replace her with giving more scenes to Georgette, but she just wasn’t as interesting a character. As Ted’s girlfriend, she did, however, give us more time with the great Ted Knight. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/10 "2020-03-02T20:10:20Z")
I like both shows a lot and yes they are quite similar though it didn’t feel that way when watching them because the settings: NYC comedy show versus small-town government are so different. Also Leslie’s life has her life more together; not least because she is happily married with children by the end. I think P&R is a more sentimental show, in a good way, for example that lovely [scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoXdC2zDi0s)where Leslie plans Ron’s trip to Scotland with April’s tribute to her in the background. Hard to imagine that kind of scene in 30 Rock though it does have its sweet moments too. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/11 "2020-03-02T20:15:00Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > As for 30 Rock and Parks and Rec, yeah, they’re both workplace sitcoms, but more similarities tend to be drawn between Parks and Rec and The Office (and Brooklyn 99). All created by Michael Schurr, who played Dwight’s cousin Mose on The Office. I believe that the original idea for Parks & Rec was for it to be a direct spin-off of The Office. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2020, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-rock-and-parks-and-recreation-are-the-same-show/848784/12 "2020-03-02T22:07:53Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > She is the eye of the storm, in a storm of craziness that is swirling almost out of control all around her every day… \ > > It’s a good formula. Indeed, the main character as “straight man” goes back a long way. The aforementioned\* Mary Tyler Moore Show\*, both _The Bob Newhart Show_ and _Newhart_, _The Andy Griffith Show_, _Green Acres_… The list goes on.