# "Community" or "Parks and Recreation"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 8, 2020, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340 "2020-04-08T12:40:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/1 "2020-04-08T12:40:38Z")
Which is the better show? Seeking responses only from those who are familiar with both. mmm (no, I didn’t forget to include an “other” or “neither” option) ---
**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:** [April 8, 2020, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/2 "2020-04-08T12:44:10Z")
One is genius and basically TVtropes the Show and the other is fine if you like sitcoms that mostly rely on cringe humor. Community is genius, Parks is more like Always Sunny. If you like Always Sunny or 30 Rock, try Parks. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/3 "2020-04-08T12:50:29Z")
They were both good, but at its peak Community was streets ahead of Parks and Recreation. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/4 "2020-04-08T12:56:19Z")
Both shows are great. If I had to split them I would say Community has higher peaks while Parks has a higher average quality. The best dozen or so episodes of Community: paintball, the Goodfellas parody, Dungeons and Dragons etc are some of the best comedy every created IMO but if I had to watch a random episode I would probably pick Parks. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/5 "2020-04-08T13:06:48Z")
I agree with the last two posters. They’re both great shows, and while \*Parks \*was more consistent in terms of quality, when \*Community \*was firing at all cylinders, it couldn’t be beat. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/6 "2020-04-08T13:09:18Z")
> [@Lantern](#): > > Both shows are great. If I had to split them I would say Community has higher peaks while Parks has a higher average quality. The best dozen or so episodes of Community: paintball, the Goodfellas parody, Dungeons and Dragons etc are some of the best comedy every created IMO but if I had to watch a random episode I would probably pick Parks. Well put. I’d say the Community characters were only as good as their lines, which were occasionally wonderful, while Parks had consistently brilliant performances from Aubrey Plaza, Nick Offerman, and Aziz Ansari even when the episode was otherwise weak. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/7 "2020-04-08T13:14:08Z")
Community for sure. Parks and Rec was just supposed to take a few seasons, whereas Community was supposed to take [Jeff Winger] your breath away? ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/8 "2020-04-08T13:27:03Z")
Another vote for Parks and Rec having more consistency than Community. I was surprised to note that they have about the same number of episodes (125 vs. 110); for some reason I thought that Parks and Rec had quite a few more. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/9 "2020-04-08T13:56:21Z")
I am glad I posted this, I’m pretty surprised that (so far) Community is running away with the poll. FWIW I have seen just a few eps of P&R, zero of Community. Also, I hadn’t realized Ken Jeong was in Community. That is a gigantic negative for me. In fact, it might have prompted me to vow never to watch it. The support I see here may persuade me to give it a try. So, Community lovers…Ken Jeong annoys the hell out of me. Should I still give it a go? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/10 "2020-04-08T14:13:52Z")
He is kind of annoying, but he is meant to be. Give the show a try and you might chang your mind about him. ---
**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:** [April 8, 2020, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/11 "2020-04-08T14:30:03Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > So, Community lovers…Ken Jeong annoys the hell out of me. Should I still give it a go? Most episodes don’t involve Chang very much. He is a weakness in the show. But there are also a few great moments even with him. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/12 "2020-04-08T14:44:10Z")
Ken Jeong’s character is the teacher of the Spanish class that the cast gets together to form a study group for, and personally I think he’s hilarious. The problem is that they really didn’t seem to know what to do with the character after the first couple seasons. ---
**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:** [April 8, 2020, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/13 "2020-04-08T14:47:25Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > FWIW I have seen just a few eps of P&R, zero of Community. Which season’s episodes of Parks & Rec did you see? Because the show really didn’t find its footing until after the first season. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/14 "2020-04-08T15:26:36Z")
I think the comments about P&R being more consistent are because it was more conventional, in terms of reality based and adhering to standard sit-com tropes. Whereas community was deliberately not based in reality, which is where you get the extreme highs as well as mis-fires. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/15 "2020-04-08T15:49:17Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > One is genius and basically TVtropes the Show and the other is fine if you like sitcoms that mostly rely on cringe humor. > > Community is genius, Parks is more like Always Sunny. If you like Always Sunny or 30 Rock, try Parks. How much _Parks and Rec_ have you actually seen? I wouldn’t liken it to _Always Sunny_. In _Always Sunny_ much of the appeal and humor comes from how horrible the characters are. By contrast, the _Parks and Rec_ characters are good, decent human beings who genuinely care for each other. ---
**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:** [April 8, 2020, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/16 "2020-04-08T15:50:23Z")
Yeah, I would not describe Parks & Rec as “relying on cringe humor”. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/17 "2020-04-08T15:51:47Z")
I’m going to vote Community just for the cleverness of many of the episodes. But Parks and Rec had a longer run and more consistent quality overall. Parks and Rec is a nice lighthearted show, Community not always but each episode usually wraps up pretty well. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/18 "2020-04-08T15:52:52Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > I think the comments about P&R being more consistent are because it was more conventional, in terms of reality based and adhering to standard sit-com tropes. Whereas community was deliberately not based in reality, which is where you get the extreme highs as well as mis-fires. Maybe that’s part of it, but also, once it found its footing (i.e. after the short first season), _Parks and Rec_ maintained its quality throughout its run. If you like it, there’s no reason to stop watching until you get to the end. Whereas, with _Community_, many of the shows’ fans will tell you that seasons four, five, and/or six are not worth watching, or at least are noticeably worse than the show’s peak in seasons 2 & 3. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/19 "2020-04-08T15:57:27Z")
How much satire or parody does P&R do? That was the big appeal to Community for me. (Like the OP I watched a couple episodes and didn’t care for P&R. But I could be persuaded to give it another chance.) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2020, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340/20 "2020-04-08T16:04:39Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > How much satire or parody does P&R do? That was the big appeal to Community for me. I suppose _Parks and Rec_ has some elements that could qualify as such (e.g. the local TV news sometimes comes across to me as something of a parody or satire of small-ish town local TV), but that’s not the main element, and it’s certainly not as “meta” as _Community_. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/community-or-parks-and-recreation/851340.md?page=2)