Parks and Recreation

What makes these episodes feel extra-special is the sense of purpose to them. There's a big story being told here--not one that requires you to watch every episode (though your funny bone will thank you if you do), but one that seems to raise the stakes for everyone involved, and which makes the jokes funnier, the characters richer, in the process.

The cast is phenomenal, the writing inventive and genuinely funny, and you could pick just about any character--Andy or Ann, or Ron or Tom (Aziz Ansari) and almost mistake them for the show lead instead of Poehler. But still not quite in the same league as the show that precedes or the one that follows.

It consistently pokes fun at our culture and foibles in ways that are clever and sometimes sharp but never mean.

Seriously, one day, NBC will be run like a real network--and bask in the fact that our Pawnee pals have returned, and there are plenty of excellent episodes in store.

This season, the writers have taken her even further away from the cliche of the incompetent boss--currently being flogged to death by The Office. Leslie is now both realer and more amusing, the humor of her character stemming from the fact that she's good in a profession that no one, including her boss and her subordinates, seems to care too much about.