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The only reason you brought me here is to distract me from the dog park. You hate this show.
April Ludgate

"Leslie vs. April" is the seventh episode in the fifth season of the NBC television series Parks and Recreation. It originally aired on November 15th, 2012 to 3.52 million viewers.

Synopsis[]

April tries to get Lot 48 turned into a dog park, upsetting Leslie; Tom gets Ben's help with his new business idea; Andy improves his crime scene investigation skills.

Storyline[]

Ben Wyatt and Leslie Knope are in Washington, D.C. to pick up the rest of Ben's things. Ben surprises Leslie with an appointment with her idol, Vice President Joe Biden.

Back in Pawnee, Tom Haverford asks Ben to assist him with the accounting side of his new business venture, Rent-A-Swag. Ben, having accepted a job at Barney Varmn's accounting firm, agrees to help Tom. In the Parks Department's conference room, April Ludgate practises her presentation with Leslie on her proposed dog park for Pawnee. However, the two clash heads after April suggests the dog park be located at Lot 48, a lot Leslie has been trying to create a park at for four years. Leslie suggests April find a new location, but they are all clearly not suitable. April informs Leslie that she has gained Councilman Jeremy Jamm's vote to place her dog at Lot 48, angering Leslie.

Leslie results to distracting April from her work, thanks to a suggestion from Ron Swanson. She takes April to Orin's "Human Farm", but April easily sees through Leslie's plan and leaves. At the ensuing council meeting, April takes the stand. Before she can even get a sentence out, Councilman Jamm swoops in and informs everyone that parks are stupid, and instead suggests that the lot should be a home to a Paunch Burger, Pawnee's favorite fast-food restaurant. Leslie and April are forced to reconcile and the two come up with a plan to curtail Jamm by protesting in front of his house with dogs and their owners. Using his front lawn as a "park", Jamm relents and agrees to postponed any vote for 90 days.

Elsewhere, Tom and Ben meet with Jessica Wicks of Sweetums to establish an alliance with Rent-A-Swag. Jessica turns down Tom and instead offers Ben a job running the company's non-profit wing. This lowers Tom's confidence, as Ben declines the offer. Tom and Ben later meet with a local television show to do a profile on Rent-A-Swag. They pass, but recognizing Ben from his campaign work, they offer him a job as a correspondent on their new political chat show. Tom can't believe Ben's luck and is upset he is getting all these opportunities when Rent-A-Swag isn't. Tom considers going back to his day job again, but Ben encourages him to keep going after what he's truly passionate about.

Meanwhile, Andy Dwyer's computer goes missing, leading to him attempting to track down the thief, and crediting it to his co-workers putting him on the spot to practice his police work. Chris Traeger later offers Andy the role of weekend security guard at City Hall.

The episode concludes with Ben turning down Barney for a second time, citing that Leslie insists he do something he loves, as he considers helping Tom or taking the various other job offers he has received.

Cast[]

Quotes[]

Leslie: And one tiny critique - if you want to be taken seriously, you might want to think a little bit about how you represent yourself.
April: Oh, no. This is publicity for Orin's new performance art show. [shows her shirt - Orin's head is on a lamb with the text "HUMAN FARM" above him] He's an animal living on a human farm, and you can go and feed him from your own hand.
Leslie: [creeped out] Ugh, that's horrifying. And so is Orin. You should not be friends with him.

[Leslie and April are at Orin's Human Farm - it looks like George Orwell's "Animal Farm" meets the 1932 movie "Freaks" mixed with a bad LSD trip]
Leslie: [sarcastic and disturbed] Wow, this is really, really cool. I like the statement it's making - that, you know, we're all in cages, in a way. [April briefly looks at the camera, clearly not buying Leslie's lying]
April: Yeah, it's actually about death and the city.
Leslie: Yeah, I see that now.

April: The only reason you brought me here is to distract me from the dog park. You hate this show.
Leslie: [obviously lying] I love this show!
April: What's your favorite part??
Leslie: The heavy-handedness.

Leslie: Our dispute aside, you should be careful with Jamm. He's a snake.

Leslie: Hi, Orin.
Orin: [dressed like a sheep] Moo. Moo.
Leslie: Quiet, weirdo. Aren't you supposed to be a sheep?
Orin: No. YOU are.
Leslie: [sighs] Shut up.

Trivia[]

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