Andy and April's Fancy Party (S3E9)

Today Rob Lowe and Alan Yang are celebrating love in this landmark Parks and Recreation episode! In "Andy and April's Fancy Party" April and Andy's dinner party turns into a surprise wedding. On today's podcast you'll hear why this unwieldy script gave the actors more drive, how airconditioning can be funky on set, the silliness of a rare Donna and Ann B-story, and why Tom Cruise had a tooth removed in The Outsiders. All of this and the first appearance of Orin! Got a question for the Pawnee Town Hall? Send us an email: ParksandRecollectionTownHall@gmail.com Or leave a 30-Second voicemail at: (310) 893-6992
 

The episode begins with Ron horrifying the entire parks department by pretending to pull his own tooth out with a pair of pliers. After everyone flees the conference room, and Tom passes out, Ron admits to camera that it was a prank and that a dentist had removed the tooth the previous day. In the next scene, April and Andy invite everyone to a dinner party to celebrate their one month anniversary, while Ben explains a job offer dilemma to Leslie which could potentially take him away or keep him in Pawnee.

At the party, Leslie discovers that Andy and April’s dinner party is actually a surprise wedding.  Leslie spends most of the party trying to dissuade April and Andy; however, Ron believes it is not Leslie's place to interfere with their decision. Tom is thrilled when Andy makes him his best man, but his excitement quickly fades when Andy also asks Ron, Chris, Ben, and Derek to be his "best men". In an effort to “best” the other best men, Tom tries to throw an impromptu bachelor party to set himself apart, but ends up falling short.

In a surprisingly touching ceremony, Andy and April officially become husband and wife. With the help of some sturdy advice from Ron, Leslie accepts their decision and realizes that there’s no right way to do things when it comes to love. The ceremony is followed up with equally heartwarming moments of April telling Leslie how much she means to her and Andy makes a speech to the guests, claiming Tom as his "best" best man and explaining that life is short and that he and April simply did what made them happy. Inspired by Andy’s honesty, Leslie asks Ben to stay in Pawnee, and is pleasantly surprised when he reveals that he had already accepted Chris’ offer that would keep him in Pawnee. 

In a B story, Ann goes to a singles event at a bar where she runs into a very territorial Donna. At first Donna views Ann as competition, but after witnessing Ann’s painfully awkward social skills, Donna takes Ann under her wing and teaches her some player moves. When Ann hears about Andy getting married from Leslie, she feels deflated and wants to leave, but Donna tells Ann to forget her past and enjoy herself in the present, which Ann ends up doing.