History Recap / ParksAndRecreationS02E09

When Leslie sees how proud the other departments are of their own mural designs and how much fun they had doing it, she (with a little prodding from Mark) decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural and rename it "The Diversity Express" because it's much cheaper. The Parks Department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with pictures of dogs cut out from magazines pasted on that is widely panned by the others. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Donna presents a remake of ''The Last Supper'' with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie proposes that they combine elements from each of their individual designs into one mural, but the end result is a confusing mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, Mark makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, which he says will win because it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department (except for Ron) disagrees.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with pictures of dogs cut out from magazines pasted on that is widely panned by the others. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Donna presents a remake of ''The Last Supper'' with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie proposes that they combine elements from each of their individual designs into one mural, but the end result is a confusing mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, Marks makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, which he says will win because it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department (except for Ron) disagrees.

* NightmareFetishist: April's idea for the replacement mural is made of garbage and is full of horrifying imagery, such as wanting a TV to play footage of knee surgeries and a giant hamster wheel with a fat man running it endlessly for a piece of raw meat. Leslie later describes it as "hellish and might make someone vomit", to which April thanks her for the compliment.

** Tom's mural idea is just a drawing he paid an art school student to make with little instruction, resulting in a colorful bunch of shapes that Tom initially describes as looking like a rainbow lizard vomiting Skittles. When presenting it to the rest of the department, he winds up experiencing his first emotional reaction to a work of art and is very adamant on how the shapes are the key to it all, much to Donna's confusion.

Andy meanwhile has been getting used to his new job as the shoeshine stand operator in City Hall. Ron comes for one. Ron has a bunion on his foot, and the shoeshine helps to massage and ease the pain. He deliberately scuffs his shoe to get another, and then a third one, and during this, Ron makes a loud moaning noise that creeps Andy out.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with pictures of dogs cut out from magazines pasted on that is widely panned by the others. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie proposes that they combine elements from each of their individual designs into one mural, but the end result is a confusing mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, Marks makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, which he says will win because it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department (except for Ron) disagrees.

* LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain: Andy and Ron agree to never speak of that awkward moment ever again.

* TrueArtIsAngsty: Invoked InUniverse with Leslie's idea for a photo of a bread factory fire for the mural replacement, which she's sure will win because it's dark and depressing.

Andy has been getting used to his new job as the shoeshine stand operator in Town Hall. Ron comes for one. Ron has a bunion on his foot, and the shoeshine helps to massage and ease the pain. He deliberately scuffs his shoe to get another, and then a third one, and during this, Ron makes a loud moaning noise that creeps Andy out.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with pictures of dogs cut out from magazines pasted on that is widely panned by the others. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie proposes that they combine elements from each of their individual designs into one mural, but the end result is a confusing mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department (except for Ron) disagrees.

When Leslie sees how proud the other departments are of their own mural designs and how much fun they had doing it, she (with a little prodding from Mark) decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural and rename it "The Diversity Express" because it's much cheaper. The parks department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

* TrueArtIsAngsty: InUniverse with Leslie's idea for a photo of a bread factory fire for the mural replacement, which she's sure will win because it's dark and depressing.
* TrueArtIsIncomprehensible: InUniverse with April's mural pitch, which has a bunch of rats made out of garbage beneath a big TV playing looped videos of knee surgeries while a fat guy, eating raw beef and screaming, runs in a giant hamster wheel next to the mural.

* CringeComedy: The Parks Department's presentation with their "camel" mural. Even April can't help herself when she's barely able to stifle her giggles from the discomfort and awkwardness of the situation.

* NightmareFetishist: April's idea for the replacement mural is made of garbage and is full of horrifying imagery, such as wanting a TV to play footage of knee surgeries and a giant hamster wheel with a fat man running endlessly for a piece of raw meat. Leslie later describes it as "hellish and might make someone vomit", to which April thanks her for the compliment.

* StrictlyFormula: InUniverse with Mark's sketch of a man feeding birds in the park for the replacement mural. Everyone complains that it's boring, but Ron likes it fine.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with pictures of dogs cut out from magazines pasted on that is widely panned by the others. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie proposes that they combine their ideas into one mural, but the end result is a confusing mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department (except for Ron) disagrees.

When Leslie sees how proud the other departments are of their own mural designs and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural and rename it "The Diversity Express" because it's much cheaper. The parks department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

-->'''Leslie:''' I have one question—why?

* NeverLiveItDown: InUniverse. Jerry's mural idea is by far the best, but no one gets past the fact that he accidentally called it a "murinal".

* TerribleArtist: Ann's idea for the mural is a badly drawn park with pictures of dogs cut out of magazines and pasted all over. Tom calls it something a death row inmate would make in art therapy class and even Leslie admits it's trite.

* CringeComedy: The Parks Department's presentation with their "camel" mural. Even April can't help herself when she laughs in discomfort.

* DumpsterDive: April roots around in the garbage to find pieces for her mural.

* TerribleArtist: Ann's idea for the mural is a badly drawn park with pictures of dogs cut out of magazines and pasted all over. Tom calls it something a death row inmate would make in art therapy class.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with cut out pictures of dogs that is widely panned by the others. April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him and dismisses it when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie decides they should combine their ideas, but the end result is a mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

Andy has been getting used to his new job as the shoeshine stand operator in Town Hall. Ron comes for one. Ron has a bunion on his foot, and the shoeshine helps to massage and ease the pain. He deliberately scuffs his shoe to get another, and then a third one, and during this, Ron makes a moaning noise that creeps Andy out.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with cut out pictures of dogs that is widely panned by the others. April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie decides they should combine their ideas, but the end result is a mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

After a day of clumsily avoiding one another, Andy and Ron run into each other in the hallway. After a brief talk, they agree to just pretend that little moment never happened.

When Leslie sees how proud the other departments are of their mural designs, and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural and rename it "The Diversity Express" because it's much cheaper. The parks department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

* NeverLiveItDown: InUniverse. Jerry's mural idea is far and away the best, but no one gets past the fact that he accidentally called it a "murinal".

* StrictlyFormula: InUniverse with Mark's sketch of a man feeding birds in the park for the replacement mural. Everyone complains that it's boring, but Ron likes it fine.

When the "Spirit of Pawnee" mural in city hall is vandalized again, City Manager Paul announces a contest for the departments to come up with a replacement. Leslie gets the Parks department, plus Ann, to submit mural designs so they can vote on their favorite to submit in the contest.

When the department members present their mural ideas, none are quite up to snuff. Tom paid a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with cut out dog pictures that is widely panned by the others. April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bread factory fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie decides they should combine their ideas, but the end result is a mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

When Leslie sees how proud the fire department is of their project, and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural and rename it "The Diversity Express" because it's much cheaper. The parks department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

-->'''Mark:''' Well, you made a camel. ({{beat}}) You've never heard that saying? The camel was actually a horse designed by a committee. And what you guys have here is one ugly camel.

When the "Spirit of Pawnee" mural in city hall is vandalized again, City Manager Paul announces a contest for the departments to come up with a replacement. Leslie gets the Parks department, plus Ann, to submit mural designs so they can vote on their favorite to submit in the contest. Tom pays a local artist to make a painting for him, and he is initially unsatisfied with the result (a colorful abstract painting), but when presenting it to the staff, however, he suddenly experiences his first emotional reaction to a work of art. Ann, who acknowledges a lack of creative talent, presents a drawing of a park with cut out dog pictures that is widely panned by the others. April presents a dark and bizarre piece made of garbage she found in a dumpster. Donna presents a version of "The Last Supper" with famous people from Indiana. Jerry presents a beautiful pointillist photo-mosaic of city hall, but everyone laughs at him when he accidentally calls his mural a "murinal". Leslie proposes a picture of a historic Pawnee bakery fire, which she thinks will win because it is dark and depressing. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie decides they should combine their ideas, but the end result is a mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it's simple and would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

Andy has been getting used to his new job as the shoeshine stand operator in Town Hall. Ron comes for one. Ron has a bunion on his foot, and the shoeshine helps to massage and ease the pain. He deliberately scuffs his shoe to get another, and then a third one, and during this, Ron makes a moaning noise that creeps Andy out. After a day of clumsily avoiding one another, Andy and Ron run into each other in the hallway. After a brief talk, they agree to just pretend that it never happened.

When Leslie sees how proud the fire department is of their project, and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural because it's much cheaper and simply rename the old one "The Diversity Express". The parks department is nevertheless proud of their work, which they hang in their conference room; Ron also hangs Mark's sketch in his office.

* DeliberateValuesDissonance: The murals in city hall are pretty unpleasant, depicting things like the atrocities committed against the Wamapoke people by the white Pawnee settlers. Lampshaded by Leslie:
-->"We also also need better, less offensive history."

When the "Spirit of Pawnee" mural in city hall is vandalized again, City Manager Paul announces a contest for the departments to come up with a replacement. Leslie gets the Parks department, plus Ann, to submit mural designs so they can vote on their favorite to submit in the contest.

Andy shines Ron's shoes. Ron has a bunion on his foot, and the shoeshine helps to massage and ease the pain. He returns for another shoeshine, and during this, Ron makes a moaning noise that creeps Andy out.

Everyone submits their murals, all of which are either badly made, odd or nonsensical. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for their own mural. To make things easier, Leslie decides they should combine their ideas, but the end result is a mess. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a drawing of a man feeding birds in a park, as it would please everyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

Andy and Ron run into each other in the hallway. Andy tries but fails to avoid Ron. After a brief talk, they agree to never speak of what happened.

When Leslie sees how proud the fire department is of their project, and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don't win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural because it's much cheaper.

When the "Spirit of Pawnee" mural in city hall is vandalized again, City Manager Paul announces a contest for the departments to come up with a replacement.

Leslie gets the Parks department, plus Ann, to submit mural designs so they can vote on their favorite to submit in the contest.

Andy shines Ron's shoes. Ron has a bunion on his foot, but during the shoeshine it doesn't feel as bad. He returns for another shoe shine, and another. At one point, Ron makes a moaning noise that creeps Andy out.

Everyone submits their murals. When it's time for a vote, everyone votes for his or her own mural. Leslie decides they should combine their ideas. When consulted, Mark calls it a "camel", citing the saying that the camel looks like a horse that was designed by a committee. At Leslie's request, he makes a mural that would please anyone, and Leslie decides to use it, though the rest of the department disagrees.

Andy and Ron run into each other in the hallway. Andy tries but fails to avoid Ron. They agree to never speak of what happened.

When Leslie sees how proud the fire department is of their project, and how much fun they had doing it, she decides they will submit the "camel". They don’t win the contest, but neither does anyone else. The city decides to restore the old mural because it's much cheaper.

When the "Spirit of Pawnee" mural in city hall is vandalized again, a contest is held for the departments to come up with a replacement. Meanwhile, Andy and Ron share an awkward moment at Andy's new shoeshine job.

'''The Camel'''

-->"We also need less offensive history."