Donna and Joe have closed on a condo in Seattle, Leslie and Ben will be splitting their time between DC and Pawnee for Leslie's new job, April and Andy have found a place in DC as well, and Garry is retiring (again). Then comes the news that Mayor Gunderson has passed as well. At the memorial, the characters process their grief in different ways. Ben enlists April and Garry to help find an interim mayor. Leslie attempts to convince Tom to propose to Lucy. Ron, while unaffected by the death of the Mayor, collapses upon hearing that his barber, Salvatore, has passed as well. Finally, Ethel Beavers reveals that she has been Mayor Gunderson's lover for 46 years (he was in an open marriage) and she regrets not expressing her love for him sooner.
Leslie and Tom plan out Tom's proposal for Lucy. They order a last-minute banner, where Leslie reminds the banner store owner that she has spent over $100,000 dollars at his store, which caused her credit card company to call and ask if she was mentally stable. The two then begin filming an action movie in Ted's store (complete with stunt doubles and Jean-Ralphio as the villain). However, as soon as Lucy arrives in Pawnee, Tom throws out his old plan and proposes to Lucy at the Snakehole Lounge, where they first met, using items from their first date. She accepts.
Ben, April, and Garry begin interviewing potential interim Mayors, starting with Bobby Newport, who declines since he is too busy partaking in space tourism. After moving through several other notable Pawneeans, including Joan Callamezzo (who declines due to her claimed youthful age of 27), Dr. Saperstein (who declines for lack of time due to his mogul status), and Howard Tuttleman (who reverts to his The Douche DJ persona), April suggests Ben himself. However, after finally moving on from the Ice Town fiasco from his past, Ben decides to pass the mayoral position onto Garry, who is overjoyed. He even receives an amazing inauguration celebration, including a throne, red carpet, choir, Roman legions, a hot air balloon, and fireworks.
At Salvatore's funeral, Ron declares that the three most important people in a man's life are his barber, his butcher, and his lover, and places $8 dollars, the cost of a haircut, lovingly in Salvatore's coffin. It later emerges that Ron's sadness truly stems from his fear of change and the amount of change happening around him; with all his friends moving away, Salvatore was the one constant left in Ron's life. After some sage words from Ron Dunn, Donna gets the idea to take Ron to Typhoon. While Typhoon is much more talkative than Ron's former barber, Ron quite enjoys Typhoon's disdain for Europe and bicycles, and it becomes clear that he has found his new barber.
Tropes
- Actor Allusion: Donna refers to Ron Dunn as a "spiritual cowboy"; Sam Elliott was typecast as a cowboy for much of his career.
- Anguished Declaration of Love: Ethel is tearful as she speaks of her relationship with Mayor Gunderson and regrets that she never got to tell him how much she loved him when he was alive.
- Back for the Finale: Many Pawnee resident recurring characters make a final appearance at Mayor Gunderson's funeral or in the search for a new Pawnee mayor. A variant as they appear in this, the penultimate episode, which allowed for the finale to focus on the main ensemble.
- Big "NO!": April lets one of these out when Ben decides Garry should be the Interim Mayor.
- Faint in Shock: Ron passes out when he finds out his personal barber died. Apparently, the man had been the one constant left in his life.
- The Ghost: Mayor Gunderson had been one for the whole series until this episode and is already dead.
- Meaningful Funeral: The episode itself is named "Two Funerals".
- Odd Friendship: Ron, a no-nonsense manly man, striking a friendship with Typhoon, a Camp Gay hairdresser, over their hatred for Europe and bicycles.
- Psychopathic Womanchild: Mona Lisa turns into one of these if someone doesn't give her "money please".
- Secret Relationship: Ethel Beavers reveals she had been in one with Mayor Gunderson (he and his wife had an open relationship).
- Terrible Interviewees Montage: In their search for an interim mayor, Ben and April welcome various Pawnee celebrities: Bobby Newport is still out of touch millionaire, Joan Callamezzo insists she doesn't fulfil the age requirement because she's only 27, Dr. Saperstein brings his insufferable daughter who demolishes the office, and The Douche is as vulgar as ever.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: Garry is named the interim mayor of Pawnee, and everyone comes out to congratulate him, with Leslie throwing him an elaborate inauguration ceremony complete with a hot air balloon ride.
