Freddy Spaghetti
Encyclopedia
"Freddy Spaghetti" is the second season
finale of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation
, and the 30th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC
in the United States on May 20, 2010. In the episode, as Ron
helps state auditors make governmental cuts amid a government shutdown, Leslie
tries to save a children's concert starring musician Freddy Spaghetti. Meanwhile, Andy
asks April
to be his girlfriend, while Ann
tries to cope with her renewed feelings for Andy following her breakup with Mark
.
The episode was written by Daniel J. Goor
and directed by Jason Woliner
. "Freddy Spaghetti" featured the second performances of Adam Scott
and Rob Lowe
as two state auditors sent to help Pawnee through its budget crisis, as well as the second appearance by Natalie Morales
as Tom's girlfriend Lucy. Jama Williamson reprised her recurring guest role as Tom's ex-wife Wendy, and comedian and writer Brian McCann
portrayed Freddy Spaghetti.
"Freddy Spaghetti" marked the final performance for Paul Schneider
playing Mark Brendanawicz as a regular cast member. The final scene between Mark and Leslie, sitting on a bench together at a lot Leslie hopes to turn into a park, mirrored their scenes together in the first season
finale "Rock Show
". "Freddy Spaghetti" was also a turning point in the romantic subplot between Andy and April, who share their first kiss in the episode.
According to Nielsen Media Research
, "Freddy Spaghetti" was seen by 4.55 million household viewers, a five percent increase in viewership compared to the previous episode, "The Master Plan
". The episode received generally positive reviews, with many commentators calling it a strong ending to an excellent season. "Freddy Spaghetti" and the rest of the second season of Parks and Recreation was released on DVD in the United States on November 30, 2010, which included an extended 26-minute "producer's cut" of the episode.
(Amy Poehler
) explains at a town meeting that a family concert featuring children's entertainer Freddy Spaghetti (Brian McCann
) must be cancelled due to the shutdown, the citizens are outraged. Leslie visits state auditors Chris
(Rob Lowe
) and Ben
(Adam Scott
) seeking a way to keep the concert, but Ben insists there is simply no money for it. When Leslie complains to city planner Mark
(Paul Schneider
) about her situation, she learns he has taken a buyout and plans to join a construction company, partially in response to Ann
(Rashida Jones
) having broken up with him. Meanwhile, Ann is struggling with her redeveloping feelings for her ex-boyfriend Andy
(Chris Pratt
). Later, Ann suggests to Leslie she should hold the concert at Lot 48, as it is not a park and therefore not shut down. Meanwhile, April
(Aubrey Plaza) and Andy finally reveal their feelings to each other, but April still rejects him, believing Andy still has feelings for Ann.
Meanwhile, Ron
(Nick Offerman
) has been assigned to a task force to help fix the city's budget problem. A small government advocate, Ron is delighted at the prospect of deep municipal cuts, but when he learns the auditors plan to fire Leslie, Ron refuses and offers his job instead. In explaining her dedication, Ron accidentally alerts them about the Freddy Spaghetti concert. Chris and Ben arrive to the concert to shut it down, but Leslie tells them everything has been donated and nothing is on the taxpayer's dime. However, Leslie learns Freddy Spaghetti has booked another gig. She asks Andy to play instead, but he is hit by a car while driving his new motorcycle home to retrieve his guitar, breaking his right arm. Just as the concert begins, Freddy Spaghetti surprisingly arrives, having been paid by Ben to perform at Leslie's concert. Ben explains he is not a bad person, but the budget still has to be slashed.
Visiting Andy in the hospital, Ann suddenly kisses him, but immediately stops and guiltily walks out. Later, April, also relieved to see Andy is fine, finally agrees to go out with him. After they kiss, Andy decides to be honest and tells her about the earlier kiss with Ann. April angrily storms out, taking back her decision to go out with him. That night, Leslie sits on a bench in the empty Lot 48 and Mark joins her. Mark gives her plans he drew up for a park at Lot 48, before kissing her goodbye on the cheek. The next day, Ron withdraws from the budget task force and appoints Leslie in his place. As Tom
(Aziz Ansari
) and his new girlfriend Lucy (Natalie Morales
) are clearing out his office, he notices Ron is wearing a red shirt and black pants, the "Tiger Woods
" outfit he always wears the day after having sex. Tom's ex-wife Wendy (Jama Williamson
) then appears and kisses Ron and the two leave together, shocking Tom.
, who previously penned the episodes "The Reporter
", "Hunting Trip
" and "Leslie's House
". The idea of state auditors visiting Pawnee, and the subsequent government shutdown there, was conceived from news reports at the time of a number of states considering shutting down schools, parks and other services due to the global recession. During an interview with the Los Angeles Times
, Parks and Recreation co-creator Michael Schur
cited stories about Kansas City
closing down a great number of their public schools, and Idaho
threatening to shut down the state parks department. In that interview, he said, "The entire state of Idaho was threatening to shut down the Parks department, and Idaho is essentially just one large park." That line, almost verbatim, was used in the script when Ben explained to Leslie the seriousness of the economic recession around the nation.
Schur said the writing staff had difficulty scripting the scene where Ann kisses Andy: "We had a lot of discussions about this because we didn't want Ann to be too much of a jerk and kiss a guy who likes another girl, and we didn't want Andy to be too much of a jerk because he likes April. It was very delicate." The episode marked a turning point for the romantic subplot between April and Andy, who shared their first kiss of the series in "Freddy Spaghetti". Goor said filming of that scene, "They nailed the kiss immediately." While trying to get April to talk to him, Andy pretends he doesn't want to talk to her at all, which he incorrectly calls "reverse psychiatry" instead of reverse psychology
. This line was improvised by Chris Pratt.
finale, "Rock Show
", in which the two shared a kiss while overlooking the lot while it was still a construction pit. Schur said of the scene, "It's great because Leslie and Mark, it was such a disastrous moment last time (at the pit) and he didn't really respect her, and a lot's happened in a year." Goor said of using that setting, "I liked the symmetry of having it play a critical, and opposite role in this finale. Last year, they sat on the bench and kissed, and it seemed like they might be getting back together. This year, they sat on the bench and Mark kissed Leslie goodbye." The bench they sit in during that scene is the same one they sat on during their kiss scene in "Rock Show". Throughout the second season, that bench was in Leslie's office. Schur said, "We decided that in the reality of the show she brought it to the lot for this moment. It's a little bit of a stretch, but, you know."
"Freddy Spaghetti" marked the second appearances by Adam Scott and Rob Lowe as state auditors sent to solve Pawnee's budget problems. Lowe's Chris Traeger character is energetic, eccentric and overly cheerful, whereas Scott's Ben Wyatt is more pragmatic and realistic. Scott was always intended to become a regular cast member starting in the third season
, while Lowe was originally expected to appear only in a few more episodes in a guest role. However, after those episodes were filmed, Lowe later joined the show as a regular cast member. Lowe improvised many aspects of his character, including when he handed Ben a water bottle and said, "You should hydrate," and when he clapped after Leslie sang at the concert, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands
." Additionally, the episode was the second appearance of Natalie Morales as Lucy, a Pawnee bartender and romantic interest for Tom. "Freddy Spaghetti" also included appearances by recurring guest stars Jama Williamson, who plays Tom Haverford's ex-wife Wendy, and Cooper Thornton, who plays the sarcastic and deadpan Dr. Harris, who tended to Andy's broken arm. Comedian and writer Brian McCann
portrayed Freddy Spaghetti himself in the episode. While singing at the concert, McCann improvised a great deal of non-child-friendly dialogue that could not be used in the final episode. Among them were a song about how he pays too much alimony
to his wife, and another about meeting all the children's mothers backstage after the show. Guy Stevenson, a MADtv
writer and friend of Parks and Recreation cast member Retta, played the man who shouted during a municipal meeting, "With the government shut down, who's going to stop Al-Qaeda
?"
, who previously directed the Parks and Recreation episodes "Beauty Pageant
" and "Woman of the Year
". The idea of Andy injuring himself in a motorcycle accident was conceived early in the filming of the second season by Chris Pratt. Pratt's stunt double, Joe Bucaro III, is considered one of the leading motorcycle stuntmen in the United States, and Pratt suggested that a stunt involving Andy crashing a motorcycle would be very funny. Bucaro filmed two takes of the crash in "Freddy Spaghetti", and the first take was used in the final episode. At the beginning of the episode, while roller-skating through the corridors of city hall, Andy unsuccessfully tries to jump over a desk and falls violently to the ground. Unlike the motorcycle crash, Pratt performed that stunt himself, and had to film about six takes of it.
During one scene, Ron slips and falls on the grass while running to warn Leslie about Ben's plan to shut down the Freddy Spaghetti concert. That fall was neither scripted nor accidental, but rather planned and improvised by Nick Offerman. Aziz Ansari described the physical comedy as "one of my favorite shots in the series". In a different scene, April is chewing on a hay-straw while raking hay before the concert, and angrily spits the straw out when Andy tries to talk to her. That moment was improvised by actress Aubrey Plaza. Woliner asked her not to do it, but she insisted, correctly predicting it would make the final cut if she did it. In a different scene, Ron eats a turkey leg wrapped in bacon. The original script called simply for a large turkey leg, but a props employee suggested wrapping it in bacon based on Ron's well-known affinity for the food. It was Woliner who suggested that Ron say the snack was nicknamed "the Swanson".
's "On Bended Knee
" be playing right now?", referring to a song in the background. The line was improvised by Aziz Ansari and, originally, the song was not playing, but Michael Schur said the line was so funny that he successfully sought permission to use the song and added it to the background in post-production. At the Freddy Spaghetti concert, Leslie asks a little girl which song was her favorite, to which she replies "Penne
and the Jets", a pasta-inspired version of the Elton John
song "Benny and the Jets". This line was thought of by Amy Poehler.
While packing his office at the end of the episode, Tom frantically looks for his autographed photo of actor Jamie Foxx
. Ansari said he had been trying to work a reference to Foxx into the show for months. Tom's observation that Ron always dresses like golf pro Tiger Woods after having sex was a joke previously used in the episode "Ron and Tammy
". The original joke was written before the story of Woods' extramarital affairs scandal broke in the news in November 2009. "Freddy Spaghetti" included a reference to the previous episode "Galentine's Day
", in which Andy discussed a song he wrote called "Sex Hair", about how one could tell someone had sex based on how matted their hair is. In the season finale, Andy rewrites the song to be called "Pickle Hair" so it can be played at the kid-friendly concert.
, with a 2.1 rating/7 share among viewers between ages 18 and 49. It marked a five percent increase in viewership compared to the previous episode, "The Master Plan
", which itself had increased in the ratings compared to the previous week. "Freddy Spaghetti" also had a higher rating than the first season finale, "Rock Show". Parks and Recreation ranked second in its timeslot with "Freddy Spaghetti", behind the fifth season
finale of the Fox
crime drama Bones
, but higher than the tenth season finale
of the CBS
crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
and an episode
of the ABC
science-fiction drama FlashForward
.
"Freddy Spaghetti" received generally positive reviews. Leonard Pierce of The A.V. Club
felt the script balanced all the character subplots extremely well, writing, "It's this ability to hold down the 'situation' part of situation comedy, while never scrimping on the comedy, that makes it the class of the NBC lineup—the purest, if not the best, sitcom on the air." Pierce also complimented the final scene between Leslie and Mark, which he said brought the season to "a touching full circle". IGN
writer Matt Fowler ranked the episode as "outstanding" and claimed it highlighted the strengths of Leslie, by emphasizing the passion with which she views her job, and Ron, by showing how much he cares for his employees even though he hates his job. Fowler said Schneider's departure was handled well, even though he described Mark as the show's least interesting character. HitFix
writer Alan Sepinwall said "Freddy Spaghetti" did a good job of bringing closure to the season and starting new storylines regarding Pawnee's budget problems. Sepinwall praised the chemistry between Poehler and Scott, as well as Lowe's comedic performance, but said the April and Andy romantic subplot was less consistently effective than the similar pairing between Jim
and Pam Halpert on the NBC comedy, The Office.
New York
magazine writer Steve Kendell said, "The finale was as on point as any episode this year—smart, funny, crisply written, and poignant." Kandell said Mark accepting a buyout felt like a "perfectly sensible and organic to the story" way to remove the character from the series, and described the ending scene with Ron and Wendy as an effective cliffhanger
building up to the third season. Eric Hochberger of TV Fanatic said, "We can sum up the episode in one word: perfection." Hochberger praised the characterization in the script, and particularly enjoyed that the former pit, a long-time device for the series, was used for the concert and Mark's departure. CraveOnline
writer Blair Marnell described "Freddy Spaghetti" as one of the best episodes of the series. He praised the writing, particularly the jokes involving Andy and Ron's love of budget cuts, but said Leslie's character ultimately carried the story and had the best jokes. Kona Gallagher of TV Squad said the episode "end[ed] an already phenomenal season on a high note" and said she loved the symmetry of the finale. Gallagher particularly praised Scott's new character, claiming "his bruised idealism is a nice match for Leslie's blind idealism", but said Lowe's character continued to lack depth, and described the April and Andy subplot as predictable.
"Freddy Spaghetti" was the last new episode of Parks and Recreation to air for eight months (until "Go Big or Go Home
") because, after the season finale aired, NBC announced the show was being moved to an undisclosed midseason premiere date to allow the network's new comedy, Outsourced
, to run in the Thursday two-hour comedy schedule block. New York magazine writer Steve Kandell noted this move by NBC against the show bore some "thematic similarities" between the government shutdown plot of "Freddy Spaghetti". It was eventually announced the Parks and Recreation third season would premiere on January 20, 2011.
website. It included four extra minutes of deleted scenes, plus additional footage with Lowe, Scott and the regular cast members. This version of the episode, along with the other 23 second season episodes of Parks and Recreation, was later released on a four-disc DVD
set in the United States on November 30, 2010. The DVD included deleted scenes for each episode.
Among the deleted scenes in the producer's cut were a scene of Tom and Lucy running off to Ann's house to have sex, where they are interrupted by a nonchalant and seemingly unfazed Chris Traeger. Another cut scene included Tom and Ann in which the two share a pleasant moment and Tom cheers her up over her conflicting romantic feelings, only for Tom to ruin it by proposing three-way sex between them and Lucy. The DVD also included a commentary track for "Freddy Spaghetti" featuring Amy Poehler, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Rashida Jones, Adam Scott, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Jim O'Heir, Retta and Michael Schur.
Parks and Recreation (season 2)
The second season of Parks and Recreation originally aired in the United States on the NBC television network starting September 17, 2009, and ended on May 20, 2010. The season was produced by Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, and series co-creators Greg Daniels and Michael Schur...
finale of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation
Parks and Recreation
Parks and Recreation is an American comedy television series on NBC that focuses on Leslie Knope , a mid-level bureaucrat in the parks department of Pawnee, a fictional town in Indiana. Created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, the series debuted on April 9, 2009; it has run for three seasons and...
, and the 30th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in the United States on May 20, 2010. In the episode, as Ron
Ron Swanson
Ronald Ulysses "Ron" Swanson is a fictional character played by Nick Offerman in the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation on NBC. Ron is parks department director in the Indiana city of Pawnee and the immediate superior of protagonist Leslie Knope...
helps state auditors make governmental cuts amid a government shutdown, Leslie
Leslie Knope
Leslie Barbara Knope is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is portrayed by Amy Poehler. Poehler garnered two Emmy Award nominations for Best Lead Actress in Comedy Series for her role.-Background:...
tries to save a children's concert starring musician Freddy Spaghetti. Meanwhile, Andy
Andy Dwyer
Andrew Maxwell "Andy" Dwyer is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is Ann Perkins' ex-boyfriend, a talented-if-yet-unsuccessful musician, a shoe-shiner at Pawnee City Hall, and April Ludgate's husband. He is portrayed by Chris Pratt.-Background:At the start of the...
asks April
April Ludgate
April Roberta Ludgate is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is an apathetic college student employed by the Pawnee Department of Parks and Recreation as Ron Swanson's assistant. She is married to Andy Dwyer. She is portrayed by Aubrey Plaza...
to be his girlfriend, while Ann
Ann Perkins
Ann Meredith Perkins is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is a nurse and best friend of Leslie Knope. She is portrayed by Rashida Jones.-Season one:...
tries to cope with her renewed feelings for Andy following her breakup with Mark
Mark Brendanawicz
Mark Brendanawicz is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is the city planner for Pawnee, Indiana, one of Ann Perkins's ex-boyfriends, and Leslie Knope's colleague. He is portrayed by Paul Schneider...
.
The episode was written by Daniel J. Goor
Daniel J. Goor
Daniel J. Goor is an Emmy award winning writer, who has written for several comedy talk shows including The Daily Show, Last Call with Carson Daly and Late Night with Conan O'Brien. He is currently serving as producer of the NBC primetime series Parks and Recreation. He writes for Power Rangers...
and directed by Jason Woliner
Jason Woliner
Jason Woliner is an American comedy director, writer, editor and also a former child actor. He is the non-performing member of the comedy group "Human Giant" and has directed the bulk of their output. The group, which also consists of comedians Aziz Ansari, Rob Huebel, and Paul Scheer, produced an...
. "Freddy Spaghetti" featured the second performances of Adam Scott
Adam Scott (actor)
Adam Scott is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Henry Pollard in the Starz comedy series Party Down and as Ben Wyatt in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation....
and Rob Lowe
Rob Lowe
Robert Hepler "Rob" Lowe is an American actor. Lowe came to prominence after appearing in films such as The Outsiders, Oxford Blues, About Last Night..., St. Elmo's Fire, and Wayne's World. On television, Lowe is known for his role as Sam Seaborn on The West Wing and his role as Senator Robert...
as two state auditors sent to help Pawnee through its budget crisis, as well as the second appearance by Natalie Morales
Natalie Morales (actress)
Natalie Morales is an American actress of Cuban descent.Growing up, she attended St. Agatha Catholic School before going to Southwest High School, and participated in the University of Miami Dow Jones Minority High School Journalism Workshop...
as Tom's girlfriend Lucy. Jama Williamson reprised her recurring guest role as Tom's ex-wife Wendy, and comedian and writer Brian McCann
Brian McCann (actor)
Brian McCann is an American Emmy and WGA award-winning writer/actor/comedian best known for his sketch comedy work on the late night talk show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and more recently on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien and Conan.-Biography:McCann was born and raised in Wheaton,...
portrayed Freddy Spaghetti.
"Freddy Spaghetti" marked the final performance for Paul Schneider
Paul Schneider (actor)
Paul Andrew Schneider is an American film actor.-Early life and career:Schneider was born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina. He graduated from the North Carolina School of Arts...
playing Mark Brendanawicz as a regular cast member. The final scene between Mark and Leslie, sitting on a bench together at a lot Leslie hopes to turn into a park, mirrored their scenes together in the first season
Parks and Recreation (season 1)
The first season of Parks and Recreation originally aired in the United States on the NBC television network between April 9 and May 14, 2009...
finale "Rock Show
Rock Show (Parks and Recreation)
"Rock Show" is the sixth episode and season finale of the first season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 14, 2009. It was written by Norm Hiscock and directed by Michael Schur...
". "Freddy Spaghetti" was also a turning point in the romantic subplot between Andy and April, who share their first kiss in the episode.
According to Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, "Freddy Spaghetti" was seen by 4.55 million household viewers, a five percent increase in viewership compared to the previous episode, "The Master Plan
The Master Plan (Parks and Recreation)
The Master Plan is the 23rd and penultimate episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the 29th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 13, 2010...
". The episode received generally positive reviews, with many commentators calling it a strong ending to an excellent season. "Freddy Spaghetti" and the rest of the second season of Parks and Recreation was released on DVD in the United States on November 30, 2010, which included an extended 26-minute "producer's cut" of the episode.
Plot
The Pawnee government has shut down due to a budget crisis. When LeslieLeslie Knope
Leslie Barbara Knope is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is portrayed by Amy Poehler. Poehler garnered two Emmy Award nominations for Best Lead Actress in Comedy Series for her role.-Background:...
(Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler
Amy Meredith Poehler is an American comedian, actress and voice actress. She was a cast member on the NBC television entertainment show Saturday Night Live from 2001 to 2008. In 2004, she starred in the film Mean Girls with Tina Fey, with whom she worked again in Baby Mama in 2008. She is...
) explains at a town meeting that a family concert featuring children's entertainer Freddy Spaghetti (Brian McCann
Brian McCann (actor)
Brian McCann is an American Emmy and WGA award-winning writer/actor/comedian best known for his sketch comedy work on the late night talk show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and more recently on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien and Conan.-Biography:McCann was born and raised in Wheaton,...
) must be cancelled due to the shutdown, the citizens are outraged. Leslie visits state auditors Chris
Chris Traeger
Christopher "Chris" Traeger is a fictional character played by Rob Lowe in the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation on NBC. He began on the show as an Indiana state auditor who visits the fictional city of Pawnee to help solve their crippling budget problems, and eventually...
(Rob Lowe
Rob Lowe
Robert Hepler "Rob" Lowe is an American actor. Lowe came to prominence after appearing in films such as The Outsiders, Oxford Blues, About Last Night..., St. Elmo's Fire, and Wayne's World. On television, Lowe is known for his role as Sam Seaborn on The West Wing and his role as Senator Robert...
) and Ben
Ben Wyatt (Parks and Recreation)
Benjamin "Ben" Wyatt is a character in the TV series Parks and Recreation. The character guest starred in two episodes of season two and was upgraded to a regular in season three. Ben is a state auditor who comes into Pawnee with Chris Traeger to evaluate the town's funds at the end of the second...
(Adam Scott
Adam Scott (actor)
Adam Scott is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Henry Pollard in the Starz comedy series Party Down and as Ben Wyatt in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation....
) seeking a way to keep the concert, but Ben insists there is simply no money for it. When Leslie complains to city planner Mark
Mark Brendanawicz
Mark Brendanawicz is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is the city planner for Pawnee, Indiana, one of Ann Perkins's ex-boyfriends, and Leslie Knope's colleague. He is portrayed by Paul Schneider...
(Paul Schneider
Paul Schneider (actor)
Paul Andrew Schneider is an American film actor.-Early life and career:Schneider was born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina. He graduated from the North Carolina School of Arts...
) about her situation, she learns he has taken a buyout and plans to join a construction company, partially in response to Ann
Ann Perkins
Ann Meredith Perkins is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is a nurse and best friend of Leslie Knope. She is portrayed by Rashida Jones.-Season one:...
(Rashida Jones
Rashida Jones
Rashida Leah Jones is an American film and television actress, comic book author, screenwriter and occasional singer. She played Louisa Fenn on Boston Public and Karen Filippelli on The Office as well as roles in the films I Love You, Man and The Social Network...
) having broken up with him. Meanwhile, Ann is struggling with her redeveloping feelings for her ex-boyfriend Andy
Andy Dwyer
Andrew Maxwell "Andy" Dwyer is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is Ann Perkins' ex-boyfriend, a talented-if-yet-unsuccessful musician, a shoe-shiner at Pawnee City Hall, and April Ludgate's husband. He is portrayed by Chris Pratt.-Background:At the start of the...
(Chris Pratt
Chris Pratt
Christopher Michael "Chris" Pratt is an American actor, best known for his roles as Harold Brighton "Bright" Abbott in the television series Everwood, the recurring character Winchester "Ché" Cook in season 4 of The OC, Andy Dwyer in the television series Parks and Recreation and for portraying...
). Later, Ann suggests to Leslie she should hold the concert at Lot 48, as it is not a park and therefore not shut down. Meanwhile, April
April Ludgate
April Roberta Ludgate is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. She is an apathetic college student employed by the Pawnee Department of Parks and Recreation as Ron Swanson's assistant. She is married to Andy Dwyer. She is portrayed by Aubrey Plaza...
(Aubrey Plaza) and Andy finally reveal their feelings to each other, but April still rejects him, believing Andy still has feelings for Ann.
Meanwhile, Ron
Ron Swanson
Ronald Ulysses "Ron" Swanson is a fictional character played by Nick Offerman in the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation on NBC. Ron is parks department director in the Indiana city of Pawnee and the immediate superior of protagonist Leslie Knope...
(Nick Offerman
Nick Offerman
Nick Offerman is an American actor best known for his role as Ron Swanson in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation. He is also a skilled woodworker.-Early life and career:...
) has been assigned to a task force to help fix the city's budget problem. A small government advocate, Ron is delighted at the prospect of deep municipal cuts, but when he learns the auditors plan to fire Leslie, Ron refuses and offers his job instead. In explaining her dedication, Ron accidentally alerts them about the Freddy Spaghetti concert. Chris and Ben arrive to the concert to shut it down, but Leslie tells them everything has been donated and nothing is on the taxpayer's dime. However, Leslie learns Freddy Spaghetti has booked another gig. She asks Andy to play instead, but he is hit by a car while driving his new motorcycle home to retrieve his guitar, breaking his right arm. Just as the concert begins, Freddy Spaghetti surprisingly arrives, having been paid by Ben to perform at Leslie's concert. Ben explains he is not a bad person, but the budget still has to be slashed.
Visiting Andy in the hospital, Ann suddenly kisses him, but immediately stops and guiltily walks out. Later, April, also relieved to see Andy is fine, finally agrees to go out with him. After they kiss, Andy decides to be honest and tells her about the earlier kiss with Ann. April angrily storms out, taking back her decision to go out with him. That night, Leslie sits on a bench in the empty Lot 48 and Mark joins her. Mark gives her plans he drew up for a park at Lot 48, before kissing her goodbye on the cheek. The next day, Ron withdraws from the budget task force and appoints Leslie in his place. As Tom
Tom Haverford
Thomas Montgomery "Tom" Haverford , born Darwish Sabir Ismael Gani, is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is a sarcastic, underachieving government official for the city of Pawnee who is revered for his high levels of swagger and unmatched entrepreneurial skills...
(Aziz Ansari
Aziz Ansari
Aziz Ansari is an American actor, writer, and stand-up comedian. He currently stars as Tom Haverford on the NBC show Parks and Recreation....
) and his new girlfriend Lucy (Natalie Morales
Natalie Morales (actress)
Natalie Morales is an American actress of Cuban descent.Growing up, she attended St. Agatha Catholic School before going to Southwest High School, and participated in the University of Miami Dow Jones Minority High School Journalism Workshop...
) are clearing out his office, he notices Ron is wearing a red shirt and black pants, the "Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
" outfit he always wears the day after having sex. Tom's ex-wife Wendy (Jama Williamson
Jama Williamson
Jama Williamson is an American actress. She was active in New York City theater throughout the early 2000s, during which she appeared in such shows as Avery Crozier's Eat the Runt, Hunt Holman's Spanish Girl, A. R. Gurney's Sylvia and Simon Mendes da Costa's Losing Louis...
) then appears and kisses Ron and the two leave together, shocking Tom.
Writing
"Freddy Spaghetti" was written by Daniel J. GoorDaniel J. Goor
Daniel J. Goor is an Emmy award winning writer, who has written for several comedy talk shows including The Daily Show, Last Call with Carson Daly and Late Night with Conan O'Brien. He is currently serving as producer of the NBC primetime series Parks and Recreation. He writes for Power Rangers...
, who previously penned the episodes "The Reporter
The Reporter (Parks and Recreation)
"The Reporter" is the third episode of the first season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 23, 2009. The episode was written by Daniel J. Goor and directed by Jeffrey Blitz...
", "Hunting Trip
Hunting Trip
"Hunting Trip" is the tenth episode of the second season of American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the sixteenth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on November 19, 2009...
" and "Leslie's House
Leslie's House
Leslie's House is the fourteenth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the twentieth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 21, 2010...
". The idea of state auditors visiting Pawnee, and the subsequent government shutdown there, was conceived from news reports at the time of a number of states considering shutting down schools, parks and other services due to the global recession. During an interview with the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, Parks and Recreation co-creator Michael Schur
Michael Schur
Michael Herbert Schur is an American television producer and writer, best known for his work on the NBC comedy series The Office and Parks and Recreation, the latter of which he co-created along with Greg Daniels...
cited stories about Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
closing down a great number of their public schools, and Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
threatening to shut down the state parks department. In that interview, he said, "The entire state of Idaho was threatening to shut down the Parks department, and Idaho is essentially just one large park." That line, almost verbatim, was used in the script when Ben explained to Leslie the seriousness of the economic recession around the nation.
Schur said the writing staff had difficulty scripting the scene where Ann kisses Andy: "We had a lot of discussions about this because we didn't want Ann to be too much of a jerk and kiss a guy who likes another girl, and we didn't want Andy to be too much of a jerk because he likes April. It was very delicate." The episode marked a turning point for the romantic subplot between April and Andy, who shared their first kiss of the series in "Freddy Spaghetti". Goor said filming of that scene, "They nailed the kiss immediately." While trying to get April to talk to him, Andy pretends he doesn't want to talk to her at all, which he incorrectly calls "reverse psychiatry" instead of reverse psychology
Reverse psychology
Reverse psychology is a technique involving the advocacy of a belief or behavior that is opposite to the one desired, with the expectation that this approach will encourage the subject of the persuasion to do what actually is desired: the opposite of what is suggested...
. This line was improvised by Chris Pratt.
Casting
"Freddy Spaghetti" was the final episode to feature Paul Schneider as a regular cast member as Mark Brendanawicz. Schneider left the series to focus on his film career, although both Schneider and Schur indicated they would like him to return for guest appearances in future episodes. The final scene between Leslie and Mark in "Freddy Spaghetti", in which the two sit together at Lot 48, mirrors their scenes together in the first seasonParks and Recreation (season 1)
The first season of Parks and Recreation originally aired in the United States on the NBC television network between April 9 and May 14, 2009...
finale, "Rock Show
Rock Show (Parks and Recreation)
"Rock Show" is the sixth episode and season finale of the first season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 14, 2009. It was written by Norm Hiscock and directed by Michael Schur...
", in which the two shared a kiss while overlooking the lot while it was still a construction pit. Schur said of the scene, "It's great because Leslie and Mark, it was such a disastrous moment last time (at the pit) and he didn't really respect her, and a lot's happened in a year." Goor said of using that setting, "I liked the symmetry of having it play a critical, and opposite role in this finale. Last year, they sat on the bench and kissed, and it seemed like they might be getting back together. This year, they sat on the bench and Mark kissed Leslie goodbye." The bench they sit in during that scene is the same one they sat on during their kiss scene in "Rock Show". Throughout the second season, that bench was in Leslie's office. Schur said, "We decided that in the reality of the show she brought it to the lot for this moment. It's a little bit of a stretch, but, you know."
"Freddy Spaghetti" marked the second appearances by Adam Scott and Rob Lowe as state auditors sent to solve Pawnee's budget problems. Lowe's Chris Traeger character is energetic, eccentric and overly cheerful, whereas Scott's Ben Wyatt is more pragmatic and realistic. Scott was always intended to become a regular cast member starting in the third season
Parks and Recreation (season 3)
The third season of Parks and Recreation originally aired in the United States on the NBC television network between January 20 and May 19, 2011. Like the previous seasons, it focused on Leslie Knope and her staff at the parks and recreation department of the fictional Indiana town of Pawnee...
, while Lowe was originally expected to appear only in a few more episodes in a guest role. However, after those episodes were filmed, Lowe later joined the show as a regular cast member. Lowe improvised many aspects of his character, including when he handed Ben a water bottle and said, "You should hydrate," and when he clapped after Leslie sang at the concert, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands
If You're Happy and You Know It
"If You're Happy and You Know It" is a popular repetitive children's song, stemming from an old Latvian folk song. The song is supposed to belong to the public domain, although many of the different versions of the song are still protected by copyright law...
." Additionally, the episode was the second appearance of Natalie Morales as Lucy, a Pawnee bartender and romantic interest for Tom. "Freddy Spaghetti" also included appearances by recurring guest stars Jama Williamson, who plays Tom Haverford's ex-wife Wendy, and Cooper Thornton, who plays the sarcastic and deadpan Dr. Harris, who tended to Andy's broken arm. Comedian and writer Brian McCann
Brian McCann (actor)
Brian McCann is an American Emmy and WGA award-winning writer/actor/comedian best known for his sketch comedy work on the late night talk show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and more recently on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien and Conan.-Biography:McCann was born and raised in Wheaton,...
portrayed Freddy Spaghetti himself in the episode. While singing at the concert, McCann improvised a great deal of non-child-friendly dialogue that could not be used in the final episode. Among them were a song about how he pays too much alimony
Alimony
Alimony is a U.S. term denoting a legal obligation to provide financial support to one's spouse from the other spouse after marital separation or from the ex-spouse upon divorce...
to his wife, and another about meeting all the children's mothers backstage after the show. Guy Stevenson, a MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
writer and friend of Parks and Recreation cast member Retta, played the man who shouted during a municipal meeting, "With the government shut down, who's going to stop Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
?"
Filming
The episode was directed by Jason WolinerJason Woliner
Jason Woliner is an American comedy director, writer, editor and also a former child actor. He is the non-performing member of the comedy group "Human Giant" and has directed the bulk of their output. The group, which also consists of comedians Aziz Ansari, Rob Huebel, and Paul Scheer, produced an...
, who previously directed the Parks and Recreation episodes "Beauty Pageant
Beauty Pageant (Parks and Recreation)
"Beauty Pageant" is the third episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the ninth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on October 1, 2009...
" and "Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year (Parks and Recreation)
"Woman of the Year" is the seventeenth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the 23rd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on March 4, 2010. In the episode, Ron is presented with a woman of the year...
". The idea of Andy injuring himself in a motorcycle accident was conceived early in the filming of the second season by Chris Pratt. Pratt's stunt double, Joe Bucaro III, is considered one of the leading motorcycle stuntmen in the United States, and Pratt suggested that a stunt involving Andy crashing a motorcycle would be very funny. Bucaro filmed two takes of the crash in "Freddy Spaghetti", and the first take was used in the final episode. At the beginning of the episode, while roller-skating through the corridors of city hall, Andy unsuccessfully tries to jump over a desk and falls violently to the ground. Unlike the motorcycle crash, Pratt performed that stunt himself, and had to film about six takes of it.
During one scene, Ron slips and falls on the grass while running to warn Leslie about Ben's plan to shut down the Freddy Spaghetti concert. That fall was neither scripted nor accidental, but rather planned and improvised by Nick Offerman. Aziz Ansari described the physical comedy as "one of my favorite shots in the series". In a different scene, April is chewing on a hay-straw while raking hay before the concert, and angrily spits the straw out when Andy tries to talk to her. That moment was improvised by actress Aubrey Plaza. Woliner asked her not to do it, but she insisted, correctly predicting it would make the final cut if she did it. In a different scene, Ron eats a turkey leg wrapped in bacon. The original script called simply for a large turkey leg, but a props employee suggested wrapping it in bacon based on Ron's well-known affinity for the food. It was Woliner who suggested that Ron say the snack was nicknamed "the Swanson".
Cultural references
During one scene, Leslie visits Tom at home, only to find him wearing a robe and entertaining Lucy. Tom insists he is about to have sex, explaining, "Why else would Boyz II MenBoyz II Men
Boyz II Men is an American R&B vocal group best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are the most successful R&B group of all time, having sold more than albums worldwide. In the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet, but original member Michael McCary...
's "On Bended Knee
On Bended Knee
"On Bended Knee" is a 1994 number-one hit single by Boyz II Men for the Motown label.Written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the single is notable for having replaced the previous Boyz II Men single, "I'll Make Love to You", as the top song on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States...
" be playing right now?", referring to a song in the background. The line was improvised by Aziz Ansari and, originally, the song was not playing, but Michael Schur said the line was so funny that he successfully sought permission to use the song and added it to the background in post-production. At the Freddy Spaghetti concert, Leslie asks a little girl which song was her favorite, to which she replies "Penne
Penne
Penne is a type of pasta with cylinder-shaped pieces. Penne is the plural form of the Italian penna, deriving from Latin penna . In Italy, penne are produced in two main variants: "penne lisce" and "penne rigate" , the latter having ridges on each penna...
and the Jets", a pasta-inspired version of the Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
song "Benny and the Jets". This line was thought of by Amy Poehler.
While packing his office at the end of the episode, Tom frantically looks for his autographed photo of actor Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
. Ansari said he had been trying to work a reference to Foxx into the show for months. Tom's observation that Ron always dresses like golf pro Tiger Woods after having sex was a joke previously used in the episode "Ron and Tammy
Ron and Tammy
"Ron and Tammy" is the eighth episode of the second season of Parks and Recreation, and the fourteenth overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on November 5, 2009. In the episode, the library department tries to take control of a vacant lot where Leslie plans...
". The original joke was written before the story of Woods' extramarital affairs scandal broke in the news in November 2009. "Freddy Spaghetti" included a reference to the previous episode "Galentine's Day
Galentine's Day
"Galentine's Day" is the sixteenth episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the 22nd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on February 11, 2010. In the episode, Leslie and her boyfriend Justin seek to...
", in which Andy discussed a song he wrote called "Sex Hair", about how one could tell someone had sex based on how matted their hair is. In the season finale, Andy rewrites the song to be called "Pickle Hair" so it can be played at the kid-friendly concert.
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Freddy Spaghetti" was seen by an estimated 4.55 million household viewers, according to Nielsen Media ResearchNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, with a 2.1 rating/7 share among viewers between ages 18 and 49. It marked a five percent increase in viewership compared to the previous episode, "The Master Plan
The Master Plan (Parks and Recreation)
The Master Plan is the 23rd and penultimate episode of the second season of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the 29th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 13, 2010...
", which itself had increased in the ratings compared to the previous week. "Freddy Spaghetti" also had a higher rating than the first season finale, "Rock Show". Parks and Recreation ranked second in its timeslot with "Freddy Spaghetti", behind the fifth season
Bones (season 5)
The fifth season of the American television series Bones premiered on September 17, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2010, on the Fox Network. The show maintained its previous time slot, airing on Thursdays at 8:00 pm ET for the entire season...
finale of the Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
crime drama Bones
Bones (TV series)
Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...
, but higher than the tenth season finale
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (season 10)
The tenth season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation premiered on CBS on September 24, 2009 and ended May 20, 2010. Jorja Fox returned for 15 episodes as a special guest star.-Notable cast members:-Episodes:-References:...
of the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
and an episode
Countdown (FlashForward)
"Countdown" is the 21st episode of the ABC series FlashForward.-Plot:It's the day of the flashforwards, and the world is waiting for their visions to come true....
of the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
science-fiction drama FlashForward
Flashforward
A flashforward is an interjected scene that takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards are often used to represent events expected, projected, or imagined to occur in the future...
.
"Freddy Spaghetti" received generally positive reviews. Leonard Pierce of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
felt the script balanced all the character subplots extremely well, writing, "It's this ability to hold down the 'situation' part of situation comedy, while never scrimping on the comedy, that makes it the class of the NBC lineup—the purest, if not the best, sitcom on the air." Pierce also complimented the final scene between Leslie and Mark, which he said brought the season to "a touching full circle". IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
writer Matt Fowler ranked the episode as "outstanding" and claimed it highlighted the strengths of Leslie, by emphasizing the passion with which she views her job, and Ron, by showing how much he cares for his employees even though he hates his job. Fowler said Schneider's departure was handled well, even though he described Mark as the show's least interesting character. HitFix
HitFix
HitFix, or the HitFix.com is an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information and providing reviews and critiques of film, music and television...
writer Alan Sepinwall said "Freddy Spaghetti" did a good job of bringing closure to the season and starting new storylines regarding Pawnee's budget problems. Sepinwall praised the chemistry between Poehler and Scott, as well as Lowe's comedic performance, but said the April and Andy romantic subplot was less consistently effective than the similar pairing between Jim
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
and Pam Halpert on the NBC comedy, The Office.
New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
magazine writer Steve Kendell said, "The finale was as on point as any episode this year—smart, funny, crisply written, and poignant." Kandell said Mark accepting a buyout felt like a "perfectly sensible and organic to the story" way to remove the character from the series, and described the ending scene with Ron and Wendy as an effective cliffhanger
Cliffhanger
A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma, or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction...
building up to the third season. Eric Hochberger of TV Fanatic said, "We can sum up the episode in one word: perfection." Hochberger praised the characterization in the script, and particularly enjoyed that the former pit, a long-time device for the series, was used for the concert and Mark's departure. CraveOnline
CraveOnline
CraveOnline is a male lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. The site is owned by media company AtomicOnline, the publishing division of Evolve Media Corp.- History :...
writer Blair Marnell described "Freddy Spaghetti" as one of the best episodes of the series. He praised the writing, particularly the jokes involving Andy and Ron's love of budget cuts, but said Leslie's character ultimately carried the story and had the best jokes. Kona Gallagher of TV Squad said the episode "end[ed] an already phenomenal season on a high note" and said she loved the symmetry of the finale. Gallagher particularly praised Scott's new character, claiming "his bruised idealism is a nice match for Leslie's blind idealism", but said Lowe's character continued to lack depth, and described the April and Andy subplot as predictable.
"Freddy Spaghetti" was the last new episode of Parks and Recreation to air for eight months (until "Go Big or Go Home
Go Big or Go Home
"Go Big or Go Home" is the third season premiere of the American comedy television series Parks and Recreation, and the 31st overall episode of the series. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 20, 2011. In the episode, Leslie gets Ann to go on a date with state auditor Chris...
") because, after the season finale aired, NBC announced the show was being moved to an undisclosed midseason premiere date to allow the network's new comedy, Outsourced
Outsourced (TV series)
Outsourced is an American television sitcom set in an Indian workplace. It was based on the John Jeffcoat film of the same name and adapted by Ken Kwapis and Universal Media Studios for NBC. The series originally ran from September 23, 2010 to May 12, 2011...
, to run in the Thursday two-hour comedy schedule block. New York magazine writer Steve Kandell noted this move by NBC against the show bore some "thematic similarities" between the government shutdown plot of "Freddy Spaghetti". It was eventually announced the Parks and Recreation third season would premiere on January 20, 2011.
DVD release
After "Freddy Spaghetti" aired, a producer's cut of the episode was featured on the official NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
website. It included four extra minutes of deleted scenes, plus additional footage with Lowe, Scott and the regular cast members. This version of the episode, along with the other 23 second season episodes of Parks and Recreation, was later released on a four-disc DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
set in the United States on November 30, 2010. The DVD included deleted scenes for each episode.
Among the deleted scenes in the producer's cut were a scene of Tom and Lucy running off to Ann's house to have sex, where they are interrupted by a nonchalant and seemingly unfazed Chris Traeger. Another cut scene included Tom and Ann in which the two share a pleasant moment and Tom cheers her up over her conflicting romantic feelings, only for Tom to ruin it by proposing three-way sex between them and Lucy. The DVD also included a commentary track for "Freddy Spaghetti" featuring Amy Poehler, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Rashida Jones, Adam Scott, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Jim O'Heir, Retta and Michael Schur.
External links
- "Freddy Spaghetti" at the official Parks and Recreation site