Treat Yo Self
By: Connor Lenahan
Last summer I spent an absurd amount of time watching all of Parks and Recreation before the final season came out. Then the finale aired and I started crying enough to end the droughts in California. I haven’t really stopped since. That’s because Parks and Rec is one of the absolute funniest shows that I have ever seen. This is, of course, very apparent if you’ve looked over their absurdly stacked cast. Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aziz Ansari, Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza, Rob Lowe, Adam Scott, Jim O’Heir, and way more. But one person doesn’t get near her fair share of credit for what she brings to the show. I’m talking about Retta, Ms. Donna Meagle herself.
Despite the fact that the show is stacked with talent there are still moments where not all the characters click. This is normal, it’s hard to be 100% on point at all times. However I cannot think of any time that Donna wasn’t amazing on the show. Seriously, I open this to any and all dissenting opinions. Donna kills it permanently. She’s the ultimate secret weapon of the show. While Leslie Knope and Ron Swanson would be having their big adventures to set up their jokes all it would take for Donna to kill me would be one look.
Seriously, she is amazing. And note that I haven’t even mentioned “Treat Yo Self,” not only one of the most iconic creations of the show, but one of the most everlasting good ideas from any show ever. The ethos of “Treat Yo Self” is more or less to ensure that one’s joy gets to prosper. We work and save and worry about real life things enough. There needs to be fun too. And why not have a day to indulge in all your fantasies and wants? That’s what Donna and Tom Haverford do yearly.
(Make sure to watch more of “Treat Yo Self” on YouTube, they don’t let me embed more.)
Donna Meagle is crazy underrated, a pioneer of self esteem boosting splurging, and performing at Boston University tonight. I’d be lying if I claimed I wasn’t crazy excited. There’s already a 25+ person line. With that in mind, I’m off to join them and treat myself to her standup show.