This winter break was one of the best breaks I have had in a long time. Why is that, you might ask? It’s because of the show, "Parks and Recreation," that I started and caught up to date with during my time on the couch or in bed.
This show has everything that makes a show great: the optimistic main character, the pessimistic anti-government friend, the kind and beautiful best friend, the stupid and clumsy friend, the friend that fell into a hole, etc. Every single character is rich in personality and brings their own charm to the show, but perhaps the best character in the show and my favorite is Ronald Ulysses Swanson.
Ronald Ulysses Swanson is the director of the Parks and Recreation Department of Pawnee, Indiana, who hates the government and everything that surrounds the bureaucracy of the field. He is a man who excels at woodworking and many manly things while also enjoying things like capitalism, steak, whiskey, guns and big dogs. Naturally, Ron Swanson is quotable. Ron Swanson is so quotable that there is not a day that goes by that I don’t see good ole Ron Swanson being quoted on Reddit, Facebook and Tumblr.
This brings up the true objective of this article, which is to investigate why Ron Swanson is so funny. I literally Googled Ron Swanson on Google Images and spent 20 minutes looking at his quotes as well as his famous Swanson look. My favorite meme is of Ron Swanson and blueberry wine. I think I understand why so many people like this joke in particular and why he is so popular.
The most common thing I see in all of his quotes is Ron saying things that make me giggle like a little child. What makes Ron so great is that he says things that are a little bit stereotypical, a little bit mean, a little bit judgmental and a little bit inappropriate. In the grand scheme of things, Ron’s humor has a hint of truth to it and is also tastefully inappropriate. This is a great combination because it doesn’t insult most people (at least it doesn’t insult me). Additionally, I appreciate that he says things that only a man who is confident in himself would say, which is refreshing and great to watch.
So if you ever have a week to binge-watch a show, I recommend "Parks and Recreation." If you don’t want to watch it for the funny plot and stellar cast, at least watch it for Ron Swanson.
