Last night marked the end of NBC’s Parks and Recreation, which ran for seven great seasons. Sure, it never got high ratings, but it did bring the phrase “Treat Yourself” into the lexicon. Let’s see Two and a Half Men invent something that gives you an excuse to go shopping for toys.

Parks and Rec was good for more than just a laugh (although, it delivered plenty of those), it marks the end of an era for network sitcoms as NBC tries to wade in the murky waters of the current TV landscape of streaming and cable. There was something about Parks and Rec that made me feel warm and fuzzy inside each time the opening credits rolled.

But there is something else that sets it apart from all other sitcoms. All of you literary snobs out there might be familiar with the Great American Novel, which is the idea that one book possibly encapsulates the culture and values of the United States. Some think its The Great Gatsby. Others say its The Catcher in the Rye. I say its whatever you were forced to read in English class during sophomore year of high school. Anyway, the idea of America seems to hard to capture in just one thing, but if there ever was a Great American Sitcom, it would be Parks and Recreation.

And why not? If something is going to be “great” and “American,” it might as well be a TV show, which has the luxury of time to explore a lot of huge ideas. And much like our soft drinks and our cars, the idea of America might be just a bit too big.

Parks and Rec is a beautifully uncynical look at American politics, highlighting everything from the inefficiency to the effectiveness of local government. If you have ever attended any kind of public forum, then the town hall meetings depicted on the show, which mainly turned into (sometimes physical) shouting matches, rang all too true. Parks’ satire extended far beyond the reaches of bureaucracy; it always seemed to have a strong grasp on the lexicon. After all, season seven was set in the future and was partially about data mining and drones. From Entertainment 720 to Gryzzl, Parks and Rec was about the only show on television addressing startup culture. That is, of course, until Silicon Valley came along.

Part of what makes this show the Great American Sitcom is that each character inhabits and defines some part of the social or political landscape. Wide-eyed Leslie Knope embodies strength, optimism, and the idea that people actually want to do good things for each other. For years, Ron Swanson was her ideological counterpart. As a libertarian who enjoys hiding out in his cabin in the woods, Swanson is basically Henry David Thoreau by way of Ron Paul. Despite their differing beliefs, the two of them formed one of the truest friendships in TV history. Mainly, they were able to find common ground over JJ’s Diner, a Pawnee institution. Seriously, is there anything more perfectly American than kibitzing in a diner? Edward Hopper probably wants to create a painting about it.

One of the most impressive parts about Parks was its ability to give life to its entire ensemble. Plenty of other American archetypes were present as well. Beloved Jerry (or Garry or Larry or Terry) represents the mentality of doing the least amount of work possible that still gets you paid and home to your family. So of course, he became the mayor. Tom is the worst of the tech bubble, yet for every terrible idea he had, there was one or two that he actually put a lot of thought into. This show had such a bright and sunny point of view that, in the end, Tom’s greatest success ended up being a book he wrote about all of his failures. Few things define the show as well as that.

At first, it might sound strange to label this as the Great American Sitcom. When people look for the Great American TV Show, they probably look right to HBO. Sure, it is just human nature to view the current time as dark and gritty. But Parks and Rec is the show people will look at in the future when they want to feel nostalgic for the 2010s. I am not sure if that is a good thing or not, but it plays into what is so great about this show. Parks and Rec is partially about the America that exists, but mostly about the one that should exist. What Michael Schur, Greg Daniels, and Amy Poehler have put together is an America in which red tape is no obstacle and goals can actually be accomplished. It showed that it takes a lot of hard work to get these things done, but they are not impossible. This is the kind of skeptical optimism not seen anymore. Cynicism is fun and funny at times, but at a certain point it just gets unproductive.

The fictional town of Pawnee which Leslie Knope and her work family inhabits is a special place. Sure, it isn’t perfect. It’s a little unsanitary and it suffers from a candy addiction. The neighboring town of Eagleton seems a lot nicer from a distance. However, Pawnee is a place that all of these people can love and call home both in spite of and because of its flaws. And thus, the most truthful and nuanced view of patriotism came from a sitcom on NBC once meant to be nothing more than a spinoff of The Office. I would say that I want to move to Pawnee, but I feel like I already live there, because Pawnee is both the America that currently exists, as well as what America could potentially become.

Goodbye Harris.

Well, you all demanded it (at least in my head you all did), so I delivered.

I decided that my smash hit piece on the most memorable dogs in film could not stand alone. Given that TV is going through some sort of Golden Age right now, I figure that the dogs of the small screen deserve just as much attention as the dogs on the silver screen.

So here is my list of the most memorable dogs on TV. And this time, there are no rules. Talking dogs and animated dogs rule! Anarchy! The Purge!

Judith Light, Broad City

Broad City has only been on for one season, but it already gets a dog on this list. Throughout the comedy’s first season, Lincoln (Hannibal Buress) seems to have a special soft spot for dogs, even though he can’t commit to getting one (“I can’t expose this dog to the crazy life of a dentist!”). So Ilana is walking a group of dogs and Lincoln names them all based on their personalities. He names one Dumb Face, and another one Judith Light, because this dog happens to resemble actress Judith Light. This dog is Hollywood royalty. In addition, this scene comes up with the best ever compliment you could give a dog: “I’d do it, I’d pick up your poop.” I hope this show gets renewed for a million seasons.

Porkchop, Doug

Porkchop was like Snoopy for the 1990s, except Porkchop loved hip hop and he didn’t sleep on top of his dog house like an idiot. I like Porkchop because he was basically a human save for the one thing that can make a person really shitty: the ability to talk. Porkchop loved food and TV just a little more than any dog did. Plus, he walked on his hind legs. Perhaps he was a dog-human hybrid, and he represented a scary stepping stone in the evolutionary chain. Just a step below that Rick and Morty episode.

Brian, Family Guy

While I have said many bad things about Family Guy and Seth MacFarlane in the past, leaving Brian off this list would be wrong. Like many other people, I too was once an eighth grader living under the influence of Family Guy. Brian differs from many other of TV’s anthropomorphic dogs in that he seems to prefer the company of humans to dogs. Plus he drinks and chain smokes like crazy. Brian defies the notion that dogs are nothing more than “dumb animals,” as he possesses the neurotic intellectual prowess of a furrier Alvie Singer.

Chauncey, Mad Men

Chauncey only appears in one episode of Mad Men, but this pooch is hard to forget. Duck gets his beloved dog Chauncey back from his ex-wife only to abandon it towards the end of the episode, in maybe one of the saddest moments in Mad Men history, because pandering. The search for Chauncey remains. I am confident one day Chauncey will return to save Sterling Cooper & Partners. Just you wait and see.

 Polly, Mad Men

Don purchased Polly (Note: coincidentally, there is an actress named Polly Draper) in season three, possibly as a way to feel less like a misfit in suburban hell (Note #2: Come on, Don, Ossining isn’t THAT bad). Polly seems to have disappeared after a while (probably with all of the other rejected Bobby Draper actors), but she played an important role in season one. She tried to eat their angry neighbors’ pigeon, which then prompted Betty Draper (January Jones) to do the best thing that she has done on the show to date.

Little Boo, Orange is the New Black

Even a place as brutal and unforgiving as prison has room for our fury four-legged friends. Little Boo is the only inmate in Litchfield (Hey that’s in Connecticut! That’s where I’m from!) that doesn’t join gangs or beat up crazy meth heads. Orange is the New Black is about just because you’re in jail, doesn’t mean you’re not a multidimensional person with a good side. In the evil spectrum of Litchfield, Vee ranks most evil, and Little Boo is least. Because Little Boo is a dog, you see.

Champion, Parks and Recreation

Okay, so a three-legged dog might be trying a little too hard to pull at everyone’s heartstrings. Yet, Champion is a perfect part of the parks department: another creature who was seemingly overlooked and now gets a second shot. But overall I CAN’T STOP CRYING I CAN’T STOP CRYING THE DOG HAS THREE LEGS.

Oodles the Talking Poodle, Rugrats

So Spike was the more recognizable dog on Rugrats, but he is nothing compared to Oodles. Why? Just read his name HE’S A TALKING POODLE. And he wears a cape. Oodles is one of those throwaway jokes that I probably didn’t pay much attention to when I used to watch this show, but it is so much funnier years down the road. I just like to think that in the world of Rugrats, there was some writer who wanted to top Lassie, so he gave a dog a cape and made it talk.

Doug, The Sarah Silverman Program

Sarah Silverman’s beloved dog Doug was played by Sarah Silverman’s real life, beloved dog Duck. The Sarah Silverman Program pushed the limits of taste, and Doug was always a culprit. In one episode, he ends up in doggie jail and in another, he marries Sarah. In real life, Duck was Sarah’s loyal companion and best friend. You can read her touching obituary of Duck after he died last year, if you feel like being an emotional wreck for the next few weeks or so.

Smuckers, Seinfeld

Kramer actually had a dog in the pilot episode (back when Kramer was also called Kessler). This dog disappeared and was never mentioned again. I cannot find any videos or photos of this scene on the internet, so I’m blaming that one on the canine illuminati. Anyway, that isn’t the last time we see Kramer with a dog. In another episode, he finds a dog, named Smuckers, who has the same incurable cough as him. So he takes Smuckers to the vet in order to get medicine. Sure, it is hilarious to see Michael Richards react to dog medication. However, I find Smuckers’ human-like cough even funnier. Also, Smuckers would never go on to shout racist things at a crowd. I don’t think dogs can be racist.

Santa’s Little Helper, The Simpsons

As the dog to one of America’s most dysfunctional families, Santa’s Little Helper sure has gone through a lot. While it is a bummer that SLH can’t talk like Brian or dance like Porkchop, he is notable as one of the more realistic animated dogs next to Ladybird from King of the Hill. Despite sometimes being a victim, The Simpsons were right in acknowledging that he’s way more fun to pet than a cat.

I come to you today, ranting about awards, not because I want to, but because I need to.

You see, as somebody who doesn’t watch sports, I need some place to let out the insane amount of masculine aggression that lies inside me. So while I can’t complain about that ref who needs to get his eyes checked, I can complain about that voter who needs to stop accepting bribes from Chuck Lorre.

This year, the good news is that the amount of snubs probably come from the fact that there are just so many good shows on television, and not enough awards to give out. I accept the fact that most of my choices aren’t necessarily the ones that beg for awards. However, it just seems wrong that the Emmys almost completely ignored the Comedy Central Renaissance. Seriously, put on Comedy Central at some point. You will be surprised to find that they have a lot more than Tosh.0 re-runs now.

Without much further adieu, here is my list of this year’s most egregious Emmy snubs:

Broad City

Because of the random absurdness and poop and dildo jokes, Broad City never seemed like a likely choice for the Emmys. However, it received far better reviews than many of the shows that did get nominated, so I sense just a bit of snobbishness on the part of Emmy voters. Simply put, Broad City is the best new comedy of the year. Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer act as if they have been doing this for decades, yet their show was a radical breath of fresh air. It’s like somebody threw Louie, Workaholics, and Girls into a blender. These two Jewish ladies are television’s most dynamic duo. It is no wonder Amy Poehler put so much faith into this show. Speaking of Ms. Poehler.

Parks and Recreation

Parks and Rec has been on for over half a decade now. Despite critical praise and an audience that seems to grow by the year, Parks still feels greatly underappreciated. Most people think the traditional sitcom is dead, but Parks and Rec is as traditional as they get. It happens to be an incredibly fresh example of something old. Sometimes, I wonder if the creators of Parks and Rec feel like Leslie Knope, who is hardworking and incredibly capable, yet the voters are not too big a fan of her’s.

Nick Kroll (Kroll Show)

Okay, so maybe Kroll Show was too much of a giant inside joke for voters to follow. I mean, it might be the most innovative sketch show of our time, but fine (not really, but I’ll live with it). What might have at least made up for that loss was a nomination for Nick Kroll, who juggles so many roles in a show that bears his name. In a given episode, he can play an old Jewish man, a woman, and a punk kid with a lisp. It’s a performance of Sid Caesar like proportions. And yes, I did just compare Nick Kroll to Sid Caesar.

Dean Norris (Breaking Bad)

This finally looked like the year Dean Norris would get a nomination for his work in Breaking Bad because this was finally the year where he truly got to shine as Agent Hank Schrader. Perhaps one of the most anticipated moments in the series was when Hank and Walt would finally look at each other face to face, with no more secrets to hide. Norris made the moment worth the wait. In five seasons, he went from goofy comic relief to the only source of morality in a dark, dark world.

I want to give a special shout out to Tatiana Maslany. I can’t judge her especially well, because I haven’t seen season two of Orphan Black yet. However her work in season one definitely deserved an Emmy nod. I also hope she hosts SNL one day.