"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. In the episode, Pawnee's major budget problems result in state auditors (Adam Scott and Rob Lowe) arriving to make major cuts, much to Leslie's horror and Ron's delight. Meanwhile, Andy contemplates asking April to be his girlfriend, and Tom seeks a new girlfriend.
The episode was directed by Dean Holland and written by series co-creator Michael Schur. "The Master Plan" featured the first series appearances by Scott and Lowe, who became permanent cast members as characters Ben Wyatt and Chris Traeger. The episode also introduced Natalie Morales as Lucy, Tom's new girlfriend, and featured guest appearances by Ralph Richeson as "the ghoulish man" and regular series guests Ben Schwartz, April Marie Eden and Alison Becker.
The idea of Pawnee's governmental problems were inspired by news reports at the time of a number of states shutting down schools, parks and other services due to the global recession. "The Master Plan" marked the end of the romantic relationship between Ann (Rashida Jones) and Mark (Paul Schneider), which allowed for the eventual departure of Schneider from the series. A subplot featuring romantic elements between Ann and Chris was a late addition to the script to better connect Lowe to the cast.
This episode features six characters (five main characters) meeting their eventual spouses for the first time. Ann and Chris meet, Leslie and Ben meet and Tom and Lucy meet.
According to Nielsen Media Research, "The Master Plan" was seen by 4.28 million household viewers, a five percent increase in viewership compared to the previous episode, "Telethon". The episode received generally positive reviews, with several commentators praising the addition of Scott and Lowe to the cast, although some said Scott had more long-term potential as a character than Lowe. The episode is widely considered a turning point in the series. "The Master Plan" 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 30-minute "producer's cut" of the episode.
Plot Leslie excitedly prepares to present the parks department budget proposal, or "master plan". However, city manager Paul announces due to Pawnee's huge budget deficit, all proposals will be postponed indefinitely. State auditors have been sent by the governor to solve the impasse, which makes Leslie fear severe cuts. Ron is delighted because he hates any government spending, which leads him to have heated arguments with Leslie. Meanwhile, April is turning 21 and is having her birthday party at Tom's favorite nightclub, the Snakehole Lounge. Andy debates whether to ask April to be his girlfriend, but worries about the age difference because he is 29. Ann has broken up with Mark, and they meet for lunch to discuss the end of their relationship. Mark is confused as to why Ann has decided to break up with him because they never fought and everything seemed to be going perfect and smoothly. Ann explains that their lack of fighting was actually a bad thing because it meant their relationship had no passion, and she adds that Mark isn't used to dating anyone for a long period of time and over-stated the relationship's strength for that reason.
State auditors Chris Traeger and Ben Wyatt soon arrive, and the extremely cheerful Chris paints an optimistic picture of how they will fix the budget, but leaves the details to the more serious Ben. When Ben explains they will need to slash the budget of every department by nearly 40 or 50 %, Leslie angrily lashes out at Ben, who responds to her that the poorly managed government is to blame. Later, at April's party, Tom desperately tries to pick up women, but to no avail, while Leslie and Ann get extremely drunk together. Andy and April appear to be getting along, but when he goes to the bar to get a drink for April, a drunken Ann flirts with him. An upset April flirts with Tom's annoying friend Jean-Ralphio to make Andy jealous. Andy gets upset, believing he misread April's signals all along, and April later regrets what she did. Ben arrives at the party and tries to smooth things out with a drunken Leslie, but she again angrily lashes out at him.
The next morning, Ann fears she made out with someone at the party but cannot remember. She eventually learns she made out with Chris, who shows a romantic interest in her. Tom returns to the Snakehole Lounge to close his tab, where he meets the bartender, Lucy, who makes fun of his efforts to pick up women. The two get along and Lucy gives Tom her phone number, to his immense pleasure. Leslie decides to apologize to Ben, and he invites her out for a beer. As they finally start to get along, Leslie realizes Ben was the mayor of a small town called Partridge, Minnesota. It was national news because he was only 18 when elected, and he promptly drove the entire government into the ground. Ben became a state auditor to prove he can be responsible and restart his political career. Later, at the parks department budget meeting, Chris and Ben reveal Pawnee's budget crisis was far worse than previously thought and that the Pawnee government will shut down until further notice, horrifying Leslie and delighting Ron.
Production
Writing
"The Master Plan" was written by Parks and Recreation co-creator, Michael Schur. It was his fifth writing credit for the series after, "Pilot", "Greg Pikitis", "Christmas Scandal", and "Galentine's Day". The idea of state auditors visiting Pawnee, and the subsequent government shutdown, was inspired by news reports at the time of a number of states considering shutting down schools, parks and other services due to the global recession. In particular, Schur cited stories about Kansas City closing down several of their public schools, and Idaho threatening to shut down the state parks department. Similar measures were being discussed in such states as New York, New Jersey and California. This was in keeping with efforts by the Parks and Recreation writers to be more topical with second season episodes. Upon learning of the spending freeze, Ron and Leslie engage in heated arguments over the function of government, with Leslie insisting the government is meant to provide social services and Ron advocating as little government intervention as possible. Throughout most of the second season, much of the relationship between Leslie and Ron focused on the two developing a mutual respect for each other. However, with the introduction of the Ben Wyatt character and the conflict over budget problems in Pawnee, the writers included these arguments between Leslie and Ron to illustrate their conflicting political ideologies and develop tension amid the character and the city hall setting.
"The Master Plan" marked the end of the romantic relationship between Mark and Ann, which had lasted throughout the entire second season. This allowed for the eventual departure of Paul Schneider, who was leaving the series at the end of the second season. The title of "The Master Plan" stemmed from the fact that real-life municipal planning documents in small American towns are often called the "master plan", like the one Leslie refers to in the episode. Schur said of this, "It seems so funny to call the municipal budgets and planning documents for a small city in Indiana the 'master plan'." Schur said the Parks and Recreation writing staff believed the title of the episode was appropriate because the subplots of "The Master Plan" revolved around the various plans of the characters. While Leslie is dealing with the literal master plan for the Pawnee budget proposal, April's plan is to seek a romantic relationship with Andy, and Tom's plan is to find a girlfriend at April's birthday party.
The idea of Ann making out with Chris Traeger was not part of the original screenplay, but was added after the first cast read-through of the script. The writing staff felt that while Ben was immediately connected to Leslie and the other characters through his role in eliminating wasteful spending at Pawnee, Chris still needed something to more strongly connect to the cast, and the subplot with Ann was determined to be a funny way to do it. In one scene, after Ben explains the need for severe budget cuts at Pawnee, Ron asks Leslie, "What's a not gay way to ask him to go camping with me?" That line was not in the first draft of the script, but was added during filming as a possible alternative line for the editors to choose from later. The staff found it so funny, however, that they chose to use it and the original line was never filmed.
During another scene at the Snakehole Lounge, a drunken Leslie angrily yells to Ben, "I just talked to everybody in this bar and nobody wants you here." That line was written by Harris Wittels, who wrote past screenplays for other Parks and Recreation episodes. During the end credits, Andy sings a song he wrote for April called "November," which includes the lyrics, "Let's spread our wings and fly on a date." This is also a reference to "Woman of the Year," in which Andy explained every song he writes includes either the lyrics, "Spread your wings and fly" or "You deserve to be a champion." Schur, who wrote the words to "November", said it was especially challenging working one of those phrases into a love song.
Casting
"The Master Plan" marked the first appearance of Adam Scott, who also appeared in the subsequent season finale "Freddy Spaghetti" and became a regular cast member during the third season. Scott left the Starz comedy Party Down to join the Parks and Recreation cast, a decision he made in part because it was unclear whether Starz would renew the series: "It was a matter of me asking Starz if it was going to continue, and them saying they weren't ready to make that decision. I couldn't pass up the opportunity on Parks and Rec for a show that could possibly not exist anymore." Schur said when the Ben Wyatt character was written, Scott was envisioned as the "dream scenario" for casting. Schur described Scott as "brilliant and funny" and praised his comedic range: "There just aren't that many people with a comedic range that spans 'Step Brothers' to 'Party Down.'". Several commentators said Ben Wyatt closely resembles the character Scott played on Party Down, Henry Pollard. While Ben was a politician who found great success at a young age then suffered a downfall, Henry was an actor who became a caterer after his acting career declined. Scott, however, said he feels they are "vastly different characters and circumstances". The idea of a character trying to rebuild a government career following a humiliating public failure was one of the original ideas for the series of Parks and Recreation in general, but one that was ultimately not used until the Ben Wyatt character was introduced. During the scene when Ben explains his failed mayoral tenure, shots of a newspaper clip with images of the character's prom pictures are shown. Those pictures are the actual high school prom photos of actor Adam Scott.