You’d think it would be hard to pick a favorite episode from a near-perfect season. It wasn’t. “Tom’s Divorce” was one of the best episodes of anything all year. In the first season, Tom made references to being married, and we eventually found out that it was a green-card marriage. (She was born in Canada.) Once she earned her citizenship, it was time for a divorce, only Tom wasn’t ready. And since Leslie didn’t know about the green card thing, she tried her best to make Tom feel better. First, with a meal at “Jurassic Fork”, a dinosaur-themed restaurant, and then a trip to Pawnee’s most notorious strip club, The Glitter Factory. The Parks gang in a strip club (except for Donna, who’s been banned for life) is pretty much the best thing ever. Leslie tries to temper her natural reactions with her desire to help her friend. Tom’s legitimately sad, which is unusual for his character, but he also likes strippers. And then there’s Ron, who really only comes to life when he sees the breakfast buffet. This episode is pretty much perfect, and Aziz Ansari gives Tom a depth we hadn’t seen before. And as a bonus, there’s a subplot where Andy’s pretty sure that he stands to win Ann in a game of pool, and Tim and Eric regular Richard Dunn has a cameo. This one’s made of win.
