In a show chockfull of zany yet lovable characters, Ann Perkins (Rashida Jones) is easily the most "ordinary" of them all. She doesn't have Andy's (Chris Pratt) adorkable innocence, April's (Aubrey Plaza) effortless cool, or Leslie's (Amy Poehler) relentless optimism. She's just an overworked nurse figuring out who she is and living life pragmatically. Perhaps it is this, which has prompted many a Parks and Recreation viewer to call out Ann for being the weakest character in the series. When polled, Ann ranks lower than a Pawnee sensation Little Sebastian (Rest in Peace you lovable angel) the miniature pony, Champion the dog, and even Bobby Newport. But in retrospect, fans may be selling Ann's character short.

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Ann Perkins first appears in the pilot of the series as a nurse who is inspired to attend the parks and recreation city meetings to push for the Sullivan Street Pit near her house to be filled after her then-boyfriend Andy falls into the pit and breaks his legs. Her character arc is thus closely linked with the series', and particularly Season 1's, progression.

Sitcoms have always been hard on the "straight man", a stock comedy character mainly present to react to the more eccentric scene partner, and Parks and Recreation is no exception. After all, the series never quite knew what to do with Mark Brendanawicz outside of him being a potential love interest for both Leslie and Ann. Rather than find a way to make his character work, the writers chose to simply have his character depart the series at the end of Season 2. A similar fate meets Ann, who never quite clicks in a way other characters in the show do, even if the decision to leave the show was Rashida Jones' and not the writers'.

Still, prior to her departure in Season 6, Ann was the rare main character on the show that felt more like a supporting player. And yet, Rashida Jones' charismatic performance made sure that even when saddled with a bad storyline, Ann was fun to watch. While her purpose was merely to balance out the wilder tendencies of whoever else was on-screen, as the seasons progressed, we got to see a more lively side to her. Whether it was her subconscious habit of emulating the characteristics of whoever she was dating at that time, or her inability to know when she'd been dumped, Ann Perkins was every bit as sweet as Leslie thought she was.

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Ann and Leslie's relationship is the beating heart of the show. Ann manages to be supportive and present for Leslie even when Leslie's ideas are a little out there. As Season 4, Episode 8 explicitly spells out, Leslie is unaware of just how domineering she can be, even towards Ann. We see this all the time in how she treats Jerry, but it makes sense that Ann is exposed to it more than others considering how much time she spends with Leslie. Let's face it, Ann and Leslie's friendship wouldn't work if Ann was as chaotic as Leslie is given what we know about Leslie. But it's this accommodating nature that has led many viewers to write her character off.

This is particularly disappointing because throughout the series Ann is perhaps the most realistic character. Sure, the series essentially chooses to make Adam Scott's Ben Wyatt the resident straight guy counterpart to Leslie in the latter half of the series, but even he is defined by a wild past that involved being the mayor of a town at eighteen years of age and a tryst as a swing music DJ in college. Ann on the other hand is just a nurse who gets into a string of unsuccessful relationships with wildly incompatible men and struggles to find who she is. This is a fairly relatable arc, and despite the writing being a little lackluster where she is concerned, her goal of ultimately finding happiness on her own, without needing a traditional partner or family is inspiring. Sure, the writers sabotage this by having her then drive off into the sunset with Chris (Rob Lowe) and their baby, but Ann's decision to have a child on her own was something of a rarity on screen at that time.

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Ann's reaction to the craziness of Pawnee and the over-the-top shenanigan of the Parks department makes the most sense because she's essentially bringing the viewer's response to those situations. It should be noted here though, that the writers didn't entirely "other" her by making her the sane level-headed person each and every time, a decision pivotal in not making Ann completely dull. In Season 3, Episode 6 Ann sends Leslie to Chris' place in Indianapolis because she thinks he is cheating on her, only to ultimately learn that he broke up with her a while ago, and she just didn't pick up on it. This incident highlights that like the rest of the characters, Ann isn't some infallible person, despite how put-together she appears compared to the rest of the characters. Ann also has a number of apparent character flaws, which distinguish her from a slew of other more one dimensional characters within the show. For instance, in Season 2, Episode 23, we see Ann drunkenly rant to the camera about how Andy is finally maturing after falling in love with April and appears to be bitter about this change. On paper, this may seem like a selfish trait but if you consider how Ann had catered to Andy's each and every whim for years, her reaction to him finally growing up in his first relationship after theirs doesn't seem far-fetched, especially given how inconsiderate of her needs he was during the majority of their time together.

While it's easy to dismiss Ann as an unimportant character in the show, without her and Leslie's friendship, Parks and Recreation simply wouldn't be the feel-good show it is. A large part of this is due to Rashida Jones' endless charisma and ability to have chemistry with the entire ensemble, which explains why we often saw her in situations with Ron (Nick Offerman), Leslie's boss who wasn't her friend, or Tom (Aziz Ansari), whom she dates briefly even if it makes little to no sense. Most importantly, Ann and April's "frenemies" scenes are spurred by Aubrey Plaza and Rashida Jones' impeccable comedic timing and make for some of the best scenes in the show.

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There's no denying that the writing for her character was consistently the weakest point of the series and all of it added her up to be a supporting character when she should have felt like a key character of an ensemble comedy. Nonetheless, Ann's character trajectory from being a passive player to taking control of her life and realizing she wants to start a family was pretty significant. Her scenes with Leslie remain, to this date, some of the best depictions of on-screen female friendship. Overall, Ann comes close to being, literally, the most complex character in this NBC sitcom.