The April Line On Parks And Recreation That Means More Than You Think

During its seven-season run, NBC's "Parks and Recreation" introduced a unique cast of characters to the world of mockumentary-style workplace sitcoms. On the surface, the relationships on the show can sometimes seem a bit hostile, but in the end, the love between the characters is unquestionable. 

One character who is often vocal about things and people she dislikes is April Ludgate-Dwyer (Aubrey Plaza). With her monotone voice and expressionless face, April is always the one to appear dark and moody on the exterior while still having a mushy, caring interior, which she usually attempts to hide at all costs. So even though it might seem strange, it makes sense for her to retain such a closeness with another prickly character: Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman).

Despite all his efforts, Ron creates some close friendships with many of his, as he calls them, "workplace proximity associates." Still, there isn't one quite as sweet as his familial relationship with April. By far the most antagonistic of their group of friends, April and Ron seem to find plenty of opportunities to bond — often over things they mutually dislike. 

Overall, their relationship may seem complicated, but one Redditor, in response to a meme, helped simplify it in a rather beautifully poignant way.

Redditor u/saudadisimo took to the r/PandR subreddit to extol Aubrey Plaza's delivery of one specific line in which she explains her unconventional relationship with her boyfriends Derek (Blake Lee) and Ben (Josh Duvendeck), taken from a Season 2 episode entitled "Pawnee Zoo." When asked by Leslie (Amy Poehler) to explain their situation, April casually states, "Derek is gay, but he's straight for me. But he's gay for Ben, and Ben's really gay for Derek." She then caps off the explainer with a perfectly nonchalant, "And I hate Ben."

Responding to the meme, u/superduperdumper got sentimental and used this monologue to explain why April and Ron's relationship works so well, noting that they both accept how others live their lives regardless of how complicated it may appear on the outside. With over 400 upvotes, fans showed that they agreed with this Redditor's assessment. And u/sprogger even added that "sexual orientation doesn't matter as long as you hate or enjoy the same things," which in the case of these two, is mostly the former. They both hate a lot of different things.

These Reddit fans aren't the only ones who have praised this aspect of April and Ron's friendship. In a piece for ScreenRant, Lynn Gibbs wrote, "Instead of changing April's work ethic or wishing she did more, Ron accepted her for exactly who she was and encouraged it. This was how to get the best out of April — to accept and respect her for who she was." In the end, both characters may dislike several things, but as u/superduperdumper helps explain, they let people be themselves. And that's part of what bonds April and Ron so well.