Up to this point in the series, many things have been established about Leslie Knope. For one, she loves her job and the people she works with. Two, she loves the town of Pawnee where she grew up. And three, she hates Eagleton. "Born & Raised" centers around Leslie promoting her new book Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America (a real book, by the way, that you can purchase online), but the media, in a desperate attempt of gotcha' journalism, reveal that there is an inaccuracy in the book: Leslie was not really born in Pawnee. This is an obvious reference to the Obama citizenship conspiracy theories back when he was still president. The show is known to build stories around real life headlines in the news and this is another perfect example.
In this episode, we see a lot of "Pawnee Today" host Joan Callamezzo, one of the show's best recurring characters. Joan serves as an important character to the story, because Leslie need her endorsement, which will generate high sales and help Leslie's campaign. However, things get very difficult when Joan finds out the inaccuracy of the book. Later, Tom and Ben try and help Leslie by charming their way into getting Joan's approval, but it doesn't go quite as they expected. Mo Collins's performance is fantastic, probably some of her best work in the entire series.
Meanwhile, Ron, Ann, and April team up to fact-check the book for any misprints. This is really a way for Ann to connect with the two who she has no relation with whatsoever. Offerman and Plaza's deadpan humor are both great, and also watching Ann desperately try and bond with them is funny as well. I also love seeing April and Ron together, because despite them both hating post people, they seem to have this unspoken camaraderie with one another.
Overall, "Born & Raised" is a solid episode that fleshes out Leslie's character more, showcases Joan Callamezzo at her comedic best, and even gives characters unlikely scenes together (Ron, Ann, and April). It is a great political satire, something the show does so well, and most importantly is just consistently funny. At this point, the show is still in its prime, so it's very hard to find a "weak" episode or even an "average" episode. Ever since the start of Season 3, every episode has been great, and the ball will continue to roll in the next episode (one of the series' best).
