I think bitch magazine made the same points you make. I still think the show is doing a great job, this season just hasn’t been my cup of tea. I think a switch in writers (loss of Chelsea peretti) makes a difference. I’m hoping the marriage will bring up difficult issues much in the way her dream job turned out not to be so dreamy.

In a show where you have an Empowered Female, dealing with relationships is sort of like slacklining over a pit of knives. She can come across as callous or aloof, possibly too career driven to actually enjoy herself (something that the HIMYM creators have almost fallen into with Robin Scherbatzky a few times), or she can come across as boy crazy and put her own interests on the back-burner, as Ann Perkins has done several times in Parks and Rec (and man, I am very happy she’s acknowledged this and is actively working to fix it, because for a show about female empowerment Ann’s character frequently confused me. But I guess to show the bright side of an issue the dark side has to be present as well?)

The great thing about Leslie Knope is that she has never allowed her relationship with Ben to get in the way of her political ambition. You mentioned that you felt all this marriage coverage had put that in the background–you do remember that she just recently became City Councilwoman, right? She’s not going to immediately run for Mayor right after she takes office–she’s going to spend time doing her civic duty first. And her interpersonal drama with Councilman Jamm and the realization of how little power to affect change she actually has in her new role has been a running theme of this season.

In fact she BROKE UP with Ben to run for City Council, and then realized that she didn’t have to pick between two worlds–she could allow herself to be happy WITHOUT it subverting her goals of representing women in an elected position. When Ben got the opportunity to be a campaign manager in Washington D.C. did Leslie pack her bags and move with him? No! She never allows herself to be defined by her relationship with Ben, and their relationship has stood in stark contrast to most of the relationships in the show (the only real parallel being, perhaps, Andy and April’s very empowered team-marriage, though Leslie and Ben couldn’t be further from April and Andy in terms of their personality).

When Ben proposed to Leslie, she made him pause, saying that she “Need[ed] to remember every little thing about how perfect my life is right now.” She doesn’t just mean the fact that she was being proposed to by the second-greatest man in her life (Joe Biden missed the opportunity to swoop in and make his case), she means how this season has been the culmination of Leslie’s entire character arc. She’s won a seat on the city council, which she knows has a good chance of translating into future political office. She’s kept her job that she loves with the Parks department. She’s finally found a man who’s worthy of her and who can be a partner, an EQUAL with her for the rest of their lives. Perhaps the reason you think this season hasn’t been that exciting is the unfortunate fact that happy characters don’t often make for good television, but I personally think this season has been right up there with every season except the first as the best television has to offer.

(Also, rather than a Pawnee Pike, or a raccoon, I think the proverbial shark would have to be Fairway Frank).