The most loveable comedy heroines are usually the worst kind of people—the slutty, cruel, and careless girl that Phoebe Waller-Bridge plays in Fleabag or the alcoholic, failed fashionistas of Absolutely Fabulous. Leslie Knope, the civic-minded feminist played by Amy Poehler in Parks and Recreation, is more of a comedy feat: she’s an efficient city bureaucrat whose comic moments come from caring too much and trying too hard. Set in Pawnee, Indiana, Parks and Recreation is very much in line with The Office and 30 Rock but has an uncommon sweetness behind the satire. —Alessandra Stanley

Alessandra Stanley is a Co-Editor at AIR MAIL