S5 E3: How a Bill Becomes a Law

Score: 2 / 3

Joan: The City Council has done very little over the last few years and what they have accomplished, in my opinion, has been embarrassing and that is a fact.
Leslie: No, that is your opinion. That's the definition of an opinion.
Joan: Well, that's your opinion...?
Leslie: The City Council has some political gridlock, and...

[They go on to talk about Leslie's bill.]

This is also the first episode with Diane! I wonder if she'll contribute to Bechdel-passing conversations, or if she'll only talk about Ron with other characters...?

S5 E2: Soda Tax

Score: 3 / 3

~1:10 in the courtyard of City Hall

Leslie: Okay, so do you have the results for the study?
Ann: Yes, and they're great! Your tax on soda would definitely lower diabetes in this town. Oh, and I have a great prop for the meeting!

[Ann takes out a tub of sugar.]

Ann: This is the amount of sugar that the average Pawnee ten-year-old consumes from soda every month!
Leslie: That is gross!
Ann: It's gross!

[This goes on.]

More:
- Leslie and Ann confront Kathryn Pinewood from Sweetums about soda sizes and related topics.
- Leslie admits to Ann that she doesn't know how she's going to vote.

S5 E1: Ms. Knope Goes to Washington

Score: 3 / 3

~11:42 at an event in Washington DC right after Ben introduces Leslie to Kate and Lacey - women who work in politics.

Kate: So, Leslie, what do you do?
Leslie: I was just recently elected. I'm a councilwoman.
Lacey: Local government is so important. My grandma's on the city council in her town! Gives her a reason to leave the house!
Leslie: Ah...
Kate: Where did you say you were from?

[They go on.]

More:
- Leslie totally falls apart in front of Senators Barbara Boxer and Olympia Snow.

S4 E22: Win, Lose or Draw

Score: 3 / 3

Leslie: Oh my God. That's it! It's not Bobby Newport that's gonna beat me in the election, it's Brandi Maxxx! The porn star! What is this, Italy?
Ann: Listen, I know you're stressed out and I figured you would be - so, I took the liberty of arranging a fun little activity for us.
Leslie: You did? Tsk, aw, Ann, thank you so much. I've said this to you before, and I know it makes you uncomfortable-
Ann: Oh boy...
Leslie: -but you're thoughtful and you're brilliant and your ambiguous ethnic blend perfectly represents the dream of the American melting pot.

More:
- Leslie and Ann do some boxing training.
- Donna fixes April's accident of deleting all the files.
- Ann tells Leslie she won the election.

S4 E21: Bus Tour

Score: 0 / 0

Almost:
- Leslie asks her team what she should do now that Nick Newport has passed away. None of the exchanges with her and Ann or April lasts long enough and anyway, you could argue that the conversation is about Nick.
- Leslie bumps into Jen Barkley at the Newport home but their conversation topics involve Nick and Bobby Newport.

S4 E20: The Debate

Score: 2 / 3

~20:10

Ann: Leslie!
Leslie: Hey!
Ann: Oh that was amazing!
Leslie: Thank you!
Ann: Hey, how was the spin room!?
Leslie: It was a lot. We'll talk about it.

[It's not much, but that's how it's done!]

S4 E19: Live Ammo

Score: 2 / 3

~13:50 at Leslie's home:

Leslie: We saved the animal shelter and the parks budget!
Ann: That's great news. Let me guess - you found room in other parts of the budget somewhere?
Leslie: Totally. Got rid of a bunch of lame-ass D1's from public works!
Ann: Awesome news. Hey, you know what else is pretty neat? Is thanks to you, Councilman Pillner went through the budget and decided that not just public works' but all D1's will be terminated in two weeks! I'm getting fired.

More:
- Ann and Leslie rummage through Tom's apartment. I'd argue this sequence is more commenting about Tom than anything.
- Leslie shares her budget idea with Jennifer Barkley - though Ben participates in this, and a lot of the strategizing involves Bobby.

S4 E18: Lucky

Score: 1 / 3

~7:28 at Snakehole Lounge

Leslie is getting drunk with Ann and Tom.

Leslie: Okay, look, this interview is a big deal, you guys! This is a game changer, okay? I have to do well!
Ann: Listen. Let's do practice interview-
Leslie: Big idea, Ann!
Ann: -and see how you do!
Leslie: Let's go.

[They practice. Granted, Ann is filling in as interviewer which, as the case happens to be, will be a man (Buddy, played by Sean Hayes). But that's not a factor: what's at issue is that Leslie is being interviewed.]

S4 E17: Campaign Shake-up

Score: 3 / 3

~13:53 @ JJ's Diner

[Jennifer is seated, Leslie approaches.]

Leslie: Jennifer. Barkley! You two-faced carpet-bagging-
Jennifer: Hey Leslie, good to see you!
Leslie: Hi, good to see you too- you are a two-faced carpet-bagging-
Jennifer: You want anything? Anything. It's on me; everything in this town is so cheap.

[They go on and discuss campaign strategies.]

More:
- April and Ann fight about water-drinking methods.
- Leslie and Jennifer have another scene anticipating each others' campaign strategies.

S4 E16: Sweet Sixteen

Score: 2 / 3

0:00 @ Leslie's office.

Ann: Morning!

Leslie: Hey!

Ann: Hey, can you approve this new design for the campaign poster?

Leslie: Oh Ann, you beautiful rule-breaking moth. You know we can't talk about my campaign in here.

Ann: Seriously? It's a yes or no question!

[They go outside and continue their conversation.]

More:

- April asks Leslie about a maintenance report shortly after this. Most of the rest of the episode discusses Jerry.

S4 E15: Dave Returns

Score: 0 / 3

- Leslie spends the episode with Ben and Dave.
- April spends the episode talking to Ron and sometimes Andy.
- Ann spends the episode talking to Tom.

S4 E14: Operation Ann

Score: 3 / 3

~2:00 in at City Hall

Leslie: Ann, I just wanted to say I'm sorry if I put you on the spot when I asked you about your love life. How are you doing?
Ann: You know, I'm mostly fine being single, it's just this time of year with the hearts and roses it just gets me a little down. But Galentine's Day made me feel better! So, thanks.
Leslie: Oh, Ann. You beautiful spinster. I will find you love.
Ann: What? Did you say something?
Leslie: Nothing, I love you!

More:
- Leslie talks to Ann a few times about how she's feeling.
- Leslie motivates April to help Ann (though the method is through introducing her to a suitable partner).
- Ann thanks Leslie for her efforts.
- Leslie and April gossip about Ann.

S4 E13: Bowling for Votes

Score: 2 / 3

~4:17 at bowling alley. Leslie is trying to look laid back.

Leslie: Do I look laid back?
Ann: You look like you're trying to look laid back.
Leslie: How about now?
Ann: I think just maybe just stand. How you would normally stand.

That's it!

S4 E12: Campaign Ad

Score: 0 / 3. FAILS

- April and Ann only talk about Andy's health.
- Leslie and Ann only talk about Ben's commercial (and not long enough to qualify, so even if the topic is agreed to be the commercial, it wouldn't pass).

S4 E11: Comeback Kid

Score: 3 / 3

[This might be my favorite episode of the series because of the ice rink bit.]

~0:20 in Parks & Recreation office. Leslie has just announced that she has selected Ann to be her campaign manager.

Ann: Leslie, I don't know the first thing about running a political campaign...!
Leslie: Ann, you beautiful tropical fish, you're smart as a whip and you're cool under pressure. You've resuscitated a human heart in your bare hands.
Ann: No, I haven't.
Leslie: You haven't?
Ann: No!
Leslie: You will. You're that good of a nurse.

[This exchange goes on as Leslie persuades Ann to be her campaign manager.]

More:
- Leslie and Ann describe their campaign strategy and divvy instructions to the team...
- Throughout the episode Leslie and Ann discuss their campaign strategy, but sometimes that involves factors run by men (Pistol Pete, Ron et al)

S4 E10: Citizen Knope

Score: 2 / 3

Ann: Could you maybe find new advisors?
Leslie: I can't, I talked to everyone in the entire state who's ever run a campaign and nobody wants a candidate who's polling at last-milkshake-sip levels.
Ann: Can I say something? This sucks, I am not going to convince you that it doesn't, and you could tell me every day for the next year about how much this sucks-
Leslie: One year. You said "one year", that's on the record.

[This conversation goes on for a long while, actually!]

More:
- There's one bit in a scene with Leslie and her campaign advisors William and Elizabeth in which Leslie and Elizabeth technically have four exchanges, but only because the topic changes halfway through and because William and Elizabeth always take turns speaking.
- Leslie speaks with the women of PCP but very few of them have names.

S4 E9: The Trial of Leslie Knope

Two words, folks: Ethel Beavers.

Score: 2 / 3

~11:10 in the courtroom

Leslie: So Ethel, you've been to a million of these ethics hearings- what do you think my chances are?
Ethel: I'd say it's fifty-fifty. If you wanna put money on it, I'll give you sixty-forty against.
Leslie: Is it ethical for a court stenographer to bet on the outcome of a hearing?
Ethel: You tell me; you're the one on trial.

More-ish
- Leslie examines Ann and Donna as witnesses, but their testimonies are ultimately about her relationship with Ben.

S4 E8: Smallest Park

Score: 2 / 3

~14:14 in Leslie's office

Leslie is reeling from Ben's accusation that she's a steamroller.

Ann: What I was gonna say is that you really are-
Leslie: -working hard. I know, Ann - you keep starting these sentences and not finishing them-
Ann: (exploding) You're a steamroller! You're a massive, enormous runaway steamroller with no breaks and a cement brick on the gas pedal! You made me watch all eight Harry Potter movies; I don't even like Harry Potter.
Leslie: That's insane! You love Harry Potter; you've seen all eight movies!

[They go on, talking about Leslie's behavior.]

This one conversation totally passes even though it's inspired by an accusation that comes from Ben. Sadly, it's the only one that passes.

S4 E7: The Treaty

Score: 2 / 3

~1:10 in the Parks and Recreation office

April: And I'll be the moon!
Leslie: Nope. South Africa or... Pakistan.
April: I'm the moon or I quit.
Leslie: April.
April: Moon or quit, man.
Leslie: Fine. You be South Africa and you can also *secretly* run the moon.

More:
- Leslie has several conversations with the [leader of the Model UN]* about the competition.

* HERE IS WHERE IT GETS TRICKY: In this episode, the actor Allison Gliffert is credited as "France" - in reference, of course, to the country she represents. In a future episode, Gliffert plays "Cassidy". Should it be said that she "has a name"? I vote no, but I still give the episode a 2 / 3 because of the above conversation with April, and because "France" is not a one-off character.

S4 E6: End of the World

Score: 1 / 3

~8:54 at a park

Shauna covers the doomsday prediction at Ramset Park.

Leslie: Headline idea: "It's the end of the world as they know it, but Pawnee feels fine".
Shauna: That's a little long.
Leslie: Okay, "Zorp, schmorp! Doomsday prediction falls flat as citizens spend pleasant evening enjoying one of Pawnee's finest parks."
Shauna: Somehow longer.

[Shauna changes the topic to Ben.]

- Joy, the bank teller, counts money for April and Andy; Andy interjects too soon for their dialogue to pass.
- Leslie asks Ann whether she or Shauna is more charming; this is more about Ben than anything.
- Leslie tries to persuade Shauna to leave Ramset park; again, more about Ben.

S4 E5: Meet 'n' Greet

Score: 0 / 0

Despite unlikely character pairings and a lovable storyline in which Ann endeavors to be a fix-it woman, this episode fails. Leslie spends the episode with Tom, Ann with Ron, April with Ben, Donna in the background (and Millicent hardly speaking).

S4 E4: Pawnee Rangers

Score: 2 / 3

~4:20 in the Goddess cabin

Leslie: Ladieees! The Goddess cabin has never looked better! This year's cabin refurbishment badge is going to be hotly contested! Okay, so what did everybody make for their loosely-structured-craft-time?
Lauren: I made a "Gertrude stein"!
Leslie: Ha-ha amazing! Lauren, that's so good! I really wouldn't want to follow that! Ann?
Ann: Oh boy. Um... I was making some corn-husk dolls for everyone, but they kinda came out wrong so they sorta look like monsters... I'm sorry. I'm just gonna put that... over there... in the... fire...

[The conversation goes on. I had to double check, for my own gratification, to make sure that the "rules" allow that a conversation can be among 2 or more women - which is the case and is, I think, as it should be.]

More:
- Leslie and the Goddesses talk about gender equality (though this is perhaps a conversation about - or at least inspired by - a boy wanting to join their group).
- There are several interactions between Leslie and the Goddesses within the public forum that are about principles of gender equality and related issues.