User blog comment:ThatGuy456/A Guy's Thoughts: "The Rival" and "The Lady" - Season Six's Solid Start?/@comment-31194372-20180114080007/@comment-30307603-20180115161252

I'm not trying to suggest that "The Rival" has the worst ending in the series. There has definitely been worse, such as "The Apprentice." However, I found the ending to "The Rival" weakened by the last-minute gag. Nowhere near a truly abhorrent ending nor does it ruin the episode by any means, but still somewhat cheap nonetheless.

Funny you say "The Petals" has a poor ending. I personally liked it quite a bit. The ending is not trying to have a moment of character growth nor play up the emotional factor, so having a comedic ending seems like a very fitting way to end the episode. Furthermore, it is a nice bit of comedic irony; in trying to become pretty, Leslie makes himself a headless monster with not signs of rectifying for six months. It's the kind of ironic humor I have come to appreciate.