(S01E15) Let's skip the foreplay, get straight to the penetra-sch. Three storylines. Josh's negotiation. Kenneth's induction into Tracy's entourage. Jenna's Maxim gaffe. All brilliant. Despite the perennial grousing about the dearth of good comedy on TV, Thursday nights alone are a careful, VCR-assisted juggling act for me between The Office, The Sarah Silverman Program, Ugly Betty and 30 Rock. It's like a mini-golden age of comedic goodness. The best part is that each show couldn't be more different from the other. 30 Rock doesn't do telenovela plot twists or series-long character arcs or queffing episodes. Well, they might do a queffing episode if that were permissible on network television. What 30 Rock does best is goofy set pieces, zippy one-liners and Alec Baldwin. So, let's get straight to the goods, shall we? An inventory, if you will.
Alec Baldwin:
When is it not good to see Alec Baldwin in Glengarry Glen Ross hard ball mode. His negotiation scenes were gold as was his line delivery, but that's not unique to this episode hence the Golden Globe.
Memorable Lines:
"I love cornbread so much I want to take it behind the middle school, and get it pregnant."
"What happened in your childhood to make you believe that people are good?"
"I was great in that Arliss."
"Would Sharon Stone worry about that?"
Jenna to Tucker Carlson: "For someone who's super, super hot, you're really cranky."
"Do you ever get any emails from anyone other than Match.com?"
"That lady you European-kissed last night was actually a gentlemen."
"The worm - that's so degrading. Are its origins German?"
"The crab is getting aroused. Shut it down. Shut it down."
Memorable Gags:
The negotiation set.
Tina's knowing wink at the audience post-"I love America" speech.
The Bodyguard entourage send-up with Gris and Dotcom.
Tracy handing Kenneth three remotes to turn his TV on. "TV on. Pornography."
It's just so satisfying to see a show come together as 30 Rock has these past few weeks - settling into its rhythm, finding its feet, insert your own metaphor here. Better yet, skip the metaphor, and go A-Team. Imagine Tina Fey - grinning, cigar in mouth, at the head of the writer's room - "I love it when a plan comes together."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-23-2007 @ 2:59AM
ooda said...
Hmm, I thought this was the weakest episode to date. Baldwin was too soft spoken, and Tracey was too "normal". The negotiation could have been great, but it came away as mediocre. I also miss the digs he used to take against Liz.
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2-23-2007 @ 4:01AM
jordancda said...
I agree with Julia, the last few weeks have been a delight; its been amazing to see how 30 Rock (which was hit and miss for the first month or so) has really settled into a rhythm. I love all four comedies that NBC airs on Thursdays, along with How I Met Your Mother, they're the best comedies on network television. However, as much as I adore The Office and Scrubs and Earl, I find myself laughing out loud the most at 30 Rock. Tina Fey is really proving herself as one of the top comedic writers of our time. Her SNL time was good, Mean Girls was good, but this is really good.
I like that they are making Tracy Morgan's character a bit more relatable; he's showing a bit more emotion and less selfishness (fewer blatant gags and more character based humor helps). As usual, McBrayer and Baldwin were magic. Josh's character was amusing this week as his cocky-wussiness seemed to hit its zenith.
Oh yeah, I laughed out loud every time the lawyer didn't finish a word.
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2-23-2007 @ 5:06AM
VitoTheTiVo said...
Boo to Andy Barker. And they're not even giving it new ER as a back up? And The Office and Earl are in reruns? How good can Barker do?
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2-23-2007 @ 6:21AM
Nick said...
"Josh, when I hired you you were opening for a puppet."
The one-liners make this show great. I also loved how Josh was popular with the 12-24 female age group (isn't it usually 18-24).
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2-23-2007 @ 7:33AM
Bill said...
Another excellent episode. In addition to the stuff you listed, I also loved the iPod sunglasses Cerie had as an example of 12-24 women who'll buy anything.
I'll be sad to see it go on hiatus, but as a huge Andy Richter fan, I'm excited about Andy Barker.
http://popculturejunk.blogspot.com
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2-23-2007 @ 9:35AM
_spike said...
I want to take 30 Rock out behind the middle school and get it pregnant.
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2-23-2007 @ 10:59AM
Borat said...
Dare I say it? This show is the funniest out of all the four NBC comedies right now.
I don't really care for the characters, but they are just so damn funny. Jenna has gotten better over the last few episodes too.
I think we have found the successor to Arrested Development.
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2-23-2007 @ 11:10AM
Haggis said...
Great review, but how can you not mention the obvious nod to "Entourage" in this episode? Everything from Tracy's gang to the Jeremy Piven-esque character REEKED of that show. Very similar to Scrub's nod to House a month ago.
And Liz finding Josh at the coffee shop at the NBC building interviewing for a new job was priceless. "But I get a discount here".
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2-23-2007 @ 7:15PM
shawn said...
I want to take 30 Rock out behind the middle school and get it pregnant.
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2-23-2007 @ 11:41AM
khamel said...
what about the hunting barack obama line. that was fox-tastic!
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2-23-2007 @ 11:43AM
gd said...
the best nearly missed moment: Josh taking a picture of the inside of his mouth with his cellphone and asking Liz "does my vulva look swollen?"
"Mano a Toddler"
brilliant show all around.
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2-23-2007 @ 11:44AM
McGone said...
The highlight for me every week is how Baldwin makes me laugh by not doing anything at all. This week it was when Lemon stormed into his office and told him to crush Josh. All Baldwin did was smirk and blink and I was laughing. The man is a freaking comedic genius.
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2-23-2007 @ 11:54AM
meeno01 said...
The best part of the show was:
Tracy : TV On! Pornography!
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2-23-2007 @ 12:05PM
bgdc said...
I admit it, 30 Rock is now the funniest thing on TV. I look forward to it in the same way I'd pine for Arrested Development each week.
The lines are brilliant, characters hilarious and they do a great job at taking tons of jabs at our culture.
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2-23-2007 @ 12:24PM
Amy said...
Pinwheel swastikas. Priceless.
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2-23-2007 @ 2:29PM
Wendy Mac said...
This was the funniest show yet! It was laugh out loud funny, which is more than the other 3 comedies got from me last night.
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2-23-2007 @ 6:49PM
cincodemayo1 said...
I totally agree this show's really come together in the past month or so. And next to the Gerhardt Hapsburg episode, this was 2nd funniest to date.
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2-24-2007 @ 12:15AM
bunz said...
I can't decide if it's more humourous or more sad that i totally got/related to josh's discount line... everyone in the vicinity really does get a rock center discount
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2-24-2007 @ 8:55AM
Jen said...
I laughed quite loudly at the "If the president is so serious about the War on Terror, why doesn't he hunt down and capture Barak Obama before he strikes again? It's time for a change, America! That's why I'm voting for Osama in 2008! Oh? No comeback? Ya burnt!"
And then the American swastikas....haha!!
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3-03-2007 @ 11:08PM
BB said...
Ok... ok... I give up... where did that "ya burnt"
line come from originally?
(I can't stop saying it!)
Is it from other reference somewhere?
-BB
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