TVSquad

Thursday's return of 30 Rock afforded a pretty fun segue into The Jay Leno Show. 30 Rock has always been a little self-aware, and here they took that to the next level. During the closing credits, Jack (Alec Baldwin) said to Liz (Tina Fey), "Step into the light, Lemon. There's nothing wrong with being fun and popular and just giving people what they want." He then turns directly to the camera and adds: "Ladies and gentlemen, Jay Leno."

Unfortunately, when we cut to The Jay Leno Show, his dancing girls (an homage to Jenna's video in 30 Rock) were better at looking good in their tight shorts than they were at dancing. Then, after Leno came out, we got to overhear a woman wanting to get something signed. "Can I leave it?"

I did enjoy the smooth transition into the show. It creates a sense of synergy on the network where you feel like all these shows are one big happy family. Except for Southland. But I guess there's always that one relative nobody wants around ... Hey, I just wrote a Jay Leno joke!

For lack of a better word or description, last night's show was weird and anti-climatic. At first, I was really excited about the contestants doing modern hits from the last 6 years, but then...nothing happened. I kept waiting for that one really great performance that would put the show into overdrive, but it never came.

First off, the show was cut down to a hour last night since there are only 10 contestants left. This made everything feel very rushed. It felt less like a national hit show and more like a filler before House came on. Secondly, all the judges were in agreement last night, and yet they were still fighting. Always weird. Thirdly, lack of time translated into lack of Seacrest zingers. Seacrest zingers are always the cheesiest of zings, and yet, I miss them when they're gone. It's like getting a dollar every year in your birthday card from Grandma. A dollar doesn't get you much (heck, it doesn't get you anything), but that first year when it's not in there...it burns. Finally, I think Kevin might have been eliminated prematurely. I'm convinced that if given the chance, he would have performed Britney Spears' "Toxic" and it would have been the best thing to happen to American Idol since Bobby sung the praises of the Copacabana.

Underneath all that beard, Grizzly Adams is a good looking fellow. Last night, Dave Letterman did what I wanted to do during the entire Super Bowl game on Sunday: shave Ben Roethlisberger's beard. The 23-year-old Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback is the youngest in NFL history to win a Super Bowl. He doesn't usually wear a beard, but he says it became his good luck charm after the Steelers lost to Cincinnati back in October. He told Dave, "I kind of went into a depression and didn't shave and we ended up winning the next game." It turns out, young Roethlisberger is a little bit superstitious so he kept the beard all the way through the Super Bowl.

This is the first year in my life when I actually am interested in who wins the Super Bowl. You see, I grew up in a baseball home. My first taste of football was in college (Go Griz!) and I've never had a national team to root for. Well, I still don't have a national team to root for. I live in Portland, OR, a city that lives vicariously through the professional sports teams that Seattle has. Therefore, I'm rooting for the Seahawks on Sunday.

In order to pretend that I know what is happening, I did a little research about both teams that I thought I would share with the rest of you who will be watching the Super Bowl for the commercials. By the way, the Super Bowl is on Sunday, Feb. 5th on ABC at 6:30 pm Eastern. In Detroit.