jack mcbrayer-related stories
What You Missed Last Night: Julia Louis-Dreyfus steals another award
Remember last year when Julia Louis-Dreyfus stole Tina Fey's Emmy on Late Night with Conan O'Brien? She did it again last night, only this time she stole an Oscar. I'm still not sure why Kenneth the Page is now in Los Angeles. Did he get transferred when Conan left 30 Rock? What does that mean for 30 Rock?
30 Rock: The Natural Order
(S03E20) "It's the biggest regret of my life, Lemon. And I once made love to Kathy Hilton." - Jack, about not confronting his dadOh, come on. There's no way that Liz Lemon would be that incompetent when it comes to replacing a water bottle. It was like she was a mixture of Steve Urkel and Barney Fife, dropping the bottle, getting herself soaked. I mean, she could have at least known that you take the empty jug off before you attempt to put the new one on. That whole scene was odd. It went on a lot longer and was more slapstick-oriented than most 30 Rock gags.
Continue reading 30 Rock: The Natural Order
30 Rock: The Bubble
(S03E15) "His video game made a fortune and he invested all of it in a company that dismantles bank signs. They're doing very well." - Jack, about TracyI have to really disagree with Jack and Cerie: Liz Lemon is a bubble person.
Sure, Cerie is hot, but Jack himself admits that he hasn't been great looking since he was 25 and still had really blue eyes. They think Liz is merely nice and "pleasant looking"? That's crazy talk. Tina Fey is a bubble person.
That's a line I never thought I'd actually type, but she is. She really is. Liz should get what she wants a lot more than she does.
Continue reading 30 Rock: The Bubble
30 Rock: The Funcooker
(S03E14) "Passing out? Cursing? On St. Patrick's Day? Is nothing sacred?" - JackWasn't it great to see an episode of 30 Rock that revolved around NBC and TGS and the work of the staff? Sure, there was the plot with Liz trying to get out of jury duty, but even that was tied into her work life at the studio. We've had a lot of episodes that had the various characters scattered away from each other, involved with people and places that had nothing to do with NBC, so it's great to see the writing staff working together, Jenna going crazy at the studio, Tracy wanting to take over all of the advertising on the show, and Jack working on a new microwave product.
Continue reading 30 Rock: The Funcooker
Saturday Night Live: Alec Baldwin/The Jonas Brothers - VIDEOS
(S34E16) It was pretty obvious there was going to be at least two sketches with the Jonas Brothers. I called it! I mean, no one apart from the people in my apartment know I called it, but that doesn't change the facts or my sad sense of accomplishment. I had to tune out once they started singing (sorry, 15 year-old girls), but their skits were all right. Alec Baldwin did a fine job of hosting as well, though there weren't any particularly striking sketches. I suppose after doing something like "Schwetty Balls", just about everything else will pale in comparison.
Continue reading Saturday Night Live: Alec Baldwin/The Jonas Brothers - VIDEOS
30 Rock: St. Valentine's Day
(S03E11) "Nice ... you mean like stew?" - Liz to Jack, about what dinner to make DrewOK, I think it's officially time to call out an APB on Josh and the rest of the writing staff. They're missing again this week. Not many supporting characters at all this week. Even Jenna had only one quick (though very funny) scene, while Frank was reduced to just handing off one of the subplots to Kenneth. I really want to see this show get back to some episodes about TGS and NBC and the inner working of the show. It's like TGS is on summer hiatus or something.
Having said that, this episode was quite good.
Continue reading 30 Rock: St. Valentine's Day
30 Rock: Senor Macho Solo
(S03E07) Love was in the air in this episode of 30 Rock. It seems as though everyone had something going on in their personal life. Jack fell in love with his mother's nurse, Liz found a little person to fill the baby-shaped hole in her heart, Tracy and Angie reignited the spark in their marriage, and Frank, well, Frank got to watch Tracy and Angie do it on Kenneth's desk. So everyone was a winner!
Generally, I think 30 Rock does a great job with guest stars, but this season has been a little disappointing so far. With the exception of the Oprah episode, the constant stunt casting has made it feel a little bit like the last seasons of Will and Grace. However, this week's episode, despite having three guest stars, didn't feel like that at all. Maybe it's because there were three, but they fit into the episode, instead of feeling like the episode was written around them.
Continue reading 30 Rock: Senor Macho Solo
Merry Christmas from Kenneth the Page - VIDEO
The web has really opened the doors to the possibilities for what the networks can do. Some haven't done that much, and even the ones that do took a long time to actually harness the power of the web (and if I ever use the phrase "harness the power of the web" again you can punch me in the groin). I like it when cast members of the shows do something online that's in character but isn't just a promotion for the show.Case in point, this video from NBC. It shows 30 Rock's Kenneth the Page in a Santa hat all excited about Christmas (and the anniversary of the "Parcell Massacre"), dancing around the 30 Rock hallways with a chair. If you're not in the Christmas mood already, this might put you over the top. McBrayer is great because he seems to be up for anything, including being knocked over by Conan O'Brien.
I'd rather watch video sketches like this than those special "webisodes" that some shows have now. More please!
Continue reading Merry Christmas from Kenneth the Page - VIDEO
30 Rock: Christmas Special
(S03E06) "What's the past tense of scam? Is it scrumped? Liz Lemon, I think you've just been scrumped." - TracyIsn't it interesting how a funny, fast-paced, irreverent, sometimes surreal comedy like 30 Rock can also somehow grab you emotionally? Maybe it's because it's funny and irreverent 98% of the time the emotional parts hit you a little bit harder. They're unexpected and really welcome. Like the end of tonight's episode. Who could have expected the show would end with a piano duet between Jack and his mother? I've always liked Jack's mom, and it was really nice to see their relationship get better amidst all the usual TGS craziness. Some shows just have a Christmas show that isn't much different than their regular episodes, only with more lights and tinsel. Good to see this show actually make the holiday count.
I'm a sucker for Christmas episodes.
Continue reading 30 Rock: Christmas Special
30 Rock: Reunion
(S03E05) "We all have ways of coping. I use sex and awesomeness." - JackI haven't gone to any of the many reunions my high school class has had over the past 25 years. I mean, one of the great things about graduating from high school is that you don't have to see these people anymore. I have a few friends from high school I'm still good friends with, and that's enough.
I was certainly more liked in high school than Liz Lemon was (I think we all were!), but this episode just confirms my suspicions that going to a high school reunion would be a very, very bad idea.
Continue reading 30 Rock: Reunion
The New Yorker doesn't get 30 Rock
Have you ever loved a TV show so much that it hurts, and when other people criticize it you truly wonder if they're even watching the same TV show that you're watching?That's how I felt when I read this new piece in The New Yorker by TV critic Nancy Franklin. It's clear that she likes 30 Rock in general (um, I think), and love love loves Alec Baldwin in particular. But she has some big criticisms of the show, some very specific ones, and I'm not sure I understand how she came to these conclusions. In short:
- She finds Tina Fey "cold"
- Fey is "too generous" with giving screen time and lines to other cast members
- She often fast forwards through scenes that don't involve Baldwin or Jack McBrayer
- She finds Tracy Morgan "irritating" and "hard to watch"
May I suggest that anyone in the world who has those specific criticisms of 30 Rock really doesn't like the show?
Continue reading The New Yorker doesn't get 30 Rock
30 Rock: Believe in the Stars
(S03E02) "I watched Boston Legal nine times before I realized it wasn't the new Star Trek." - Tracy JordanTina Fey was on The Oprah Winfrey Show today and mentioned that the day they filmed their scene together (a Saturday, a day they don't usually tape on but had to so Oprah could appear) was the same day that Fey first appeared as Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live.
That story has nothing to do with tonight's episode but I thought it was a cool piece of trivia. Fey also said she's never going to play Palin again.
Continue reading 30 Rock: Believe in the Stars
Here it is, the season premiere of 30 Rock (one week early!) - VIDEO
Last week we mentioned that a lot of people were wondering where the season premiere of 30 Rock was? Fans thought that NBC might want to take advantage of Tina Fey's Emmy wins/Sarah Palin work and air the first episode of the new season a littler earlier than October 30, but that's not going to happen. But the network has put it online a week early, and we have it after the jump!I'll have a full review next Thursday night, but let's just say you won't be disappointed. The show is just like it has always been: funny, unpredictable, and really clever. We even find out how a few plot points from the past actually turned out. The guest star in the first episode is Will and Grace's Megan Mullally, who plays an adoption agency rep who has to check out Liz's workplace to see if she's a suitable candidate to raise a child. Will Arnett also appears, as Jack tries to get his job back.
Continue reading Here it is, the season premiere of 30 Rock (one week early!) - VIDEO
Old Christine steals Tina Fey's new Emmy - VIDEO
Tina Fey is on a roll right now. She just won another Emmy for 30 Rock (and the show won for Best Comedy), she's getting rave reviews for her impersonation of Governor Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live, and she might even get a great deal on a new Florida condo from acclaimed director Martin Scorcese. She really has to learn how to hide her awards though.On Tuesday's Late Night with Conan O'Brien, New Adventures of Old Christine star Julia Louis-Dreyfus was talking about losing out to Fey for the Best Comedy Actress Emmy and came up with the idea (with Conan's pushing) to go up to Fey's dressing room to steal the award (and this after Fey said some nice things about her at the Emmy ceremony!). It's clearly pre-staged, but still funny, and we get cameos from not one but two stars from 30 Rock.
Oh, and the Emmy isn't the only thing Conan takes from Fey's dressing room...video after the jump! How do women run in heels anyway?
Continue reading Old Christine steals Tina Fey's new Emmy - VIDEO
I don't like the new NBC page uniforms
After many years, NBC has finally updated the suits that their pages wear to guide visitors around the NBC studios. But you know what? I like the old ones.Take a look at the new suits on the right. Sure, they're Brook Brothers and they're sophisticated, but they just look like regular suits. There's nothing that stands out about them. It's as if people put on regular nice suits and then added some pins and badges to them. Doesn't look right, in the same way you sometimes see guys wearing three piece suits with a baseball cap.
Now after the jump, take a look at the one Kenneth wears on 30 Rock.
Seven greatest hand cannons in TV history
TV Squad previews NBC's new shows (part 1)
TV 101: How ESPN controls the world and what the other networks can learn from it
