Liz is dealing with being a stay-at-home mom while Jack tries to find true happiness. Kenneth and Tracy are both adjusting to Kenneth's new position as President of NBC.
WEST COAST VERSION: Live Broadcast -- Kenneth (Jack McBrayer) takes drastic measures to prove why TGS should stay a live show.
Elisa's grandmother hates Jack because he looks like an evil character in a telenovela. Meanwhile, Liz uses that character's underhanded moves to pick up on a sexy neighbor.
Our TV picks this week include a rebellious historical drama, a fresh voice in comedy, and an ideal teen romance.
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Title: 30 Rock (2006–2013)
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| Series cast summary: | |||
| Tina Fey | ... | Liz Lemon / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Tracy Morgan | ... | Tracy Jordan / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Jack McBrayer | ... | Kenneth Parcell / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Scott Adsit | ... | Pete Hornberger / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Judah Friedlander | ... | Frank Rossitano / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Alec Baldwin | ... | Jack Donaghy / ... 138 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Jane Krakowski | ... | Jenna Maroney / ... 137 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Keith Powell | ... | Toofer / ... 130 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Katrina Bowden | ... | Cerie 99 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Kevin Brown | ... | Dot Com 84 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Grizz Chapman | ... | Grizz 80 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| John Lutz | ... | J.D. Lutz / ... 77 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
| Maulik Pancholy | ... | Jonathan 62 episodes, 2006-2013 | |
Elizabeth "Liz" Lemon is the executive show runner for a late night sketch comedy show called "The Girlie Show", that stars her close friend and major drama queen Jenna Maroney. When GE hires a new executive vice president for NBC named Jack Donaghy, he decides to take Liz Lemon under his wing and turn around TGS, which for years has been unable to find the proper audience it deserves. So to do so, he brings on unhinged, wildly unpredictable star Tracy Jordan to turn the series into a ratings hit. But Liz soon finds out that controlling her odd ball writing staff, the NBC page program, keeping Tracy on a short leash, and getting him to get along with Jenna proves to be one disaster after another. Will TGS ever see true success? And will Liz find the right partner to get married and start a family? Written by halo1k
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After the last few lackluster seasons of Saturday Night Live, I was worried that this show would suffer from the same affliction as those terrible SNL-based films, like The Ladies Man, Superstar, Coneheads, Night at the Roxbury.... but 30 Rock is actually a character-driven comedy, rather than a gag-driven one like those films.
Tina Fey managed to put together a great cast using classic sitcom archetypes. Alec Baldwin is hilarious and subdued as the meddling nitwit boss, Tracey Morgan is genuinely brilliant as the wild and crazy black guy, and newcomer Jack McBrayer is thoroughly enjoyable as the creepy intern. Of course, the whole show is centered on Tina Fey, the constantly put-upon producer of an SNL-type late night comedy show. She has great comedic sensibilities, but she has wisely surrounded herself with a fantastic ensemble cast.
The show is literally jam-packed with laugh-out-loud gags, so even when one joke doesn't work, there's at least two other jokes that do work around the corner. After Tracey Morgan's last sitcom flopped, I feared that we'd seen the last of him. As the Martin Lawrence-esquire egocentric star of the show-within-a-show, Morgan excels. Without the burden of carrying the entire show, Morgan is able to fully realize his potential playing 30 Rock's a psychotic, preening celebrity host. The real gem on the show is Alec Baldwin, who usually gets the best one-liners as the idiot-savant NBC executive who can manage a big business but not his own life. But what really makes the show work is its cast of veteran comedic character actors who staff the fictional comedy show, including Scott Adsit of HBO's Mr. Show and Judah Friedlander from the film American Splendor.
30 Rock premiered on NBC at the same time as the similarly themed Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, another SNL-based series. While Studio 60 took the dramatic route, 30 Rock went comedic. In the end, 30 Rock is better, however. Studio 60 suffers from too much moralizing and a large cast that the scripts can't quite manage to service.
My only complaint about 30 Rock is that we don't see enough of SNL-alum Rachel Dratch on camera. Rumor has it that she was meant to be a main cast member, but the network demanded her role be cut out. It's a shame because she is one of the funniest women in television.