Watching 30 Rock

Good news, 30 Rockers! According to the NBC website, 30 Rock will be returning in January with new episodes! Now presumably, these are episodes completed before the writer’s strike shut down production of the show. I guess NBC was smart to hold some back, because I know I am aching for some new episodes …. I mean, I dig the reruns and all, but my DVR hasn’t recorded anything new for me in over a week! And after all the holiday madness, when we are in post-party hangover mid-January blues, some new TV shows will definitely hit the spot. And if this strike drags on, do not despair, as we will start recapping season one episodes (from DVD) as well as discussing DVD extras and Tina Fey commentary in the new year. What a way to start 2008!

As for last night’s rerun, it’s a reviewing of “Jack Get’s in the Game,” featuring guest star Will Arnett as Jack’s nemesis, Devin Banks. If you recall they are both competing for the job of General Electric’s CEO … Jack through “getting noticed” and Devin through marrying the boss’s unattractive daughter while convincing himself and everyone else that he’s not gay. Good times! In addition, we get a fat Jenna who spent the summer eating pizza and a Tracy who takes Kenneth the Page for his “work wife,” since his own wife Angie kicked him out. This is also the episode that features the classic “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah” and one of the funniest moments of the season thus far:

So if you missed the show last night or don’t have your Tivo set to record reruns, you can watch the full episode at NBC.com or reread our recap. And now we all have January to look forward too!

30 Rock, Tina Fey, Will Arnett, 30 Rock recaps

Greetings fellow 30 Rockers! As I’m sure you all know, tonight’s episode is a rerun of “Seinfeld Vision,” the first episode of the second season, which featured Jerry Seinfeld as a guest star. This episode also led off some of this season’s product placement, as Seinfeld’s Bee Movie was promoted heavily. (We still haven’t seen the movie, so I guess that promotional money was wasted, at least in our household.) If you missed the episode, you can read the recap or watch the full episode at NBC.com.

In other 30 Rock news, our beloved Tina Fey was named one of the 11 Most Influential Women of 2007 by MSN.

Tina Fey is like that super-talented, super-smart, super-pretty girl you knew in high school who you really wanted to hate, but you just couldn’t because she was also super-nice. Fey was head writer at Saturday Night Live for years, then used that experience as fodder to create the Emmy-winning show 30 Rock, in which she not only stars, but also writes and co-produces. Wearing three hats could make it hard for Fey, as the current Writers’ Guild strike conflicts with her acting/producing roles. But just like that girl in high school, she seems to be keeping her integrity while not pissing too many people off. Now that’s true talent.

Tina is in good company, as this list includes Hilary Rodham Clinton, Benazir Bhutto, and Pat Summitt. On the other hand, the list also includes Elizabeth Hasselbeck (famous for arguing with Rosie O’Donnell), Carrie Underwood (famous for dating Tony Romo), Miley Cyrus (famous for, huh, something Disney-related), and the Obama Girl (famous for being on YouTube.) Quite a mixed bag, but as always, we like to see Tina get the recognition she deserves for being so freaking awesome.

30 Rock, Tina Fey, Seinfeld, MSN Influential Women of 2007

Cold Opening. Jack and CC (Edie Falco) are making out in his office. She’s concerned but Jack squashes that since those creative types are easily distracted….btw, look how cute my dog is sleeping on the couch!

OK, obvious joke, but isn’t she adorable??!! Anyway, Jack and CC are making out but she’s worried about how much time she’s spending with Jack since she’s trying to sue his parent company. And in walks Liz who tries to shield herself from the lip-locky carnage with a folder. Jack covers quickly by introducing CC as Lakeshia Gutierrez Arafat. (did I spell that right?). Liz doesn’t seem fooled by that and makes a smooth, quick exit, “Lemon Out!”

Frank enters the writer’s room wearing a Harvard sweatshirt. He’s entitled since he performed stand-up there over the weekend but Toofer doesn’t think so. “You do not want to make a Harvard man angry.” And everyone laughs.

Jack is waiting for Liz in her office and reveals to Liz that CC and he are lovers. Liz doesn’t like to hear the word “lover” unless it’s in between the words “meat” and “pizza.” I’m kind of with her there. I’ve been with Lori for over four years and if she called me her lover I’d pretend like I didn’t speak English. Not really, but it’s kind of a yucky word that makes your brain automatically think of the two (or three) people it describes in some foul sex act. Meat and pizza doing it, good, your parents.. BAD!

Anyway, Liz knows CC is suing the company (mainly Sheinhardt wig company) for turning some kids orange…kind of like Michael Kors but with more hair and less flambalatory attitude. Jack is torn because the corporation has a very strict “bros before hos policy.” Liz recognizes that Jack is really into CC and he acknowledges it’s serious, serious enough to hold a dinner party so his friends can meet her. He invites Liz to attend but wants her to be discreet and not dress like a “small town lesbian.” You know, this is just how my family reacted to me after I came back from Missouri for Thanksgiving.

Jenna comes in and announces to the team that they’ve won an award. Well not really, but she’s won a best actress in a movie based on a musical based on a movie for the film version of Mystic Pizza the Musical. Tracy comes in and is less than thrilled by the 3.6 seconds of attention Jenna is getting for her award. “It’s going to be one of those weeks,” says Pete. Pete!

Liz runs some recon with Tracy to see what’s bugging him. He’s bugged because everyone wins awards but him and he feels like a big ol’ failure. Liz says she forgot to tell him that he’s getting a Lifetime Achievement award from the Pacific Rim Emmy’s. Heh, Rim. Tracy is psyched since he loves Japanese culture especially Godzilla.

Liz instructs Pete to make Tracy a Pacific Rim Emmy (soder some moons onto a basketball trophy). Jenna is amazed at how Liz panders to Tracy to make him happy but is bummed she doesn’t get that kind of treatment. Liz insists Jenna is her rock and doesn’t need to be pandered to.

Frank tourments Toofer some more dressed in full Harvard gear and even has a Cygnet pin on his pants (it should be on his jacket), Toofer angry!

Tracy wants to know when he’s going to Japan to accept his Emmy but Liz tells him the show is tonight. Tracy told his kids they could watch his dad get an award. Liz says she’ll set something up and Tracy wants Liz, Jenna and Josh there to watch him accept his accolade. Jenna scolds Liz for rewarding Tracy’s bad behavior and insists she gives him anything he wants. Uh-oh.
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Cold opening on exterior shot of the NBC building. Everyone is coming up to Liz asking her to hang out with them. Frank and Lutz are going to walk around Times Square and pretend to be foreign, Jenna is getting drinks with recently divorced camera guy and Tracy is going to an animals only strip club (”does that mean the animals strip or the animals are the customers?”). Liz turns them all down because she’s got balls on her mind. No, not that, a meatball sub with extra bread you perv!

Jack catches Liz calling in her food order and pretty much sums up her evening. Meatball sub extra bread, bottle of NyQuil, tivoed Top Chef, a little Ms. Bonnie Rait, lights out. Jack reveals that Casey gets voted out which makes Liz scream “You monster, why are you like this?” Actually Casey was in the final three so she didn’t really get voted out but it was funnier the way they did it. Credits.

Tracy comes into Jack’s office with the baseball team he’s coaching (part of his community service since his motorcycle hit a police horse). The team is from the worse neighborhood in New York and doesn’t seem to keen on Jack’s story about how his baseball team won the Boston city championship even though they were all white and the other team was completely…never mind.

Jack goes on about how baseball taught him how to dream and asks the team what their dreams are. Enter a scene reminiscent of those first Monster.com ads from Superbowl past. The kids dream of doing vending machine maintenance, being shot by a cop and suing the city, cleaning an office like this one, etc. Jack tells them that these are not the dreams of winners but Tracy corrects him that they’re not winners, they’re 0 and 17. Opps.

A cute blond guy is delivering coffee. Jenna asks who ordered the “Veal,” but Liz tells her that guy is a baby. Jenna flirts with him anyway “I like your blond streaks, it’s very Simon LeBond.” Liz tells Jenna that she’s talking to an ultra-sound to which Veal replies that he’s getting attitude from the sexy librarian. Ultra-smooth Liz is flustered and slips into a very Wake Up Wakefield moment. “Sexy, what no you are, shut up.” But she isn’t the only one who has a crush. Frank would totally go gay for Veal. Everyone laughs but he isn’t kidding. Holy Mango!
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Cold opening. Pete is hanging out on Liz’s couch in his comfy clothes, watching TV when Liz comes in. “Are you making waffles?” she asks. Liz can smell maple syrup and it smells delicious. Mmm, waffles. Pete is not making waffles. Liz calls up Tracy to make sure he is practicing his Rerun dance for the show. Tracy says he can’t practice because the delicious smell of maple syrup is too distracting. Just then Jack calls Liz and we get a three-way split screen with Liz and Jack discussing the maple syrup smell and Tracy doing the Rerun dance from What’s Happening. Jack thinks it could be a chemical attack of Northrax, a chemical agent sold to the Saudis in the 80s that smells exactly like maple syrup. Jack thinks it probably isn’t Northrax though, as they would be dead in ten seconds. They both are quiet, counting down the ten seconds, while Tracy continues to dance. After ten seconds, they hang up, relieved, and Jack goes back to reading his very Republican book while I get up and try to do the Rerun dance.

Credits. I love Alec Baldwin’s dramatic head turn.

When we return, Jack is getting a haircut. He asks the barber to make him look like Ronald Reagan. “Like that is a stretch,” the barber and I say at the same time. Liz comes in and thanks him for calling her last night about the maple syrup thing. She gets nervous about the whole homeland security thing, but Jack tells her she can always call him because he has NSA connections. Again, not surprising. She asks him why he gets his haircut so often. “Because your hair is your head suit.” That and because he is going to a party hosted by John McCain and Jack Bauer. I hope it is not a Christmas party. Jack is worried that he has to look perfect because no one is more bitchy about hair than conservative males. We briefly cut to a scene at a party were a bunch of Republicans are making fun of Jack’s hair. Before Liz leaves, Jack asks her to wear a T-shirt supporting the Sheinhardt Wig Company, an NBC parent company having PR problems. (The back of the shirt says “NOT poisoning rivers since 1997.) Liz is happy with the free shirt and leaves.
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Cold Opening. Liz approaches Jenna in the hallway and says she found her “Sunset Blush” lipstick at her apartment. Jenna says that isn’t hers as she wears “Tiger Orgasm.” Just like mom used to wear. Flashback to Liz finding the lipstick under her couch and Great Sid Caesar’s ghost! What is that? Oh it’s a pop tart under the couch as well. Score snack for Liz!

Liz thinks that’s odd since it’s just her and Pete at her place. I guess Pete is still crashing there since separating from his yet to be seen wife. Enter Pete looking perky and rocking “a sexy Justin Timberlake hat.” He actually looks more like my uncle Gary during his Indiana Jones phase but this makes Jenna think he’s having an affair. She goes on to say that “the only reason men start taking care of themselves is if they’re getting someone to have sex with them. If not for that they’d just sit around in their own filth.” Cue Frank looking so gnarly I can smell him from here saying something about how they’re out of string cheese so he’s going to take off.

Liz encounters Jack next holding a pair of big yellow hands. He tells Liz that they’re going green and introduces her to Mouth Breathing Ross…actually it’s Greenzo played by another must see TV dweeb David Schwimmer. “Saving the earth while maintaining profitability!” And go figure it was the first name that popped into Jack’s head. If Jennifer Aniston shows up as Greenzo’s perky mother earth girlfriend we’re tossing our Caesar salad. Credits.

And we’re back. Ew, I just sneezed on my computer. I hope you don’t catch my cold by reading this. Anyway Greenzo, real name Jarrett, is super psyched about this gig and says gig a lot since he hasn’t worked since appearing in a political ad for Rick Lazio’s New York senate campaign. Cue ad where Ross is holding a child saying, “Hilary Clinton wants an all homosexual army. How will that affect my family.” Heh. Jack tells Lemon. As NBC’s environmental mascot Greenzo will be releasing an endangered falcon at halftime of the Knicks game and (as if that weren’t enough) he’s been booked onto The Today Show.
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Cold Opening. Jack enters the writer’s room to announce that Liz is the recipient of the G&E Fellowship award. No sorry, that’s Followship Award. It’s presented annually to the women, er person that best exemplifies a follower. Liz is none to thrilled about this cause she ain’t no follower. But the award comes with an oversized check for $10,000. Liz is honored. Jack gives a speech about how proud he is of Liz’s ability to follow. It contains the word “adverlingus” which I’m totally adding to my vocabulary.

Jack asks Liz if she’s going to put the cash in a 401k but alas she has none, just 12 grand in checking. I wish I had that. I could buy a Kia. But onto our next plotline.

Jenna approaches Kenneth and looky, she’s all of a sudden back to her normal size. “If I can’t be Mo’Nique fat, I have to be Terry Hatcher thin.” Jenna takes a bit of something and manages to splurg dip onto Kenneth’s page jacket. I sense hilarity ensuing. She says she’ll get the dip off but sets his jacket on a lit oven. Uh-Oh, I don’t think those page jackets are made of natural fibers because that mother goes up in flames faster than a copy of Our Bodies, Ourselves in Baptist library. Credits. Word of advice, try not to focus on the pictures flashing behind the casts head’s. I almost had a vertigo attack.

Commercials. Dan in Real Life looks like every scholocky family ensemble movie in the past 10 years. I’ll be there’s a quirky daughter or two. You’re better than that Steve Carell!

Pete and Liz are in line to meet Liz’s idol Rosemary Howard (Carrie Fisher). According to Liz she was the first female writer for Laugh-In, she wrote all the political stuff. Child Liz flashback! She’s watching Laugh-In, there’s a really bad Nixon joke about being pardoned involving a Goldie Hawn look-alike. Lil’ Liz states “It’s funny because it’s true.”

Back to the present. Liz approaches Rosemary and begins to yammer on about what a big fan she is and how she grew up wanting to be her. The yammering pays off and Rosemary informs Liz that she’ll let her take her to lunch so she can get it all out of her system. Pete is unhappy because Liz was suppose to take him hat shopping.
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I woke up this morning with the 30 Rock theme song going through my head. That can mean only one thing … it’s Thursday and there’s a new episode of the show!

Cold opening: Jack Donaghy and his assistant, Jonathan, are standing on the balcony outside Jack’s office, gazing at the New York lights. “One day sir,” Jonathan says, “this whole city will be yours.” It’s quite the romantic moment. Just then, Liz Lemon bursts around the corner, looking for Jack. “You always ruin everything,” spits Jonathan as he stomps out. Jealous much, Johnny?

Jack tells Liz not to worry about Jonathan. He’s been tense since they found out Jack is a candidate for the GE Chairmanship. That’s why Liz is here …. she had a call from the lawyers asking about Jack … and what animal best describes him. “An eagle with the head of a bear,” is what Liz told them. Jack is flattered. Personally, I would have gone with “a gorilla with the head of an angry squirrel.” Jack figures that GE is looking for skeletons in his closet … so he’s hired a private investigator to investigate … himself. That why he’ll know that GE might find before GE finds it. “I’ve done some things, Lemon.” Now I want an episode about THAT. Jack fakes a phone call (with the “call me” hand gesture) to get out of hearing about Liz’s latest therapy session. I want an episode about THAT too.

Credits. Bop-bop-a-doo.

We return and along with Liz find Tracy in his dressing room with his wife, Angie, played by Sherri Shepard. Liz finds out the deal that Tracy and Angie made last week …. she’ll take him back, but only if she is with him ALL THE TIME to prevent him from messing around on her again. Liz is a fan of this development, because it means Tracy is on time to work. Tracy himself is just surprised to discover that things like TV shows are food are available even in the morning.

Angie asks Liz to help her keep an eye on Tracy when she can’t be around, as long as Liz promises not to fall in love with him. Liz says that won’t be a problem. Angie even agrees to be Liz’s “sassy black friend.”
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Cold opening on a yummy looking steak as an even yummier Liz Lemon knocks and opens a door…Sorry, did I say that out loud, I have no biases in terms of characters nor do I have an orientation that would make me attracted to Tina Fey in black stockings, or no stockings…I’m doing it again aren’t I? Dammit!

Anyway, Liz walks into Jack’s office where he informs her that on his desk is a $54 steak. Since having a heart attack Jack can no longer consume the meaty, scotchy meal of the white-collar boss man and wants Liz to eat it so he can watch. Kinky. Liz eagerly agrees and chows down as Jack goes into a speech about how this is a time of new beginnings for him. He asks Liz if she’s read the interview with Don Geiss who is the chief executive officer of General Electric and Jack’s “Corporate Crush” in this month’s Yachting Illustrated. Liz said she hasn’t as she subscribes to Giant Boats. heh.

From said article Jack extrapolates that Geiss might be retiring and says that his job is the most “coveted in the free world.” He decides he has to do something to get himself noticed. Zippy credits and music and commercials and we’re back with Jane Krakowski in a fat suit.

At least this isn’t like other shows where someone gets fat for a plot line then they’re all of a sudden skinny again. Apparently Jenna hasn’t quit her pizza habit. However Jenna has a plan to get back to her normal weight by Friday night’s show. She’s on a Japanese porn star diet where she eats nothing but paper, but all the paper she wants. Healthy.

Liz goes on about how maybe this is Jenna’s natural body shape and how she’s just as beautiful and talented as ever. However Jack is lurking in the corner and says no, she’s fat and she needs to see the doctor to get this taken care of. This sets Liz off and she pontificates about how America needs to get over its body image madness. Jack insists Liz should focus on herself more than causes, specifically her love life and getting rid of the wedding dress. He asks about the furniture for her home office, which leads to a hilarious shot of a bunch of Ikeaish boxes labeled blerg (two dots above the e).

Jack then spies his old nemesis Devon Banks (Will Arnett) and finds out he’s in town visiting his new fiancée. What? Isn’t Banks gayer then Perez Hilton dry-humping the Bravo network? Well yah, but it turns out his bride-to-be is Kathy Geiss, Don Geiss’s daughter. Oh you sneaky, sneaky pillow-biter. Banks knows that Geiss is planning to retire but really isn’t straight as his head is turned by the seductress Kenneth.

Tracy approaches Kenneth and goes off about his marital problems with his wife Angie. He says that Angie is in the past like Dracula and Broadcast television and that she should find someone new. Kenneth disagrees that Tracy wouldn’t be down if Angie was smokin’ some other pole (I added that part).
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This is my first shot at recapping a show, so lets see how it goes.

In the cold opening, jaunty music plays while Liz Lemon comes back to work after TGS’s summer vacation. The camera pans past a Girly Show and we see that Seinfeld’s picture is now part of it. (Spoiler!) A chipper Liz asks everyone about their summer. I’m surprised she’s noting who got their ears pierced or who grew boobs or who got fat (another spoiler!) No, wait, that was me after summer vacation in junior high.

Liz greets Jack and discuss his “big hit” summer replacement shows — America’s Next Top Pirate, Stronger Than a Dog, and MILF Island. Hey, I would totally watch that show.

Next Jack drops his new great idea on Liz — Seinfeld Vision. Using the hundreds of hours of footage from Seinfeld, Jack and his tech guys can digitally insert America’s beloved Jerry Seinfeld into any current NBC show. For the month of October, Seinfeld will appear in all prime time shows! Brilliance! A montage of digital Jerrys ensues, including Jerry as a suspect on Law & Order, uttering the famous line “save the cheerleader, save the world” from Heroes, and as a winning contestant on Deal or No Deal. Does Jerry know about this? Short answer is “no.”

Liz tells Jack that she had a great summer — and that she and Floyd broke up. But this is her year! She’s gonna meet a great guy! The ever-supportive Jack points out that women her age are more likely to get mauled at the zoo than get married.

Let’s all hum along to the theme music!
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