Categories: Recaps

30 Rock final season premiere review: Tank it ’til you make it

After a year of running NWN, I have just now realized that I have not written one proper review of a 30 Rock episode, which seems almost unbelievable. And tonight, it just hit me: it would be a shame if I let the final season of one of my all-time favorite comedies come and go without ever commenting on it. What still hasn’t hit me, however, is that this show is actually going to…end, that we’re going to reach a final fade out. And when I think of all the things the show needs to wrap up before that final moment — Jenna’s wedding, Jack’s weeding out Kabletown, Kenneth’s inevitable rise to the top, Liz’s family — I can see them all being tapped in this first half hour so wonderfully and cartoonishly so as has become 30 Rock fashion.

More so, this arc intrigues me more than the season 6 one, which hit me almost lukewarm at best. This felt more good ol’ fashioned 30 Rock, instead. Where this arc is headed, however, is anyone’s guess: Jack has decided the way to get Kabletown out of the NBC game is to absolutely tank it by greenlighting a lineup of awful shows. (This was written before NBC was doing reasonably well this season.) He thinks that this will make Kabletown sell NBC…to someone who has vowed to keep Jack as prez.

Tina Fey has been making the press rounds stating that when she entered the writers’ room for this final season, there really wasn’t anything that the writers thought they needed to do before the final episode came; they felt pretty satisfied that they’ve done every gag they could think of and would be perfect for this series. On the surface, it may seem that this storyline with Jack could almost parallel with the actual show and we’d see 30 Rock enter into the abyss of its own ridiculousness for the final six hours it has left. But with Tina stating publicly that’s not really the case, there really isn’t need to think that way. But there is this sort of aura around the final season of this great show. The writers know the only people watching are people that just get it, that aren’t going to bail. You can almost feel that in the fluidity of this episode, from Tracy’s birthing snake to Jenna levitating in the air (which, garnered the biggest laugh from me tonight).

Either that or it’s this idea that these people have built up this whimsical but spectacular thing and now they’re about to just tear it all down. Like Legos. Let the deconstruction (in both uses of the word) begin!

Observations:

  • I want all my small talk to be “We are having weather.”
  • Seriously, Jenna levitating: still laughing.
  • I love the anecdotes of Liz’s summer to Jack on the first day back.
  • I kind of was not a fan of Liz trying to back out of being Jenna’s maid of honor. Even though Jenna is absolutely insane and a burden, she’s still Liz’s best friend and their relationship (as opposed to always being in counterproductive partnerships with Tracy) is something I miss in the latter seasons.

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  • I agree with the note about being disappointed with Liz backing out of being the maid of honor. it would have been a nice, final testament to their friendship. I'm also sad we didn't get to see Chriss at all this episode! He and Liz are sooo cute. Oh well, so excited for this last season. It's gonna be a fun ride.

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Michael
Tags: 30 Rock

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