30 Rock

(2006-2007, 950 min) Where did Alec Baldwin come from? Suddenly that magnificent bastard is on my TV every week, smirking and deadpanning his way into my one-liner-loving heart. It’s as if he was in comedy hibernation and has finally come out funnier, wiser and larger.

Ten years ago Baldwin was just a dull leading man who only attracted attention when he was marrying Kim Basinger, socking paparazzi or talking about his Schwetty Balls on Saturday Night Live. And although those bits were hilarious, they were nothing compared to the brilliantly preening alpha male he has brought to life in the first season of NBC’s "30 Rock."

Baldwin’s Jack Donaghy is an obsessive control freak and a high-powered executive who consistently outplays, outmaneuvers and outlasts his competition. Although he is a major player at GE (parent company of NBC) he spends most of his time micromanaging the marginal (and fictional) NBC sketch comedy show TGS and the personal life of its director, the charmingly goofy and antisocial Liz Lemon (Tina Fey). Best described by Salon’s TV critic Heather Havrilesky as “the human embodiment of a bad hair day”, Liz is Everywoman. Or at least, how Everywoman sees herself.

Liz, the kind of person who avoids effort in order to avoid failure, sets her standards early on in the season when she decides to stay with her loser beeper-salesman boyfriend because he is thoughtful enough to buy her a hamburger. She is the embodiment of the sad single lady: awkward, bitter, jealous and willing to settle. As a single lady well on her way to becoming a sad single lady, I heart her. In fact, most people I have encountered who have strong feelings about this show seem to also be women. I am willing to bet a shiny silver dollar that there is a correlation here.

Playing the role of the anti-Liz we have Jane Krakowski as Jenna, the female lead of TGS (short for The Girly Show) who has been abruptly pushed to the sidelines by her new male costar. Jenna is vapid, blonde and desperate for love and attention. Her insecurities cause as much self-destruction as Liz’s do, which makes them a modern-day Betty and Veronica, except neither one gets to go for a ride in Archie’s jalopy. Ever.

Tracy Morgan plays a caricatured version of himself: Tracy “Jordan”. This is as brilliant as it is ridiculous. Tracy fears the powerful cabal known as the “Black Mafia” (chaired by Bill Cosby), pitches a drama to a GE exec about the life of Thomas Jefferson where he plays every character (even Sally Hemmings) and does such a hilarious impersonation of Oprah that I had to rewind it three times. He is goofy and over-the-top and there’s not much more to say about his performance on the show other than it’s comedy at its most basic level. He’s just funny as hell.

To top it off, the cast and writers of TGS (many will recognize the schlumpy Judah Friedlander from Wet Hot American Summer and "Best Week Ever"); wide-eyed Kenneth the Page (who has a Southern accent despite apparently being from Western Pennsylvania) and Tracy’s devoted entourage are all hilarious as well. Look out for scene-stealing guest appearances by Isabella Rossellini as Jack’s ex-wife and Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee Herman) as Gerhardt, the last living Hapsburg.

"30 Rock" is smart, funny and quick. Every episode has left me wishing it had lasted longer than a measly half-hour. I can’t imagine anyone would be disappointed.

– Rachel J. Cox

© TLA Entertainment Group