30 Rock – Jack goes for a perfect game

It seems like last week, the live episode of 30 Rock brought mixed results. I thought the gimmick took away from the show a little bit, others thought it was a laugh riot. Well, tonight, I was glad to see 30 Rock get back to what it does best because this episode had me laughing a lot.

I loved Tracy’s commercial for the Boys and Girls club. I think it was a bit that easily could have gotten old or boring, but the show really sold it every time, walking through the entire one-shot commercial during each take. Tracy needing a new take because the sound of the skateboard gave him an erection was just disturbing and random enough to be hysterical. I thought it was one of the better Tracy moments to date.

I think the weakest story of the week was Kenneth and Jenna’s con game on Carvel. It certainly wasn’t the worst B plot that 30 Rock has ever pulled out, and it wasn’t even that bad, but I thought it paled in comparison with the other two plot lines in the episode. I did enjoy the (very short) long con, though, complete with a cameo from Kelsey Grammer.

30 Rock really shines when Jack and Liz are playing off each other and I think this episode really succeeded in that respect. Jack’s “Reaganing” was a fun concept, and also an impossible one. Did any viewer really think that he could overcome Liz and Tracy? Jellybeans got him out of one, but to try to fix all of Liz’s sexual hang ups (which were mostly caused by Tom Jones)? Well, he did his best, but maybe he should have walked the “Albert Pujols of problems.”

My favorite quotes of the night:

“You have so many unsolvable problems. like your mouth. It looks like somebody kicked a hole in a bag of flour.” – Jonathan to Liz

“I’ll swing by MSNBC. I have to talk to Rachel Maddow. Only one of us can have this haircut.” – Jack

“…and I’d been on the toilet so long that my legs had fallen asleep so when I tried to stand I just fell into my throw up.” – Liz

Clacked by Bob Degon
on Oct 21, 2010 @ 21:14 EST5EDT