Tonight, NBC is airing two episodes apiece of 30 Rock and The Office, which got me to thinking: Which of these superlative sitcoms holds up better when you watch them as summer reruns?
I’m not trying to set up some ridiculous which-show-is-better comparison — obviously, each of these sitcoms is first-rate and has unique qualities. But different questions of style and content come into play here. Does The Office, which tends to follow storylines for longer arcs, make for less-engaging rerun drop-in visits, because you have to know the backstories? (For instance, one episode tonight involves Ed Helms’ Andy finding out for the first time that Dwight was intimate with Angela.)
By contrast, any edition of 30 Rock is so chock-full of free-standing one-liners and brilliant, out-of-nowhere non sequiturs, that you can drop into any episode and not have to know too much about what’s gone on previously. Tonight, for example, there’s a rerun about Liz’s first date with Jon Hamm’s character, and Jack wanting so much to bond-in-every-sense with Salma Hayek that he attends a Catholic service with her.
I apply my own Seinfeld rule to sitcom reruns. What I mean by that is, Seinfeld is the one modern sitcom (its predecessor would be The Honeymooners) that for me, no matter what episode or season I drop in on, I want to spend time with those characters — be a part of that comfy world for a half-hour.
Right now, I’m leaning toward The Office as providing that kind of welcoming rerun-world most often. But I could be persuaded that 30 Rock is its own alternate-universe of warm pleasure.
What do you do? When you come across an Office or 30 Rock rerun, which one are you most likely to watch?
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Your bias is showing again. ‘30 Rock’ is just soooooo over-rated. Which show holds up the best? Try NEITER!
“The Office” had a much better season than “30 Rock”.
Hands down, The Office!
Definitely 30 Rock — a good chance to practice the shtick we couldn’t quite get perfect the first time around!
I love both shows and have seen every episode of both, so for me it depends on the exact episode that is on, but if I had to pick one, I would go for The Office, for no other reason than I like Jim/Pam
Gah, can’t decide. So I say Arrested Development, as I can pretty much see any episode at any time and love it just as much as I did the first time around. Sorry for cheating though, I do love me some 30 Rock and Office, but I love the Bluths too much to not mention them at any chance possible. However if I’m going to choose between season 3 of 30 Rock and The Office’s fifth season, I vote for The Office as it had much more consistent comedic material, in addition to a deeper look at the characters that I often enjoy more by a second (or third) look at it.
The Office without question! I honestly don’t find 30 Rock to be all that funny-I tried it and it didn’t live up to all the hype. The Office is consistently funny and the best example of excellent ensemble comedy in production today. (LOVE Arrested Development too lol-have to agree w/Jake)
Jon Hamm episode-that is all I need to know!
30 Rock without a doubt. I tivo’d the eps already and have seen them(and the dvds) several times. the best sitcom of the decade. The Office hit a slump with the season 4 hour long eps and hasn’t recovered.
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30 rock, by far. The Office was groundbreaking when it first came out. Now it just recycles the same jokes every week. It’s getting stale.
I don’t really watch “The Office.” I was so intrigued after seeing the episode “The Injury” one time (which I found absolutely hysterical) that I gave the show a shot for a while, but I kind of got tired of laughing at the characters instead of laughing with them.
“30 Rock,” on the other hand, I resisted for a while because of all the hype. But when I finally gave it a shot, I was blown away. This is a show that, for me, is always amusing, routinely hilarious, and often brilliant. I love spending time with these characters and their absurdist personas, so I always look forward to a new episode, but I’ve never actually watched a rerun. I wonder how it would hold up for me.
The Office, by far. The love for 30 Rock confuses me.
“30 ROCK”!! This show is so sophisticated that even someone of my enormous intellect can appreciate it.
I’m hoping they ask famed talk show icon Jenny Jones to be a guest star.
30 Rock for sure. I love the Office, but 30 Rock has so many jokes coming so fast, that it’s easy to miss some. I love to watch the reruns because I always catch something that I missed the first time!
I agree that The Office had a better season, but specifically tonight, you should re-watch the St. Valentine’s Day episode of 30 Rock. I had it on my DVR and have already watched it 5 or 6 times showing it to friends. Jack’s take on the Our Father is priceless, as well as the “patron saint of judgemental statues.”
“30 ROCK” is the gift that keeps on giving. The jokes on this show get more hilarious with age, and rewatching episodes exposes them as bits of comic brilliance. Even Jenny Jones would laugh, I’d venture.
I agree with Bjork (awesome name by the way) 30 rock with Jenny Jones would be awesome like as Jenna’s older – clearly more successfuland more inbred- talk show sister -genius!
I have to side with 30 Rock on this one. No show has such awesome characters or situations on TV, and the jokes certainly come at you fast and furiously when you’re watching Tina Fey and Co. do her stuff.
Sadly, The Office for me has been really suffering as of late. They keep trying to do arcs, but nothing ever leads anywhere, and oftentimes what actually happens feels to big for the mockumentary tone of the show. Also, I think Jim is kind of a jerk and he kind of annoys me with how much better he thinks he is than the rest of his coworkers (although it was amusing to see him be put down by Charles Minor).
Mindy Kaling, aka Kelly on THE OFFICE, makes the show worth watching all by herself. Extraordinary line delivery and a hilarious character. She’s a major talent — a writer, really, by trade. We need to see more and more of her. Alot of the secondary characters on THE OFFICE make that show great: Phyllis, Angela, etc. But 30 ROCK still takes the cake.
Together, its a major reason to watch NBC on Thursdays, The Office boosts alot of one liners, but 30 rock has those jokes you can’t wait to post or repeat the next day!
I like “The Office” well enough, but “30 Rock” is genius EVERY WEEK. I could re-watch an episode every day, and actually, quite often I do. All the characters are hilarious, and beneath the wacky hijinks and hysterical non-sequitors there’s just awesome cast chemistry.
Thanks everyone for agreeing with me! I knew that was I was right about 30 ROCK being the best show on TV, and your comments have gone a long way to support that. I feel blessed.
There is no comparison, 30 Rock wins hands down.
The more important question is WHY are these two great shows are among the few “comedies” on television that are actually FUNNY??
I honestly cannot pick just one of them. I love both The Office and 30 Rock so much. I do think, though, that The Office had a slightly better season this year than 30 Rock. However, the previous year (30 Rock’s 2nd season and The Office’s 4th season), 30 Rock had a much better season, in my opinion. If I really had to pick between the two, it would have to come down to the specific episodes.
I know I’m in the minority because the Office is such a popular and critically acclaimed show, but I’ve never been able to get into it. I find Michael and Dwight too uncomfortable to watch; they’re so pathetic. However, I LOVE 30 Rock, so, of course, were I to watch reruns (which I don’t) I would watch 30 Rock.
i love both, but its easier to come in and out of a 30 Rock ep than an Office ep…
I want to go to there…
I’m biased because I think “The Office” is the best show on TV and it’s certainly my favorite.
However, I agree with Ken’s reasons in the article. I feel more emotionally attached to the characters on “The Office” because (even the supporting players) are so carefully detailed and well-developed. It’s like checking in on old friends.
“30 Rock”, on the other hand, is a different kind of genius, but just doesn’t deliver in that regard (and it doesn’t try to). Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy are great, and pretty much everything Tracy Jordan says cracks me up, but I’m shocked by how little I actually CARE about what happens to those characters. (By contrast, I was crushed for Michael when he couldn’t have that big talk with Holly in the finale, and ultimately happy with his explanation that they’d be “one of those couples with a long story”.)
30 Rock. Absolutely no question. Even weak episodes are layered so densely with jokes they deserve a second or third viewing. The Office’s awkward humor can’t compete with 30 Rock’s absurdist heights. Jim and Pam fighting over paperclips versus Liz Lemon doped up on Comanapricil. This round goes to LIZ LEHMOOOOON.