UPDATED WITH RATINGS BELOW: “I want to welcome you to Season Four.” With that semi-greeting — Alec Baldwin’s Jack was referring to the restaurant to which he’d brought his most treasured employees, to sample a troubled-economy pleasure, the Cheesy-Blaster — 30 Rock took off last night with a breathlessly daffy edition.
It had all the elements you want in a Rock: Misperceived motives (Liz and Pete’s attempts to find a new cast member misconstrued as an office love affair by everyone including Pete’s all-too-understanding wife); Tracy Jordan doing something absurdist ridiculous (in this case, trying to get back in touch with his inner poor-man; this, from a man who has to ask his assistant-pals which elevator he’s not afraid of), and Jack inveighing against the policies of “Comrade Obama.” Jenna decided one way to attract viewers was to “go country” (Jack’s eyes lit up like firecrackers when she leapt out wiggling in a small outfit plus cowboy hat); Kenneth led a strike against the offensively large disparity between the pages’ paychecks and those of management. In short, classic 30 Rock, no?
You’d think winning a slew of Emmys and being extraordinarily funny would help Tina Fey and 30 Rock to achieve a certain measure of comfort — no lessening of ambition or funniness, but, you know, the confidence that the sitcom has become a Thursday-night fixture.
Yet Fey, who must be pretty exhausted just starring in and writing her show, dragged herself out onto the talk-show circuit at all hours of the day and night, doubtless under pressure from her own work ethic and from the network to drum up a bigger audience. She journeyed from The Today Show to The View (the gals wanted to know when she’s gonna impersonate Sarah Palin again — Tina’s mouth said, “If she runs for President” but her eyes said, “Oh, please, get a new subject, willya?”) to The Late Show with David Letterman, where she was hilarious on the subject of her recent Harper’s Bazaar cover-photo shoot.
Meanwhile, the media is circling her show in what may look like a shark but smells like a backlash:
A New York Times review of the season premiere contended that Fey is a lousy actress who hinders her own smart show.
Also on Thursday, a USA Today piece ventured that 30 Rock can’t take its place among the great sitcoms unless it gets bigger ratings.
To the first accusation, I say: Baloney. On two levels. First: excellent sitcom stars don’t have to be capable of vast range. To take just one example, Roseanne Barr was a pretty stiff performer during even the best years of Roseanne, and she still helmed a great show.
To the second, that persistent ratings question: My colleagues should be grateful that one of the very few things NBC has done right over the past few years in not jumping the gun as Fox did in prematurely cancelling Arrested Development.
I’m not saying Tina Fey and 30 Rock are poor, defenseless victims being bullied. Indeed, the extremely sparky season premiere came out swinging — at NBC, at dumb-sitcom cliches (“Is this really just our first week back?” Liz/Tina sighed), and at dumbness wherever it exists in pop and political culture. But this notion that the show hasn’t quite fulfilled its glorious potential… that’s more ridiculous than anything Jenna or Tracy could dream up.
UPDATE: Variety reports that the season premiere declined from last year, 3.0 rating and 8 share in the 18-49 demo, down from 4.1/10 for last season’s premiere.
What gives, folks?
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Jerry Seinfeld is also not such a great actor and it didn’t take away from his show. I liked last nights show and will continue to watch as long as NBC keeps it on!
Agreed. Jerry Seinfeld was the first defense that came to mind against that ridiculous argument. My friends and I are huge Seinfeld fans, and still love to point out when Jerry starts to crack a smile during a scene. The show even made fun of this when TV Jerry got his own sitcom and everyone on set said he was a bad actor.
Tina Fey is great on 30 Rock, on and offscreen.
you know why it has to beg for viewers? Because it’s just not that funny and the cast, especially Alec Baldwin and Tracey Morgan, are not likable in the least.
Hype, Hype, Hype.
Well everyone has there opinion and own sense of humor. This show is great. It’s wity and 10x better than a lot of other shows on tv. Baldwin is great and yeah Morgan kinda does the same thing every episode, but overall it’s a A++++ show
Fey is highly overrated and Morgan doesn’t belong on network television.
Since when does somebody have to be likable to be funny? Was George Costanza likable? No, he was a horrible person but possibly the greatest character in the history of sitcoms. This show is brilliant, best comedy on TV right now. Viva 30 Rock!
Here, Here!
I could not agree more! It is NOT funny!
This show was lucky to have survived through it’s third season. It only managed to do so by stunt casting and Fey’s spot-on, yet tired Palin impressions.
I watched last night and didn’t think it was that funny. I found The Office to be way more funny
Man, last night’s episode SUCKED. It was embarrassingly bad, and I can’t believe Tucker didn’t acknowledge. Love the show, but agree that it just wasn’t funny. AT ALL.
It’s not funny it’s INCREDIBLE FUNNY, but maybe you only like hillbilly humor… Thank God for 30 Rock, it’a a real gem of comedy
30Rock is absolutely the best thing on television right now, at least in comedy.
To each his own. I love most of the characters on 30 Rock. I could do without Tracey, but I LOVE Jack. Almost everything he says has me LOL. Hopefully the show will survive even with lower ratings. According to Jim survived for YEARS and that show sucked.
It was a funny episode, and I think the NYT review is maybe overly contrarien (sp). One would expect NYT to love the liberal-minded hip-ish comedy, so they decline to do so. I think Fey is great. Not Streep, but great.
You’re wrong. It was bad.
The quotes from the NY Times and USA Today are ridiculous. And your examples of Roseanne and Arrested Development are the best evidence to dispute their specious statements. That said, last night’s episode was a bit off for me. It had some moments…Pete’s wife trying to lure Liz into a 3-way…Kenneth’s garbled Southern talk with Jack…everybody forgetting who Josh is. But the Tracy and Jenna stuff didn’t quite do it for me.
Yes, Arrested Development was a great show, but can we please stop blaming Fox for canceling it too soon? They gave it three seasons. I’d say they gave it more than a shot.
Still A+ televison for me**
If one doesn’t find Baldwin or Morgan the least bit likable, then I can only assume they must never watch 30 Rock. Alec Baldwin has been fantastic as the stereotypical corporate honcho relegated to slumming it with the talent. For the most part, he’s the straight man glue that holds all the zany pieces of this show together.
It took a long time for Tina Fey to grow on me, but I now find her character’s stilted delivery and awkwardness charming (and intentional).
Kinda surprised by the extent of backlash some critics are trying to push for. The premiere wasn’t their best episode but the show’s premieres are never its strongest work. But there are always fantastic laughs. Loved the Liz/Pete storyline last night. Tina Fey is a workhorse; in addition to those interviews, she also filmed 30 Rock, had the premiere party and hosted the Light the Night charity event.
USA Today can suck it. What does that make Arrested Development then?
I absolutely LOVE 30 Rock!!!! Forget the critics, exactly what are they looking for in 30 mins of television anyway??? I enjoy all of the characters and you can tell that the actors are enthusiasic (sp) about their work. My DVR is locked to 30 Rock on Thursdays…I absolutely LOVE 30 Rock. I’ve never seen Alec Baldwin in a better role than the one he plays on the show. Did I say that I absolutely LOVE 30 Rock!!!!
I keep trying to like this show, and there are moments that I do, but most of the time, I just don’t find it as funny as all the critics that are yelling at me to WATCH IT, WATCH IT! Of the four comedy shows yesterday, Community was actually the best with the Office second, and then 30 Rock-at least to me.
Really The Office above 30 Rock AND Parks & Rec? I didn’t watch Community so I can’t comment on that but The Office had one of their worst episodes last night. The mafia plot was going nowhere! I hated that Andy was involved because I love that character and him and Dwight egging on Michael was ridiculous.
The thing to understand about 30 Rock and Arrested Development is that the characters are concentrated versions of the personality quarks we all have. They both in the same vein as Seinfeld, just smarter and less dry.
IT’s not John & Kate + 8 and not American Idol so people dont like it. The low ratings for 30 Rock and the cancellation of Arrested Development are simply because America has become a country of half backed hillbillies that only love reality TV. These great sitcoms are simply too witty and too smart for people to understand. They would rather watch white trash wallowing in their own stupidity via reality TV then take the time to “get” smart comedy like this.
I am almost positive 30 Rock will be cancelled some time soon and replaced with a reality TV show about midgets losing weight while trying to date a super model chef.
Amen! Americans love spoon fed mush
completely agree. you need a brain, as well as cultural and political awareness, to completely “get” this show. sometimes you even need to think a little to get the joke. god forbid that the couch potatoes exercise that muscle..
Hmmm. I have a Ph. D. and am pretty culturally and politically aware. And yet I don’t find 30 Rock funny. I’ve tried to watch it several times, and found bits here and there that were amusing, but the show overall leaves me cold. So your sweeping generalizations are patently wrong and say more about you than the “couch-potatoes”–who are sitting on the couch, just like you, watching TV.
I’ll admit that it’s over saturated with reality tv but there are no real great original programs outside of Lost. The Office is probably the best comedy but is by no means to be considered original. 30 Rock tries too hard and fails.
How presumptuous and arrogant to assume that people who dislike “30 Rock” are “half backed hillbillies that only love reality TV.” I have a degree in Film and Media studies (Latin honors attached), and I have failed to see the humor in the handful of episodes that I’ve attempted to watch. Comedy is, and always will be, a subjective form, so there’s no need to berate people for not subscribing to your same viewpoint.
As an aside, I will say that I find most of the current half-hour comedies unbearable (“The Big Bang Theory” being a notable exception), but nothing gets my goat more than being told that my disdain for something is rooted in my lack of sophistication to see its wit and intelligence. I’m a theatre geek for goodness sake!
You lost me when you complemented Big Bang Theory. That sh1tcom is typical of the laugh-track garbage that dumb americans love.
Thank you! I totally agree-some people just want to feel superior to others and since they happen to like this show, that makes them better than the rest of us. And BTW-I did like Arrested so I guess that only makes me a 1/4 hillbilly.
It’s the most worthless form of criticism — the “you don’t like it because you’re too (fill in the blank), or not (fill in the blank) enough, to appreciate it” argument. Valid criticism consists of analyzing a work and demonstrating its value, but it’s much more difficult to do that than it is to hurl insults at people.
WTF does half-backed mean? You really like yourself don’t you? You’re probably one of those people who preaches about how intolerant some people are, then you go on to trash anyone who isn’t like you. It is possible to like 30 Rock AND some reality TV, you know. I know because I do. There are plenty of intelligent people out there who simply have a different sense of humor. YOURS is not the only correct opinion, and EVERYONE who does not share it is not a “half-backed hillblly”, whatever the hell that means.
Unless you’re one of those people who kept Everybody Loves Raymund on for all those years… then your opinion is wrong.
I love a good, smart comedy (read: The Office, Arrested Development) but I reaaaaally dislike 30 Rock. Yes, I’ve seen the show. I gave it a chance, but I found that I dislike Alec Baldwin, Tina Fey, and Tracy Morgan so much that nothing could overcome that, no matter how many critics tell me I should watch it. If NBC had anything going for it, this show would have never had a chance to win all those Emmys, since it would have been cancelled in the first or second season due to poor ratings.
Season 1 was promising. Season 2 petered out about midway through. Season 3 was too highly dependent on stunt casting and trying to be too catch phrasey. This latest episode borders on boring. This show is in no way to be compared to the greatness that was A.D.
I totally agree. Don’t compare it to Arrested Development, which was timeless, funny and brilliantly acted. 30 Rock jumped the shark the moment Salma Hayek strolled in.
IMO, Arrested Development also sharply lowered in quality in season three. The first two seasons of both shows are the best of the best. I hope 30 Rock will take the opportunity of a 4th season to swing back.
AD only declined because they were shown the door prematurely. Fey has no excuses other than she has a turkey on her hands.
NBC’s past “Must See TV” was COSBY, FAMILY TIES, FRIENDS, ER. Unfortunately, neither “The Office” or “30 Rock” are those type (above) shows. And so the shows are in the ratings cellar.
I enjoyed all these shows back in the day, but if you TRULY think “Family Ties” is a funnier show than “30 Rock” you are clinically insane. “The Office” is one of the sole bright spots in NBC’s schedule… and the reason these shows get poor ratings is due to their parent network. At this point, nothing short of a show called “NCIS Idol” could make people watch NBC.
Comedy now is a completely different game than it was in the 80s and 90s. You can’t compare those shows to what is airing now. Also, television in and of itself is different now, what with DVR and online streaming episodes, so it’s difficult to play the ratings game.
Tina’s a better actor than Jerry Seinfeld ever was. 30 Rock isn’t more popular because of lines like this “are you a pre-op trans centaur?” you have to watch the ep twice to hear it, let alone get it. with BBT you get three things 1) Sheldon being fussy 2) geek jokes and 3) Penny’s boobs hanging out of her halter top. viewers know that’s what they’re getting every week. 30 Rock is more work to watch…that’s why I love it.
You’re clinically insane….”Tina’s a better actor than Jerry Seinfeld”…..wow
Um, she is. Maybe not the better comedian, but better actor? Definitely. Jerry Seinfeld’s character was completely one-note (again, Seinfeld is my favorite sitcom of all time so I’m not criticizing), but Tina Fey slips into all sort of modes to play Liz Lemon.
Agreed except maybe on the Tina/Seinfeld thread (I like both). I used to love BBT, but now wach week on The Big Bang theory we get 1) Sheldon’s picky about food joke 1) Sheldon and Leonard have a contract for his OCD 1) Sheldon couch cushion joke 1) Bazinga 1) raj can’t talk to women 1) Wallowitz is a horny jew…you can set your watch by them
Wow… I really thought I was the only one who didn’t like this show. Now I don’t feel like I’m not getting something anymore. The whole show just feels… weird. And just because you don’t like this show doesn’t make you a hillbilly. I LOVE Arrested Development, loathe Jon & Kate.
Katie it’s fine if you do not like it as long as you aren’t spending your time watching CBS procedurals, I swear old people just fall asleep with CBS on and that’s how they get their ratings
LOL, Justin, that was FUNNY.
How about this: You quit trying to force this show down our throats. It’s just not that great. Is Tina Fey everyone’s best friend from college or something at EW? It’s like you’re trying to create false buzz for an old friend or something…and don’t give me that lame Emmy winner excuse! I lost faith in them whenever The Wire was never a winner!
I does not matter if you are a theather major with latin honors or anything else like that. If ou dont understand that 30 Rock has a place on television, like many other sitcoms out there… and that reality TV is a plauge… you are a half baked hillbillie… just like Troy.
Clearly, I can’t take you seriously when you can barely spell (or type) words correctly…Fail…
I would like to thank you, LaMarr Smythe, for pointing out to me that I am a half-baked hillbilly (who can at least spell ‘hillbilly’ correctly). I was unaware that this is really why I dislike 30 Rock. I thought that my two Bachelor’s degrees, my Master’s degree (Summa Cum Laude, thank you very much), and my 140 IQ meant that I was somewhat intelligent, but you have shown me the error of my ways. I will do my best to refrain from watching reality TV, since it is a plague and all (hey look, I can spell ‘plague’ correctly too!) and I’ll try to watch more shows that you deem worthy of my time. You haven’t shared your valued opinion on what other shows I’m supposed to be watching, so I eagerly await your ideas on the subject. I’d hate to continue being a hillbilly.
Well, just as long as you’re not a douche.
degree dropping is always so classy!
Clearly, having a 140 IQ doesn’t mean you have a sense of humor.
OK, LaMarr, I’m going to sit right here and wait for you to give me that list of what’s acceptable TV. Apparently you know what’s best for the rest of us, and anyone who doesn’t agree must be attacked. Any possibility you vote Democrat? Nevermind…I already know.
Yeah, sooo unlike Republicans and their “You’re either with us or against us” crap. Nice job.
Moving on. I happen to like 30 Rock. I like all of the characters, their interactions, the storylines, etc. I think it’s a fun, interesting show that’s an entertaining 30 minutes. People have differing opinions. There could be less guest-stars (Salma Hayek was blech, Jennifer Aniston was pointless, although I liked Jon Hamm and the cast of ‘Night Court’.)
Honestly, I think if you added a laugh-track and a three camera setup it would get higher ratings, simply because people are used to seeing that. The show would significantly dip in quality, but there would be high ratings because people would know when to laugh rather than think about it themselves.
I agree. I wanted to like 30 Rock, but it is just not funny. The fact that it has won the best comedy Emmy for 3 years just proves that the Emmy’s are irrelvant for honoring good television.
In my opinion 30 Rock is the smartest and most hilarious piece of comedy television has to offer. Tina Fey has deserved each and every single of those Emmys. As LaMarr stated before the reason for low ratings may be that the average reality-TV-viewer does not get the clever jokes. I think it would be the wrong way to lower the standard of the show to attract more viewers. It’s more an educational problem. Sad but true…
Unfortunately, America has become a huge dumb redneck country and I love, love, love the fact that 30 Rock had the guts to say it. Great shows like this, Arrested Development and Freaks and Geeks don’t get ratings because most americans don’t understand them. If it’s not old people watching CBS, or rednecks watching some reality show you’re not going to ever get huge ratings. But smarter, more financially well off people watch 30 Rock and shows like it. Isn’t that the kind of people advertisers are trying to appeal too? People taht can actually spend money? Because it won’t be the old people watching NCIS and it won’t be the rednecks watching Jon & Kate. It’s going to be the people that have that extra money to spend.
Wait a minute…i’m confused….First off, I am a fan of 30 Rock, but I am not anywhere near what you’d call wealthy. So stop making up statistics. Secondly, NBC, Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, and let’s face it, most of the entertainment industry is left-leaning….The left being the ones who claim to be on the side of the common poor people, and against people and companies who make lots of money…so whay are you bragging that rich people watch the show?
And can we stop with the hillbilly/redneck comments? Good God! A judgmental bunch this is! “If you don’t share my exact same sense of humor, I must insult you!” Grow up!!! Again, I like the show, but you sanctimonious self-righteous fanatics are really putting me off.
I agree that this country has a bunch of backwoods rednecks, still doesn’t make 30 Rock funny. I “get” 30 Rock just fine, it’s just a cast of people who aren’t likeable or funny reading off lines of Tina Fey’s lame sense of humor. Huge failure.
Well said!
maybe nbc should consider trying the show in another time slot. thursdays belong to csi and grey’s anatomy kinda hard to pull away those viewers. 30 is hilarous and i would hate to see it cancelled
Which CSI? My favorite is CSI: Wichita but I really like CSI: Boise too. Grey’s Anatomy is HORRIBLE. That show is Hemmoraging viewers because it has become a parody of itself. There hasn’t been a decent hospital drama on TV since ER stopped having scenes that actually took place IN the hospital.
That and Greys isn’t even on opposite 30-Rock.
House MD is the current brilliant medical show on tv. Grey’s Anatomy is on from 9pm to 10pm on ABC and 30 Rock is on from 9:30pm to 10pm on NBC, so they do compete for ratings.
Just waiting for The Mentalist: New Orleans. At least NBC has the guts to make original programming, as opposed to the tired old procedurals that CBS spews out each season.
30 Rock is SO STUPID….I just watched the clip above and didn’t laugh once…didn’t even crack a smile.
I’d rather watch Always Sunny in Philly any day of the week.
Please stop trying to hype up 30 Rock. No one likes it.
Saying “noone likes it” is extremely narrow minded. Otherwise Always Sunny in Philadelphia is outstanding.
Really? Always Sunny has been utterly awful this season. Mighty disappointed in TPTB there.
Sunny is WAAAAAAAAY better.
Two different shows. Apples and Oranges. Can’t compare the two
i love this show. everything good has backlash.
I think like Arrested Development, 30 Rock is one of those shows that it just takes a certain sense of humor (usually an absurdist one) to enjoy, and that doesn’t mean anyone is stupid or hillbilly for not liking it. I was a huge Arrested Development fan, but some people I tried to show it to just couldn’t understand why I thought it was funny. I enjoy 30 Rock, but it has definitely been uneven for me in a way Arrested Development wasn’t. It all boils down to the kinds of things you find funny…some people like 2 and a Half Men, while I can’t see anything remotely funny about it.
This is the first comment I agree with.
It blows my mind that people eat up crap like Two and a Half Men and practically ignore smart, funny stuff like 30 Rock. I hate to say this, but when there’s no laugh track some people get confused. Very few shows survive without the horrible laugh track. Sad.
I agree with you about laugh tracks. I hear “How I Met Your Mother” is a good show, but I can’t watch it because I find the laugh track distracting. I personally love 30 Rock and think it’s very funny — it just takes time to get into it. Also love The Office, AD, and Always Sunny. What appeals to some just doesn’t appeal to others.
Actually, HIMYM doesn’t have a laugh track. It is filmed then screened prior to airing. The laughter of the audience is the “track” heard when it airs. At least that’s what they said in the DVD bouns features.
I love 30 Rock and I respect other’s opinions who don’t whether I agree with them or not. I don’t understand why some people don’t find it funny but you can’t please everyone.
Can everyone please stop calling out rednecks and hillbillies and “unintelligent” A) it isn’t really true B) it does nothing to prove your point that the show is good and C) It just causes pompous self absorbed people to gloat about their academic accomplishments. Should I feel bad that I only got ONE Bachelor’s degree? Get over yourselves people.
No one is attempting to make you feel bad… they are attempting to point out the fallacies of people’s stereotyping all viewers who don’t like their favorites as “unintelligent.” Of course, we should probably stop feeding the trolls and maybe they would go away.
I enjoyed the season premiere, but I do feel that 30 Rock gets more critical and awards credit than it sometimes deserves. For one, Tina Fey is gorgeous and in great shape…so are we really supposed to believe that her character would be as obsessed with food as she is? There is not an episode that goes by that does not include at least several jokes about some type of food that Liz is gaga over. Also, Jane K. and Tracy M. are grating. I know that their characters are supposed to be obnoxious and self-centered, but neither the actors or the writing ever make the characters semi-human, which makes their actions tiresome and redundant. Finally, I loved that they were thumbing their noses at NBC and Leno at the end, but then for Leno to pick up and have a crossover moment with the dancing and song, it made the whole thing seem like just another conglomerate cross promotional opportunity. I’m going to keep watching 30 Rock, but right now, Curb, Modern Family, Parks & Rec and the Office are superior comedies and hopefully begin to receive the same critical love that 30 Rock does.
WHY ? Alex Baldwin is just Hollywood trash and frankly the
show is not funnt and it also sucks.
I love 30 Rock, but they could massively improve it by writing off Liz Lemon, Tracy Morgan, the gay Appalachian hillbilly, and Jenna. just focus on Alec Baldwin’s meisterwerk: Jack Donaghy.
Fey is unlikeable in front of the camera. Her Palindrone works because the loathing people feel for fey is easily channelled through her third rate imitation into something people loathe even more. Fey knows this. Hers is the burden of narcississtic self-loathing and solipcistic self-righteousness.
But Jack is funny.
He’s brilliantly funny and is above this mediocre show and cast.
I think she is hilarious and adds a integral, grounded element to the show, but that’s just me. Jack IS funny, but he’s often funniest playing off of Liz Lemon.
How can you claim to love “30 Rock” when you want to write off the majority of the cast? I do think that Jack Donaghy is one of the best T.V. characters ever, though.