Another stellar, quality “30 Rock” episode for the history books. Liz digs a hole for herself, only to dig herself out of it with the help of Jack. Notice I said the “help” of Jack — as in, Jack wasn’t the main character. Nice, “30 Rock.” I like where your head’s at. Liz is more 3-dimensional anyway.
Tracy and Jenna were perfect as the Problem Solvers. I mean, as Tracy so astutely put it, “What’s a problem but an opportunity disguised as a stripper having a seizure on your boat?” Next time that happens to me, I know who to call. They make a good team…is there such a thing as complementary craziness? They’re both so self-absorbed, paranoid and stupid that they are able to feed off one another comically without bringing any of the more refined characters down to their level of humor. My favorite case for the Problem Solvers was when they had to relay a message from Jack to Liz about her upcoming talk show, which she walked away from in order to explore her options:
*Liz*: Really?! He said to crawl back?!
*Tracy*: You’re not really capturing the sexual energy of it, but that was the message.
*Jenna*: Sooo….problem solved?
*Liz*: I haven’t even _begun_ to problem!
I like the new cast member. He’s such a good foil to Jenna and Tracy. He wasn’t very funny, though. I hope he isn’t just a “straight man” for Tracy and Jenna to bounce funny jokes and situations off of. Of course, it’s his first episode, so there’s plenty of time for him to blossom.
Padma’s guest appearance went over my head. I had to ask who she was. She wasn’t that funny, either… except that she lived in “the bubble,” like Liz’s old boyfriend (played by John Hamm)! I was extremely disappointed they never made an allusion to that, right after she claimed she invented the sandwich bag. It would have been perfect, and “30 Rock” has consistently been spot-on with its allusions to inside jokes and earlier episodes. Why’d you drop the ball this time?
Jack and Liz’s heartfelt business deal at the end (with the quote that’s the title of this post, complete with spinning camera and wonderful close-ups, in true chick flick fashion) was hilarious and just great in general. It totally leaves open the possibility of Jack and Liz ending up getting together at the end of the series. I really don’t think it’s a done deal, nor is it a done deal that they aren’t going to end up together — they’ve done well to keep it so up in the air.
