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« 30 Rock
Episode Recap: "Episode 210" *
I'm torn. Lord knows, Kenneth's party was a defining 30 Rock moment, and one of the funniest TV moments of the season. But that "Midnight Train to Georgia" number at the end of tonight's episode…. Wow. So out of nowhere and so fun, starting off with Tracy, Grizz and Dotcom, and then Jenna and her blousy Broadway belting interrupting. That would have been sufficient. But then Jack and Liz – and C.C. in the televised C-SPAN footage – joined in. And that, too, would have been sufficient. But for a final kicker, Kenneth returns because, it turns out, the midnight train actually leaves at 11:45, and no one told him.
I love this show, and I'm really going to miss it now that we have seen the final new episode in inventory.
Am I sad that Jack and C.C. are over? Not so much. Yes, it was great having Edie Falco on the show, but that story/pairing always fell short for me. The match-up in comic sensibilities was just too…mature? I dunno.
Kenneth's "addiction" to caffeine had some funny, "Go Ask Alice" moments, especially when he recounted the things he swore not to do upon moving to the big city. Interesting choice to have Tracy talk of how coffee, not like alcohol, is pretty addictive. Is 30 Rock part of Tracy Morgan's steps?
Liz and the apartment buy…. I'm debating whether it was funnier before or after it become an obvious metaphor for dating, with the breakup, unreturned calls, drunk-dialing, awkward run-in with the "ex" after….
The bullets, perhaps the (sniff) final salvo of the season:
• Liz high-fiving herself over her "huge do do" joke
• Jack, in Congress, making a date with C.C. to see Fred Claus
• The star named after Liz being downgraded to a "gas giant"
• Jack saying that if Liz waits to marry before buying property, "Your home will be in the floating city of New Chicago"
• Jenna's porn-sire recommendation: "By women, for women"
• Jenna buying property in the Ninth Ward and then "leasing it back to the government for a prison."
• "Our forefathers never intended for the poor to live into their 40s."
• Jack on balancing life, work and love: "I honestly don’t know how Kelly Ripa does it."
• Kenneth on his hate for hot fluids: "That's the devil's temperature"
• "That’s why my wife and I stopped using a safe word."
• "God, I wish this town wasn't halfway between D.C. and New York."
• Grey's' oldest intern Norman heading Liz's co-op board
• Liz barely comprehending the rapid German: "Return Germany… Tell… The time… (Hubcap)?"
• "Strange that we didn’t get any ham."
• The Werner Herzog narration of the Windermere ads and such
• "You rode the brown serpent!"
• Bitter Liz calling the co-op board: "I bought a whole bunch of apartments… including a black one."
• Jack's "Hockassin Is for Lovers" souvenir photo
• C.C. missing the vote to legalize recreational whale torture
• Gladys Knight having her nap interrupted: "What's going on out here?!"
Come back… whenever… 30 Rock!
* A reliable source tells me that 30 Rock ceased writing titles for the individual episodes once the strike hit. Ha!
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Jan 10, 2008 9:58 PM
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I quite loved this episode. I think it's one of my favorites--though I'm not sure it topped Paul Reubens' episode from last year. Close, either way.
They had me at "hallo!" German was my minor in college and I studied abroad in Leipzig so I love when I hear it on TV--especially comedies like, well, apparently now 30 Rock and more usually, Scrubs! And it's so absurd that all those people know German at Liz's office--which just makes me love the episode more!
Definitely ended on a high note. For me, anyway.
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Jan 10, 2008 11:11 PM
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A bullet point you missed was Liz's huge cleavage at the Co-op Board, and how the head of the Board occasionally averted his gaze in that direction. I had to watch it several times to notice it. (NO, I DID NOT LOOK AT THE CLEAVAGE SEVERAL TIMES.)
30 Rock normally balances wit with absurd very well. But this episode was more absurd than normal.
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Jan 10, 2008 11:22 PM
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The "Midnight Train to Georgia" number made me howled.
One bullet you missed, Liz saying that she party in Germany, but instead she just took pictures of birds with a very bad fro or whatever that was.
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Jan 11, 2008 4:44 AM
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"Oh Grizz, I think I'll miss you most of all"
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Jan 11, 2008 9:10 AM
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The two lines that had me howling: Jack's reference to "German sitcoms" while watching the dreadfully, morose German shows and the senate bill to ban "recreational whale torture". Too delightfully absurd not to love.
Great episode and, surprisingly, I loved the wonderfully random "Midnight Train" number at the end. What other show could do something so off-the-wall and yet have it make perfect sense?
I'll miss you Liz Lemon. Go writers!
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Jan 11, 2008 9:53 AM
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I nearly died when Jack said "I don't know how Kelly Ripa does it," because Alec delivers so well in his deadpan voice and it is just amazing.
Also Kenneth's line about caffiene "it feels like my heart is trying to hug my brain." was truly priceless.
For me, the whole meeting with the co op board fell flat. But it is always a treat to see Edward Herrmann aka Richard Gilmore on my tv again.
The musical number at the end? It worked really well and it was hilarious to see Grizz and Dotcom singing with Tracy but to hear Jane K singing is a treat. She has an amazing voice. I am so jealous!
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Jan 11, 2008 9:54 AM
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The two lines that had me howling: Jack's reference to "German sitcoms" while watching the dreadfully, morose German shows and the senate bill to ban "recreational whale torture". Too delightfully absurd not to love.
Great episode and, surprisingly, I loved the wonderfully random "Midnight Train" number at the end. What other show could do something so off-the-wall and yet have it make perfect sense?
I'll miss you Liz Lemon. Go writers!
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Jan 11, 2008 9:54 AM
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I love this show. I love all of your bullet points. You got pretty much all my favorites.
What about when Jack told Liz she sold NBC to the german company. And he asked her what 2 words were in german, then, you got them backwards, or something like that.
For me, I'm glad the edie falco stuff is over. I didn't like her that much. I did like at the beginning of the episode when she and liz were both waiting for appointments with jack and liz was the 11:00 and they wouldn't let her let CC go in front of her and then jack rushed her through their meeting and then his assistant said, you're 11:10 is here and he told CC his last appointment ran way late and made a face towards Liz.
I also thought the drunk dialing was pretty hilarious.
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Jan 11, 2008 10:12 AM
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This ep was glorious... but my favorite moment of all hasn't been mentioned yet: When Liz was drunk-dialing and was belting out Alanis Morisette's "You Oughta Know" to the co-op board.
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Jan 11, 2008 10:22 AM
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Love, Love, Love this show. There are no words to describe the pure genius of 30 Rock!
I loved the drunk dialing scene and watching Lemon open a new bottle of wine with every call. The C-Span shot with Jack telling CC there is an 8:00 showing of "Fred Claus" was perfect. But the Midnight Train to Georgia was an all-time classic. With everyone joining in and doing their parts was freakin' brilliant.
Two of the other gags I loved was Jack at the OTB and the "minor miner" offering him his beer and when Jack asked Lemon if she wanted to get drunk and she said there were too many phones around.
As Kenneth said to Grizz, I will say to 30 Rock...."I will miss you most of all"!
END THE STRIKE! PAY THE WRITERS! If if weren't for them, we wouldn't be having these forums!
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Jan 11, 2008 10:43 AM
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I see that this topic got 10 replies.....so we know that at least 10 people viewed the last episode. Thank goodness that this is the last new episode of this putrid program. I do not understand why TV Guide cheerleads for his program that no one watches.
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Jan 11, 2008 12:21 PM
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I do not understand why TV Guide cheerleads for his program that no one watches.
It's the funniest show on television. And just because there are 10 replies doesn't mean that only 10 people watched. In fact, most REGULARS here at tvguide don't post in the tv show blogs because of comments like yours. If you don't like the show, then don't watch it, don't wish someone else's favorite show dead.
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Jan 11, 2008 12:35 PM
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I loved so much of this episode. And of course, the Wizard of Oz reference was most excellent. :-P
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Jan 11, 2008 1:00 PM
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I gave up on this show after watching the first two episodes of the first season. But, I decided to give the season two premiere a chance and haven't missed an episode since. This whole episode was awesome, but "Midnight Train to Georgia" was a show-stopper!
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Jan 11, 2008 1:00 PM
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