TV-Reviewed

It’s back, It’s back! And more importantly, the best sitcom on TV is running on all cylinders. The episode revolves around Bev (always funny guest star Megan Mullally), an adoption agency employee inspecting Liz Lemon’s life to determine if she is a strong candidate for a baby. I’ve never been a supporter of the Liz Lemon ticking biological clock stories, but I think the audience should learn to trust Tina Fey – award winning writer, actress, movie star and soon to be author.

Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, Megan Mullally as Bev

More importantly, for a show whose ratings remain underwhelming, the show hits the ground running for a new season and hopefully not it’s last. Alec Baldwin is allowed to shine as he struggles to regain his former seat in NBC from his recurring arch-nemesis Devin (Will Arnett). All of the writing staff has at least two moments to shine, and Tracy Morgan is back with more great insanity.

Towards the end of last season, I became very wary of some of the developing plotlines, Liz’s baby cravings being the biggest concern. Almost as if addressing the audience, the great final scene explicitly notes that if she ever gets a baby, it’s going to be a long ways from now. And more importantly, the final moment was something for a fan to savor. Tina takes an earnest moment to tell Jack, now back in his office, that it makes her happy to see him there. The heart of the show, right there.

30 Rock works, and is personally beloved, because it is the reigning Mary Tyler Moore Show. Liz Lemon is the struggling single woman in a crazy environment. She is the embodiment of many dreams. She has the more multi-layered Lou Grant to bounce off of in Alec Baldwin’s Jack as well as the ensemble team that can come in and knock it out of the park. The Arrested Development attitude towards storytelling and the one camera format, as well as the personal experience to back a story, are all among its strongest suits. But why I tune in is to spend 30 minutes with Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin and Tracy Morgan. They are people I would look up to professionally and people I would want to know and be around.

This episode makes good on delivering all of these aspects, and chock full of laughter. It is the best I could have hoped for coming from a less than stellar cliffhanger, and I hope that with the A list guest stars to come that 30 Rock can maintain this course and hopefully continue to earn itself a place on TV. It deserves it and then some.

Rating: 9