30 Rock (2006 — 2013)

The American satirical sitcom television series, 30 Rock (2006–2013), was created by Tina Fey and originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006 to January 31, 2013. It focuses on the backstage antics at Saturday Night Live and follows a young Liz Lemon, who is the head writer for a live sketch-comedy show in New York City. However, things become complicated when the network’s new president demands that Liz hires a mentally unstable movie star, Tracy Jordan, to join the cast. This throws Jenna Maroney, the neurotic leading lady and Liz’s best friend, into a state of chaos. Despite all the egos surrounding her, Liz works hard to pursue her own dream.

Season 1 (2006–2007). The first season premiered on October 11, 2006, with a total of 21 episodes. It wrapped up on April 26, 2007. Jack Donaghy, the ‘Head of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming’ at General Electric (GE), is reassigned to NBC headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza to revamp the late-night sketch-comedy show The Girlie Show. This causes outrage among the cast and crew, particularly head writer Liz Lemon and lead actress Jenna Maroney. Jack’s meddling continues as he forces the hiring of eccentric movie star Tracy Jordan. He also renames the show TGS with Tracy Jordan (or just TGS), much to the dismay of everyone involved. As the season progresses, there is a shift towards exploring how these characters handle balancing their personal and professional lives, centering primarily on Liz but also delving into others’ stories. Episodes also become more connected as various plotlines unfold in the latter part of the season.

Season 2 (2007–2008). Throughout the season, Jack forms a bond with a Democratic congresswoman named Celeste ‘C. C.’ Cunningham, but they eventually split up. Building upon an established story line from the first season, the second season delves deeper into Jack’s campaign for the GE chairmanship against his rival Devon Banks. The finale sees Liz preparing to adopt a child after believing she was expecting Dennis’ baby. Meanwhile, Kenneth travels to Beijing for a page position at the 2008 Summer Olympics and Tracy creates a risqué video game. As for Jack, he concludes the season with a new job in Washington, DC and a plan to purposely get fired by proposing a controversial ‘gay bomb’.

Season 3 (2008–2009). Season three of the show premiered on October 30, 2008 and aired its finale on May 14, 2009. It saw a significant increase in ratings and popularity thanks to Tina Fey’s acclaimed portrayal of Sarah Palin on SNL. The season also made history at the Primetime Emmy Awards with a record-breaking 22 nominations. Offering 22 episodes in total, the season featured guest appearances from big names such as Oprah Winfrey (playing herself as a drug-induced hallucination of Liz’s), Jennifer Aniston (as Liz’s ex-roommate), Salma Hayek (as Jack’s new girlfriend Elisa for multiple episodes), and John Lithgow, Kerry Butler, Megan Mullally, Peter Dinklage, Steve Martin, and Jon Hamm in various roles throughout the season. Additionally, Alan Alda made appearances in the final two episodes as Jack’s biological father Milton Greene.

Season 4 (2009–2010). Premiering on October 15, 2009, the fourth season of the show featured 22 episodes, mirroring the previous season’s length. A recurring storyline early on centered around Jack’s desire for Liz to cast a new actor for TGS, leading to her quest to find the perfect comedian. This caused distress for Jenna and Tracy, who feared losing their time in the spotlight. The season also incorporated real-life events, such as NBC Universal’s acquisition by Comcast, which was depicted through the network’s fictional acquisition by Kabletown, a cable company based in Philadelphia. The latter half of the season delved into complementary storylines: Jack struggling to choose between his two girlfriends, Liz searching for a boyfriend who meets her high expectations, and Jenna’s relationship with a Jenna Maroney impersonator.

Season 5 (2010–2011). 30 Rock debuted its fifth season on September 23, 2010. One episode of the new season was specially produced and aired live twice on October 14, 2010. This allowed both the East and West Coast audiences to experience the live performance. The show, in front of a live studio audience, aired at 8:30 pm EDT and PDT on NBC. The episode received high ratings and positive reviews. Season five delves into various storylines including Liz Lemon’s relationship with Carol Burnett, Jack’s journey into fatherhood with fiancée Avery Jessup, managing the merger of NBCUniversal with Kabletown, Tracy’s quest for an EGOT, and Kenneth’s efforts to return to NBC.

Season 6 (2012). In season six, Liz matures emotionally while in a new relationship, while Jack struggles to recover his wife from North Korea and find his own identity at Kabletown. Kenneth experiences ups and downs on the corporate ladder, Jenna’s fame reaches new heights as she becomes a judge on a reality show and considers settling down with her boyfriend Paul. Following anti-gay comments made by Tracy Morgan between seasons five and six, many LGBT groups called for his resignation or dismissal from the show. Despite issuing an apology, Morgan continued with his starring role. 30 Rock had previously received a GLAAD award for their portrayal of LGBT themes and characters. The scandal provided inspiration for the second episode of the season, where Tracy Jordan goes on an offensive rant during a standup set. This results in the show having to apologize on his behalf after he mistakenly apologizes to Glad (the plastic bag company) instead of GLAAD.

Season 7 (2012–2013). The final season of 30 Rock consisted of only 13 episodes and premiered on October 4, 2012. In order to secure a full seventh and eighth season, Alec Baldwin offered to take a pay cut of 20% and made the proposal known on Twitter, acknowledging changing times. The seventh season follows Liz and Criss’ attempt for children and potential marriage, while Jack focuses on advancing his career at the company. He first tries to sink NBC and persuade CEO Hank Hooper to sell it, then plans to discredit Hooper’s granddaughter Kaylee Hooper, who will one day take over as CEO. Eventually, Jack begins to question if he is truly content.