It should come as a surprise to approximately no one that I, above all else, positively worship Tina Fey. That woman is a comedy genius, and 30 Rock brings a light to my life that is only rivaled by puppies and newborn babies.

So why does NBC insist on holding out this show on me every year?

Look, I understand that 30 Rock has pretty low numbers, ratings-wise, but I absolutely fail to understand how starting the season later helps matters. Wouldn’t it stand to reason that people want things to start all around the same time? I can’t help but think that the late starts are actually hurting 30 Rock in the long run — people look at a late-starting show and go “oh, I don’t need another thing to start watching” once their schedule is made. Meanwhile, long-time fans like me often miss the premiere by accident or go crazy waiting.

Read the rest of this entry »

Mad Men, you guys. MAD MEN. Does it make my life sound completely pathetic if I say that tonight’s return is what I have been living for? I mean, yes, my child has still been clothed and fed, but come on … Don effin’ Draper is coming back! Tonight! What’s so great about this isn’t just that one of my favorite shows currently on television is coming back, but Jon Hamm, who plays the aforementioned Don Draper, has been charming his way across the talk shows this week. From Conan, to Jimmy Fallon, to Regis and Kelly, he’s been hitting them all — and staying awesome the whole time. So with that, I present to you this week’s column, completely devoted to Don Draper (AKA Jon Hamm). Read the rest of this entry »

NBC is reminding us that despite their general and persistent suckitude, Thursday nights this fall are going to be kind of amazing. No more of that Kath & Kim bullshit– just a lot of funny shows, one right after the other. Also, Criss Angel is a Douche Bag. Enjoy.

• NBC is just showing 30 Rock, The Office and Parks and Recreation from 8-10. You should probably just go watch that. It’s funny; don’t you need to laugh?
• At 8:00 on CW, Supernatural is airing an episode called “Criss Angel is a Douche Bag.” I don’t approve of randomly making douchebag into two words (even if it is technically correct), but I approve of the sentiment.
• At 9:00 on Bravo, you can catch the season 2 opener of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. There’s a pretty decent chance that someone will get choked.
• Also at 9:00, you can catch the finale of The Next Food Network Star if you missed it the first time around.
• There isn’t a whole lot going on at 10:00, but you can catch a rerun of The Mentalist on CBS. I wasn’t particularly fond of this episode, titled “Red Rum” though. But hey, maybe it’s just me.

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Summer reruns are starting to wind down, in favor of original programming. You have new episodes of Burn Notice, Royal Pains, and So You Think You Can Dance. If watching shows you’ve already seen is more your style though, there are still some pretty good offerings.

• At 8:00 on NBC, why not make it an Arnett night? Will Arnett is guest starring on 30 Rock, followed by the pilot of his lovely wife, Amy Poehler’s show, Parks and Recreation.
• At 9:00 on the CW, you can catch Supernatural, “Family Remains.” A kid gets kidnapped through the walls! That’s crazy!
• At 10:00 on CBS, you can catch up with The Mentalist. In “Flame Red,” Jane investigates the murders of some National Guard members.
• Also at 10:00 on NBC, is a really disturbing episode of Law & Order, that deals with rich Manhattan families buying Haitian children to act as their servants.

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For a Thursday night, it’s slim pickins’ on TV. So why not abandon all pretense and just watch crap? Get off the networks and explore all that cable has to offer! No? Bridezillas isn’t your thing? Well, fine. If you’re going to be haughty about it, I’ve also included, Bones, 30 Rock and even a documentary!

• Guilty pleasures don’t get much guiltier than Bridezillas on WE. You can relive the top 10 crazy-ass moments at 8:00.
• If that’s not for you, Booth gets kidnapped on Bones, tonight on FOX at 8:00.
• I’ve been busy with my Weeds Virgin Diaries lately, so I’ve got pot on the brain. CNBC is airing a special on the matter, called Marijuana, Inc. You can check it out at 9:00 and maybe see a real-life Nancy Botwin!
• At 9:30 is the “Senor Macho Solo” episode of  30 Rock, in which Liz has a crush on a little person.
• Kendra, the eponymous show about Hef’s ex-girlfriend, is equal parts hilarious, bizarre, and terrifying. If you missed it the first time, you can catch the series premiere on E! at 10:00
• Man. We’ve got Bridezillas and Kendra. Why not keep the trashy TV train rolling with an episode of 16 and Pregnant on MTV at 10:00?

In their infinite wisdom, the powers that be here at CliqueClack have given me the opportunity (yet again) to air my grievances about 30 Rock. Somebody’s asleep at the wheel!

And not only here; over at 30 Rock, as well. Bob’s recently been writing about the good run the show’s been on; permission to respectfully disagree, sir? Because, my God, has the show sucked lately!

Let me be clear: the writing continues to excel. As do Jack (Alec Baldwin), Kenneth (Jack McBrayer), and … right. But that’s about it. When Liz (Tina Fey) has too much to do (non-Jack related), or Jenna (Jane Krakowski) or Tracy (Tracy Morgan) are featured too heavily, 30 Rock sinks into the abyss. They’re capable of delivering solid lines (Fey continues to score in the writer’s room), but they’re just not pleasant to watch. I laugh sporadically during each episode, only to find myself somehow disappointed with it on the whole when it’s over.

However, as we have plenty of fans of the show here at CliqueClack, I’ll share with you some of my memorable moments from last night: Read the rest of this entry »

I have a mixed relationship with 30 Rock. I tried it when it first aired on NBC back in 2006. I quickly passed. And, that had nothing to do with the fact that I loved Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip; the two have absolutely zero in common. Rather, it just wasn’t funny for me.

Zoom ahead six months, or so, to the spring of 2007. With nothing to do one day, I was surfing around NBC.com. Having already watched every episode of The Office more than a dozen times, I decided to try 30 Rock again. I watched the entire season, and, you know what? Still not laughing.

Then speed on to late summer, when NBC aired the final episodes from season one in anticipation of the new year. My wife and I, having nothing to fill our TiVo with (God, I miss those days now!), decided to try 30 Rock once more. Three times was not the charm.

However, she wanted to give season two a shot. We did, recording week after week of episodes, without being able to make up our minds. By mid-season, we realized that we’d seen so much we’d inadvertently committed ourselves anyway. So, we finally season passed it. It was nice not to have to remember to manually set the show to record anymore.

Anyway, to the point. We continue to watch 30 Rock today, and I’ll let you in on a little secret: still not so funny. Shh! Read the rest of this entry »