Through out the years I watched one episode here and two episodes there of 30 Rock but just a few weeks ago I decided to binge watch the series. I loved it, it is funny and the characters are likeable, I really have enjoyed the series until this one horrible episode. The Fabian Strategy episode with the Sleep Rape joke was very tasteless and offensive! How is jokes about rape is ok? I am really disappointed in the show and it left me with a bad taste. I don't even know if I want to continue watching it.
4 Reviews
The Fabian Strategy (#5.1)
ComedyFan20108 December 2013
Warning: Spoilers
And the fifth season of the TGS begins. Tracy misses Kenneth and is hallucinating about him all the time. Jenna's crazy demands get to start with the 5th season, this includes her being a producer that gives Pete some extra free time. And Jack and Liz deal with their new relationships and the issues they bring.
I found this episode kind of boring even though it is still above the average most shows bring.
Mainly the whole relationship stuff was of no interest to me at all, and Liz seemed out of character.
And it does indeed feel weird to see everyone besides Tray be so cool about Kenneth having left.
I found this episode kind of boring even though it is still above the average most shows bring.
Mainly the whole relationship stuff was of no interest to me at all, and Liz seemed out of character.
And it does indeed feel weird to see everyone besides Tray be so cool about Kenneth having left.
Season 5 opens
safenoe17 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Not a perfect episode by 30 Rock standards, but I guess going into season 5 the writers were cocky that 30 Rock has come so far. Matt Damon displays his comedic acting chops as Liz's new beau, and Kenneth returns as the page for The Late Show with David Letterman.
It's easy to forget that 30 Rock and Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip debuted on NBC at the same time. Conventional wisdom was that Sorkin's powerhouse series be the one that would survive the first season, with 30 Rock being a one season wonder. But history has proved otherwise.
It's easy to forget that 30 Rock and Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip debuted on NBC at the same time. Conventional wisdom was that Sorkin's powerhouse series be the one that would survive the first season, with 30 Rock being a one season wonder. But history has proved otherwise.
Great Series - Bad Episode
MikeyD19814 October 2010
I must say I am a HUGE 30 Rock fan and do I prepared myself for the season 5 premiere by watching seasons 1-3 on DVD in their entirety, and I also took some time and listened into the audio commentaries too to get a feel for how the show is cast and run. Most of the past episodes are lighthearted and filled with so many clever one liners you have to watch it twice to fully appreciate all the work that goes into making these episodes.
But I got a different feeling from the season premiere of the fifth season. Naturally after watching 3 consecutive seasons in a row I was going to pick up on the usual changes in the characters appearance and moods. Judah Friedlander's character Frank also had some rust on him. This is to be expected. But there was something upsetting to me about this episode.
First, most season premiers are the launching point for story lines that will unfold throughout the rest of the year. That's all fine and good but let's hope that does not happen to Kenneth, as the viewer learns he has been inexplicably fired from NBC and has found a similar job at CBS. Why the hardest working page would be fired without reason or without a care in the world from his former staff (all except Tracy) is a total mystery. As he is popular with the fans I'm sure he will be back in the page jacket soon but the apathy is quite bizarre.
Second, and along the same lines, this episode had a generally negative feel to it. I don't know if it was pessimism by the writing staff, the director, or just a lack of emotion by the actors but in addition to the coldness toward Kenneth's departure, there was Jenna who decided to rip the heart out of an elderly employee without any sort of a back story to her rivalry towards her. Then you had staffers fearful of other budget cuts across the board (which, by the way, has already been done on this show before in a much more entertaining way) Alec Baldwin looks out of shape and out of character - his business wit yielding to some kind of a homo-erotic power play between himself and an interior decorator hired by his love Avery (Elizabeth Banks) Now that scenario sounds funny on paper - because it is. But on screen Baldwin simply does not pull it off, and the whole scene is quite awkward.
Oh, and speaking of Avery, where is she? It wasn't as if Avery is a new character and this episode was to lay the groundwork for her arrival. We already know who she is and what she is like. Avery has appeared on several episodes from the last season and she appears promptly in the second episode of Season 5, so what happened to her in this episode? Maybe a scheduling conflict on the part of Elizabeth Banks but come on - the worst thing any viewer has to sit through is hearing about a character and then never seeing her If I were the director and found out Elizabeth Banks was not available I would ask for an immediate re-write of the scenes that reference her.
Matt Damon is a nice cameo but we have seen him before and from the get go it is clear that he will only be in another episode or two, so why not bring him in midway through the season for a few laughs and use the series premiere to introduce a love interest for Liz that will last a little while.
All in all this was just about the poorest episode of 30 Rock I've seen in a while. I really hope the the series remains as positive and lighthearted as it has been for the last 4 years. If any of the writers or producers are reading this feel free to drop me a line. I'd love to help out! - Mike
But I got a different feeling from the season premiere of the fifth season. Naturally after watching 3 consecutive seasons in a row I was going to pick up on the usual changes in the characters appearance and moods. Judah Friedlander's character Frank also had some rust on him. This is to be expected. But there was something upsetting to me about this episode.
First, most season premiers are the launching point for story lines that will unfold throughout the rest of the year. That's all fine and good but let's hope that does not happen to Kenneth, as the viewer learns he has been inexplicably fired from NBC and has found a similar job at CBS. Why the hardest working page would be fired without reason or without a care in the world from his former staff (all except Tracy) is a total mystery. As he is popular with the fans I'm sure he will be back in the page jacket soon but the apathy is quite bizarre.
Second, and along the same lines, this episode had a generally negative feel to it. I don't know if it was pessimism by the writing staff, the director, or just a lack of emotion by the actors but in addition to the coldness toward Kenneth's departure, there was Jenna who decided to rip the heart out of an elderly employee without any sort of a back story to her rivalry towards her. Then you had staffers fearful of other budget cuts across the board (which, by the way, has already been done on this show before in a much more entertaining way) Alec Baldwin looks out of shape and out of character - his business wit yielding to some kind of a homo-erotic power play between himself and an interior decorator hired by his love Avery (Elizabeth Banks) Now that scenario sounds funny on paper - because it is. But on screen Baldwin simply does not pull it off, and the whole scene is quite awkward.
Oh, and speaking of Avery, where is she? It wasn't as if Avery is a new character and this episode was to lay the groundwork for her arrival. We already know who she is and what she is like. Avery has appeared on several episodes from the last season and she appears promptly in the second episode of Season 5, so what happened to her in this episode? Maybe a scheduling conflict on the part of Elizabeth Banks but come on - the worst thing any viewer has to sit through is hearing about a character and then never seeing her If I were the director and found out Elizabeth Banks was not available I would ask for an immediate re-write of the scenes that reference her.
Matt Damon is a nice cameo but we have seen him before and from the get go it is clear that he will only be in another episode or two, so why not bring him in midway through the season for a few laughs and use the series premiere to introduce a love interest for Liz that will last a little while.
All in all this was just about the poorest episode of 30 Rock I've seen in a while. I really hope the the series remains as positive and lighthearted as it has been for the last 4 years. If any of the writers or producers are reading this feel free to drop me a line. I'd love to help out! - Mike
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