30 Rock Season 3 - DVD Review

Tina Fey's Comedic TV Exposé Still Tickles The Funny Bone

Sep 25, 2009

With extremely strong writing and a bevy of inspired celebrity cameos, this witty look at an alternate-reality SNL gains laugh out loud momentum during its third season.

At face value, the half-hour NBC TV comedy 30 Rock seemed like it could have been an exercise in self indulgence. Created by actress-slash-writer Tina Fey, the show clearly reflects her tenure at the late night sketch comedy staple Saturday Night Live. Would her zany saga about the fictional SNL clone TGS (aka The Girlie Show) amount to more than just an industry in-joke?

Thankfully the answer is a resounding yes. In an environment where prime time televised comedy draws most of its inspiration from well-established British material (i.e. The Office) or recycled sitcom tropes (i.e. just about everything else), it's refreshing to find a program with an original voice. And - thank the heavens - no forced laugh track, allowing the show's rapid fire Howard Hawks-style banter to speak for itself.

30 Rock Season 3 - "I Want To Go To There"

Fey stars as TGS with Tracy Jordan head writer Liz Lemon, who begins the third season with an unquenched thirst for adoptive motherhood. Her perpetually stressed existence is fueled by the antics of her NBC coworkers, including clueless talent Tracy (Tracy Morgan) and Jenna (Jane Krakowski), unsympathetic writers (led by Judah Friedlander's hat-obsessed Frank) and the nervous busybody page Kenneth (Jack McBrayer).

Lemon's sole pillar of demented support is her hilariously corrupt boss Jack Donaghy, portrayed by multiple-time SNL host Alec Baldwin. Baldwin may have gained fame as a serious actor, but his skills at deadpan delivery and comic timing are second to none. At the start of this season Jack is jockeying for the position of General Electric Chairman, but may have to settle for his old job as "Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming".

The 30 Rock Experience - Even Better Than A McFlurry

The sprinkled toppings on this already remarkable confection are its numerous celebrity cameos, including Jennifer Aniston, Steve Martin, Oprah Winfrey and the staggering amount of popular musicians found in the season finale. One laudable aspect of this series is its ability to craft new circumstances with each episode while maintaining overlapping story arcs. Salma Hayek, Jon Hamm and Alan Alda reap the benefits of this with their multiple episode appearances as love interests and lost family.

While the show occasionally falls into postmodern tendencies and can indulge in self-reference, it never becomes overly hip or too dry (a la The Office). Fey and her writers are in love with every form of comedy, and they dip into equal amounts of farce, parody, slapstick and non sequitur (as in Tracy Jordan's assertion that he's "practicing sitting" in one episode). All in all it's a potent concoction that rarely fails to induce full scale belly laughs. Show Rating - 9 out of 10

DVD Details - It's Not A Dealbreaker, Ladies (And Gents)

Universal earns points for not crippling this standard definition release with excess edge enhancement, delivering a solid image that holds together well despite some noticeable compression artifacts. Where these discs truly shine is in their replication of the show's vibrant color palette. The Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track is serviceable, and renders both the intricate dialogue and the show's lighthearted jazz-lounge score with a clean, natural sound.

Each of the three discs features a handful of cast and crew commentary tracks, none of which are particularly enlightening. The best of the extras appear on disc three, which delivers (among other things) deleted scenes, a fake phone sex commercial, a fascinating video of a script "table read" and fun behind-the-scenes featurettes detailing the season's Muppet appearances and the evolution of the star-studded "Kidney Now!" musical charity event.

With fun cameos, incredible writing and lightning-quick gags that may take numerous viewings to fully absorb, this DVD set of 30 Rock's third season is a more than worthy investment. The only thing missing is a complimentary Fun Cooker. DVD Rating - Audio/Video Quality: 7 / Extras: 7

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