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30 Rock
SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 8:00p (30 minutes)


7.7

based on 31 reviews
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based on 85 votes
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Get more information on this show at TV.com.

Starring Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, Scott Adsit, Jack McBrayer, and Rachel Dratch

Like NBC's new drama "Studio 60," this comedy from SNL alum Tina Fey is set behind the scenes of a network sketch comedy program.

GENRE(S):	Comedy
CREATED BY:	Tina Fey
FIRST AIR DATE:	October 11, 2006

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

New York Daily News David Hinckley

Like the best TV comedies - from "Seinfeld" to "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," and all the way back to "The Jack Benny Program" - "30 Rock" sparkles not just because its central star gets to shine, but because everyone does.

People Weekly Tom Gliatto

It's the best new sitcom of the fall. [16 Oct 2006, p.39]

Chicago Sun-Times Doug Elfman

I don't want to spoil the great lines, delivered with perfect comic acting. To me, it's bliss.

LA Weekly Robert Abele

A weirdly appropriate and hilarious symbol of our times.

Wall Street Journal Dorothy Rabinowitz

The standard caution is relevant -- debut episodes tend to be highly polished. All the more reason to enjoy the hilarious scenes and fine ensemble cast here.

Baltimore Sun David Zurawik

One of the zaniest - and most savvy - workplace comedies in years.

Los Angeles Times Robert Lloyd

It's smart without either condescending to or patronizing the viewer.

Miami Herald Glenn Garvin

30 Rock... is pretty darn funny, a bitterly merry comic jihad against corporate stupidity and mendaciousness.

Newsday Verne Gay

A rare and almost totally unexpected triumph.

New York Post Linda Stasi

OK, so I admit it, the premiere isn't all that funny, but the second episode is hilarious.

Slant Magazine Brian Holcomb

The cast is perfectly matched to this material.

Entertainment Weekly Ken Tucker

Baldwin's sharklike momentum pulls you through a sitcom that otherwise makes little sense.

Detroit Free Press Mike Duffy

Fey's humor possesses a sly, literate snap. And like NBC's recent cool comedies, "The Office" and "My Name Is Earl," her rollicking "30 Rock" has a surplus of nutty imagination.

USA Today Robert Bianco

Yet for all its laughs, 30 Rock does call to mind a kind of sketch show version of The Mary Tyler Moore Show — one in which everyone's playing Ted. That can be fun for a while, but eventually sitcom viewers tend to want to root for someone.

Kansas City Star Aaron Barnhart

A good, potentially great, show.

Philadelphia Inquirer Jonathan Storm

There's plenty of charisma to go around on 30 Rock, and Fey will go just about anywhere for a laugh. Her absurd, yet almost believable, showbiz send-up is full of them.

Boston Globe Matthew Gilbert

There's a lot to enjoy... But "30 Rock" is more sitcommy than most of the single-camera sitcoms on the air now, and it has none of the sharp bite of "The Larry Sanders Show."

Orlando Sentinel Hal Boedeker

There's reason to hope, especially for Baldwin's bold performance and the cutting dialogue.

Hollywood Reporter Barry Garron

Arguably the best comedy this fall.

Time James Poniewozik

For all the show's cartooniness, its gender-conscious take on the TV business is actually more sophisticated [than Studio 60's].

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Rob Owen

Where "Studio 60" takes a scathing and indignant tone toward television, "30 Rock" offers a more sarcastic, less hackles-raised critique. It's also funnier and goofier.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Melanie McFarland

The jokes that hit their target almost make up for the wide misses.

Newark Star-Ledger Alan Sepinwall

"Write what you know" is a cardinal rule of writing, and Fey certainly knows this world better than Sorkin -- even if "The Girlie Show" is lame, I believe it exists in a way I don't with "Studio 60" -- but the history of failed behind-the-scenes sitcoms and dramas is so long and ugly that she would have been better served using a different setting altogether.

The New York Times Alessandra Stanley

Nothing very funny happens on “30 Rock” until Alec Baldwin enters the room, and suddenly this new NBC sitcom comes alive.

Philadelphia Daily News Ellen Gray

I want to like "30 Rock" more than I do so far, because I've always liked Fey. Yet it could be Fey - the actress, not the writer - I'm having trouble warming to.

Washington Post Tom Shales

For all the rewriting and reworking, the show needs a better premise and funnier dialogue and, most of all, a more commanding performer in the starring role.

San Jose Mercury News Charlie McCollum

When he gets a lot of air time and his worst excesses are not reined in, Morgan is the human equivalent of fingernails on a blackboard.... As a result, what could have been a rather savory dish ends up with a rather unpleasant aftertaste.

Arizona Republic Bill Goodykoontz

Too often it feels like a missed opportunity, though there's always hope for improvement, more realistic in this case than most.

Chicago Tribune Maureen Ryan

Nobody does a deadpan line reading like Baldwin, and he alone is reason to check out this work in progress and hope that Fey gets the time she’ll need to make this hodge-podge live up to its potential.

San Francisco Chronicle Tim Goodman

To its credit, next week's second episode is better than tonight's revamped pilot: tighter, funnier and more expansive to other cast members.

Variety Brian Lowry

If "30 Rock's" going to survive, Baldwin's comedic chops will be tugging the lifeline.

The average user rating for this tv show is 7.7 (out of 10) based on 85 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

[Anonymous] gave it a10:
Greatest thing on television. I ma in the course of wearing out my season 1 DVDs.

Dan B. gave it a10:
I am knocked out by this show. I almost never watch television but this blew me away. Baldwin is brilliant. Tina Fey is 2x as great for being a great writer *and* being hot with a scar on her face. The whole show is addictive and I've been watching episodes back to back for hours. I cannot stop!

Adam gave it a10:
Easily the funniest show on tv, and I say that even though I was a fan of The Office. Alec Baldwin does it all, and the Kenneth character has turned into one of the most consistent laugh producers on the show. It's one of the few sitcoms that seems to get funnier every episode; each time making you wonder if you had ever laughed this hard.

Joanne J. gave it a10:
I agree with Jimmy S. 30 Rock and The Office are the best comedies on TV! I hope it survives.

Ann gave it a1:
I only watched it because Seinfeld was on. It was boring. Could barely get through the end.

Mike S. gave it a10:
Tina Fey is absolutely brilliant and this is easily the best sitcom on network TV. In my opinion, it is the best show since Seinfeld!

Sanjay gave it a10:
It's kinda unfair that only the pilot is being reviewed. The season didn't reach it's stride until a few episodes later but when it did it really took off. It's Emmy over The Office and Extras speaks volumes since they were also deserving, and in The Office's case, more popular. It is truly the new Arrested Development---too good for it's own good.

30 Rock SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 8:00p (30 minutes)

30 Rock
SERIES: NBC, Wednesday 8:00p (30 minutes)