'30 Rock' Signs Off

I was a little behind the eight ball on this one. I knew this was going to be the final season of 30 Rock, but what I didn’t know was that the final episode would be airing on January 31^st until sometime last week. I had to come to the realization that something I’ve enjoyed for several years was coming to an end. Blurgh!

Even with its critical acclaim, 30 Rock was never as popular in the ratings as some of its Thursday night predecessors such as Friends or Seinfeld. Alec Baldwin even considered leaving the show after season five for what he considered weak scripts. But it’s the show’s unique style of comedy and joke delivery that could place it in the same class of NBC’s comedy elite, if not all of television. It provided us with many classic moments and lines, and gave us phrases and parodies such as “I want to go to there,” “MILF Island” and my personal favorite, “Werewolf BarMitzvah.” Even the first half of the finale was entitled “Hogcock”, which Baldwin’s network executive Jack Donaghy labels as “a combination of hogwash and poppycock.”

The finale was classic 30 Rock. As the cast and crew were saying goodbye to TGS, we were saying our final farewell as a viewing audience. It had its brilliant moments (Conan O’Brien, Julianne Moore and Selma Hayek’s cameos, Kenneth’s list of television “no-no” words and Jenna’s “Rural Juror” song, just to name a few). Even Liz and Jack’s final conversation, with all its sentimentality, infused the show’s brand of silliness.

Ultimately 30 Rock was the product of the comedic genius of Tina Fey. Liz Lemon’s quirkiness lasted all the way to the end, highlighted this season by donning a Princess Leah outfit to her wedding. Although the show allowed Baldwin to shine in his first regular attempt at comedy, it was Fey’s personal touch that made the show likeable in its distinctive originality. Similar to Arrested Development, 30 Rock was as smart as it was funny.

For me it’s going take some time to get used to Thursday nights without 30 Rock. With its absence, NBC is going to have a difficult hole to fill, especially when The Office says goodbye in May. But 30 Rock went out the right way, doing it on its own terms while not overstaying its welcome. The same can’t be said for many other shows of its quality.