I was a little hard on 30 Rock last week. In short, I thought it was one of the worst episodes of the season. Luckily, that streak was snapped pretty quickly as Mother’s Day invaded the TGS studio. It was a great excuse to get back all the great mothers that we have been introduced to before (including Elaine Stritch, Patti LuPone, Jan Hooks, and Lutz in drag!). Best part? There was no peacock in sight… unless, of course, you count the little NBC logo in the corner.
The only time I like when Jack is off his game is when he’s facing off against his mother, Colleen. Stritch is excellent in the role and she and Baldwin are great together. If anything, I would have wanted more of the two of them in the episode. Sure, it was great to watch Colleen terrorize Kenneth (or “Carl”), but I would have rather watched her terrorize Jack. The show is certainly drawing out this Avery vs. Nancy plot line. I’m ready for Jack to make a choice, or as is inevitable, have the entire situation collapse around him.
There were actually some genuinely sweet moments in this episode too. Jenna and Verna’s relationship seems to be in a really good place even though both characters are over-the-top selfish. Heck, even Tracy realized that he needed to appreciate his fake mom more. Is there a better lesson than that before Mother’s Day?
I’m a little concerned for the safety of astronaut Mike Dexter, Liz’s fictional perfect man. With the realization that even Buzz Aldrin would have been an imperfect match for her mother, Liz seems ready to forget about her fantasy man. After all this time, I’ve become a little attached to astronaut Mike Dexter. I guess if it means Liz might start being a little less of a disaster with the men in her life, I can accept it.
Did you catch the subtle shout out to Mad Men in tonight’s episode? How did you feel about tonight’s episode?
My favorite quotes:
“Very different indeed. Like a cantaloupe and a zip lock bag of mushroom soup” – Jack, on Verna’s half-done boob job.
“Ed was my true love, sweetheart. He was my steady at Montclair high. The night before he was shipped off to Korea, I repeatedly lost my virginity to him while Waldo, the town perv, watched from the bushes.” – Liz’s mom
“Laura Linney could have played you in the HBO original ‘Moonwives!'” – Liz, to her mom on what might have happened if she married her high school sweetheart Buzz Aldrin
Clacked by Bob Degon
on May 06, 2010 @ 22:30 EST5EDT
You forgot to mention the return of Will Ferrel as “Bitch Hunter.”
“Our Lady of Reluctant Integration” was the best line. From Colleen, of course.
Liz’ Mom marrying Buzz Aldrin and working at Sterling Cooper. Imagine the love triangle with Don. Whoa.
Small follow-up: Danny said うるさい (urusai) which is Japanese and literally means “noisy” or “annoying” and basically an expression to tell someone (his mom) to shut up ;-)