This episode has everything a 30 Rock fan could possibly hope for: character revelations, ridiculous plots, and Alec Baldwin reading the line: “And I know those aren’t flowers. They’re my mother’s vagina.”
Let’s break it down…
‘Florida’ solves one of the series great mysteries: Why haven’t Jack (Alec Baldwin) and Liz (Tina Fey) slept with each other? And while most viewers (including myself) probably assume that it’s that the whole affair would be messy, horrifying, and involve the antichrist and/or the solar system imploding in order to get those two even remotely close to kissing, the writers offer a simpler (and much more sensible) reason: as Jack explains to Liz, it wouldn’t be all that interesting. And he’s right. There are so few male-female friendships on TV that Jack and Liz’s (a platonic relationship if Plato had a “shut-in elderly aunt”) should be protected from forced, awkward sexual tension.
We can see that in the friendship between Tracy (Tracy Morgan) and Jenna (Jane Krakowski), too. Anything closely romantic between Tracy and Jenna would ruin this wonderfully delusional and off-beat friendship. It allows for great B-stories like in this week’s episode, when Tracy and Jenna somehow determine that they are in charge of TGS while Liz and Pete are away, and use their authority to unload the water bottle order in the elevator, drive fork lifts into set pieces intentionally, and order 3 million oranges for the office with self-satisfied smiles and high-fives. Just a couple of friends hiding in Liz’s office when their orange order fills up the writers office, like we’ve all experienced with our friends from time to time.
Courtesy of NBC
Speaking of delusional, Hazel Wassername (Kristen Schaal) reappears in this episode. But for once her character isn’t absolutely heinous! Her screen time is smartly limited to appearing in a deposition video for her suit against Tracy, Jenna, and TGS. And she was actually funny, using a doll to show what Jenna and Tracy did to her, which involved stuffing her down their shirts and crying in her face.
Other considerations:
- This week we finally see what the writers have in store for Kenneth (Jack McBrayer), and I’m pleasantly surprised. Even though it looks like he is going to end the show without regaining his page position, let alone advance in any way, at least he finally gets to regain a little of his dignity, reporting the sexual harassment he’s experienced as an NBC page. And that includes being given to David Geffen by Jack for a deal, and kisses from Lutz. On his birthday.
- Most horrifying potential child, as Liz excitedly describes to Tracy: “He’s a three year old boy from Transylvania – stay with me – his name is Dracul – Hear me out – he is a hemophiliac with a sleep disorder…”
- Most adorably offensive exchange between Jenna and Tracy:
Jenna: “[Hazel]’s lying like a rug. Rug is an offensive term for Persians that I made up.”
Tracy: “We would never [sexually harass] a page. Maybe that tall Asian one.”
Jenna: “Oh yeah, Miranda. Her hair is so thick and black.”
- I had to pause the episode to catch them, but the signs behind the desk at the Harry Potter theme park jail are fantastic. The best one reads “Alcohol is FORBIDDEN in the Forbidden Forest.” It’s these kind of details that I’m going to miss the most about this show.
- Did anyone else get a little choked up at the top of the episode when Tracy said to Liz, “Classic Tracy! You’ll miss this!”
Your turn! Which pair will you miss more, Jenna and Tracy or Jack and Liz? Is anything worse than Lutz trying to get something out of your teeth with his lips? Sound off in the comments below!
30 Rock airs Thursdays at 8 EST on NBC