Episode 210

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“Episode 210[1]”
30 Rock episode

Liz calls the co-op board.
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 10
Written by Robert Carlock
Donald Glover
Directed by Richard Shepard
Guest stars James Arden as Detlef
Julia Barnett as Charlotte
Kevin Brown as Dot Com
James Cavanagh Burke as Coal Miner
Grizz Chapman as Grizz
Edie Falco as Celeste Cunningham
Toby Huss as Deutsche Stimme
Gladys Knight as herself
Production no. 210
Original airdate January 10, 2008 (2008-01-10)
Episode chronology
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"Ludachristmas" "MILF Island"
30 Rock (season 2)
List of 30 Rock episodes

The untitled tenth episode of the second season of the television series 30 Rock was first broadcast in the United States on January 10, 2008, on the NBC network. The episode was written by Robert Carlock and Donald Glover, and was directed by Richard Shepard.[2] Guest stars include James Arden, Julia Barnett, Kevin Brown, James Cavanagh Burke, Grizz Chapman, Edie Falco, Toby Huss and Gladys Knight, who appeared as herself.

The episode focuses on Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) and her decision to invest in real-estate, while Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) has to choose between his job and his girlfriend. Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer) develops an addiction to coffee.[2] The production and broadcasting of this episode was heavily affected by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike.[3]

Despite never being officially named by NBC, "Episode 210" has been unofficially titled "Liz the Business Woman"[4] and "Coffee & TV."[5] Although not unanimously praised by critics, the episode attracted generally positive reviews and was particularly appreciated for its cast rendition of the 1973 Gladys Knight & the Pips hit "Midnight Train to Georgia".

Contents

[edit] Plot

Tracy Jordan buys a coffee machine and puts it on Kenneth Parcell's desk, causing him to develop a caffeine addiction which leads him to believe that he has been "sodomised" (Literally. Referring to being assimilated to the Biblical city of Sodom). Kenneth later feels guilty that he has let New York change him, contrary to a promise he made to his mother. He therefore decides to return to Georgia on the midnight train.

Liz takes Jack Donaghy's advice to invest in real estate, and Jenna Maroney tells Liz that her business manager is selling his apartment. The sale is subject to the approval of the building's cooperative board, but Liz makes a bad impression and her purchase offer is rejected. Liz then got herself drunk with wine and made numerous phone calls to the board.

Jack is involved in negotiations to acquire a German cable television network, but is struggling to juggle his job and his relationship with C.C., whose work has taken her to Washington DC. Unable to see each other when they want to, the couple decide to "meet in the middle" (in a betting parlour in Pennsylvania), but this arrangement proves unsuitable and they later decide to break up. Jack, in conversation with Liz, compares his relationship to Liz's previous relationship with Floyd, and Liz declares (in song) that she has to go.[2]

[edit] Production

The Writers Guild of America was on strike for 100 days.
The Writers Guild of America was on strike for 100 days.[6]

Parts of this episode were filmed during the week of November 5, 2007.[3] This coincided with the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, which began at 00:01 EST on November 5, 2007.[7] However, the episode had been written earlier and so the filming was finished on November 9.[8] Members of Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West voted to end the writers' strike on February 12, 2008.[9] Writers were allowed to return to work on the same day.[10] The series' show runner Robert Carlock returned to work on February 11, followed by the writers on February 13.[11][10] Production of Season 2, episode 11, "MILF Island" began on February 13 and was scheduled to air on April 10, 2008.[10][12] During the filming, actor and executive producer Tina Fey had to balance her duties in order not to breach WGA strike rules.[13] Fey also took to the picket lines along with co-star Jack McBrayer.[14] Alec Baldwin also wrote blogs on The Huffington Post website in order to demonstrate his support for the WGA writers.[15]

"Episode 210" was broadcast on January 10, 2008 and was the final episode (including repeats)[16] of 30 Rock to be broadcast until the episode "MILF Island," the following April.[12][17] This episode is also notable for being officially unnamed. NBC billed this episode on its press releases as "Episode 210."[1][18] As of June 2008, this episode remains untitled. This led some critics to give it the unofficial title of "Liz the Business Woman",[4] while others named it, "Coffee & TV."[5] The previous episode, "Episode 209", also remains without an official title.[19]

[edit] Reception

A scene featuring the cast of 30 Rock singing the song, "Midnight Train to Georgia".
A scene featuring the cast of 30 Rock singing the song, "Midnight Train to Georgia".

On its original broadcast in the United States, "Episode 210" was viewed by 5.97 million viewers and earned a 2.8/7 in the 18-49 year old demographic (meaning that it was seen by 2.8% of all 18-49 years olds and 7% of all 18-49 year olds watching U.S. television at the time of the broadcast).[20][21]

Entertainment Weekly's Jeff Labrecque wrote, "The episode really finished strong with a fabulous Gladys Knight musical number."[4] Matt Webb Mitovich of TV Guide also praised the musical number. He said, "that "Midnight Train to Georgia" number at the end of tonight's episode... Wow. So out of nowhere and so fun."[22] Bob Sassone of AOL's TV Squad said that the episode "was a good episode to go into the hiatus with, if that makes things better." Although, Sassone also criticized the fact that the fictional TGS writing staff were not present in this episode even though they could have been effectively used.[23] Michael Neal of Television Without Pity awarded the episode a grading of A+.[5] The Boston Globe's Joanna Weiss reviewed the episode positively saying "[The episode] concluded with a musical interlude that was both hilarious and wistful."[24]

Despite the good reviews, there was no universal acclaim from critics as a whole. Robert Canning of IGN said that "[this episode] wasn't the most spectacular half-hour from this truncated season" and "Unfortunately, there wasn't all that much that was funny about it. Sure, there were a couple of decent one-liners, but overall [Kenneth's storyline] offered up nothing new." Despite these criticisms, like many other critics, Canning added further praise to the "Midnight Train to Georgia" performance. Canning gave this episode a rating of 8.4 out of 10.[25]

[edit] See also

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[edit] References

  1. ^ a b National Broadcasting Company; NBC Media Village (December 2007). "01-10-2008 08:30 PM 30 ROCK — EPISODE 210 (30 min)". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-01-18.
  2. ^ a b c "Episode 210". Writer(s): Robert Carlock & Donald Glover; Director: Richard Shepard. 30 Rock. NBC Universal. NBC. 2008-01-10. No. 10, season 2.
  3. ^ a b The TV Grid. Los Angeles Times (November 2007). Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  4. ^ a b c Labrecque, Jeff (2008-01-10). 30 Rock: Midnight Train Wrecks. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  5. ^ a b c Neal, Michael (2008-01-10). Coffee & TV. Television Without Pity. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  6. ^ "The 100-Day Writers’ Strike: A Timeline", The New York Times, 2008-02-12. Retrieved on 2008-02-24. 
  7. ^ McNary, Dave (2007-11-04). WGA goes on strike. Variety. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  8. ^ Baldwin, Alec (2007-11-11). What the Strike is Costing Us. The Huffington Post. Retrieved on 2008-01-27.
  9. ^ Writers Guild of America, West (2008-02-12). "Writers Guild Members Vote to End Strike". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-02-13.
  10. ^ a b c Littleton, Cynthia; McNary, Dave. "It's official: WGA strike is over", Variety, 2008-02-12. Retrieved on 2008-02-13. 
  11. ^ Littleton, Cynthia; McNary, Dave. "Showrunners back to work Monday", Variety, 2008-02-10. Retrieved on 2008-02-13. 
  12. ^ a b NBC; The Futon Critic (2008-02-13). "NBC ANNOUNCES BROADCAST RETURN OF SEVERAL SCRIPTED SERIES WITH ORIGINAL EPISODES IN APRIL". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-02-15.
  13. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (2007-11-06). High-profile writers Rock picket line in N.Y.. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  14. ^ Solidarity! Tina Fey, Tim Robbins, Kristin Davis, John Edwards, And The Creepy Guy From "Lost" Rally For Striking Writers. The Huffington Post (2007-11-27). Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  15. ^ Baldwin, Alec. Alec Baldwin. The Huffington Post. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  16. ^ 30 ROCK Storylines. Press Release. NBC Media Village. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  17. ^ ABC, NBC SHUFFLE JANUARY PREMIERES. The Futon Critic (2007-12-20). Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  18. ^ The Futon Critic (December 2007). "30 ROCK; Air Date: Thursday, January 10, 2008; Time Slot: 8:30 PM-9:00 PM EST on NBC; Episode Title: (#210) "EPISODE 210"". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  19. ^ National Broadcasting Company (December 2007). "30 ROCK  – EPISODE 209 12-13-2007 9:00PM". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-02-28.
  20. ^ Berman, Marc (2008-01-11). Prime-Time Ratings: Thursday 1/10/08. The Programming Insider. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  21. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (2008-01-12). Last Thursday of new episodes lackluster. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  22. ^ Webb Mitovich, Matt (2008-01-10). Episode Recap: "Episode 210". TV Guide. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  23. ^ Sassone, Bob (2008-01-10). 30 Rock: Episode 210. AOL's TV Squad. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  24. ^ Weiss, Joanna (2008-01-12). "30 Rock:" They're leaving. Boston Globe. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  25. ^ Canning, Robert (2008-01-11). 30 Rock: "Episode 210" Review. IGN. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.

[edit] External links


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