Sandwich Day

"Sandwich Day"
30 Rock episode

Liz wolfs her teamster sandwich while at airport security.
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 14
Directed by Don Scardino
Written by Robert Carlock
Jack Burditt
Cinematography by Vanja Černjul
Production code 214
Original air date May 1, 2008 (2008-05-01)
Guest stars

Bill Cwikowski
Brian Dennehy
Marceline Hugot
Johnnie May
Jason Sudeikis
Miriam Tolan
Rip Torn

Episode chronology
← Previous
"Succession"
Next →
"Cooter"
30 Rock (season 2)
List of 30 Rock episodes

"Sandwich Day" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of 30 Rock and the thirty-fifth episode overall. It was written by one of the season's executive producers, Robert Carlock, and one of the season's co-executive producers, Jack Burditt. The episode was directed by one of the season's producers, Don Scardino.[1] The episode first aired on May 1, 2008 on the NBC network in the United States.[2] Guest stars in this episode included Bill Cwikowski, Brian Dennehy, Marceline Hugot, Johnnie May, Jason Sudeikis, Miriam Tolan and Rip Torn.[1] The episode earned Tina Fey an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

Unusually this episode begins on the 30 Rock title sequence - there is no cold open as is normally the case.

This episode begins on the annual TGS with Tracy Jordan (a fictional sketch comedy series) Sandwich Day. Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) receives a phone call from her ex-boyfriend, Floyd (Jason Sudeikis), asking for a place to stay; Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan), Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) and the TGS writers try to get a new sandwich for Liz; Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) reconsiders his future at General Electric.

Contents

Plot

It is the annual Sandwich Day for the crew of TGS. The Teamsters, led by Mickey J. (Brian Dennehy), bring in "secret" sandwiches from an unknown Italian delicatessen in Brooklyn. When the writers eat Liz's sandwich, Liz threatens that she will "cut [their] faces up so bad [...] [they'll] all have chins." As a result, the writers and Tracy, aided by Jenna, enter a drinking contest against the Teamsters in an attempt to get Liz a new sandwich.

Floyd, who broke up with Liz in the episode "Hiatus," calls Liz to ask if he can have a place to stay, as he has come to visit New York on business. Liz tries to win Floyd back, only for him to lie to her about going home to Cleveland, Ohio. Floyd eventually travels home, and the pair agree to remain friends.

Meanwhile, after being ousted from his office on the 52nd floor by Devon Banks (Will Arnett), Jack is not taking well to his new job on the 12th floor. He later decides to move to Washington, D.C., to be the new "Homeland Security Director for Crisis and Weather Management."

Production

This episode was primarily filmed on April 1, 2008.[3] This episode was the fourth episode written by Jack Burditt and the seventh written by Robert Carlock. The episode was the twelfth episode which was directed by Don Scardino.

Jason Sudeikis, who played Floyd in this episode, has appeared in the main cast of Saturday Night Live,[4] a weekly sketch comedy series which airs on NBC in the United States.[5] Tina Fey was the head writer on Saturday Night Live from 1999 until 2006.[6] Various other cast members of Saturday Night Live have appeared on 30 Rock, including Rachel Dratch,[7] Fred Armisen,[8] Kristen Wiig,[8] Will Forte,[9] Chris Parnell[10] and Molly Shannon Tina Fey and Tracy Morgan have both been part of the main cast of Saturday Night Live.[6][11] Alec Baldwin has also hosted Saturday Night Live fourteen times, the second highest number of episodes of any host of the series.[12] This was actress Johnnie May's second appearance in 30 Rock. She previously appeared in the episode "Tracy Does Conan" as a nurse who takes Liz's blood for donation.[13] In this episode she plays a screener who would not allow Liz past airport security because she had her Sandwich Day sandwich with her, and its dipping sauce container held "more than 3 ounces."

Reception

"Sandwich Day" brought in an average of 5.4 million viewers. The episode also achieved a 2.6/7 in the key 18–49 year old demographic.[14] The 2.6 refers to 2.6% of all 18–49 years olds in the U.S., and the 7 refers to 7% of all 18–49 year olds watching television at the time of the broadcast in the U.S.

Robert Canning of IGN wrote that this episode "turned out to be an absolute winner". He concluded that "with its more relatable storylines and moments like the eerie-voiced guy at the hospital, Liz tipping tables for her mac and cheese, and watching an entire sandwich be eaten in real time in the airport security line, 'Sandwich Day' was a definite highlight in the post-writers' strike season."[15] Erin Fox of TV Guide said that "the minor story of the episode was probably the funniest".[16] Jeff Labrecque of Entertainment Weekly thought that this episode "was nothing more than...eh".[17] He called this episode a "weak link".[18]

References

  1. ^ a b "30 Rock "Sandwich Day"". Yahoo. http://tv.yahoo.com/episode/168882/castcrew;_ylt=AjcJZlYp.JWNn6G4Mg6vkQqvo9EF. Retrieved 2008-07-31. 
  2. ^ "30 Rock "Sandwich Day" 05-01-2008 9:31PM" (Press release). NBC Universal Media Village. http://nbcumv.com/listing_detail.nbc/nbc-20080501213100.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31. 
  3. ^ Rivelli, Nicole (2008-04-09). "30 Rock — "Sandwich Day" Episode 214 — Pictured: Scott Adsit as Pete Hornberger". Set Photos. NBC Universal Media Village. http://images.nbcmv.com/photos/thumb/30rock/NUP_130277_0053.JPG. Retrieved 2008-07-31.  Save Picture as → Right click file → Properties → Summary → Advanced → Date Picture Taken
  4. ^ Matheson, Whitney (2007-04-19). "A chat with ... 30 Rock and SNL star Jason Sudeikis". USA Today. http://blogs.usatoday.com/popcandy/2007/04/a_chat_with_30_.html. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  5. ^ "Saturday Night Live Saturdays on NBC (11:30 p.m. – 1 a.m. ET)". NBC Universal Media Village. http://nbcumv.com/entertainment/program_detail.nbc/saturdaynightlive.html. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  6. ^ a b "Tina Fey Biography". Yahoo!. http://tv.yahoo.com/tina-fey/contributor/37979/bio;_ylt=Ah959xCzyoM_PeagipGdFJlaz9EF. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  7. ^ Schneider, Michael (2006-08-14). "Inside Move: Dratch latched to multiple Rock roles". Variety. http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=story&articleID=VR1117948462&cs=1. Retrieved 2008-03-02. 
  8. ^ a b Canning, Robert (2007-11-16). "30 Rock: "Somebody to Love" Review". IGN. http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/835/835821p1.html. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  9. ^ Webb Mitovich, Matt (2007-02-02). "February 1, 2007: "It Feels Good to Laugh"". TV Guide. http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TV-Show-Blog/30-Rock/February-1-2007/700017220. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  10. ^ Barrett, Annie (2006-12-07). "What SNL alums besides Chris Parnell should guest on 30 Rock?". Entertainment Weekly. http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2006/12/what_snl_alums_.html. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  11. ^ Fickett, Travis (2006-10-17). "IGN Interview: 30 Rock's Tracy Morgan". IGN. http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/736/736916p1.html. Retrieved 2008-07-20. 
  12. ^ "Alec Baldwin/Christina Aguilera". Saturday Night Live. NBC Universal. NBC. 2006-11-11. No. 5, season 32.
  13. ^ "30 Rock — "Tracy Does Conan" — Synopsis, Credits, Companies". Variety. http://www.variety.com/profiles/Episode/main/171713/60931/Tracy%20Does%20Conan.html?dataSet=1. Retrieved 2008-07-26. 
  14. ^ "NBC Results For The Week Of April 28–May 4" (Press release). NBC Universal Media Village. 2008-05-06. http://nbcumv.com/entertainment/release_detail.nbc/entertainment-20080506000000-nbcresultsforthe.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31. "From 9:31-10:01 p.m. ET, 30 Rock (2.6/7 in 18-49, 5.4 million viewers overall)" 
  15. ^ Canning, Robert (2008-05-02). "30 Rock: "Sandwich Day" Review". IGN. http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/871/871177p1.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31. 
  16. ^ Fox, Erin (2008-05-02). "Episode Recap: "Sandwich Day"". TV Guide. http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TV-Show-Blog/30-Rock/30-Rock-News/800038760. Retrieved 2008-07-31. 
  17. ^ Labrecque, Jeff (2008-05-02). "30 Rock: Wakeup Calls (Page 1)". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20197446,00.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31. 
  18. ^ Labrecque, Jeff (2008-05-02). "30 Rock: Wakeup Calls (Page 2)". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20197446_2,00.html. Retrieved 2008-07-31.