Season six of NBC's award-winning show 30 Rock premiered Jan. 12 after a half season break. The show picks up in real time, where the staff of "TGS With Tracy Jordan" is just coming back from winter vacation. Tina Fey, star and executive producer, just gave birth to her second child, thus causing the delay. Although they had to wait impatiently for too long, fans were not disappointed. The premiere, entitled "Dance Like No One's Watching," finds Liz Lemon happy, refreshed and ready for work. Her colleagues and superior, Jack Donaghy, find this entirely puzzling. She laughs at Kenneth's silly clown suit and skips down the street, which are things regular Liz would never do.
Why isn't she keeping Tracy from doing something stupid? Jack, thinking he knows everything about her, insists that something is up. He and Tracy then discover her doing the greatest thing in Liz Lemon history.
In what can only be described as a fitting, how-did-they-not-do-this-before twist, ol' Liz Lemon has joined a volunteer senior citizen dance group called the Timeless Torches, who dance at Madison Square Garden for New York's WNBA team, the New York Liberty.
Yes, they may grapevine, much to Tracy Jordan's chagrin, but goshdarnit, the Timeless Torches warm everybody's hearts. They have been spreading Liberty spirit since 2005 and Fey learned an actual dance with the actual dancers for the shooting. Liz claims she is "thirty nine for the third time" and tries to lift up her fellow Torch Luis.
As Jack drives her to her next destination, the movie theater, he predicts that she will ironically see "New Year's Eve" by herself and that she waited until a few weeks went by so that she would not have to contribute to it being the number one movie in America. Liz smiles and rushes inside to meet up with her new boyfriend, who she had been keeping from Jack. The boyfriend's identity is not revealed until the second episode.
Also in the premiere episode is Jenna causing trouble by being the Simon Cowell of NBC's new hit show, America's Kidz Got Singing. This is of course is making fun of America's Got Talent, which loves to discover kids with phenomenal voices like Jackie Evancho.
Although a bit harsher than Cowell, Jenna yells insults at the kids and gets booed. Her new catchphrase is "Go crawl back up your mother!" and tells the kids that they look too weird to be singing and that they sound horrific.
This is incredibly appropriate for Jenna who craves being the one you love to hate and hate to love.
But Jack, with his new baby, Lydie, gets upset when all of the children contestants cry. He thinks that they should not know at such a young age that the world is a terrible place. Then, thinking his baby said "money," he takes this as a sign from her that she should do the right thing: keep his hit show, despite the tears.
The episode features a lot of the quick, clever jokes we all expect from 30 Rock with additional twists that keep us wanting more episodes. This season is expected to have plots that work in some real-life occurrences, such as Tracy Morgan's character Tracy Jordan making offensive jokes about gay men.
In terms of relationships, it seems as though Jack is finding it hard to live without Avery, who is being held captive by Kim John Un. Although fans of the show love that Liz has finally found a man, the only Liz who can run a show is the extremely stressed out Liz that is now canon.
So, the relationship probably will not last too long. (Here's a hint: her new boyfriend is one of the named below!)
The new season is also expected to have many guest stars: Emma Stone, Andy Samberg, Nick Cannon, James Marsden, Will Arnett as the maniacal Banks, Denise Richards, Kelsey Grammer and Kristen Schaal. Andy Samberg (it's about time!) and Emma Stone are particularly exciting choices, and not just because Stone (30) rocks.
We expect more greatness in the coming weeks.
