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How to Watch 30 Rock on Peacock
Blerg!
With every episode of 30 Rock streaming on Peacock, now is the perfect time to pull a Liz Lemon and binge-watch your new favorite show while eating a bag of Sabor de Soledad. On the couch steaming 30 Rock... I want to go to there.
Stream all seven seasons of 30 Rock on Peacock and be sure to read on for information about the show and some episodes we recommend. A streaming service without 30 Rock? That’s a dealbreaker, ladies.
What is 30 Rock about?
Inspired by Tina Fey’s tenure as head writer at Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock takes place behind the scenes at an SNL-style late-night sketch comedy show at NBC’s (and Peacock’s 😉) New York headquarters: 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
The series follows Liz Lemon (Fey), the stubborn yet idealistic head writer of TGS (formerly known as The Girlie Show), as she manages the egos of her show's stars, the demands of her suave network executive boss, the stresses of putting on a live TV show, and her desire to have a successful romantic life outside of her hectic career.
30 Rock is dense with jokes in nearly every line, but its humor is always underscored by heart. In the show’s early seasons, 30 Rock is for the most part grounded, but as the show progresses, it becomes more and more delightfully detached from reality, with the show often described as a live-action cartoon. Part of the fun of bingeing 30 Rock isn’t just watching the characters grow but watching the show itself grow into something perfectly surreal.
Cast and Characters
Liz Lemon (Tina Fey)
“There ain't no party like a Liz Lemon party 'cause a Liz Lemon party is mandatory!”
30 Rock’s protagonist is dedicated to her successful TV career and her friends, but she struggles in her personal life. Liz is quirky, neurotic, and capable, and even though so much of her stress comes from managing the personalities around her, it’s usually her own stubbornness that gets in the way of her goal to have it all.
Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin)
“Ambition is the willingness to kill the things you love and eat them to survive. Haven't you ever read my throw pillow?”
Jack begins the show as Liz’s reviled new network executive boss, but he quickly becomes Liz’s beloved mentor, helping her navigate TGS’s chaos with his endlessly confident corporate savvy.
Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski)
“Listen up fives, a ten is speaking.”
Jenna is Liz’s old friend and a star of TGS. She is eccentric, vain, and self-absorbed, but completely loveable. With her dramatic personality and constant need for attention, she’ll give Liz a headache at just the wrong time by locking herself in her dressing room.
Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan)
“I don’t need a birthday, ’cause I buy myself all the presents I need. And because of my drinking, they’re often a surprise.”
Brought onto TGS to boost ratings by Jack, Tracy is an unpredictable movie star known for his unpredictable antics and outrageous public statements. Tracy is constantly flanked by his entourage Grizz and Dot Com, and though he tests Liz’s patience, he can also be TGS’s ace in the hole.
Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer)
“There are only two things I love in this world, everybody and television.”
Kenneth is a perpetually cheerful and naive NBC Page with an undying devotion to TV’s most menial tasks. He also may or may not be immortal.
Pete Hornberger (Scott Adsit)
“My job is killing me, my family resents me, the other day I was mugged by what I'm pretty sure was two 5-year-olds in a trench coat.”
The jaded but hardworking producer of TGS, Pete is often the only competent person at the show that Liz can rely on, but even he gets overwhelmed by his unpredictable work and personal life.
Frank Rossitano (Judah Friedlander)
“Hey Liz, we’re out of string cheese, so I think I’m gonna take off.
One of the staff writers at TGS, Frank is a sarcastic, slovenly slacker who can’t help but undermine Liz's authority.
Running Jokes
30 Rock is jam-packed with gags, and if you binge the show, you’ll notice more than a bit that come up again and again. Here are just a few of the many running jokes we love in 30 Rock:
Shows within a show
Often when a new TV show is announced that people find ridiculous, they’ll compare it to one of the many shows-within-a-show from 30 Rock, shows like MILF Island, America's Kidz Got Singing, Homonym, God Cop, Gold Case, and Liz Lemon’s own short-lived talk show, Dealbreakers.
Frank’s hats
In every episode (and sometimes in every new scene) Frank wears a trucker hat with a different slogan on it, like “bigfoot expert,” “coin-operated,” and “push for cheese.”
Dr. Spaceman
Anytime someone goes to a doctor in 30 Rock, they see Chris Parnell’s Dr. Leo Spaceman (pronounced spa-CHE-min) who is, in every possible way, the worst and most dangerous person to practice medicine extralegally.
Jenna’s relationship with Mickey Rourke
Jenna Maroney has a tendency to relate situations to, uh, colorful anecdotes to her, uh, tumultuous relationship with actor Mickey Rourke. One time, he catapulted her into the Hollywood sign.
Kenneth is immortal
Normally, a person can only be an NBC Page for a year, but Kenneth works at TGS for all seven seasons of 30 Rock. Though that may seem like a long time, the show drops some hints that Kenneth’s tenure may be much, much longer. Like when he shows off a signed picture from The Tonight Show’s Fred Allen circa 1947.
Episode Recs
Pilot (S1E1)
Why not start from the beginning? 30 Rock’s first episode does a fantastic job of introducing all the major characters’ relationships while still being a hilarious episode of television
Stream 30 Rock Season 1 Episode 1.
Tracy Does Conan (S1E7)
Liz faces chaos as Tracy overdoses on medication from Dr. Spaceman before his appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
Stream 30 Rock Season 1 Episode 7.
MILF Island (S2E11)
The TGS staff are captivated by the finale of the hit NBC reality show MILF Island, as Jack sets out to determine which one of them made a negative comment about him to an entertainment reporter.
Stream 30 Rock Season 2 Episode 11.
Reunion (S3E5)
Liz reluctantly attends her high school reunion, excited to show off her successful New York life to her former bullies, only to discover that she was the high school bully herself.
Stream 30 Rock Season 3 Episode 5.
Queen of Jordan (S5E17)
In season 5, Tracy’s wife Angie (Sherri Shepherd) gets her own Bravo-style reality show, and in this episode, we finally get to see it.
Stream 30 Rock Season 5 Episode 17.
Stream all seven seasons of 30 Rock on Peacock.
