The shows so far...

I'm jumping into all of these NBC shows midseason, so to make this a little bit less abrupt I'm going to provide a brief summary of my sentiments regarding them.


30 Rock

"I am a stabbing robot."

Tina Fey did fairly well during her tenure as head writer for SNL, but she was at her best for the first two seasons of this show.  Probably the most frequently given advice for writers is "write what you know", so Fey did just that and wrote a show about writing a show.  The first season is an absolute marvel of comedic television.  The show found its dynamic instantly, and its ability to make dirty jokes without actually making dirty jokes was fantastic. ("Has anyone seen my Runt?")  But, anymore, the show about making a show that's named a building in which they make shows seems to have forgotten what the original idea was.  I can't recall the last time I saw the TGS set during a live performance, and not because it was very long ago, it just wasn't very memorable.  But, to me, the truly fatal flaw of the show is its tendency to recycle its own jokes, particularly ones that weren't all that funny to begin with.  Nonetheless, I keep watching 30 Rock, because every so often a genuinely funny bit gets tangled up in this web of ever-increasing mediocrity.  As much as I once loved this show, I really hope season five is the last.


Community

"Set phasers to 'love me'!"

Almost every show on TV anymore tries to do meta-humor.  Most attempts fall flat, but Community has been doing it well right from the start.  A solid ensemble cast performs the perfect blend of well-written humor and pathos.  Self-reference can often alienate the viewer from the ideal viewing experience, but this show does it so well it makes you feel more a part of the fictional Greendale Community College.  In fact, the show sometimes seems so self-aware that I am beginning to think it may be becoming sentient.  Not every episode hits the mark exactly, but even the lackluster episodes still have a bit of shine to them.  But what really ties the room together, man, is the spot-on cinematography.  James Hawkinson (along with camera operator Gary Hatfield, who has nine episode credits as cinematographer) has shown an amazing ability to duplicate almost every distinct cinematic style of the last forty-some-odd years.  Bottom line, the show is fucking hilarious, and a visual treat.


The Office

There's a lot of talk about how the writers of The Office are going to handle Steve Carrell's departure from the show.  I think the answer is pretty obvious.  Seven seasons of a show is usually a pretty good stopping point.  Run any longer than that, and you'll find yourself jumping the shark, which The Office pretty much did with "Threat Level Midnight".  Which isn't to say that this show isn't still capable of doing good things, but the likelihood of an eighth season being worth half a shit is pretty slim.  That being said, last night's episode, "Garage Sale", was actually pretty damn good.


Parks and Recreation

Though it was originally written off by viewing audiences as a pale clone of The Office, nothing could be further from the truth.  I'll admit, Amy Poehler's Leslie Knope bore a few similarities to Michael Scott, and the show did take place largely inside an office environment, the similarities end there.  Well, aside from the fact that both shows had short-but-promising first seasons and came into their own with a full-season renewal during round two, that is.  After being shoved aside for the fuckawful-yet-somehow-popular Outsourced, Parks and Rec is back for a short third season, and it is everything that we have hoped and waited for.  You want proof of the show's greatness? Look to your left.  The motherfucking Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness.




Well, that's that for my sort-of-summaries for the four active NBC shows I'll be covering here.  I'll also be writing about "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and "Louie" when they go back on the air, and maybe I'll start writing about "Archer" if I'm feeling the FX love.