"30 Rock" Gets 'That Sweet Cuyahoga Glow'

Last night's episode of 30 Rock was fantastic! So why aren't more people watching it? In the overnight Nielsen ratings for Thursday it pulled a 3.3/5. I know it's on against Grey's Anatomy and all, but I can't imagine that those two shows are competing for the same demographic. (I would never even consider watching Grey's, and I haven't since being turned off during the first ten minutes of the pilot.) When you factor in that The Office (30 Rock's lead-in last night) pulled a 4.0/7 for a re-run it gets even harder to understand. Both shows share a similar understated sense of humor, terrific writing, and great acting.

30 Rock is consistently funny week after week. The writing is stellar, just witness last night's ode to Cleveland for example. Or the recent multi-episode arc involving Tracey Morgan's character trying to find backers for his Thomas Jefferson biopic while on the run from "The Black Crusaders"; a secret group of celebrities fighting black exploitation and stereotyping that includes, among others, Bill Cosby and Gordon from Sesame Street, and who apparently meet quarterly in the skull of the Statue of Liberty. (If you missed last night's episode you can check out it at http://www.nbc.com/Video/rewind/full_episodes/30rock.shtml)

Thankfully, the show's already been renewed for next season. I just hope it can drum up a little more business so they don't pull the plug. It really is probably the second funniest show on television right now; behind The Office of course.