The season finale had Jack putting on a benefit concert to find his father a kidney after he finds out he’s not a match. Liz uses her new catchphrase (“That’s a deal breaker!”) to gather fame and fortune. And Tracy goes back to his high school to speak at graduation but has to face some long-held fears. The best scene had Liz on a talk show giving relationship advice. Jack’s hatred for Jimmy Carter is hilarious as is the name of Tracy’s high school (Frank Lucas – Denzel in American Gangster). But Chris Parnell’s Dr. Leo Spacemen has never worked for me. Jack would never tolerate a doctor that incompetent. The cheap shot at Christianity was unfunny and unnecessary. The list of musical guest stars includes 
Clay Aiken, Mary J. Blige, Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, Adam Levine, Wyclef Jean, Cyndi Lauper, Moby, Michael McDonald, and a couple of the Beastie Boys. They were fine, especially the Beastie Boys (“Get a room!”), but the subject of kidney transplantation is too serious and not absurd enough to completely work. B
Medical note: Not addressed was the fact that people can live for decades without a kidney using dialysis. There’s no urgency to find one. The heart or liver on the other hand . . .
Saturday, May 16, 2009
30 Rock - Kidney Now!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I buy Spaceman - I think it works within the absurdist tone of the show - plus him staring at the clipboard saying 'opposite, opposite' is funny.
Wow, what a hilarious song. Kidney Now has got to be one of the most genius things that 30 Rock has done this season, and that’s saying a lot. I like how they are able to satirize the whole celebrity song for a cause thing while also truly spreading the word about this cause.
Great celebrity cast, good idea to include Cyndi ‘We are the World” Lauper and I was also way happy to see Rhett Miller lending his vocals to the cause, too. I’ve been anxiously waiting for his new album to come out next month, but for now I’m happy just to see him on 30 Rock.
FYI check out a video clip of the song at : http://displacedbrett.wordpress.com/2009/05/18/the-return-of-rhett - if you like it as much as I did, support a good cause and purchase the vid on iTunes!
Post a Comment