What I’m Watching: 30 Rock

30 Rock: Season 5, Episode 11 “Mrs. Donaghy” (B+)

Beginning its risky three-hour comedy block on Thursday nights, this show gets transplanted to the 10pm slot. Fortunately, this first episode is pretty terrific, so hopefully the rest will follow suit as the show tries to take more liberties as a result of its later airing time. The ‘A’ plot was magnificent, providing funny flashbacks to the wacky wedding and positioning Jack and Liz as the most unlikely couple, both of whom wouldn’t easily back down even if blackmailed into doing so. Liz’s press conference was great, and I enjoyed how they worked out all their differences and took out their anger on the geeky HR rep. Angie Jordan hasn’t been featured on the show for a while, and the idea of having her as a reality star could be entertaining. I love how both Liz and Pete get so behind that idea, even as they’re trying to counter it with all their might and resolve. Hands down my favorite line of the episode referred to Danny, from Kenneth, about how they had honestly forgotten he worked there. Even if Kenneth’s child of divorced parents syndrome was a bit cookie-cutter and off-kilter, it’s fun to see just how marvelously the criminally underused Cheyenne Jackson and Jane Krakowski work together. I’m not sure why Danny hasn’t become more of a major character, but I would certainly support that. Cohesively, this episode functioned better than almost any episode before it, taking one general theme (marriage) and running with it across the board.