Does anyone here watch 30 Rock? Comedy Central have the UK premiere of season 4 on 19 April, if you do. I only ask because this is an Emmy-winning show I'm always hearing about, but never watched many episodes of when it started. I wrote reviews for episode 1, 2 and 3 a few years back, but never felt the need to continue watching. I have issues with US comedy in general, as you may know. I generally dislike them, basically, with a few exceptions -- like mid-'90s Simpsons, Futurama... and, ummm. Yeah, I like US animation.
In 30 Rock's case, it just felt like another of those shows that tries so damn hard to be funny every single second that it becomes tiring to watch. There's no finesse that I can see, it's just rat-a-tat-tat zingers, madcap visuals, fantasy sequences, and OTT peformances. Sorry, I just have a tough time finding the humanity in sitcoms of this nature -- likewise Scrubs, where every episode I've ever tried to watch just feels like someone's showing me a compilation tape of "best moments", with The Most Annoying Voiceover Ever™ and pratfalls if all else fails. And I'm a big proponent of the theory that the best comedy speaks to your own experiences and culture, and I'm not a New Yorker working in television.
I totally accept it's a taste thing, incidentally. At least 30 Rock doesn't have the cloying awfulness of something like Friends -- with its beatific cast, fake "outdoor" sets and sycophantic, whooping audience. Any sitcom where there's a chance the live audience will wolf whistle if two characters kiss, and I'm out.
