Cooter

This is the fifteenth and final episode of the second season of 30 Rock. It's unfortunate that this season was drastically cut short, But perhaps it means a better Season 3. But anyway, another fantastic episode that is funny, has great acting, and welcomes Matthew Broderick as a very good addition to the show as a guest star.

In this episode, "Cooter," jack gets a job working for Homeland Security and he regrets taking the job so he tries to get fired. Liz tests positive in her pregnancy test and she believes Dennis to be the father. Tracy finishes his pornography video game and Kenneth wants to head to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but the head page wants to foil those plans.

Overall, this is an incredible finale and all the story lines are excellent and some are even relatable. I loved the government part of the show especially the idea of a "gay-bomb." That was the highlight of this episode. I rate this episode 9/10.

Despite the shorter episode order caused by the WGA strike, the second season of 30 Rock lived up to everything that had been promised the year before. The season finale, which got Tina Fey an Emmy for Outstanding Writing, proves that no strike in the world can prevent these guys from coming up with a strong conclusion and leaves the door open for several interesting developments in Season 3.

Starting where Sandwich Day ended, the episode focuses for the most part on Liz's positive pregnancy test and the terrible revelation that there's only one man who can be the father: Dennis. Things don't go that well for Kenneth either, since he's applying for the position of page at the Beijing Olympics and discovers his rival gave him the wrong deadline date on purpose (he's supposed to turn in his application on that very day). Jack, on the other hand, has taken a job at Homeland Security in Washington and starts mentoring the young and inexperienced Cooter Burger (Matthew Broderick) who won't acknowledge his office's leaking ceiling or other problems. The only person who seems to be reasonably cheerful is Tracy, who has finished his pornographic video game.

The writing is as sharp as ever, what with all the funny names (Cooter Burger: splendid), witty exchanges and overall insane situations. Acting-wise, Fey is at her best when confronting Dean Winters (still ace), with Baldwin managing the same thing with Broderick (man, can he be funny when he really wants to). There is no time to breathe as great gag follows great gag, at a rate that would even make a prime episode of The Simpsons pale in comparison. From start to wonderfully silly conclusion (a terrific "three months later" scene), it's so. Damn. Hilarious.

Strike or no strike, Cooter remains a spot-on finale for an outstanding season of very good comedy. If one really has to complain about something, there would be one minor detail: is there any chance Rachel Dratch will come back in the third series?

Although the situation is getting better (mainly to fight piracy), the UK is regularly quite some time behind the US in regards TV shows. As it is we have just finished season 2 of 30 Rock even though the US is nearly at the end of season 3. The timing for this is fine for me though because I am coming into the whole 30 Rock thing late, having not given it a chance when it first came out over here. I loved season 1 and happily season 2 continues in more or less the same vein as before, with lots of laughs and solid plots holding them in a frame so that it is not a sketch show.

The immediate thing one notices about season 2 is the presence of big names guests such as Al Gore, Jerry Seinfeld and others. This is usually the indication of a dying sitcom, one that is struggling with ratings and is wheeling in the big names to try and get publicity and encourage viewers to tune in. It rarely works and you can see it fail in things like My Name is Earl (Paris Hilton I'm looking at you). Here though it doesn't seem to be the case because rather the stars seem more than happy to be involved and it is clear that 30 Rock is in no need of them to be funny or an attraction. It does make great use of them though – the Seinfeld episode being particularly funny – and it shows that 30 Rock is able to get these names because of the quality of the comedy.

Although the season is far too short due to the writer's strike, it is still very funny and the plots do more or less work. OK none of it is narrative driven but the laughs keep coming and thus, to me, the plots do their job. The cast continue to be roundly excellent. Fey's geeky single woman is great fun (favourite line – "a dog took it, came out of nowhere") but yet she doesn't dominate the show in the way she easily could as it creator. Instead we get lots of good material for the others, all of whom turn in funny turns. My favourites continue to be Morgan and McBrayer with their fun oddness delivered really well but Krakowski, Adsit, Friedlander and others all do well. Baldwin yet again impresses with his comedy chops and his gruff delivery is perfect for his sharp lines.

Season 2 continues the strengths of season 1, with the added benefit of big name guests cancelling out the tragically short run of the season. Very fresh, very funny and well worth seeing if, like me, you originally missed the boat on this. Cannot wait for season 3.