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30 Rock is, at worst, the second-best NBC sitcom ever

SwampBastard

SwampBastard

The Fallen
Nov 1, 2017
11,009
I'm in the middle of my fifth or sixth full watch of this series and it's just SO. GOOD. Great cast (especially Alec Baldwin), brilliant writing, unbelievable joke density, and no laugh track. Seinfeld gets my #1 spot, but I won't fight anyone who likes 30 Rock better. Apart from that? I have posted below a list of NBC sitcoms that are widely considered to be among the network's best, or at least most noteworthy. Not a single show on this list is funnier than 30 Rock:
  • The Office (I suspect this will get several votes for being better given its inexplicable enduring popularity, but I think it has three great seasons, one or two that are serviceable after, and then it falls off a cliff)
  • Friends (it wasn't very funny when it was still on and it's less funny now)
  • Cheers (one of the GOATs and still not as good as 30 Rock)
  • Frasier
  • The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
  • Parks & Rec (better than The Office, but not as good as 30 Rock)
  • Family Ties
  • Taxi
  • Scrubs (suggestions that this is better will make me laugh harder than the show ever did)
  • Community (criminally underrated; better than The Office, even with the weak fourth season)
  • Sanford and Son
  • The Cosby Show
  • NewsRadio (also criminally underrated)
  • Will & Grace
  • The Facts of Life
  • Mama's Family
  • Diff'rent Strokes
  • 3rd Rock From the Sun
  • The Good Place
  • Night Court
  • Get Smart
What say you, ResetEra?
 
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Deleted member 52442

User requested account closure
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Jan 24, 2019
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Started it but wasnt huge on what I watched of the 1st season

I think someone recommended that I skip to the 2nd before
 
maximumzero

maximumzero

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,896
New Orleans, LA
30 Rock never quite clicked for me.

In a world where The Office, Parks & Rec, and Community exist, 30 Rock doesn't even break the top six for me personally.
 
CloseTalker

CloseTalker

Member
Oct 25, 2017
30,545
Seinfeld is always the all-timer. I'd probably put The Office at #2. 30 Rock is a solid #3 though. Incredible show

If we're talking underrated sitcoms though, Frasier deserves to take up all that space in the room. It still holds up and is incredibly well-written
 
Brinbe

Brinbe

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
58,034
Terana
seinfeld
cheers
frasier
parks
etc
etc
etc

i think it's good, and if you're tapped into the whole 30 rock/snl sort of culture, it maybe resonates a little more. i wouldn't put it top 2 but that's subjective.
 
ignata

ignata

Member
Dec 26, 2017
825
Denver
I'd go NewsRadio, Seinfeld, Cheers, Frasier, Sanford and Son, Park and Rec, 30 Rock. I wouldn't rank anything else. Taxi I'd put as 2nd, but the good years were on ABC.
 
Manmademan

Manmademan

Election Thread Watcher
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Aug 6, 2018
15,988
Community's second season is better than any episode of 30 rock I've ever seen, but I admit that the quality of that show varies a LOT depending on which season it is.

Agree with you that the lack of laugh track is something that helps greatly with joke density and pacing, and a lot of the older sitcoms (Friends included) really suffer from this in comparison to newer ones.
 
Vinx

Vinx

Member
Sep 9, 2019
1,411
Your list is a failure, you dont have Night Court as not only the best NBC sitcom but the best sitcom of all time (in your face Lucy).
 
abellwillring

abellwillring

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,916
Austin, TX
Agreed. It's incredible and the jokes just hit so frequently. Can't have a Lemon party without old Dick (or whatever) will probably always be the funniest/most surprising joke I've ever seen on broadcast TV.

Some...people...are...putting...Community...ahead...of...30...Rock? I feel like I'm having a stroke.
 
Josh5890

Josh5890

I'm Your Favorite Poster's Favorite Poster
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
23,168
If you are just talking about the high points, it is hard to not pick the Office during its peak years.

Taking the whole series into account, my top five from that list would be Fresh Prince, Fraiser, Cheers, Seinfeld, The Office. The Cosby Show gets an honorable mention.
 
Fhtagn

Fhtagn

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,615
Extremely funny show at the time, haven't revisited in a while and expect when I do to find it still genuinely funny; all of my gripes about it are the occasional slides into poorly aimed mean-spiritedness.

I think I prefer The Good Place, and I was super into Cheers during its final seasons but have no desire to revisit it now.
 
ShabbadooJr

ShabbadooJr

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Oct 27, 2017
1,521
Omaha, NE
I'm sorry but no. There were times it was the worst of the 4 comedies on NBC's Thursday Night. Community, Parks & Rec, and The Office were all better.
 
Manmademan

Manmademan

Election Thread Watcher
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Aug 6, 2018
15,988
Joe Shlabotnik

Joe Shlabotnik

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Oct 27, 2017
5,883
Kegels said:
Started it but wasnt huge on what I watched of the 1st season

I think someone recommended that I skip to the 2nd before
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While it's not guaranteed you'll like the later seasons, it definitely had not found itself in the first season.

At its peak it's basically some kind of Muppet Show / Zucker brothers movie* hybrid. So if you thought the first season was too silly or something, you're gonna have a bad time.

*The guys that made Airplane! and Naked Gun, in case you're not a million years old like me
 
ThisOne

ThisOne

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,938
Endless reruns of the Office on Comedy Central really make you realize how great the first 3 seasons are and how poor the remaining seasons are. Starting with Season 5, the show is just dreadful.
 
PlanetSmasher

PlanetSmasher

The Abominable Showman
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Oct 25, 2017
115,484
ThisOne said:
Endless reruns of the Office on Comedy Central really make you realize how great the first 3 seasons are and how poor the remaining seasons are. Starting with Season 5, the show is just dreadful.
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Which season does Michael leave? Is that 5? Honestly Andy becoming the main character killed the show for me because Andy Bernard is the worst sitcom character of the past 10 years.
 
Apathy

Apathy

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Oct 25, 2017
11,992
It's definitely in my top 5. Seinfeld is nbcs best, I go between 30 rock, PNR, the office for 2-4
 
Edge

Edge

A King's Landing
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
21,012
Celle, Germany
The Office, Friends, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Scrubs for me.

And I loved all seasons of The Office so much, even if the last ones clearly lacks a real focus and got a bit lost of what to do, the idea of the last season and the final episode compensates for that.
 

darkazcura

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,884
Our taste seems to be quite different as you don't seem to be a huge Scrubs or Office fan. Those two are some of my favorite sitcoms. Community as well.

I like Parks and 30 Rock, but they didn't click in the same way as those 3.
 
werezompire

werezompire

Zeboyd Games
Verified
Oct 26, 2017
11,315
I feel like 30 Rock's big thing is that it's consistently good. Other shows hit higher highs, but you could pick a random episode from anywhere in its run and you'll most likely pick a good or great episode.

On the other shows that you mentioned...

Cheers - I've tried several times to get into this show because family members like it and it just hasn't happened for me. Much prefer Frasier.

Frasier - Another rather consistent show for most of its run, but it started to peter out towards the end. Still very impressive for how long of a run it had.

Parks & Rec - The first season is rather weak and I feel like the penultimate season is also not quite as strong as the rest. It has some great episodes throughout the series though.

Good Place - Loved the first 2 seasons. Season 3 was inconsistent but still enjoyable. I hated Season 4 to the point that it retroactively has soured me somewhat on the whole series.

Scrubs - Watched several episodes of the first season and it was okay, but it already felt repetitive.

Community - So many standout amazing episodes, but even the good seasons of 1-3 have a few duds. Season 4 is boring, Season 5 feels mean, and Season 6 is wildly uneven (but at least Season 6 has some great moments).

NewsRadio - Excellent series, but the last season (after Phil Hartman died) can be skipped.
 
jph139

jph139

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Oct 25, 2017
14,365
I'd put it up there. Definitely the sitcom I've rewatched most, after Seinfeld and the Simpsons.

I'll say that 30 Rock is up there with Seinfeld just as a show that left while it was on top. Watching them as a series, you can say the last couple seasons of both have some slippage, but watching it live it was almost imperceptible. And frankly that had strong starts, too - "haven't found our footing yet" first seasons, but they're still better than most shows right out of the gate. Consistency is a huge factor there.

Community by the end had more "meh" seasons than truly great ones. Parks and Rec has the first and last, which are iffy. The Office is maybe 50/50, if you're being generous. I find that most pre-90s shows are inconsistent on their best days. The average episode quality of 30 Rock is consistently great from beginning to end.
 
bionic77

bionic77

Member
Oct 25, 2017
30,888
The highs of the Office are way higher than the highs of 30 Rock to me. 30 Rock is good but I put it below Office and Cosby.

Parks and NewRadio are on the next tier. Frasier is probably on the same tier.
 
zeitgeist

zeitgeist

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,060
Yeah I think it is the best sitcom ever.

I don't see how any network could ever top NBC's Office, 30 Rock, Community & Parks and Rec lineup.
 
OP
OP
SwampBastard

SwampBastard

The Fallen
Nov 1, 2017
11,009
Tornak

Tornak

Member
Feb 7, 2018
8,393
It's definitely up there. I don't think I ever watched it fully, though, and it's been ages. Thanks for reminding me!

As far as most perfect seasons, Arrested Development and Community's first two seasons have that in the bag imo (even if it took a few episodes for Community to find its footing).

Sadly, while occasionally very good, the quality went down during their third seasons and then proceeded to plummet hard (Community managed to be good again during the last two seasons, but it was never the same and the humor was often way too gimmicky, meta and high-concept).
 
KDC720

KDC720

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,321
Of the NBC sitcom trinity at the time (30 Rock, The Office, Parks and Rec) 30 Rock was far and away my favorite of the three. There are much better sitcoms, but I've always enjoyed 30 Rock more than The Office personally. Thinking I'm due for a rewatch soon.
 
Luckett_X

Luckett_X

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,406
Leeds, UK
I think 30 Rock is probably my favourite sitcom of all time due to its rewatchability factor. Once upon a time Arrested Development would rank higher, but the latter post-cancellation seasons have dragged its legacy into the depths of the ocean quality wise sadly. Still yet to 'get' Seinfeld and feel it may have been a 'had to be there' comedy of its time.

Crazy Ex Girlfriend is the only thing recently that got close to 30 Rock level joke density. Kimmy Schmidt was missing a large amount of something for me.
 
Zonar

Zonar

The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
671
Arizona, USA
snacknuts said:
I'm in the middle of my fifth or sixth full watch of this series and it's just SO. GOOD. Great cast (especially Alec Baldwin), brilliant writing, unbelievable joke density, and no laugh track. Seinfeld gets my #1 spot, but I won't fight anyone who likes 30 Rock better. Apart from that? I have posted below a list of NBC sitcoms that are widely considered to be among the network's best, or at least most noteworthy. Not a single show on this list is funnier than 30 Rock:
  • The Office (I suspect this will get several votes for being better given its inexplicable enduring popularity, but I think it has three great seasons, one or two that are serviceable after, and then it falls off a cliff)
  • Friends (it wasn't very funny when it was still on and it's less funny now)
  • Cheers (one of the GOATs and still not as good as 30 Rock)
  • Frasier
  • The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
  • Parks & Rec (better than The Office, but not as good as 30 Rock)
  • Family Ties
  • Taxi
  • Scrubs (suggestions that this is better will make me laugh harder than the show ever did)
  • Community (criminally underrated; better than The Office, even with the weak fourth season)
  • Sanford and Son
  • The Cosby Show
  • NewsRadio (also criminally underrated)
  • Will & Grace
  • The Facts of Life
  • Mama's Family
  • Diff'rent Strokes
  • 3rd Rock From the Sun
  • The Good Place
  • Night Court
What say you, ResetEra?
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I absolutely agree with everything in this post. Including Newsradio being criminally underrated. 30 Rock is the best show on NBC
 
CloseTalker

CloseTalker

Member
Oct 25, 2017
30,545
PlanetSmasher said:
Which season does Michael leave? Is that 5? Honestly Andy becoming the main character killed the show for me because Andy Bernard is the worst sitcom character of the past 10 years.
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Carrell leaves in season 7, there were only two seasons without him. Personally I think that while the Office is best in seasons 2-5, it's enjoyable all the way through Carrell's time there. Season 8 is uneven, but has a couple great moments with James Spader. Season 9 is overall just very bad, it's bad TV.
 
WindUp

WindUp

Member
Oct 30, 2017
1,396
Seinfeld is the only acceptable alternative, high quality post. Even other shows I love like Community and Scrubs have more bad than good seasons. 30 Rock is incredible, almost every line of dialogue is some kind of joke and usually a hilarious one.
 
CloseTalker

CloseTalker

Member
Oct 25, 2017
30,545
snacknuts said:
  • Community (criminally underrated; better than The Office, even with the weak fourth season)
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But what about the even weaker 5th and 6th seasons? And the fact that it took most of season one to find it's voice and get good?

Community at its peak is great TV, but it has exactly two seasons of quality television. The entire back half of the series ranges from mediocre to awful
 
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