What's your opinion of Tina Fey?

[Joeman]

I think "30 Rock" is one of those overrated sitcoms where everyone acts way too wacky, yet people talk about it like it's the cutting edge of comedy and some kind of high water mark for creativity and originality in the genre. I just don't get it. Same goes for "Arrested Development".

If you don't see how those two shows are superior creatively to most other run-of-the mill predictable sitcoms, then you just must not be a fan of the sitcom genre in general. Compared to most of the sitcom drivel on TV, those shows are extremely clever and fresh. They are a "high water mark for creativity and originality in the genre", as they have consistently great writing. Watch a few episodes of According to Jim, then watch either one of those shows. It's so obvious to me.

 

[RoJoHen]

I don't even necessarily think 30 Rock is as overly wacky as people say. Yes, there are certain characters that are incredibly over-the-top, but to me the show is about Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin. They have their over-the-top moments, but both actually seem to be fairly realistic characters put in realistic (realistic enough for a sitcom, anyway) situations. One of my absolute favorite lines of the series, which solidified Liz Lemon as a real person for me, was when she and Jenna are in a bar...

Jenna: "That guy was trying to buy you a drink."
Liz: "He was? I already have a drink. Do you think he would buy me mozzarella sticks?"

It's hilarious to me because I know several people who would probably say the exact same thing.

 

[Bad Bishop]

In photos, she always favors the right side of her face. That's due to the scar on the left side.

 

[Broccoli]

In photos, she always favors the right side of her face. That's due to the scar on the left side.

Yep. Apparently she was slashed when she was younger and is very self-conscious about it.

 

[MeanJoePhaser]

I'm sick of Fey. Sick of them trying to promote her as this great beauty. She's a decent looking woman, but really...it's getting old seeing airbrushed pictures of her on magazine covers. (Not as tiresome as seeing Sandra Bullock's mug mugging the camera, though.)

Amusing that she became the more sucessful one of the Jimmy Fallon-Tina Fey team.

Oh, Late Night that no one watches...after Fallon's film career flopped.

 

[BolianAuthor]

I agree with Admiral Shran... she's hot beyond words, and I think she's sexy, but I don't think that she's "all that" otherwise.

 

[Trekker4747]

Maybe it's me and the goofy way my mind works but I've always "liked" her scar. It's one of the first things I noticed about her when I saw her on SNL and it sort-of "drew me" into her. I found it bit endearing.

 

[T'Baio]

Maybe it's me and the goofy way my mind works...

See...now you're just setting yourself up.

But seriously, I completely agree. I always found it kind of endearing and charming, too. I've always had this thing for women of unconventional beauty, and Tina Fey used to be that. I say "used to be," because it seems she's become everyone's favourite now. When she was on Weekend Update and I told everyone how much I adored her, I always got a collective; "Really?"

 

[Samurai8472]

Her comedic timing and quick wits/thinking make Superman's trick of turning the world around look like nothing.

I think it was the first episode of 30 Rock where she was trying to be sexy in PJ's and trying to make her PJ pockets be sexy.


Sexy voice- You like these pockets?

 

[Greg Cox]

I thought she was great on SNL last night.

 

[Too Much Fun]

I think "30 Rock" is one of those overrated sitcoms where everyone acts way too wacky, yet people talk about it like it's the cutting edge of comedy and some kind of high water mark for creativity and originality in the genre. I just don't get it. Same goes for "Arrested Development".

If you don't see how those two shows are superior creatively to most other run-of-the mill predictable sitcoms, then you just must not be a fan of the sitcom genre in general. Compared to most of the sitcom drivel on TV, those shows are extremely clever and fresh. They are a "high water mark for creativity and originality in the genre", as they have consistently great writing. Watch a few episodes of According to Jim, then watch either one of those shows. It's so obvious to me.

As I once said to a friend (successfully shutting him up in an argument about music), "just because it's different doesn't mean it's good". Of course "30 Rock" and "Arrested Development" are better than a vanilla sitcom like "According to Jim". They're about ten times more ambitious with way more thought and imagination put into them, but that doesn't mean in the end they're not just a much more original rendering of people running around being wacky. Just because they're better than something that is a crappy cliche doesn't mean they're also brilliant.

I'll admit I'm not very into sitcoms, though. "Seinfeld" and the American version of "The Office" (in its first few seasons, not so much lately) were the last ones that I found really innovative and smartly written. They had a lot of preposterous developments, but at their core they also had characters that seemed plausible on some level, with real psychological and emotional issues that we can see in real people. Any time I've tuned into "30 Rock", I haven't seen much beyond Alec Baldwin acting like a wacky caricature and Tina Fey playing straight man (or woman) to him, and I don't particularly enjoy either actor in such roles.

 

[Checkmate]

I can't take anyone's opinion seriously if they firmly believe a show like Arrested Development wasn't brilliantly written. Just because the characters are wacky and over-the-top archetypes, that doesn't mean the show itself is poorly written or even close to being mediocre because of it. The storylines and seasonal arcs were fantastic, and the parallels between the first episode and the final episode and how they all tied together through the show's run was just... amazing.

30 Rock isn't as clever or well-written, but it's still way above most sitcoms out there. Especially if you're able to get most of the jabs and references they make. Alec Baldwin has been an absolute standout as well.

It's also kind of head-scratching that someone would say that those two shows are too wacky, but then points to The Office as innovative and smart.

 

[Too Much Fun]

Well I've only seen a few episodes of each, so that might be part of the reason I'm not seeing the big deal. People tell me you need to watch all of "Arrested Development" to fully appreciate it, and I believe them.

"The Office" did have its over-the-top moments in the early years, but I do think it was also more restrained than those other two shows and certainly had more human, sympathetic, and endearing characters than the obnoxious cartoons I saw on the others.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Maybe it's me and the goofy way my mind works but I've always "liked" her scar. It's one of the first things I noticed about her when I saw her on SNL and it sort-of "drew me" into her. I found it bit endearing.

What's it say about me that I like it when she's doing her Palin impersonation?

 

[Trekker4747]

Maybe it's me and the goofy way my mind works...

See...now you're just setting yourself up.

But seriously, I completely agree. I always found it kind of endearing and charming, too. I've always had this thing for women of unconventional beauty, and Tina Fey used to be that. I say "used to be," because it seems she's become everyone's favourite now. When she was on Weekend Update and I told everyone how much I adored her, I always got a collective; "Really?"

Same here, her stint on Weekend Update was all I watched of SNL back then, couldn't stand the rest of it, and people I knew just weren't "into" her. But she drew me in and rocks the "sexy-librarian" look.

 

[Stone_Cold_Sisko]

She's probably one of the most all-around likeable and talented people in Hollywood.

30 Rock is a great great show, she has fun smart and self-deprecating humor, Mean Girls was a shockingly witty script. I'm not a big fan of the SNL stuff though but it is how she got her start.

 

[tomalak301]

Maybe it's me and the goofy way my mind works...

See...now you're just setting yourself up.

But seriously, I completely agree. I always found it kind of endearing and charming, too. I've always had this thing for women of unconventional beauty, and Tina Fey used to be that. I say "used to be," because it seems she's become everyone's favourite now. When she was on Weekend Update and I told everyone how much I adored her, I always got a collective; "Really?"

Same here, her stint on Weekend Update was all I watched of SNL back then, couldn't stand the rest of it, and people I knew just weren't "into" her. But she drew me in and rocks the "sexy-librarian" look.

She and Amy Poehler were awesome together on Weekend Update. It really was the only thing on SNL worth watching and I miss that chemistry. It is good to know I can still see them both on the same night, albeit different shows.

 

[Kegg]

I'll admit I'm not very into sitcoms, though. "Seinfeld" and the American version of "The Office" (in its first few seasons, not so much lately) were the last ones that I found really innovative and smartly written.

Seen the Inbetweeners, perchance? British sitcom. Impossibly brilliant.

But yeah, 30 Rock is just dull. I've tried to watch the odd episode and was left puzzled as to the show's appeal. It's not that I just don't get it, I don't get why other people get it.

 

[Joeman]

As I once said to a friend (successfully shutting him up in an argument about music), "just because it's different doesn't mean it's good". Of course "30 Rock" and "Arrested Development" are better than a vanilla sitcom like "According to Jim". They're about ten times more ambitious with way more thought and imagination put into them, but that doesn't mean in the end they're not just a much more original rendering of people running around being wacky. Just because they're better than something that is a crappy cliche doesn't mean they're also brilliant.

I'll admit I'm not very into sitcoms, though. "Seinfeld" and the American version of "The Office" (in its first few seasons, not so much lately) were the last ones that I found really innovative and smartly written. They had a lot of preposterous developments, but at their core they also had characters that seemed plausible on some level, with real psychological and emotional issues that we can see in real people. Any time I've tuned into "30 Rock", I haven't seen much beyond Alec Baldwin acting like a wacky caricature and Tina Fey playing straight man (or woman) to him, and I don't particularly enjoy either actor in such roles.

Fair enough. We agree to disagree. Something as subjective as entertainment is only brilliant if you think it's brilliant, regardless of what anyone else tries to tell you. I officially declare 30 Rock "brilliant"!

Seinfeld is one of my favorites, but even as big of a sitcom junky as I am, I never could get into The Office, no matter how hard I tried. It just bores me to absolute tears, despite the fact that I really like the cast.

 

[Too Much Fun]

I'll admit I'm not very into sitcoms, though. "Seinfeld" and the American version of "The Office" (in its first few seasons, not so much lately) were the last ones that I found really innovative and smartly written.

Seen the Inbetweeners, perchance? British sitcom. Impossibly brilliant.

But yeah, 30 Rock is just dull. I've tried to watch the odd episode and was left puzzled as to the show's appeal. It's not that I just don't get it, I don't get why other people get it.

I haven't seen a lot of British sitcoms in my life, but I just recently saw "Spaced" and ADORED it. If the one you mention is anything like that, I'd probably dig it. I just saw the British version of "The Office" for the first time recently as well. Overall I liked it, but for something that was supposedly a sitcom it was weird how depressing it was at times.

The Christmas special left me very happy because the end was so poignant and touching (I'm SO glad some of those characters finally found some hope and happiness), but there were a lot of episodes leading up to it that were just heart wrenching. I don't think they were badly written or acted, just...not what I was expecting from a comedy and therefore somewhat off-putting. Good to hear I'm not alone in being baffled by the popularity of "30 Rock".