photo: nbc
The Ballad of Kenneth Parcell
Original Air Date: Jan 26, 2012
Valentina D. – Senior Reviewer
valentina@thetwocentscorp.com
Jenna Maroney, possibly the biggest diva in showbiz, has always been difficult but if anyone could get through to her in spite of all her craziness, it’s Liz. They’ve been best friends ever since their early days in comedy and TGS is a show that they’ve created together. What happens when one of them is suddenly catapulted to fame, leaving the other in the dust?
Kenneth and his fellow pages receive some horrible news that puts their future in jeopardy, while it creates a mountain of problems for Jack. Is this the last we’ve seen of loyal NBC page Kenneth Parcell? Read on after the jump!
We kick off this second helping of 30 Rock with a trailer for the latest film to feature an all-star cast, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Emma Stone and Andy Samberg make cameos along with a slew of other celebrities, including Jenna Maroney herself. Jenna demands to promote the movie on TGS and when Liz refuses, she claims Jack already gave her the go ahead. Jack confirms this and says Jenna is now a huge star for the network, and Liz has a certain power over her: their friendship. Jack also shares his plans to eliminate the page program, saying they’re not needed anymore.
In his dressing room, Tracy upset over his birthday invitations, which say to donate to charity instead of bringing a present. He agrees that he does have everything and spends much of the episode thinking about mortality and a special banana cream pie from the Cecila Munroe Bakery.
Liz tries to get along with Jenna, but it’s hard when the new Jenna has leeches latched onto her face in order to lose “bloodweight.” They talk about the pact they made back in Chicago and how if one of them got too famous, they’d bring the other back down to earth. The two go for lunch and Jenna tries to shield herself from paparazzi and lets Liz dress in her fur clothes to fool the photographers. Once she gets outside, Liz is greeted with a bucket of red paint while Jenna teases PETA for getting the wrong person. Liz is livid and the two explode back at TGS, wishing they’d never been roommates. Jenna turns to her “celebrity” friends while Liz is forty-one and ready for a new best friend.
Elsewhere, Jack gathers the pages and tells them he’s shutting down the program. Kenneth is outraged, wondering who will take lunch orders or conduct tours. Jack tells them they’ll be replaced by automated machines and requests they turn in their uniforms. Later in his office, he tells Kenneth he’ll find him a new position but Kenneth refuses. To add insult to injury, they’re naming the new page machine “Not Kenneth.” Jack is feeling pretty pleased with the new system but he’s greeted by a depressed Hank Hooper, who is marking his one-year anniversary with Kabletown and was expecting a surprise in New York. Jack did plan something, but it appears that the “Not Kenneth” machine must have made a mistake.
Turns out, Jack’s spread for Hank was sent to TGS on the 6th Floor instead of the 60th Floor. Looks like the new page machines are a disaster, but Jack isn’t admitting defeat just yet.
Liz is still desperate for a friend and finds herself crashing a get together of women straight out of Sex and the City. She’s too different from them and asks herself where she would go for a night on the town, ending up in the Barnes and Noble bathroom. She meets someone named Amy, who acts and looks exactly like Liz. She realizes hanging out with a copy of herself is irritating and needs someone vacant and self-centred to bounce off of. She needs Jenna, after all, and Jenna realizes she needs Liz after her “celebrity” friends start fighting.
What did you think of this episode? I know he was replaced with a machine for the majority of the episode, but it was unfortunate that we hardly saw Kenneth despite the episode being named for him. Good news though, because you can expect to see him back in uniform with a smile next week! Share your TwoCents below!
Next Week: Episode 6007
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