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30 Rock

The Bubble

Season 3, Episode 15, Aired Mar 19, 2009

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Liz finds out Drew's good looks afford him special treatment from society. Jenna hopes a new hairdo will keep her in the public eye. With Tracy's contract up for renewal, Jack tries to keep him at TGS.

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Cast & Crew

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GUEST STAR
Chante Lewis

Woman
GUEST STAR
Frank Ridley

Traffic Cop
GUEST STAR
Godfrey

Rick

Tina Fey

Liz Lemon
Alec Baldwin

Jack Donaghy
Tracy Morgan

Tracy Jordan
Jane Krakowski

Jenna Maroney
Scott Adsit

Pete Hornberger
Judah Friedlander

Frank Rossitano

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Fan Episode Reviews (7)

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Liz once again popping the "bubble

6.5

"Fair"

By Water78, Feb 04, 2011

30 ROCK
The Bubble,
In this episode Liz's so called boyfriend turns out to be bad everything. Do to his looks, Jacks coins the term "in the bubble" were jack used to be himself. Liz worrys that he will not know what life is like for normal people such as Liz who dont get anything. In then Liz drives away her friend sorta. I didnt like this whole "bubble" thing. The other part of the episode features Jack trying to get Tracy to sign a contract. Jack not knowing that Tracy doesnt know that Tracy has enough money to never have work another day in his life. Tracy flees and Jack trys everything to get him back. Only to get Kenneth in the mix. In the end by getting Kenneth fired Tracy. Overall i just didnt like this episode.moreless
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Liz begins to have doubts about her relationship with her handsome boyfriend, and Jack has to deal with some unusual contractual negotiations.

5.0

"Mediocre"

By gkmacca, Feb 04, 2011

This struck me as another frustratingly uneven episode. The ironic treatment of the character played by Jon Hamm (an actor who, weirdly, seems more at home in a 1964 setting than he does in 2009) was amusing, if a little silly towards the end, but what was the rest of the episode all about? There are still some tremendous comic lines, and Baldwin and Fey (whose performances are arguably better than ever) still make their scenes together really memorable, but where is the sitcom? The show seems more like a 'com' without a 'sit' these days. Tina Fey knows the world of TV shows inside out, so maybe she's just bored of the situation she's created, because the 'show within the show' has long lost its relevance (in stark contrast to, say, the one in Larry Sanders). Most of the characters have also been pushed far into the background: take poor Toofer, who was interesting and relevant in series one and much of series two, but now he just sits there for a few seconds each week looking vacant. I can't even remember him having more than a handful of lines this season! (Every script the poor actor who plays him gets must make his heart sink a bit more each time). Aside from the increasingly irritating Kenneth, all we seem to focus on each week are Tracy and Jenna, and even they don't do anything except compete with each other to appear the most laboured and silly. The suspicion is growing, IMHO, that Tina Fey, brilliant though she is in many ways, is not really suited to writing a sitcom (as opposed to a sketch show). If the writer seems uninterested in the situation and most of the characters, then what sustains the show for the viewers?moreless
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This show gets funnier and funnier as it goes.

9.5

"Superb"

By XooKey, Jul 17, 2009

There are 2 main focuses of the show. First Jack has to get Tracy Jordon resigned to the show. Which he almost does until Jack makes the stupid mistake of pointing out how much money he maid the year before and that he doesn't need to work. Tracey decides that Jack is right and quits. Jack is trying everything to get Tracy back before the next show. He realizes that Kenneth is what Tracy is tied to at NBC. He schemes a plan to fire Kenneth, tricking (it's not hard) Tracy into coming back with Kenneth. Second is the Bubble that Drew is living in. Everywhere he goes he gets 1st hand treatment because of his good looks. This bothers Liz and Drew does not believe it until Liz proves it to him. Drew decides he wants to stay in his bubble and wants Liz there with him, but she says no and breaks up with him.moreless
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AWESOME

10

"Perfect"

By uhila24, Mar 27, 2009

what a brilliant episode! nice incorporation of that child actor from the movie role models, apologies for not remembering his name. THis was definitely one of their more tightly written episodes. Especially the tracy jordan plot line.

However, i would like to know what the BFF is ????

LOL to all those who weren't able to appreciate the cleverness of this episode i refer you to the classic french saying

Ffffghgg csdlkfj gekjl!

This episode had it all, a well rounded sequence of events, interesting revelations - kenneth's accent, interesting past references, dot com's always trying to be the smartest in the room etc

wtf why didn't ppl like this? it was AWESOME!moreless
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Tina Fey pens a great episode for every character.

9.0

"Superb"

By tvownsLEXIE, Mar 20, 2009

I love the episodes where everyone has at least a small share of the spotlight. This episode is a great example of that. I don't know if it is just me, but Jenna's character really does seem to be fading out of the storyline. That sucks because she is one of my favorites. But that's why her storyline was so strange yet believable: the character really is in the shadow of Tracey. I loved the use of Kenneth and that really made me laugh to have him be that loyal to a nut job. And Pete! He was actually in the episode! I loved the hand-stuck-in-the-vending-machine bit of his, but the writers haven't seemed to be giving him much material since then. I'm glad to see he's still there!

I loved Tracey's kid in the tux. He was hilarious! I was so amazed that a tiny child could act that well because he had a lot of dialogue to memorize! That was just fantastic.moreless
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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (1)
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- Frank's trucker hat reads, "Drapes"
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QUOTES (9)
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- Liz: It's not fair to let Drew live a lie, and I think I'm the woman to fix him. Jack: Be careful, Lemon. You wake a sleepwalker, you risk getting urinated on.
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- (Drew has made dinner.) Liz: Now, what is this? Drew: Dr. Drew's salmon bourguison. Liz: What is this orange-y taste? Drew: Gatorade.
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- Tracy, Jr.: Thanks to you I now have an unemployed father. Are you trying to make a stereotype out of me? Did you even vote for Obama? Jack: We've heard from Tracy, Jr.; where is your mother? Tracy, Jr.: She said she had to take a spa weekend before my dad "broke it in half". What does that even mean? I shouldn't have to hear that; I'm a child.
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- Jack: That's it, Kenneth. Don't you see? You are our ace in the hole. Kenneth: How dare you?
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- Jack: So, how is [Tracy] functioning without you? Kenneth: Oh, I'm still doing everything for him. Tonight, I have to ride my bike over to his house in New Jersey, to hold his hand during Lost.
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- Jenna: Everybody shout out words that describe my beauty. Peter: Fading. Cerie: 80s. Richard Esposito: 1880s.
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- Jenna: Obviously, my Today Show charity haircut is just the first step in my reinvention. Pete: This is serial killer language.
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- Jack: I like to think of this staff as a family. Tracy: This is better than a family. No one around here ask me for my damn bone marrow.
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- Jack: Well, why don't we make this easy on ourselves and renew your existing contract with a 3% increase. (Tracy takes a long pause before he answers) Tracy: OK. Sorry it took me so long to answer. I was just thinking about how weird it is that we eat birds.
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NOTES (2)
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- The German episode title is "Der schöne Schein", meaning "The Beautiful Light". The French title is "La bulle", and the Spanish title is "La burbuja", both exact translations.
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- International Airdates: Latin America: May 13, 2009 on Sony Entertainment Television (aka Canal Sony); Australia: May 25, 2009 on Channel 7; Czech Republic: June 10, 2011 on Prima COOL
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ALLUSIONS (1)
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- When Kenneth correctly guesses what Tracy wanted for lunch, Tracy calls him "My Radar O'Reilly," referring to the corporal who was the company clerk of the 4077^th M*A*S*H and was able to anticipate the needs of everyone in camp and even completed their sentences for them.
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