.gif)
Fireworks (30 Rock)
Encyclopedia
"Fireworks" is the eighteenth episode of NBC
's first season
of 30 Rock
. It was written by two of the season's co-executive producers Brett Baer
and Dave Finkel
, and it was directed by Beth McCarthy
. It first aired on April 5, 2007 in the United States. Guest stars in this episode include Will Arnett
, Kay Cannon
, Matt Dickinson, Dave Finkel
, Evan Harrington, Chris Parnell
, Maulik Pancholy
, Maury Povich
, Keith Powell
, Stu Richel, Al Roker
, Mahadeo Shivraj, Kissy Simmons
, Jason Sudeikis
and Brendon Walsh.
In this episode, Jack Donaghy
(played by Alec Baldwin
) stages a televised firework display, in an attempt to show up his rival, Devon Banks (Will Arnett). Devon, upon their first meeting, develops a crush on Kenneth Parcell
(Jack McBrayer
). Liz Lemon
(Tina Fey
) follows Floyd (Jason Sudeikis), a colleague whom she is attracted to, into Alcoholics Anonymous
(AA) in an attempt to get closer to him. Tracy Jordan
(Tracy Morgan
) discovers that he is related to Thomas Jefferson
and decides to honor his ancestor. James "Toofer" Spurlock (Keith Powell
) discovers a shocking secret about one of his own ancestors.
, Jack fears that he is trying to take his job. After having his assistant Jonathan spy on Banks, he learns that Banks is gay and that he is interested in Kenneth. Jack sends Kenneth to try to gather information on what Banks is planning to do, but Kenneth is inept and fails at the task. Jack then enlists Liz to help him come up with some ideas so that he can impress the network and win the power coup over Banks. Jack sends Kenneth to seduce Banks again so that he will be late for the important meeting, but Banks sees through the plan and arrives at the meeting anyway.
Meanwhile, Liz sees Floyd, the corporate employee who she has a crush on, go into a church on a Tuesday afternoon. The next week, she follows him in and finds that he is attending an AA meeting. Liz pretends to be an alcoholic so that she can get closer to Floyd and hear his secrets. After finding out that members of the same AA group are not allowed to date, Liz confesses to Floyd that she was never an alcoholic and that she made it up to get close to him. He gets mad and feels betrayed, so she apologizes and tells him all of her secrets to make it up to him. Floyd forgives her and they begin dating.
When it comes time for Jack's important meeting with the network and showdown against Devon Banks, Liz is too busy pursuing Floyd to help Jack with his idea. Jack has to attend the meeting alone, but his idea for a fireworks special impresses the network and he successfully defends his job against Devon Banks. When the fireworks special actually airs, however, the fireworks are shot off in midtown New York outside Rockefeller Center
and it ends up looking like a terrorist
attack. Panic results and the mayor
calls, causing the event to be unceremoniously ended.
Tracy is served with paternity papers and insists that the child is not his. After the DNA test, Tracy learns that the child is not his but that he is a direct descendant of Thomas Jefferson
. The news angers Tracy and he talks to Toofer and Frank about it. Toofer learns that he is a direct descendant of Tobias Spurlock, a black Confederate
soldier. Tracy and Toofer are upset about the news until Tracy has a dream in which Thomas Jefferson (portrayed by Jack Donaghy) appears to him on The Maury Povich Show. In the dream, Jefferson takes credit for "inventing" America and tells Tracy to forget his past. Tracy decides that he wants Toofer to write a movie about their experiences and Thomas Jefferson's life. Tracy intends to play all of the parts in the movie, except he intends for the film to be a drama.
This is Jack McBrayer and Will Arnett's third time working together. McBrayer "memorably" made guest appearances as a country club waiter in "Burning Love
" and "S.O.B.s
", two episodes of the situation comedy Arrested Development. Arnett, a member of the main cast of Arrested Development, played George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II in that series. The plot of the Arrested Development episode in which McBrayer appeared revolved around G.O.B. accidentally becoming a waiter at the Bluth family's country club.
This episode was, as NBC advertises these events, a "supersized" episode meaning that the total runtime of the episode was extended from 30 minutes to 40 minutes. It also resulted in the episode airing at 8:40 pm, after "The Negotiation
" which is an episode of The Office, as opposed to 9:00 pm which was the series' usual timeslot.
The husband and wife characters who appear in the 10-second internet sitcom, Makin' It Happen, are played by Dave Finkel and Kay Cannon
. Finkel and Cannon are both staff writers on 30 Rock. Cannon is also married to guest star Jason Sudeikis and Finkel co-wrote this episode. A series of Makin' It Happen was produced and the webisodes aired on NBC.com.
Star Wars
is frequently referenced in 30 Rock, beginning with the pilot episode
where Tracy Jordan is seen shouting that he is a Jedi
. Liz Lemon admits to being a huge fan of Star Wars, saying that she had watched it many times with Pete Hornberger (Scott Adsit
), and saying she dressed up as the Star Wars character Princess Leia
during four Halloweens. Fey, a fan of Star Wars herself, said that the weekly Star Wars joke or reference "started happening organically" when the crew realized that they had a Star Wars reference "in almost every show". Fey said that from then on "it became a thing where [they] tried to keep it going", and that even though they could not include one in every episode, they still had a "pretty high batting average". Fey attributed most of the references to Robert Carlock
, who she described as "the resident expert". In this episode, Star Wars is referenced twice: once when Liz tells Floyd that she and Pete are watching the movies on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
list, but they only own Star Wars and Tootsie
so they keep watching those two films. It is again referenced during Tracy's dream, when Thomas Jefferson holds his hand up to Tracy and says "May the Force be with you
always".
", which aired on March 8, 2007, "Fireworks" gained 200,000 viewers.
Matt Webb Mitovich of TV Guide
thought that Will Arnett, who appeared as Devon Banks, was "shrewdly cast". Webb Mitovich added that this episode displayed some "good, good stuff". Anna Johns of AOL
's TV Squad declared "Fireworks" as "one of the best episodes so far this season" citing that "the writers juggled a handful of storylines very, very well". She wrote that the best part of the episodes were "the one-liners. They had [her] laughing so hard that [she] frequently had to pause the TiVo
to recover." Robert Canning of IGN
wrote that this episode "was another prime example of what this show is capable of". He thought that "the choice of Arnett as Jack Donaghy's nemesis was perfect, right down to their shared graveled vocal delivery", and that recurring character Chris Parnell's "short, quick hitting scenes are always nonsensical perfection".
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's first season
30 Rock (season 1)
The first season of the television comedy series 30 Rock originally aired between October 11, 2006 and April 26, 2007 on NBC in the United States...
of 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
. It was written by two of the season's co-executive producers Brett Baer
Brett Baer
Brett Baer is an American television producer, actor, and screenwriter who has worked on many successful television shows. Baer often works with his screenwriting partner Dave Finkel.- Writing work :* 30 Rock * Joey * The Norm Show...
and Dave Finkel
Dave Finkel
Dave Finkel is an American television producer, actor, and screenwriter who has worked on many successful television shows. He often works with his screenwriting partner Brett Baer.- Writing work :* 30 Rock * Joey...
, and it was directed by Beth McCarthy
Beth McCarthy-Miller
Beth McCarthy or Beth McCarthy-Miller was the director of NBCs Saturday Night Live starting in 1995. She left SNL in 2006 at the end of season 31, replaced as director by Don Roy King...
. It first aired on April 5, 2007 in the United States. Guest stars in this episode include Will Arnett
Will Arnett
William Emerson "Will" Arnett is a Canadian actor and comedian best known for his role as George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II on the Fox comedy Arrested Development. He is also known for his role as Devon Banks on the NBC comedy 30 Rock. Since his success on Arrested Development, Arnett has landed major...
, Kay Cannon
Kay Cannon
Kay Cannon is an American television writer and actress who is best known for her work as an Emmy nominated writer and producer for the NBC series 30 Rock.-Biography:...
, Matt Dickinson, Dave Finkel
Dave Finkel
Dave Finkel is an American television producer, actor, and screenwriter who has worked on many successful television shows. He often works with his screenwriting partner Brett Baer.- Writing work :* 30 Rock * Joey...
, Evan Harrington, Chris Parnell
Chris Parnell
Thomas Christopher "Chris" Parnell is an American comic actor best known as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1998–2006 and currently for his recurring role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on NBC's Emmy Award-winning comedy series 30 Rock. Parnell also voices Cyril Figgis on the FX animated comedy...
, Maulik Pancholy
Maulik Pancholy
Maulik Pancholy is an American actor. He is best known for his recurring role as Sanjay on Weeds from 2005 to present, and his role as Jonathan on 30 Rock, which he has played since the show began in 2006....
, Maury Povich
Maury Povich
Maurice Richard "Maury" Povich is an American TV talk show host who currently hosts his self-titled talk show Maury.-Personal background:...
, Keith Powell
Keith Powell
Keith Powell is an American television actor who is best known for his role as James "Toofer" Spurlock on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock.-Career:Powell was the Producing Artistic Director of Contemporary Stage Company, a summer theater in Wilmington, Delaware...
, Stu Richel, Al Roker
Al Roker
Albert Lincoln "Al" Roker, Jr. is an American television meteorologist as well as an actor and book author. He is best known as being the weather anchor on NBC's Today. On Monday, July 20, 2009, he began co-hosting his new morning show, Wake Up with Al, on The Weather Channel, which airs weekdays...
, Mahadeo Shivraj, Kissy Simmons
Kissy Simmons
Kissy Simmons is an American actress. "Kissy" is short for Kissimmee, the Floridian city near Orlando about 80 miles from Floral City where she was born...
, Jason Sudeikis
Jason Sudeikis
Daniel Jason Sudeikis is an American actor and comedian currently starring as a cast member on Saturday Night Live.-Early life:Sudeikis was born Daniel Jason Sudeikis in Fairfax, Virginia, the son of Kathryn , a travel agent who was president of the American Society of Travel Agents, and Dan...
and Brendon Walsh.
In this episode, Jack Donaghy
Jack Donaghy
John Francis "Jack" Donaghy is a fictional character on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock. He is the Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming for General Electric and later Kabletown....
(played by Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...
) stages a televised firework display, in an attempt to show up his rival, Devon Banks (Will Arnett). Devon, upon their first meeting, develops a crush on Kenneth Parcell
Kenneth Parcell
Kenneth Ellen Parcell is a fictional character in the comedy television series 30 Rock. He is portrayed by actor Jack McBrayer and first appeared on television in the 30 Rock episode "Pilot" on October 10, 2006...
(Jack McBrayer
Jack McBrayer
Jack McBrayer is an American actor and comedian. He gained national exposure for his characters on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien"...
). Liz Lemon
Liz Lemon
Elizabeth Miervaldis "Liz" Lemon is the main character of the American television series 30 Rock. She is portrayed by Tina Fey, who is also the creator of the series and its showrunner.-Personal history:...
(Tina Fey
Tina Fey
Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer, known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , the NBC comedy series 30 Rock, and films such as Mean Girls and Baby Mama .Fey first broke into comedy as a featured player in the...
) follows Floyd (Jason Sudeikis), a colleague whom she is attracted to, into Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous is an international mutual aid movement which says its "primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety." Now claiming more than 2 million members, AA was founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio...
(AA) in an attempt to get closer to him. Tracy Jordan
Tracy Jordan
Ogbert Jordan, better known by his stage name, Tracy, is a fictional character on the American television series 30 Rock, based on and played by Tracy Morgan.-Brief overview:...
(Tracy Morgan
Tracy Morgan
Tracy Morgan is an American comedian who is best known for his eight seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live and currently known for playing the role of Tracy Jordan on the NBC series 30 Rock.-Early life:...
) discovers that he is related to Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
and decides to honor his ancestor. James "Toofer" Spurlock (Keith Powell
Keith Powell
Keith Powell is an American television actor who is best known for his role as James "Toofer" Spurlock on the NBC sitcom 30 Rock.-Career:Powell was the Producing Artistic Director of Contemporary Stage Company, a summer theater in Wilmington, Delaware...
) discovers a shocking secret about one of his own ancestors.
Plot
When Devon Banks, the Vice President of West Coast News, Web Content, and Theme Park Talent Relations visits from Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Jack fears that he is trying to take his job. After having his assistant Jonathan spy on Banks, he learns that Banks is gay and that he is interested in Kenneth. Jack sends Kenneth to try to gather information on what Banks is planning to do, but Kenneth is inept and fails at the task. Jack then enlists Liz to help him come up with some ideas so that he can impress the network and win the power coup over Banks. Jack sends Kenneth to seduce Banks again so that he will be late for the important meeting, but Banks sees through the plan and arrives at the meeting anyway.
Meanwhile, Liz sees Floyd, the corporate employee who she has a crush on, go into a church on a Tuesday afternoon. The next week, she follows him in and finds that he is attending an AA meeting. Liz pretends to be an alcoholic so that she can get closer to Floyd and hear his secrets. After finding out that members of the same AA group are not allowed to date, Liz confesses to Floyd that she was never an alcoholic and that she made it up to get close to him. He gets mad and feels betrayed, so she apologizes and tells him all of her secrets to make it up to him. Floyd forgives her and they begin dating.
When it comes time for Jack's important meeting with the network and showdown against Devon Banks, Liz is too busy pursuing Floyd to help Jack with his idea. Jack has to attend the meeting alone, but his idea for a fireworks special impresses the network and he successfully defends his job against Devon Banks. When the fireworks special actually airs, however, the fireworks are shot off in midtown New York outside Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th and 51st streets in New York City, United States. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan, spanning the area between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. It was declared a National...
and it ends up looking like a terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
attack. Panic results and the mayor
Mayor of New York City
The Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
calls, causing the event to be unceremoniously ended.
Tracy is served with paternity papers and insists that the child is not his. After the DNA test, Tracy learns that the child is not his but that he is a direct descendant of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
. The news angers Tracy and he talks to Toofer and Frank about it. Toofer learns that he is a direct descendant of Tobias Spurlock, a black Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
soldier. Tracy and Toofer are upset about the news until Tracy has a dream in which Thomas Jefferson (portrayed by Jack Donaghy) appears to him on The Maury Povich Show. In the dream, Jefferson takes credit for "inventing" America and tells Tracy to forget his past. Tracy decides that he wants Toofer to write a movie about their experiences and Thomas Jefferson's life. Tracy intends to play all of the parts in the movie, except he intends for the film to be a drama.
Production
Burning Love (Arrested Development episode)
"Burning Love" is the 31st episode aired of TV comedy series Arrested Development.-Plot:George Michael asks his father if they have any music he can use for the Christian music bonfire which he and Ann are planning to host at the model home...
" and "S.O.B.s
S.O.B.s
"S.O.B.s" is the forty-ninth episode of the TV comedy series Arrested Development. The episode aired less than a month after Variety announced that the episode order for season 3 had been cut from 22 to 13...
", two episodes of the situation comedy Arrested Development. Arnett, a member of the main cast of Arrested Development, played George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II in that series. The plot of the Arrested Development episode in which McBrayer appeared revolved around G.O.B. accidentally becoming a waiter at the Bluth family's country club.
This episode was, as NBC advertises these events, a "supersized" episode meaning that the total runtime of the episode was extended from 30 minutes to 40 minutes. It also resulted in the episode airing at 8:40 pm, after "The Negotiation
The Negotiation
"The Negotiation" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the U.S. version of The Office, aired on April 5, 2007 on NBC...
" which is an episode of The Office, as opposed to 9:00 pm which was the series' usual timeslot.
The husband and wife characters who appear in the 10-second internet sitcom, Makin
Kay Cannon
Kay Cannon is an American television writer and actress who is best known for her work as an Emmy nominated writer and producer for the NBC series 30 Rock.-Biography:...
. Finkel and Cannon are both staff writers on 30 Rock. Cannon is also married to guest star Jason Sudeikis and Finkel co-wrote this episode. A series of Makin
Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
is frequently referenced in 30 Rock, beginning with the pilot episode
Pilot (30 Rock)
The pilot episode of the American situation comedy series 30 Rock premiered on October 10, 2006 on the CTV Television Network in Canada, and October 11, 2006 on NBC in the United States...
where Tracy Jordan is seen shouting that he is a Jedi
Jedi
The Jedi are characters in the Star Wars universe and the series's main protagonists. The Jedi use a power called the Force and weapons called lightsabers, which emit a controlled energy flow in the shape of a sword, in order to serve and protect the Republic and the galaxy at large from conflict...
. Liz Lemon admits to being a huge fan of Star Wars, saying that she had watched it many times with Pete Hornberger (Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit is an American actor, writer and improvisational comedian. He is currently co-starring as Pete Hornberger in the hit NBC comedy 30 Rock and worked in the Adult Swim stop-motion animation programs Moral Orel and Mary Shelley's Frankenhole.-1990s:After attending Columbia College Chicago,...
), and saying she dressed up as the Star Wars character Princess Leia
Princess Leia Organa
Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe...
during four Halloweens. Fey, a fan of Star Wars herself, said that the weekly Star Wars joke or reference "started happening organically" when the crew realized that they had a Star Wars reference "in almost every show". Fey said that from then on "it became a thing where [they] tried to keep it going", and that even though they could not include one in every episode, they still had a "pretty high batting average". Fey attributed most of the references to Robert Carlock
Robert Carlock
Robert Carlock is an American television producer and screenwriter most widely known for his work as a writer for several NBC television comedies, particularly his work with Tina Fey as show runners for 30 Rock.-Early years:...
, who she described as "the resident expert". In this episode, Star Wars is referenced twice: once when Liz tells Floyd that she and Pete are watching the movies on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
The first of the AFI 100 Years… series of cinematic milestones, AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies is a list of the 100 best American movies, as determined by the American Film Institute from a poll of more than 1,500 artists and leaders in the film industry who chose from a list of 400 nominated movies...
list, but they only own Star Wars and Tootsie
Tootsie
Tootsie is a 1982 American comedy film that tells the story of a talented but volatile actor whose reputation for being difficult forces him to go to extreme lengths to land a job. The movie stars Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange, with a supporting cast that includes Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman,...
so they keep watching those two films. It is again referenced during Tracy's dream, when Thomas Jefferson holds his hand up to Tracy and says "May the Force be with you
May the Force be with you
The expression "May the Force be with you" has achieved cult status and is symbolic of the Star Wars legacy. The line has been said by at least one character in each of the Star Wars movies...
always".
Reception
"Fireworks" brought in an average of 5.4 million American viewers upon its original broadcast in the United States, achieving a 2.5/7 in the key 18–49 year old demographic. The 2.5 refers to 2.5% of all people of ages 18–49 years old, and the 7 refers to 7% of all people of ages 18–49 years old watching television at the time of the broadcast. Compared to the previous episode, "The Fighting IrishThe Fighting Irish
"The Fighting Irish" is the seventeenth episode of NBC's first season of 30 Rock. It was written by one of the season's co-executive producers, Jack Burditt and it was directed by Dennie Gordon. It aired on March 8, 2007 in the United States...
", which aired on March 8, 2007, "Fireworks" gained 200,000 viewers.
Matt Webb Mitovich of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
thought that Will Arnett, who appeared as Devon Banks, was "shrewdly cast". Webb Mitovich added that this episode displayed some "good, good stuff". Anna Johns of AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
's TV Squad declared "Fireworks" as "one of the best episodes so far this season" citing that "the writers juggled a handful of storylines very, very well". She wrote that the best part of the episodes were "the one-liners. They had [her] laughing so hard that [she] frequently had to pause the TiVo
TiVo
TiVo is a digital video recorder developed and marketed by TiVo, Inc. and introduced in 1999. TiVo provides an on-screen guide of scheduled broadcast programming television programs, whose features include "Season Pass" schedules which record every new episode of a series, and "WishList"...
to recover." Robert Canning of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
wrote that this episode "was another prime example of what this show is capable of". He thought that "the choice of Arnett as Jack Donaghy's nemesis was perfect, right down to their shared graveled vocal delivery", and that recurring character Chris Parnell's "short, quick hitting scenes are always nonsensical perfection".