Greenzo

Infobox Television episode
Title = Greenzo
Series = 30 Rock


Caption = Jared, as his Greenzo alter ego, flirts with Jenna.
Season = 2
Episode = 5
Airdate = Start date|2007|11|08
Production = 205
Writer = Jon Pollack
Director = Don Scardino
Music =
Photographer = Vanja Černjul
Guests = Kevin Brown
Grizz Chapman
Al Gore
John Lutz
Madison McKinley
Maulik Pancholy
Paula Pell
Dion Sapp
David Schwimmer
Meredith Viera
Episode list = "30 Rock" (season 2)
List of "30 Rock" episodes
Prev = Rosemary's Baby
Next = Somebody to Love

"Greenzo" is the fifth episode of NBC's second season of "30 Rock" and twenty-sixth episode overall.cite press release |title=11-08-2007 8:30 PM "30 Rock" — "Greenzo" |publisher="NBC Universal Media Village" |url=http://nbcumv.com/listing_detail.nbc/nbc-20071108203000.html |accessdate=2008-06-26] It was written by Jon Pollack and directed by series producer Don Scardino.cite episode |title=Greenzo |episodelink=Greenzo |series=30 Rock |serieslink=30 Rock |credits=Jon Pollack (writer); Don Scardino (director) |network=NBC Universal |station=NBC |airdate=2007-11-08 |season=2 |number=5 |minutes= ] It aired on November 8, 2007 in the United States. Guest stars in this episode include Kevin Brown, Grizz Chapman, Al Gore, John Lutz, Madison McKinley, Maulik Pancholy, Paula Pell, Dion Sapp, David Schwimmer and Meredith Viera.

The episode focuses on Jack Donaghy's (played by Alec Baldwin) success, and later disaster, with Greenzo (David Schwimmer), "America's first non-judgmental, business-friendly environmental advocate." Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer) decides to throw a party, but knowing that nobody will attend, Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) and Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) plot to make the party a success. Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) and Liz suspect that Pete Hornberger (Scott Adsit) is having an affair.

Plot

Don Geiss (Rip Torn), the chairman of General Electric (GE), challenges Jack to come up with an idea to make money "from this environmentalism trend." This leads to him casting an actor called Jared to play Greenzo, NBC's environmental mascot. Initially, Greenzo is a success, making a well received appearance on "The Today Show". This is until he conducts a second interview, with Meredith Viera, when he begins ranting negatively about "big companies and their two-faced, fat cat executives," referring to GE and Jack. Angrily, Jack fires Jared and attempts to trick Al Gore, the former Vice President of the United States, into replacing him to no avail.

Meanwhile, Kenneth is planning a party. Knowing this, Liz recounts past parties of Kenneth's to Tracy, telling him that she was the only other person who attended those parties. Feeling pity for Kenneth, Tracy tells the biggest gossips on "TGS with Tracy Jordan", Grizz and Dot Com (Grizz Chapman and Kevin Brown), that T.I. will be attending. They persuade other people to attend by telling various other lies. The resulting party is so disastrous that Kenneth decides never to throw a party again.

When Liz finds another woman's lipstick in her apartment, she and Jenna begin to suspect that Pete, who is separated from his wife, is having an affair. Liz later discovers, much to her horror, that Pete is having an "affair" with his own wife, Paula Hornberger (Paula Pell).

Production

"Greenzo" is the first episode, of "30 Rock", written by Jon Pollack. Pollack was added to the writing staff of "30 Rock" at the beginning of the second season.cite press release |title=2007 Writers Guild Awards Television & Radio Nominees Announced |publisher=" Media Village" Save Picture as → Right click file → Properties → Summary → Advanced → Date Picture Taken]

Reception

"Greenzo" brought in an average of 6.6 million viewers,cite news |first=Rick |last=Kissell |title=Crime crossover clicks for CBS |url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117975681.html?categoryid=14&cs=1&query=30+rock+3%2E1 |publisher="Variety" |date=2007-11-09 |accessdate=2008-06-26 ] the highest amount of viewers since the second season premiere, "SeinfeldVision".cite press release |title="NBC Sunday Night Football" Charges NBC's Week of November 5–11 |publisher="NBC Universal Media Village" |date=2007-11-13 |url=http://nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/entertainment-20071113000000-039nbcsundaynig.html |accessdate=2008-06-27 |quote=Also on Thursday, "30 Rock" retained 94 percent of its "Earl" lead-in to match its highest 18–49 rating and deliver its biggest overall audience since its season premiere. Both "30 Rock" and "Earl" won their tough time periods in men 18–34.
Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET, "30 Rock" (3.1/8 in 18–49, 6.6 million viewers overall) retained 94 percent of its 18–49 lead-in and ranked #1 in the time period among men 18–34. "30 Rock" matched its highest 18–49 rating and attracted its biggest overall audience since its season premiere on October 4.] The episode also achieved a 3.1/8 in the key 18–49 year old demographic, matching the series' highest rating in that demographic. The 3.1 refers to 3.1% of all 18–49 years olds in the U.S. and the 8 refers to 8% of all 18–49 year olds watching television at the time of the broadcast, in the U.S. This episode also ranked in first place in the men 18–34 demographic, against programs airing on other networks in the same timeslot.

Matt Webb Mitovich of "TV Guide" praised "David Schwimmer for throwing himself into this role" as Jared, "this rather unlikable lout." Webb Mitovich also wrote that " [Kenneth's] party in and of itself has to be one of "30 Rock"'s finest and most manic moments."cite web |url=http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TV-Show-Blog/30-Rock/Episode-Recap-Greenzo/800026888 |title=Episode Rec
TV Guide"] Bob Sassone of AOL's "TV Squad" thought that " [David] Schwimmer was good as Greenzo" and that "the subplots were some of the most bizarre this season."cite web |url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/11/09/30-rock-greenzo/ |title="30 Rock": "Greenzo" |accessdate=2008-06-26 |last=Sassone |first=Bob |authorlink=Bob Sassone |date=2007-11-09 |publisher=AOL's "TV Squad"] Robert Canning of "IGN" thought that the "cameo from Al Gore at the end of the show added little to the episode. It was a fine bit, but it wasn't helped by the fact that nearly the entire scene had already aired in the promos leading up to the episode" and that "seeing [Schwimmer] desperately take on the role of Greenzo and then get carried away with the whole concept could have been hysterically self-referential [to his work on the situation comedy "Friends"] . Instead we got Jerrodsic as Greenzo and the whole thing just felt flat and forced." Canning rated the episode "8 out of 10"cite web |url=http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/834/834089p1.html |title="30 Rock": "Greenzo" Review |accessdate=2008-06-26 |last=Canning |first=Robert |date=2007-11-09 |publisher="IGN"] "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette"'s Rob Owen also felt that Al Gore's appearance had been "already given away in [NBC's] promos". He praised the episode's dialogue, saying that Baldwin's line, "you could put on a silly hat and tell the kids how outsourcing means cheaper toys for Christmas" was the sort of dialogue that "makes "30 Rock" rock. Hard."cite web |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07311/830651-237.stm |title=Tuned In Journal: "30 Rock" dings NBC |accessdate=2008-06-26 |last=Owen |first=Rob |date=2007-11-07 |publisher="Pittsburgh Post-Gazette"] Jeff Labrecque of "Entertainment Weekly" wrote that this episode "was one of the best of season 2" and that "Schwimmer's performance reminded [him] of his most bizarre episodes as "Friends"' Ross Geller, like "The One With Ross's Sandwich.""cite web |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20159367,00.html |title="30 Rock": Global Warping |accessdate=2008-06-26 |last=Labrecque |first=Jeff |date=2007-11-08 |publisher="Entertainment Weekly"] The episode of "Friends" referred to includes Schwimmer's character, Ross, shouting at his boss for eating his special Thanksgiving leftover sandwich.cite episode |title=The One with Ross's Sandwich |episodelink= |series=Friends |serieslink=Friends |credits=Ted Cohen (writer); Andrew Reich (writer); Gary Halvorson (director)|network=NBC Universal |station=NBC |airdate=1998-12-10 |season=5 |seriesno= |number=9 |minutes= ]

References

External links

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1001590/ Greenzo] ," at the Internet Movie Database
* [http://www.tv.com/30-rock/greenzo/episode/1138275/summary.html Greenzo] ," at TV.com