Kind of uneven episodes of "30 Rock" and "The Office" tonight, at least by their standards.  But let the record show that bringing Jim and Pam together hasn't ruined them at all.  Sure, most of the tension's gone, but they remain a pure treat to watch. 

– Jon Weisman

All season long, Deborah had been portrayed as the one to beat on NBC's chart-busting "MILF Island." But in the unprecedented tri-elimination finale, who would have thought that the Deborah-Deborah finale would create such ...

Okay, we'll stop right there.  "MILF Island" is just a fictional show within a fictional show – not that it wasn't hard to tell the difference between its bikini-laden fake scenes on "30 Rock" tonight and NBC's real skimpy-clothed ads for "Deal or No Deal." But "MILF Island" (produced, if you noticed, by Jack Donaghy and Jerry Seinfeld) did provide an effective backdrop for the Liz Lemon's own struggle to out of harm's way on a rousing post-strike return for the Emmy-winning sitcom.

It was interesting to see series creator Tina Fey push her Liz character to what for her was a darker place - willing to put other people's jobs in jeopardy longer than usual just because she was fed up with being the fall gal. (Sort of like seeing Mary Tyler Moore really give someone the stinkeye.)  Her poker face when she forced Kenneth to take the blame for calling Jack a "Class A moron" was absolutely perfect, and the exchanges between the three carried the episode. Less effective was the subplot involving Pete getting his arm caught in a vending machine, but even those scenes didn't drag the episode down.

As for "MILF Island," as phony as it looked, how easy was it to imagine as a show that would actually air? More importantly, how much pure fun was Jack's enthusiasm for it?

Immediately after "30 Rock" came the return of "The Office," and though both shows remain the funniest on TV, the contrast between them is striking.  Never in a million years will "30 Rock" go as dark and brooding as "The Office" did in depicting the transcendent dysfunction of Michael and Jan's relationship. (Those who haven't bought into or enjoyed Jan's descent into craziness will have been frustrated tonight by that being doubled-down, but I'd argue the groundwork has long been laid.) In any case, babe, you had to love the setup that drew Jim, Pam and the others to Michael's condo for the dinner party to truly end all dinner parties. 

All in all, it's good to have our friends back.

– Jon Weisman

They say awards buzz might help a show that's struggling in the ratings, but in the case of "30 Rock," who would know?

For a show with an address in the title, it sure is hard to find.

In the 23 weeks since winning the comedy series Emmy last September, the NBC comedy has aired 14 times (according to the show's press site). That's including reruns. Even more starkly, "30 Rock" hasn't aired once since Jan. 10, a period in which Tina Fey has won Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild honors, Alec Baldwin won at SAG and the series nabbed the Writers Guild comedy award.

Though some would argue that awards aren't meaningful, NBC appears to be taking this to an extreme.

New, post-strike episodes of "30 Rock" are due on the air April 10, but that doesn't mean some of the earlier ones aren't worth revisiting. It's not as if "30 Rock" is overexposed — if anything, NBC should be running mini-marathons. Why mothball the show?

— Jon Weisman

Hidden amid the embarrassment of the modified Golden Globes was the fact that the Hollywood Foreign Press actually made some great choices in the TV categories.

That roar you heard Sunday night was Season Pass cheering the wins for AMC’s rookie drama “Mad Men” and its charismatic star Jon Hamm. Also very deserving were Glenn Close for her role as the cutthroat attorney in FX’s uneven drama “Damages” and Tina Fey for her role in Season Pass fave “30 Rock.” Kudos also to the HFPA for choosing the least obvious choice for its top comedy series with HBO’s “Extras.”

Too bad these folks didn’t get their moment in the sun. Oh well, most of them have the chance to repeat as champs at next year’s back-to-the-glitz Globes ceremony.

— Kathy Lyford

Perhaps many series thought to cobble together a wholly unexpected episode ending that would also serve as an apt metaphor for the labor strife that has consumed the entire television industry, but as far as I know, only Thursday's "30 Rock" succeeded.

The last remaining original episode of the series until the Writers Guild strike is settled offered the usual craziness — a little of it redundant, as when Kenneth sank deeper and deeper into a coffee-induced haze (will he be the next guest on "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew?), but most of it brilliant. For years, I've been pretty impressed with myself for asking out a girl during a history final in college, but I have to say that Jack (Alec Baldwin) topped that by arranging a date with C.C. (Edie Falco), while testifying on C-SPAN, to see "Fred Claus."

The Jack-C.C. denouement, combined with Tina Fey's dual Liz stories of trying to buy an apartment and a German television station, kept the episode sailing along. (The latter was a savvy follow-up to the 10 seconds in the first season of "30 Rock" that showed Liz speaking German without a second thought.) But nothing quite prepared us for the finale, a seamless transition into a full-blown, completely plot-approriate rendition of "Midnight Train to Georgia."

It's funny: I still think "The Office" is the deeper, more rewarding comedy. But "30 Rock" goes wit-to-wit with it, and certainly has provided the most memorable comedic moments of the cut-down 2007-08 season.

— Jon Weisman

Wow. Alec Baldwin got quite the head start on his 2008 Emmy clip reel with an outrageous scene as Jack Donaghy at the end of NBC's "30 Rock" on Thursday.

Having convinced Tracy (Tracy Morgan) that he needs to see a therapist to work through issues of being abandoned by his father, Jack then gets involved in the therapist's role-playing session — and quickly takes on not only the role of Tracy's father, but Tracy's mother, Tracy himself, "the white dude that my moms left my dad for" and upstairs neighbor Mrs. Rodriguez. 

"You know, it's too bad you didn't know Howard Cosell growing up, because I had that one in my pocket the whole time," Jack concludes with triumphant pleasure.

Everyone takes a hit as far as stereotypes go, which the therapist's attempted interventions indicate that the show is fully aware of. With that caveat, enjoy the scene, which can be found 14 minutes into the episode.

— Jon Weisman