Why '30 Rock' is so smart

I hadn't been that much into one television show in a while, but when I discovered 30 Rock last spring, it quickly became a personal favorite.

It was on its final season and was already apparently a nationwide phenomenon, but even though it's been off the air for over a year now, I think it's worth trying to get people to at least watch the reruns because I think it's really something special.

A lot of the series is carried on the shoulders of a female main character, Liz Lemon. Quite Hollywood-geeky and unlucky-in-love, she's clearly an author avatar for actress and creator, Tina Fey. I love that she's a protagonist with her own meaningful issues to deal with instead of an emotional support system for a male counterpart. Well, sometimes she acts this part for her boss, Jack Donaghy, but we'll get to him later.

Despite this, Liz doesn't hide the fact that she's an actual human woman. Yes, she's a hard worker and puts her job above pretty much all else. Yes, she wants to have a baby. She presents womanhood in a way that is unique on television, and that's amazing.

The comedy in 30 Rock deserves praise, too. It can be clever, subtle, or slapstick, but always genius. There's something for everyone to enjoy. And it only gets better as the episodes go on. As the show started to find its identity, it refined its tastes and tones and made its name as an acclaimed comedy. Plus, there are plenty of hilarious running gags throughout the series.

One thing, though, is that when I plug this show to other people, I find that 30 Rock is perceived by some as an out-and-out liberal show. (I'm looking at you, Em, but you're not the only one). To that I say, give it a chance and you'll find that the show is pretty ambiguous about whose side they're on.

At first, the show is obviously set up to be headed by self-proclaimed liberal, Liz Lemon, who clashes with her evil conservative boss, Jack Donaghy. But this direction is dropped early on in the series.

The liberal Lemon has no order in her life and lots of room for personal growth. She doesn't seem to really know why she's voting Democrat in the elections except for the fact that it's not the Republican party. The writers even make fun of the fact that they could potentially use the character as a means to plug their own liberal political views in the show.

LIZ: JUST BECAUSE I THINK GAY DUDES SHOULD

BE ALLOWED TO ADOPT KIDS AND WE SHOULD ALL

HAVE HYBRID CARS DOESN'T MEAN I DON'T LOVE

AMERICA.

LIZ turns to the camera and winks.

On the other hand, Jack is the put-together mentor of Liz, helping her with getting her life in order and providing an emotional center. At the end of the day, Jack's conservative ideals almost always win out over Liz's liberal ideals. That isn't to say Jack doesn't change over the course of the series. He does, but Liz appears to become more and more like Jack as 30 Rock progresses.

If anything, the show does its best job at showing us that maybe we're all a lot more like each other than we think, liberals and conservatives alike. How's that for a plot twist?

It's really a shame the series is over. I'll definitely watch a rerun episode every once in a while myself. And if you can get through the relatively directionless first season, you might be just as hooked as me until you find yourself at the end of the series, longing for more.

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