Klaus and Greta

Last updated

"Klaus and Greta"
30 Rock episode
Episode no.Season 4
Episode 9
Directed by Gail Mancuso
Written by Robert Carlock
Production code409
Original air dateJanuary 14, 2010 (2010-01-14)
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Secret Santa"		Next →
"Black Light Attack!"
30 Rock season 4
List of episodes

"Klaus and Greta" is the ninth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock . It was written by co-showrunner and executive producer Robert Carlock and directed by Gail Mancuso. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 14, 2010. Guest stars in this episode include James Franco, Matt Lauer, and Jeffery Self. "Klaus and Greta" aired out of its usual timeslot with "Black Light Attack!" following it in the regular timeslot.

Contents

Following a crazy New Year's Eve party, Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) leaves a message on his high school sweetheart's answering machine and decides to break into her home with Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer), while she is on vacation. At the same time, Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) starts up a fake relationship with actor James Franco in order to counteract rumors that he is in love with a Japanese body pillow. Meanwhile, Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) accidentally outs her cousin (Jeffery Self) at her New Year's Eve party, so he decides to live with her in New York.

"Klaus and Greta" was generally, though not universally, well received among television critics. According to the Nielsen Media Research, the episode was watched by 5.122 million households during its original broadcast, and received a 2.3 rating/6 share among viewers in the 18–49 demographic. "Klaus and Greta" won the award for Outstanding Individual Episode at the 22nd GLAAD Media Awards.

Plot

After a crazy New Year's Eve, Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) realizes that while drunk on wine brought by Bob Ballard, he left a message on the answering machine of Nancy Donovan (Julianne Moore), his high school sweetheart. He and NBC page Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer) immediately travel to Massachusetts and break into Nancy's home while she is on vacation, hoping to erase the message. While Kenneth fumbles with the computer, Jack examines the house and finds evidence that Nancy's marriage is reaching its end - he husband's clothes are on the couch, their sinks are separated, and they have booked flights to different places. They eventually play the message, after Jack finds the voicemail code, in which Jack reminisces about their times in high school German class. In that class, Jack had the name "Klaus" and Nancy had the name "Greta"—and Jack says that he took the class to be with her. Jack decides not to erase the message, but Kenneth does so anyway, telling him that there is no sign Nancy wants Jack in her life. When they return to New York, Kenneth realizes that Nancy's voicemail code (55287) stands for "Klaus", which means that Nancy does have feelings for Jack.

Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) accidentally outs her cousin, Randy (Jeffery Self) to his family at a New Year's Eve party, so he comes to live with her in New York City. Liz tries to keep Randy in her apartment during his stay, but he sneaks out to a bar at night, and traps Liz in a closet when she tries to supervise him. Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) enters a fake relationship with actor James Franco, in order to counteract rumors that he is in love with a Japanese body pillow. Jenna feels slighted when she realizes that she wants a real relationship, and encourages James to follow his own passions, resulting in Jenna ending things with him. Deciding to have fun, Liz and Randy go to a nightclub, where Liz runs into James and his pillow. The two get drunk and end up sleeping together. The next morning, at Liz's apartment, Randy is shocked to see Liz coming out of her bedroom with James and his body pillow, and is disturbed enough to go back home to Pennsylvania.

Tracy Jordan gets his wife, Angie Jordan (Sherri Shepherd), pregnant and, realizing his continued hostility to women (apparently not having realized until that point that every woman is someone's daughter), tells Grizz Griswold (Grizz Chapman), "Dot Com" Slattery (Kevin Brown), and Kenneth that he has decided to add a woman to their entourage.

Production

James Franco guest starred in this episode. James Franco 4, 2013.jpg
James Franco guest starred in this episode.

"Klaus and Greta" was written by co-showrunner and executive producer Robert Carlock, making it his fourteenth writing credit overall. [1] The episode was directed by Gail Mancuso, making it her eighth for the series. [2] "Klaus and Greta" originally aired in the United States on January 14, 2010, on NBC as the ninth episode of the show's fourth season. [3]

In November 2009, it was announced that actor James Franco would guest star on 30 Rock as himself, and would carry on a fake romance with Jenna Maroney (Krakowski), in a scheme concocted by their respective agents. [4] Two months earlier, series creator, executive producer and lead actress Tina Fey revealed Jenna's plot to Entertainment Weekly , but did not divulge Franco's name. [5] In an April 2010 interview with Zap2it, Carlock revealed that "one of the things" the staff looked forward to in the fourth season was Jenna's storyline here, and said her "emotional realization" that she wants more than a fake relationship with Franco was "a cool turn for that character after three years of thinking that all she wants is to have her picture in the paper and have her hair look good." [6]

In this episode, Matt Lauer, a co-host of The Today Show , guest starred as himself for the second time first appearing in "Generalissimo" that aired on February 5, 2009, during the show's third season. [7] In "Klaus and Greta", the staff writers of the fictitious sketch comedy show The Girlie Show with Tracy Jordan play a shot game to The Today Show's travel tips given by Lauer. [8]

Despite not appearing in the episode, the show made reference of Jack Donaghy's romantic interest in high school sweatheart, Nancy Donovan, portrayed by actress Julianne Moore. Moore was announced as a love interest for Alec Baldwin's Jack in November 2009, [9] and made her debut as the Nancy character in the previous episode "Secret Santa". [10] This episode of 30 Rock was filmed on November 6, 2009. [11] [12]

Cultural references

Jenna reveals that James Franco's manager came to her first to start a fake relationship with Franco, before asking former reality show participant Ayiiia Elizarraras from The Real World: Cancun . [3] Randy tells Liz that a man offered to drive him to her apartment if he helps him move a couch into a van, but she tells him he is a serial killer. This is a reference to the 1991 thriller film The Silence of the Lambs in which serial killer "Buffalo Bill" kidnaps his victims by asking them for help loading something heavy into his van, and then knocking them out in a surprise attack from behind. [13] Jenna tells Liz that as a result of her relationship with Franco, gossip blogs have dubbed them "James", a combination of Jenna and James. [14] Jack has Cerie Xerox (Katrina Bowden) check Nancy's status on the social-networking site YouFace which shows she is on vacation. YouFace is similar to MySpace and Facebook. [3]

Randy tells Liz that growing up the (fictitious) small town of Methenburg, Pennsylvania was difficult as a closeted gay man, and reveals that the local television station in the state edited Will & Grace down so much that it was just called Karen. Will & Grace, a former NBC program, revolved around a gay man (Will) and his best friend (Grace), and Karen was Will and Grace's friend. [15] In "Klaus and Greta", Franco starts a fraudulent romance with Jenna in order to dismiss rumors that he is in love with a Japanese body pillow. [16] According to a CNN report, following the broadcast, the subplot of Franco in love with a body pillow came straight from an article from The New York Times Magazine , [17] published in July 2009, in which the article, deemed controversial, focused on a man in his mid-thirties who carries around a body pillow printed with an animated Japanese female character. [18]

Reception

In its original American broadcast, "Klaus and Greta" was watched by 5.122 million households, according to the Nielsen Media Research. It received a 2.3 rating/6 share among viewers in the 18–49 demographic, [19] that is 2.3% of all people in that group, and 6% of all people from that group watching television at the time, watched the episode. This was a decrease from the December 10, 2009, episode "Secret Santa", which was watched by 7.54 million American viewers. [20] In the 9:00 p.m. timeslot on January 14, in which this episode aired out of its usual timeslot, 30 Rock was outperformed by CBS' crime drama series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation , ABC's medical drama Grey's Anatomy , and Fox's science fiction series Fringe . "Klaus and Greta" outperformed a repeat of the paranormal drama television series Supernatural on The CW, which drew 1.364 million viewers. [19] This episode of 30 Rock won the award for Outstanding Individual Episode (in a series without a regular gay character) at the 22nd GLAAD Media Awards. [21]

Television columnist Alan Sepinwall for The Star-Ledger said that the episode and "Black Light Attack!" were filled with "enough good gags that, together, they made for a very satisfying hour of comedy." [22] Robert Canning of IGN gave this episode a 9.5 out of 10 rating, observing that "...it will be a long time before we see anything funnier from 30 Rock". Canning said that despite the Tracy character not having too much screen time here "his bits were funny, and his idea to add a woman to his entourage had a lot of potential", and noted that Liz/Randy's plot ended "brilliantly" when the story crossed over to Jenna/James Franco's storyline. [23] Bob Sassone of AOL's TV Squad gave it a positive review writing it was a "good episode", and "[n]ot one of the best but it still had enough funny situations", and thanked NBC for broadcasting two episodes. [13] Entertainment Weekly 's Margaret Lyons remarked that the two episodes were terrific, and what stood out from both airings "was how much serialized plot[s] these two eps covered ... For a show that's usually so episodic, it was an interesting—totally successful—change of pace." [24]

The A.V. Club 's Emily VanDerWerff was positive, but noted that "there was stuff that didn't work here", citing the long scene with Jack and Kenneth in Nancy's home, reasoning it was "weirdly boring". VanDerWerff was complimentary towards James Franco's appearance, and commented that the idea that Franco was in love with a Japanese body pillow was "just comic gold and a half." Not being a fan of Jane Krakowski's Jenna, VanDerWerff noted that "Klaus and Greta" gave the character "one of her best storylines in ages ... [and] everything here about how she slowly grew more and more oblivious was well-done." [25] Sean Gandert for Paste reported that it featured "all sorts of funny" but felt that the main plot fell "pretty flat." Gandert was favorable to the other stories featured here. [26] Time contributor James Poniewozik opined Franco threw himself into the role "willing to appear ridiculous and a little crazy". Poniewozik said it was a "pleasure" to see a "desperate-Jenna plot" that seemed "fresh." [27] Nick Catucci, a contributor of New York magazine, deemed this episode of 30 Rock "terrific". [28]

Related Research Articles

The pilot episode of the American television sitcom 30 Rock premiered on October 10, 2006, on the CTV Television Network in Canada, and October 11, 2006, on NBC in the United States. The episode was directed by Adam Bernstein and written by Tina Fey, the series' creator, executive producer, and lead actress.

"Jack Meets Dennis" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock. It was written by co-executive producer Jack Burditt, and directed by Juan J. Campanella. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on November 30, 2006. Guest stars in this episode include Michael Blackson, Katrina Bowden, Teddy Coluca, Rachel Dratch, Keith Powell, Ali Reza, Lonny Ross, Brian Stack, and Dean Winters.

"Jack-Tor" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American situation comedy 30 Rock, which aired on November 16, 2006 on the NBC network in the United States, and on November 8, 2007 in the United Kingdom. The episode was written by Robert Carlock and was directed by Don Scardino. Guest stars in this episode include Katrina Bowden, Lonny Ross, Keith Powell, Maulik Pancholy, Teddy Coluca, Donald Glover, Doug Moe, and Matthew Stocke.

"Tracy Does Conan" is the seventh episode of NBC's first season of 30 Rock. It was written by the series' creator and executive producer, Tina Fey and it was directed by one of the season's supervising producers, Adam Bernstein. It first aired on December 7, 2006, in the United States and November 29, 2007, in the United Kingdom. Guest stars in the episode included Katrina Bowden, Kevin Brown, Grizz Chapman, Rachel Dratch, Dave Finkel, Maulik Pancholy, Chris Parnell, Aubrey Plaza, Keith Powell, and Dean Winters. Conan O'Brien appeared as himself in this episode. The episode marks the first appearance of Chris Parnell as recurring character, Dr. Leo Spaceman.

"Believe in the Stars" is the second episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock. The 38th overall episode of the series was written by executive producer Robert Carlock and directed by series producer Don Scardino. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on November 6, 2008. Guest stars in this episode include Remy Auberjonois, Todd Buonopane, Raven Goodwin, and Oprah Winfrey.

"Apollo, Apollo" is the sixteenth episode of the third season of American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 52nd episode of the series overall. It was written by executive producer Robert Carlock and directed by Millicent Shelton. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on March 26, 2009. Guest stars in this episode include Adam West and Dean Winters.

"The Bubble" is the fifteenth episode of the third season of the American television series 30 Rock. It was written by series' creator Tina Fey and directed by Tricia Brock. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on March 19, 2009. Jon Hamm and Bobb'e J. Thompson guest star in this episode, and there are cameo appearances by Calvin Klein and Meredith Vieira.

"The Ones" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock. It was written by co-executive producer Jack Burditt, and directed by Beth McCarthy. The episode aired in the United States on April 23, 2009, on NBC. Guest stars in this episode include Josh Casaubon, Salma Hayek, and Brian Williams.

<i>30 Rock</i> season 4 Season of television series

The fourth season of 30 Rock, an American television comedy series, consists of 22 episodes and began airing on October 15, 2009, on the NBC network in the United States. The season was produced by Broadway Video, Little Stranger, and NBC Universal; the executive producers were series creator Tina Fey, Lorne Michaels, Marci Klein, David Miner, and Robert Carlock.

"Cutbacks" is the 17th episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 53rd episode of the series overall. It was written by supervising producer Matt Hubbard and directed by Gail Mancuso. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on April 9, 2009. Guest stars in this episode include Roger Bart, Todd Buonopane, and Don Pardo.

"Stone Mountain" is the third episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 61st overall episode of the series. The episode was written by co-executive producer John Riggi and directed by series producer Don Scardino. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on October 29, 2009. Guest stars in "Stone Mountain" include Jeff Dunham and Bubba J, Jimmy Fallon, Blaine Horton, and Betty White.

"Secret Santa" is the eighth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 66th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by series' creator Tina Fey and directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on December 10, 2009. The episode featured appearances by actors Cheyenne Jackson as Danny Baker, Julianne Moore as Nancy Donovan, and Larry Wilcox playing himself.

"Black Light Attack!" is the tenth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 68th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by Steve Hely and directed by series producer Don Scardino. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 14, 2010. Guest stars in this episode include Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Cheyenne Jackson.

"The Funcooker" is the fourteenth episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock. It was written by Tom Ceraulo and Donald Glover, and directed by Ken Whittingham. The episode originally aired on NBC on March 12, 2009. Guest stars in this episode include Jackie Hoffman, Nancy O'Dell, and Chris Parnell.

"Señor Macho Solo" is the seventh episode of the third season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 43rd overall episode of the series. It was written by co-executive producer Ron Weiner and directed by Beth McCarthy. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 8, 2009. Peter Dinklage, Salma Hayek, and Sherri Shepherd guest star in "Señor Macho Solo", and there are cameo appearances by Billy Bush and Nancy O'Dell.

"Verna" is the twelfth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 70th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by co-executive producer Ron Weiner and directed by series producer Don Scardino. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on February 4, 2010. Former Saturday Night Live cast member Jan Hooks guest stars as the title character of this episode.

"The Moms" is the twentieth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 78th overall episode of the series. It was written by co-producer Kay Cannon and co-show runner and executive producer Robert Carlock. The episode was directed by co-executive producer John Riggi. It originally aired on NBC in the United States on May 6, 2010. Guest stars in "The Moms" include Buzz Aldrin, John Anderson, Elizabeth Banks, Kyoko Bruguera, Will Ferrell, Anita Gillette, Jan Hooks, Cheyenne Jackson, Patti LuPone, Novella Nelson, and Elaine Stritch.

"When It Rains, It Pours" is the second episode of the fifth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 82nd overall episode of the series. It was written by co-show runner and executive producer Robert Carlock and directed by series producer Don Scardino. "When It Rains, It Pours" originally aired on NBC in the United States on September 30, 2010. Guest stars in this episode include Joanna Adler, Ben Bailey, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Castaldo, Paul Giamatti, Andrea Mitchell, Chris Parnell, Sherri Shepherd, and Brian Williams.

"Idiots Are People Two!" is the second episode of the sixth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 105th overall episode of the series. It was directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller, and written by co-show runner and executive producer Robert Carlock. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 19, 2012. Guest stars in this episode include James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, and Denise Richards.

"Idiots Are People Three!" is the third episode of the sixth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 106th overall episode of the series. It was directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller, and written by co-show runner and executive producer Robert Carlock. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on January 26, 2012. Guest stars in this episode include Will Arnett, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, and Denise Richards.

References

  1. ↑ "Robert Carlock — Filmography by TV series". Internet Movie Database . Retrieved May 13, 2010.
  2. ↑ "Gail Mancuso — Filmography by TV series". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved June 6, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 "30 Rock — Klaus and Greta". Yahoo! TV. Archived from the original on June 15, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  4. ↑ Stanhope, Kate (November 3, 2009). "James Franco to Guest-Star on 30 Rock". TV Guide . Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  5. ↑ Ausiello, Michael (November 3, 2009). "Exclusive: James Franco heads to '30 Rock'". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on November 6, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2010.
  6. ↑ Crook, John (April 24, 2010). "'30 Rock' rolls into fourth season". Zap2it. Archived from the original on November 13, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Matt Lauer". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  8. ↑ ""30 Rock" and James Franco team up for big laughs". Columbia Daily Spectator . January 14, 2010. Archived from the original on March 28, 2010. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  9. ↑ Amanda Sidman; Carson Griffith (November 16, 2009). "Julianne Moore to play Alec Baldwin's love interest on hit NBC show '30 Rock'". Daily News (New York) . Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  10. ↑ Sassone, Bob (December 11, 2009). "Review: 30 Rock — Secret Santa". TV Squad . Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  11. ↑ "30 Rock – "Klaus and Greta" Episode 409 – Pictured: (l-r) Jane Krakowski as Jenna, Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, Adam Trese as Richard, James Franco – NBC Photo: Ali Goldstein". Set Photos. NBC Universal Media Village. November 6, 2009. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2010. Save Picture as → Right click file → Properties → Summary → Advanced → Date Picture Taken
  12. ↑ "30 Rock – "Klaus and Greta" Episode 409 – Pictured: (l-r) Jeffrey Self as Randy Lemon, Tina Fey as Liz Lemon, James Franco, Kimiko – NBC Photo: Ali Goldstein". Set Photos. NBC Universal Media Village. November 6, 2009. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2010. Save Picture as → Right click file → Properties → Summary → Advanced → Date Picture Taken
  13. 1 2 Sassone, Bob (January 15, 2010). "Review: 30 Rock — Klaus and Greta". TV Squad . Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  14. ↑ Skegg, Martin; Julia Raeside, Will Hodgkinson, Richard Vine, David Stubbs and Rebecca Nicholson (May 17, 2010). "Watch this". The Guardian . Retrieved June 22, 2010.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ Hiltbrand, David (January 16, 2010). "Dave on Demand: Potential Simon shoe-fillers, some real". The Philadelphia Inquirer . Retrieved June 22, 2010.[ dead link ]
  16. ↑ Blake, Meredith (January 15, 2010). "'30 Rock': Liz gets lucky with James Franco and his pillow". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  17. ↑ Marx, W. David (January 19, 2010). "'30 Rock' features the Japanese body pillow meme". CNN Go. Archived from the original on July 1, 2010. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  18. ↑ Katayama, Lisa (July 26, 2009). "Love in 2-D". The New York Times Magazine . Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  19. 1 2 Gorman, Bill (January 15, 2010). "TV Ratings: Private Practice Crossover Boost; Bones High; Grey's, CSI, 30 Rock, Leno Hit Lows". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 4, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  20. ↑ Gorman, Bill (December 10, 2009). "TV Ratings Thursday: CBS & Survivior Strong; Bones Season High; Fringe Slips". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on December 13, 2009. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  21. ↑ Serpe, Gina (March 19, 2011). "Tina Fey, Ricky Martin, True Blood Get GLAAD". E! Online . Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  22. ↑ Sepinwall, Alan (January 15, 2010). "30 Rock, "Klaus and Greta" & "Black Light Attack!": James Franco kicks off a funny double-feature". The Star-Ledger . Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  23. ↑ Canning, Robert (January 15, 2010). "30 Rock: "Klaus and Greta" Review". IGN . Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  24. ↑ Lyons, Margaret (January 15, 2010). "'30 Rock': The 10 best lines from 'Klaus and Greta' and 'Black Light Attack'". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  25. ↑ VanDerWerff, Emily (January 14, 2010). ""Klaus and Greta"/"Black Light Attack"". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on January 18, 2010. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  26. ↑ Gandert, Sean (January 15, 2010). "30 Rock Review: "Klaus and Greta" & "Black Light Attack!" (4.9 & 4.10)". Paste . Retrieved June 22, 2010.
  27. ↑ Poniewozik, James (January 15, 2010). "30 Rock: "Klaus and Greta" and "Black Light Attack!"". Time . Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  28. ↑ Catucci, Nick (January 15, 2010). "30 Rock Recap: Lemoned!". New York . Retrieved June 22, 2010.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.