Liz Lemon meets her new boss Jack Donaghy, and the collision between creative chaos and corporate ambition launches one of TV's sharpest comedies.
Tracy Jordan joins TGS and immediately turns Liz's carefully managed show into beautiful pandemonium.
Jenna Maroney's ego takes center stage as she adjusts to sharing the spotlight with Tracy.
Jack mentors Liz with advice that's simultaneously terrible and brilliant — Alec Baldwin at his most magnetic.
Kenneth the page brings his unwavering positivity to a crisis, and his sunny disposition is the perfect counterweight to everyone else's cynicism.
Liz's personal life and work life collide, because on 30 Rock the line between the two doesn't exist.
Tracy's entourage causes chaos at 30 Rock, and Grizz and Dot Com prove they're smarter than everyone assumes.
Jack's corporate maneuvering reaches Machiavellian levels in an episode packed with razor-sharp one-liners.
The writers' room dynamics provide comedy gold as the TGS staff proves they're as dysfunctional as any TV family.
Liz stress-eats her way through a crisis, and Tina Fey makes anxiety look like an Olympic sport.
Jenna's desperate need for attention drives a subplot that Jane Krakowski plays to perfection.
Jack and Liz's mentorship deepens as they discover they need each other more than either would admit.
Tracy goes off-script in every sense, and Tracy Morgan's unpredictability makes every scene electric.
Kenneth's devotion to NBC reaches cult-like levels in an episode that hints at his mysterious immortality.
The show fires jokes at a rate that rewards rewatching — you catch new ones every time.
Liz tries to have it all and discovers that "all" is a lot more than she bargained for.
Jack's personal life gets a rare spotlight, revealing the vulnerability beneath the power suits.
The first season builds to its conclusion with storylines converging at 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
Tracy and Jenna compete for attention in a battle of egos that produces nuclear-level comedy.
Liz makes a decision about TGS that tests her leadership and her sanity in equal measure.
The season finale wraps the first year with a bow, establishing 30 Rock as the smartest comedy on television.