Shut it down: The end of 30 Rock and the end of an era

It still hasn’t hit me.

The series finale of 30 Rock just aired, and it still hasn’t hit me.

For seven years, Thursday night meant plopping down on the couch, tuning into NBC, and catching up with Liz, Jack, Jenna, Tracy, Kenneth, Lutz, and all the other characters I have grown to know and love. Thursday night meant learning new hip slang like, “nerds,” and “blurgh,” and memorizing timeless lines such as, “Live every week like it’s shark week.” Thursday night meant rocking out to the ridiculous songs performed by characters Tracy Jordan and Jenna Maroney, including, “Make a Pizza,” “Werewolf Bar-Mitzvah,” and “Muffin Top.”

Thursday night meant 30 Rock.

I know all is not lost, for the sacred night of NBC comedy lineup still includes the lovable Parks and Recreation and the return of Community. Yet this night will be missing a little something. It will be missing a little Lemon.

In preparation for the series finale, I listened to 30 Rock (Original Television Soundtrack), and contemplated just what made this show so special to me. And truly, it all boils down to Tina Fey as Liz Lemon.

I am a self proclaimed “Lemonite,” supporter and lover, from season one to rerun. As Liz Lemon, Tina Fey brought an intelligent, goofy, and hardworking woman to the small screen. Above all, Liz is a nerd. Not the sexualized nerd as Zooey Deschenal plays on New Girl, although that’s nice too. Liz Lemon is simply a nerd.

She is the kind of woman who isn’t afraid to hang a framed picture of a hamburger and fries in her office or wear a Princess Leia costume as her wedding dress. And us Lemonites will always be thankful for that.

And of course, there is Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy. His smoldering look, beautiful girlfriends, and wise business advice captivated both men and women alike. Despite, and maybe even because of, my immense love for 30 Rock, I was proud to know that the show was being canceled when Baldwin did not renew his contract. 30 Rock without Jack would be like a chocolate chip cookie without the chocolate chips, or The Office without Michael Scott – and we all know how that turned out.

Yet even with Jack Donaghy on board, I must admit that this season has been difficult for me. There were times where it was so ridiculous that it lost the reality it was grounded on. It may have been the looming notion that the writers and audience knew the end was near, or they simply had done so much already that the only way to go was to go weird.

The series finale may have been my favorite episode of the season. The entire hour-long episode was the characters struggling to say goodbye, but it was also full of self-referential material that made it that much harder to cry because of my laughter.

It brought back old characters including Jack’s girlfriends Nancy and Elisa, the director of the Gossip Girl episode that Jenna was in during season four, Kathy Geiss, and Conan. We saw Liddy, Jack’s daughter, who has been absent during the majority of the season, the other girl writer spoke, and Lutz finally was able to order the cast Blimpie’s for lunch. Although this season has been strange, the series finale seemed to end the show perfectly. Liz has children and is still working in television, Jack has a brilliant idea better than his original Trivection oven, Kenneth is president, Tracy’s dad came back from buying cigarettes, and Jenna gave a rousing rendition of “Rural Juror.”

And of course, the last scene solidifies the rumors of Kenneth living forever when he is seen agelessly continuing as president in the future.

And now, if you will allow me, I would like to take you back into a time before season seven.

I would like to reminisce on my favorite 30 Rock moments in a few run on sentences before bidding the show an official farewell.

I will never forget when Jenna wasn’t crazy in the first season, the time Liz Lemon had “another successful interaction with a man,” or when she was putting on her night cheese.

We must remember Floyd and Liz’s relationship, the amazing plane scene with Carole, the cappuccino machine Tracy brought to work, when Toofer found out his relatives were Confederates, when Frank was living with Liz, every Colleen moment, Gavin Volure, the fact that Donald Glover was a writer for 30 Rock, Bitch Hunter, Pete’s push pin release, the time Kenneth sang “Midnight Train to Georgia” and Gladys Knight made an appearance, the otter that looked like Tracy, all of Frank’s hats, anytime Brian Williams was on the show, Jack’s way of grieving for Don Geiss, Drew Baird’s hooks-for-hands, Paul when he dresses as Jenna, Jenna’s rage stroke, when James Franco had a thing with Liz Lemon, when Liz (thought she met) Oprah, Meatcat, and, of course, anytime Liz Lemon ate food.

It has been an amazing seven years, and 30 Rock will never be forgotten. It has been called “TV’s smartest sitcom” by Rolling Stone, nominated for 145 awards, and won 39 to date.

But, more importantly, it has sustained an audience that has loved it through and through. To all of my other Lemonites out there, it may have finally hit me. With this sad feeling settling in my gut, I have just one word for you:

Blurgh!

And with that, shut it down.