Dennis becomes a New York City celebrity after jumping in front of a train and saving someone who fell on the tracks. Meanwhile, Jack desperately tries to persuade Tracy to become the celebrity face of the Republican Party.
Subway setting fuels 66 jokes in 24 minutes, anchoring character comedy to absurdist New York observations.
Directed by Don Scardino · Written by Jack Burditt, Robert Carlock
WAR
55.1
Wins Above Replacement
“Subway Hero” ranks #120 of 138 30 Rock episodes on the Humor Index, scoring 79.6 — Elite. The episode packs 66 scored jokes at 2.7 per minute, averaging 7.2 on craft and 6.5 on impact, with Dennis landing the most laughs. Every joke is ranked below with its individual craft and impact scores.
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Top Jokes
Bucky: except one gigantic lesbian. / Who is Conan O'Brien, and why is she so sad?
Bucky Setup/Punchline Observational ★ Rewatch Jack: My cologne is distilled from the bilge water of Rupert Murdoch's yacht.
Jack Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Dennis: All I could think about was Derek Jeter. And it was like, check this out, Jeter, you think you're better than me?
Dennis Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Bucky: And an inside monogrammed pocket, you know, for your opium pipe and your switchblade.
Bucky Escalation Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Jenna: Love is wearing makeup to bed and going downstairs to the Burger King to poop, and hiding alcohol in perfume bottles.
Jenna Character Comedy Escalation ★ Rewatch All Jokes — 66 analyzed
Show all ↓ Hide ↑ Jack: So it doesn't turn into another giant sausage fest.
Jack Wordplay/Pun Character Comedy Liz: What's the Committee to Reinvade Vietnam?
Liz Absurdist Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Jack: No, C. Nor and I had a falling-out after I switched to another dojo.
Jack Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Liz: Also I'm saving that money for new humidifiers. The same model that's keeping Larry King alive.
Liz Observational Dark/Subversive Liz: Food network doesn't have a news show.
Liz Character Comedy Observational Dennis: Thank you, mayor Bloomberger.
Dennis Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun Random person: Stern rules! Baba booey!
Jack · Dennis: And Dateline predator. / Exonerated Dateline predator.
Dennis: Like the Giuliani campaign.
Dennis Observational Setup/Punchline Jack · Jonathan: when I say subway, you say hero. / - Subway. - Hero?
Dennis: We're like Ross and Rachel, but just not gay.
Dennis Character Comedy Observational Dennis: She told me that her last boyfriend was Asian. And that crap doesn't start until college.
Dennis Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Jonathan: He was a major tv star in the '40s, '50s and the fall of 1972
Jonathan Absurdist Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Kenneth: Son of a married couple, Bucky Bright!
Kenneth Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun ★ Rewatch Kenneth: Choosing is a sin, so I always just write in the lord's name.
Jack: That's Republican-- we count those.
Jack Observational Deadpan/Understatement Bucky: we didn't have any of those shirts with words on 'em, or dungarees, or anything like that
Bucky: And an inside monogrammed pocket, you know, for your opium pipe and your switchblade.
Bucky Escalation Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Liz: 400% of my sodium? I should not be eating these.
Liz Character Comedy Observational Jack: the bravest New Yorker since Bernie Goetz
Jack Dark/Subversive Observational Dennis: It's the Stanley cup, honey. It's hockey's ultimate prize. And me and it, we're teaming up to fight illiteracy.
Dennis Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Unnamed character: I've watched seven different people die in subway stations.
Dennis: All I could think about was Derek Jeter. And it was like, check this out, Jeter, you think you're better than me?
Dennis Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Dennis: They should call this thing 'The Weeks.'
Dennis Observational Setup/Punchline Liz: I only have Spanish delis in my neighborhood.
Liz Character Comedy Observational Tracy: Does hot support cold? Does rain support the earth?
Tracy Absurdist Character Comedy Tracy: If I paid taxes, I sure would.
Tracy Character Comedy Observational Tracy · Dotcom: Lincoln was a Republican? / Actually, today's Republican party would be unrecognizable to Lincoln.
Jack · Dotcom: Dotcom, this need you have to be the smartest guy in the room is... off-putting. / I guess that's why I'm still single.
Bucky: No, no, no, two guys'd get-- hey, my old dressing room.
Bucky Visual Gag Reaction Beat Bucky: For five bucks I will.
Dennis: What, are you gearing up for swimsuit season?
Bucky: We used to call this 'the jew room.'
Bucky Dark/Subversive Cringe/Discomfort Liz: because this Indian guy that he was working for...
Liz Escalation Character Comedy Bucky: except one gigantic lesbian. / Who is Conan O'Brien, and why is she so sad?
Bucky Setup/Punchline Observational ★ Rewatch Tracy: So many different kind of buckets I wanted to own. Buckets.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Sammy Davis Jr.: Black, Jewish, one eye, a white wife. It was a big tent back then, Tracy.
Dennis: Social conservative, fiscal liberal.
Dennis Character Comedy Observational Dennis: I almost joined the marines once.
Dennis Character Comedy Setup/Punchline Jenna · Liz: Warming your jeans in the morning? / That's right, and it feels good.
Jenna Liz Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Jack: My cologne is distilled from the bilge water of Rupert Murdoch's yacht.
Jack Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Dennis: Not thinking is what makes America great.
Dennis Observational Character Comedy Dennis: Like a killer whale going nuts on his trainer at sea world.
Dennis Setup/Punchline Dark/Subversive Jenna: Love is wearing makeup to bed and going downstairs to the Burger King to poop, and hiding alcohol in perfume bottles.
Jenna Character Comedy Escalation ★ Rewatch Jenna: That's exactly what they say it's like when you freeze to death.
Jenna Dark/Subversive Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Bucky: You wanted to do something private with another man, it wasn't gay. No, it was just two men celebrating each other's strength.
Bucky Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Liz: That was never your problem.
Liz Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy Liz: That was never your problem.
Liz Character Comedy Deadpan/Understatement Dennis: You know a stripper offered to give me a squeezer last night. A white stripper.
Dennis Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort Tracy · Jack: My fellow blackmericans-- / Can I just say black Americans? There's no such thing as blackmericans.
Tracy: To build a 200 foot high wall to keep Mexico out. And he also hated the estate tax.
Tracy Absurdist Character Comedy Tracy: To build a 200 foot high wall to keep Mexico out. And he also hated the estate tax.
Tracy Observational Absurdist Tracy: black people, don't vote. Just don't do it. In the amount of time it'd take for you to vote, you could play three games of pool.
Tracy Absurdist Character Comedy Tracy: I'm Tracy Jordan, and I improve this message.
Tracy Wordplay/Pun Character Comedy Jack: Winston dialed 911 with his beak and said fire, but only because he didn't know the word for rape.
Jack Dark/Subversive Escalation ★ Rewatch Jack: That's why G.E.'s going to be introducing the pocket deep fryer.
Jack Absurdist Character Comedy Bucky: Well, when we sobered up, we realized we'd eaten the peacock and we put the ham in pat weaver's office.
Bucky: If you're gonna make something beautiful, you gotta make a mess of it first.
Bucky Character Comedy Observational Kenneth: Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to Chinatown to pick up some human growth hormones so that Mr. Jordan's tigers don't realize that he's aging
Kenneth Absurdist Escalation ★ Rewatch Dennis: The mighty ducks are mad at me because I left the Stanley cup on a water taxi.
Dennis Callback Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Callback Bucky: Boy, that's one mouthy sandwich girl, isn't it?
Bucky Callback Character Comedy Callback Liz: It's still daytime. And we're inside.
Liz Deadpan/Understatement Observational Dennis: Yeah, it's totally biased against the Irish, you know.
Dennis Character Comedy Observational Liz: If reality TV has taught us anything, it's that you can't keep people with no shame down.
Liz Observational Character Comedy Dennis: Ah, damn, it's the wrong track. It's stupid express.
Dennis Physical/Slapstick Character Comedy Dennis: You'll be back, Liz Lemon. You'll be back. / You'll be back, dummy.
Dennis Character Comedy Escalation 