Jack falls for a congresswoman he meets at a cocktail party and despite the fact that they hold opposite views, the couple agrees to put politics aside and have a secret affair. Meanwhile, Liz believes her Middle Eastern neighbor to be a terrorist and tips off Homeland Security, creating a big mess.
30 Rock fires 55 jokes in 22 minutes—a 2.91-per-minute velocity peak for Season 2.
Directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller · Written by Kay Cannon, Tina Fey
WAR
135.5
Wins Above Replacement
“Somebody to Love” ranks #1 of 138 30 Rock episodes on the Humor Index, scoring 100.0 — Elite. The episode packs 79 scored jokes at 4.2 per minute, averaging 7.8 on craft and 7.6 on impact, with Jack landing the most laughs. Every joke is ranked below with its individual craft and impact scores.
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Top Jokes
Tracy: Tell her you want her to donate her body to science, and you are science.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Jack: You know, I thought you made love like an ugly girl. So present, so grateful.
Jack Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Kenneth: We Parcells are neither wealthy nor circumcised, but we are proud.
Kenneth Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch C.C. · Jack: In 1998, I got shot in the face by my neighbor's dog. / Oh, C.C., I'm so— wait, what?
C.C. Jack Setup/Punchline Misdirection ★ Rewatch Liz: Remember, I asked that black guy if he had seen Sideways?
Liz Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch All Jokes — 79 analyzed
Show all ↓ Hide ↑ Tracy: Somebody on my block is making waffles, and it's makin' me horny!
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist Jack · Liz: Don't panic, Lemon. It's probably not a chemical attack. / What do you mean 'probably'?
Jack Liz Deadpan/Understatement Setup/Punchline Jack: It's probably just a strange wind pattern coming off those factories in Staten Island, where food flavors are made.
Jack Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy Jack · Liz: I don't think it's Northrax. / What's Northrax? / It's a chemical agent we sold to the Saudis in the 1980s. It smells exactly like maple syrup. But I don't think this is it. / Well, how do you know? / Because Northrax kills you within ten seconds.
Jack Liz Setup/Punchline Dark/Subversive Escalation ★ Rewatch Jack · Barber: Make me look like this. / Right, like that's a stretch.
Jack: After all, your hair is your head suit.
Jack Character Comedy Absurdist Liz · Jack: Um, I don't think he's real. / Oh, I assure you, Lemon, John McCain is very real.
Jack · Unnamed Conservative: When it comes to hair, no one is more bitchy than conservative males. / Good lord, Donaghy. Did you comb your hair with a chicken bone?
Liz: Don't get peer pressured into invading Iran.
Liz Irony/Sarcasm Dark/Subversive Jack: Sheinhardt Wig Company pin — 'NOT POISONING RIVERS SINCE 1997' on the back
Jack Visual Gag Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch Kenneth: Sweet peaches! What have I done? / ...they must have slipped out the bottom.
Kenneth Character Comedy Physical/Slapstick Kenneth: Uncle Butch was right. I'm just a stupid country bumpkin with great skin and soft hands.
Kenneth Character Comedy Misdirection Liz: All right! My prescription shampoo!
Liz Character Comedy Reaction Beat Liz · Raheem: Liz opens door to neighbor; reaction beat — she clearly finds him attractive and is instantly awkward and flustered
Liz: Raheem. That's-- that's my mother's name. / No, it-- no, I'm just kidding.
Liz Character Comedy Awkward Silence Liz · Pete: He's weird. He wouldn't shake my hand. And I think it's because I'm a woman. / And get this — he's got maps all over his walls. / Maps. / Maps?
Pete · Liz: You mean like that one? / That's different, that's -- that's an antique. And I'm a white lady.
Pete Liz Irony/Sarcasm Character Comedy Liz: Remember, I asked that black guy if he had seen Sideways?
Liz Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch Liz: I don't want to sound racist, but that pita pocket might be a terrorist.
Liz Irony/Sarcasm Character Comedy Jack · C.C.: Whiskey, straight up. / I'll have a white rum with diet ginger ale and a splash of lime. / Wow, I never would have pegged you for a University of Tennessee sorority girl.
Waiter/Kenneth · Jack: Sir, here's your Nancy Drew. / For men, it's called a Hardy Boy.
Kenneth · Tracy: Very low, sir. Very low. / I lost something real important. / [Kenneth starts yelling] Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants!
Tracy: Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants! Pants!
Tracy Character Comedy Escalation Tracy's Team · Kenneth: Were you chafing again, Tray? / Yes, obvious twins.
Kenneth: And I tried looking in the last place you'd ever expect. And, no, Mr. Donaghy's pants are not in the ladies' room at that laser tag place on 12th Avenue.
Kenneth Absurdist Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy: Well, why don't you just do like I do and sell your autograph at the car show?
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist Kenneth: Kenneth's fundraising montage — singing 'What the World Needs Now Is Love' while performing various stunts/acts for money
Kenneth Visual Gag Physical/Slapstick Liz: 'What the what?' — Liz's reaction to the Sheinhardt wig PR campaign propaganda on TV
Liz Reaction Beat Character Comedy Sheinhardt PR propaganda sequence: 'IF YOU SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING' / 'IF YOU SUSPECT ANYTHING, DO EVERYTHING' / 'WE DON'T POISON THE WORLD. TERRORISTS DO.'
Visual Gag Dark/Subversive Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch
Jack · C.C.: And thank you for letting me try the thing I tried. I'm... sorry I dropped you. / Oh, no, it was great. I mean, who knew that ottoman had wheels, right?
Jack C.C. Setup/Punchline Cringe/Discomfort Jack · C.C.: You didn't tell me you're a congresswoman! / I just ended my first year. / [cutaway to TV showing her attacking Sheinhardt]
Jack C.C. Irony/Sarcasm Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch C.C.: The Sheinhardt Wig Company has dumped thousands of gallons of Auburn Fantasy Dye #260 into the Chickotagua River, turning the children of Chickotagua orange.
C.C. Absurdist Dark/Subversive Liz · Jack: I think my middle eastern neighbor is a terrorist, and I don't know what to do. / That's ridiculous, Lemon. Some of our greatest patriots have been of Middle Eastern descent. And I'm appalled to hear you engage in racial profiling like that. [beat] I'm kidding. Be an American — call it in.
Liz Jack Misdirection Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Jack · Liz: If a bleeding heart liberal like you has any suspicions... / I know, right?
Jack Liz Irony/Sarcasm Character Comedy Jack · C.C.: Nice ring tone, Jack. / That's not my ring tone. I hate that San Francisco sound. / How am I calling myself?
Jack · C.C.: These Verizon Wireless phones are just so popular. I accidentally grabbed one belonging to an acquaintance. / Well, sure, 'cause that Verizon Wireless service is just unbeatable. I mean, if I saw a phone like that on TV, I would be like, 'Where is my nearest retailer so I can...get one?'
Jack C.C. Meta/Self-Referential Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch Kenneth: Can we have our money now? / Come on... big money.
Kenneth Visual Gag Physical/Slapstick Tracy's Team: This ketchup expired two years ago. / Dude, how much would I have to pay you to eat this whole bottle?
Jack: God, I wanna kiss you on the mouth to stop you from saying such ridiculous things.
Jack Setup/Punchline Character Comedy Jack · C.C.: They have no other documented health problems, you know. / They're ORANGE!
Jack C.C. Setup/Punchline Dark/Subversive Callback C.C. · Jack: In 1998, I got shot in the face by my neighbor's dog. / Oh, C.C., I'm so— wait, what?
C.C. Jack Setup/Punchline Misdirection ★ Rewatch C.C.: My neighbor had a Riverton hunting rifle with a faulty trigger safety. One day, his jack russell terrier started chewing the area, the gun went off, and shot me in the face.
C.C. Absurdist Escalation Callback C.C.: So I did what was right: I sued Riverton, my neighbor, and the dog.
C.C. Absurdist Setup/Punchline C.C.: After six reconstructive surgeries, I'm much better-looking now than I used to be. Plus, they made a Lifetime movie about me.
C.C. Dark/Subversive Deadpan/Understatement Tonight on Lifetime: Candace Van Der Shark stars as Celeste Cunningham — 'A Dog Took My Face and Gave Me a Better Face to Change the World: The Celeste Cunningham Story'
Visual Gag Absurdist ★ Rewatch Callback
Jack: You know, I thought you made love like an ugly girl. So present, so grateful.
Jack Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy · Jack: I've had plenty of women mad at me the morning after. Just don't let her light your sneakers on fire in the bathtub. / Oh, she would never do that, Tracy. She's a very special woman.
Tracy: Oh, I get it: Romeo and Juliet. Capulets and Romulans.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist Tracy: Mm-hmm, I've been there. I'm Black, she's white. I'm Black, she's light-skinned Black. I'm Black, she's 17.
Tracy Dark/Subversive Escalation Character Comedy Jack: I don't care if she is beautiful, brilliant, and she does it like her dad's a minister.
Jack Character Comedy Setup/Punchline Kenneth: We Parcells are neither wealthy nor circumcised, but we are proud.
Kenneth Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Tracy's Team · Kenneth: Every night after dinner, Lutz falls asleep on the couch in our office. [implied: Kenneth is about to do something humiliating to the sleeping Lutz for money]
Pete: He just completed some big project he's been working on. Soon everyone will know the name Raheem Haddad.
Pete Misdirection Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Liz · Homeland Security Agent: Hi, I'm not sure, but— / Who is he, and where can we find him?
C.C. · Neighbor · Neighbor's wife: Get the gun away from the dog! / Hey, hon, have you seen my hunting rifle? / Last time I saw it... the dog had it. / What is wrong with you people?
Young C.C.: I'm going to get into politics!
Kenneth · Tracy's Team: Ape attack! / Ape attack. / Smarts! / Are you okay? / Okay, that went too far.
Tracy's Team · Kenneth: You know that old lady in accounting who thinks you're her husband who died in the war? / What about her?
Kenneth: I do believe in destiny. And I know that I should hate you, but I can't. I love you. And I don't care what people say. We were meant to be in each other's lives. [cut to reveal it's Kenneth talking to the pants]
Kenneth Misdirection Visual Gag ★ Rewatch Callback Pete · Jack: Some dudes took Raheem last night. / Sounds like an American hero saw something and said something.
Pete Jack Irony/Sarcasm Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Callback Jack · Pete: You seem to be defending Raheem an awful lot. I'd hate to have to make another phone call. / No, we're cool. Uh, I renounce Raheem. Raheem's a bad guy. USA number one!
Jack · Tracy: I've gotta go somewhere, and I can't be seen, and cabs don't go there. / Sure, where is it? / Clinton's office in Harlem. / I know where that building is. I get my Jamaican meat pies there.
Liz · Raheem: Note from Raheem found in package: 'I know you are in the media. Please get this in the right hands. — Raheem' [followed by the Amazing Race audition tape revelation]
Liz Raheem Misdirection Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Raheem: I am Raheem Haddad. And this is my brother Hakim. And these are the reasons you should choose us to be the next contestants on The Amazing Race!
Raheem Setup/Punchline Misdirection ★ Rewatch Callback Raheem: We love to travel. Look at all the places we have been: Toronto, Munich, London, the Hoover Dam, the Cleve.
Raheem Absurdist Deadpan/Understatement Kenneth · Jonathan: Jonathan... I purchased a replacement pair of Mr. Donaghy's pants. / You must love him as much as I do.
Tracy: Tell her you want your privates and her privates to do a high-five.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist Tracy: Tell her her butt looks like an apple and you wanna take a bite.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist Tracy: Tell her she's got some tig ol' biddies like the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders.
Tracy Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun Tracy: Tell her you want her to donate her body to science, and you are science.
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Jack: How you wanted to brush my hair as foreplay. How you made me that western omelet at 4:00 A.M.
Jack Character Comedy Setup/Punchline Jack: We'll ignore our differences till the sex goes bad, then we'll... walk away bitter and angry.
Jack Dark/Subversive Character Comedy Tracy: Stop eating people's old French fries, pigeon. Have some self-respect. Don't you know you can fly?
Tracy Character Comedy Absurdist ★ Rewatch Jack: What do you say we go find a spot and defile this place?
Jack Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm Raheem · Liz: They put electrodes on my testicles, Liz. / Who did? / Oh, you... remembered my name.
Raheem Liz Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Raheem: America's government shocked my nuts.
Raheem Dark/Subversive Deadpan/Understatement Raheem: They say, 'Raheem... why you no shake hands?' / I say, 'Because I don't want sickness before Amazing Race.' / They say, 'Raheem, why all the trips to the airport?' / I say, 'Because I'm practicing for the Amazing Race!'
Raheem Callback Setup/Punchline ★ Rewatch Callback Raheem · Liz: I have so much anger inside. I want to do something spectacular with it. / Northrax.
Raheem Liz Callback Misdirection ★ Rewatch Callback Liz's neighbor · Liz · Jack: Hey! I made waffles. / Thank god. / Yeah.
