Liz and Avery try to persuade Jack to disclose two secrets he's been hiding from his mother, who visits for the holidays. Then, Liz tries to repair Jenna's relationship with Paul; and Tracy tries to block his film's release because it undermines his newly invented serious persona.
Holiday chaos sustains 88.5 score via relentless character escalation and absurdist tangents.
Directed by John Riggi · Written by Tracey Wigfield
WAR
83.2
Wins Above Replacement
“Christmas Attack Zone” ranks #33 of 138 30 Rock episodes on the Humor Index, scoring 88.5 — Elite. The episode packs 65 scored jokes at 2.7 per minute, averaging 7.4 on craft and 7.2 on impact, with Liz landing the most laughs. Every joke is ranked below with its individual craft and impact scores.
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Top Jokes
Colleen: I had a couple of rich men die on top of me.
Colleen Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Paul · Jenna: You dress as Natalie Portman from the movie Black Swan, and I dress as former Pittsburgh Steelers Wide Receiver and Pennsylvania Gubernatorial Nominee Lynn Swann. We're two black swans.
Jack: But I once saw Colleen provoke a Buddhist monk into whipping a battery at her.
Jack Escalation Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Colleen: Most people thought I was a hero for killing Lydia's parrot.
Colleen Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: I once french-kissed a dog at a party to try to impress what turned out to be a very tall 12-year-old.
Liz Cringe/Discomfort Escalation ★ Rewatch All Jokes — 65 analyzed
Show all ↓ Hide ↑ Liz: You want to go to the Penn Station Kmart with me and then watch Tootsie?
Liz Absurdist Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: My aunt Linda is bringing her new boyfriend, who is neither her age nor her race. And her ex-husband will also be there with his date, alcoholism.
Liz Setup/Punchline Wordplay/Pun ★ Rewatch Liz: I swoop in the next day for presents and pie.
Liz Character Comedy Observational Jack · Liz: Because my youthful energy makes her feel young? No, because she views you as a peer she can complain with about how no one wears pantyhose any longer.
Jack Liz Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: Ah, how are we supposed to conceal our spider veins? Bare-legged at Christmas.
Liz Character Comedy Cringe/Discomfort ★ Rewatch Tracy: As an actor, it is my job to tell the truth, hold the mirror to humanity, and sell proactiv.
Tracy Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz · Jenna: Ever since Tracy got nominated for a Golden Globe, he thinks he's Sean Penn. Well, they have both had screaming fights with Wyclef Jean.
Liz Jenna Setup/Punchline Observational ★ Rewatch Jenna: Also replicas of the David urinate vodka.
Jenna Wordplay/Pun Visual Gag Liz · Jenna: The party or Paul? The party, Liz.
Liz Jenna Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Jack: Happy holidays is what terrorists say.
Jack Observational Character Comedy Liz: Oh, it's just Liz. Why do people always say that?
Liz Reaction Beat Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Jack: Avery is keeping her pregnancy a secret at work, so she's been carrying around large objects whenever she's in the building.
Jack Visual Gag Absurdist ★ Rewatch Avery: That's why I like dating older men. Their parents are usually dead or senile, so there's never an argument about the holidays.
Avery Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: I have been watching The Mentalist a lot lately, because my tv's on CBS, and I lost my remote. I think I've become a body-language expert.
Liz Absurdist Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: For instance, I can now tell that Jack wants to kill the person to his right.
Liz Observational Callback Callback Jack: We Donaghys believe that, when there's something at all delicate to talk about, it is best to suppress it until it erupts into a fistfight at a church barbecue.
Jack Character Comedy Escalation ★ Rewatch Liz: The symbol on the Jessup family crest is a knight refusing to talk about his feelings
Liz Visual Gag Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz Wordplay/Pun Character Comedy Callback Jack: Thanks, K-L-M-N-O-P.
Jack Running Gag Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy: Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to celebrate the life of Althea Chunk. Damn, that's funky. Obesity is killing the african-american community... With laughter.
Tracy Setup/Punchline Dark/Subversive Tracy: It's 67 minutes of me acting like a hilarious fool.
Tracy Irony/Sarcasm Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy · Kenneth: I had to go on Charlie Rose, Kenneth, Charlie Rose! Oh, that's horrible.
Tracy: From now on, the only movies Tracy Jordan makes are about the holocaust, Georgia O'Keeffe, or both.
Tracy Absurdist Escalation ★ Rewatch Colleen: I didn't care much for the gazpacho soup. I mean, where's the fun of sending it back because it isn't hot?
Colleen Character Comedy Observational ★ Rewatch Colleen: What are my chums at the death shore retirement community gonna say... When I tell them that my unmarried son has knocked up a protestant?
Colleen Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun ★ Rewatch Colleen: It should have gone to the other boy!
Colleen Escalation Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Colleen: Most people thought I was a hero for killing Lydia's parrot.
Colleen Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were a transvestite.
Liz Character Comedy Visual Gag Liz: The coverage preempted a tampon commercial she was in.
Liz Character Comedy Observational ★ Rewatch Paul: I don't think about kissing her or laughing with her or photographing her with just salamanders covering her nipples.
Paul Escalation Absurdist ★ Rewatch Restaurant Manager · Paul: You can't be on the floor without your roller skates, Rick. I'm not Rick.
Jack: Welcome to my Christmas Attack Zone.
Jack Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Liz: I could be sitting at the corner table at the Kmart Cafe right now.
Liz Callback Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Callback Jack: But I once saw Colleen provoke a Buddhist monk into whipping a battery at her.
Jack Escalation Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Milton: Oh, Jack, this is going to be the best winter's Eve light festival ever.
Milton Character Comedy Wordplay/Pun Milton · Liz: 'Joy, beautiful spark of the gods, daughter of Elysium.' And, Liz, you're already showing.
Milton: It's a girl! She'll be intuitive.
Milton Character Comedy Observational Milton · Avery · Jack: By the way, we have a tradition in my family where we let the child name itself. Oh, yeah, that's hippie nonsense. Absolutely not. Well, suit yourself, but my son Spider-Man turned out just fine.
Liz: I once french-kissed a dog at a party to try to impress what turned out to be a very tall 12-year-old.
Liz Cringe/Discomfort Escalation ★ Rewatch Jack · Liz: It was designed by M.C. Escher. These stairs are weird.
Jack Liz Visual Gag Absurdist ★ Rewatch Kenneth: I certainly wasn't going to pretend those trash cans were my parents.
Kenneth Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy: Russell Crowe is having an auction to benefit the victims of his own mood swings.
Tracy: In the Darfur region, the dead may be the lucky ones.
Tracy Dark/Subversive Character Comedy Kenneth: Except for Insulin, spironolactone, and bupropion, which I have for you whenever you're ready, sir.
Kenneth Deadpan/Understatement Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Avery: My gift to you is the feeling of superiority you'll have for the next two seconds.
Avery Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Avery: Because, you know, when you're pregnant, one bottle of wine a day, and that's it.
Avery Character Comedy Dark/Subversive Colleen: He got me a kidney... From Elvis Costello.
Colleen Escalation Absurdist ★ Rewatch Milton: Going on father-and-son habitat for humanity builds and road trips in my V.W. van.
Jenna: I want to eat shrimp off an old gay dressed as baby new year.
Jenna Absurdist Cringe/Discomfort ★ Rewatch Colleen: Welcome to my Christmas Attack Zone.
Colleen Callback Escalation ★ Rewatch Callback Tracy: Ladies of the battered women's shelter, please be quiet, a man is talking.
Tracy Cringe/Discomfort Dark/Subversive Tracy: You're gonna see poverty, drug abuse, and a bunch of babies having a hammer fight in a dumpster.
Tracy Escalation Absurdist ★ Rewatch Dot Com: Actually, he's behind you, Tracy. He rode over here with us. You talked to him the whole ride.
Dot Com Absurdist Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy: I give you The Chunks 2: A very chunky Christmas.
Tracy Character Comedy Callback Callback Colleen: I had a couple of rich men die on top of me.
Colleen Dark/Subversive Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Milton: Listen to me, damn it. I'm a doctor. Of history.
Milton Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Jack · Milton: In what emergency would you be necessary... If someone wanted to know whether the '60s were awesome or not? They were.
Jack Milton Setup/Punchline Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Colleen: Seems like people are back on my side, Jackie.
Colleen Character Comedy Dark/Subversive ★ Rewatch Paul · Jenna: You dress as Natalie Portman from the movie Black Swan, and I dress as former Pittsburgh Steelers Wide Receiver and Pennsylvania Gubernatorial Nominee Lynn Swann. We're two black swans.
Liz: I have a crush on the mentalist.
Liz Callback Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Callback Liz: I'm gonna go get a bus to white haven now, and I should be home just in time for aunt Linda to try to prove that she's sober by holding someone's baby while cooking.
Liz Character Comedy Observational ★ Rewatch Callback Jack: Just my mom and dad yelling at me together.
Jack Character Comedy Irony/Sarcasm ★ Rewatch Colleen: You insult your own intelligence.
Colleen: You are a war criminal. I hate to say it.
Colleen Escalation Character Comedy ★ Rewatch Tracy: And somebody needs to clean this table up. It's disgusting.
Tracy Character Comedy Deadpan/Understatement