While Nobody Was Looking, 30 Rock (Sort of) Returned to TV

Jane Krakowski and Jack McBrayer reprised their beloved roles for new commercials

By Chris Harnick May 25, 2016 3:31 PMTags
30 Rock, Tina Fey, Jack McBrayer, Jane Krakowski, Alec Baldwin, Tracy MorganArt Streiber/NBC

When you weren't looking, Verizon resurrected 30 Rock. Sort of.

Yes, there is some new content in the form of two commercials featuring everybody's favorite borderline (or is she 100 percent?) sociopath sketch comedy star Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) and the ever-loyal Kenneth Parcel (Jack McBrayer), the page for the fictional TGS With Tracy Jordan.

The two, along with Judah Friedlander as Frank, appear in two new spots promoting Verizon and its streaming network. According to AdWeek, the agency behind the commercials, Wieden + Kennedy, got a lot of the show's original crew to rebuild the sets.

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One commercial features Jenna educating Kenneth on backdoor bragging. It's changed slightly from the original line in "Cooter." Gone is an American Idol reference and in its place is "musicals." The other features a problem everybody who has ever watched something on the Internet is all too familiar with: delayed picture and sound with bad streaming.

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Take a peek at the commercials and travel back to the wondrous time of 2006-2013 when 30 Rock was still on the air. Still longing for the days of Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) and Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin)? 30 Rock is streaming in its entirety on Netflix, as is Fey's Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, which also stars Krakowski. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt also features a number of nods to 30 Rock, including Titus' (Tituss Burgess) construction worker boyfriend Mikey (Mike Carlsen) and a drug store worker named LaDonica.

Watch: Jane Krakowski's "Unbreakable" Character Based on Who?
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