30 Rock

Two seasons in, we’re used to Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt playing the celebrity game. Everyone from Lisa Kudrow to Ice-T has put in the odd appearance, and Season 3 will reach 30 Rock-heights of famous faces, according to mutual star Jane Krakowski.

Tina Fey’s big SNL return alongside Amy Poehler virtually guaranteed that the duo would reprise their iconic roles as Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton, but less assured was that Palin herself would take bizarre potshots at Fey in a fully-formed 30 Rock parody of her own. Won’t you gaze into the abyss with us, or at least wrap your head around John McCain as Jack Donaghy?

30 Rock was borne of Tina Fey‘s real-life experiences working as a head writer for SNL, including those more frequently challenging than fulfilling. So too was the slur hurled in “The C Word” based on a real SNL cast member, now revealed by Fey herself as former Weekend Update host Colin Quinn.

The state of NBC comedy has grown increasingly dim over the years, a point magnified with the NBC-deported Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’s recent Emmy nominations, but the network is making some strides back to the top. Not only has the peacock ordered a new comedy from Parks and Rec creator Mike Schur, but so too given a pilot commitment to 30 Rock duo Tina Fey and Robert Carlock’s new series.

While it bears the distinctive markings of a show that would be right at home in that immortal two-hour stretch of comedy magic, it’s not on NBC. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt may be the latest series to debut on the ever-growing, all-consuming streaming behemoth that is Netflix, but its goofy spirit and whimsical characters feel like they could only exist because of what aired before ... on NBC. Specifically: it’s no coincidence that this show shares so many writers, directors and producers with 30 Rock.

Seth Meyers' 'Late Night' just recently unveiled its Second Chance Theatre, an attempt to let former 'SNL' performers have a venue to show off beloved sketches that never made it to the air on the venerable comedy show. Meyers, however, is not the only former 'SNL' head writer to recycle old material -- Tina Fey did it, too!

ABC's monster Emmy-gobbler 'Modern Family' has never had difficulty reeling in celebrity guests, but its latest are equal parts welcome and surprising. 'Now You See Me' and 'The Social Network' star Jesse Eisenberg will drop by for an upcoming episode, along with '30 Rock' gem Jane Krakowski, and John Benjamin Hickey.

We'd known post '30 Rock' that NBC would stay in business with Tina Fey to develop new comedies, but today the network shows its surprising commitment. NBC has given a straight-to-series order to a new female-driven comedy led by 'The Office' star Ellie Kemper, following the tale of a doomsday-cult dropout in 'Tooken.'

The other day we found out Tina Fey would return to TV in spirit by producing a new NBC sitcom about a woman returning to her roots, but it would seem FOX has done the '30 Rock' creator and star one better. The network has given another collegiate comedy under Fey's producing watch a straight-to-series order, but will the former 'SNL' writer have any role on the show itself?

Among the many new pilots to debut this fall, 'SNL' vet Andy Samberg's 'Parks and Recreation'-style cop comedy 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' has attracted the most comedy heat by far. The new single camera series from 'Parks' producers Michael Schur and Dan Goor has just added another famous po-po to its ranks, tasking '30 Rock,' 'Law & Order: SVU' and 'Rescue Me' vet Dean Winters to its ranks, but wil