'30 Rock' just hitting its stride

On the basis of the third season premiere, I can't say for sure that it will. "30 Rock" proudly has a wide streak of absurdity running through its plotlines and characterizations (and has since the first episode), while the "SNL" political sketches are more relatively straightforward.

I must admit, though, that I have a weakness for off-kilter humor, especially when it's done skillfully. So the episode was another laugh-out-loud half-hour as Fey's Liz Lemon, the head writer of a fictional NBC sketch comedy series, goes to almost superhuman lengths to keep her odd co-workers from ruining her interview with an adoption agency's representative, played by Megan Mullally, while Alec Baldwin's Jack comes back to New York on a mission to reclaim his job. It's a brisk, razor-sharp piece of comedy, but I expected nothing less from a show that I believe has only begun to hit its creative stride.

Four stars (out of four).

Meanwhile, around the dial …

"Legend of the Seeker" is a syndicated fantasy-action series from executive producers Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert -- the team behind "Hercules" and "Xena," and it's premiering this weekend on various stations around the country. (Most viewers in the McCook area can find it airing on cable; WGN America broadcasts it Saturdays at 4 p.m.) Shooting on-location in New Zealand means there's some gorgeous scenery, and it's also clear that there is more money invested in post-production, because the special effects are much improved over Raimi and Tapert's previous TV efforts. I just wish the script was smarter; the dialogue has a tendency to fall into "been there, said that" territory. Ultimately the show -- based on a very successful series of fantasy novels by Terry Goodkind, which I admit I have not read -- stands or falls on the viewer's willingness to give their imagination over to it. Mine's still on the fence, but it hasn't turned away yet.

Two and a half stars.