The Bubble

"The Bubble" is the fifteenth episode of the third season of the American television series 30 Rock. It was written by series' creator Tina Fey and directed by Tricia Brock. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on March 19, 2009. Jon Hamm and Bobb'e J. Thompson guest star in this episode, and there are cameo appearances by Calvin Klein and Meredith Vieira. In the episode, Liz Lemon (Fey) discovers that her boyfriend Drew (Hamm) lives in a "bubble" because of his good looks, and has never experienced many of the unpleasant phenomena in life. At the same time, Tracy Jordan (Tracy Morgan) decides to leave the fictitious sketch comedy show The Girlie Show with Tracy Jordan (TGS) because he no longer needs the money, and Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) decides to cut her hair as a publicity stunt. "The Bubble" received generally positive reviews. According to the Nielsen ratings system, it was watched by 7 million households during its original broadcast. For their performances in this episode, Hamm and Jack McBrayerthe latter playing Kenneth Parcellreceived Primetime Emmy Award nominations in the categories for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series and Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, respectively. Plot The episode begins with Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) noticing that people treat her boyfriend, Drew Baird (Jon Hamm), differently because of his good looks. After watching a traffic cop, (Frank Ridley) rip up a ticket for Drew, and fashion designer Calvin Klein offering him a job as an underwear model, Liz brings the matter up with her boss, Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin), who tells her that Drew is in "the bubble". Jack tells Liz that she should stay with Drew and enjoy the perks of the bubble, but Liz begins to realize that living in the bubble has left Drew without some essential skills. After discovering that Drew cannot perform the Heimlich maneuver, even though he is a doctor, and cannot play tennis, despite the fact that he worked as a tennis coach, Liz decides that she has to leave Drew, and ends their relationship.