'30 Rock' Rocks in Season 3 Premiere

Were you as psyched as I was last night for the -- at last! -- return of 30 Rock?! Of course, the season "premiere" actually premiered a week ago online. So you probably already caught it, as I did. But it was still so wonderful to see Tina Fey and company back on my television HD channel. This lady's got serious clout. The guest stars for this season include Steve Martin, Jennifer Aniston, and Oprah! Them's some big fish in that pond.

But what did you think of the first episode of season three? I thought the writing was top-notch, as always; Fey and her crew are especially clever when it comes to the throw-away lines, those little asides that play on culture, current events, or even language itself. My fave from last night: "Paid his way through Princeton by working the day shift at that graveyard and the graveyard shift at the Day's Inn." Brilliant!

It was also fun to see more of Cathy Geiss, played by the enormously expressive Marceline Hugot, who hasn't even had lines until now. Did you know Hugot was in Working Girl? Her movie credits also include To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar, United 93, Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus, The Hoax, and Be Kind Rewind. She's been on TV in Ed, Law & Order, and Sex in the City! This is a working actor who's definitely flown under the radar while building a super solid career.

And finally, the Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy saga! Fey has said that the characters have a sexual tension that will most likely never be acted upon, so we shouldn't hold our breaths for that. It got me thinking about some of my other favorite television couples whose tension drove so much plot and audience anticipation. My all-time fave is Maggie O'Connell and Joel Fleischman from Northern Exposure  -- how I hoped for years that those two would get together!

What are some other of the greatest will-they-or-won't-they couples?

*Ross and Rachel: Didn't we all know, deep down, that these Friends were going to end up together? No writer or executive producer worth his salt in ratings would leave us heartbroken! But this hit sitcom somehow kept us guessing until the very end.

*Sam and Diane: Cheers to this immortal TV couple, whose entire affair walked that delicate, often hilarious, line between love and hate.

*Carrie and Big: This one's had more breakups and makeups and disasters than I care to recall...and, sigh, there might be more to come.

But I don't think anything romantic is going to befall our Liz and Jack. That would be too predictable!

--Anna Bengel