30 Rock ended its seven-season run on its own terms. Despite the near-constant threat of cancellation, Tina Fey and the rest of the team behind 30 Rock chose when it was time to move on. Giving the show a natural ending meant the series could wrap up its major characters' arcs. True to form, Liz Lemon had to navigate the chaos her co-workers created to get to 30 Rock's final episode, "Last Lunch."
In a bit of meta-humor, 30 Rock closed by canceling its show-within-a-show, TGS, the Saturday Night Live-esque variety show that Liz ran. Liz returned to produce a final episode at the urging of NBC page turned network head, Kenneth Parcell.
Parcell needed one more episode of TGS to keep a 30 million dollar clause in star Tracy Jordan's contract from triggering if the show didn't produce 150 episodes. It was the "final showdown" between Liz and the show's star/perpetual headache. However, Tracy enlisted weatherman Al Roker in his attempt to cancel the last TGS broadcast.
Tracy "bribed" Roker with the threat of hosting a charity gala at the hospital his wife was on the board of to report a "snowicane" was going to hit the exact spot where TGS filmed. When Liz saw through that, he responded by no-showing the final taping. Liz found out he'd retreated to Dark Sensations, the strip club where they first met in the pilot episode.
Liz learned that Tracy's attempt to sabotage the last TGS wasn't about money. He had severe abandonment issues due to his father leaving him as a child and didn't want to say goodbye to his work friends. She convinced him to show up through brutal honesty, admitting that she cared about him in spite of his antics but probably wouldn't stay in touch after the show ended.
While all of that was going on, Liz was also dealing with a falling out with her friend/mentor Jack Donaghy. Workaholic Jack blamed Liz for making him care about something other than business for the first time in his life, leaving him unfulfilled in spite of becoming the head of Kabletown. Liz was suffering from the opposite problem. Her attempts to be a stay-at-home mom were stymied by her desire to work. The duo parted, deciding that it would have been better if their relationship had never been more than employee and boss. Jack's attempts to reconcile were rebuffed by an all-business Liz.
After a chat with Jenna Maroney about Liz's tendency to hold grudges left him in tears, Jack began acting distraught at the prospect of the show ending before he could patch things up with Liz. Liz's determination to freeze Jack out faltered when TGS producer Pete's constant references to faking his own death and Jack's comment that he'd attend the finale "in spirit" convinced her that Jack was going to commit suicide.
Her suspicions appeared to be confirmed when Jack left her a video suicide note, blaming her for pushing him over the edge. Liz tracked Jack down and learned the video was a ruse. Jack wanted Liz to contemplate a life without him. Jack tried to tell Liz he loved her while thumbing his nose at a romance between them one last time before she cut him off and said it herself. He planned to go on a months-long boat trip for inspiration but had an epiphany about creating clear dishwashers before he got out of the harbor.
An epilogue showed where everyone wound up after TGS ended. Pete's new life halted when his wife Paula tracked him down. Liz became a producer on Grizz and Herz, a sitcom starring a member of Tracy's entourage. She and Tracy stayed in touch, which is how she learned his father had finally returned from getting cigarettes. Jenna delivered a heart-felt acceptance speech of a Tony Award she was attempting to steal. Jack's clear dishwasher idea got him his dream job; CEO of GE.
The final scene of the series combined references to Star Wars and St. Elsewhere. An immortal Kenneth listened to Liz's great-granddaughter pitch a series about Liz's time working on TGS while holding a snow globe, with flying cars from The Empire Strikes Back zipping by in the background. The scene perfectly encapsulates the tightrope the show walked, balancing heartfelt character moments with utter absurdity. 30 Rock stayed true to itself throughout its run and went out on its own terms, a rarity for network sitcoms.