NBC - green as my ass!

Oh, roll out the green carpet. A pitiful slate for the Sweeps from NBC has the whole channel going greenwash for a week, adapting its leading shows to green themes for a single episode. Its actually rather symptomatic of the mainstream corporate approach to green issues. You can just imagine the execs sitting around in their air-conditioned offices, deciding that it would be really, really great to get the whole green thing out of the way in a week. Oh what fun they had before they climbed into their limos and headed down to Four Season for lunch.

Here is an outline of the tawdry ideas, lifted from TV Guide magazine:

The Office

After Ryan (B.J. Novak) excludes Michael (Golden Globe winner Steve Carell) from a corporate wilderness retreat, Michael heads into the woods for his own survival adventure with nothing but the suit on his back. Back at work, Jim (John Krasinski) tries to revolutionize the office birthday party.

Scrubs

After watching “An Inconvenient Truth,” the Janitor (Neil Flynn) vows to save the world by becoming the “Environmental Officer” at Sacred Heart, but the staff soon finds out that his methods of motivation are a bit peculiar. Meanwhile, J.D. (Zach Braff) has to face his own inconvenient truth when his brother, Dan (Tom Cavanagh, “Ed”), returns to town and tells him that it is time to “grow up.”

30 Rock

As part of a GE-wide green initiative, Jack (Alec Baldwin) has come up with the idea of creating a green mascot for NBC — a Phillie Phanatic-looking character named Greenzo. When Greenzo’s eco-friendly preachiness gets obnoxiously out of hand in “TGS with Tracy Jordan” offices, it’s Liz (Tina Fey) who gets fed up the most with the ridiculous character.

The Singing Bee

Songs about the earth and environment take center stage in an eco-friendly installment that is aimed at promoting the universal cause. “Green” surprises are in store as contestants are challenged to accurately sing the lyrics to popular songs that touch on this subject matter in a variety of karaoke-style competitions.

The Biggest Loser

The red, blue and black teams all go “green” for the week as they participate in recycling and learn how to implement new environmentally friendly habits in their lives. They also discover how to exercise without the aid of electricity, taking their workouts to a whole new level. This week’s challenge is all about recycling, and the winners get something really eco-friendly — Ford Escape hybrid cars!