Elaine/the friendship dynamic

Does anyone else out there get the feeling that while the three guys are all true friends to each other, that Elaine only feels this way toward Jerry? I get the vibe that Elaine has very little tolerance for Kramer and especially George, and that if it wasn't for Jerry that she wouldn't come within 50 yards of either of them.

agreed. See my post regarding George and Elaine getting hitched.

-V

Yes, I've thought this and said as much on this newsgroup. I got no response. Apparently, "Is George Jewish?" and "Where have I seen Kramer before?" and "Susan is the goddess before whom I drool" are more fascinating topics of conversation.

Well, that is the inevitable result of freedom of discussion, that people will rave endlessly about absolutely nothing. It may not be perfect, but people have the right to talk about whatever they want to. What's the alternative, appointing a dictator of the newsgroup to decide who can talk and what they can talk about. As for the point raised about Elaine, well on a couple of occasions she has done some stuff with George, like going to the flea market and helping him get revenge on his boss, but for the most part I would have to agree with you. She does seem to only really be close with Jerry. Anyway, don't all of us know people who we only associate with because they are a close friend of one of our close friends.

Brendan W. Guy

"Seinfeld" is "a show about nothing". This is a newsgroup about a show about nothing. A little perspective, please.

Robert and Frank, I agree with you that Elaine wouldn't have anything to do with George or Kramer if it weren't for her friend and ex-lover, Jerry. Elaine is too conscious of social norms to feel comfortable around a free spirit such as Kramer. George's lack of self-confidence and continual need to prove his worth and look "cool" get in the way of his relationship with everyone, especially women. Elaine comes across as someone who grew up in the suburbs or a smaller city or town before coming to New York. It's all a bit overwhelming for her, and she has trouble accepting the many different social "types".

---Alvin H. Nichter

I think Elaine likes all of the guys, but she just gets disgusted with them at times, or maybe she just has PMS, who knows? Let's face it, if Kramer were a real person, he'd be dead by now; and George--George is a caricature of a loser, that's his job description. Jerry gets just as put out with them but he just expresses it differently, usually with humor or sarcasm. Now my pet peeve is people who come on a news group and tell everyone "It's just a show. Don't take it so seriously." First of all it's patronizing, and second of all that's part of the fun. Don't you get it? Now leave us alone and join one of those math newsgroups; what are you doing here?

"Elaine Rules" P.S.C.

Funny this should come up because I am living this situation in real life. I am really good friends with this guy (who happens to do stand up comedy, but in real is an exporter--no imports, just exports). I even dated this guy for four months but it just did not work out. See the parallels folks. He's Jerry and I'm Elaine. But that story is for another thread.

Well my good friend has two guys who live in his apartment. They are really close the three of them, so I tried to like them, you know, keep things going smoothly. I like one of the guys well enough but not the other. But you see I have to pretend so that I don't cause conflict. Since after all I am ONLY a friend, I can't really say, "So what do you see in this guy?" I have no claim and besides they were friends before I ever entered the picture.

So there you have it, an incisive commentary on Elaine's psychology and why she would never totally flip on George.

I apologize for wasting bandwidth--now back to threads on Susan and drool.

Caroline

Look, it's like this: Elaine's just a bitch sometimes. Maybe she gets PMS. Also, sometimes those guys are irritating. If Kramer were a real person he'd be dead by now. Elaine's job is to keep them in line. Jerry helps too with his sarcasm, but he doesn't really seem to get through to them. Elaine's like their mother, trying to help them grow up a little bit. Remember George's toupee? She threw it out the window. He thanked her for it later.

<Look, it's like this: Elaine's just a bitch sometimes. Maybe she gets PMS. Also, sometimes those guys are irritating. If Kramer were a real person he'd be dead by now. Elaine's job is to keep them in line. Jerry helps too with his sarcasm, but he doesn't really seem to get through to them. Elaine's like their mother, trying to help them grow up a little bit. Remember George's toupee? She threw it out the window. He thanked her for it later. >

You're wrong. Elaine does not 'keep them in line' rather she insults and degrades them. Her denigrating actions this season merely prove this point. How is calling George a loser to a rabbi keeping in line? There are other examples, but clearly Elaine does like George at all and never has (watch some old episodes), is at best indifferent to Kramer, and only seems positive to Jerry (even with him she is often negative). She is not like their mother and if anything, Elaine is more immature than the rest of them.

"Since the beginning of time, mankind has yearned to destroy the sun and I'll do the next best thing: block it out."

Montgomery Burns

I wouldn't either.

The deal with Elaine's friendship with Kramer and George is shown in a couple of episodes.

George - Elaine never really got along with George unless they were talking about Jerry. This was shown in the episode where Jerry looked after a dog belonging to a drunk he met on a plane.

Kramer - Elaine also had nothing really to do with Kramer unless they were in their group. This was shown in the episode where Kramer told Elaine that they should meet at Barney's for lunch. Elaine's expression to this is priceless. She looks like "Oh my god, you're kidding right?"