LAME.....LAME.....LAME !!!!!

No, I am not a Seinfeld basher. I am a huge fan. However, this had to be the worst episode since the first season. Twix? PUHLEEASE!!!

When it comes to making comedy out of candy, Twix is no Pez, or Junior Mints for that matter.

Seriously, this was not an especially good episode. George, in particular, is being hung out to dry as a one-dimensional character, losing all the texture that made him so appealing despite his scheming. Compare him with the personality of the George of a few years ago, and he simply isn't very interesting. Kramer is also suffering--he has more madness and less method. And with those two going off the semi-deep end, there's relatively little for the more restrained Elaine and Jerry to play off of.

I wonder if the guy who wrote tonight's episode is another one of those Harvard grads who all the network shows seem to hire these days because they knew each other in college. This may be good stuff for a Hasty Pudding revue, but it's apparent this year's writers really don't understand the Seinfeld characters and are turning them into "3rd Rock" buffoons. Seinfeld's ratings may resemble Sandy Koufax, 1966 (going out on top), but the quality of the show recalls Willie Mays, 1973 (to paraphrase an old Everly Brothers song, so sad to watch a good show go bad)..

P.S. One possible ending, albeit a jokey one (and not likely, either): Jerry finds himself back on "Benson" and realizes his sitcom was all a dream (yeah, a "Newhart" ripoff).

Very lousy episode - ridiculous (or should that be "ridicurous"?) for George to be shouting the whole show - his parents can continually shout, and it's funny, but they are almost never on screen for nearly an entire show.

EBravo8572 wrote:

AMEN BROTHER OR SISTER! I too have noticed how dependent the scripts have been on screaming screaming, SCREAMING! This was the thing that wore me out with Murphy Brown, in its pre-Quayle years of excellence; I got a headache hearing the characters (particularly Grant Shaud) whine, whine, whine every week, but still watched because the show was abdominal-aching funny, as Seinfeld once was. When the defensive writers turned "Murphy Brown" into a weekly Republican-bashing session, the whining became harder to take, and I stopped watching.

One more thing--who stole Kramer's brain? When did he stop being a hipster doofus and become Tommy Chong's long lost brother?

On Sun, 11 Jan 1998 18:36:49 -0800, David Campbell wrote: n screen for nearly an entire show.

I like the soft, subtle comebacks better. I can't recall a lot of them verbatim, but an example is when George is trying to combine sex, food, and television and Jerry says "We're trying to have a civilization here". But, of course, there are many, many more. It would be cool to catalog them. There have been times when I thought Seinfeld was the late 20th century descendant of Oscar Wilde plays. But Wilde never felt compelled to script any screaming.

The way your talking, it sounds like last night was the last episode of Seinfeld. Did I miss something and Jerry said over the week that they just weren't going to do anymore episodes and that the 1/8/97 episode would be the final one? Come on, there are still a bunch of shows left, just give it a chance.

The 1/8/98 episode was very reminiscent of early Seinfeld in style ('The Chinese Restaurant', 'The Parking Lot') without the Monty Pythonesque silliness and absurdity of 'The Butter Shave', 'Bizzarro Jerry', etc...But since the show has changed so much since Larry David's departure, they should just stick to doing the totally weird and bizarre episodes which Seinfeld (as the sole producer of the show) has a flair for. Without Larry David, doing the down-to-earth everyday life type episodes seem kind of lame (like last night's).

NO NO NO. I loved it. It reminded me of some of the early years. Nothing was too far fetched (Kramer as a turkey). Its one of those shows that reflect on something real. Ever bought a new car? Candy gets stuck on me in those damn machines all the time. And dont we all ride the E a little too long!

On 9 Jan 1998 03:58:55 GMT, [email] (Recordhead) wrote:

You must not have much of a life, because it was the poorest written show I have seen since last season.

On Fri, 09 Jan 1998 16:23:32 GMT, [email] (PCjr) wrote:

Hey PCjr, how do you know this person doesn't have a life? Just because he/she disagrees with you? In that case, then you don't have a life either. Grow up, man!

Judges??  Sorry, no credit.  You must use all three
words in their proper order in order to receive credit.
GET comes first, then A, finally LIFE.  Thanks for playing.
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In article , [email] (Joel Rifkin) writes:

I'm sorry, but that line cracked me up. I think (no offense to either party) that PCjr is a handy little demeaning tag online, like calling someone "Sparky" or "mister first-nighter" or something. Had to backtrack to figure out that it was someone's actual handle.

Peace,

A

was too far fetched (Kramer as a turkey). Its one of those shows that reflect on something real. Ever bought a new car? Candy gets stuck on me in those damn machines all the time. And dont we all ride the E a little too long!

have seen since last season.

sorry its taken so long to defend myself on this but i've been busy with my
life.   Please do me and others a favor.  Stop watching!  Everyday  there is
someone bitching and moaning about how bad the shows are since larry david
left.  for you and others  to call last weeks episode poor blows my mind.  the
last few weeks (& this is MY opinion) have all been really decent episodes.
remember its only a TV show.   if it was poorly written,  i'm sure it had no
effect on your daily life.  also be happy w/ what you got left to watch.  soon
you wont have anything to bitch about.  maybe if the critics didn't swing from
larry davids balls, jerry would have stayed on 1 more year to wrap up the show
the way it should be and not w/ just a few episodes.  got to get back to
reality.

Maybe I'm in the minority but I think the episodes where nothing is too far fetched are the worst. The one's that are just on the very edge of reality are the best. Example: George buying a bunch of computers when he never has a dime was a little too much to swallow. But George invading a family's house to watch a movie he needs to see for a book report was pure utter genius.

This actually happened to me today at work (wasn't buying a Twix though) I told the guy trying to help me "I just had a Costanza moment!. I HATE those lousy vending machines, stuff is always getting stuck in those.

I really am getting disappointed with Seinfeld these days. It seems like everyone is "over acting." It has become more like a slapstick low brow humor than the subtle funny things in life..Aw well, we always have reruns

Bob

Nor am I. However, ya know, I have to agree. Over the past several weeks I have read many postings here that claimed some of the episodes this season were at least below par if not sucked altogether. I disagreed. However, last night's show was by far the biggest waste of talent I have ever seen. I can honestly say I did not laugh once.

Everything was so predictable. The machine not accepting the dollar and then the twix bar not falling from the rack?? I had that whole scene pegged as soon as George borrowed the dollar from Jerry.

I was sorely disappointed in the whole episode. But that's just me...

Sean

Ditto. And, did I miss something?....Where did George get all those Twix bars for his "candy bar line-up"??? And, if he was so damn hungry, why wouldn't he just EAT one of them??? or two, or three? Ugh.

I agree!!!! I think the only one worse was the episode where everything was done backwards

It was very bad. I hope it's not all downhill from here. The George story was horrible. The backwards episode was a little better than this. The only one worse than this one was probably the junk mail episode.

In "The Dealership," George wasn't as funny as he usually is. Of course, he was yelling and being himself, but I wasn't laughing, for some reason. I was disappointed......but I still love the show!

Cas

Maybe my brain is backwards because I enjoyed this episode more than any other so far this season (I missed the one where Marcia Cross guest starred-- heard it was great.) There's nothing better than George at his angst ridden best.

I couldnt agree more. I thought this episode was great and I also really enjoyed the backwards episode. It wasnt that hot the first time I saw it but after watching the tape a couple times youll enjoy it more.

-Matt

<<<>Maybe my brain is backwards because I enjoyed this episode more than any

I couldnt agree more. I thought this episode was great and I also really enjoyed the backwards episode. It wasnt that hot the first time I saw it but after watching the tape a couple times youll enjoy it more.>>>>.

I'm glad someone else liked it too, I thought this episode was funny as hell. George is angry, Kramer is doing something crazy, Elaine and Puddy dating/breaking up, and Jerry is well Jerry.... Great Episode, High Five!!!!!!

Pat

I loved it! Why did it take 9 years for us to see the classic confrontation: "George vs. the Vending Machine"?

And George vs. the Dealership, George vs. the mechanic. This was one of the best 'George episodes' yet. He got to act as neurotic as ever, the 'spinning George shot from overhead' while he screamed out "Twix!!" was obviously a self parody of "Khan!" in "The Foundation". (I just LOVE these references!)

I liked Puddy's high-fives. ("On the flip side!") Doesn't everybody know someone like this? I know I do. I've been getting and giving high-fives all day at work today.

The whole candy bar discussion when George was at the window was exemplary. "A nickel!" Tremendously funny. And didja notice at the end, during the "Castle Rock" logo, they played the "A nickel" bit over again. Ingenious! When I heard this, it made me think back to that scene and I had a big belly laugh all over again!

Puddy had one of the best lines during his breakup with Elaine, "I'll tell you what's stupid. You. Stupid."

And: "Undercoating? We don't even know what that is."

Jerry, swapping roles towards the end, "What do I have to do to get you into a relationship today?" And the fact that the high-fives were what blew the car deal was pure Jerry.

Even though Kramer's subplot was wacky, watching the salesman gradually buy into the feeling of pushing the envelope made the payoff at the end that much funnier. "You can let go of my hand now."

BTW, great future trivia answer. The Dealership was called "European International."

All in all, I give it an A-.
Maybe if Newman had shown up, he would have pushed it over
the top and made this a full blown "A" episode.  Ah, well.
Maybe next week.
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On 9 Jan 98 18:17:08 GMT, [email] (Dave) wrote:

Uh, because it WASN'T George vs. the Vending Machine? It was George vs. the mechanic.

One of the worst George episodes ever, in my opinion. The scenes were totally overacted. His maddening scream after everyone ate his twix bars (where he got them from, who knows? The vending machine was out) was particularly unamusing. And the scene where he was complaining to the manager was even more pathetic.

Yes, and it was one of the sole factors of the program that saved it.

Tremendously boring! Let's get realistic here... You'd have to have a really boring life to be amused by that kind of setup.

Yes, funny.

Very funny. I just bought a car and couldn't stop laughing when the salesman was trying to sell it to me.

C- here...

Or maybe he would have blown it and made it a solid D. Not all Newman episodes are funny.

They showed a funny scene (not to me) over again and you think it's "ingenious"??!! Please explain.

Don't be coy. All it was was a voiceover of the old man saying his line. It reminded me of the scene in which it was first spoken, which I laughed at the first time, and which I laughed at again at the end.

Dave wrote:

The principle that comes before "Leave 'em laughing" is MAKE them laugh in the first place!

I think the decline of the show can be summed up in that ending--that's what they thought was worthy of repeating.

Quelle dommage, no?

In , David Campbell writes:

Yup. Worked fine on me. Or maybe you think I'm lying? I wasn't really laughing? Maybe I hate the show, but only post how much I like it to annoy the folks who also hate it? If something is funny, I laugh. Purely a reaction. I have no control over it.

Now you're just being dense on purpose. Let's see, they have a half second to work with. What the hell are they supposed to put there?

The good comedians do that often. They call it a "tag." They'll tell a joke near the beginning of their act. It may be good, it may be bad, but it's memorable. They may even two two or three jokes about it. Then they'll go on and do the rest of their act. At the end, they'll come back and "tag" that joke with a completely off-the-wall reference which makes the whole thing obvious.

I loved it. I thought it was great. Me and my boyfriend both enjoyed it greatly.

-Billie-

You should have kept reading.

Would the show have been funnier if we'd seen George going to a 7-11 to buy the Twix bars for his lineup?

One of the sole factors? Learn some English.

Yes, that's what this comedy show needs: more realism. Are you JT in drag?

Another one of the sole funny factors no doubt.

Hmmm.. sarcasm. Actually, I thought they did a good job pulling laughs from the sometimes painful process of buying a car. An experience many in the real world can relate to.

Ratboy was right about the episode. It was very funny.

Chan, you have no imagination. You are a dullard.

First of all George's charm is not getting angry. ANyone can write a script where someone gets angry. This was sitcom writing 101.

Let's see. George's dishwasher doesn't work. He gets mad at the dishwasher repairman. That's about as original as last night's writing.

It was not original. George is at his best when he attempts to pull his life out of the utter misery it is and just when you think he's going to succeeed he plummets to earth.

Honestly if you liked the high five stuff and the 5 cent argument you'd probably be much better off with a simple sitcom like Friends or Family Matters. The humor is more laid out for the average viewer.

Did anyone else think Elaine looked better on this episode than she has in a while? What a babe!!

'bendover' said:

<<No, I am not a Seinfeld basher. I am a huge fan. However, this had to be the worst episode since the first season. Twix? PUHLEEASE!!!>>

As the Twix ads go: "Two for me, none for you!"

VMacek