Seinfeld: Not That There's Anything Wrong With It

Because my phone is a good friend that pays attention to me, it often asks me to read articles with titles like, “15 Seinfeld Episodes that Wouldn’t Be Made Today” and dumb stuff like that. And since I have nothing better to do, I usually click on them to see which episodes this weirdo thinks wouldn’t air today. Even though I know it’s a waste of time and just click-bait for whatever crappy website let said weirdo write for them (probably for “exposure” rather than money), my curiosity gets the better of me.

Similar topics come up often when I am out having a few drinks with friends, usually because I can’t go five minutes without making a Seinfeld reference. I don’t know if it is because they are a few years younger than me and maybe don’t recall the heyday of the show, but inevitably someone says something like, “Ooof, that show doesn’t hold up.” Then that person will probably go home and binge Friends or How I Met Your Mother on Netflix.

So, for those who may be in that younger camp, here’s a bit of history; back in 1989, Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld were shopping around their concept for a sitcom called The Seinfeld Chronicles, and the premise was basically “where comedians get their material.” Jerry, as the star, would find himself in unusual situations in his everyday life, and that is how he would come up with his stand-up routine. The pilot is admittedly tough to watch now, but it impressed NBC enough to green light it, barely. They ordered four episodes to run during the Summer months when most of their regular shows were on hiatus. The story goes that NBC Director of Late Night Rick Ludwin canceled a Bob Hope comedy special and that money was used for Seinfeld (Sorry, Bob.) Larry David was obviously pleased, but also incredibly anxious about creating 4 more episodes, as never in the history of NBC had they ever ordered such a short season. However, since they were put in the prime 9:30 on Thursdays time slot, following reruns of Cheers, the show did well in the ratings and a 13-episode season two was ordered, even though most sitcom seasons were 22 or 23 at the time. Still, it caught on, and the rest is television history.

However, this was 1990. The second season premiere was literally bumped because of Gulf War coverage. To say it was a different time goes without saying, but that usually is what I say when someone tries to tell me that the show doesn’t hold up. I don’t totally agree with their assessment and I really just don’t want to start a fight about it, and I find that saying, “Well, it was a different time” is usually a good way to end any conversation you don’t feel like having. For instance, “Isn’t it time for your colonoscopy?” Try responding with, “It was a different time.”

It is hard as such a devoted fan to put myself in their shoes. Most people find Seinfeld to be just another old sitcom, and in some instances, maybe even a dumb one. And sure, the Kramer as the Moviefone Guy storyline is definitely dated now, but it’s still damn hilarious if you allow yourself to remember those days. And if you’re too young to remember, well, you acn count yourself lucky. 

I remember watching those early episodes (at the urging of my mother, who was a big fan herself), and marveling because there had literally never been a show like it. Literally every sitcom on the air back then had two main characters who were basically in love but had trouble getting together, and a few side characters that occasionally had a B storyline that focused on them. Or they had a furry alien. I will say that the best shows of that era, like Cheers or Taxi, did have amazing side characters that could carry their own storylines, but the networks loved their love stories. This is the reason for the Seinfeld episode “The Deal,” where Jerry and Elaine create rules for sleeping together but not actually being “a couple.” Larry David wasn’t keen about writing a romance story, but NBC was insistent, so he wrote his version of one. After it aired, the execs thought it was funny enough to not bother him about it again.

Larry was actually infamous on the set for his rule of “No hugging, no learning.” The characters on Seinfeld never evolved over nine seasons, and even the season where George was engaged he didn’t really want to be, and that obviously ended in disaster, and he basically went back to being the same terrible person. I’m not sure if people find this disconcerting because all shows now have a firm beginning, middle and end. And don’t get me wrong, that is actually great storytelling. I doubt Breaking Bad would have been as popular as it was if Walter White stayed a high school teacher for the entire run. But that’s not the show that David and Seinfeld wanted to do, and that’s fine too.

But of course, the real reason people say that Seinfeld doesn’t hold up or that certain episodes wouldn't be made today is because of how particular weighty topics were handled. One episode that seems to always get people’s knickers in a twist (and was even handled on my podcast) is “The Cigar Store Indian,” from season 5. If you have forgotten, Jerry gets in an argument with Elaine and buys her a Cigar Store Indian statue (even calling it that seems wrong) to try and smooth things over, thinking that it’s “kitschy”. Unfortunately, he gives it to her in front of one of her friends, who is an Indigenous Person, and makes some very inappropriate jokes. When he tries to smooth things over with the friend by taking her out to dinner, he goes overboard in trying not to be inappropriate, to the point that he doesn’t even want to say that he made “a reservation” at a restaurant or that he bought basketball tickets from “a scalper.” The thing is, Jerry wasn’t a racist, and he obviously ended up getting his comeuppance when the girl dumped him for almost using the term "Indian giver,” and for generally being a dope.  

The episode aired in 1993, and the term politically correct was just becoming a thing. These days, there are different phrases for it, but a lot of people still go way out of their way to try to not be offensive. The goal of this episode (and you can judge for yourself how successful the writers were) was to try and poke fun at the people who get offended by folks who, while ignorant, do try to do the right thing. Sometimes we fail, but the intent is there. There’s obviously also the other side of the coin, as there are those who don’t even bother, or even worse, go out of their way to actually be offensive, and blame the rest of the world for being too sensitive. That’s the Archie Bunker side of the fence, a show that aired in another, different time.

Another episode that always appears on the lists of ones that “wouldn’t air today” is season 4, episode 17, “The Outing,” where Jerry and Goerge are mistakenly outed as a gay couple. (This was also covered on an episode of my podcast. #alwaysbeplugging) At the time, Real-life Jerry was often thought to be gay because he was “single, thin and neat,” so the creators decided to make an episode out of it. Again, this episode aired in 1993, and a lot of heterosexual males (myself included, I admit, as I was also single, thin and relatively neat ) back then were deathly afraid of being thought of as gay, probably because we thought it would hurt our chances with women. I was wrong and dumb and I am obviously ashamed at my behavior, but that only makes this episode funnier, in my opinion. The idea was that you don’t want to be perceived as gay, but you also don’t want to be perceived as a bigot who doesn’t like gay people. Hence, the now-iconic phrase: “Not that there's anything wrong with that.” The phrase has come to cover a lot of topics, but this was the origin. Once again, the writers were trying to poke fun at a pervasive attitude in society back then, and you may judge for yourself how good a job they did, but at the time, Jerry and Grorge trying to convince anyone who would listen, and themselves, that they were heterosexual was comedy gold. In fact, the episode won a GLAAD award for Outstanding Comedy Episode. I suppose, if anything, it raised awareness of how dumb we were being. Although the intention was definitely just to give everyone a chuckle. 

I always kind of enjoyed the contrast a few seasons later, season 7, episode 19, “The Wig Master,” when Jerry felt “emasculated” when a man asked Elaine out in front of him, rightfully pointing out that this man didn’t know the nature of their relationship. It’s even funnier later in the episode, when Jerry and George’s house guest Ethan, who is the Wig Master for the ongoing production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, find themselves sitting together drinking champagne coolies. A man stops at their table and asks Ethan if he wants to get together sometime, and Jerry is again emasculated, feeling that two men sitting together, sipping on champagne coolies could constitute a date, and that this man again does not know the nature of their relationship. You could say that only someone as neurotic as Jerry would find that emasculating, but I personally see where he’s coming from. It should also be noted that Jerry was wearing a rather tasteful sweater vest in this scene. Just saying. 

Those are just a couple examples, and sure, there are obviously jokes on the show that seem inappropriate now, and the same could be said for any shows from previous generations. It’s just that previous generations didn’t seem to care as much about these things. Nowadays, we care a lot, and that’s ok. We should be more aware of what may offend people, but we also need to be aware of the intent. I believe that the intent of the creators of Seinfeld was to mirror society’s foibles, and get a few laughs while doing it. And no, there is nothing wrong with that.

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