Trevor Carroll
4/29/2015
Who knew a show about absolutely nothing could become one of the all time greats. 25 years later, Seinfeld still finds itself slotted in prime-time from 6:00-8:00 every night on CBS. Though every show is a re-run, the laughs still come at a premium and show no sign of stopping any time soon.
When I was younger, whenever I visited my grandparents house they would be watching Seinfeld. After only a couple of times trying to watch it, I gave up because I was so bored. The jokes weren't funny(partly to the fact that I didn't understand them), it was old and most importantly it was about absolutely nothing. Before giving the show a true chance, I had given up on it. Until about five or six years later. With maturation the show had grown on me, as had the jokes. Now, I plan my homework around 6:00-8:00 just so I can watch the show. Sometimes, I’ll skip the homework altogether just so I can see the 4 nightly episodes; its that good.
My favorite season by far was aired in 1997, the eighth season in the series. The season follows the crazy and absurd adventures of Jerry, George, Kramer and Elaine. Throughout the season, Elaine wants to get rid of an underachieving yet intimidating employee and does so by promoting him, leaving the rest of her acquaintances to furiously quit their jobs. George, working for the New York Yankees, has a new desk built with a bed underneath so he can nap while on the job. When his boss goes into his office and will not leave until George’s return, calls Jerry to call a bomb threat on the stadium. Kramer finds himself mixed up with the “Van Buren” boys and on the brink of being mugged, until he realizes a special signal. Feeling generous, Jerry buys his parent’s, living in Florida, a brand new Cadillac. Underestimating how much Jerry makes as a comedian, they refuse the gift and attempt to give it back. Jerry’s Dad, President of the community village, is accused of stealing tax funds and spending it on the brand new Cadillac. All of this mayhem occurs in 4 of the 22 episodes, it’s that crazy and unbelievable.
With each ensuing episode, it seems as if the scenarios and situations get even more ridiculous. Not only are the situations that the characters get into hilarious, but the comments throughout each episode will have you in tears. While competing for a new apartment with a sunken ship survivor, George states “ Only five people died on the ship? That isn't a tragedy, how many people are lost on an average cruise ship? Four? The ship may not have sunk ‘ya Cutler, but I sure will!”. Comments like this are packed within each episode, giving my abs a nice workout from laughing so hard. Not only was Seinfeld a hit, though, it also inspired the plot for many shows to come. More recent shows such as Friends, The King of Queens, Everybody Loves Raymond and others are based the same way: A show that gradually follows some plot, but is consistently about nothing. A case could be made that without the creation of Seinfeld, all of these shows would cease to exist, not having the inspiration that Seinfeld provided. Not only did the show spark ideas for other television shows, but also albums. A rapper named Wale released an album in March named “The Album About Nothing”, based solely off of the show.
The fact that one show can spark so many ideas, even a rap album 25 years later, is astonishing. With graduation fast approaching, Seinfeld seasons on DVD will be atop my gift requests.
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