Jerry tries dating a Miss America pageant contestant, only for Kramer to end up taking over the relationship as he manages her. George convinces the Yankees to switch their uniforms from polyester to cotton. Elaine begins her new job as assistant to an eccentric rich man.

Written by: Larry David and Bill Masters & Bob Shaw
Directed by: Andy Ackerman

One of my favourite things about Seinfeld is how it evolves organically. One thing I find frustrating about a lot of media from the past decade is how overly-schematic it can be; it feels like it’s lifting a bit, but for a long while there, it felt like every movie and TV show might as well have held up a sign saying “this is the bit where the plot will kick into gear” or “this is the bit where the character Develops” or whatever, which feels like a product of metacomedy and self-awareness becoming so popular. Seinfeld has no interest in that kind of thing, but it’s also not interested in maintaining a status quo, simply allowing the characters to go wherever they want to go, and if there are points, they emerge on their own.

That’s relevant here in how we can see George as a success is just as ludicrous and funny as George as a failure. Right from his first scene, he’s riding the high of successfully working for the Yankees; nobody does comedic smugness as brilliantly as Jason Alexander, and we see him milking a position of power for all its worth. What I love about George – and what makes him great as a comedic portrait of a petty, banal man – is that he cares far more about having an effect on the world than on what that effect is. What makes him funny is that he’s opportunistic without actually having a clear, specific goal – he leaps at the first opportunity to provide an Idea without really thinking that idea through.

I find this pretty typical of people. One thing that always struck me as funny about AI supporters is that they claim these programs can give writers and artists the basic idea, when any halfway competent writer or artist knows that the idea is actually the easiest part; it’s the daily grind of churning out a story, essay, or drawing into something readable that’s hard. You can see something like this effect in how George simply could have asked why they wear polyester and do a little more diligence here.

TOPICS O’ THE WEEK

• Jerry’s standup riffing on sex phrases related to baseball is classic Seinfeld standup. Like, not good, but definitely typical for him.
• There’s a beat here where Elaine has to get up in the middle of a baseball game to check her messages – a classic case of tech aging a show. Just think, now she’d be trying to get away from her messages.
• “I’m watching my height. My doctor doesn’t want me to get any taller.”
• Jerry inherently sees that George trying to do something as innocuous as change the material outfits are made from is him knowing what show he’s in. It’s not quite meta – it’s not out of the realm of realism – but it definitely feels like a bit of a wink.
• Never thought until now how well this show understands that job interviews suck. They’re an inherent performance where your best thing is to act completely natural, so naturally that’s not your instinct at all.
• Great moments in blocking: Jerry makes a cheesy joke over the phone and George playfully slaps him. We also have Kramer slipping on the water on Karen’s balcony.
• “I’m going out with one of the Miss America contestants, you wanna go?” / “What state?”
• Julia Louis-Dreyfuss is on form this episode, with a face contorting like a Looney Tunes character. There’s a good five minutes where her face is something different and ridiculous in every shot she’s in.
• “You may have something there, George.” / “Oh, I’ve got something.”
• Pitt’s concern with his socks is a very Seinfeld concern from a side character. We have very rarely seen this kind of banal fascination from a relatively normal person; it sounds like something that would bother Frank Costanza.
• Marguerite MacIntyre is really great as Karen aka Miss Rhode Island – it’s a rare case of a character being sincere in Seinfeld, and she bounces off Kramer fantastically.
• One of Jerry’s most famous lines – indeed, Seinfeld’s favourite line and my favourite Jerry line – is “That’s a shame.” But George actually says it first in the scene! However, Jerry is leaning back and eating as he says it, which is far more memorable.

Biggest Laugh:

Next Week: “The Big Salad”