Jerry accepts a gift from Kenny Bania, a comedian he dislikes, tries to pay him back with a meal, and becomes frustrated when Kenny finds reasons not to accept it. Elaine dates an increasingly insufferable British man. Kramer gets rid of his fridge but finds that interferes with his dating life. George tries asking out a waitress, only for her to reveal she has a boyfriend.

Written by: Fred Stoll
Directed by: Andy Ackerman

This is another case where inspiration has injected itself into a typical Seinfeld episode, getting past the everyday and peering deep into the fabric of reality, which is especially funny when it’s using someone as dumb as Kenny Bania to get there. I get the sense this is something that didn’t actually happen, but was come up with as something that would infuriate Jerry, and it’s so perfect – what if you kept finding reasons to turn down a gift so you could technically keep getting it? Once again, the show benefits from never even thinking of explaining why its subject keeps doing this; obviously, Kenny is weirdly infatuated with Jerry, but it never bothers trying to work out what his endgame is (shades of beloved commentor Raven Wilder‘s observation that the show tends to end stories at their peak and not follow up on consequences).

And what’s great about it is that Kenny never crosses the line into outright wrong. Like, what he’s doing is incredibly annoying and obviously bad, but not impossible within the bounds of social protocol; like, it’s theoretically fine to get soup and to not consider it a meal, but within this specific context, it feels like an ethical breach. I think it’s the fact that it feels like he’s trying to extend both his time with and the free food from Jerry that makes it feel wrong, and the fact that Jerry can’t just come out and say “You’re taking advantage of me,” without risking looking like a tool, or at least causing social conflict. There’s just enough leeway here; there are people like Kenny everywhere who live in these social trenches, which is what makes this so funny.

Meanwhile, George’s story is funny because he has shat where he eats. I find that phrase revolting, both in expression and in theory, but it’s undeniably useful and true. I think it’s best to go through life doing one thing at a time, and George would be far better off treating a cafe as a place where he eats rather than a place to pick women up. And it even ties into the Kenny plot, in that the waitress takes advantage of a social trench to get George off her back; any other show, I would worry it was delving into a “them women are liars” thing, but as always, this is a show about funny behaviours, and ‘not dating George’ is, realistically, a sensible move. It is funny to think about – I’ve said that Seinfeld is about liminal spaces, but it’s also about the gaps in social rules.

TOPICS O’ THE WEEK

• Jerry’s opening standup about dating ruining the comic timing is pretty good. “I’ve been modified to survive this relationship.”‘
• “Well, they do work on tips.”
• Elaine’s plot with the obnoxious British man is smaller. It is kinda funny seeing the absolute tail end of a relationship that won’t die.
• “You work out with weights?” / “No.” / “You should!” / “Why?” Kenny does capture a certain desperately needy kind of guy, pushing things on you with the exact same enthusiasm that he takes things from you.
• I’m easily on Jerry’s side here. The scene with Elaine nitpicking the soup size is so funny to me, capturing times I’ve been frustrated with people ignoring my overall point while breaking down the little details, as if there’s a precise soup size that makes it acceptable to take advantage of someone.
• Elaine’s big salad comes back, and I gotta say, that salad is definitely too big.
• “You gotta apply the same principles that get you fired, but redirected outwardly.”
• Profound moments with Goerge Costanza: him sitting alone.

Biggest Laugh:

Next Week: “The Mom & Pop Store”