An Analytical Episode Guide to :
Season 4, Part 3
Episode 12, Season 4
The Airport
Plot Summary-On a flight home, Jerry enjoys first class accommodations
while Elaine suffers in coach. George and Kramer are en route to pick them up
but get diverted when Kramer spies a man he believes owes him some money.
Best Quote-“Our goal should be a society without classes!”….Elaine
Nitpick of the episode-I understand Kramer feels cheated and
wants his money back, but the way he goes about getting it back is all wrong.
He comes off as the bad guy.
Seinfeldism of the episode-We learn airport pickups are
binding social contracts
Deleted Scenes-A scene where Jerry goes back to check on
Elaine. Glad they cut it, the episode worked better with Jerry being entirely
unaware of what Elaine was going through.
Episode Fun Fact-There was an alternate ending filmed where
George comes into the terminal before Kramer appears. The four then leave the
baggage carousel together, and again I see why they cut it the other ending is
funnier. Also, the off camera voice provided at one point in this episode is,
of course, Larry David in yet another cameo.
Final Thoughts-This episode is kind of a mixed bag. The
stuff with Jerry and Elaine is fantastic. Anyone who has been on a plane is
bound to relate to some parts of it. However, the stuff with George and Kramer
just feels like filler. The story doesn’t really go anywhere, and is a tad farfetched
especially when George runs into the criminal again. In a crowded plane, what
are the chances? However, at least they were included unlike “The Pen” when
they were left out entirely. Elaine shines in this one, which is nice to see
considering the rest of the episodes we will be discussing today.
Grade=B-, Uneven but the funny stuff is really funny
Episode 13, Season 4
The Pick
Plot Summary-Jerry is dating the model he met on the plane
until she catches up allegedly picking his nose at a stop light. George pines
over Susan, but does an immediate 180 when they get back together. He uses the
pick to get out of it. Elaine lets Kramer take her Christmas card picture,
which has an unfortunate mistake. Kramer learns someone stole his perfume idea,
and ends up being Calvin Klein’s new underwear model.
Best Quote-“All your life you go though painstaking efforts
to hide your nipple and then, wham, everyone gets their own personal shot of
it!”…Elaine
Nitpick of the episode-Jerry should be happy that he got
caught picking his nose. If the model is that shallow she isn’t worth his time.
I loved how she acts so humiliated, what a snob.
Seinfeldism of the episode-Jerry tries to prove that he did
not pick. “There was no pick”
Deleted Scenes-More of Kramer at Calvin Klein, and we run
into the character who originally rejected his idea. We also get a scene where
Jerry gets a call from Kramer regarding what cereal he has.
Episode Fun Fact-Kramer’s story is obviously a callback to
The Pez Dispenser, when Kramer came with the idea of a perfume that makes you
smell like you just came from the beach.
Final Thoughts-This episode is really busy but a little more
even. You gotta love George; he spends the first scene crying over Susan. Then
he gets her, and regrets it immediately! How does his mind work? Everyone else
gets some great moments. Jerry gets caught picking his nose, Elaine has to deal
with the Christmas card fallout, and Kramer brings his case to Calvin Klein
only to end up being a new underwear model. The scene of the episode comes when
George complains he didn’t get a Christmas card, and Elaine rubs his head into
her chest. Great moment. George also actually sees a therapist in this episode,
and drives her nuts by the end. Great episode!
Grade=A, very strong episode
Episode 14, Season 4
The Visa
Plot Summary-Jerry manages to get old friend Babu a job and
an apartment in his building. However both get taken away when it turns out his
visa has expired. When Elaine finally gives Jerry the mail she had been
holding, he finds Babu’s visa application. George is dating lawyer who thinks
he is funny, and is so afraid Jerry will steal his thunder asks him to be sad
and not funny. Kramer stay at a baseball fantasy camp ends early due to an
incident with Mickey Mantle.
Best Quote-“But I’m disturbed. I’m depressed. I’m
inadequate. I got it all!”….George (this was a tough one, George also has a
great line about Kramer in this episode about how his whole life is a fantasy
camp).
Nitpick of the episode-Isn’t it customary when you pick up
someone’s mail to look through it and make sure there isn’t anything important in
it? Isn’t that the point? And why does Elaine wait so many days to give it to
Jerry? Babu really got a raw deal, and I have to say that Elaine should take
all the blame for it in my opinion.
Seinfeldism of the episode-Jerry is a “bad man, very very
bad man”
Deleted Scenes-None for this episode.
Episode Fun Fact-Of course, this episode ends with Babu
vowing vengeance on Jerry. Fans had hoped he would return for the final
episode. Not to give it away, but they would get their wish.
Final Thoughts-This is another episode where the other
stories are just here to tie into the main one, which is the deportation of
Babu. Elaine is the catalyst by hoarding Jerry’s mail, Kramer caused her to
have to keep the mail by being away, and George is dating a woman who says she
will help Babu-until she realizes Jerry and George have lied to her and then
she does nothing (nice lady). So, basically there is just one story here although
we do get more fun watching neurotic George’s unending worrying destroy another
relationship.
Grade=B+, This episode is brought down by a real weak
ending.
Episode 15, Season 4
The Movie
Plot Summary-Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer had planned to
meet up for a movie but Jerry’s stand-up, George inability to buy tickets,
Kramer’s hunger, and Elaine’s inability to save seats in a theatre get in the
way. That’s about it. Well, ok we have George obsessing over getting his change,
Elaine losing her seat, Kramer being hungry, and Jerry has to deal with an
annoying comedian named Pat Buckles.
Best Quote-Elaine is described as “short, big wall of hair, face
like a frying pan”, George is described as a “short guy with glasses, looked
like humpty dumpty with a melon head”, Jerry is described as “about 5 ‘11 with
a big head and flaring nostrils”, and Kramer is described as “a guy with a
horse face, big teeth, and a pointed nose”.
Nitpick of the episode-Ah, if only cell phones existed in
1993. This episode would have been 3 minutes long. By the way, exactly how long
did George stand in the ticket holder’s line without ever noticing it wasn’t
moving?
Seinfeldism of the episode-The fictional “Rochelle Rochelle”
is first mentioned, it’s in theatres in this episode. It would later become a home
video and then a Broadway musical.
Deleted Scenes-We see some of Buckles doing stand up in
place of Jerry
Episode Fun Fact-For obvious reasons, this episode had to be
filled at night.
Final Thoughts-This episode is only ok. How much mileage can
you get with a story about four friends trying to hook up for a movie? George
is amazingly cheap in this one, obsessing about when he will get the change
from Elaine. Doesn’t he basically see her every day? Buckles is annoying but he
never appears again, instead we get Kenny Bania who is basically the same
character just played by a different actor.
Grade=C, Not very strong at all
Episode 16, Season 4
The Outing
Plot Summary-Thanks to Elaine, a reporter erroneously things
that Jerry and George are gay. There attempts to convince her otherwise fail,
and things get worst when the story hits the regular papers. George tries to
figure out how to break up with his latest girlfriend, and Elaine refuses to
take her jacket off.
Best Quote-“I thought we were friends”….Kramer after reading
the newspaper article
Nitpick of the episode-This is a bad week for Elaine. First
she was thoughtless with Jerry’s mail, and now she is just plain ridiculous.
Now only does she cause the problem by pretending Jerry and George are gay, she
exacerbates it by refusing to take her jacket off! What is the deal with the jacket
thing anyway? If a good reason was given I may have let it go, but they don’t give
one and she just comes off nuts. She acts like everyone else is ridiculous, but
it’s her. Leaving your jacket on is rude. I have been known to leave my jacket
on and people are almost always offended. To top it off, she gets Jerry a Bette
Midler CD for his birthday?? However, as bad as she is here she gets worst in
the next episode.
Seinfeldism of the
episode-“Not that there’s anything wrong with that”
Deleted Scenes-Unfortunately, the bit with Elaine and the
jacket went on longer when she met with the reporter. Fortunately, the scene
was removed. No wonder since Elaine described what happened, we don’t need to
see it (and it just makes Elaine look even worst even after she is flat out
asked to take the coat off and instead she acts like the reporter is the one
with the problem). Also, we get a scene
where George explains what happened to his mother.
Episode Fun Fact-The original script wasn’t very funny,
thankfully they figured out a way to talk about the issue without looking like
they were bashing gay people. The line they came up with to save the show is
listed right above, and is why the show worked.
Final Thoughts-This a really solid episode. However, Elaine’s
jacket nonsense and Kramer not having any story kind of hurt it. He does give
Jerry a two line phone. To bad Jerry couldn’t figure out it helps to actually
have two lines for a phone like that to work. The scene with Jerry and George and
the reporter is classic, one of the best the series did. As hard as it is to
believe, sitcoms hadn’t been doing many episodes at this point about a
character being mistaken for being gay. This episode showed it could be done effectively,
and after this it began showing up over and over in many others shows. The
opening scene is very well structured as we see Jerry and the reporter miss
each other.
Grade=A-, dropped a
point because Kramer has no real story
Episode 17, Season 4
The Shoes
Plot Summary-Jerry and Elaine meet with Russell to approve
their script, however he is suddenly ill after Elaine inadvertently sneezed
into his food. Then he cancels the pilot after catching George staring at his
daughter’s cleavage. Kramer starts dating a woman who used to date Jerry, who
never kissed him goodnight. Jerry and George get Elaine’s help in getting the
pilot back on.
Best Quote-“Looking at cleavage is like looking at the sun.
You don’t stare at it, too risky. You get a sense then you look away!”….Jerry
(this is one of my favorites)
Nitpick of the episode- Ok, what is the deal with Elaine and
the shoes in this episode? I just don’t get it, why is she angry people are
talking about her shoes? It’s so absurd it makes it into the episode as Jerry,
George, and Kramer exchange confused glances. I get the feeling they were trying
to do the reverse of the usual thing were female’s talk about shoes. However,
it just doesn’t work and Elaine comes off like she missed her medication. At least
she redeemed herself in the end, using her cleavage to get Russell’s attention
and conversely get the pilot back on. Little did she know she single handedly doomed
the pilot at the same time, but we will see that next week.
Seinfeldism of the episode-Jerry poked George because cleavage
was in the area, and George got caught in a cleavage peek.
Deleted Scenes-None for this episode.
Episode Fun Fact-This episode features a very young Denise
Richard in one of her first roles. This episode would be the first to air after
Cheers on Thursdays, where it would remain the rest of its run.
Final Thoughts-Elaine’s insanity aside, I always kind of
liked this episode. It isn’t strong because the stories are weak. However,
there are some funny bits and the discussion about looking at cleavage is
always one of my favorites. The way that Jerry, George, and Elaine manage to
get the pilot back on was pretty clever. On the other hand, the scene where
Russell is throwing up in the bathroom is just gross, and Kramer once again
doesn’t have all that much to do accept drive Jerry’s story by running into and
then dating his old girlfriend.
Grade=B-, I like this
episode though I freely admit it wasn’t the best.
Next week we conclude season 4, and I promise I will not be
so hard on Elaine. We will also be discussing one episode from this season
which I have almost nothing good to say about.
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