(Season 4, Episodes 9-10)
I think I’m hitting what I like to call a Curb wall. Four seasons of Larry David is a lot for one person to take in such a short span of time, and the unfortunate consequence is that I find myself rolling my eyes a lot more than I have been, and laughing a lot less than I once did. So for that reason — and because I have to wait a month for On Demand to post the beginning of season five, which I don’t have recorded — I’m going to be taking a short break from my virgin diary.
4.9 “The Survivor”
Knowing that I needed to break, I was disappointed that it looked like it was going to be on a down note. This episode wasn’t only bad, it was also in extremely poor taste. The Holocaust survivor/Survivor plot was terrible, and not worth discussing.
Cheryl and Larry renewed their vows … okay, so the rabbi’s (Barry Gordon) tale of September 11 loss was funny — his brother-in-law died uptown (57th Street is actually more midtown) when he was hit by a bike messenger. And I did enjoy the rabbi using the story of Abraham and Hagar as a Biblical source for okaying Larry’s freebie in honor of the anniversary. Larry stomping on the rabbi’s hand with the glass was worth a laugh too.
Larry’s almost-tryst with Anna (Gina Gershon) the dry cleaner felt gross, I guess because of the type of person she was. And the things that tripped them up — Larry bringing his stained suit to the hotel, the sheet with the hole in it, and the earthquake — weren’t so funny.
The best part was when Larry and Cheryl were discussing their vows, and Larry said, “I thought this was over at death.” If looks could kill….
4.10 “Opening Night”
The first forty minutes of the season four finale weren’t much to write home about either. Don’t get me wrong, it was a typical episode, but I was enjoying it less than I enjoyed the previous few seasons.
Larry headed off to New York for The Producers, and even the plane ride was full of gaffs. Jeff told Cady Huffman that Larry had OCD too, so obviously that set them up for a potential love connection later. Jeff just sits on planes staring at the seat in front of him — anyone ever hear of David Puddy? It would have been funny to find out whether David Schwimmer told on Larry for his reclined seat, but that was never meant to be. And the turbulence in the bathroom was funny, but then they never went anywhere with Larry having pee all over his pants.
Tips and a cheapskate like Larry don’t mix, so I did find humor in his big bill problems, as well as the number of people he angered by not tipping them. But come on — at some point there’s such a thing as excessive tipping, and calling tipping a common courtesy is just greedy. The maintenance man should get a tip for doing his job? So who shouldn’t get a tip? Should the person who registers guests at the front desk get a tip? Why shouldn’t we all get tipped at the end of each work day for doing our jobs?
There were some great guests this episode — a not-yet-famous Zachary Levi as the bellman who showed Larry to his room, Stephen Colbert as the crazy tourist who asked Larry to take a picture of him and his wife and then cursed him with “You will fail,” Richard Kind back as Cousin Andy, Nathan Lane slapping some sense (and confidence) into Larry, Jerry Seinfeld sitting in the audience at the theater, and the late Anne Bancroft, Mel Brooks’ wife, with Mel at the show. It felt like a series finale, stacked with all sorts of stars. That was awesome.
Larry’s date with the Fellatio Teacher (Cynthia Ettinger) was reminiscent of something that I couldn’t quite put my finger on — was it Ben Stiller in Along Came Polly? I’m not sure, but something felt familiar in that not wholly pleasant scene.
I didn’t care so much about the watch subplot — I don’t mean to spend his money, but unless it had sentimental value, does David Schwimmer really need Larry to buy him a new watch? I did love how Schwimmer didn’t even bother coming up with an excuse for why he didn’t invite Larry to his party. He just barred his entrance. That was great.
Okay, so in this light the finale was better than the last few episodes, but I was still somewhat disappointed about where I felt the show had gotten to in season four, despite the great Producers arc. But then Larry and David went on stage, and everything changed.
I’ve seen a stage production of The Producers in addition to the movie, and the show is awful. But getting to actually see some of the show with Larry and David in the lead roles … that was awesome! I felt like the episode didn’t even need Larry forgetting his lines, but his ad libbing was certainly funny. I’m not so sure I felt the same about the stand-up he did, but I’m not a fan of his act anyway — I just watched the HBO special that preceded the show, Larry David: Curb Your Enthusiasm, and I wasn’t impressed. But I enjoyed how Larry finally hooked back into the script and the show continued as if nothing had happened.
Learning that Mel Brooks had cast Larry in the hopes that he would tank the show and free him — ala The Producers itself — explained a whole lot. And in the end my enjoyment of the final 20 minutes, and the plot it concluded, was almost enough to erase all the questionable episodes from this season.
I still need a break, but I’ll be raring to go when I hit season five in about a month. Bring it!
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Nov 19, 2010 @ 15:30 EST5EDT
