Monday, November 12th, 2007
12:15 Seinfeld
Seinfeld. Season 8, Episode 3. Director Andy Ackerman calls this a "perfect episode" and I agree. As well as all the usual crossing-over that I love so much on this show, each of the four plots is superb. Jerry dates a beautiful woman with huge man hands, Kramer starts showing up daily at a downtown company as if she worked there, George uses a picture of Jerry's beautiful girlfriend to get himself into a "Forbidden City" of beautiful women (a secret nightclub) and - in the episode's best storyline - Elaine meets nice versions of Jerry, George and Kramer. Each of those idea, on it's own, makes me laugh when I think of it. And each is a personal favourite. It's amazing that they all appeared within the same half-hour. Wow.
Because it was late and I was too tired to watch anything else, when Seinfeld was over, I ended up watching the episode again with the writer's commentary. Yes. I know there is no logic in that decision, but I'm dumb that way. I sat up for another hour watching extras (including the excellent Submarine Captain documentary), when I could have watched a new Prison Break or a new Battlestar Galactica. I'm dumb that way.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the commentary. Dave Mandel is a funny guy. And as I sat there (yawning) I wondered how much of the money I paid for the DVDs goes to him and how much goes to nameless, faceless corporation executives whose presence has no impact at all on the finished product.
There's a quote bouncing around the net at the moment, of a studio executive supposedly saying he doesn't feel the need to pay his plumber every time he flushes the toilet. Interesting point. Plumbers (in common with nameless, faceless corporation executives) are interchangeable. Any good plumber can do the same job.
But only Dave Mandel could have written that exact Seinfeld episode.
Seinfeld
