Friday, January 18th, 2008
07:00 Seinfeld
10:00 Baywatch
Seinfeld. Season 8, Episode 13. Seinfeld's genius rested not only with the central characters, but with the large supporting cast also. This episode is one of the many (wonderful) episodes to feature... The Parents. Jerry's are in town for a visit and George's are spending money like crazy (which saddens George because there will be nothing left for him when they die). Jerry secretly takes two trips to Florida to buy back the car that his parents have sold (!!) and George obsesses when Elaine when buys some expensive coffee for him. Great fun.
Baywatch. Episode 14. After a half season of low ratings, Batwatch was substantially re-vamped. The opening credits changed. Instead of the montage of beach-related lifeguard stuff (mostly slow-motion running) we now have a succession of action-oriented clips. A jeep exploding, fight scenes, a building on fire and shots of the cast doing things apart from running in slow-motion. The show's newest cast member gets a lot of exposure in the credits and the whole episode is built around his character. The point is made, and indeed laboured, that he's a wild, unpredictable guy. Prone to getting in trouble and having adventures. So, in other words, a character designed to shake up the cosy world that she show had built up for itself over it's first 13 episodes.
The fact that this obvious stunt works is to the credit of John Allen Nelson who is not only a good actor, but also an incredibly charismatic one. By the end of the episode you can really believe that Cort has a strong bond with Mitch, Eddie and Craig. The Cort-Eddie friendship, in particular, is great fun to watch. And, while I was sad to see Jill and Trevor dropped from the show, in general I think it was a trade up since Cort is a much better character.
Aside from Cort this episode is also one of the strongest from the first season. Except for a silly sub-plot it's a very tight, story-driven outing. Cort blows into town with a revenge-driven bad-guy hot on his tail. Soon, one of Cort's friends is dead and our hero is out to track down the killer. There's a nifty bit at the very end with a hidden bomb and - apart from that - it's standard action fare with a really likable and talented central cast. Great fun.
Seinfeld, Baywatch
