Regardless of the impression one may get from the meta storyline in Season 4, Seinfeld wasn’t really pitched initially as a “present about nothing.” As a substitute, the premise Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David introduced to NBC was about how a comic comes up with their materials. “Jerry” would dwell his sitcom life, and the tales would grow to be standup jokes.
Seinfeld himself defined this little bit of trivia in regards to the legendary sitcom throughout a January 2014 AMA on Reddit – however as a long-time fan of the sequence, it has all the time struck me as a bit unusual given what the present turned. To say nothing of the truth that the standup intros/outros have been fully eradicated within the final couple of seasons, Jerry’s bits on stage solely very hardly ever sync up with the plots of episodes. I’ve all the time perceived a disconnect between the standup routines and the varied adventures of the primary characters, and I lately had an epiphany as to why I’ve registered that distance.
The Bizarre Approach I’ve At all times Considered The Standup Bits In Seinfeld
I really feel I ought to emphasize “hardly ever” within the paragraph above, as it is not as if there aren’t any examples in overlap in episodes between Jerry’s standup and the tales that play out. Off the highest of my head, I can recall that Season 5’s “The Puffy Shirt” options George shifting again in along with his mother and father, and Jerry’s opening joke is about how that call is rarely an indication that your life is “proper on monitor.” Equally, Season 7’s “The Invites” begins with a bit about how wedding ceremony invites can be left on automotive windshields if the method have been left fully as much as males.
Regardless of these situations, I’ve lengthy carried an unintended notion of Seinfeld: I’ve seen nearly all of the present as being the adventures of “Sitcom Jerry Seinfeld,” and I’ve seen the on-stage moments as being “Actual Jerry Seinfeld.” Primarily, the start and ending bits are mini comedy specials lower into the sequence.
I’ve rewatched each episodes dozens of occasions since my childhood, and by no means actually got here throughout something to particularly problem this view – however that began to alter lately after I observed Jerry’s bandaged finger on the finish of Season 5’s “The Bris.” This discovery led me to surprise why it’s I’ve felt there’s a proverbial line drawn within the sand between the sitcom and the standup, and I’ve found the reply to my query within the closing seconds of “The Sniffing Accountant.”
My Seinfeld Epiphany, Courtesy Of “The Sniffing Accountant”
For individuals who do not recall, “The Sniffing Accountant” is the fourth episode of Season 5, and it finds Jerry, Kramer and Newman scared that Barry, an accountant who’s answerable for their funds, might have a cocaine downside. Elaine, a longtime good friend of the cash supervisor, insists that they’re leaping to false conclusions, however the three males go so far as to arrange a sting operation to try to catch Barry utilizing medication. On the finish of the story, it is revealed that the paranoia was really justified, and Jerry, Kramer and Newman lose a piece of change when Barry information for chapter.
It is a terrific episode that options one in every of my all-time favourite bits of bodily comedy (Kramer chugging a beer and smoking a cigarette concurrently), however the necessary side to give attention to on this dialog is the standup bit that concludes it. It begins,
My accountant really did take an enormous chunk of cash from me and use it to purchase medication…
It could be onerous to catch the nuance in textual content, however the important thing phrases there are “really did.” As phrased within the joke, it seems like “Actual Jerry” is explaining the inspiration for the episode that we simply watched to the viewers moderately than “Sitcom Jerry” adapting the wild story as materials… and this take is additional legitimized by the truth that Jerry Seinfeld in actual life did lose $50,000 trusting his cash to an accountant with a drug downside.
By a long time of watching Seinfeld, did I particularly internalize this second and let it influence your complete manner I view the present? I imagine that it did, and it has already modified the way in which that I now watch the sitcom’s intros and outros.
My rewatches have continued since my epiphany, and whereas I’m personally nonetheless loving the expertise of watching Seinfeld on 4K UHD (the field set having been launched this previous December), I additionally frequently stream episodes by way of my Netflix subscription.