In honor of my birthday,

I want to write my Seinfeld critique. ;) Now I don't think you all expected any different now, did you? ;) This post has been formulating in my mind for a while and I just never got around to entering it, but given that it's my favorite show of all time must be the reason I'm motivated to write it on my 34th birthday.

I think that the show really breaks the mold of situational comedies and is a brilliant parody, caricature and representation of our often ridiculous lives. It is also very much a feminist show, which I'll also go into later.

The "show about nothing" paradoxically probably talks about more substance than most shows that are supposedly about *something.* The writers do a beautiful job of using irony to show how schmucks who go after superficial things will often fall flat on their faces. It also boldly discusses issues that impact the core of our lives yet we don't want to talk about them, whether they be sex, our inherent egocentric-ness, our dark sides, or interracial relations. And this is all aside from the wonderful combination of dark, ironic, slapstick and random humor. It is also aside from the wonderful writing creativity that leads to synchronicity of the characters' stories in the end of each episode. Most sitcoms are predictable (you know so and so is going to cheat on so and so and they will break up and maybe they'll get back together...) and these days are not truly situational sitcoms (i.e. it's a bunch of people sitting around talking and one scene does not have an ending that is the catalyst for the second scene), and each character has her/his own stories going on that don't impact other characters so much.

But Seinfeld's brilliant! HOW did the writers come up with the idea of, for instance, Elaine buying a pair of glasses from a random guy on the street to get back at her ex, which leads to that guy not being able to see so he wanders off into the street and George almost hits him, leading George to get into a fight with the woman he was with. Elaine then gives that pair of glasses to her potential boss to please him, which pisses off the ex and leads him to get into a fight with the boss, messing up her chances to get the job. Further, though the show is about daily hum drum things, those daily hum drum things do take up a significant portion of our time and it's nice to be able to laugh at them. I do feel that humor reduces the intensity of negative experiences and emotions. Not to mention that the writers were able to create a running and complex storyline based on those seemingly trivial things!

In addition to such creativity, I appreciate the deeper societal issues that the show addresses. It also does a great job, for example, of highlighting hypocrisy in our modern society related to attitudes toward homosexuality: "I'm not gay, not that there's anything wrong with that." It's a great representation of how a lot of people say there's nothing wrong with being gay, but if there's nothing wrong with it, then why do people take issue with being mistaken for being gay? So I've never understood why those who don't like the show don't like it simply because the characters are jerks (well, they are, but that's the point!) when the show is simply highlighting this overall societal issue. The writers wouldn't have thought of it if the issue didn't exist. Do these folks really think the writers condone such behavior for real life? And the characters are just actors portraying this message; do folks really think that the actors don't know they're playing jerks? I thought it was super cute that Kramer and Jerry kiss on the show. Jerry was playing a character who would take issue with it, but Jerry the actor couldn't have an issue with it if he did the scene. Thus, the show really addresses humanness.

Furthermore, the reason I say Seinfeld is a feminist show is for many reasons. First, Elaine is simply part of the group of friends and her (any of the characters for that matter) happiness or story isn't complete only by getting married. In fact, they are all in a way struggling to keep their independence and identities. Though Sex and the City broke the mold in some ways, I feel the show really sold out to the man by wrapping the story up with a bow, aka Carrie getting married to the elusive jerk. I would be lying if I said that I don't desire to share my life with a partner, but I'm not going to settle for someone with whom I don't feel a true connection. I've gotten just as much happiness (though it might be a different kind but why is that bad?) from getting kudos from a professor, or using my talents, or seeing an idea of mine coming to fruition. I'd like to see more shows where women get excited about more than just relationships, don't have to choose between a career and a marriage, and whose partners pull their weight around the home.

Second, Elaine does not have an unrealistic body type; she is healthy and has some flesh on her bones unlike the anorexics in most shows. Third, in fact, that is the one of the beautiful aspects of the show, that none of the actors have the superficial qualities that our society defines as being beautiful. Not only does this speak to the writing and acting that still made the show popular, but it employed actors without expecting them to change their bodies in an unhealthy way.

I think that gender stereotypes also put men at a disadvantage (e.g. receding hairline, crying and not being able to support a family as being less than ideal qualities) and striving for gender equity involves liberating women such that men are also liberated certain ways, so that all individuals and families can be happier and healthier. Male actors on most other popular shows look like they stepped out of a magazine when in reality, real, lovable people don't look like that.

It's hard for me to watch anything without analyzing it, which drives my family crazy. But that's just my personal definition and preference for entertainment. Unless it gives me something to think about or pay attention to, I get bored. Of course I understand that some things are just for the sake of passing time, turning off your brain and vegging. I admit that I even like to watch some shows for the beautiful people. But I see those as the Totino's pizza that serves that purpose in one moment whereas Seinfeld is the higher quality, Chicago pizzeria pizza. ;) But seriously, our values and mainstream media are a reciprocal relationship and if we want to see changes in our society's values, then we're going to have to support the efforts that do celebrate such a change.

Serenity Now!!!!