Seinfeld (Season 4)

After three seasons of a slow increase in quality, Season 4 is the first massive boost of quality that Seinfeld has had, resulting in easily the best season yet.

Right from the start, Seinfeld's fourth season establishes itself as something different by actually giving us a seasonal arc. Season 3 hinted at it by ending on a bit of a cliffhanger, but this season really leans into it, with a story arc about Jerry and George trying to shoot a pilot. I love this arc, the meta commentary on the tv industry is absolutely up my alley, and it appears just often enough throughout the season that it doesn't detract from Seinfeld's iconic standalones. Speaking of which, Season 4 has one of the best collections of standalone episodes out of any season. There's a sense of ambition here, where it feels like the writers are trying to do something new every single episode. It's like an entire season's worth of The Chinese Restaraunts. And even though I don't love every episode here, I can't deny the sheer cultural impact so many of them ended up having. 

For the first time in the series, Seinfeld's general level of quality feels consistent and strong. Even in Season 3, it felt like for every solid episode, there was one that was pretty bad. But this season, nearly every episode was at the very least solid. Even episodes that I didn't enjoy myself have a ton of merit. The Trip may have been goofy and bizarre, but it's easily the show's most ambitious two-parter and there's a novelty to seeing the cast goof around in California. And I may not have loved The Contest, but it's cultural impact can not be understated (more on that later). One of my favorite aspects of Seinfeld's fourth season is how it solidifies the show's formula of having fairly disparate subplots all tie themselves together in the end, more than any other season prior. The comedic payoffs in some of these episodes is downright masterful, and the way in which this season manages to tie every single episode together in the finale is just phenomenal. 

At its best, Season 4 has some of the strongest episodes in the whole series:

The Pitch: While The Trip was technically the season premiere, this episode introduced the season's storyline and characters proper. Susan, Russell, and Crazy Joe all made their debuts here, and the pitch storyline is pretty much entirely introduced. And I love the fact that Jerry is trying to pitch a "show about nothing", it's the perfect parody of the skepticism that has been shown towards Seinfeld for a large portion of its run.

The Ticket: This follow-up for The Pitch doesn't have the same amazing meta humor as its predecessor, but it makes up for just being so darn hilarious. Jerry and George being scared of Crazy Joe Davola, Kramer's concussion, Newman's speeding ticket, the payoff at the end, it's all so well-written. And it continues to set up plot points for this season like the watch and Jerry and George getting the go ahead for their pilot.

The Opera: Crazy Joe Davola is easily one of my favorite side characters in the series but he peaks in this episode, perfectly toeing the line between hilarious and genuinely terrifying. The constant selling and swapping of tickets on the line to the opera is just so much fun, and the comedy is absolutely relentless. While I'm usually a bit mixed on Seinfeld's more bizarre episodes, The Opera does a good job of keeping it in check enough to be thoroughly hilarious.

The Airport: Similarly to The Subway, The Airport focuses on mining as much humor out of a single vehicle as possible. Jerry and Elaine once again get most of the relatable comedy, from rescheduling your flight to trying to sneak into first class, but George and Kramer's more goofy subplot is still incredibly funny in its own right. It's just a really solid episode of the series.

The Outing: First, here's some context. This was an episode about gay people that aired in the early 90s, and yet somehow, it managed to age pretty remarkably. The running thread about Jerry and George's attempts at not being perceived as gay or homophobic is still absolutely hilarious, and the line "Not that there's anything wrong with that" is just plain iconic. And of course, like all of Seinfeld's best episodes, the individual exchanges and bits of dialogue are just top-notch too. Easily one of my favorites in the series.

The Pilot: What an amazing finale. Seinfeld ends its fourth season by having Jerry and George finally air their pilot, only for it to be predictably shot down at the last season. I already loved the pilot story arc, but what really made this finale rewarding was the fact that it brings back all of the side characters from the season, and I mean everyone. Seeing them react to the pilot was a lot of fun and easily the highlight of the episode.

But before I end this review, you may be noticing that I'm missing a particularly iconic episodes. Well...

The Contest: At the time, The Contest was one of the most influential TV episodes ever made. It's a showcase of just how far this show will go, and the lengths to which is goes to avoid saying the s-word (sex) is still impressive today. And I'm not gonna lie, "master of my domain" is a brilliant pun and Larry David should be patting himself on the back daily for coming up with that. This episode is absolutely worth noting for its cultural impact alone. However... 

I'm going to be perfectly honest here when I say that I didn't enjoy it. I didn't find the writing that much better than any average Seinfeld episode, I didn't find myself laughing all that much, and the main premise of the titular contest just doesn't appeal to me at all. As a matter of fact, I doubt most people would even understand what made the episode so beloved if you didn't know its cultural impact. I also think "the virgin" character is one of the few parts of Seinfeld that aged terribly. The fact that the cast would only refer to her as "the virgin", as if that was her only personality trait, doesn't sit well with me at all. For me, The Contest is a culturally important episode, but it's not one I enjoy watching.

Overall, Season 4 is easily the most ambitious season of Seinfeld through and through. It had a strong central arc, tons of iconic episodes, and a massive cultural impact, even if not all of it aged the most gracefully.

5/5 Stars