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Can someone explain why Seinfeld was so great?

LockedHDD__Pot

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30 years ago it was relatively unique compared to everything else that was on tv. Even today it's still fairly charming, though significantly less so when 95% of everything you've seen on tv since then has borrowed liberally from what they've seen on it.
I wondered if it was partly a 'time & place' kinda thing, I don't dislike it but it doesn't jump-out at me whatching episodes in retrospect
 

Meownaw

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It also was a sitcom that didn't try to do anything emotional and was just jokes. No sentimental moments and if there was one it was always building up to a punchline. An example would be the busboy episode, in other sitcoms the climax would be the busboy saying to George that he saved his life and the audience cheering but instead we got him pushed down a flight of stairs after saying that. Also the whole multiple storylines converging at the end was something fresh.
 

Patrick O'Neal

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I never particularly liked it, but I think it holds up well and even seem 'edgy' by today's standards.

I think at the time it was mainstream edgy. So normies would watch it and feel like they were being a bit naughty. Jerry has his middle class "What's the deal with buying furniture for your spare room!" material, and Larry David threw in some cheeky plotlines to make it bareable.
 

Not bad

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What set it apart was amoral storytelling. When it came out, most sit-coms were family oriented, and every episode was structured to build up to some kind of wholesome conclusion. Seinfeld ignored that in favor of comedy for the sake of making people laugh. Hence the "no hugs, no lessons" motto.

I don't like it myself, but that's how it stood out at least. I prefer the first 7-8 seasons of Always Sunny, which did the same thing but went truly gross and depraved.
 
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Jims_Maroon_Pants

Joe's Geek Squad Technician
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I never really watched it during it's initial airing. It was a good show, but I never felt I needed to see it every week. There are moments that are genius because of Larry David
I watched the final season because I wanted to see how it ended. I liked it but it's not something I ever talk about or reference.
Now the office, I loathed
 
G

guest

Guest
It's incredibly simple. They didn't go adding new "fun and crazy!" Charcters. They didn't start any bullshit storylines connecting episodes. They stopped making more shows when they were done instead of shamelessly squeezing every penny they could. I like the nostalgia of NYC in the 90s...not as shitskinned as today.

I appreciate Seinfeld because you can tell he knows mainstream is shit. I'd bet that they pitched him "Jerry gets a serious girlfriend" or a "seinfeld wedding!" Storyline and he pulled the plug.
 

1073waaf

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I think it’s appeal comes from the writer’s “no hugging, no learning rule”. They basically had a rule that the characters never learn from their mistakes or do anything nice for anybody but themselves.

It’s one of those shows where you kind of have to watch the whole series to fully appreciate it. So many of the jokes are references to earlier episodes and also the show is only really good from seasons 3-7. Seasons 1 and 2 are kind of awkward and not that funny and seasons 8 and 9 got really silly and stupid.
 

Meownaw

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It's incredibly simple. They didn't go adding new "fun and crazy!" Charcters. They didn't start any bullshit storylines connecting episodes. They stopped making more shows when they were done instead of shamelessly squeezing every penny they could. I like the nostalgia of NYC in the 90s...not as shitskinned as today.

I appreciate Seinfeld because you can tell he knows mainstream is shit. I'd bet that they pitched him "Jerry gets a serious girlfriend" or a "seinfeld wedding!" Storyline and he pulled the plug.
The story lines got pretty wacky in the final few seasons but still focused great jokes so it was forgiven.
 

Raymond

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It also was a sitcom that didn't try to do anything emotional and was just jokes. No sentimental moments and if there was one it was always building up to a punchline. An example would be the busboy episode, in other sitcoms the climax would be the busboy saying to George that he saved his life and the audience cheering but instead we got him pushed down a flight of stairs after saying that. Also the whole multiple storylines converging at the end was something fresh.
I think they even had a rule about that: "No hugs, no learning"
 

JoeCumiawearsDIAPERS

DMANIAC
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Everybody in this thread is spot on. It's simple, unbiased, and identifiable, even by today's standards. Who hasn't gone to a restaurant and had to wait a while for a table? Who hasn't accidentally had someone walk in on them getting changed? Who hasn't lost their car in a parking garage?

It also treated the audience like adults. The humor isn't over the top raunchy or explicit since it was on NBC. Lastly, it was primetime TV, meaning you couldn't binge it. People looked forward to a new episode every week, which is critical to building a core audience. I doubt it would have the following it does if it was on Netflix and they dropped full seasons at a time.
 

Meownaw

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Watch them come out with a new season on Netflix after we make this thread ... I'm sure some jew is trying to grab those loose shekels.

Fucking REDDITARDS could ruin something else for me like they did with sopranos.
George becomes Georgette and it's played for zero laughs. Elaine dates a nigger and they have a graphic sex scene. Jerry gets accosted by Trump NAZIS who call him a kike. Newman is told to lose weight and his arc is learning that only bigots say those things HAES. Kramer is killed by niggers and turns out Elaine's nigger boyfriend put out a hit because he is still seething about The Laugh Factory clip. *Bassline*
 
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