Seinfeld - Series 1-3 - Complete (DVD)

...which was then called the Seinfeld Chronicles, was aired in July 1989, and the show kept running until May 1998. It was more popular than Friends and Jerry Seinfeld, star of the show, was pleaded with to carry on with the show. He didn't need the money, of course, by this stage, and he was concerned that the show would lose its sterling reputation if it waned away into every other average sitcom. Quite why it took over 6 years to release on DVD I ...
...is yet another reason why Seinfeld was so different to everything else from the time, and also everything since.

This particular box set covers the first three series', which defined the show for next decade. It is notoriously described as the show about nothing, as the jokes generally come from the characters reactions to everyday events and objects ("What's the deal with airline peanuts?"). At first, it takes a while to ... more

Well, its here. Any person who watched Seinfeld, only broadcasted late at night on BBC2 on terrestrial television in this country, would have been praying for this release. While in America the coverage of the sitcom was of mammoth proportions, in this country we got no specials and no interviews. The cast, while being some of the most famous people in America, they would probably not get recognized in this country. This, for me, makes this DVD package, all the more worthwhile to British consumers.

The pilot of Seinfeld, which was then called the Seinfeld Chronicles, was aired in July 1989, and the show kept running until May 1998. It was more popular than Friends and Jerry Seinfeld, star of the show, was pleaded with to carry on with the show. He didn't need the money, of course, by this stage, and he was concerned that the show would lose its sterling reputation if it waned away into every other average sitcom. Quite why it took over 6 years to release on DVD I am not sure, but I am just grateful that it has finally arrived.

The show, about nothing, was originally set as a story, with clips from Seinfeld's stand up relating to the story throughout. This is yet another reason why Seinfeld was so different to everything else from the time, and also everything since.

This particular box set covers the first three series', which defined the show for next decade. It is notoriously described as the show about nothing, as the jokes generally come from the characters reactions to everyday events and objects ("What's the deal with airline peanuts?"). At first, it takes a while to get to know the characters, but as soon as you do, the show will be ten times more appealing (some may find it not exactly ten times more appealing). Here is a brief overview of the four main characters:

>>Jerry Seinfeld, played by himself:

Jerry plays himself as standup comedian living in New York City. He is obsessively neat and single. He seems to have a different girlfriend every week and takes pleasure in the problems of his friends, especially George. His parents live in Florida, and they see each other relatively often. His apartment is one of the two main meeting places for the group (the other being Monks cafe). As a comedian, he always has to have the last laugh in an argument or conversation:
Elaine: "Everything always has to be a joke with you doesn't it?!"
Jerry: "I'm a comedian!!"

>>Elaine Benis, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus :

The only female character, introduced after the pilot in an aim to get more balance, Kramer described her as "A man's woman". This is very accurate. She is Jerry's ex-girlfriend, but has remained friends with him after the break-up. In the beginning of the series this was a big issue but as time passed they grew to be just friends. Having said that they do sleep together and nearly get married. In the first two episodes, she shares her flat with another woman, but eventually lives alone. She has fewer female friends as the series progresses. She is a writer and works for Pendant Publishers in the first three series'.

>>George Costanza, played by Jason Alexander:

George is Jerry's best friend from school and they have remained friends ever since. He begins working as an estate agent but quit because his boss wouldn't let George use his bathroom in the office. He then spends a long time in unemployment. George is the most depressed character of the bunch, and seems to be made the butt of the majority of the jokes. He gets very angry, very easily. He has many different girlfriends, and his standards are surprisingly high, like Jerry's. His parents live in Queens in New York, George argues with them a lot.

>>Cosmo Kramer, played by Michael Richards:

By far the most bizarre character, but also the most loveable. He is Jerry's next-door neighbour, and regularly frequents chez Seinfeld to pick up some food from Jerry's fridge. He doesn't work (we find out later he's on strike from a bagel shop), but has many ways of making money and comes up with many different ideas for new products, his best being a fragrance that smells like a beach. He too has many girlfriends. He seems the most genuine of all the characters and the will to do what he thinks is right, however he does have annoying tendencies that get on the nerves of the others, especially Jerry.

*My review of each episode makes this review a long one. I put each episode in as any fan that has seen a few episodes can find if their favourite is on this package. If you have not seen Seinfeld before, I suggest you read a few episodes and skip to the end.

>The Episodes
>>Season 1

The Pilot:

A female friend of Jerry's asks if she can stay at his apartment while she's in New York, cue much debate between Jerry and George as to whether she's interested in more than just a place to stay. Kramer is referred to as Kesler and Elaine does not feature.

>Male-Unbonding:

Kramer seeks investment in his "Pizza place where you make your own pie" idea. He picks this idea up again in a later series. Jerry tries to "break-up" with a childhood friend that he doesn't like.

>The Stake Out:

Jerry meets a girl while out with Elaine, but doesn't know anything about when she leaves early - apart from where she lives. To meet her, he and George "Stake Out" he office building.

HIGHLIGHT: First time George uses the alias Art Vandaley

>The Robbery:

Jerry returns home from a tour to find his TV stolen because Kramer left the door open. Jerry decides its time to move and George finds him a new place, but George starts to like it too. In the end neither get the apartment, and Elaine doesn't get Jerry's.

HIGHLIGHT: When Jerry and George "Choose" for the flat.

>The Stock Tip:

George receives a stock tip and Jerry reluctantly buys with him, but it immediately drops in price, costing them almost half their money. Jerry sells, George stays to go down with the ship. Eventually, the stock rises in price dramatically, making George a lot of money. Meanwhile, Jerry is on a "relationship killing" weekend break with his girlfriend.

>>Season 2:

>The Ex-Girlfriend:
George dumps his current girlfriend and Jerry then immediately starts dating her. She dumps Jerry after seeing his stand-up comedy act which she doesn't like. Kramer starts to like fresh fruit and nearly becomes obsessive. Elaine confronts a man that no longer says hello to her. She just wants to know why.

>The Pony Remark:

Jerry makes a remark that immigrant children shouldn't ride ponies, which greatly offends an elderly relative. She then dies and Jerry is convinced that she haunts him in his softball final. Elaine tries to acquire the apartment of the deceased.

>The Busboy:

George gets a busboy fired and tries to make things up to him but ends up losing his cat as well. Elaine has a houseguest over who will not leave.

HIGHLIGHT: Elaine packing for her unwelcome guest.

>The Baby Shower:

Jerry has to go out of town for a show so he agrees to let Elaine use his apartment to hold a baby shower. Kramer convinces Jerry on the benefits of an illegal cable hook up and so installation arrangements are made. Jerry's show is cancelled so he returns to his apartment. As the baby shower is underway the cable hook up guys arrive. George confronts a former date that embarrassed him tremendously and which he deems the worst date he has ever had.

HIGHLIGHT: Jerry's dream of getting arrested, very surreal and unlike Seinfeld, but great anyway!!

>The Jacket:

Jerry buys a suede leather jacket with a pink and white-stripped liner. The jacket gets ruined when Jerry travels to meet Elaine's father and it snows and Elaine's father doesn't want to be seen on the street with Jerry because of his jacket, which he is wearing inside out. George can't get the theme music from Les Miserables out of his mind no matter how hard he tries.

HIGHLIGHT: George and his humming.

>The Chinese Restaurant:

Groundbreaking episode. The gang plans to see the comedic Sci-fi spoof Plan 9 From Outer Space and attempt a quick meal at a Chinese Restaurant but find that the wait is longer they bargained for. The whole show is set with them waiting for their table. This show is seen to symbolise why Seinfeld is so different.

HIGHLIGHT: Jerry's dare with Elaine about her stealing food
from the restaurants tables.

>The Phone Message:

Another classic. George becomes upset with a current girlfriend and leaves nasty messages on her machine because he believes that he is being ignored. George later discovers that his girlfriend has been out of town for a while and has not had a time to check her messages or call George back. George plans with Jerry to switch tapes on her answering machine so that she will not find out about the nasty messages he left for her. George distracts the girlfriend while Jerry attempts to switch the tapes. The switch proves a success but then the girlfriend tells George that she just recently checked her answering machine and found his messages hilarious. Jerry and his current girlfriend argue about the meaning of a Dockers pants advertisement.

HIGHLIGHT: George panicking in his girlfriend's apartment,
shouting "Tippy toe!"

>The Apartment:

Jerry makes arrangements so that Elaine can have an apartment in his building directly above him. He realises the possible complications of such an arrangement and tries to talk Elaine out of the apartment. Kramer uses mousse in his hair and appears quite a fool. George and Jerry hold a discussion as to who the bigger idiot really is between them. George tests the old "wedding band" theory to attract women. He wears a wedding band and appears to be married and discovers that this really does attract women.

>The Stranded:

Jerry and Elaine develop a primitive signal that they can use to get each other out of awkward situations at a party. George leaves with someone from the party when he thinks he has a chance with her. This leaves Elaine and Jerry stranded, as they have no way home except Kramer who is taking a long time to reach the party. George believes that he got short-changed at a drug store and attempts to steal from them to recoup his losses but he gets caught and arrested.

HIGHLIGHT: Elaine saying, "May be the dingo ate your baby!" to an annoying woman complaining that she's lost her fiancé, or "baby".

>The Statue:

Elaine is editing a book by a Finnish author. Her boyfriend agrees to clean Jerry's apartment. Jerry receives a box of stuff from his grandfather. In the box was a unique statue that is identical to one George broke years ago that his parents had. The statue is placed on Jerry's mantelpiece. After the cleaning of Jerry's apartment it is realized that the statue is missing. Later Elaine and Jerry are at the house of the man that cleaned Jerry's apartment and they notice the statue is on their mantelpiece. They aren't sure if it's the same one but they cause a confrontation nonetheless and risk Elaine's job editing the book.

>The Heart Attack:

George believes he is having a heart attack. A doctor tells him
that he did not have a heart attack but that he needs his tonsils removed. George finds that the cost of surgery is just too much. Kramer talks George into going to a more cost effective alternative, a holistic healer. The holistic healer's cure causes George's skin to turn purple.

>The Revenge:

George quits his job but later decides that he really shouldn't
have quit. By Jerry's suggestion George goes into work the next day and just pretends that nothing happened. It doesn't work however and George still is out of work. George schemes a plan of revenge against his boss with Elaine to put a 'mickey' in his bosses drink at a bar. Newman prepares to jump many floors up and plummet to his death. But he just can't get high enough up, and Jerry points this out to him. Jerry discovers that he has misplaced $1500, which was formerly in his laundry bag. After talking with Kramer about it, Jerry comes to the conclusion that the laundry mat owner stole it and together they plot a way to get revenge. Kramer and Jerry go to the Laundromat. Kramer pretends to have a rather large load of laundry when in fact he is carrying a bag of concrete.

>The Deal:

Jerry and Elaine ponder if sex between friends can work. They devise a plan with rules that will allow them to enjoy the benefits of friendship and the perks of sex together. The ground rules they set include that spending the night over is optional and you don't have to call the day after. These rules are to prevent the typical awkward situations that plague sexual relationships. Things are working out well for Elaine and Jerry until Elaine's birthday comes. Jerry gives her cash. Kramer listens in on what Elaine has been hinting that she has been wanting and gets her a fold out bench.

>>Season 3

>The Note:

Jerry uses a dentist friend, Roy to write fake doctors notes for he, Elaine, and George so they can get physical therapy massages and have their insurance cover it. Jerry gets a female physical therapist while George gets a male one. The dentist is later investigated for insurance fraud.

HIGHLIGHT: Kramer Joe Dimagio in Dinky Donuts

>The Truth:

George dates a female IRS agent and attempts to use her to help Jerry with his taxes. The plan seems to be a good one until George breaks up with her and tells her exactly what he thinks of her. The woman goes into a deep depression and is institutionalised. Meanwhile, Kramer dates Elaine's roommate.

>The Dog:

Jerry gets suckered into watching a dog for a man he met on an airplane flight who gets sick and is in a hospital somewhere in Chicago. Jerry can't go out as he has to watch the dog all the time. George and Elaine miss Jerry and find that without Jerry, their times out just aren't the same. Since they can't talk well with each other about anything, they start talking about Jerry and his little quirks and obsessions.

>The Library:

A "library cop" tells Jerry that he has a library book The Tropic of Capricorn that is 25 years overdue. Jerry thinks through the past through a series of flashbacks with younger versions of himself and George. George is keeps seeing his old gym teacher living on the streets and thinks that he is responsible.

>The Pen

Elaine travels with Jerry to meet his parents in Florida at their condominium. The condo has climate control problems and a backbreaking sofa bed. Jerry ends up accepting a pen off his Dad's friend, Klompus, which sends shockwaves through the condominium.

HIGHLIGHT: The speed in which the news spreads amongst
the old folk.

>The Parking Garage:

Another groundbreaker; the foursome spend all afternoon trying to find Kramer's car in a parking garage. George has to go to the bathroom but can find none so he urinates in a corner of the parking garage. A security guard spots him and he is arrested. Jerry also has to go to the bathroom and also is arrested. Jerry tells the guard that he could suffer from a major disease and die if he didn't relieve himself.

HIGHLIGHT: Jerry's excuses

>The Café:

Jerry becomes friends with an immigrant restaurant owner named Babu that just can't seem to attract many customers to his store. Elaine takes an IQ test for George because his girlfriend wanted to see how smart George is. Elaine performs horribly and the pair attempts to cheat a second time but they get caught. Kramer uses a jacket owned by an ex-boyfriend of his mother to attract chicks. Things go well for Kramer until the ex-boyfriend comes looking for his jacket

>The Tape:

Erotic messages are left on Jerry's tape of his show and George hears them. He listens to them and soon learns that the person leaving the messages is Elaine. George becomes infatuated with Elaine because of this. George hears of a new cure for baldness from China and orders it.

HIGHLIGHTS: George's moose hair remedy and hat.

>The Nose Job:

George dates a woman with a big nose. Kramer tells her about how big her nose is truly so she gets a nose job. Jerry wrestles with deciding rather or not to stay in a relationship in which the sex is good but nothing else is there. Kramer has Elaine help him search for the Jacket from the Cafe episode from two shows earlier.

>The Alternate Side:

Elaine grows tired of her new 66 year old boyfriend and attempts to dump him. As she attempts to dump him he has a stroke or heart attack. Kramer is given the opportunity to read a line in a new Woody Allen film. His line is "these pretzels are making me thirsty." George gets a job moving cars, which spells disaster for traffic flow in the area. Jerry's car gets stolen and he has trouble getting a rental. Jerry does however contact the thief via his car phone, which is still in the car.

HIGHLIGHT: Jerry's reaction to hearing that his reservation did not guarantee him a car.

>The Red Dot:

Elaine gets George a job in her office, so George buys her a present to say thank you. However, the cashmere jumper was reduced as it had a red dot on. George then sleeps with the cleaning lady at work and gets fired. Meanwhile, Jerry accidentally gives Elaine's recovering-alcoholic-boyfriend a drink.

HIGHLIGHT: Kramer after drinking some whisky.

>The Suicide:

Elaine fasts because she cannot eat before an X-ray test she has planned. Gina, a married woman whose husband is in a comma, hits on Jerry. Even in a comma Jerry is afraid of him. Elaine breaks her fast and eats a Drakes coffee cake. A psychic warns George that he should not go on his dream vacation. As a result George lets Kramer go to the Cayman Islands instead.

>The Subway:

This is the first episode in which all four characters have a different storyline, after all starting off together on the subway. George is going for a job interview, but meets a woman on the way. Jerry ends up spending the day with a nudist, Elaine has problems getting to a lesbian wedding, and she's the best man. Kramer has to pay some fines, but gets distracted after a hot tip on the horses.

>The Pez Dispenser:

Jerry causes Elaine to laugh at a piano recital being held by George's girlfriend because of a Pez dispenser he got from Kramer. This puts a strain on George's relationship. Kramer comes up with an idea for new cologne that smells like the beach and titles it "The Beach." The idea is realized in a later Seinfeld episode by the Calvin Klein Company. George listens to Kramer and decides that he should make a pre-emptive strike and break up with his girlfriend before she breaks up with him. This would give George the upper hand as he sees it. The Pez dispenser Jerry got from Kramer is used during a drug intervention to help a friend addicted to drugs. The Pez dispenser works wonders in this area.

>The Boyfriend - Parts 1&2

The first Seinfeld double episode: Jerry meets New York Mets player Keith Hernandez and tries to make a good initial impression. Jerry helps Keith to get a date with Elaine, which results in a date with Jerry having to be cancelled. Jerry is asked by Keith to help him move. Jerry feels this is a bit too much of a commitment question as they only went out on one date. George is running out of time on his current unemployment benefits and schemes on a way to get a 13-week extension. He tells the unemployment office that he is close to getting a job with Vandaley Industries making latex products. He sets Jerry's apartment up as Vandaley Industries headquarters. The plan backfires as Kramer answers the phone at Jerry's and says Vandaley industries is not there. Kramer and Newman believe that Keith Hernandez may have spit on them during a past baseball game so they don't like him much. George states that he wants to sleep with a really tall woman. Elaine and Keith are getting along really well until he lights up a cigarette. Elaine then dumps him, as does Jerry.

HIGHLIGHTS: The JFK spoof with regards to who spat on
Kramer and Newman; "There must have been a second spitter"

>The Fix-Up:

Elaine and Jerry plot to fix up George with one of Elaine's friends. Kramer hands out condoms he has been given. George takes one just in case his date goes well. George uses the condom and has sex with his date in the kitchen. The condoms are defective. George and Jerry discuss the date. Elaine and her friend also discuss the date. Jerry and Elaine have agreed to share everything about the date, but keep everything from each other. This episode used a unique split screen to showcase the multiple conversations underway on the phone. When she misses her period she fears she is pregnant. Rather than respond with fear George exclaims, "my boys can swim." He embraces the concept of fatherhood and tells his former date that he is with her no matter what she chooses. This brings them closer together and eventually periods resume and the fear of pregnancy disappears.

>The Limo:

George and Jerry pose as other people so they can ride in a limo meant for someone who never arrived. They call Kramer and Elaine and invite them to join them. George and Jerry discover that the people they are posing as are White Aryan supremeists. George and Jerry try their best to play it off and pretend to be whom they are pretending to be, but they just can't do it. Ultimately the gang arrives at Madison Square Garden and their vehicle is attacked, as George is believed to be the Aryan spokesman.

>The Good Samaritan:

Jerry witnesses a hit and run and tries to confront the woman that did it. He winds up dating her. The victim of the hit and run thinks Jerry did it and his explanation is not acceptable to her. Kramer believes that he has seizures whenever he hears Mary Hart's voice. George sleeps with a married woman after saying, "god bless you" to her and insulting her husband.

>The Letter:

Jerry's girlfriend paints a picture of Kramer and then gives Jerry a letter that is dis be stolen from a movie. The painting of Kramer is thought to be a masterpiece by an old couple. Elaine wears a Baltimore Orioles cap to a New York Yankees game and refuses to take it off. Elaine is banished from Yankee stadium for this feat but is given a chance to return later. George goes with Jerry to see his girlfriend in her art studio. George feels compelled to buy something from her, he thinks it's an obligation, but immediately regrets it.

>The Parking Space:

Elaine borrows Jerry's car but when she brings it back it makes a funny noise. She attempts to explain the noise with a bizarre series of lies but does not succeed. Kramer tells Jerry that one of his friends, Mike, thinks Jerry is fake and phoney. George and Mike get into a fight about a prime parking spot in front of Jerry's apartment. Because of the parking spot dispute Jerry misses a boxing match that he and George have planned to watch together in Jerry's apartment.

HIGHLIGHTS: Elaine's web of lies is well crafted.

>The Keys:

Jerry becomes tired of Kramer constantly invading his privacy, so he takes away his spare keys to the apartment. Kramer feels that by losing the keys to Jerry's apartment he will be free to live on his own and will never again live under the shadow of Jerry. Jerry gives his spare keys, which originally were owned by Kramer to Elaine. Jerry finally needs the spare keys to get into his apartment and schemes with George to get them back as George has the spare keys to Elaine's apartment. George at first refuses to help Jerry but finally Jerry convinces George that he is just trying to get back what he originally gave to Elaine so it wouldn't be wrong to do at all. George and Jerry sneak into Elaine's apartment via the keys and discover Elaine's script for a Hollywood project. Elaine discovers their intrusion and is furious. Kramer travels to California and lands a small role in the Murphy Brown show. The key storyline is quite intricate and is one of the more cerebral Seinfeld episodes to follow but it's quite a good one. A show that can be just about spare keys, really illustrates how this is the show about nothing.
This story continues into the next series.

>>>DVD Extras:

The extras, for me, make the package. On the first 'set', there is
a 'Making Of' documentary. This is very insightful as Jerry takes you around New York to show where the first scripts were written and where the inspiration for different shows came from. I enjoy the comments from Larry David, the real brains behind the show.

Other extras, on most of the DVD's, include:

>Yada, yada, yada: Commentaries from the creators, cast and writers on various episodes. I particularly enjoyed the Seinfeld/David commentaries.

>In The Vault: Deleted scenes (usually due to someone laughing at Michael Richards, which annoy him greatly).

>Inside Looks: Cast and writer comments about particular episodes. Best watched before the episode, it gives you a nice introduction and things to look out for.

>Notes About Nothing: Very interesting notes at the bottom of the screen running in an episode. They include information on 'bit-part' actors, a running count of Kramer entering Jerry's apartment, a check on who the gang date and much more. Definitely one for the hardcore Seinfeld fan.

>Master of His Domain: Exclusive stand-up material from Jerry Seinfeld that didn't make it onto the show.

>Not That There's Anything Wrong With That: Outtakes, mostly after Michael Richards makes everyone crack up mid scene.
Also, on the 3rd Series, there's a special feature, "Kramer vs. Kramer: Kenny to Cosmo". This explains the differences and similarities between the Kramer on the screen and the one that lives opposite Larry David. This is very funny as they're aren't many differences.

>>>Recommendation:

Obviously any fan of Seinfeld should buy this DVD package. Even if you have seen all of the episodes, the extras are worth the money alone. Also it is so hard to get a regular dosage of Seinfeld, this gives you the chance to watch whenever you want! However, if you have never seen Seinfeld, I urge you to give it a try. Rather than spending the £45 on the DVD's, you could try watching it on the Paramount channel on Sky Digital, channel 127 and 128 at 17:30. Give it a few watches and I'm sure the DVD's'll tempt you. It is the most intelligent sit-com around, and one that deserved a much wider audience than it got in this country.

I bought my copy form play.com for £39.99, you may be able to find it cheaper as I bpuight it at the time it was released.
 

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