Nothing Wrong at All - Why People Dig Seinfeld

Right up there with famous quotes such as "say hello to my little friend," "here's Johnny," "That's hot" and "I see dead people," are expressions from a show as American as taking from the poor and giving back to the rich. Thanks to the uber-popular 90s "show about nothing," Seinfeld, expressions such as "sponge-worthy," "I don't wanna be a pirate" and "No soup for you," not to mention the popularity of junior mints candy, have become permanently affixed to our collective lexicon.

TV Guide hails Seinfeld, which begat in 1989 and ran until 1998, as the greatest sit-com of all time and one of the best television shows in history. It was wildly popular while it was still being made and, thanks to the advent of the TV on DVD box set, now boasts a mammoth loyal cult following. I, myself, an admitted sit-com afficianado, count my Seinfeld box sets as the ones receiving the heaviest rotation in my DVD player. And certainly, I am not alone.

In talking of this one day with a couple of friends, a question one of them had for me was something to the effect of, "well, there are a gazillion sit-coms out there and comedians getting their own shows surely isn't something new. What does Seinfeld have that others don't?" After a couple of seconds, I had a good answer. First, I clarified that I am an avid sit-com buff and will basically watch any of them that are funny and have a good plot. Then, I offered a couple of major reasons as to why Seinfeld tops my list of not only favorite sit-coms, but also favorite overall shows.

First of all, it is the scripting and the way that the show and even the jokes are written as to why myself and others champion Seinfeld. Obviously, this is not a reality, though even with its ironic situations, it was written to seem as if it were one. The characters are just average people, as to not seem like the show is portraying some unattainable, uber-glamorous, ritzy, money-filled hyper reality. The show employs a cast of real 30-something people living in modest apartments in New York City and with real jobs that real people hold; even ones that seem like dream jobs such as Elaine's working as a writer on the J Peterman catalogs, George working for the Yankees for two seasons and Jerry making a living as a standup comedian. And while other comedians-turned-sitcom-stars hace more realistic jobs on their shows, such as Ray Romano and Brad Garrett's characters careers as a sports writer and police officer, respectively, Seinfeld is the most realistic all around. For instance, one of the four lead people is stocky, bald and wears glasses. And while Julia Louis Dreyfus as Elaine is beautiful, she isn't unattainable perfect and carries herself as an average career-oriented woman.

In fact, that is one big things fans find favorable in Seinfeld; it shows real people in a real city, who look like real people living real lives, all without trying too hard to even make the funny bits, well, funny. No line sounds scripted, even in the most absurd of settings. This is in direct contradiction to, say, anything else on television, which only employ the glamorous, rich and unattainably perfect. I mean, have you ever wondered why there are no plus-sized or stock, bald on shows such as Friends. Or have you ever stopped to consider why, when a character is a member of a minority group, their entire schtick revolves around their ethnic group or sexual orientation. Not to mention, how they are all, in general, a walking bad stereotype? In a nutshell, Seinfeld is free of this and thus is a point of interest for devoted fans.

In respect to any show, regardless of the genre, people dig it for one of two reasons besides, of course, if they like the characters, if the plot line interests them or if they are a fan of the general genre. People watch some shows to escape from reality. Others watch a show because they can identify with the characters and/or the plots his close to home and therefore feel some kind of connection to what is being shown. For Seinfeld, it serves both purposes.

The tagline, "a show about nothing" is meant to imply that there is minimal scripting, it was never meant to be too staged and that every aspect of every episode is meant to be as close to every person's life as possible. Accordingly, people from all walks of life can find themselves and/or identify with at least one of the show's characters, whether it is Elaine's always trying desperately to impress her boss, Kramer's entrepreneurial spirit and endless "get rich quick" schemes or George Costanza's hopeless romanticism. Bottom line; people love the show because it encourages them to take a look at themselves and laugh.

However, on the flip side, the show also furnishes an escape of sorts. I mean, how many times have you gone to get a bowl of crab bisque only to have the chef scream, "no soup for you?" When's the last time your boss threatened to fire you because you hate the movie, The English Patient, or lost a girlfriend over the course of waiting for a table at a Chinese restaurant? All of these situations are so ridiculous that one can't help but laugh. However, they're not too off the wall, especially since such things could happen to real people in their own lives.

In summary, Seinfeld is not just another stunt by another comedian trying to acquire publicity. The show is smart, with real characters that represent American society, going through situations that, while crazy, aren't too far-fetched. Certainly, this "show about nothing" does, indeed, provide us with something.