JT's comments below originally ran as part of Place to Be Nation's "Seinfeld: The PTBN Series Rewatch" project.
Best Character
George and Elaine. All day. It was a tag team performance for the ages across the board. George standing pat, refusing to move was awesome, as was Elaine's frantic lying and backing him up while also throwing him under the bus. Mike was pretty funny too, but without us knowing George's background and character, this may not have been as funny and epic as it turned out. Oh, and the Indiana Jones hat. Fantastic. I also love that he is standing strong for his principles. Screw off, Mike!
Best Storyline
The parking spot argument, easily. It led to tons of great and memorable moments and it was perfect that it was Mike who did it, considering his simmering issues with Jerry. I love the cast of characters that got involved, from Sid to Matthew to Newman, and watching everyone choose sides was really good stuff. One of my favorite storylines they have ever done.
Ethical Dilemma of the Week
Should you ever pull in to a parking spot front first? Sure, especially if there is plenty of room to do so and you want to get in quickly to open up traffic again. However, if someone is clearly sitting double parked in front of the spot, it should be obvious they are prepping to back in and you should defer accordingly because then you are being an asshole.
Relationship Scale (Scale 1-10)
Jerry and Mike have some real issues to work out as there seems to be a lot of buried resentment on both sides. They should have some Hennigan's and hash it out so they can relax and be pals again. Why is Jerry a phony, Mike? Talk it out, brother. Relationship Grade: Michael Jordan/10
What Worked
Kramer begging and harassing Jerry to know what is going on with the flea market is funny and very in character and I also loved Kramer turning it back on Jerry about the Mike conversation; I love George not wanting to wear hats for the potential that a woman will eventually find out his bald; All of the parking and driving sense with George and Elaine were good; The parking spot kerfluffle was fantastic and original stuff; Elaine's performance in lying to Jerry was epic; Kramer giving Elaine and George the cold shoulder and siding with Mike upped the stakes nicely; Mike is so transparently phony that it is endearing; Nice call back to have Sid show up to trash George's parking again; Jerry screwing up and telling Matthew that his father is closing his shop was great and it is topped by Kramer adamantly thinking Meredith was pregnant when she wasn't, a double dose of shitting on their family; Newman blowing up George's spot with the hat and then George slamming it on his head while Newman whimpers about defending his parking was great; Jerry finally blowing his lid on Mike; The cops arguing over who was right was a nice cap to the episode.
What Didn't Work
It was kind of shitty for Kramer to tell Jerry what Mike said; Jerry suddenly being a big boxing fan is odd; George begging Elaine to lie to Jerry because she is good at it was weird considering the whole series has been about how great a liar George is; The timeline is a bit screwy here as Jerry mentions that the fight starts in 35 minutes but based on the way the light changes outside, the episode lasts much longer than that; The old Irish guy was a real prick.
Key Character Debuts
- Mike Moffit
- Matthew
- Meredith
Iconic Moments, Running Themes & Memorable Quotes
- "You should have lived in the twenties and thirties, you know men wore hats all the time then." - Elaine "What a bald paradise that must have been. Nobody knew." - George
- "And you know I'm somebody you don't want to have on your bad side." - Kramer "Why not?" - Jerry "Because I'm like ice, buddy. When I don't like you, you've got problems." - Kramer
- Jerry mentions the Vault as a place to keep secrets
- "I told you, he thinks you're a phony." - Kramer "A phony? He called me a phony?" - Jerry "A big phony. A big one." - Kramer
- "Nobody drives like me. Nobody. I'm doing things in this car, you have no idea they're going on. Wanna see me make a right turn from the left lane?" - George
- "A garage. I can't even pull in there. It's like going to a prostitute. Why should I pay, when if I apply myself, maybe I could get it for free?" - George
- "Hey pal, you're not getting that space. I mean, I'll sleep in my car if I have to." - Mike "I'll die out here." - George
- "Hi Mike... Indiana." - Jerry
- "You're looking tremendous. What are you on some kind of regimen?" - Mike "Yeah, twenty-five percent bran flakes. The forty percent was too much so I found a store to mix it up special for me, they take it down another fifteen percent." - Jerry
- "Front first, that's how you park when you're pulling a bank job." - Jerry
- "What? Every time I leave my house now I have to call everybody I know and ask them if they want to do what I'm doing?" - George "People forget. Look at "Home Alone". They forgot." - Elaine
-"It was a so-so sorry." - Jerry
- Sid the Car Parker returns
- "Why is it every time you park a car in this block, everything gets disrupted and disjointed?" - Sid "Sid, it's completely his fault." - George "Oh, right." - Mike "Why don't you start taking the bus?" - Sid
- "First of all, I think you completely misunderstood what I said. I meant it in a complementary way. I mean, you know when people say, 'He's bad', it really means he's good, sort of thing? You know, slang." - Mike "Use it in a sentence." - Jerry "Man, that Michael Jordan is so phony." - Mike
Oddities & Fun Facts
- Jerry is a boxing fan and is ready to watch a fight that apparently starts in the middle of the day
Overall Grade (Scale 1-10)
I love this episode. It is one of my favorites of all time. It is loaded with classic, Hall of Fame level lines and moments and features a slew of funny characters that pop in and out during the argument on the street. Nothing felt wasted or really forced here at all and everyone was true to form. If you can ignore the fact that Jerry is suddenly super in to boxing and that the timeline is a bit screwy, there aren't many misses here at all. Bitter Kramer was a ton of fun and I absolutely love the scene at the end where Newman is begging to wear George's hat. "Michael Jordan is so phony" is such a great line too. Tons of stuff to love here and this really was a great bounce back after a couple of shaky outings. I am probably overrating this one a bit, but it has always been one of my favorites. Final Grade: 9/10
Best Character
George and Elaine. All day. It was a tag team performance for the ages across the board. George standing pat, refusing to move was awesome, as was Elaine's frantic lying and backing him up while also throwing him under the bus. Mike was pretty funny too, but without us knowing George's background and character, this may not have been as funny and epic as it turned out. Oh, and the Indiana Jones hat. Fantastic. I also love that he is standing strong for his principles. Screw off, Mike!
Best Storyline
The parking spot argument, easily. It led to tons of great and memorable moments and it was perfect that it was Mike who did it, considering his simmering issues with Jerry. I love the cast of characters that got involved, from Sid to Matthew to Newman, and watching everyone choose sides was really good stuff. One of my favorite storylines they have ever done.
Ethical Dilemma of the Week
Should you ever pull in to a parking spot front first? Sure, especially if there is plenty of room to do so and you want to get in quickly to open up traffic again. However, if someone is clearly sitting double parked in front of the spot, it should be obvious they are prepping to back in and you should defer accordingly because then you are being an asshole.
Relationship Scale (Scale 1-10)
Jerry and Mike have some real issues to work out as there seems to be a lot of buried resentment on both sides. They should have some Hennigan's and hash it out so they can relax and be pals again. Why is Jerry a phony, Mike? Talk it out, brother. Relationship Grade: Michael Jordan/10
What Worked
Kramer begging and harassing Jerry to know what is going on with the flea market is funny and very in character and I also loved Kramer turning it back on Jerry about the Mike conversation; I love George not wanting to wear hats for the potential that a woman will eventually find out his bald; All of the parking and driving sense with George and Elaine were good; The parking spot kerfluffle was fantastic and original stuff; Elaine's performance in lying to Jerry was epic; Kramer giving Elaine and George the cold shoulder and siding with Mike upped the stakes nicely; Mike is so transparently phony that it is endearing; Nice call back to have Sid show up to trash George's parking again; Jerry screwing up and telling Matthew that his father is closing his shop was great and it is topped by Kramer adamantly thinking Meredith was pregnant when she wasn't, a double dose of shitting on their family; Newman blowing up George's spot with the hat and then George slamming it on his head while Newman whimpers about defending his parking was great; Jerry finally blowing his lid on Mike; The cops arguing over who was right was a nice cap to the episode.
What Didn't Work
It was kind of shitty for Kramer to tell Jerry what Mike said; Jerry suddenly being a big boxing fan is odd; George begging Elaine to lie to Jerry because she is good at it was weird considering the whole series has been about how great a liar George is; The timeline is a bit screwy here as Jerry mentions that the fight starts in 35 minutes but based on the way the light changes outside, the episode lasts much longer than that; The old Irish guy was a real prick.
Key Character Debuts
- Mike Moffit
- Matthew
- Meredith
Iconic Moments, Running Themes & Memorable Quotes
- "You should have lived in the twenties and thirties, you know men wore hats all the time then." - Elaine "What a bald paradise that must have been. Nobody knew." - George
- "And you know I'm somebody you don't want to have on your bad side." - Kramer "Why not?" - Jerry "Because I'm like ice, buddy. When I don't like you, you've got problems." - Kramer
- Jerry mentions the Vault as a place to keep secrets
- "I told you, he thinks you're a phony." - Kramer "A phony? He called me a phony?" - Jerry "A big phony. A big one." - Kramer
- "Nobody drives like me. Nobody. I'm doing things in this car, you have no idea they're going on. Wanna see me make a right turn from the left lane?" - George
- "A garage. I can't even pull in there. It's like going to a prostitute. Why should I pay, when if I apply myself, maybe I could get it for free?" - George
- "Hey pal, you're not getting that space. I mean, I'll sleep in my car if I have to." - Mike "I'll die out here." - George
- "Hi Mike... Indiana." - Jerry
- "You're looking tremendous. What are you on some kind of regimen?" - Mike "Yeah, twenty-five percent bran flakes. The forty percent was too much so I found a store to mix it up special for me, they take it down another fifteen percent." - Jerry
- "Front first, that's how you park when you're pulling a bank job." - Jerry
- "What? Every time I leave my house now I have to call everybody I know and ask them if they want to do what I'm doing?" - George "People forget. Look at "Home Alone". They forgot." - Elaine
-"It was a so-so sorry." - Jerry
- Sid the Car Parker returns
- "Why is it every time you park a car in this block, everything gets disrupted and disjointed?" - Sid "Sid, it's completely his fault." - George "Oh, right." - Mike "Why don't you start taking the bus?" - Sid
- "First of all, I think you completely misunderstood what I said. I meant it in a complementary way. I mean, you know when people say, 'He's bad', it really means he's good, sort of thing? You know, slang." - Mike "Use it in a sentence." - Jerry "Man, that Michael Jordan is so phony." - Mike
Oddities & Fun Facts
- Jerry is a boxing fan and is ready to watch a fight that apparently starts in the middle of the day
Overall Grade (Scale 1-10)
I love this episode. It is one of my favorites of all time. It is loaded with classic, Hall of Fame level lines and moments and features a slew of funny characters that pop in and out during the argument on the street. Nothing felt wasted or really forced here at all and everyone was true to form. If you can ignore the fact that Jerry is suddenly super in to boxing and that the timeline is a bit screwy, there aren't many misses here at all. Bitter Kramer was a ton of fun and I absolutely love the scene at the end where Newman is begging to wear George's hat. "Michael Jordan is so phony" is such a great line too. Tons of stuff to love here and this really was a great bounce back after a couple of shaky outings. I am probably overrating this one a bit, but it has always been one of my favorites. Final Grade: 9/10
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