"Pyro's a bad maniac"

I don’t have HBO. Right now I only have the cable channels offered by the hotel I’m living in (I’m such a rock star). But even in my own home, I only had basic cable. I haven’t had HBO since my parents got a satellite dish back in the late 90s. I’d only had five channels for 17 years and suddenly the world would be at my fingertips… suddenly I’d have… You’ve Got Mail.

So, HBO wasn’t as cool as I’d thought it would be. Well, if Curb Your Enthusiasm had been showing, I’d probably have watched a lot more. Curb Your Enthusiasm is a 30-minute sitcom that thanks to the no-commercial nature of HBO is actually 30 minutes. But more specifically, it is the creation of Larry David, co-creator and main writer of Seinfeld’s first seven seasons. In this show he plays himself as the financially successful creator of Seinfeld.

The first thing you’ll notice about Curb Your Enthusiasm is the obvious influence of Larry David on Seinfeld. The humor in both shows shares a knack for capturing awkwardness caused by little lapses in social etiquette. Since Larry David based many of the adventures of the Seinfeld gang, particularly George Costanza’s, on his own life, it is definitely worth having a camera follow him around documentary style. Curb Your Enthusiasm doesn’t follow a script, but has a basic scene outline where the actors will improvise their lines. What results is a much more natural sounding dialogue then you’ll find in any other sitcom (especially with Arrested Development gone). You get the feeling that Curb Your Enthusiasm is more what Larry David wanted Seinfeld to be, but NBC wasn’t that daring.

Luckily HBO is willing to let Larry David have free reign over his show. It finished its fifth season in December, and there are ten episodes per season. The shorter seasons allow there to be less filler per season. Each DVD boxed set is two discs. Besides the first ten episodes, the first season DVD also includes Larry David: Curb Your Enthusiasm, which is the HBO documentary that preceded the series. On the documentary, the camera follows Larry around as he returns to standup after working on Seinfeld for so many years and he goes to HBO to pitch a standup special. The hour-long documentary is hilarious, and seeing Larry deliver his standup gives you an unfiltered look at his sense of humor. The DVD also includes an interview of Larry David by Bob Costas.

Each season of Curb Your Enthusiasm has a plot thread that runs through it. In addition, each episode also features a few plot threads that usually collide at the end, Seinfeld-style. It really pays off to watch the episodes in order because there are a lot of references to previous episodes throughout the series. Larry David’s fondness for continuity, which he felt was an important part of the success of Seinfeld, is very much present in Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The main characters are Larry David, his manager Jeff Greene (played by Jeff Garlin), and his wife Cheryl David (played by Cheryl Hines). In addition to the main cast, Larry is often joined by fellow comedians and celebrities throughout the series. Richard Lewis plays himself as Larry’s friend and fellow standup and features prominently in the first season. Ted Danson and his wife, Mary Steenburgen, also show up during the first season and will return in later seasons. Seinfeld alum Julia Louis-Dreyfus shows up with her husband, former SNL castmate Brad Hall. Kathy Griffin makes a brief cameo, and hopefully she’ll show up in the future.

The show’s style of humor is a little quirky. If you like Seinfeld, you have a decent introduction to Larry David’s style. However, Curb Your Enthusiasm captures it must less self-consciously. Basically, Larry finds himself in a lifetime’s worth of awkward moments in every episode. Larry’s miserly misanthropy is the focus of most episodes, but some of the funnier moments come when he makes numerous pop culture references or sings in his car (like singing “Bad finga” to the tune of “Goldfinger” with his finger in a splint). While some of the situations he finds himself in are exaggerated, they aren’t that far from reality. It just seems that Larry never learned that there are certain behaviors in others that you are supposed to ignore. It’s not really that easy to describe succinctly, but his brand of humor is unlike any other show on TV. The timing is just perfect.

There are ten episodes in the first season:

1. The Pants Tent
Larry manages to offend Cheryl’s friend and Richard’s date at the movies. Favorite quote: “I know my sources!” That’s out of context, I know, but it’s hilarious when you watch!

2. Ten and Mary
Larry and Cheryl go bowling with Ted and Mary. Larry develops a taste for shopping.

3. Porno Gil
The title alone tells you that this is one dinner party that Cheryl doesn’t want to go to.

4. The Bracelet
Larry tries to make up for his many gaffes by buying Cheryl a present. If only it were that easy.

5. Interior Decorator
Diane Keaton makes an appearance because she shares Larry’s interior decorator. The funniest moments come when questions arise about elevator and waiting room etiquette.

6. The Wire
Larry encounters his uncouth neighbors:
Phyllis: I'm finally in the house that Jerry Seinfeld built!
Larry: With his own hands and some hammers. He actually worked on it, like Jimmy Carter.

7. AAMCO
The radio ad “Double A- honk honk- M-C-O” gets Larry in trouble. Cheryl wants to throw a dinner party. “What is this compulsion to have people over to your house and serve them food and talk to them? What a strange thing.”

8. Beloved Aunt
A typo in Cheryl’s aunt’s obituary causes problems between Larry and his in-laws. In buying a present, Larry has difficulty getting it wrapped. “Where would I find a scissor?”

9. Affirmative Action
Larry has problems filling Cheryl’s prescription and he offends Richard’s dermatologist. “Things are done.”

10. The Group
Larry somehow finds his way into an incest survivor’s group, which makes him wish his uncle wasn’t in town.

I’m certainly not going to buy HBO to watch this show, but it’s worthwhile to own or at least rent on DVD. You won’t be disappointed if you like your humor more intelligent than the Jim Belushi style sitcoms. Everything about Curb Your Enthusiasm is just perfect, even down to its goofy theme music.