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Seinfeld is a great show that was really funny but it hasn't aged well because values are so different. Seinfeld's Manhattan is like the Republican dream vision of a Manhattan where everyone is white and straight. There were so many plotlines that seem asinine and prudish by today's standards like Elaine trying to convert a gay guy, Jerry not wanting to have a threesome because he thinks of weird "orgy guys" and men and women not being capable of having a friends with benefits relationship. It's a show about neurotic baby boomer hangups, that's what made it so funny when they were younger but its not aged well similar to All in the Family.
I love Elaine, Julia Louis Dreyfus, I could watch her for days. As actresses go she's pretty without being va-va-voom - but that doesn't matter. The charisma comes off her in waves and with it comes the quality that so often follows. The show exploits it brilliantly because every now and then she does something to make the three men in the cast stop treating her like a friend. It doesn't take much. However, she can't dance worth a lick.
I hate Newman. Oh the humanity
I never watched Seinfeld when it ran as a series but heard others talk about it all the time way back when. I saw it in reruns here and there. I have to be in the mood to watch it. I can take it or leave it once in a while, but I don't hate it.
Another defensive one who can't read. I loved Friday Night Lights and have never been to Austin. That was not the point of my post. What I said for the third time is that there are jokes in-bedded in the scripts that refer to local situations, places, and culture that people who are not familiar with New York that will be completely missed. Yes, you can still enjoy the show and of course the main idea is about narcissistic people, yadayadayada (another local cultural pre-existing catch-phrase made famous from the show), but many references and parodies, I am positive were missed by those who have lacked the experience of visiting the real soup Nazi, the jokes about the A train and the 7 train to Queens, etc. Same with people who loved the popular The Sopranos but had no clue about Kings Plaza references, Bambergers, etc. These are all little touches that made these shows feel not only authentic, but were jokes with a local flavor. It made it extra funny to New Yorkers and was part of the water cooler talk. And if you look at the old Nielson ratings when Seinfeld aired, it fared best in the New York, California, and Southern Florida markets, more than the mid-west. Not unexpected. Jason, Larry, and David were all people near my own hood and know plenty who either were former classmates, knew their parents, etc., not to mention meeting the Stillers through local and family events. For me, it was like watching my own family and former bosses on a TV show.
Maybe rather than assuming people "are defensive and can't read," you may want to consider the possibility that your own communication skills are lacking - because here's what you REALLY said:
Quote:
I never thought this show would be a hit in middle America. There are just way too many New York inside jokes that are not going to be understood. It's borscht belt humor and if that is not part of your culture or not something that you find appealing, you are not going to enjoy it.
Guess what - "soup Nazi" types exist in many towns. You don't have to go to NYC to find him, which is precisely WHY it's so funny. Public transportation and it's oddities are common in large cities across the US, so you don't have to be particularly familiar with "the A train" and "the 7 train" to "get it." Yadayadayada...
Also, it's no surprise that ANY show is "more popular" in, well, our largest cities.
Here's what you don't get - which people are trying to tell you: The reason Seinfeld is so popular is because the characters and situations are pretty much universal. We know these characters, these places, etc even though we've never met the main characters or been to NYC. That's the reason for the show's popularity.
Obviously, it has universal appeal-even the local jokes. But if you haven't experienced the actual subject of the parody, part of it gets lost in the translation. I say that as someone who has watched other shows set in other places that made local references. Yes, that had universal appeal, but when I got to actually visit and experience those places for myself, I could appreciate the "gag" or the event on a more comprehensive level. You can look at a photo of a Picasso painting and appreciate it's message. But when you see it in-person, you can appreciate the painting on a richer level.
Many people don't realize it, but some of the most famous episodes are from the original 55, before Ted Danson announced he was leaving Cheers and Seinfeld moved to Thursday night and became the #1 sitcom.
Seinfeld did 9 more episodes while Cheers was still on the air, then went on to do five more seasons.
I'm just stumped how people can "hate" a sit com, if you don't like a show, if it doesn't entertain you, you just don't watch it...right? I give a few shows a few minutes & then click the remote & move on, I have no feelings one way or another for something like the Big Bang Theory let's say, I find it boring & pfft... it's gone.
I understand if a show promotes awful ideas, like say Fox & Friends, or has a really obnoxious personality, say like Judge Judy, but for some it is the entertainment value of these very negatives that they watch, some people like car wrecks too. I'm really scratching my head over "hating" a sit-com tho...
I'm just stumped how people can "hate" a sit com, if you don't like a show, if it doesn't entertain you, you just don't watch it...right? I give a few shows a few minutes & then click the remote & move on, I have no feelings one way or another for something like the Big Bang Theory let's say, I find it boring & pfft... it's gone.
I understand if a show promotes awful ideas, like say Fox & Friends, or has a really obnoxious personality, say like Judge Judy, but for some it is the entertainment value of these very negatives that they watch, some people like car wrecks too. I'm really scratching my head over "hating" a sit-com tho...
I think you have to attach some kind of jealously that goes along with hatred. Probably because that show is more popular and has better rating than their favorite. Probably He Haw fans who don't understand urban humor.
Just like many baseball fans hate the Yankees, the real reason is they are jealous because the Yankees are better than their team.
Indifferent is how I treat anything I don't care for. No jealously on my part I just don't care.
Obviously, it has universal appeal-even the local jokes. But if you haven't experienced the actual subject of the parody, part of it gets lost in the translation. I say that as someone who has watched other shows set in other places that made local references. Yes, that had universal appeal, but when I got to actually visit and experience those places for myself, I could appreciate the "gag" or the event on a more comprehensive level. You can look at a photo of a Picasso painting and appreciate it's message. But when you see it in-person, you can appreciate the painting on a richer level.
But you continue to modify your original statement, which was this:
Quote:
It's borscht belt humor and if that is not part of your culture or not something that you find appealing, you are not going to enjoy it.
Hey, I'm a Texan and guess what - I "get" Seinfeld and I enjoy it.
Yeah.
Tons of love from all my friends.
I didn't like it one bit.
But snark tends to rub me the wrong way.
A whole show based on unlikable characters and endless snark wasn't going to do it for me.
Hate's a strong word. It just doesn't ever enter my mind (the show).
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