Results 1 to 3 of 3
  1. #1

    "Curb Your Enthusiasm?" Why yes, I have.

    So... after discussing Entourage, I felt I had to discuss my favorite all-time comedy, which I feel has gone terribly downhill the last few years, with this season being no exception. While the chicken episode was generally okay, it introduced a number of threads that never got tied up, and the "cheap out" of not having Larry actually pick a side at the end felt like the writers getting themselves into a position that they couldn't write themselves out of... the climax should have had a really funny moment, but instead they let it go.

    I also feel like Larry has been WAAAAYYYYYY too confident this season, which takes away a LOT from the fun of his neuroses. This is a fairly recent development in the series; part of the fun was watching how terribly awkward Larry was, and how unsure he was. The new Larry is a little too confident, which takes away that idea of social discomfort which made the show so good.

    The lack of Cheryl as the long-suffering "straight man" has been a huge, huge loss.

    There has been a little too much "in laughing" for me. I am fine with Larry laughing with Richard Lewis because they are both comedians trying to crack each other up, but when Suzie is laughing along with them at lines, it is a little too self-aware.

    But most of all, a lot of the situations in the last few years have felt very forced... unlike previous years, there have been almost NO situations where I nod my head along with Larry. Remember when Larry held the the door and then someone got in line in front of him? Yep, I was glad when Larry wrestled her down too. Even the ridiculous episode where Larry picked up the hooker for the HOV lane... you could STILL sort of connect with it (ahh I hate traffic too! Good for you, Larry!) even though it was ridiculous.

    But come on... a girl scout has her period in front of Larry, and then just comes right out and SAYS it... and Larry tries to help by reading the instructions through the door? Eh. Why wouldn't he just slip the directions to her? What girl would even do that, and not just wad some toilet paper up in her underwear? What person would do that? No one. What about when Larry hung from the girls fat? Great premise (ugh you shouldn't wear that shirt)... but what a horrible, horrible payoff. It all just seems SO overly forced that it no longer had that "Oh yeah, I've been there!" feeling that makes Curb so awesome. Instead, I'm left shaking my head at the ridiculousness of the situation and the lengths the writers had to go to to get Larry into the situation. On top of all of that, they have been introducing things with absolutely no payoff... remember the episode where his secretary is with him instead of with her father? Yep, no pay off for that. Then, no pay off for him wanting to hire the mom. Also no pay off for the new guy taking his shelf space. This is happening constantly now... throwing lots of stuff out there, and instead of neatly wrapping it up in a sly, funny, smart , "Curb" way, things just dangle.

    There have been some funny bits and pieces this year (the delivery of "Ehh... I think he might be gay" had me dying) but overall the show has really, really fallen off. I was watching a few episodes from the "Producers" season, with the dry sneeze and the riding in the back of the car and the number of cashews vs number of raisins and the blind guy and I was dying... when you compare the last few seasons to those classics, it is clear how bad "Curb" has gotten.
    Last edited by Lord Ash; 09-15-2011 at 10:25 AM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    New Jersey
    LA, I can't say I disagree with anything you wrote. You make some really good points about the changes in Larry's personality and the overall tightness of the show compared to earlier seasons. Honestly, I never gave it much thought before I read your post. What can I say, the show makes me laugh. Not many shows do that. For me, at 10pm on a Sunday night, that's pretty much all it takes.
    Rich
    "Failure is Not a Destination"
    Coach K on the Dan Patrick Show, December 22, 2016

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Hot'Lanta... home of the Falcons!
    I'm with Rich -- a bad Curb is still better than at least 95% of the comedy on TV.

    That said, it has not been nearly as hysterical lately as it was in many of the early-middle seasons. I found the Mr. Softee episode particularly galling as there were several great set-ups in that episode, but the pay offs fell flat. I did enjoy seeing Robert Smigel as Yari. He is so over-the-top and hysterical. HBO really needs to give him a show. I thought the best episode of the season was the one with Bill Buckner.

    I too miss Cheryl. Her ongoing suffering of living with Larry was a real highlight for so long. I hate that she left and the show is poorer for it. The move to New York was ok, but I think they need to go back to LA for next season. That is Larry's home.

    -Jason "will there be a next season? Larry keeps on talking about quitting. He certainly does not need to work for the money!" Evans
    Why are you wasting time here when you could be wasting it by listening to the latest episode of the DBR Podcast?

Similar Threads

  1. Relative productivity of "big" and "small" lineups
    By Kedsy in forum Elizabeth King Forum
    Replies: 130
    Last Post: 03-21-2011, 11:14 PM
  2. Icing the Shooter: "Good" play or "Bad"
    By greybeard in forum Off Topic
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: 02-07-2008, 03:53 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •