Episode Commentary: The Table Read
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” has hyped up this concept of a fake “Seinfeld” reunion all season, and in the end, it certainly exceeded any expectations you might have had about it.
In fact, it is the funniest series of 2009, because in the 35 minutes of “The Table Read,” it provides great laugh-out-loud humor that will have you laughing into the next morning. Having pushed the envelope all season, this episode manages to tackle the Michael Richards controversy and even pedophilia with the usual sharp wit and intelligent writing we have come to expect from the series.
The episode starts out on the “Seinfeld” set with production about to start, and everyone is in place to begin rehearsal with a table read. The attention to detail placed on recreating the series is amazing, and creates the closest we may ever get to an actual reunion. Even minor characters resurface (Newman, etc.) to recreate that magic of the sitcom, but David does so much more with this episode.
It is evident at the table reading that David and Seinfeld created a brilliant concept for the reunion. Elaine has a child that Jerry was the surrogate father for, and he doesn’t want to tell the kid the truth. George gets robbed in an accounting scam that mirrors current events, and Kramer is still just Kramer. The detail put into this “show within in a show†almost makes up for the lousy series finale of that “Seinfeld” had.
But keep in mind this is only a small fraction of the episode, and that we’re actually watching “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” not the supposed “Seinfeld” reunion. “The Table Read” manages to maintain that sharp wit right off the cuff: David meets the nine-year-old child of his assistant (Vicki Lewis), who takes an automatic liking to him. They are heading to the doctor because she has a rash on her vagina and David simply has to remain up-to-date on the condition. Wait until you see Seinfeld’s reaction to David’s conversation with the assistant.
The little girl is constantly texting David until he snaps in a text message, and is forced to apologize over lunch. She forgives and hugs him. Shortly after, he becomes itchy and tells his doctor that this nine-year-old girl has a rash on her vagina, and he thinks it may have spread to him. This is one of the funniest moments on television this year.
Meanwhile, Richards received some news from the doctor that he may have Groat’s disease, and feels he can’t be funny for the reunion with this on his mind. David tells him the story of a man who survived Groat’s disease and is living a normal life, and says he will have that man get in touch with Richards. The problem: He discovers that the man actually died of Groat’s disease two months ago.
This isn’t a problem for the dishonest David, who asks his roommate Leon (J.B. Smoove) to pose as the dead Jewish man. Leon is specifically asked to make himself look like an adopted black man who was converted to Judaism.
Donning a bow tie and an African hat, he rings Richards’ bell, who answers, “Look man, it was three years ago, and I apologized to everyone I had to.”
Leon explains who he is, the two men talk, and Richards feels great until Marty Funkhouser (Bob Einstein, aka “Super Dave”) brings the late man’s wife to the rehearsal. An irritated Richards runs outside after Leon, saying some pretty hurtful things and wishing he had a word to use to make him feel as lousy as he is feeling. However, when Richards realizes he is outside yelling at Leon as people take pictures with their cell phones, he understands that he screwed up yet again.
Kudos to Richards for being able to poke fun at himself, and to David for doing it in a way that is truly remarkable.
Like any episode of the series, it is multilayered, and includes Jason Alexander and David arguing over a pen, as well as Funkhouser befriending Seinfeld over a dirty joke.
With only one episode left this season, “Curb Your Enthusiasm” rewards loyal viewers with living up to the hype it created surrounding this episode. Not only that, but it manages to not lose any of the sharp wit by focusing solely on the reunion.
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