Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday! This week, we’re continuing our coverage of Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-2011; 2017-2024, HBO), which is currently available on DVD and MAX.
Curb Your Enthusiasm stars LARRY DAVID as Larry David. With JEFF GARLIN as Jeff Greene, SUSIE ESSMAN as Susie Greene, and JB SMOOVE as Leon Black.
This is the best post-hiatus season because, in a series that’s always prioritized funny ideas, Ten boasts the revival’s funniest. That goes both episodically and in the primary arc — Larry opening a coffee “spite store” just to irk Mocha Joe — which plays into the central character’s currently heightened and extra petty depiction but nevertheless seems less grand than some of the other big narratives from this era, as it’s more rooted in the continuity of Curb and its own world, making it more supported and therefore credible (unlike the fatwa, for one). In that regard, this year is more associated with the particulars of the show — claiming an idea that requires a character like Larry’s and deploys a previously established guest. Also, although it’s merely another one-joke notion — the logline itself is the laugh — the season knows not to overdo it, sprinkling it in regularly but only letting a few entries include it as an A-story, with other focusing devices in the meantime, such as Larry’s affair with Cheryl behind Ted’s back. That’s not a terribly amusing or interesting setup — it’s sort of dull, frankly — but it’s fun when Ted gets involved with Larry’s “spite store” rival: an example of the dovetailing for which the series is known. Meanwhile, this year also gives a nod to the Hollywood setting of Curb’s situation in an arc that reckons with the MeToo movement when Larry is accused of harassment. Now, I don’t think it is actually well-handled; it’s so exaggeratedly nonsense from beginning to end that the satirical sting of exploiting a topical social discomfort is nullified. But, again, it’s a showbiz concern that thereby implies premise affiliation, and it’s the kind of subject that grants Curb cachet as a bold HBO effort, which is most welcome now that — humor imperative aside — it otherwise looks and feels more like its sitcom contemporaries. In fact, this (relatively) dwindling lack of inspiration is felt in the recycled repetitiveness of some of Ten’s less winning story ideas, while the show’s more polished visual and performance style continues to make it sound more premeditated, less unique and less capable of implying the veritas that once undergirded its whole identity… However, if the revived Curb is never able to restore its freshness or keep its ingenuity, it’s at least funny — and in 2020, that’s more than can be said for many “comedies.” So, it’s still a contender and I do enjoy this season, the best of the revival.
01) Episode 91: “Happy New Year” (Aired: 01/19/20)
Larry begins sleeping with Cheryl again and tries to avoid spending time with Phil Rosenthal.
Directed by Jeff Schaffer | Story by Larry David & Jeff Schaffer & Steve Leff
Season Ten’s opener is a snappy, fast-paced excursion that sets up the year’s major storylines — Larry’s “spite store” rivalry with Mocha Joe (Saverio Guerra), his affair with Cheryl behind Ted Danson’s back, and his MeToo problems with an assistant — without feeling too narratively labored or obvious. This is largely the result of many little gags and exchanges — such as Larry’s trouble with wobbly tables — along with a terrific episodic notion where antisocial Larry uses a MAGA hat (a symbol that makes him a pariah in the showbiz world where the series is set) to get out of spending time with Everybody Loves Raymond creator Phil Rosenthal, who plays himself and thus reiterates the industry aspect of Curb’s premise, which helps define the Larry character and is vital to the series’ situation — something that this season, even though some of its ideas work well, does not affirm as capably as those prior to the extended 2011-2017 hiatus managed to do. Accordingly, this is a strong showing — one of the revival’s best.
02) Episode 97: “The Ugly Section” (Aired: 03/01/20)
Larry realizes a local restaurant determines seating based on attractiveness.
Directed by Jeff Schaffer | Story by Larry David & Jeff Schaffer
Another of my favorites from Curb’s post-hiatus run, this outing boasts two great guest turns by two great comic performers who actually don’t play themselves, but nevertheless exist in tonally correct comic ideas that are a credit to the series’ reputation and this season’s revival-specific superiority. Its title refers to a memorable setup where Larry realizes that a restaurant he loves seats people according to their attractiveness — with a “hot section” and an “ugly section” — as determined by a maître d’ played by Nick Kroll. This is a fun Curb story for this era — with a grievance over an uncomfortable piece of social injustice, where Larry, a jerk, has a rival who’s also a jerk. Meanwhile, Jane Krakowski — of Curb’s cousin, 30 Rock (and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) — has a so-called “magical vagina” (another unforgettable label) that intrigues Larry, even though she’s recently been widowed by a husband by whom Larry also believes he’s owed money. This is a hilarious use of Larry’s characterization in plot, and David plays well with both of these stars, who elevate already good ideas. (Ed Begley, Jr. also guests.)
03) Episode 98: “Elizabeth, Margaret, And Larry” (Aired: 03/08/20)
Larry sleeps with Cheryl’s sister and is shadowed by Jon Hamm.
Directed by Jeff Schaffer | Story by Larry David & Jeff Schaffer
My choice for this season’s Most Valuable Episode, “Elizabeth, Margaret, And Larry” is easily the best offering from the post-hiatus run of Curb Your Enthusiasm, with the finest use of this era’s funniest ideas. For starters, I enjoy the return of Kaitlin Olson (now of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) as Cheryl’s bitter sister Becky, with whom Larry falls into a casual relationship — a socially graceless move that speaks to Larry’s total self-interest and the characterization that accompanies his current usage — until he doesn’t rush to her side after she’s injured and in the hospital. That’s a deliberate callback to a classic Seinfeld and this bit of winking association is a play to both series’ identities, as is the very continuity of bringing back Cheryl’s sister. It’s great. However, the best stuff obviously comes with Jon Hamm, who portrays a version of himself — as he (Hamm) shadows Larry David for research on a “Larry David type” role he’s playing. The setup is basically just an excuse to turn someone who physically and temperamentally is quite unlike Larry David into a duplicate of Larry David — that’s the joke, and it’s explored well by a narrative that creates centerpieces to showcase it — but it’s another example of how showbiz trappings suggest a metatheatricality that allows the series’ situation to feel more fully represented. Accordingly, this is a Curb that seems exclusively like a Curb — utilizing the Larry David character at its core in really funny ideas that supremely display the show’s storytelling and comic sensibilities. A gem. (Sasha Alexander also appears.)
04) Episode 100: “The Spite Store” (Aired: 03/22/20)
Larry hires a recently transitioned Joey Funkhouser to work at his spite store.
Directed by Jeff Schaffer | Story by Larry David & Jeff Schaffer & Justin Hurwitz
Out of all the entries in Ten, this finale is the one that most involves the “spite store” coffee shop best remembered as the year’s central arc, and considering that this idea itself is strong — it’s a singular joke, but it goes well with Larry’s depiction, and hasn’t been overused — I’m happy to give it some space on this list. Also, I love the utilization of other celebrities (Sean Penn, Jonah Hill, Mila Kunis) to suggest that “spite stores” have become a trend — it’s an incorporation of real famous people playing versions of themselves that again reminds of Curb’s metatheatrical DNA, which is good for both Larry and the situation at large. Meanwhile, I’m not crazy about the return of the woman who got amnesia after accusing Larry of sexual harassment — an attempt to address the MeToo movement that was so ridiculous that it also came across as overly cautious — but I appreciate the dovetailing of her and Mocha Joe, whose place burns down alongside Larry’s in a story that is woven together nicely with a subplot that features Chaz Bono as Joey Funkhouser, a trans man with a “big johnson.” It’s the kind of detail-based interconnectedness that’s especially Seinfeld-ian, and thus Curb-ian also. (There are lots of other notable guests here as well — a big end to a notable season.)
Other episodes in consideration for the above list include: “Insufficient Praise,” a solid offering that I would have been glad to highlight because of its smart comic ideas and use of Larry’s showbiz world, along with “Artificial Fruit,” which has a couple of fine moments and enjoys putting Larry in uncomfortable exchanges with Laverne Cox (who also plays herself). I’ll also take this space to cite “You’re Not Going To Get Me To Say Anything Bad About Mickey,” a memorable ensemble entry that is equal parts a fine showcase for Curb’s identity and an example of this era’s dwindling comedic (and narrative) ingenuity.
*** The MVE Award for the Best Episode from Season Ten of Curb Your Enthusiasm goes to…
“Elizabeth, Margaret, And Larry”
Come back next week for Season Eleven! And stay tuned tomorrow for a new Wildcard!