My secret shame....

nachos

It's such a strange thing, I find Seinfeld to be one of the most consitently funny, well acted and well scripted sitcoms EVER but nearly all of my mates seem to dislike Seinfeld (the show) with a passion. I almost feel guilty when I say that it's one of my favourite programs because I know the reaction I'll get from the vast majority of people.

Has anyone ever encountered something like this or why Seinfeld never seemed to have caught on/be appreciated over here by the great, unwashed masses?

Cheers!

smuckers

You're not alone, basically, alot of Irish people don't get the subtle NY humour in the show, they prefer Friends where this happens.

Hey joey
hey rachel
hey phobee

whats going on?
nothing much
wanna go to dinner
whose going
byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Though I have no shame in telling people its my fave sitcom.

smuckers

The Sein that is, not Friends.

---

George: thats for psycotics
Kramer: I take them

Snickers Man

It's that F***ing bass guitar!!

I never caught iSeinfeld when it was around first time, although people whose opinion I respect recommended it highly. Now that it's on Paramount Comedy (which comes free with my NTL subscription) I have tried to get into it, but that F***ing 'Boing bing boing bing boing boing" crappy synthy bass guitar link between each scene just does my head in.

Whoever is responsible for that should be straddled across a table and have the largest Fender Precision Bass money can buy forcibly inserted into his fundamental orifice.

IMHO.

segadreamcast

Personally I love the guitar thing - it's just so offbeat and Larry David-ish - the 'curb your enthusiasm' theme reminds me of it too.

Besides, ever seen the pilot? It's much better than the original music in that - that sounded so early 80's and outdated.

(By the way, to answer the original question, yes, with some people I am ashamed to talk about it - I do have one group of friends though where most of them watch it, which is great.)

m1ke

I watched the odd episode over the last ten years and only ever thought the show was "ok"..... However, this year I started to watch it more consistently... and have really gotten into it. It's definitely my favourite show at the moment. I was actually suprised to find that a lot of my friends liked it without ever mentioning it.... (about 4 of them anyway).... so there are irish ppl out there who like it.

smuckers

Snickers Man wrote:

It's that F***ing bass guitar!!

I never caught iSeinfeld when it was around first time, although people whose opinion I respect recommended it highly. Now that it's on Paramount Comedy (which comes free with my NTL subscription) I have tried to get into it, but that F***ing 'Boing bing boing bing boing boing" crappy synthy bass guitar link between each scene just does my head in.

Whoever is responsible for that should be straddled across a table and have the largest Fender Precision Bass money can buy forcibly inserted into his fundamental orifice.

IMHO.

That bass guitar sets the tone nicely from each scene to the next, it's also something which was used sparingly at the start and in time became a real fixture.

seveb

i'll tell you the reason that seinfeld never really took off in ireland/ britain.

it's simply down to the fact that most irish people are too lazy and/ or stupid to actually listen to the dialogue going on between the characters.

it's also down to most irish/ british people's lack of pop culture knowledge and education. as most of the references and jokes going on between the characters would fly over most people's heads.

seinfeld doesn't offer the cheap, formula based comedy that most other sitcoms seem to subscibe to. it doesn't always offer instant comedy gratification, most of it is hilarious, but not lol funny - you have to pay attention to what's being said.

it's a thinking man's comedy, much like cye - you have to look for the jokes, they're not always gonna jump out of the screen into your lap.

that's basically kramer's job in the show, to reel in viewer who want to watch a tv show without having to think too hard about it.

it's only starting to gain a bit more popularity on these shores now as the next generation of kids coming through are more americanized with the advent of the internet and sky tv, both which have become mainstream since seinfeld ended in 1998.

Stalfos

Seinfeld isnt rocket science you know. You wont need a phd to understand the likes of Kramer but it is a whole lot smarter than friends.
And i am a fan of the show.

miss_gonzo

i cant comprehend when people dont like seinfeld
really i cant
and i never knew that it didnt catch on ireland....isnt that odd

but ya everyones got their own taste, but how can you not find this show brilliantly funny?!

i also notice that over here, alot of people saying they like seinfeld because its the thing to watch.......thats annoying.

seveb

i know it's not rocket science.

americans got it - and they are supposed to have pretty low quotas of the smart gene!

Mussels

I'm not sure if "middle america" got it - maybe it was just certain demographics.... and maybe even those numbers were enough to make it a success.
Anyone have any experience / knowledge to prove if this was the case?
I do share people's frustration at finding so many Irish people not "getting" Seinfeld;
But sometimes a single slightly annoying feature will put me off a show without good reason too.

Slash/ED

To be hoenst I'm always suprised Seinfeld is as popular as it is. Don't get me wrong, I love it, Larry David is genius, it's just it isn't a typical dumbed down comedy that is popular especially in America.

Curb Your Enthusiasm is Larrys finest work though, an absolute master piece, and again it hasn't seemed to have taken off here at all. The vast majority of people I talk to about it have simply never even heard about it.

hellocat

I LOVE Seinfeld. I have seen every episode more times than I can recall-and I STILL laugh. Secretly, I think part of the joy comes from knowing, not only the dialogue (or, "next line" as it were), but the inflection and mannerisms in which the line is deliverd. It's like family. Though my family does joke about my, "quoting from the book of Seinfeld". I must say, that more and more, I notice there isn't ANY situation that you can't some how apply a Seinfeld-ism to.