Curb Your Enthusiasm - General Discussion

[Irlandesa]

28 minutes ago, Milburn Stone said:

It's always been my understanding that when a car is still under warranty, the dealer is reimbursed by the car company for work performed. (Even if just diagnostic.) When a car is not under warranty, the customer pays. And since, either way, the labor cost to the dealer is less than the payment to the dealer (because capitalism), the dealer benefits. No?

Maybe luxury cars are different but in my experience,  a warranty will cover diagnostics IF what they find wrong is covered by the warranty.   If it isn't orv there's nothing wrong then no.

[Maysie]

Quote

I didn’t really understand the conflict that Jeff could no longer to to Pebble Beach because Susie decided not to go away, because Jeff was too happy.  She was supposed to be away, so Jeff made his own plans to go out of town.  If Susie’s plans change...Jeff’s plans have to change too?  In what universe?  

Susie's! I thought that whole scene was spot on based on what we've seen of their relationship through the years. Jeff may be the source of income, but Susie runs that house, runs their lives and will exercise her will wherever, whenever she can. And Jeff just goes along with it because it's easier or he needs that on some level to keep his own impulses in check. She has no boundaries, no filter (consider that earlier this season she was giving the guy building the deck the business) and it's what makes her so entertaining, imo. I don't know how I'd feel about her if I were friends in real life, but she makes a great foil for Larry.

[LibertarianSlut]

It touched my cold, black heart a little when Larry seemed glum and finally said he didn’t want to go to Pebble Beach because he wanted Jeff there, as Jeff was the glue of the group.  

It’s kind of sweet to think that these two assholes have been buffooning around together for at least 20 years that we know of, and they both still hold each other in such high regard.

[kay1864]

20 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I was on his side here after the accident.  He had given her the keys at that point, not the title.

 Good point.  Although it seemed to me he did intend to give her the car free and clear. 

But there’s still the problem of how she  sold the car. Unless Larry was actually the type to keep the title in the glove box.  Who knows.  

(OK, yeah, I’m trying to inject too much reality into a goofy show)

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 3/17/2020 at 10:58 PM, scrb said:

I guess he can slowly replace the cast members who may have difficulties performing the way they used to but realistically, how many more seasons does he want to do this show?

Vaughn is much younger so he could be new blood but he's character is pretty sedate, even though we know Vaughn can be over the top.

Maybe more reliance on these guest stars like Don Hamm then, to carry more of the episodes.

Even as a pretty big fan of VV, I haven't found him funny once on this show!

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 3/18/2020 at 1:45 AM, Irlandesa said:

There was never anything wrong with Larry's car so the dealer probably wasn't getting anything unless they were charging Larry for diagnostics. 

You're saying that a dealership would check your car for a problem, and then analyze that there is not a problem, and then report that back to you - all for free?

On 3/18/2020 at 8:13 AM, DoctorAtomic said:

The guy knew he was being disingenuous too, and the mechanics are wasting their time when they could be working on cars that need it. 

As long as the dealership could charge SOME fee -- which I really would think that they could! -- then they wouldn't care.  It's not like they're doctors!

On 3/18/2020 at 11:50 AM, Maysie said:

Susie's! I thought that whole scene was spot on based on what we've seen of their relationship through the years. Jeff may be the source of income, but Susie runs that house, runs their lives and will exercise her will wherever, whenever she can. And Jeff just goes along with it because it's easier or he needs that on some level to keep his own impulses in check. She has no boundaries, no filter (consider that earlier this season she was giving the guy building the deck the business) and it's what makes her so entertaining, imo. I don't know how I'd feel about her if I were friends in real life, but she makes a great foil for Larry.

Yeah, you could kind of tell where the scene was going.  Jeff was acting so excited and happy, which I think would be insulting to almost any wife, not just Susie.  And you could see Susie getting more and more perturbed by it.

[scrb]

If the car was under warranty, Larry wouldn't be paying, it would be BMW.

Likewise if there's a recall, you take the car in and they fix it and you don't pay anything out of pocket.

BMW also will pay for a loaner car while the car is in shop for something covered under warranty.

The dealers make get paid for those loaners because they're treated like a rental.  They have an incentive to keep the car for repair overnight so that you have to get a loaner.

 

[DoctorAtomic]

I don't know if Vaughn is necessarily trying to be funny all the time. He's good at sustaining the momentum of a scene because he can improv well.

"Well I'm still hungry even though you did kill that baby" is very funny to me and the whole scene with the uncle at the newsstand was funny too.

[LibertarianSlut]

Does anyone know which movie it was that Mocha Joe was gonna watch with his mom that had the Oscar watermark on it?
She kept saying it was about Arthur Avenue, and I’m so bored that I’m actually trying to find it to watch lol. 

[opus]

1 hour ago, LibertarianSlut said:

Does anyone know which movie it was that Mocha Joe was gonna watch with his mom that had the Oscar watermark on it?
She kept saying it was about Arthur Avenue, and I’m so bored that I’m actually trying to find it to watch lol. 

Green Book

[LibertarianSlut]

2 hours ago, opus said:

Green Book

Thank you! I watched it.

[rmontro]

On 3/16/2020 at 3:43 AM, Ms Blue Jay said:

I think it's just Jeff knowing Larry really well and that Larry would never pick a white car.  He doesn't like people who draw attention to themselves (curb your enthusiasm) and he's probably mocked white cars before.

You may well be right, but I never would have guessed that white cars drew attention to you.  When I was watching that scene, I was also wondering what the issue was.  I don't find white cars appealing because to me, they're dull and boring.  Plus they're going to show any dirt - black cars are also bad for showing dirt.

[LoveLeigh]

On 3/17/2020 at 11:04 AM, Lone Wolf said:

It sounds like the stroke would have predated episode 1, and I haven't noticed the swelling or whatever it was as much in the last ep or so.  I assume Garlin had some kind of procedure that has healed over the course of this season's filming.  

It looks to me like Richard Lewis has had his health issues. He talks very slowly (even not as Charlie) and he has aged so poorly. 

I think this season is great, but Larry David turns me off when he pairs himself with women so much younger than he is. He also is a sneaky fat shamer (i.e. his contempt for a woman yo yoing up) And he does other things to show he is repulsed by women who do not meet his expectations of attractiveness. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

21 hours ago, LibertarianSlut said:

Thank you! I watched it.

It won best picture that year, although the win was controversial.

On 3/20/2020 at 4:57 PM, DoctorAtomic said:

I don't know if Vaughn is necessarily trying to be funny all the time.

Seriously?  On a sitcom, someone is not trying to be funny?  

20 hours ago, rmontro said:

You may well be right, but I never would have guessed that white cars drew attention to you.  When I was watching that scene, I was also wondering what the issue was.  I don't find white cars appealing because to me, they're dull and boring.  Plus they're going to show any dirt - black cars are also bad for showing dirt.

There's definitely a reason LD wouldn't drive a white car, and Jeff knows what it is, but I was just guessing as to the reason.

[rmontro]

15 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

There's definitely a reason LD wouldn't drive a white car, and Jeff knows what it is, but I was just guessing as to the reason.

As was I.  LD may know why, but maybe he should have explained it, because I don't think it's at all apparent.

[BeckyThatcher]

On 3/17/2020 at 2:45 PM, Milburn Stone said:

It's funny how we're all finding different things that didn't make sense to us. Mine is that in real life a luxury car dealership would be delighted to have customers stop in just for the licorice. Customers wouldn't need to make up an excuse. The dealership would view the licorice (and the rest of the spread) as a draw to bring in established customers, who might just check out the new cars in the showroom while they were there. No way would a sales manager, or owner, or whatever he was, be perturbed like that guy was.

Your description of a dealership Is a place I would love to be able to frequent! That is ideal! 

After 35 years of buying cars at our smug local BMW dealership, I can assure you, they do not care one bit about the buyer. You’re just a faceless check-writer. It’s bizarre- but luxury or not, the sales lot is always packed, the amount of cars sold is staggering, 
and there’s no pastry display! 

It is funny how this episode alone, there were things that didn’t make sense to us. 

I didn’t get the lack of a/c in the club casual dining.

I think the “I didn’t even notice the car was white” thing was a vague attempt at mocking people who say they don’t see race. Maybe?
 

 

 

[LoveLeigh]

The final episode of the season was funny but followed the predictable algorithm. A "spite house" is exactly what I should have seen coming.  

[rlc]

17 minutes ago, DakotaLavender said:

The final episode of the season was funny but followed the predictable algorithm. A "spite house" is exactly what I should have seen coming.  

Tonight I do not care about predictability. This episode was exactly what I needed tonight. I laughed out loud several times. Thank you, Larry David, you miserable bastard.

[Joimiaroxeu]

NBC still loves LD it appears.

Big johnson community. What do they do, swing their gigantic peens at each other?

Was that Chaz Bono?

You gotta really think these hypotheticals out.

Leave it to Larry to instigate a fight based on colorism. I'm surprised he didn't mention to them when he was born they probably wouldn't have been able to get married and in some parts of the US the guy would've suffered some extremely dire consequences.

A furniture centaur. Heh, it was basically a chaise lounge but with such oversized cushions it didn't work for slight person like Larry.

How did Larry get a permit for his coffee shop when it had so many cumulative fire hazards?

So is this it for Curb or do we just have to wait another three years? 🙄

Edited March 23, 2020 by Joimiaroxeu

[Ms Blue Jay]

This was a good episode.

I ADORE Sam Richardson and I loved the scene with Larry not understanding how to sit on a daybed.  So fucking funny.

Sam Richardson fit in so perfectly.  After "Veep" I always wanted his character Richard to have his own spinoff.  His show "Detroiters" was very very funny.  I am always happy to see him on my screen.

Finally Vince was kind of funny and Mila Kunis, Sean Penn, and Jonah Hill were incredibly unexpected and funny too. 

Watching the end now.  God Larry is such an asshole LOL.  The stunt with the firetruck could have killed people!  That's like murder.

The fireman was awesome.  They could have hired a shitty actor for that part but something about Seinfeld and Curb is that no matter how small the part, they really do try to hire the best actor.

Edited March 23, 2020 by Ms Blue Jay

[ECM1231]

It was perfect! How many relatives does Marty Funkhauser have? I also wondered if that was Chaz Bono. Larry and his inappropriate rhetorical questions make me cringe every  time and yet I still laugh. I'm like Susie and yell " get the f out of here!" At the TV. How does he get away with it? I loved how all the plot points over the season came together in the end. Nicely done! 

[Ms Blue Jay]

9 minutes ago, ECM1231 said:

It was perfect! How many relatives does Marty Funkhauser have? I also wondered if that was Chaz Bono. Larry and his inappropriate rhetorical questions make me cringe every  time and yet I still laugh. I'm like Susie and yell " get the f out of here!" At the TV. How does he get away with it? I loved how all the plot points over the season came together in the end. Nicely done! 

Brilliant ending.

[scrb]

I thought the big penis employee would have an accident with the urinal chutes.

Saw the spite house coming as soon as he said I should buy the place next door.

Spite store backfired, with every decision, made the store more liable to have a big fire which couldn’t be put out.

So it cost Larry dearly.

But still loaded, though living in a relatively modest home.  He could afford properties which don’t have a bad neighbor buying a spite house right next to him.

[ECM1231]

6 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

This was a good episode.

I ADORE Sam Richardson and I loved the scene with Larry not understanding how to sit on a daybed.  So fucking funny.

Sam Richardson fit in so perfectly.  After "Veep" I always wanted his character Richard to have his own spinoff.  His show "Detroiters" was very very funny.  I am always happy to see him on my screen.

 

I've never seen either of those shows so the expectant father didn't look familiar to me. Omg the hospital scene where Larry opines that the name Kwame( spelling?) doesn't really fit the infant due to his lighter complexion. Again I cringed and then laughed.

[scrb]

Almost forgot Ray from Girls was the resentful orthopedic surgeon.

Wouldn’t say he was spiteful unless he started giving second opinions to the other doctor’s (Alex from Hulu series Casual) patients.

[Ms Blue Jay]

12 minutes ago, scrb said:

Almost forgot Ray from Girls was the resentful orthopedic surgeon.

Wouldn’t say he was spiteful unless he started giving second opinions to the other doctor’s (Alex from Hulu series Casual) patients.

I know him from What I Like About You and The Mindy Project.

[hoodooznoodooz]

Hee!

“You didn’t have a gun to your head. We’re sitting in a nice living room. We’re getting ginger ales.”

[LibertarianSlut]

I didn’t love it.  I found myself constantly perking up for jokes, many of which didn’t deliver.  Then there were lines like, “what’s so hard about being a matador?” which was perfect.

The second opinion thing, and everything with the rivaling doctors, was the best part for me.  I have had to tell a dentist I was getting a second opinion once, and it feels really awkward and haughty to actually say.  I loved him blaming it on his dead mom.  When the rival doctors sidled up to Larry at the hospital, it reminded me of the “doctor/pharmacist” controversy of Kamikaze Bingo.

Larry is my real life hero for making a spite store.  I take customer service seriously.  Having Jonah Hill and his spite deli was very good, even if I’m not laughing out loud.  Jonah said it’s better than winning an Oscar to get revenge!  On the other hand, I didn’t find anything about Mila Kunis’s performance funny.  It felt very much like they were trying to squeeze yet another famous actor in there.  What was the point of having a spite store if she didn’t fix watches, other than plot service (if she had fixed the watch, Larry wouldn’t have been carrying it with him, and it wouldn’t have gotten broken)?

I think about things like “the big johnson community,” and I just shake my head.  Sometimes I think Leon goes for it, and the joke just doesn’t land.  His presence overall definitely makes the show funnier, but it’s going into a more wacky direction now than it used to, and sometimes I think they should rein it in.  The season finale of season one was about an incest survivor’s group, which is a real thing, and they were clever enough to make it really, really funny and absurd, though hovering on the precipice of plausible.  When we go from that to a “big johnson meeting group,” it shows me that the show has fallen somewhat, or at least gone into a direction in which I’m not a fan.

 I said it earlier in the season, but it still applies—I think a good litmus test is, if it would make a six year old laugh, don’t include it.  It’s really not that kind of comedy, or at least it shouldn’t be.  In season eight, Ricky Gervais, playing himself, called what Larry David does “broad comedy.”  I guess I kind of have to agree with him.  Unfortunately.

The scene with the pregnant woman, her husband, Larry, Jeff and Susie was mixed for me.  I thought they went on way too long about whether you could scare a pregnant woman into labor.  That whole line of dialogue should have been on the cutting room floor.  It just didn’t titillate.  I thought the question of whether the couple wants the baby to be light or dark skinned, in addition to the subsequent fight it caused, and Larry coming over and trying to settle into a day bed was funnier, but not approaching Fatwa! level humor.

I did think it was definitely funny and definitely a payoff that Mocha Joe understood Alice’s tattoo with no hesitation.  I also thought it was a good payoff that everything that Larry loved about his store is what made it an accelerant, and the rivaling factions at the coffee houses, resulting in Mocha Joe and Alice moving in next door (I didn’t see it coming, though I saw the fire, and the inability of the fire truck to get to the scene, coming).  I thought the abuse of the emergency vehicle thing was a non-starter.  It’s not a real life problem.  This show is always funniest IMO when it’s dealing with a real life problem, like your sleeve getting stretched out because a dentist has to give you an injection.  

At least it tied up nicely at the end.  I like when Larry is in a bind when the season ends.  I love no hugging, no growing.  Bonus points for no Cheryl and Ted (though where was Richard?).  I wouldn’t be disappointed if there wasn’t another season.  I’d much rather them go out on a mediocre-high note than have a season eleven of mediocre-low, and have it go away in a sort of Peter Principle effect.

My big takeaway from the season:  I would be such a loyal customer if a spite store ever opened!

[opus]

1 hour ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Sam Richardson fit in so perfectly.  After "Veep" I always wanted his character Richard to have his own spinoff.  His show "Detroiters" was very very funny.  I am always happy to see him on my screen.

Help. The one playing his wife was also in Veep, right?

[Ms Blue Jay]

44 minutes ago, opus said:

Help. The one playing his wife was also in Veep, right?

I Googled the episode, and it's on IMDB.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9663072/?ref_=ttspec_spec_tt

The actor's name is Mary Holland and yes it does say she's been on Veep.  I don't remember her.   To me she looks a lot like Sarah Paulson.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4364610/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t16

Edited March 23, 2020 by Ms Blue Jay

[sheetmoss]

Yes that was Chaz Bono

On 3/21/2020 at 9:21 PM, BeckyThatcher said:

 

I didn’t get the lack of a/c in the club casual dining.

 

 

 

In the background that had some repairmen  at the thermostat

[Pike Ludwell]

Larry's antics with the fire engines near the end seemed a tad overly stupid to a degree out of character, even for him.  He should know there will be severe repercussions legally no matter what the case, and that the sirens could be legit this time. Too big a deal to mess around with, even for Larry.

Like someone else, I too thought for sure it was setting up for the guy's big schlong  to get cut off in that urinal. I'm sure LD must have thought about writing it in but decided against it for some reason.

Edited March 23, 2020 by Pike Ludwell

[Pike Ludwell]

On 3/17/2020 at 12:16 AM, Ms Blue Jay said:

Yes, way too many Hollywood guest stars and complacency.

This article reminded me of "The Ugly Section".  Weren't people wondering whether it was realistic or not?

https://theintercept.com/2020/03/16/tiktok-app-moderators-users-discrimination/

The general idea happens, but people obviously try to keep it subtle. What wasn't realistic about the restaurant scenes was stuff like the maitre d' yelling "We need assistance in the ugly section".  Or making a huge scene with someone who wanted to sit at one of the empty tables there. Or firing a bathroom attendant who leaves the bathroom upon request of a customer, who's the only person in there. Funny, yes. Realistic? No - but that's fine - it's comedy, and it was all very funny!

Edited March 23, 2020 by Pike Ludwell

[hoodooznoodooz]

I would have liked the firefighter to express some kind of confusion over why the (unbeknownst to him, excessively dry) scones also served as an accelerant.

[bobbyjoe]

If the only thing in the whole episode had been just the physical humor of Larry trying to sit on that daybed it would have been worth it.  I was rolling on that scene, and it’s just what I needed at the end of such a grim week.  Thank you, Larry.

[Ms Blue Jay]

3 minutes ago, bobbyjoe said:

If the only thing in the whole episode had been just the physical humor of Larry trying to sit on that daybed it would have been worth it.  I was rolling on that scene, and it’s just what I needed at the end of such a grim week.  Thank you, Larry.

Agree hahaha

[TVbitch]

I think my favorite part of this season was Larry's tangential conversations with his lawyer. I wish they would have kept that up. I really enjoy his smaller conundrums, like how to eat an apple or sit on a daybed, versus the OTT stuff. 

Too many big names in the finale for me, but shout out to Josh Mankiewicz, cuz I do love my Dateline! 

[Blakeston]

Larry certainly deserved some comeuppance after all of his shitty behavior this season, but the writers chose some of the most obnoxious characters of all to take him down.

Mocha Joe proved back in season 7 that he was completely despicable. And anyone played by Paul Scheer is automatically going to be easy to hate.

[rmontro]

On 3/21/2020 at 10:21 PM, BeckyThatcher said:

I didn’t get the lack of a/c in the club casual dining.

I think the “I didn’t even notice the car was white” thing was a vague attempt at mocking people who say they don’t see race. Maybe?

A metaphor for people who say they don't see race?  Maybe.  Funny how this (apparently failed) attempt at making a white car joke has caused so much speculation.

The a/c was just broken down in the dining area, someone said they were trying to get it fixed.  It was just a setup so the waitress could drip her sweat into the soup. 

 

16 hours ago, scrb said:

I thought the big penis employee would have an accident with the urinal chutes.

I've been expecting that since they first put those urinals in.  Maybe there was a planned payoff for that which was later cut, or maybe it was just too easy?

One of my favorite bits was Larry trying to get the watch fixed, and Mila Kunis saying "Sorry Larry, I'm just here for spite".

[PotterOtherP]

I liked this season except for anything having to do with Larry (or Richard) dating, having sex, or sexually harassing someone. Leave the sex jokes to Leon.

[DoctorAtomic]

The spite store cold open was hilarious. Sean Penn yelling at birds. Brilliant. 

What were the pictures on the wall in the coffee shop? 

Edited March 24, 2020 by DoctorAtomic

[DoctorAtomic]

22 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

How many relatives does Marty Funkhauser have?

It's a good running gag. 

There's got to be enough watch stores in LA that could have fixed it though. Just say it's going to be a few days. I found a watch store in like 15 minutes when I needed to. 

The daybed was a scream. I wouldn't have known where to sit. 

I have to call bs on the tattoo though. Alice wouldn't tell Larry 'because it's personal' and she's flashing it to Joe. 

I did like both stores burning down. 

Edited March 24, 2020 by DoctorAtomic

[Ms Blue Jay]

1 hour ago, PotterOtherP said:

I liked this season except for anything having to do with Larry (or Richard) dating, having sex, or sexually harassing someone. Leave the sex jokes to Leon.

And the fatshaming!  I hate that shit.

There are some other watch subplots in Larry's history - there's an entire episode called "The Watch" on Seinfeld and Curb Season 4 has an entire subplot with a watch where David Schwimmer loses his watch, then Larry finds it, then loses it again.  David is mad at Larry but Larry's like, the watch was already lost, so who cares?  hahahaha.

Edited March 24, 2020 by Ms Blue Jay

[rmontro]

46 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

The daybed was a scream. I wouldn't have known where to sit. 

I've tried to sit on one of those before too, and couldn't figure out how to get comfortable.  But what I took from that scene is that Larry is all legs.

[Pearson80]

22 hours ago, ECM1231 said:

I've never seen either of those shows so the expectant father didn't look familiar to me. Omg the hospital scene where Larry opines that the name Kwame( spelling?) doesn't really fit the infant due to his lighter complexion. Again I cringed and then laughed.

I loved Larry bringing up the topic on the baby's complexion at Susie's house and it is okay to wonder how the baby will look like because he or she will be mixed. Larry took it on another level.. I love Larry because he is not PC and he asks questions that people would not ask out loud. He just does it in a way that will offend people.

I did not get why the wife was offended that her husband wanted the baby to be dark instead of light. He wants his son to resemble him, the baby will most likely look like him anyway regardless of skin tone, he will be of color...Genetics is freaky and he could come out looking White with no Black features. I think that would have been a funnier bit, if he came out looking White and Larry questions his paternity throwing the couple's marriage into chaos..

Edited March 24, 2020 by Pearson80

[DoctorAtomic]

41 minutes ago, rmontro said:

I've tried to sit on one of those before too, and couldn't figure out how to get comfortable.  But what I took from that scene is that Larry is all legs.

The thing that makes it work is I'm saying, 'well now your shoes are on the furniture' and Richard said he'd prefer Larry not do that. Then how do you suit on it? Why put it on a room where you have guests and not like the bedroom or den? 

I like all the hypotheticals. Jeff is actually really good at keeping them going. The one about the cheese falling is the pizza was good because Jeff goaded Larry into yelling about how he wouldn't eat it, but I did like this one about 'why would you hide in the bushes for 50 bucks?' He also stumped Larry on if the baby came out in the car. 

Jeff said something in the clubhouse locker room and really got Larry to crack up. 

[Lone Wolf]

6 hours ago, rmontro said:

 

 

I've been expecting that since they first put those urinals in.  Maybe there was a planned payoff for that which was later cut, or maybe it was just too easy?

 

I see what you did there...

[SFoster21]

Not a huge fan of VV, but his line about Joey needing time to handle his penis and “a couple of watches might get ruined.” (Shrug) was inspired and very funny.

 

[MaggieG]

Sean Penn was looking rough

[Sam Spayaid]

This show made me do something that I never thought would be possible - it's made me despise Larry David. Please do NOT do another season! You have obviously forgotten what humor is. For some reason, your Seinfeld days and even your earlier seasons of Curb have all been forgotten. This rubbish you served up was a disgrace and you should be ashamed of yourself to even offer the public such stupid, insulting, childish garbage.

I just can't be bothered listing everything I found wrong with this season. A HUGE disappointment.