Five Favorite Seinfeld Episodes

[El Ishmael]

Source - I've been reading this page all week, it's awesome

In order:

1. The Chicken Roaster



Everything character's dilemma is perfect on this one, or close to it. Even the opening with the old college buddy of Jerry's is awesome - "I only knew you through Moochy!" The convo between Kramer and George at Monk's is fantastic, as is the one with Peterman in Burma - "You're the only white poet warlord in the neighborhood" is one of my favorite lines of all time. Also the "By Mennen" joke that goes throughout the whole episode is very well done imo.

2. The Voice



Again, nearly every segment is done brilliantly. The convo between the black woman and Kramer about Darren's internship and the repetition of the voice throughout the show are awesome. Plus, this episode is rarely on TV in my area so I have seen it much less than others. Kramer's final line is one of his best:

" You know Darren, if you would have told me twenty-five years ago that some day I'd be standing here about to solve the world's energy problems, I would've said you're crazy. Now let's push this giant ball of oil out the window."

Amazing.

3. The Muffin Tops



This episode is awesome in every way. When I was younger the ending, with Jerry running into the woods a la the Wolfman, was one of my favorites. A little cliche now that I look at it, but still very good. "It's not "Top of the Muffin - TO YOU!" is a great one, and this episode stars the black Rebecca Demornay again, who is one of the best side characters, despite only showing up in two episodes. I'm not a huge fan of the Chicken counterpart of Steinbrenner but I think it's done well nevertheless, especially since they didn't spoof that area of the show very often. Also, making fun of the homeless is obviously fun.

4. The Van Buren Boys



Just the idea of the Van Buren Boys is very lol. I enjoyed all of the episodes with Susan's foundation - really good idea for season 8. The interviews with the kids and George's explanation to the Board/Jerry are great - "He knows how to read!" Also, the fake sign that George gives the VBBs in the street is so great. Incredible. I wish I had a .gif of it. "Architect." "City plannnaa." Sweet stuff.

5. The Bizarro Jerry



Another episode that I don't see that frequently in syndication. The man-hands are so vulgar that it's hilarious, and the way the studio reversed the room of Elaine's new friends is really funny. As is the "stand-off" on the street between Jerry, George, and Kramer, selfishly asking Elaine for stuff, and the Bizarro trio, giving the homeless person money, etc. One of the show's best moments. I also really like the end, when Jerry and George go to the club and it's just a bunch of meat. The guy playing the Newman counterpart, "Farkus," is also a highlight - it begins with the typical Newman-Jerry hate but then dissolves into a friendly relationship.

I'm a big fan of all the seasons, but if you notice, all of these episodes are from pretty much the post-David years, which is weird since I'm such a fan of LD. Most of the most critically acclaimed episodes were earlier too, and a lot of people derided the show as becoming a spoof of itself in '96-'98, but I enjoyed the ridiculousness of it. Honorable mentions for this list would be The Cigar Store Indian, The Puerto Rican Day, and The Gum.

And finally, Seinfeld is bar none my favorite show ever, but here are five episodes that I do not ever care to see again. I've seen them way too much. (Yet if they're on Fox I know I'll watch them.)

1. The Frogger. I really dislike how this is so well-known. IMO, it is subpar for the show.


2. The Little Kicks. The bootlegger component of the show is amusing but I'm so tired of seeing Elaine's dancing


3. The Blood. I really hate Lloyd Bridges and he completely ruins the show for me.


4. The Fatigues. I thought the army co-worker was pretty funny for awhile, but again I've just seen this one too many times. I must say though, Frank Costanza's recollection of war stores is great.


5. The Trip Parts 1/2. Whole thing with Kramer as a murderer in LA is kind've meh. Not a big fan.

[Thythe]

Your choices are definitely all in the top 10. For the top 5, I might replace The Van Buren Boys with The Susie. I'm too lazy to post pictures, but it's basically the one where Elaine invents a person at work named Susie (while Elaine is really both of them). Peterman's speech at the "funeral" is classic. "But I never heard her cries for help, and now, Susie is gone." This of course is impossible because Susie doesn't even exist. Afterwards Mike runs in and says "Susie didn't commit suicide. She was murdered by Jerry Seinfeld!" Jerry then comments "not only that, I broke his thumbs." Awesome.

[El Ishmael]

Yeah, when Jerry turns to Elaine (right?) and says the thumbs line, that's awesome.

[leemur]

No it was some woman behind him.

[amplify]

No Soup Nazi? No Contest? Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[bent96]

It's about impossible to pick my top 5 from this list. There are some many back plots that wind in and out of the story that aren't listed, which is what makes the best episodes the best.

[Larry David]

The Marine Biologist should be up there also.

[El Ishmael]

[ QUOTE ]
No Soup Nazi? No Contest? Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[/ QUOTE ]

Really good episodes but not my favorites.

[freehat]

1. "The Pen"
2. "The Conversion"
3. "The Chinese Woman"
4. "The Fusilli Jerry"
5. "The Doll"

[Triumph36]

Wow - as I see what my favorites are, they're all in the later seasons. I think the show was much more hit or miss during those years - the early seasons of Seinfeld were all consistently good, but I think the more esoteric the situation, the funnier it is.

A top 5:

1. The Chicken Roaster. A classic from start to finish - everyone's in character, then Kramer and Jerry switch.
2. The Junk Mail. Classic scene with Newman and Kramer when he goes to the post office.
3. The Face Painter. As a New Jersey Devils fan, it's gotta be up there. Any sitcom episode that mentions former great Stephane Richer has to be highly regarded.
4. The Merv Griffin Show. The set is hilarious, and the subplot with Jerry and the toys is wonderful too.
5. The Comeback. 'Jerk Store's the line!' The rest of the episode is pretty weak, but it did manage to jam 3 other plots in.

5 I Could do without:

1. Yada Yada Yada - one joke episode.
2. The Susie - same thing.
3. The English Patient - the Mandelbaum character was never funny, though the Peterman scenes are hilarious.
4. The Fatigues - the promotion of the crazy guy isn't particularly funny and slows down the whole show.
5. The Little Kicks - the whole bootleg tape thing doesn't quite work. All of these are episodes that have solid parts but some subplots are just so painfully repetitive or bad that I can't watch.

I can't believe you put 'The Blood' on here - yes, it has the Lloyd Bridges character, but it also has that sausage music which could be the most hilarious music ever recorded. The Music (with video)