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Comment by kif | Hacker News Reader

I tried watching Seinfeld with my partner like a year ago; we couldn't make it past the first few episodes. We never laughed, maybe a slight smile a few times but that's about it.

The standup bits were my least favourite part. What I found to be remarkable was that Jerry couldn't act, especially after learning he is the richest comedian in the world.

Maybe it's a generational thing, though there's stuff I find funny from the 90s. They say Seinfeld's quality went downhill after Larry David left, and that I understand. Curb Your Enthusiasm is a much better show IMO.

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I tried watching Seinfeld in the 90s and did not care for it. Some think it's because my English or cultural awareness weren't there yet and it's possible - as observational humour it does live within the gestalt of its time and culture.

However, other possibility for Seinfeld show specifically is the characters - there's not a single likeable, redeemable person that I remember. In principle there's humour that can be made based on trials and tribulations of unlikeable folks but it's not for me. There was never progress, awareness, nicety. I'm not saying I need to watch Brady Bunch, but I personally found 22 minutes of concentrated selfish pettiness tiring.

(I do "emotionally empathize" with tv characters more than perhaps average viewer regardless of genre so that may be to blame)

Huh, I always figured the flawed or sometimes even detestable nature of the characters was part of the shtick. Like It’s Always Sunny…

I'm with the other commenter, I understand it's part of setting up the jokes and sort of an excuse for why they never grow as a character but it still makes it really unenjoyable to watch for me. I couldn't do Arrested Development or Archer for the same reason, after watching one or two episodes I just feel mad.

Yeah, I couldn't do Arrested Development either! I just wanted to shout at characters to stop being idiots over and over and over again :)

(Archer for some reason I enjoyed in small portions; I think the clearly surreal fictional overly-exaggerated animated nature turned off some "suspension of disbelief / empathy" switch that most people can turn off with Seinfeld)

It absolutely is; it's the main schtick and premise of the show; it clearly resonated with wide audience, I'm just an outlier for whom it really didn't work.

(FWIW, I'm also the kind of person that didn't love "Everybody Loves Raymond"; it just seemed that characters never learned or tried to get better or showed real empathy / awareness of each other. The schtick seemed that he would "Cluelessly try to get away with stuff" and she would get upset and he would do something sweet and she'd forgive him. Episode after episode season after season. Something like first few seasons of "Mad About You" always seemed more enjoyable, funnier, and more relatable :)

Part of the problem is that the medium changed. We used to get one episode a week with frequent commercial breaks. Watching episodes of Seinfeld now, back to back, I agree with you.

in other words: he's only good in small doses

I don't go to comedy shows. I hate them.

Seinfeld is so.much better for 3 reasons.

1) I didnt expect.to laugh at every episode, but when I did, whoa. Mostly the big funny arcs delivered.. I have never achieved the same with another show.

2) it was not only about the destination (laughs) the journey waa entertaining.

3) for non NY city folk, and particularly suburban folk, you would learn very quickly about the culture of NYC (or maybe any large metro?) I would go as far as deeming it mandatory viewing for anyone thinking of moving there. I think this is true even 30 years later..

So yea, for us it was not onlt about the laughs. It was a well-worth journey where you actually learned a thing or two.

That was very hard to find in most sitcoms of the 90s. Maybe even today.

Can't agree more about 3). I watched Seinfeld in Des Moines in the '90s having never been to NYC. Started going there regularly in 2013 and was like, "Where I have I seen all this before?" Realizing that some of the idiosyncratic characters on Seinfeld were actually pretty accurate depictions of New Yorkers blew my mind.

Seinfeld's first season was not particularly good or popular at the time, it gradually improved. The US Office was similar. Even at it's best I don't like Seinfeld as much as modern sitcoms, but it was audaciously different and innovative when it was made.

What’s a modern sitcom you like? I feel like I either lost my humor or tv did

Not the person you're replying to, but Modern Family is pretty, pretty, pretty good, as far as I'm concerned.

Seinfeld has 3 phases. The phase where they don't know what they're doing and Jason Alexander is doing a Woody Allen impression. The phase where they figure it out. And the phase where Larry David has left the show.

The second two phases are funny.

Watch from 4th season you might like it. I did not like the first few too. Glad I did not stop after that as Seinfeld and Curb gave me the most laughs ever for a TV show

The first season didn't age well.

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