After revolutionizing TV comedy with Seinfeld, Larry David went and did it again with Curb Your Enthusiasm. Whereas Seinfeld brought an idiosyncratic voice and a sly self-awareness to the well-worn sitcom genre, Curb has completely changed the TV landscape with its improvised dialogue, single-camera style, and blurring of fiction and reality.
David recently returned to HBO’s airwaves in the eleventh season of Curb, one of the show’s most critically acclaimed installments to date. Some season 11 episodes were better received by critics (and IMDb users) than others.
10 Angel Muffin (7.3)
The lowest-rated episode of the season, “Angel Muffin,” revolves around Larry’s attempts to woo Dylan O’Brien to take the lead role in his autobiographical streaming series Young Larry.
There are some great moments in this episode – like Larry and Jeff plugging up their ears at O’Brien’s rock concert – but since the storyline revolves around the killing of a dog, it’s hardly surprising that it’s rated as the worst installment in the season.
9 Igor, Gregor, & Timor (7.6)
Bill Hader guest-stars as the titular trio in “Igor, Gregor, & Timor.” They’re a group of identical Eastern European men who recommend each other’s small businesses and insist they aren’t related to each other.
Unsurprisingly, the SNL legend was a perfect fit for the improvised world of Curb. Hader previously worked with Larry David on the movie Clear History.
8 The Mormon Advantage (7.7)
Larry’s latest web of lies comes crashing down in hysterical fashion in the season 11 finale, “The Mormon Advantage.” As he desperately tries to get the five-foot fence law overturned, Larry’s deceits are hilariously revealed by whistleblower Alexander Vindman, guest-starring as himself.
On top of some darkly hilarious standalone plot points, like Larry stealing a pair of shoes from a Holocaust museum, this finale deftly pulls all the season’s disparate storylines together in classic Curb Your Enthusiasm style.
7 The Mini Bar (7.8)
After Larry is blackmailed into casting Maria Sofia in Young Larry, he hires Cheryl to give her a couple of acting lessons to see if a passable performance can be salvaged from the young thespian’s limited talents. She ends up fighting both Cheryl and her boyfriend Ted Danson on-camera – and the producers of the show think it’s hilarious.
The best thing about “The Mini Bar” is that it gives Keyla Monterroso Mejia a chance to shine in the role of Maria Sofia. She stole the early episodes of this season.
6 Man Fights Tiny Woman (7.8)
Larry ends up starring in the titular viral video in “Man Fights Tiny Woman” when he stubbornly refuses to let a female chauffeur carry his luggage.
Seth Rogen is a great reactionary foil for Larry in “Man Fights Tiny Woman.” Larry occasionally crosses paths with Rogen on the set of a Viking movie as he tries to sign him for a guest spot on Young Larry, but the actor naturally decides against working with him after seeing the “Man Fights Tiny Woman” video.
5 Irma Kostroski (7.9)
Tracey Ullman ended up playing a major role in the back end of Curb’s latest season. She really knocked the role of City Councilwoman Irma Kostroski out of the park. This character’s comedic purpose is to be absurdly unappealing, and Ullman never misses an opportunity to lean into that.
This episode has one of Curb’s hilarious everybody-angrily-approaches-Larry endings as their preferred mayoral candidate loses by one vote and it’s revealed that Larry left the line at the polling station because it was too long.
4 IRASSHAIMASE! (8.1)
Modern Family’s Julie Bowen guest-stars in “IRASSHAIMASE!” as a producer who dates Larry. They meet at a sushi restaurant and Larry offends the sushi chefs when he uses the titular greeting on her without realizing it means “welcome to my restaurant.”
Considering Bowen rose to prominence on a rigidly scripted network sitcom, she’s surprisingly adept at Curb-ified improv opposite Larry David. Vince Vaughn gives another standout turn as Freddy Funkhouser in this episode, too.
3 The Five-Foot Fence (8.3)
The premiere episode, “The Five-Foot Fence,” got season 11 off to a terrific start with a couple of classic Curb storylines. The titular California bylaw sets up the season’s overarching narrative, but Albert Brooks’ living funeral is a great standalone story, too.
Larry has a ton of hilarious moments in this episode, from walking into a glass door to calling out Brooks as a “COVID hoarder.”
2 What Have I Done? (8.6)
The hysterically cringeworthy Irma Kostroski romance storyline continues in “What Have I Done?” as Larry desperately tries to stay on her good side long enough for her vote to repeal the five-foot fence law.
The episode’s best storyline revolves around Leon’s new business. Women hire him to pretend to be their husband to intimidate workmen so they’ll lower their prices and get the jobs done faster. Of course, in time, his clients all face the consequences of shoddy, rushed work and their houses start falling apart.
1 The Watermelon (8.8)
Curb Your Enthusiasm is possibly the only show on the air that could feature a Klansman to comedic effect (and make it work). Larry spills coffee on a Klansman’s robe and, rather than chastise him for his prejudices, he feels responsible for getting it dry-cleaned. When he asks Susie to make the Klansman a new robe, she gives the episode a brilliant visual punchline by stitching a Star of David onto the back of it.
That’s just one of many hilarious storylines in “The Watermelon.” Elsewhere, Leon fights stereotypes and Larry attempts to convince Woody Harrelson he’s an animal rights activist.
Go to Source
Author: Ben Sherlock
