For the uninitiated (or people who don't have cable, where Seinfeld seems to play in an endless rerun), Seinfeld is a show about nothing that focuses on the daily lives of four New York City residents - Jerry (Jerry Seinfeld), George (Jason Alexander), Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Kramer (Michael Richards) and the various personalities they interact with on a daily basis.
As with past seasons, Season Nine features a number of memorable episodes that each focus on individual cast members while bringing in two or three other subplots that usually end up influencing the main plot in one way or another. Each character's plots usually involve one common element. For George, these usually involve him either trying to get out of work, get ahead without doing much work, or relive his glory days. As always, these things usually end up blowing up in his face. In one episode, he fakes being handicapped in order to get a job, while in another he embraces his father's made up holiday, "Festivus," in order to get out of having to give presents out at work. He also demands an apology from a recovering alcoholic (James Spader) as part of the nine step program and tries to keep his high score on a Frogger machine - leading to a great sequence involving the machine and a busy highway.
Elaine's stories tend to involve people at work or her many relationships. She continues her on-again/ off-again relationship with the dim-witted Puddy (Patrick Warburton), learns about her "Shiksappeal" and ends up eating a piece of cake worth millions and deals with a germaphobe at work. Though entertaining, the main appeal of Elaine's plotlines are that they always include J. Peterman (John O'Hurley), who, other than George's parents (Jerry Stiller and Estelle Harris), is easily one of the more entertaining and memorable of the show's reoccurring characters.
While both George and Elaine's plots can be a bit far-fetched, Kramer's are outright odd and probably some of the show's best. In addition to getting his own intern and shaving with butter, Kramer also recreates the old Merv Griffin show in his apartment after finding the set in a dumpster, begins a rickshaw business and runs for President of the Del Boca Vista Phase III Condo Board.
Although he is the star of the show, several of Jerry's plots tend to be subplots, usually placing him as the background straight man to his friend's stories. There are, however, a few Jerry-centric episodes which are actually some of the weaker ones. These include Jerry dating a nudist and Jerry's silly voice.
Season Nine also includes a few episodes that focus on the group, such as their trip to India for the "bra-less' Sue Ellen Mischke's (Brenda Strong) wedding and the Puerto Rican Day Parade, an episode that is rarely shown on TV. These all lead to the show's final episode, where the group is put on trial for violating a "Good Samaritan" law. Even thought the plotline is a little goofy, it makes for entertaining TV, at least for longtime fans, since it brings back just about every memorable reoccurring character from the series. You'll see Jerry's Uncle Leo (Len Lesser), Newman (Wayne Knight), Kenny Bania (Steve Hynter), Sally Weaver (Kathy Griffin), Jerry's girlfriend Sidra (Teri Hatcher), the Soup Nazi (Larry Thomas) and the group's fast-talking lawyer, Jackie Chiles (Phil Morris). And that's just the final show. The rest of the season is packed with other guest stars, including Jim Fowler, Dana Gould, Kristin Davis, Marcia Cross and my personal favorite, Wilford Brimley.
In addition to 24, original broadcast length episodes (in other words, noticeable breaks for commercials), Seinfeld: Season Nine also includes the standard set of extras, including episode commentary, behind-the-scenes looks, a blooper reel and another "Sein-Imation" installment. Some of the more entertaining bonus features are the "Notes About Nothing" trivia tracks, which include all sorts of useless information about each episode and the "Last Lap," which looks at why the show ended when it did and discusses the finale. Another interesting extra is a re-edited version of "The Betrayal," which shows the episode in chronological order rather than the broadcast version, which shows the story in reverse.
For a fan, Seinfeld: Season Nine is a no-brainer must buy. Not only do you get a number of the show's best episodes, but a number of great extras as well.
