"Seinfeld" The Stock Tip (1990)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Tom Cherones

Writers:

Larry David (creator) &
Jerry Seinfeld (creator) ...

TV Series:

"Seinfeld" (1990)

Original Air Date:

21 June 1990 (Season 1, Episode 5)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Jerry becomes apprehensive when he and George buy stock and the price falls while the person who suggested the stock is in a coma and can't tell them when to sell. |

Plot Keywords:

New York City | One Word Title | Stand Up Comedian | Actor Shares Last Name With Character | Neighbor

Cast

Jerry Seinfeld	...	Jerry Seinfeld
Julia Louis-Dreyfus	...	Elaine Benes
Michael Richards	...	Cosmo Kramer
Jason Alexander	...	George Costanza
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Norman Brenner	...	Manager
Lynn Clark	...	Vanessa
Ted Davis	...	Dry Cleaner
Jill C. Klein	...	Waitress
Benjamin Lum	...	Stock Boy

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Castle Rock Entertainment

Season 1 finale: excellent!

Frustratingly short it may have been (hence the combined presence of Series 1 and 2 on the DVD box set), but the first season of Seinfeld knew exactly how to make up for its brevity, with each of the five episodes crammed with memorable lines and situations. The season finale, The Stock Tip, is no exception, mostly because it contains some truly unmissable George Costanza moments (particularly when he shows how cheap he is when paying the bill in a restaurant).

As a matter of fact, George is the instigator of this show's main incident: having learned of a valuable investment to make in the stock market, he convinces Jerry and Elaine to join him in the adventure. Unfortunately, his informer winds up in a coma, meaning no one knows when to sell their shares. Meanwhile, Jerry also has to think about the weekend he is going to spend in Vermont with Vanessa (the woman he met in The Stakeout), Elaine has a problem with her boyfriend's cats and Kramer... well, he's just Kramer.

The Stock Tip is the standout achievement of Season One, especially for how it neatly weaves the opening sequence into the overall plot: generally, Jerry's stand-up monologue at the start of every episode has no relevance whatsoever to that show's events, whereas subsequent bits reflect what has just happened; this time, though, a digression on paying checks when you're eating out is smoothly linked to George's behavior later in the story, providing a perfect example of the series' "no hugs, no learning" rule. Other juicy bits include a conversation about Superman's apparent lack of humor and Kramer spying on a woman at from Jerry's apartment (the latter's comment? "Yeah, I'm sure you're what she's looking for, too: complete stranger leering through a pair of binoculars, ten stores up").

In short, a superb way to end the first year of Seinfeld and, alongside the previous four episodes, a great appetizer for the standard-length eight seasons that followed.