I adore "The Cafe" and it is yet another episode of the third season that rides the show's newfound momentum very well. It is an excellent follow-up to "The Parking Garage" that returns the show to a more familiar narrative with multiple storylines that intertwine both effortlessly and quite naturally and it's also an episode where all its constituent parts are highly entertaining.
Probably the thing "The Cafe" is best known for is the introduction of the beloved character of Babu Bhatt, superbly played by Brian George, and while the entire Babu storyline is entertaining and very well done, my favourite aspect of this episode has always been George.
Yes, Brian George is hilarious and his transition from a restauranteur who is amicable to one who is cynical, frustrated and cold is hilarious (I especially adore how he just carelessly draws out a seat for Jerry during his second visit inside the restaurant) and Michael Richards shows some of his ability for physical comedy but I have always been very much a fan of George Costanza here in this episode. He opts to cheat on an IQ test, embarrassed about his lack of intelligence, even when the girl he's dating (whom he is doing this for as a favour to her) could not be less concerned about IQ tests. If the idea of George using Elaine to cheat on an IQ test to impress his girlfriend isn't funny enough, the direction it takes when the plan does not smoothly follow through is hilarious. The scene in which he continuously lies, almost in a pathological manner, to his girlfriend after he returns the paper (drenched in coffee, sandwich stains) is absolutely genius. Jason Alexander is on top form here and I absolutely adore the way he plays that scene in particular, and the means with which he lies is fantastic. For every question the girl asks, he almost responds with another question or a half answer, just enough time to contemplate where he will next take the lie. It's brilliant comedy, it's classic George Costanza and in my opinion, it's pure 'Seinfeld'.
"The Cafe" is excellent. Something prevents me from giving it the nine stars this time around that I had always given it but my enjoyment was not much less. Every storyline works very nicely here and the means with which they come together is yet another example of 'Seinfeld' writing at its best. Every character gets something great, George the most in my opinion, and arguably even more importantly, Elaine is becoming more and more a pivotal character in the series.
Probably the thing "The Cafe" is best known for is the introduction of the beloved character of Babu Bhatt, superbly played by Brian George, and while the entire Babu storyline is entertaining and very well done, my favourite aspect of this episode has always been George.
Yes, Brian George is hilarious and his transition from a restauranteur who is amicable to one who is cynical, frustrated and cold is hilarious (I especially adore how he just carelessly draws out a seat for Jerry during his second visit inside the restaurant) and Michael Richards shows some of his ability for physical comedy but I have always been very much a fan of George Costanza here in this episode. He opts to cheat on an IQ test, embarrassed about his lack of intelligence, even when the girl he's dating (whom he is doing this for as a favour to her) could not be less concerned about IQ tests. If the idea of George using Elaine to cheat on an IQ test to impress his girlfriend isn't funny enough, the direction it takes when the plan does not smoothly follow through is hilarious. The scene in which he continuously lies, almost in a pathological manner, to his girlfriend after he returns the paper (drenched in coffee, sandwich stains) is absolutely genius. Jason Alexander is on top form here and I absolutely adore the way he plays that scene in particular, and the means with which he lies is fantastic. For every question the girl asks, he almost responds with another question or a half answer, just enough time to contemplate where he will next take the lie. It's brilliant comedy, it's classic George Costanza and in my opinion, it's pure 'Seinfeld'.
"The Cafe" is excellent. Something prevents me from giving it the nine stars this time around that I had always given it but my enjoyment was not much less. Every storyline works very nicely here and the means with which they come together is yet another example of 'Seinfeld' writing at its best. Every character gets something great, George the most in my opinion, and arguably even more importantly, Elaine is becoming more and more a pivotal character in the series.
