Seinfeld sells out

Tim Bearden
Editor-in-chief

Everyone knew Jerry Seinfeld would make a return to prime time.

He and his good friend Larry David left the original sitcom fairly open ended, just in case they’d want to return to it. But there’s not a TV exec, comedian or entertainment junky that could have seen this coming. Seinfeld making a reality show, one he’s not even in.

His documentary “Comedian” could act as an indicator as to why he wants to do this, reality is funnier than anything scripted. A documentary is one thing, but to sink low enough to reality television is unfathomable, especially for Seinfeld.

Reality TV has proven to be popular. Shows like American Idol, Survivor, Big Brother or any piece of white trash programming VH1 comes up with are huge money makers and rating hogs. NBC picking up Seinfeld’s The Marriage Ref comes as no surprise. Hell, they’ve allowed Last Comic Standing to continue despite the fact it basically degrades comedy and the profession, so why not.

But Seinfeld is better than that, or so people thought. The press release from NBC said the show “will feature opinionated celebrities, comedians and sports stars who will candidly comment, judge and offer different strategies for real-life couples in the midst of a classic marital dispute.”

Even Dr. Phil is changing the channel at this point.

A lot of comedians have been divorced at least once and if they haven’t yet, it’s either coming soon or it’s the rare marriage that can last a lifetime. In the age of TMZ, Perez Hilton and other “e-news” reports about celebrities getting divorced and remarried and divorced again happen all the time. As for sports stars, reference Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson, no more needs to be said. So who better than to delegate a marriage than people who can barely keep one themselves?

People are denouncing this idea all over. Comments on blogs reference old Seinfeld characters like the Soup Nazi or Babu Bhatt trashing the idea. “No Soup for you!” or “Very bad Jerry. Veeeerrrry bad” is a general consensus among the audience. So, NBC, if people who love the show enough to not only have screen names from Seinfeld characters, but also quote them against a new Seinfeld created show, who’s the target audience?

If the network is looking for funny angles to really explore, then why not invite people from ABC’s The Bachelor, The Bachelorette or Fox’s Joe Millionaire to be a part of this comedy counseling. If anyone would need it, it’d be those contestants.

Picking up the idea just because he’s Seinfeld, doesn’t make it a good idea, just a cheap marketing ploy. “Must see TV,” has become nothing more than “Now missing the point.”