Yeah, Larry wanted to go scuba diving and biking in Europe. That's what he told Cheryl tonight on Curb Your Enthusiasm, but I didn't buy a minute of it (and I hope you didn't either). How desperate was this man? He even applauded how much bartenders make in tips. Let me repeat that: he said he was okay with how much bartenders make in tips, and tips are over and above their base salary. He didn't even bat an eyelash when Cheryl said she had to check with her therapist to see if she could got out with him again. It must have killed the man, how he choked down the bile that must have been rising in his mouth I cannot imagine.

That was not the Larry David I know. That was not the Larry David that I have grown to love through the years. Where was the Larry David that I married all those years ago at the beginning of the show? Where was he?

The Larry David I know never, ever, not in a million years, would have sponsored Funkhouser in a 5K walk for Alzheimer's (he's Funkhouser after all and it was a charity event for Alzheimer's). If he hadn't blown it at the end of that dinner with Cheryl, giving her an ultimatum about moving in with him, I may have gone out of my mind. I know that he got the idea for the ultimatum from his therapist, but only "old" Larry would have been dumb enough to listen to such bad advice (and that finally confirmed that old Larry was still there).

Yes it was a setup. Yes we all knew it was a setup. It was clear from the beginning that he did not mean any of the things "new" Larry was saying, but it hurt to watch. From the moment the show began I just wanted to yell at the screen and get the Larry I fell in love with to show his true colors.

At least Larry showed himself for real after that terrible ultimatum. Grabbing Dr. Brighton from his office and forcing him to go to Cheryl's and confess that he, Dr. Brighton, was responsible for the ultimatum is the kind of thing the Larry I know and love does.

It only got better tonight though as Larry engineered a mugging of Cheryl's therapist, Dr. Slavin, by his own therapist (a mea culpa on the part of his therapist). As moments of comedy go, Dr. Brighton getting arrested for the attempted mugging as Larry became a hero to Cheryl's therapist was a high point for the season thus far (in fact, the entire episode is a season high).

I think we all knew where taking the therapist to coffee was headed though, right to a spoiler alert. Yup, Cheryl's therapist became smitten with Larry went they went out for coffee as he began to talk about himself and his being broken up about Cheryl. The therapist then had Cheryl tell Larry that Cheryl should not talk to Larry anymore so that she, Slavin, could pursue Larry on her own. If that had a chance of going anywhere I would have felt bad for Slavin, she had no idea with whom she was trying to get involved (but Larry never would have considered her romantically for a minute so I need not feel bad).

What could poor Larry do once it became clear that Slavin had a thing for him? Surely he couldn't confess his sins and beg for an apology. Nope, not the old Larry David. The old Larry David had to follow his plan down the rabbit hole. He told Cheryl's therapist that he had Alzheimer's Disease, prompting her to tell Cheryl to go back to her husband. It also had the added bonus that it allowed Larry to fail to positively identify Brighton as the mugger and got the doctor out of jail. Brighton, mightily angry at Larry, went to Slavin and told her his story, which landed Larry in hot water with Cheryl again.

The entire thing was so irredeemably evil, I loved every minute of it. Everyone acted badly and it made for such good television. Okay, maybe Cheryl came out of the mess without sullying herself, but she's the only one, and she's close enough to all the parties that she is tainted by association.

It was so nice to watch tonight and see a truly, unrepentantly evil Larry. I was worried that he had gone soft, that he had become a shadow of his former self. Apparently not. The evil Larry David still exists, and tonight he bared his teeth. Hopefully the rest of the season continues in this vein, and while you wait to see if it does why not check out The TV and Film Guy's Reviews.

What did you think? Was it nice to see Larry go all out evil tonight or do you like the kindler, gentler Larry?

Comments

You might enjoy this audio interview with Cheryl Hines: http://www.mrmedia.com/2007/10/cheryl-hines-001-curb-your-enthusiasm.html .
Thanks! Bob

Bob Andelman | Nov 5, 2007 8:48:16 AM | #

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The show would not be funny at all if we were subject to the new Larry. Larry has to say goodbye to Cheryl (as much as I like her) for the show to continue to work. Larry emasculated is not a pretty sight

Ken Trew | Nov 5, 2007 11:16:43 AM | #

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The show would not be funny at all if we were subject to the new Larry. Larry has to say goodbye to Cheryl (as much as I like her) for the show to continue to work. Larry emasculated is not a pretty sight

Ken Trew | Nov 5, 2007 11:16:53 AM | #

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"It was clear from the beginning that he did not mean any of the things "new" Larry was saying, but it hurt to watch."

Larry told the truth when he said "I love you" to Cheryl. In his own Larry-esque way, he truly does love Cheryl and is lost without her. Of course, being Larry, he had to detstroy that moment by later telling Cheryl that his therapist had prescribed his tenderness at the movie theatre.

Primobabe | Nov 6, 2007 3:39:13 PM | #

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I guess art is imitating life? Didn't Larry David's (real life) wife leave him and eventually divorce him?

Primobabe | Nov 6, 2007 3:40:50 PM | #

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