Seinfeld’s journey to the top is one of the most peculiar ever to grace television. From an abandoned TV special to one of the cultural landmarks of the ’90s, the show about nothing learned through trial and error how to craft its identity. Starting with small but peculiar stories to more elaborate and absurd set pieces, the show quickly set the standards of what was expected out of a sitcom, challenging aspiring writers and comedians to look more into the mundane occurrences of our daily lives. Here is a ranking of all its seasons:
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9 Season One
Columbia Pictures Television Distributions
Originally premiering as The Seinfeld Chronicles and scrapped as a pilot airing at a fill-in time slot, the idea of a show was quickly resurrected by NBC executive Rick Ludwin, who saw the potential of its subtle humor and intricacies. A further four episodes were ordered, and the show was rebranded as Seinfeld, officially premiering with the moniker on May 31st, 1990. The show was still trying to find its identity during this time; the stories were stale and full of potential, but its unique observational qualities were still developing. It received an overwhelming amount of praise in certain circles, with many pointing out its differences from conventional sitcoms.
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8 Season Two
Despite very poor ratings in its first season, Seinfeld was given a chance as a follow-up to the very popular sitcom Cheers for its second season, where it found more viewership and a consistent streak of quality programming. The show was still rough around its edges, but it managed to show us a further glimpse into what it would eventually become. A particular stand-out was the episode “The Chinese Restaurant”, where three of our main characters, George, Jerry, and Elaine, spent the entire episode waiting for their reservations in the afore-mentioned restaurant. The originality was leaving a mark, gathering great critical praise once more and officially separating itself from the rest of the traditional sitcom world.
7 Season Three
After the success of the second season, NBC ordered a full season with the hopes of an increase in popularity. What began to separate Seinfeld from most sitcoms at the time was their season-long story arcs for many characters. While this season didn’t have one, the idea was beginning to brew, as many episodes center around George’s pursuit of employment and his failures in doing so, to great comedic effect. This is also the first season to introduce Newman, perhaps the show’s best recurring character. The stories became more layered, with every member of the group contributing to each of their stories with quirky ideas or horrible advice. Notable episodes from this season include “The Parking Garage”, where each member faces a set of problems as they attempt to find Kramer’s car in a garage; and “The Subway”, where the same formula is repeated on the subway.
6 Season Nine
Columbia Pictures Television
The show was beginning to lose steam its last couple of seasons, made even more evident by the departure of Larry David, series co-creator. Stories became more absurd, with even more over-the-top plots and occurrences. While still very funny, it petered away from its subtle brand of humor, becoming almost cartoonish and repetitive in their storylines. The season-long story arc, Elaine going on-and-off with David Puddy, lacks the creativity of the previous ones. Nevertheless, it had some very memorable episodes long embedded in the fandom, starting with “The Serenity Now”, Frank Costanza’s mantra whenever becoming irritated making its way into the rest of the group, “The Betrayal”, where the story is told backwards in an attempt to mix up the formula, “The Strike”, featuring Festivus, a holiday Frank invented, and “The Blood”, in which Jerry receives blood from Kramer is constantly tormented by it.
5 Season Eight
With Larry David’s departure, Jerry was put in charge of running the show. While the identity was still there, it was lacking the minutiae observations punctured with the wit and self-deprecating humor David is known for. The season’s story arcs, while entertaining in that it put Elaine in a position of authority and George into misery, only last through half the season. Without this anchor there is barely any coherency in the plots, offering little to no wiggle room for ideas. Some however, see this new identity as a benefit for the show, demonstrating its innate ability in coming up with plausible ideas in the face of redundancy. Despite the criticism, the show brought it an average of 31 millions viewers per episode, and featured some of show’s funniest moments, such as Elaine’s horrible dancing in “The Little Kicks”, George’s attempts to win an apartment tenure against an Andrea Doria survivor in “The Andrea Doria”, and Jerry becoming Kramer in “The Chicken Roaster”.
4 Season Seven
Perhaps its most controversial season, Seinfeld was at the very top of the television world during its seventh season, reaching the number one spot in the Nielsen rankings the season prior. The season follows perhaps the second-best story arc of the show with George’s engagement to Susan Ross, his ex-girlfriend from season four. Immediately regretting the decision, the entire season follows George’s misery and his ridiculous schemes in an attempt to call off the marriage. His storyline was supplanted by the rest of the members’ miserable lives, from Elaine kidnapping a dog in “The Engagement” and ruining the life of a local soup deli in “The Soup Nazi, George hatching up a scheme to give Susan’s family a marble rye in “The Rye”, and Jerry’s bouts with his mechanic in “The Bottle Deposit”. The season ended with what is perhaps one of the most absurd endings in television history, where instead of breaking up with George, Susan passes away after licking a series of toxic envelopes. It was considered to be too dark of a fate for a sitcom character, but time has validated the decision, as television is now full of similar moments in this day and age.
3 Season Five
After the highly successful fourth season, Seinfeld moved to Cheers’ time slot after the show’s conclusion. The new air time brought in more viewers, steadily becoming one of the most-watched programs in America. The story arc for this season follows George moving back to his parents’ house and Kramer’s idea of publishing a coffee table book about coffee tables. Seinfeld was truly on a roll during this period, with every episode delivering laughs and shocking coincidences, but the few who truly stand out are “The Puffy Shirt”, featuring the iconic and aforementioned shirt, “The Bris”, in which George’s car is the scene of a tragedy; and “The Hamptons”, where we become acquainted with a very uncomfortable phenomenon known as shrinkage.
2 Season Six
The show was well-anchored in the zeitgeist and well in-tuned to its identity by the premiere of its sixth season. This is the first season featuring celebrities making absurd cameos, starting with Jon Voight and Marissa Tomei the following season. The season picks up right where it left off. George is getting accustomed to his job with the New York Yankees, Elaine is hired as a personal assistant to Mr. Pitt, a publishing executive who caught her attention due to her resemblance to Jackie Onassis, Kramer still coming up with weird schemes to make money, and Jerry roams the world without putting much thought into it. Some of the best episodes of the season included “The Big Salad”, where the most mundane complaint is turned into a big and comedic dilemma, “The Fusilli Jerry”, featuring a replica of Jerry made of Fusilli that ultimately ends up in a very dark place, and “The Jimmy”, following the gang’s exploits with a weird eccentric named Jimmy, who constantly refers to himself in the third person. The season brought in the show’s biggest ratings to date, landing on the number one spot in the Nielsen rankings for the first time in its history.
1 Season Four
Columbia Pictures Television Distribution
This is the season where it all came together. After three years of novel storylines, the writers and actors were well acquainted with the formula and delivered one of the most memorable seasons in television history. What made the season truly stand out was the meta commentary the show made of itself through Jerry and George’s idea for a pilot. Their pitch is identical to the one made by Jerry and Larry on their first meeting with NBC, and it was one of the first times a sitcom had a well-outlined story arc spanning the entire season, concluding with its tapping and subsequent cancelation. Every episode complimented the other. There wasn’t a single story wasted. The show was clicking on all cylinders, producing comedic gold at every step of the way and changing the landscape of television humor. It featured what is perhaps the funniest episode of the series, “The Contest”, where we see our members participating in a competition that tests their mastery of their domain. Other notable episodes include “The Outing”, “The Old Man”, “The Shoes”, “The Pilot”, and “The Bubble Boy”. The season kicked the show into the stratosphere, officially establishing itself as the most popular show on television and a true achievement in comedic history. It won the show’s only Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series and set off an unprecedented streak of comedy classics. Nothing was ever the same after.
