Chris Morgan of Paste Magazine has ranked one of Tim’s Seinfeld episodes, “The Bizarro Jerry,” third on his list of the show’s ten best episodes!
3. The Bizarro Jerry
This episode is silly in many ways. After all, Elaine finds herself in a bizarro world with its own Jerry, George, Kramer and Newman. Kramer starts working a job for no reason. Jerry dates Man Hands. George finds himself going to secret model parties. Yet, it all works. Kramer’s storyline is hilarious. The bizarro thing is out there, yes, but if you are willing to accept it, it’s hilarious and delightfully weird. The show had earned this chance through years of shrewd character development, and they made the most of the opportunity.
For the full list of the 10 best Seinfeld episodes, check out the article here.
(Thanks to Kevin McClave for the heads-up!)
Now that Netflix has added the entire Seinfeld catalog to its streaming service, everyone is reviewing the series like it’s brand new. I know “The Bizarro Jerry” episode is a fan favorite, but It’s nice to read the mostly positive critics’ reviews too (although, for some bizarre–pun intended–reason, Vanity Fair ranked it as one of the worst Seinfeld episodes). The “bizarro” aspect is Jerry’s homage to the Superman/DC Comics universe (of which he is apparently a huge fan).
And because I try to connect White Collar to almost everything, Peter Burke makes an indirect reference to the “bizarro Jerry” character in s2’s Bottlenecked by referring to Keller as “the bizarro Neal”. (I’ll take the WC/Seinfeld connection further by speculating that Peter’s undercover alter-ego in s4’s “Most Wanted”, Kevin the bartender, is named for Tim’s Seinfeld character’s real name…I know, that’s probably just a coincidence, but it’s more fun to think it isn’t.)
The “Bizarro Neal” thing was intentional. I can’t remember where I read/heard it, but it was definitely included as a nod to Tim’s character on Seinfeld. No idea if the Kevin thing was more of the same, but it fits, so why not. 😉 (There’s another Seinfeld reference in the pilot, when Peter says, “No dancing for you.”)
I’ll admit that I’ve never watched Seinfeld, outside of Tim’s eps, and the two-part ep that my friend Pete did. Unfortunately, his ep (“The Trip”) didn’t make the top ten. I haven’t seen any of the other reviews/lists – just happened to notice this one because of Kevin’s tweet about it.
I didn’t catch the Seinfeld link to the pilot’s “…no dancing for you” line. Now, I’m going to have to go back and watch the Seinfeld episodes again.
Speaking of links, when I re-watch episodes of WC, which is frequently, I try to catch the ad libs and inside jokes. I can’t remember which episode, but Peter (Tim) makes a reference to the musical Pippin in a conversation with Neal (Matt) that I think is a throwback to long before WC when both Tim and Matt had been cast in a stage production of Pippin that ultimately never happened.
And, since we’re on the topic of Tim’s older work, I’ve spent considerable time recently catching up on his TV guest appearances. I don’t know how I missed The New Adventures of Old Christine when it originally aired but I’m really enjoying season 1, and I skipped ahead to see Tim’s spots in later seasons–loved it! Makes me want to see him guest on JLD’s HBO political satire Veep, and do more comedy in general.
The Practice is another favorite, on par with his Agents of SHIELD role (and now I totally understand why producer David E. Kelly is such a fan). What a brave performance, not simply because of the cross-dressing aspect but because it required such raw, totally stripped down vulnerability. I admire that Tim’s willing to take such creative risks, to explore emotional territory that might make other actors too uncomfortable or self-conscious. (This is why I think Tell Me You Love Me might be the most important TV work he’s ever done.)
I’m only halfway though season 2 of Party of Five but I skipped ahead for Tim’s role in that one too. His character seems little more than a vehicle through which series regulars Matthew Fox and Paula Devicq’s respective characters find their way back to each other, but still– Party of Five was a very credible, high-profile gig for any up-and-coming actor (not to mention that Tim just looks great in it). Willie Garson had a short recurring role on Party of Five, but I’m not that far along yet.
I have to mention Sports Night, because that’s the first of Tim’s roles that I noticed (I didn’t start watching Seinfeld until it was in syndication and even then I didn’t see Tim’s episodes until years later). I was/am a huge fan of Aaron Sorkin’s too-short-lived pre-West Wing series, and Tim’s Ray Mitchell could easily have become a regular recurring character had Sports Night continued. Given Tim’s skill at both comedy and drama, I’m surprised Sorkin didn’t bring him back for a role on West Wing (especially since he often re-used the same actors for different roles). If memory serves, Tim worked with Robert Guillaume, Felicity Huffman, and William Macy while on Sports Night. That’s like going to school for a young actor, and, if he ever does a chat, I’d love to ask him about his experience on Sports Night (which was often a challenging shoot, according to series regulars Josh Charles and Peter Krause). Incidentally, Entertainment Weekly featured the Sports Night cast in its most recent annual reunions issue, and Tim was mentioned in the article as being a significant recurring guest actor.
Thank you for posting links to Tim’s interviews at MLB.com! I’m a die-hard baseball fan, and I loved, loved, loved those interviews.