Widely regarded as one of the best sitcom TV shows of all time,Seinfeldis just as compelling today as when it started airing in 1989. Starring Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards as the core group of friends living in New York City and getting themselves into hilarious everyday situations,Seinfeldmade its mark because there was nothing else like it.
One of the best parts ofSeinfeldis the way the show handles romance,and the fact that it doesn’t give too much weight to relationship storylines. Thebest sitcom romances of all timehave gone down in history for the actors' great chemistry and the slow build of tension throughout the seasons. Developing a serious romantic relationship would’ve completely changed the series.
Jerry & Elaine’s Seinfeld Romance Was Obvious, And That’s Why Larry David Didn’t Want It
For most sitcoms,it takes the audience only a few seconds to single out which two characters have the best chemistryand are the most likely romantic partners. ForSeinfeld, this was Elaine and Jerry. However, the show never explored this dynamic any more than it absolutely had to. Plenty ofwill-they-won’t-they TV relationships go on for too long, butSeinfeldknew to avoid this.
In a conversation withThe Times, Julia Louis-Dreyfus opened up about how showrunner Larry David was against focusing on the relationship between Jerry and Elaine:
Oh, the network wanted it! They wanted a will-they, won’t-they, all that crap. But Larry was just immovable on that point. The show was built on doing things that were outside the norm, so doing something stereotypical would have been atypical of the show.
The reason thatSeinfeldhas stood the test of time is that it never did what was expected of it or followed the well-known formulas of the genre. As one of the driving creative forces behind the series,David was not someone who would cave to network demands,especially when it came to the tone and direction of the character arcs.
Though there are many ways that a TV show can make these brewing romances fresh,using a relationship between Elaine and Jerry as an overarching plotline would’ve been incredibly predictable.There has to be an element of sincerity and a sentimental streak in a TV show for the audience to believe that these slow-burn romances can happen, andSeinfelddoesn’t have that.
Larry David Was Right: A Predictable Romance Wouldn’t Fit With The Rest Of The Show
This Type Of Relationship Was The Opposite Of Seinfeld’s Ethos
The way thatSeinfeldtypically dealt with the characters' romantic partners illustrates the true intention of the show. There are a few people who stick around as guests or recurring parts, but the main characters are quick to discard them, or get dumped themselves, which is always mined for hilarious, uncomfortable moments.Seinfeldwas about the friendships between the protagonistsand their often-bad behavior.
Seinfeldis called the show about nothing, but what that really means is that the series favors the joke of every episode and thrives when the characters don’t evolve. Introducing a genuine romance would disrupt the dynamic of the characters and the structure of a typical episode ofSeinfeld.Jerry and Elaine would’ve had to grow and change within this relationship,and that might have ended the series.
There’s nothing wrong with sitcom romances and the tension they spark within the series' narrative, butSeinfeldwas never intended to have that kind of story.Seinfeldwas at its best when it leaned into the situational side of its humorand used its well-understood characters to explore them. Jerry and Elaine make sense on paper, but their relationship was the funniest in the form of friendship.
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It’s For The Best That Jerry & Elaine Never Got Back Together In Seinfeld
This Relationship Wasn’t What Seinfeld Was About
WhenElaine and Jerry rekindle their off-screen relationship in season 2,but this doesn’t last long, and is only ever mined for comedy about how to handle reconnecting with an ex. There’s little question that Seinfeld and Louis-Dreyfus' chemistry shone in comedic moments, not romantic ones, so they never started things up again after this.
There are some moments of tension between the characters asSeinfeldprogresses. However, they’re never taken any further than some loaded glances or prolonged silences. The fact that the pair were once romantically entangled is simply a layer of their dynamic and serves to illustrate how Jerry behaves with women in general, as well as Elaine’s own tendencies in relationships.
WhenSeinfelddoes bring up the fact that they were together, it’s almost ridiculous to think about it.
WhenSeinfelddoes bring up the fact that they were together, it’s almost ridiculous to think about it, because few audiences were watching the show in the hopes that Jerry and Elaine would end up together. The fact thatSeinfeldbecame so popular and iconic within the genre proves that romance is fun, but it doesn’t have to be the driving force of a story.
