Time to out myself: I don’t like Seinfeld. I know that’s grounds for crucifixion in many of your eyes, but I never could get past the laugh track and the zealous nature of its fanbase. However, I adore Larry David‘s other masterstroke sitcom, Curb Your Enthusiasm. Curb has all the dry banter and pointless absurdity of Seinfeld with none of the compromises of network television. David has always been sporadic with producing new seasons of Curb, and he’s been on hiatus from the show since 2011. Many wondered if the show had unceremoniously been put to rest, seeing as how David has promised never to do a traditional finale ever again after the mixed reaction to the end of Seinfeld.
Well, today’s news is making me feel pretty, pretty good. HBO has confirmed that David will be returning for a ninth season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Of course, nothing is known about the upcoming season’s story but I’m sure we’ll here some interesting casting bits by the end of the year. Curb has courted a number of notable performers over the years — my favorite being Mel Brooks when Larry was cast in a staging of The Producers — and the show’s popularity among celebrities is bound to rope a few new faces into having some fun. My hope is that David can get some of the people he’s worked in the past like Michael Keaton, Jon Hamm, Danny McBride, or even Woody Allen to show up for a bit and goof around.
Curb Your Enthusiasm is HBO’s longest-running scripted series and for a good reason: it’s consistently funny. The first season (like most first seasons) is a little wobbly but it’s an extremely short period of growing pains. The show falls into its rhythm quickly and never stops. If you haven’t watched it, there’s no better time than the present. There hasn’t been a release date set for the new season, but it’s likely we’ll see it before the end of 2017.
I cannot wait for more Leon.
