The Invitations
| "The Invitations" | |
|---|---|
| Seinfeld episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 7 Episode 24 |
| Directed by | Andy Ackerman |
| Written by | Larry David |
| Production code | 724 |
| Original air date | May 16, 1996 |
| Guest stars | |
| Season 7 episodes | |
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| List of Seinfeld episodes | |
"The Invitations" is the 24th and final episode of the seventh season of Seinfeld and the 134th overall episode. It originally aired on May 16, 1996. It is notable as being the last episode written by co-creator Larry David before he left the series at the end of this season. He did return, however, to write the series finale in 1998. This episode was directed by Andy Ackerman.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
George and Susan go shopping for wedding invitations and George decides to buy the cheapest brand in the store. As they run into Kramer, he calls Susan "Lily", much to Susan's annoyance. Then, Kramer tells Jerry that the bank will offer anyone $100 if they are not greeted with a "hello" by a teller when they enter the building.
Jerry and Elaine realize that once George gets married it will be just the three of them. At night, Elaine admits that she is also leaving the group, leaving Jerry and Kramer. In a dream sequence, Jerry and Kramer argue about inventing a periscope for use in an automobile, until he is jarred back to reality by almost getting hit by a car and is saved by a woman named Jeannie Steinman (Janeane Garofalo).
Meanwhile, George tells Susan that Elaine wants to be an usher at their wedding, but Susan says no, saying that there will be no female ushers. She also says Kramer is no longer an usher since he called her Lily. George warns Susan that if she won't let them be ushers, the two will be devastated. Susan tells George that she doesn't care, and that she'll just let it happen.
The next day, George tells Elaine and Kramer the news when they get to Jerry's house. Jerry tells them about Jeannie. George admits that he didn't want to be with Susan after they got engaged and that he needs to find a way to get out of the relationship without confronting Susan. Elaine suggests smoking in front of Susan since she hates it. Unfortunately, it doesn't work because it makes him sick and Susan is not convinced. Kramer suggests a prenuptial agreement. As George tries it, Susan laughs out loud at him and George realizes he is stuck with the situation. Kramer goes to the bank and upon being greeted with the word "hey" instead of "hello", he asks to see the manager (Stephen Root).
Meanwhile, George and Susan receive a box of invitations. As George leaves the house, Susan begins licking the envelopes, commenting "Ugh! Awful!" Jerry, however, goes to the bar, only to run into Jeannie again and proposes to her as they become engaged.
Meanwhile, Susan keeps licking the envelopes and she gets sick and then passes out. George goes to the bar and celebrates Jerry and Jeannie's proposal. Jerry and Jeannie go to Monk's Cafe. George goes back to his apartment, only to find that Susan has collapsed on the couch. At Jerry's apartment, Jerry tells Kramer that he doesn't think that Jeannie is his type and he shows regret at getting engaged with her. Kramer tells Jerry that he was unable to get $100 but only to get $20 from the bank. George calls and says that he took Susan to the hospital.
At the hospital, the trio (with Elaine) wait for a reply from the doctor, but he says that Susan has died from licking the envelopes (it was revealed that they were toxic). The trio show sympathy for George. After a brief pause, George casually suggests that the group go out for coffee.
George goes back to his apartment and tries to call Marisa Tomei to have a date with him after the funeral, but she hangs up (much to George's surprise).
[edit] Reaction
There was a very mixed reception to the episode's ending — it generated many letters to publications such as TV Guide as to the tastelessness of Susan's demise, and the characters' hollow reactions. Seinfeld mocked the backlash in the first scenes of The Foundation, the following season's opener, where Jerry and George visit Susan's grave. The two only show any emotion when they start remembering the death of Spock in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
Heidi Swedberg, who played Susan, has stated she enjoyed the fact her character was killed off and had no problem with it, adding in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that fans of the show liked that the main characters were not nice people who "express the things the rest of us think but don't want to admit." Fans expressed frustration and resentment to her when she was recognized on the street for months after the episode's broadcast. Similarly, Jason Alexander claims that the George fanbase has only ever turned on him in anger twice, one being because of the suggestion that George murdered Susan. The other was the instance of George eating an éclair out of a trash can.[1]
Larry David later remarked that in retrospect, he was surprised that he killed off Susan in such a manner.
[edit] Episode Notes
- Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, a confessed fan of the show, long portrayed on Seinfeld by the voice of Larry David, filmed scenes for a guest appearance in this episode, but none of the footage made it to air. Reportedly, Steinbrenner disapproved of the morbid plot twist in which Susan is killed; and the gang's apparent indifference towards it. Steinbrenner has publicly stated his objections to the story several times, and said that is the reason he refused to allow his cameo to be shown. However, the Season Seven DVD release indicates that the scenes were cut simply for time, and that Steinbrenner and the producers of the show hold no grudge.
- Jerry and Jeannie mention that they are scheduled to be married on September 21, the first day of Fall. That would have occurred on September 21, 1996, exactly a year after the seventh season began and George proposed to Susan.
- The bank manager is played by Stephen Root in a cameo, who was starring in NewsRadio (which also aired on NBC) during this time.
- The cigarettes George smokes in the episode are American Spirits.
- This episode was temporarily pulled from syndication in the wake of the 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States. The episode returned to syndication in the summer of 2002.
- This is the last episode to feature Larry David as executive producer. He later returned to write the two-part finale and continued to voice the character of George Steinbrenner for the remainder of the series.
- It's also the last episode to open with Jerry performing his famous stand-up comedy until the finale in 1998.
- When Susan asks who she should invite to the wedding, she mentions "The Drake" who was seen in Season 4's "The Handicap Spot".
- During the montage, Jerry reads a Superman comic book while Jeannie reads a Supergirl comic book.
- The doctor is not named, but the character is played by Victor Raider-Wexler, who also portrayed "Dr. Siegel," the surgeon in "The Junior Mint," as well as "Dr. Wexler" in "The Summer of George" and "The Finale: Part II." In the latter, Dr. Wexler is clearly identified as the doctor in "The Invitations."
[edit] Reference list
- ^ Seinfeld: Volume 6 - The Complete 7th Season. Inside Look. "The Invitations"
[edit] External links
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