(S06E04) "She has bowel concern for you and I do too!" - Richard Lewis
For a show where the main character does nothing but sh*t on people, or in turn only gets sh*t on, I suppose it only makes sense that there would be an episode devoted entirely to... well, sh*t. Notice how this episode played out though. Rather than a few random stories that only sort of intertwined (like we've seen this season), everything in this episode stemmed from one action: Larry got Cha-Cha (Richard Lewis' girlfriend) a receptionist job at the office down the hall from his. How could poor old Larry have possibly realized that it would lead to some temporary deafness and pain in his right ear?
Now some may have noticed this, but TV Guide (and even my local cable provider) had this episode listed as "The Bathroom Monitor." There must have been a title change after schedules had been released because HBO's website had the episode listed as "The Lefty Call." Considering how the episode ended, I think the latter makes more sense.
First off, let's talk about Cha-Cha. Tia Carrere is great in this role. It always surprises me which actors and actresses seem to thrive in David's largely improvised world. From her non-stop yak-yak-yak attitude, to her copious mental notes of Larry's bowel movements, she nailed every motion that her character needed to get through. Throw in her deceit by offering privileged bathroom info to the waiter and her accidental assumption that Larry was hitting on her over the phone? She had me laughing throughout the whole episode.
The whole ordeal with the injured right ear was a bit much to begin with (Larry's performance as he flushed the "sonic boom" toilet was ridiculous), but it made it worth it by the end. Having to rely on his left ear was hilarious. Even better was the acknowledgment that using your right ear is considered to be superior as evidenced by Richard Lewis's distaste when Larry called Burt's wife using his left ear. Hence, the "lefty call."
Other stuff I enjoyed...
- When the doctor asked Larry about his bathroom habits. Despite the fact that L.D. didn't feel as though it was necessary to the diagnosis, I love how Larry has this knack of telling someone everything and nothing all at the same time.
- The two covert missions in the episode. Handing off the doggie-bag to Jeff in the parking lot and hiding the good toilet paper from Cheryl.
And of course, keeping with the trend of being slightly more inappropriate than usual this season, the episode ended with Leon beating down a cancer patient who Larry mistook for a skinhead who had previously insulted him. I'm not sure who, but one or two readers have commented on past episodes this season that maybe David is doing it on purpose. Trying to be so offensive and bad that people lose interest, ratings tank, and this does indeed become the last season. I don't think it'll work. Thus far this season has been just so-so, but this episode definitely renewed my interest. Besides, I'm kind of hoping that Larry and Richard Lewis' colon contest comes to fruition.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-01-2007 @ 10:25AM
Lee said...
"Thus far this season has been just so-so...."
Huh?
Have we been watching a different show?
Everybody I know & myself have been laughing very hard at this season. Last week's episode was a classic in the entire series.
Stop Taking It So Seriously Jonathan. You'll enjoy it alot more.
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10-01-2007 @ 12:01PM
Jackie said...
I liked the snooty waiter played by Taylor Negron. It was the perfect mix of arrogance and pretentiousness for someone who would refuse to give someone a meal they paid for because it was going to be fed with the dog. We got the classic Larry David staredown too when he returns to confront the waiter.
I don't know how Larry is able not to rage all over Cha-cha. It's not like he's the kind of person that holds back insenstive thoughts. If he can downplay a miscarriage, he can certainly open fire all over Cha-cha for her obsession about Larry's bathroom habits.
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10-01-2007 @ 12:02PM
SJ said...
The funniest scene for me (out of many) was definitely the "beat-down" Larry got from the barber.
This season has been good so far, but this episode was just hilarious.
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10-01-2007 @ 1:02PM
RL said...
Tia Carrere was amazing in this role. I haven't seen her for years and honestly she looked awesome. Sexy but still able to act the role of the "ditzy" Cha Cha. It's tough to act dumb. c
What will happen next with her character?
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10-01-2007 @ 3:00PM
Dave said...
do the editors require the asterisk-ization of the word shit? If they can say it on NYPD Blue, you should be able to read it on TV Squad.
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10-01-2007 @ 3:28PM
steve said...
i think last weeks episode has been the best so far .... but last nights was still hilarious ... the jew squirrel line by richard lewis had me on the floor laughing. this season is almost halfway over. so sad
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10-01-2007 @ 4:46PM
Gaz said...
This season has been great, edgy and LD is always reinventing his special brand of comedy. I could so relate to this episode with all of the issues regarding the bathroom and the required pre and post chats. Also the comments about having nine children were spot on.
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10-01-2007 @ 4:46PM
Gaz said...
I've loved this season, it's edgy, sharp and LD has reinvented his special brand of humour. I actually felt sorry for him as he was a victim of circumstances. I guess this is what happens when you are nice to people. The comments about the nine children were spot on :-)
Long live LD
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10-01-2007 @ 4:47PM
Gaz said...
oops, sorry about the double comment
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10-02-2007 @ 1:33PM
JF said...
I thought this episode was kinda lagging until the end with richard lewis and larry david at his front door. The scene on the phone with cha cha was pretty funny too. Good season overall.
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10-03-2007 @ 7:51AM
Phish said...
this show should have ended last season. i think its been played out. maybe larry has a couple of good storylines and is saving it for the end of season finale, which will prob be the end of the series too.
in the meantime, we'll have to put up with more eps like this, mediocre one.
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10-03-2007 @ 10:31AM
Verbal said...
This episode wasn't the best but this season has mightily improved over the past couple. Nothing can compare to the first three seasons but season six is already a great improvement over season five. And probably marginally better or equal to season four.
What I'm trying to figure out is what role are the Blacks going to play in all this. As of yet they've only contributed side plots and nothing substantial. They definitely have to have a bigger role. I'm just waiting for it all to blow up in LD's face.
And a note about Larry's reaction to the toilet noise. I agree, completely and utterly ridiculous. I understand the need to setup the whole ear thing, but that was beyond being silly.
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