TVSquad

(S07E10) "It's the Seinfeld reunion! That's a big deal!" - Cheryl

Yes, it is a big deal. A little over eleven years after we saw Jerry, Elaine, Kramer, and George behind bars, the reunion we've all been waiting for has finally arrived. I'm not sure if this even counts as a category to classify TV shows, but last night's Curb Your Enthusiasm season finale was easily the best "show within a show" episode I've ever seen... of any show.

Jane was kind enough to step in for me and write up last week's penultimate ep and I actually waited until last night to see that one as well -- I watched them back to back. I was struck by how well it all flowed together; how much it actually felt like we were watching a real episode of Seinfeld, even during the table read. However, seeing it play out, scene by scene, in the finale? Talk about nostalgia.

(S07E09) "You don't loan Jason anything ... anything that can be inserted." - Jerry Seinfeld to Larry David, about the pen Larry loaned to Jason Alexander

It's me, the Fill-In Girl! And thank you so much, Jonathan, for leaving me with the mammoth responsibility of writing a thoughtful review about the Seinfeld reunion on Curb Your Enthusiasm. I'll do my best.

First of all, it was really great to see the gang back together again. It's like they've never been apart, and the whole scenario of a behind-the-scenes look at a table read of a Seinfeld reunion show put together by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld was pretty brilliant.

And yet, it fit right in with Curb, bringing in elements like Cheryl being Larry's real wife and are they together or not, and is she a real actress or not...

(S07E08) "Some guy told me to go 'f*ck my face' once. He went to jail." - Officer Krupke

With the Seinfeld reunion coming up quickly (next week's episode is "The Table Read") things kicked into high gear last night on Curb -- especially when it came to the role of Amanda, George Costanza's ex-wife.

It came down to Cheryl and a busy, very popular actress named Virgina Sloane (played by Elisabeth Shue). Right off the bat, that creates a huge conflict since Larry assured Cheryl that she had the role. But beyond that, there were a lot of issues with how "Officer Krupke" played out in terms of conflict. Curb works best when the laughs are organic and too much of this episode felt forced and manufactured.

(S07E07) "Look, it may have been an accident, but you're a murderer." - Marty

Blame is a funny thing. In the absence of facts, the owner of the blame (i.e. the person at fault), is about one thing and one thing only -- public perception. Spin a good yarn and you can make 'em believe whatever you want. However, when you're Larry David, getting past the hurdle of your own reputation can be an issue. If you listen to even half the stuff that Larry says, why would anyone want to believe a guy like him?

(S07E06) "Larry?! You sprayed on Jesus??" - Maureen

For as good an episode as "The Bare Midriff" was, it still had one huge problem that has plagued many past episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm as well. The central conflict -- Maureen's exposed stomach -- was just too much of a stretch (no pun intended). Why's that? The beauty of Curb is how well it sheds light on awkward situations we all relate to. Not so much on this one, because honestly, who in their right mind would think a short shirt like that was work appropriate attire? It wasn't believable, that Maureen thought her shirt was OK for the office. Fortunately, if you were willing to look past the absurdity of the issue, it paid off with arguably one of Curb's top five endings ever.

(S07E05) "Have you noticed if she has any proclivity for chopsticks?" - Larry

It's amazing to me that the main topic of last night's Curb Your Enthusiasm, people in wheelchairs, has never been tackled by Larry before. I'm sure there have been a few wheelchair jokes in the past that I'm forgetting, but this? This was a full-blown, inappropriate mess of incorrectness and every second of it was brilliant. Save for "The Reunion," this was easily the strongest episode of the season. Wheelchairs, wrestling Rosie O'Donnell, and the return of Leon! How can you go wrong?

(S07E04) "Was there a stipulation on the gift certificate? Three hundred dollars and "take me"?" - Susie

I was afraid this might happen. As exciting as it is, even the long awaited Seinfeld reunion doesn't have the power to sustain an entire season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. After last week's reunion, I expected a lull and with that in mind, there's really no reason to be disappointed because this episode had some very funny moments. Unfortunately, not even Christian Slater's caviar addiction could save the day with such fond memories of last week's landmark half-hour still on my mind.

(S07E03) "This is your plan to get your ex-wife back. Pretty f*cking brilliant if you ask me." - Jeff

Larry David a selfish man? Nooooo. How could someone who's never given, nor has any idea how to give, someone the benefit of the doubt be a selfish guy? Wait - don't answer that. Instead ponder this: the moment we've all been waiting for - the Seinfeld reunion - has finally arrived, and we almost didn't get it because for a brief minute, it hinged on what Larry found more enjoyable, a potential funeral or a potential marriage. Selfish? How about sick.

(S07E02) "I don't like you. Why would I want to hug you?" - Larry

Larry David is not all about appearances. It's rare to see him masking his true intentions when most of the time he has absolutely no problem saying how he feels or asking for what he wants. But, much like the episode of this title indicates, when you're talking about a blowjob in a car (or anything crass or uncomfortable), it helps to dress it up a little.

(S07E01) "I'd rather have the thieves than the neighbors - the thieves don't impose." - Larry

Larry David is back, and I feel uncomfortable. Awkward moments, off-color comments, and instances of sheer disgust were all there in tonight's season premiere of Curb Your Enthusiasm. If you sit back for a second and actually consider all the different elements that made up this episode, it's pretty impressive. More often than not, an episode of Curb is just as intricately plotted out as an episode of Lost.

Remember how Curb Your Enthusiasm ended last season, with Larry posed in happy, jolly family pictures with the Blacks? Did it leave you laughing and dying to know what happens next -- or is this the end?

The answer is now known. There's more Curb Your Enthusiasm on deck, because Larry David has said yes to another HBO season.

HBO announced a seventh season of Curb. It will begin airing in early 2009, giving Larry plenty of time to write the 10 episodes planned. HBO's West Coast prez Michael Lombardo characterized Larry as "excited about it" when he presented at TCA.

That characterization is in line with comments by both Richard Lewis and Jeff Garlin, semi-regular and regular, respectively, in previous months.

And Susie Essman told the New York Post that she had auctioned off a walk-on role in season seven, so it would have been very embarrassing if she didn't know that they were all coming back.

Here's the thing about game show revivals: you have to satisfy people on two levels. For fans of the old show, you have to make the gameplay of the new show familiar enough to keep them happy and coming back. And, in order to attract new fans, you have to modernize and add touches that will suck in viewers and help build drama. That's one of the reasons why most new game shows have Who Wants to Be a Millionaire-style darkened sets with swirling lights, and depend on ominous music and tight camera angles to create drama.

Million Dollar Password, premiering Sunday at 8 PM ET, has all of that. They even nabbed Millionaire's original American host, Regis Philbin, to give it that extra bit of primetime oomph. But does it work? Well... sorta. Fans of the Allen Ludden / Tom Kennedy / Bert Convy incarnations might be dissatisfied with what they've done to their old favorite, but even an objective observer can see that the gameplay has some flaws that are going to need to be worked out for the show to succeed.

The writers' strike forced some of my favorite shows into an unexpected, summer-long hiatus and delayed the return of others. I'm grateful that shows like Lost still have new episodes, but the second half of this TV season hasn't felt the same. I especially miss the promising new series that were cut short.

It feels like other shows have been on hiatus forever. Flight of the Conchords was supposed to return this year, but had its premiere pushed back until 2009. I miss Bret, Jemaine, and their strange circle of friends. I've been wondering about the fates of several absent characters lately. So many storylines were left unresolved.

Here's a short list of some of the faces I can't wait to see again: