The Fatigues
"The Fatigues" | |
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Seinfeld episode | |
Episode no. | Season 8 Episode 6 |
Directed by | Andy Ackerman |
Written by | Gregg Kavet & Andy Robin |
Production code | 806 |
Original air date | October 31, 1996 |
Guest appearances | |
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"The Fatigues" is the 140th episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. This was the sixth episode for the eighth season, originally airing on October 31, 1996.[1] The episode, which centers on the theme of mentorships, won a Writers Guild of America award.
In the episode,
employee because she is too intimidated to fire him.Plot
When Cynthia dumps Bania because of his poor act, he turns to Jerry for advice. Jerry agrees to be his mentor. Hearing that Abby is looking for a new mentor, George takes her on so as to con her into studying and summarizing risk management for him. Their files get mixed, and Bania delivers Abby's summary of risk management (which earns good laughs) and George reads Jerry's routine on
Production
Writers Gregg Kavet and Andy Robin cited the episode as having the most painful editing stage of any Seinfeld episode they worked on. The filmed content ran long over the allotted 23 minutes, even by the standards of the typically packed Seinfeld episodes, and they said that the broadcast cut felt like a bare bones runthrough of the essential plot points.[2] At least one piece of deleted content was cut for reasons other than length restrictions: Initially Frank's flashback scene included close-ups of the soldiers spewing vomit towards the viewer, with a plastic shield to prevent the camera lens from being dirtied. The network ordered these shots removed, stating that they crossed the line of good taste, which director Andy Ackerman said in retrospect was the right decision.[3]
Frank's memory is dramatized with music set to Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings", as in the film Platoon; however, Kavet and Robin said they were not trying to parody any film in particular, but war films in general.[3]
While most of the risk management book's quoted text was scripted by Kavet and Robin, actor Jason Alexander added on the line "And what makes it so risky?"[2]
A professional chef was hired for the sole purpose of performing Frank's one-handed egg cracking, but he had difficulty performing under the pressure of filming, and after numerous takes with messy egg-crackings, the egg was cracked by a member of the production crew.[2]
Reception
The episode and
References
- ^ "Seinfeld Season 8 Episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
- ^ a b c Kavet, Gregg, Robin, Andy (2007). Seinfeld Season 8: Audio Commentary – "The Fatigues" (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
- ^ a b Seinfeld Season 8: Inside Look – "The Fatigues" (DVD). Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. 2007.
- ^ "wga awards". Wga.org. 2009-07-11. Archived from the original on 2012-05-25. Retrieved 2012-05-01.
External links
- "The Fatigues" at IMDb