“The Pothole” is the 150th episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. It was the 16th episode of the eighth season and aired on February 20, 1997. It was written by Steve O'Donnell and Dan O'Keefe and was directed by Andy Ackerman.
Plot
Jerry's girlfriend Jenna uses the toothbrush that Jerry accidentally knocked into the toilet before he can warn her, causing Jerry to avoid kissing her. He secretly sterilizes her mouth, but can't get past the fact that she used her dirty toothbrush. Meanwhile, Elaine tries to order the Supreme Flounder from a Chinese restaurant. However, she lives across the street from the boundary of the restaurant's delivery area. As a result, they refuse to deliver to her, so she plans on using the janitor's closet in the building across the street as her "apartment." George receives a new keychain from George Steinbrenner due to Phil Rizzuto's induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, only to lose it while jumping over a pothole, which has been paved over. Kramer adopts the Arthur Burkhardt Expressway through the Adopt a Highway program and cleans it up, while repainting the highway, causing it to have two extra wide lanes. This is to make the ride more "luxurious," but instead results in disaster and confusion among the drivers.
When Jenna discovered what happened to her toothbrush, she put something in Jerry's toilet and refuses to tell him what the object was, causing him to throw out nearly everything he owns, but later finds out that it was merely a toilet brush. Elaine has to haul trash, as the building's superintendent believes that she really is the janitor. Unwilling to pay the city's maintenance crew, George decides to get his key chain himself. Wearing construction gear and using a jackhammer, George accidentally hits a water main while digging, causing his key chain to fly into the air as well as sending water up Jenna's toilet, soaking her. Jerry abandons her as a result. While driving, Elaine reaches Kramer's "luxurious" lane, driving all over the place, causing a sewing machine to fall out. Kramer tries to fix his road with paint thinner, but he accidentally spills the flammable substance all over the road. Newman drives by, carrying his load of fish, but accidentally hits and drags the sewing machine along the road, causing sparks to fly out. The sparks eventually hits the paint thinner, causing the truck to go up in flames. The episode ends with a crispy Newman walking down the road without his truck, with Kramer at the side of the road, watching crispy Newman walk by.
Notes About Nothing
- Jerry's girlfriend (Jenna) is played by Kristin Davis, who is famous for her role as Charlotte York in the popular television series Sex and the City. She briefly reappears in the episode "The Butter Shave" dating Kenny Bania, another comedian whom Jerry has little respect for.
Quotes
- George: Keys. I can't find my keys.
- Jerry: You lost Phil Rizzuto's head?!
- George: Have you seen 'em?
- Jerry: No.
- George: Dammit!
- Kramer: C'mon, retrace your steps. What d'you do today?
- George: I got up, I was supposed to go to work, I came here instead.
- Kramer: Right.
- Jerry: Well, they're not here. You'll have to dig up your spare set.
- George: I don't have a spare set. All my keys say 'do not duplicate'.
- Jerry: So?
- George: So you can't duplicate 'em.
- (Jerry and Kramer exchange a look, and laugh)
- Kramer: Sure you can. (to Jerry) Such a sweet kid.
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- Elaine: You still couldn't kiss her?
- Jerry: She has a taint. I can't see it, but I know it's there.
- Elaine: Oh, so now you're finding fault on a sub-atomic level.
- Jerry: Maybe if I could shrink myself down, like in Fantastic Voyage, and get inside a microscopic submarine, I could be sure. Although if there was something there, it might be pretty scary. Course, I would have that laser.
- Elaine: Jer, do you see where this is going?
- Jerry: Being really clean and happy?
- Elaine: Jerry, you have tendencies. They're always annoying, but they were just tendencies. But now, if you can't kiss this girl, I'm afraid we're talking disorder.
- Jerry: Disorder?
- Elaine: And from disorder, you're a quirk or two away from full-on dementia.
- Jerry: Hmm, that could hurt me.
- Newman: (Screams as his car catches on fire) Oh the humanity!
| Season Eight Episodes |
|---|
| The Foundation | The Soul Mate | The Bizarro Jerry | The Little Kicks | The Package | The Fatigues | The Checks | The Chicken Roaster | The Abstinence | The Andrea Doria | The Little Jerry | The Money | The Comeback | The Van Buren Boys | The Susie | The Pothole | The English Patient | The Nap | The Yada Yada | The Millennium | The Muffin Tops | The Summer of George |